Sizzle!
"Sizzle... sizzle..."
The sound of tender beef and fatty pork belly hitting the griddle, along with the splattering grease, sizzled all around them.
The aroma of grilled meat spread freely through the air.
"So, now that you're back, you won't be leaving again?"
Watching a piece of specially prepared barbecue, grilled to perfection, get picked up and brought to the white-haired man's mouth, Kakashi gently set down his sake cup and spoke.
At those words, Might Guy and the white-haired young Asuma, seated beside Kakashi, also set down their cups and looked toward the white-haired young man across from them.
After finishing a drink, Kakashi got straight to the point and asked the question all three of them cared about most.
Whether the white-haired young man—Chiba—was planning to leave again.
"With things as they are... I can't exactly leave, can I?"
Chiba, who had just swallowed the rich juices with an expression of deep enjoyment, immediately pulled a bitter face.
He looked like he was saying, "Even if I wanted to leave, I couldn't."
Honestly, at this point, he had already taken over most of the Hokage's authority. Though the Third Hokage had not said it outright, Chiba was essentially Konoha's acting Hokage at this stage. The Third Hokage had always intended to elevate him, and even several years ago, through their regular exchanges of information, he had hinted at wanting Chiba to return and take charge of Konoha.
Now that Chiba had returned to Konoha after more than ten years, the Third Hokage had eagerly arranged for him to take over authority without even observing whether he had changed during that time. He had also wasted no time informing the entire shinobi community that Chiba, who had never actually died and had merely been declared dead for special