You don't say? Lol. The sprocket is indeed welded to the hub. Unless you're saying you removed the bolts from the sprocket hub and the hub was stuck on the wheel? I'm guessing you were taking it apart like the book says? That is to leave the chain housing and sprocket/hub on the bike and separate the wheel and remove it.

I was following the service manual procedure. The sprocket/hub had "welded" itself to the wheel hub so that it would not cleanly separate without some persuasion, which wasn't possible with the wheel in place.

Next time I'll include quotes for this use of "welded" in the sense that it had been so long since it was last taken apart that it did not want to come apart.