This was...
"Biwako Sarutobi?" Hearing the slightly puzzled voice, Chiba instinctively turned his head. What came into view was a stern-looking, somewhat elderly woman staring at him, faint surprise seemingly showing on her serious face.
She looked remarkably familiar.
And instinctively, that thought rose in Chiba's heart.
"It really is you. What brings you here?"
At that moment, after getting a clear look at Chiba's face, the woman spoke. Though her expression remained stern, the corners of her eyes and brows had softened somewhat. She seemed kindly beneath that seriousness, clearly quite friendly toward Chiba.
There was no mistake—it was Biwako Sarutobi. Although she had appeared only once in the original work, and her image in his memory was rather vague.
But at this time, in this place, coupled with her appearance matching his vague recollection, she was undoubtedly Biwako Sarutobi.
At that moment, Chiba fully confirmed that the person before him was the Third Hokage's wife, Biwako Sarutobi, who had appeared in the original work only during Kushina's delivery, before the Nine-Tails' Rampage.
"May I ask who you are?"
Still, although Chiba knew perfectly well that she was Biwako Sarutobi, he deliberately spoke with confusion.
After all, since transmigrating into this Naruto World, this was his first time meeting Biwako Sarutobi. That was how he ought to act.
"Biwako Sarutobi, wife of Hiruzen Sarutobi, the Third Hokage."
Though she faced a junior and retained a stern expression, the woman's response was poised and graceful. Though she identified herself as the Third Hokage's wife, she sounded neither arrogant nor impetuous. From that sentence alone, Chiba could sense this woman's extraordinary bearing.
"Hello."
After hearing Biwako Sarutobi's words, Chiba paused briefly, seemingly gathering his thoughts before greeting her and answering her earlier question. "I'd like to see the Third Hokage."
"Is