The phone rang for several seconds before it was finally answered.
"Jardani, you of all people should know how important sleep is for a woman."
"This is the first time you've contacted me since becoming an Adjudicator. Is something the matter?"
Hearing the voice on the other end, John Wick steadied his breathing. "The Elder's agency is likely under attack. While I don't believe any assailant could truly harm him, this is an opportunity to prove your loyalty to the Elder, isn't it?"
There was a long silence on the other end before the voice spoke again: "Jardani, thank you for remembering your family. I know what needs to be done."
The call ended. The Director, head of the Belarusian Roma, immediately began mobilizing her men to head toward the Shiranui Agency.
Far away in Morocco, John Wick could do nothing more. The distance was too great; he could only wait for the outcome.
12:00 AM
The RPG round detonated against the agency's front doors, the shockwave jolting the five people sleeping inside. Fortunately, everyone was resting on the upper floors. The initial blast shredded the ground-floor lobby but left the residents unharmed.
Shiranui Hayate bolted upright, disbelief flashing in his eyes. Attacked again?
He didn't even have to guess who it was. Between the Chaste and the Hand, only one organization held enough of a grudge to shell his agency with rockets. He had planned to deal with them in Japan after meeting Ivan Vanko, but they had brought the war to his doorstep first.
As Hayate dressed in a split second, the M134 Minigun opened fire. At 6,000 rounds per minute, the metal storm tore through the second-floor walls like they were wet tissue paper. Concrete exploded into dust, and the wall of the recovery room collapsed under the relentless kinetic pressure. The gunner swept the barrel horizontally, literally plowing through the entire second floor.
When the outer wall crumbled, exposing the interior, Alexandra saw it wasn't a bedroom and ordered his men to maintain fire while the RPG team reloaded. He intended to level the building. Even if Hayate survived, he wanted him buried under the rubble.
Hayate watched tracer rounds zip through the opposite room. He drew a kunai, parrying stray bullets with precise, metallic clangs. Good thing Hotaru is in Russia, he thought. With this intensity, my ninjas are fine, but she wouldn't have stood a chance.
Suddenly, Rock Lee, already glowing with the green aura of the Gate of Pain, blurred into the room. Even the dense fire of a Minigun couldn't track his movements. Bullets that were impossible to dodge were simply batted away by his kunai.
"Lord Hayate! Are you alright?" Lee asked urgently.
"I'm fine. These stray rounds can't touch me," Hayate replied.
Before he could finish, another RPG hit. The massive explosion shook the building, and the shockwave sent a tremor through Hayate. The front of the second floor was now completely gone, exposing Hayate and Lee to the sniper's nest across the street.
CRACK!
The sniper pulled the trigger. The RT-20 anti-materiel cannon kicked back violently as an armor-piercing shell screamed toward them.
Hayate sensed the killing intent instantly. He flared his chakra, activating the Eight Gates, and grabbed Lee, flickering out of the room. The shell obliterated his bed, turning it into splinters and punching a massive hole through the floor into the lobby below.
"Leader, I missed!" the sniper's voice crackled over Alexandra's headset. "He dodged the cannon fire!"
Alexandra was surprised, but only slightly. Madame Gao had been the weakest of the Five Fingers, yet she was still powerful. Anyone who could kill her wasn't going to be an easy target.
"Keep firing! Shoot anything that moves!" Alexandra commanded. He knew that even if they couldn't land a killing blow, a direct hit from that cannon would severely wound even their own kind.
A third RPG round slammed into the building, and the remains of the second floor finally gave way. Hayate and Lee regrouped with the others at the base of the stairwell. Aside from Iruka looking a bit disheveled, everyone was unharmed.
Hayate looked at his team. "Lee and I will take point and break their line. Once the heavy machine gun fire stops, the rest of you move in. No mercy."
"Outside, everyone is an enemy. Do not leave a single one alive."
"Understood, Lord Hayate!" the four responded in unison.
Hayate turned to Lee. "Rock Lee, on me!"
BOOM!
Two green blurs erupted from the ruins of the agency at supersonic speeds. The sudden acceleration created a deafening sonic boom within the enclosed space.
Braving the hail of bullets and grenades, Hayate and Lee burst into the street. With his Sharingan spinning, the world slowed down. Hayate saw every tracer, every muzzle flash, and the armored vehicle at the center of the formation.
He blurred across the pavement, appearing instantly in front of the armored truck. He wound up a chakra-enhanced punch.
CRASH!
The armored vehicle was launched into the air by the sheer force of the blow, slamming into one of the Hand's transport buses. The impact tore the bus in half. The armored truck didn't stop until it smashed through a house on the opposite side of the street, killing the driver and gunner instantly and silencing the Minigun.
Meanwhile, Rock Lee slammed into the tactical squad like a hurricane. His fists and kicks were invisible to the human eye, leaving a trail of broken bodies and shattered armor in his wake.
The hunters had just become the prey.