"Araki of the Mist Village?! Why are you here?"
Shimura Danzō was startled. Even as he assumed a guarded stance, he barked out the question.
At the same time, Yashiro Uchiha and Hyuga Ko beside him both brought out their signature abilities. Two pairs of Three-Tomoe spun rapidly in their eye sockets, while veins bulged around the immaculate white pupils.
"Lord Danzo, there is only one enemy. There are no other chakra sources within two kilometers."
Hyuga Ko reported his observations in a low voice.
Hearing that the newcomer was alone, Danzo finally relaxed slightly.
It was not that Danzo was timid. Their operation had been exceedingly secretive, yet on the way back they had encountered a leisurely roadblocker who seemed to have been waiting for them all along. It was only natural to grow suspicious.
"What do I want..."
Hearing Danzo's shout, Araki smiled faintly and lowered his head, his eyes filled with the cool radiance of the moon. "Didn't I already say it? Hand over the person you're carrying."
"Sasori of the Red Sands?"
Danzo glanced at the unconscious Sasori strapped to Hyuga Ko's back and refused, "That's impossible!"
"Ah..."
Araki sighed, then stretched lazily, bending forward into a retreating lunge. "It seems you've misunderstood something..."
Whoosh!
In that instant, his figure suddenly elongated. As though he had teleported, he appeared directly in front of Hyuga Ko.
Face-to-face, less than ten centimeters apart.
"...I'm not negotiating with you!"
"Get away!!!"
"Watch out!"
The three voices rang out almost simultaneously. Hyuga Ko, at the center of it all, only felt a gust brush past his ear. By the time he tried to react, his shoulder had become lighter, and the person he had been carrying was already gone.
"Leave him behind!"
With another person in tow, Araki's speed was