"Pat!" "Pat!"...
Hearing footsteps coming from the bushes, the young Konoha shinobi all tensed.
"Whoosh!" "Whoosh!" "Whoosh!"...
They vanished from where they stood.
Some hid in the trees, while others concealed themselves in the grass nearby.
They all went on alert, crouching low and staring intently toward the source of the noise.
If the ones who appeared were Rain Ninja, these young shinobi would probably take them down in an instant.
However, when they saw the newcomers' faces, they were all taken aback.
"U-Uchiha Tokino..."
Yuhi Ma stared in surprise and murmured under his breath.
"Who's there!?"
As if he had heard Ma's whisper, Tokino, covered in wounds, suddenly glared toward the spot where Ma was hiding. His blood-red eyes appeared before the group of young shinobi.
Hidden in the grass, Yuhi Ma saw those crimson eyes and was startled.
"Tokino! It's us!"
Sakumo called out, then darted onto the scene.
Tokino looked coldly at Sakumo as he stepped forward. His scarlet Sharingan slowly faded, and he spoke in a chilly voice.
"So it's you..."
The others also emerged from their hiding places.
Dan Katō looked at the deep wounds on Tokino's body and furrowed his brow slightly.
"What happened to you? Were you attacked?"
Tokino glanced at himself, utterly unconcerned. Instead, he frowned and replied coldly.
"My squad was attacked earlier. I was the only one lucky enough to survive."
At his words, the young shinobi all furrowed their brows.
Looking at the wounds on Tokino, it wasn't hard to imagine how dire his situation had been. For this Konoha prodigy, second only to Sosuke, simply surviving was no small feat.
"Come on. I'll take you to get those wounds treated first. We can discuss the rest afterward."
"Anyway, you're lucky just to have made it out alive."
Sakumo