"Ch... Chiba?"
As Chiba opened the door to the Japanese-style wooden house and stepped inside, Yukina's slightly surprised voice came from within.
"Ah! I have something to do. Want to eat together later?"
Chiba hurriedly spoke, but headed straight for the kitchen.
"No. I already promised Liang I'd eat with her, and I can't leave here anyway."
Hearing this, Yukina, who was sitting upright at the low table engraving Braille, stopped what she was doing, turned her head toward the kitchen, and spoke.
Liang? Chiba froze at those words. The hand he had placed on the table, just about to move it, abruptly stopped, and he sharply turned his head toward the living room.
Seriously!
How could I forget? Yukina isn't the only one at home now!
His heart tightened slightly. He had been too rash this time. The Japanese-style wooden house was now practically the Defense Force's command post. It was not occupied by just the few of them; two other shinobi were stationed here permanently.
Though the underground laboratory served as a cover, they still needed to be cautious where caution was due.
After all, Hyuga Yukyō was a sensitive figure now—one could even say a criminal, just like Hirohiko.
Chiba had never asked what exactly had happened to Hyuga Yukyō, forcing him to hide beneath their house. But judging from the fact that he had lost an eye and an arm, he must have fought someone, and it had been to protect Yukina. As for what he had protected Yukina from, Chiba guessed that when Yukina was about to be branded with the Caged Bird Seal, he had finally been unable to hold back and made his move. Naturally, the people he had attacked had been members of the Hyuga Clan. That alone was enough to constitute