After the attack, the Observation Zone was not immediately closed.
The Autonomous White Zetsu was not allowed near the wounded guard, either.
Both decisions stood.
They had not participated in the attack.
They should not be sent straight back into their original isolation merely because they shared the same kind of body.
Those at the scene still could not confirm whether there had been only one attacker.
Allowing the Autonomous White Zetsu to approach the combat area freely would also increase the risk of misidentification and possession.
The Land of Rivers first temporarily reduced the Observation Zone to the stretch between the riverbank and the original entrance.
The restriction would last only until the first round of checks on the source of the attack was complete.
It was not an indefinite suspension.
The wounded guard was evacuated on an ordinary stretcher.
A medical ninja confirmed damage to his shoulder bone, with no black residue entering his chakra pathways.
The injured guard had the right to submit a record of the impact on him.
He also had the right to demand restrictions on the attacker.
Yet his first words were, "Don't let them out again."
That demand came from real harm.
The recorder could not mock it as prejudice.
Likewise, real harm could not automatically prove that every White Zetsu had participated.
After hearing the demand, the Autonomous White Zetsu in the Observation Zone did not approach to explain.
They first asked whether their observation period would restart because of the attack.
If trouble involving any of their kind could reset the clock, limited observation would become permanent isolation in practice.
The Land of Rivers confirmed that the temporary reduction in range would cover only the time needed to investigate the attack.
The original end date for observation remained unchanged.
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