Pfft!
Pfft!
Two heavy thuds rang out atop the wall. The middle-aged Hyuga ninja, Yamazaki, and the young Hyuga ninja, Yamato, were yanked from behind by a sudden force and slammed hard onto the ground.
"C-Captain?"
As pain flared from the fall, Hyuga Yamazaki suddenly raised his head and looked behind him, voicing his startled doubt.
At that moment, behind where the two of them had fallen side by side stood a Konoha ninja around thirty years old. When Yamazaki looked at him, the man had already shifted his gaze away from them and toward below.
Clearly, he was looking at the Iwa spy beneath the wall.
The Konoha ninja's face had gone stiff, mingled with disbelief, suspicion, and utter incredulity.
Seeing his expression, Hyuga Yamazaki frowned slightly but fell silent, unsure what to say.
Is this... the first time I've seen the captain make an expression like that? The thought could not help but cross his mind. Beside him, the young Hyuga Yamato glanced at Yamazaki, then at their captain. For a moment, he opened his mouth but could not find the words.
Wh-What should we do? Is the captain... angry? Hyuga Yamato thought in alarm.
"Hm? Who are you?"
At that moment, Chiba's body relaxed slightly. He shifted his attention away from the two Hyuga ninja who had fallen out of sight behind the wall and focused on the Konoha ninja in his thirties, who had stepped two paces forward so Chiba could see him clearly.
"Y-You... you really are Chiba?"
The Konoha ninja spoke with some hesitation. Though he did his best to conceal it and force a stern, cold expression onto his face, the slight tremor in his voice and the barely restrained excitement in his eyes revealed the turmoil in his heart.
"Captain Sato? Captain