Chapter 74: The Fall of the Hand
Hearing the agonized screams of the five Hand leaders, the elite warriors surrounding John Wick and Pool instinctively turned their heads toward the other battlefield.
Upon seeing their leaders so thoroughly defeated, their attacks faltered. Pool took advantage of the lull to intercept several strikes aimed at John Wick.
Just then, Smith Doyle spun around and hurled an energy grenade into the group of Hand members attacking John.
BOOM!!
A blast launched several elite assassins into the air, limbs flying in every direction. The explosion tore open the encirclement, giving John and Pool a much-needed breather.
John Wick's eyes widened at the sight—was this the difference between him and someone like God? Could he ever reach that level?
At that moment, the five leaders of the Hand—Alexandra, Madame Gao, the Gambler, Sowanda, and Murakami—lay sprawled across the ground, badly scorched from the earlier explosions. Their weapons were shattered, their clothes nearly torn off.
The combat power monitors, which had once shown them with ratings in the dozens, now rapidly dropped to single digits—just six or seven points remaining.
Seeing that their values hadn't hit zero, Smith Doyle knew they were still alive—barely.
Lying on the ground, Madame Gao looked up at Smith Doyle, panting heavily.
"Cough… cough… Smith, this time… the Assassin's League has won…"
"I… I don't beg you to spare us. But could you at least grant us one final request?"
"Four of us will end our lives right here. The last one will cripple themselves, their limbs and their powers—just let one of us carry the bodies home…"
The other four, hearing Madame Gao's words, also began to plead:
"Please… just let us return home, to die in our land…"
"Cough cough…"
Blood dribbled from Gao's lips as she added, "Once we return, I will transfer all assets of the Hand to you. And when we die in Japan, the Hand will officially disband."
To an outsider, it may have seemed like a reasonable offer—gain the Hand's wealth, ensure four of its five leaders are dead and the last one crippled. They'd pose no future threat.
But Smith Doyle wasn't some naive outsider.
He calmly stepped forward and placed a foot on Alexandra's chest. With a firm press—CRACK!—her ribcage collapsed. Her life ended on the spot, her combat value dropping to zero.
Seeing this, Madame Gao croaked out, "Smith… does this mean… you accept?"
Smith sneered. "Gao, did you really think I wouldn't see through your plan? You were hoping to use the Dragonbone for resurrection, weren't you?"
"You think I'd give you that chance?"
Gao let out a bitter laugh. "Of course… You've already used it to bring Helen back. You must know how the Dragonbone works."
"You win. In this game… you've won."
"Such a shame… We hadn't yet found the right vessel for the Black Void. If we had, maybe you wouldn't have come out on top."
She fell silent, accepting her fate. After over five hundred years, she had no real regrets—only that her skills had fallen short of the likes of Shou-Lao and the Jade Emperor.
Hearing her words, Smith Doyle raised an eyebrow. That otherworldly beast, the Black Void… he had to admit, it piqued his curiosity. He asked without thinking:
"You never found a suitable vessel for the Black Void?"
He recalled Elektra, Daredevil's former lover—another host of the Black Void. Even Daredevil himself had once been possessed, and in some universes, had even defeated Wolverine while under its power.
Gao's eyes briefly flickered with hope at the mention of the Black Void. All five leaders had once undergone possession to boost their strength—but none of them were truly compatible.
Her hope faded as she murmured, "No. We never found one."
Smith Doyle sighed in disappointment. He had hoped for a formidable new opponent. As for Elektra… he didn't mention her.
"In that case, at least tell me where you're hiding the Dragonbone."
The remaining leaders all smiled coldly.
"In your dreams," they said in unison.
Smith shook his head. Even in death, they wouldn't part with their most prized treasure.
"Then go… and meet Mephisto."
He gathered energy in his hand and hurled another bomb. The five were obliterated—no bodies left to recover.
The remaining Hand warriors, who had paused during their leaders' conversation, now watched as their commanders perished. Without a word, they each committed seppuku on the spot, following their leaders in death.
Smith Doyle wasn't fazed. This was the Hand's way—better they ended themselves than leave him the trouble of cleanup.
Though this battle had ended, Hell's Kitchen was far from peaceful. After a brief pause, assassins in New York launched a second wave of attacks that night, striking all known Hand outposts with full force.
---
Meanwhile…
Back at the Assassin's League headquarters, another intense battle was unfolding. But this time, the League had the upper hand.
With night vision goggles and heat sensors, they were able to detect the approach of Hand members and Kingpin's forces before they got close.
Before the enemy could react, the League opened fire. Their deadly aim cut down waves of attackers before they even reached the castle.
Wesley, Cross, and Mr. X led the charge. With "bullet time" activated and dual pistols in hand, the three charged out like avatars of death, mowing down Kingpin's men and sending them into full retreat.
The Hand's warriors, however, were much more resolute. Without direct orders to fall back, their strike teams and ninja squads launched suicidal attacks.
But faced with the League's sharpshooters and the three rampaging elites, they too were eventually wiped out.
As for Bullseye—he died protecting Kingpin, a sniper round from Fox blowing his head apart.
Kingpin, though, wasn't so lucky either—captured alive before he could escape.
---
Elsewhere…
Triskelion Building.
The fierce energy released during Smith Doyle's battle with the Hand triggered SHIELD's sensors.
The combination of Five Elements Qi techniques and Smith's relentless energy bombs lit up the anomaly detection room with flashing alerts.
Though the nearby surveillance coverage was sparse, some of the fight was caught on camera. The blurry footage was enough to send Agent Phil Coulson rushing back to headquarters.
—End of chapter—
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