"Have you heard? The people from Squad B-5 are back!"
"Really? Didn't you say that you encountered the Kumogakure 'Crow' troops and suffered heavy losses?"
"There seems to be no loss of personnel, but the injuries are serious, especially Gray Wolf, who almost died..."
"What a fate! It is said that Master Minato suddenly appeared at the last moment and used Flying Thunder God to save him!"
"..."
The sound of discussion reached his ears, and Lin Ze's footsteps paused slightly.
'Captain and the others are back? Gray Wolf almost died? Minato Namikaze saved him?'
He immediately changed direction and walked towards Konoha Hospital.
After asking the nurse station, he quickly found the ward where Squad B-5 people were.
This is a three-person ward, with Fox, Gray Wolf, and Night Owl all lying in it.
Fox was leaning on the head of the bed, his remaining right arm was covered with a thick plaster, his face was a little pale, but he was still in good spirits.
Night Owl is sitting on the chair next to him, his right leg is wrapped in a bandage, and he is peeling an apple. He seems to be the least injured.
Gray Wolf was lying on the innermost hospital bed, unconscious, with several tubes inserted into his body and connected to nearby medical instruments. His chest was wrapped in a large number of bandages, and he could smell a faint smell of Yakumi. The situation was obviously the most serious.
"Aoda?"
Fox was the first to see Lin Ze standing at the door. A trace of complexity flashed in his eyes, and then he showed a slightly forced smile.
"As long as you're okay."
Night Owl also raised his head and was obviously relieved when he saw Lin Ze:
"You're such a tough guy! That Black Crow personally led a team to chase you. We're quite worried about you."
Lin Ze walked into the ward, glanced at the three people, and finally landed on Gray Wolf:
"Gray Wolf He...?"
Night Owl sighed and said with lingering fear:
"I almost told you that we were being chased by three Special Jōnins. Originally, Gray Wolf and I were cooperating and could barely get around each other. We were looking for an opportunity to kill one of them... but a Jōnin suddenly appeared and caught us off guard. In order to cover me, Gray Wolf took a hard hit..."
She paused, with a hint of fear and gratitude on her face:
"If Master Minato hadn't suddenly appeared, instantly killed those guys with Flying Thunder God, and sent us and Gray Wolf back to Konoha Hospital... you probably wouldn't be able to see us now."
'Minato Namikaze... Sure enough, during this period, he had already used Flying Thunder God to put out fires on the battlefield and became famous.'
Lin Ze understands clearly.
Flying Thunder God Technique's mobility is indeed a bug on the battlefield.
"Just come back." Lin Ze nodded and looked at Fox, "Captain's injury?"
"It's okay, it's just a fracture. Medical Team said it will recover after a period of rest and it won't affect future activities."
Fox moved his right hand slightly, his tone was relaxed, but his eyes became complicated again.
He was silent for a moment and said to Night Owl:
"Night Owl, go and see if Gray Wolf's medicine is almost finished."
Night Owl was stunned for a moment, looked at the intravenous drip bottle, then looked at Fox and Lin Ze, seemed to understand something, said "Oh", and stood up with a cane:
"I'll call the nurse."
After saying that, he walked out of the ward and closed the door behind him.
Only Lin Ze, Fox and the unconscious Gray Wolf were left in the ward.
Fox took a deep breath, looked directly at Lin Ze, and spoke with deep apology:
"Lin Ze, I'm sorry."
Lin Ze looked at him quietly without speaking.
Fox continued:
"The situation was critical at that time. I deliberately said that the information was on you and led the strongest Black Crow and most of the pursuers to you... I know this is very selfish and dangerous. But I... I judged at the time that with your speed and strength, the chance of survival was much greater than that of Gray Wolf and Night Owl. If they were targeted by Black Crow, they would definitely die."
His voice was low and candid:
"I know that your true strength is much more than what you show, so... I made that choice. This is my responsibility and selfishness, and I apologize to you."
Lin Ze looked at Fox's sincere and guilty eyes, and there was not much in his heart.
Under the circumstances at that time, it is understandable that Fox, as the captain, made the choice to maximize interests.
If he is really just an ordinary Special Jōnin level ANBU, then Fox's behavior is tantamount to letting himself die.
But Fox, as the only insider of the Land of Wind incident, obviously had confidence in Lin Ze, so he took a gamble.
Moreover, the result was indeed as expected by Fox, who survived. Gray Wolf and Night Owl also waited for the rescue of Minato Namikaze because they attracted weaker enemies.
Lin Ze spoke slowly and said calmly:
"Captain, there is no need to apologize. I understand your choice. Besides, didn't I escape too? In terms of speed alone, I am Squad B-5's fastest."
He said this half seriously, half as a joke, cleverly avoiding the discussion about his true strength, and at the same time accepted Fox's apology.
Fox was stunned for a moment when he heard this, and then smiled bitterly:
"Yeah... you kid can run really fast."
He heard the meaning of Lin Ze's words, and the stone in his heart finally fell halfway. The other party did not pursue it, but he remembered this favor.
At this time, Night Owl came back with the nurse.
The nurse changed the medicine for Gray Wolf, checked the equipment, and said the situation was improving steadily.
Night Owl looked at Lin Ze and said sincerely:
"Aoda, thank you very much this time. If you hadn't attracted the main force, we would have..."
Lin Ze shook his head:
"We are all teammates, there is no need to say this. Just survive."
After staying in the ward for a while and learning more details about their attack and retreat, Lin Ze stood up and left.
After leaving the hospital, Lin Ze looked up at the Konoha sky.
It was finally good news that his teammates had returned safely, but from the mouths of Fox and Lin Ze, they also learned that of the six people who pursued them, in addition to the four who were killed by Minato Namikaze, two others survived.
In other words, after Kumogakure learns about the results of Black Crow and his group, he will point the finger at Lin Ze!
A few days after returning to Konoha, Lin Ze's life returned to its previous rhythm.
Taijutsu trains, Sealing Jutsu studies, gets together with Kurenai Yuhi and other friends from time to time, and occasionally goes to the hospital to visit teammates who are gradually recovering.
Gray Wolf's condition has improved steadily and is out of danger. Night Owl's leg injury is almost healed. Fox's fractured right arm has healed well under Medical Ninjutsu's treatment.
Everything seems to be on track.
But Lin Ze always kept the two little guys in the forest in mind.
On this day, he made a special trip to the logistics equipment department of ANBU.
"Need to change the mask?" Ninja, who was in charge of management, looked up at him.
"Well, the previous mask was a little damaged."
Lin Ze gave a reasonable reason. Battle losses are common, and it is common to replace masks.
He browsed through the various standard masks on display, and finally his eyes rested on two masks.