"The first time... the first time I visited your home as a guest, the first dish was tricolor dango—Lady Biwako's tricolor dango. The second was curry. Those were the only two dishes that day. Asuma tried to snatch my food and got scolded for it."
Upon hearing the Third Hokage's words, Chiba answered without the slightest hesitation.
He had to prove who he was.
Naturally, he had to prove his identity.
And he had a way to prove it to the Third Hokage. Though they had not crossed paths often, they had not crossed paths rarely either. There were plenty of secrets known only to the two of them.
Among those secrets, the most suitable under the current circumstances were the times he had visited the Third Hokage's home.
After all, the Third Hokage likely suspected him of being Uchiha Nobuhiko. Given Uchiha Nobuhiko's intelligence-gathering abilities, some secrets could not truly serve as proof of identity.
Uchiha Nobuhiko might have learned them. The Third Hokage would suspect even the contents of certain secret meetings.
No matter how confidential a meeting was, they still had to beware of listening ears beyond the walls.
But a private dinner like this, held within the Sarutobi Clan compound—the Third Hokage's own territory—could guarantee the confidentiality of the information.
First, the Sarutobi Clan was the Third Hokage's territory. With his capabilities, he naturally had perfect control over the flow of intelligence throughout the clan. Second, the Sarutobi Clan compound was now the Hokage's residence. If intelligence about a private banquet at the Hokage's own residence could spread on its own—or be discovered by Uchiha Nobuhiko—then Konoha's intelligence division might as well retire. And Uchiha Nobuhiko would not have needed to go to such lengths to seize the Nine-Tails. The Nine-Tails would have long since been