Tsunade immediately retreated into the shadows and held her breath.
The man walked up to the fence, kicked one of the wooden stakes, and snarled, "Stay put! Don't move around!"
Several children shrank back in fright.
But the boy raised his head and shot him a vicious glare.
The guard laughed. "Oh, still pretty stubborn, huh?"
He reached inside and grabbed the boy by the collar. "I'll deal with you later."
A child beside him tried to rush over to protect him, but the guard kicked him away.
The child fell to the ground, his forehead striking a wooden stake and beginning to bleed.
Tsunade clenched her fists.
But she did not move.
The guard flung the boy aside and returned to his post with a loud laugh.
The one who had been dozing was awakened by the noise and cursed at him a few times. The two began arguing again.
Tsunade took a deep breath and forced herself to calm down.
Eight children.
Two guards.
Seven or eight people outside. And one Genin.
She first needed to confirm the Genin's location—he had been outside earlier, but he might now be elsewhere in the cave.
If that Genin suddenly appeared while she was making her move, things would become troublesome.
But the children could not wait.
The child with the injured forehead had already started to lose consciousness. The others desperately called to him, but could not wake him.
If this dragged on any longer, something might really happen.
Tsunade swept her gaze across the stone chamber again.
Two guards: one was playing with a Kunai, while the other sat back down, still cursing under his breath.
The fence gate was not locked. It was merely barred with a thick wooden pole.
The children's ropes needed to be untied.
The