Chikage stood where he was, taking in the brush with death he had just experienced.
He cursed inwardly.
Fuck.
I almost got myself killed trying to show off!
If he had reacted half a second slower, that poisoned blade gleaming green would have pierced his heart.
If he died out here in the border wilderness, who would reimburse his two hundred thousand ryo in travel expenses?
His two hundred daily points from double clock-ins would go down the drain, too.
Chikage pressed a hand to his chest, feeling his heart pound.
He knew he had made a serious mistake.
Relying on his system-granted skills and enormous chakra reserves, he had never taken these assassins seriously.
But they had never intended to fight him head-on. They had gone straight for dirty tricks.
Wind Release to blind him, Earth Release to trap his feet, and sealing chains to control the battlefield.
Even a Jonin with extensive combat experience would have suffered against that combination.
Chikage turned to Uchiha Itachi beside him.
That kid's Phoenix Flower Fire had really saved him in a pinch.
"All right, step back."
Chikage reached out and nudged Itachi backward.
"These four have no sense of fair play. Dirty tricks are all they know."
"You're an eight-year-old kid. Stay out of this adults-only violence."
Itachi gripped his kunai and stubbornly stood his ground.
"Vice-captain, they're Root's elite."
"Their coordination is excellent. You'll be at too much of a disadvantage alone."
"I'll keep two occupied while you take them down one at a time."
Listening to the child's earnest tactical analysis, Chikage couldn't help chuckling.
"Keep them occupied? Forget that."
"I just wasn't warmed up earlier. I was going easy on them."
"Now the warm-up's over."
Chikage turned his head, locking his gaze on the four masked Root ninja