-He's here.
The moment that cold, sinister chakra settled at the alley entrance, Hayashi knew.
A second later, the Mind's Eye of the Kagura quietly opened.
Deep in the alley, that chakra seemed to sense his probing and began to move at a leisurely pace.
The man wearing the Kazekage's guise slowly emerged from the shadows, his hat pulled low, revealing only the sinister smile at the corner of his mouth.
"As expected of the Uzumaki Clan."
His voice echoed through the empty alley.
"The gifts in your blood haven't gone to waste after all."
Hayashi kept his expression composed and smiled, cupping his hands in greeting.
"Thank you for the compliment, Lord Kazekage."
"But it's so late... weren't you just discussing matters with Lord Hokage?"
Here we go. The snake's out of his hole.
"Our discussion?" The Kazekage smiled. "It ended quite quickly."
"I came only to see for myself-"
"What sort of child caused such a stir in the Land of Waves."
Well, damn.
Even this guy had heard about what happened in the Land of Waves.
Gossip really traveled fast in the Shinobi World.
The next instant, the Mind's Eye of the Kagura suddenly picked up something strange.
A trace of emotion surfaced in the chakra of the man before him.
Nostalgia.
It had barely emerged before the man snuffed it out, so quickly it was as though it had never been there.
But the Mind's Eye of the Kagura had already captured that instant in its entirety.
...Nostalgia?
What on earth was this guy feeling nostalgic about while looking at him?
Hayashi rapidly ran through the original story in his head but found no answer.
"I'm looking forward to your performance in the exams."
The Kazekage watched him as he spoke slowly.
"Our jinchūriki-is very much