ANBU Building.
Interrogation room.
An ANBU member stared at Shinji and slowly asked, "Is that the full account of what happened?"
"Yeah."
Shinji nodded honestly.
Other than what he should not have said, he had told them everything.
The ANBU asked, "Based on your description, the mysterious man should have been far stronger than all of you. Why were you able to escape so easily?"
Shinji shook his head. "I don't know."
That was the truth. If the mysterious man had continued pursuing them, none of them would have escaped.
The ANBU did not press the matter and continued, "Was that ninja cat your summoned beast?"
"Yeah. I made the contract in the Land of Cats not long ago. Teacher Iruka issued my permit to leave the village. He can vouch for me."
The ANBU glanced at Shinji. "We'll verify that."
Afterward, the ANBU pondered for a moment before asking, "Did you notice any unusual behavior from Sasuke Uchiha?"
"What kind of unusual behavior?"
The ANBU carefully chose his words and slowly asked, "For example, on the way to the Root Base, could his panic have been an act? Or when you escaped together, was he using you to hold off the Root ninja pursuing you?"
Shinji frowned.
He realized that the ANBU suspected Sasuke.
That was no good for him. No matter how many suspicious points Sasuke had, as long as he had done nothing, the investigation would eventually clear things up. If Shinji followed the ANBU's suspicions and pinned everything on Sasuke now, he would definitely suffer the consequences later.
So he replied, "I was responsible for covering the rear. That was a strategy we agreed on from the start. He didn't use me."
The ANBU's tone grew heavier. "He didn't lead you into it?"
"No!" Shinji shook