The next morning.
Drake stepped out with dark circles under his eyes — and a swollen bump on his head.
Since he had to cook for himself, he left the house just a tiny bit late.
Training Ground No. 7.
"Yaaawn~"
Obito stretched and looked around.
"Where's Drake? Why isn't he here yet?"
He had arrived first, followed by Rin, and then Kakashi.
By now, they had waited over an hour — yet not only was Drake missing, even their sensei Minato hadn't shown up.
Wasn't this just messing with them?
"Yo! Sorry I'm late!"
A figure suddenly appeared in a flash — Minato Namikaze.
His gaze swept over the group, then paused.
Hm?
Someone is later than even me?
"Where's Drake?" Minato asked.
"No idea. Probably tripped on the way or something," Obito muttered.
"Maybe he's still sleeping?" Rin said softly.
"Tch." Kakashi snorted in clear dissatisfaction.
Just then, a figure came running toward the training ground.
And of course — it was Drake.
"Sorry, sorry… I fell on the way," he said, pointing at the bump on his head for emphasis.
"Wait… you really did fall?" Obito stared in disbelief.
He had only said it casually — but there really was a lump on Drake's forehead.
"Are you okay?" Rin asked with concern.
"I'm fine, I'm fine. Just a small fall," Drake waved it off casually.
"But your clothes look kinda puffed up…" Rin tilted her head.
"Oh, probably just swelling."
He clearly couldn't care less.
Even Minato raised an eyebrow in slight surprise at his indifference.
Kakashi merely glanced at the bump, then turned away again.
"Alright. Since everyone is here, it's time for teamwork training."
Minato cleared his throat.
"Your task is simple — take the bell from me."
As he spoke, a small bell appeared in his hand, which he shook lightly before fastening it to his waist.
"You can use any method you like!"
"As long as you get the bell, you pass."
"Fail… and there will be punishment."
The moment those words left his mouth, Kakashi moved.
Without saying a word, he lunged straight at Minato.
"So eager?" Minato chuckled, sidestepping with a light movement and dodging the sneak attack effortlessly.
The two immediately entered a tense exchange.
"Bell-snatching is about teamwork, you know. Kakashi's such an idiot," Obito said while watching, not missing the chance to trash his rival.
"This is your chance," Drake remarked calmly.
"Huh? Chance? What chance?" Obito leaned closer.
Even Rin perked up her ears, curious about what idea Drake had.
"Think about it. The longer Kakashi tangles with Sensei, the more tired they both get. When the timing is right, you rush in and snatch the bell. Isn't your success rate way higher?"
"…You're right!" Obito's eyes lit up in realization.
"Isn't that kind of dirty?" Rin hesitated. "Sensei said this was about teamwork…"
"Kakashi didn't discuss anything with us either, did he?" Obito immediately shifted the blame.
"Since he won't cooperate, the three of us will."
He patted Drake on the shoulder.
"Drake, you assist me."
"How?" Drake smiled.
"Fall down again."
Drake: ???
"You pretend to trip. I'll call Sensei over. When he lets his guard down — hehe — I'll steal the bell!"
Obito grinned confidently, even turning toward Rin as if expecting admiration.
Unfortunately…
"I don't agree with this," Rin said firmly.
"Me neither," Drake added lazily.
"Eh?" Obito froze.
Rin objecting was understandable. She was kind-hearted.
But Drake too?
Aren't we brothers?
Sighing internally, Drake pulled Obito aside.
"Obito… I'm giving you a golden opportunity here and you're wasting it."
"You have to go steal the bell alone. That's how you make Rin admire you."
"You didn't notice Kakashi is already one step ahead of you?"
Those words struck Obito like enlightenment from the heavens.
"…Brother!"
His eyes shone with gratitude.
Drake was clearly giving him center stage — whether he seized it or not now depended on his timing.
And so…
A tense scene unfolded in Training Ground No. 7.
On one side, Kakashi clashed fiercely with Minato over the bell.
On the other, Obito lurked nearby like a hunter, waiting for the perfect moment to charge in.
As time passed, the battle gradually shifted toward the edge of the training field — even spilling outside it.
Obito followed closely, eyes glued to the action.
Which left only Drake and Rin behind.
"Shouldn't we go help too?" Rin asked worriedly.
"Help and get in the way?" Drake replied casually.
Then he walked over, picked a rock, squatted down… and reached into his clothes.
One lunchbox.
Then a second.
A third.
A fourth.
When he opened them one by one, a rich aroma instantly filled the air.
Rin's eyes went wide.
"No wonder his clothes were puffed up… he hid lunchboxes… gulp..."
Right on cue, her stomach let out an embarrassing growl.
It wasn't her fault.
She had arrived early and hadn't eaten breakfast.
But while their teammates were risking life and limb for the bell, Drake was eating?
Wasn't this a little too shameless?
"What are you spacing out for? Come eat already."
Drake tossed a pair of chopsticks toward her.
"Ah… I'll just have a little bit!" Rin touched her stomach and hurried over.
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