Bang! Bang! Bang!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
As he repeatedly pounded on the iron door of the cell before him, Chiba's brows furrowed slightly, and flickering firelight danced in his eyes.
What's going on?
Did Kakashi apply for another torch for Hirohiko today? A trace of suspicion flashed through his mind.
"Who is it?"
At that moment, Hirohiko's voice came from inside the cell.
Chiba did not answer. He simply pushed at the door, only to find that it opened with a single shove.
Creeeak!
Amid the grating sound of the iron door opening, Chiba stepped forward in slight astonishment.
What's going on? Why wasn't the door locked?
Could it be...
Before that step could land, however, he froze. The shock on his face flashed past in an instant.
"I didn't expect them to come so soon."
Then, after his foot had hung in the air for quite some time, Chiba finally set it down. His expression gradually turned solemn as he spoke in a low voice.
At that moment, inside the cramped cell before him, an adult ninja lay facedown at Hirohiko's feet beside the bed. Judging by the forehead protector on his head, he was likely from Kirigakure.
The adult ninja's eyes were wide with terror, his face frozen in an expression as though he had witnessed the greatest horror of his life. His mouth was stretched nearly as wide as it could go, as if he were about to let out a terrified scream. In his hand, he clutched a kunai in a stabbing posture. From the strange sheen at the kunai's tip in the firelight, it was clear that it had been coated with some kind of poison.
"Ah, thanks to your warning. Otherwise, I would have fallen for it."
Following Chiba's gaze and