On the lakeshore at the Valley of the End.
The ANBU serving under the Hokage had sealed off the entire area.
Through the combined efforts of the Ninja, they finally stabilized the embankment before it collapsed, preventing the lake from flooding the entire village and causing a disaster.
Though he had brought the situation under control, the Third's expression remained stormy.
An ordinary earthquake would not have troubled him so much. He feared that someone had caused it.
With the village at stake, he could not afford to be careless as Hokage.
Soon, the ANBU assigned to reconnaissance appeared before the Third using the Body Flicker Technique and reported their findings.
The intelligence confirmed that this had been nothing more than an ordinary earthquake, with no signs of human interference.
The intelligence delivered by the Hyuga Clan said the same thing, but the Third's tightly furrowed brows did not relax. His instincts told him this was no natural disaster, but a man-made one.
Fortunately, the disaster had been stopped in time, with no casualties.
After several investigations yielded nothing, the Third led the ANBU back to the village, but his suspicions had not diminished.
As the Third left with his men, the Root operatives under Danzo's command remained.
Wrapped in bandages and implanted with hashirama cells, he vaguely sensed that other secrets lay hidden beneath the lake. This was certainly more than a minor earthquake.
"Enter the fissure at the bottom of the lake and investigate thoroughly!"
Danzo gave the order, and the Root Ninja immediately dove to the bottom.
Watching the splashes as they entered the water, Danzo sensed that faint connection brought about by the hashirama cells. Having grown up hearing tales of the First's deeds, he would never let anything connected to the First's missions slip past