"Captain, the Rock Ninja have retreated. They suffered heavy losses, but ours weren't light either." Yamanaka Shunfeng changed his tone.
"Still, we have you to thank, Captain. Otherwise, this battle wouldn't have ended so quickly."
After listening to the reports, Yechen thought for a moment before giving his orders.
"Shunfeng, pass the word down. Have each squad leader handle the aftermath, then draw up a new defensive plan."
"Yes, Captain."
Yamanaka Shunfeng answered at once, then left with the others.
Konoha had also suffered considerable losses in yesterday's battle, with over half their personnel killed or wounded. At a time like this, they could not afford to relax their defenses, so they had no choice but to deploy those with minor injuries.
Next, Tanaka Erito convened a meeting of the Jonin to discuss their arrangements following the battle.
Everyone had their own opinion, but in the end, they settled on a defensive strategy.
Although they had driven the Rock Ninja back, the enemy's incoming reinforcements would still outnumber theirs.
Konoha could only call this battle a costly victory. Holding their defenses and recuperating were their priorities now.
Once the defensive arrangements were finalized, everyone turned their attention to Yechen. They were eager to know what had happened after he took the Four-Tails away.
He gave them only one answer: the Four-Tails' Jinchūriki was dead. He offered no further explanation.
Everyone fell silent at his words. Although they did not know whether Yechen was telling the truth, the intelligence gathered from the Rock Ninja indicated that the Four-Tails' Jinchūriki had indeed died.
But that raised another question: why had Yechen taken the Four-Tails away instead of killing the Jinchūriki on the spot?
Despite their doubts, they all chose to remain silent.
The strength Yechen had displayed was already beyond their imagination.