"Sasuke, we've only been gone for two years, but the village has changed so much."
Naruto was still wearing that same orange tracksuit. Even after leaving the village for two years, the outfit was still highly recognizable.
Besides, he was the only person in the entire Hidden Leaf Village with six whiskers on his face.
"Yeah."
Compared to Naruto, who was looking around and bouncing all over the place, Sasuke seemed far more reserved.
Still, he was also struck by the village's changes.
The Hidden Leaf Village had changed more in these two years than it had in the decade or so he had lived there.
"Alright, we can look around the village whenever we want. For now, let's go find Hinata and tell them we're back."
Though she might already know.
Jiraiya silently added in his heart.
Then, they arrived at the newly renovated Hokage Building.
"How did they build such a tall building?"
Naruto's mouth fell open. He had never seen a building this tall before.
"Of course, they used ninjutsu. Did you think a building like this could be built with ordinary manpower?"
Only then did Naruto notice a young girl standing amid the bustling crowd at the building's entrance.
At that moment, the girl seemed somewhat out of place among the people around her.
"You are?"
Sasuke found her familiar. He had guessed who she was, but he did not dare confirm it.
"Hmph." In response to Sasuke's question, the girl snorted coldly. "Follow me. Hokage-sama is waiting for you."
Then she turned and left, not in the slightest worried about whether Naruto and the others could keep up. She simply walked on by herself.
Sasuke: "..."
Alright, he had recognized who she was.
"Sasuke, who is that?"
Slow as ever, Naruto still had not recognized