An accident?
A misunderstanding?
If the Japanese could explain the unison firing of the three Type 10 Tanks towards the ZTZ100 main battle tank as an ‘accident’, then Xia Lei’s explanation wasn’t too much of a stretch either.
That way, everyone would be even.
From Xia Lei’s perspective, he was completely accepting of such a reason but it was a whole different story from the Japanese’s perspective. Things weren’t going to their plan. Xia Lei wasn’t dead and his ZTZ100 was only heavily damaged. Surprisingly, the tank was still able to put up a fight but the three Type 10 Tanks were already charred trash metals at this point. The nine Japanese tankers were dead too. The Japanese were not having any of it. Their soldiers were clearly waving their helmets to signal that the nature of the incident was just an accident but Xia Lei had killed them regardless. However, there was no way the Japanese could push reality away as they were in fact the ones that initiated the attack.
The ZTZ100 drove out of the shooting range and parked itself by the observation platform.
A hoard of Russian Special Forces began to surround Xia Lei, who had just emerged from the hatch.
Xia Lei leapt off the tank calmly, showing no other expression.
Xia Lei remained silent while Huang He warned the gathered crowd, “Comrade Xia Lei does not owe an explanation to anyone. I’m sure everyone is clear about what had happened just now. If you Russians wish to arrest Comrade Xia Lei, I can guarantee that the consequences will be severe.”
The Russian military official detected the oddity of his words, quickly dismissing the Special Forces around Xia Lei with a slight wave.
Arrest Xia Lei? The Japanese would be delighted and the Americans would be leaping in joy. However, the most important thing was that China wouldn’t be pleased to hear it. Russia could coerce anyone, anyone but China. If they had offended China, the huge investments would be disrupted and their crude oil wouldn’t be purchased. Other than that, the export of industrial products will be stopped too. By then, Russia would be out of tears to cry. Therefore, the Russians would be better off taking care of the Chinese’s emotions than the Japanese.
“Since this is just a misunderstanding…” The Russian military official continued, “I’ll erase all recorded footage. What do you think?”
The underlying meaning was simple. The issue ended here.
Hattori Masao nodded. The Japanese knew he wouldn’t benefit from prolonged involvement.
“Hmph!” Huang He was mad but the man had given them his agreement.
If Xia Lei hadn’t destroyed the three Type 10 Tanks, Huang He would certainly not give up. However, not only had Xia Lei reduced the Type 10 Tanks into molten metal, but he had also killed off nine of their soldiers. He had given himself justice despite being mistreated. They would no longer get anything out of this.
“Comrade Xia Lei, let’s go.” Huang He said to Xia Lei.
The man returned a nod, not forgetting to spare Hattori Mei and Masao one last glance as he left.
Hattori Masao’s glare was sharp.
On the other hand, as soon as Hattori Mei met his eyes, the woman hurriedly avoided his gaze. Chills were creeping up her spine for the way Xia Lei held his eyes were terrifying.
With that, Xia Lei exited behind Huang He and the Chinese tanks were moved away, including the severely damaged ZTZ100 main battle tank.
Hattori Masao pulled Hattori Mei down the platform. “What the hell? Didn’t you promise that your plan was going to work? Why did it fail?”
Hattori Mei explained, “If he was driving a Type 99 Tank, his body would be cremated on the shooting range. Father, you’ve seen it with your own eyes. Three tanks had attacked one ZTZ100, two shells hit it and yet the ZTZ100 was still able to fight. How could you put the blame on my plan? The only thing to blame here is our lack of understanding of their ZTZ100!”
“Damn it!” Hattori Masao clenched his fist tightly and hurled it against a metal pipe on the frame. Immediately, blood began to seep out of his knuckles.
Hattori Mei held her palms over her father’s fist. “Father, I really didn’t want this to happen. The plan was devised by the Americans. We all thought that this was the best way to get rid of Xia Lei because a tank was just a metal cage. What we hadn’t foreseen was the toughness of his metal cage!”
“Are there really no alternative plans?”
“You mean assassinating him on another date? That will be difficult. America had lost hundreds of their elite Special Force members and agents in an attempt to kill him. If it was doable, they would’ve already done something. Plus, Xia Lei is surrounded by not just a few bodyguards but an entire military squad.”
Hattori Masao fell silent. The man was fully aware of the difficulties of wiping out Xia Lei. The mission was essentially impractical. Besides, initiating another attack would only enrage Xia Lei. By then, who could guarantee that the man wouldn’t do something out of line? What happened earlier was a prime example. Xia Lei had the audacity to destroy three Japanese tanks in the face of so many participants!
“Father, please rest assured. Since the Americans are determined to kill him, he will not live long. Osama bin Laden is a good example. In the end, the Americans did kill him, no?” said Hattori Mei.
Hattori Masao nodded. “Pack up your things and prepare to return to Japan.”
Half an hour later, back at the barracks.
