Yongye did not let the murmuring spread for long. He raised his right hand again, spun the gavel partway around in his palm, and brought it down.
Crack!
The second strike was shorter and sharper than the first, like a thunderclap.
The murmuring stopped at once.
Yongye set down the gavel and spoke slowly, his expression solemn.
"Rasa, do you admit your crime?"
The hall fell silent again, quiet enough to hear the wind passing beneath the eaves outside.
Every eye fixed on Rasa's back, then on his profile.
Rasa remained on his knees, head lowered. After two beats of silence, he spoke in a steady voice, each word distinct, with the calm of a man who had accepted his fate.
"I plead guilty. I attacked the Land of Fire Daimyo's delegation. I am willing to bear every consequence of my actions."
For a moment, it was as though someone had muted the hall—then cranked the volume all the way up.
First came a deathly silence. Then the place erupted.
"What did he say? He admitted it?!"
"Wait, he's the leader of a whole village, and he just confessed like that?"
"No defense, no claim of innocence, nothing? He just admitted it?"
"Something's wrong! If it were me, I'd deny it until I couldn't hold out anymore!"
"You're an ordinary shinobi. He's the Kazekage. He has a reputation to uphold!"
"A reputation? He knelt before Lord Yongye of his own accord. What reputation does he have left?"
"With the evidence stacked against him, making excuses would only be more humiliating! Better to admit it outright and show some backbone."
"Easy for you to say. Would you have the guts?"
Among the crowd, several Sunagakure spies disguised as merchants exchanged pale-faced glances. None spoke. As one, they looked away from Rasa.