Yechen clearly saw the disbelief on the man's face, along with profound fear and unwillingness to accept his fate.
Yet Yechen remained utterly unmoved.
Everyone who stepped onto a battlefield had to be prepared to die. That went for him as well as anyone else.
Drawing his gaze away, Yechen ignored the other two Chunin and approached the Jonin. The three tomoe in his Sharingan slowly rotated, radiating a mysterious, mesmerizing power.
"The Sharingan..."
The Iwagakure Jonin reacted remarkably quickly, immediately closing his eyes. He even darted behind the two Chunin.
At the sight, a smile curled across Yechen's lips. His eyes met those of the two Chunin, and their minds instantly descended into chaos, leaving them frozen in place.
A Blade Flash streaked past, and two heads flew into the air.
"You got two comrades killed just to escape yourself. Can your conscience live with that?"
Yechen's words made the man falter. In that critical moment, he hadn't thought that far ahead. Hearing his two comrades die, he froze.
That was exactly what Yechen wanted. Without hesitation, he closed in and swung his sword horizontally.
Clang!
At the last possible moment, the Jonin managed to react, raising his kunai to block the slash.
But he hardly escaped unscathed. Yechen's strength wasn't so easily withstood. He was hurled backward, smashing through a rock before barely regaining his footing, then immediately spat out a mouthful of blood.
"Oh? Pretty quick reactions."
Yechen was slightly disappointed, but it hardly mattered. If one slash wasn't enough, he would simply add another.
"Captain Kimura... are you all right?"
Three Chunin squads rushed over from the other side.
Yechen smiled at the sight. Perfect timing.
Just as he was about to act, a voice rang out behind him.
"Captain Yechen, we're here to help!"
Only