Under the escort of a group of Japanese soldiers, the Hattori father-daughter pair headed towards the Japanese barracks. When they left the barracks earlier in the morning, everything was normal. Now, there were a few hundreds of Russian Special Forces guarding the area. It was plainly obvious that the soldiers were not here to protect the Japanese but Xia Lei.
“Miss Mei.” Xia Lei’s voice suddenly rang from above.
With a lift of her head, Hattori Mei found Xia Lei standing on his balcony.
The man was wiping an XL2500 sniper rifle with an oil-soaked wipe cloth.
Hattori Mei forced a smile. “Hello, Mister Xia. What’s the matter?”
“Didn’t you mention that someone wishes to see me? Where are they? Look, I even prepared a gift for them.” Xia Lei abruptly raised his XL2500 sniper rifle, adjusting his muzzle to lock its aim on Hattori Masao.
In a split second, Masao’s soldiers surrounded the man using their bodies. Some of them even raised their guns, aiming their muzzles towards Xia Lei in return.
The atmosphere froze. A spark of fire would undoubtedly cause a gigantic explosion.
“What are you doing? Put your guns down!” A Russian Special Force leader snapped.
Clatter! All of the Russian Special Forces had their guns on the Japanese without missing a beat.
The unexpected turn of events had the Japanese put their guns down unwillingly.
The Special Force leader pretended to not see the XL2500 sniper rifle in Xia Lei’s grip.
The Japanese weren’t keen on offending the Russian for the northern four islands conflict was stuck in their throat like a fishbone. There hasn’t been much progress on the issue. Every time Russia did something, the Japanese would suffer greatly. America was a hegemony but they had never once aided Japan to reclaim the northern four islands.
“Xia Lei.” Hattori Mei gulped. “I’m sure you’re aware of the events that will take place after opening fire. Perhaps the Third World War would be triggered by you.”
This was not a baseless threat. Hattori Masao was the general of the Japan Land Self-Defense Force, which meant that his status was about the same as General Huang He’s. Firing a shot and killing such a high-profile general may not start a war but it would certainly cause immense havoc.
Slowly, Xia Lei kept his XL2500 sniper rifle. He grinned harmlessly. “I was only testing its aim. I wasn’t planning on pulling the trigger. Even if I wanted to fire a shot, I wouldn’t have done it in a situation with so many witnesses.”
“Hmph! Are you trying to assassinate me?!” Hattori Masao roared, “You wouldn’t dare!”
A switch flipped in Xia Lei’s voice. “I wouldn’t dare? We’ll see soon. You tried to kill me today but thankfully my ZTZ100 armour was thick enough to withstand the damage or I would’ve died in your hands. I really wasn’t expecting you to ambush me at such a setting. Since you’re so eager to get rid of me, wouldn’t you be disappointed if I hadn’t done something in return?”
Hattori Masao’s heart sank. His mind fixated on his daughter’s comment earlier about how Xia Lei was the most powerful sniper in the world. The man couldn’t help but fear Xia Lei’s next moves.
“Xia Lei.” Hattori Mei explained, “That was really just a misunderstanding. That was planned by the Americans, it has nothing to do with us. My father and I are still trying to grasp the situation. Plus, you’ve already killed them off. What else do you want?”
“Our grudge and bad blood will be resolved eventually. I’m not in a rush. My revenge will not happen today or tomorrow. But it will certainly happen in the near future,” said Xia Lei.
“The incident had nothing to do with the Hattori clan. What should I do for you to believe me?” Hattori Mei stared at Xia Lei with widened eyes.
Xia Lei only waved at her. “How about you come up and we talk this out like adults? If you could convince me, I’m willing to believe it.”
Hattori Mei was tempted but as soon as she landed one step in the snow to get to Xia Lei’s location, she decided against it. The woman shook her head. “You’re not sober. I can’t be alone with you. I’ll just answer your question. The person who wants to meet you is Lockheed Martin’s CEO, Madam Folsom. She was supposed to be here tonight but I’ll be informing her on your mental condition and earlier incident. She’ll be meeting you on another occasion.”
“Why does she want to see me?”
“That I don’t know. I’m sure she could give you an answer. Just wait for her call.” Hattori Mei turned around and left.
Watching the group of Japanese enter the barracks opposite of him, something hostile flashed chillingly in Xia Lei’s eyes. Once again, the man thought about Zhu Xuanyue. If his ‘little princess’ was here, perhaps getting rid of the whole lot would’ve been a much easier task.
“Lockheed Martin’s Madam Folsom wants to see you?” Huang He entered the balcony from behind Xia Lei. “She’s definitely up to no good!”
“She really thinks she could see me just like that?” Xia Lei huffed a laugh. “She thinks she’s some hotshot.”
“Let’s return to China. I have no interest in participating in this bullshit tank competition any longer. Your safety is of utmost priority,” said Huang He.
Xia Lei replied, “Yeah, let’s go home.”