Early the next morning.
At Kushina's doorstep, they received notice that their guard duty had ended. The Anbu Squad Leader's six-month assignment was over. Of course, although it was called an assignment, Kushina had spent more time looking after them.
Zou Hyuga had expected this. As Kushina's belly grew, her due date drew ever closer.
Still, the abrupt end of a six-month assignment left him feeling somewhat at loose ends.
Kushina should now have been under heavy ANBU protection. He had also stopped Kakashi from leaking information. Though he doubted it would do much good, it was at least a way to thank the Fourth Hokage and his wife for looking after them.
At least for the past six months, he and Oto had not needed to leave the village on missions, reducing their chances of encountering danger.
As ANBU chunin, any outside assignment they received would be at least a B-rank mission, and anything could happen on one of those.
After lingering at Kushina's door for a moment, Zou Hyuga looked at the increasingly familiar nameplate and surroundings, then left with Oto.
I've done everything I can. The Fourth Hokage hasn't asked us to help guard her, either. All I can do is pray they stay safe. Hopefully, nothing will happen to them.
With nothing to do, the two began strolling through the village.
They wandered wherever they pleased, from the Hokage Building to the bustling streets, and even around the outskirts of the various ninja clans' Clan Grounds.
He had to admit that the Fourth Hokage governed well. Peace reigned throughout the village.
The occasional disputes gradually died down under the Military Police Force's intervention, though problems during the Konoha Military Police Force's enforcement of the law were still unavoidable.
But under the Fourth Hokage's strict orders, they