[ "Mercy," Minato repeats to himself, silent, his lips barely moving. Something about death as a deliverance, but... He shakes the thought out of his head; the longer he holds them up, the more Palai will be taken and killed, and his indecision is also a decision— he can't afford to hesitate. ]

Okay. We'll go with your plan. I'll draw fire, and you take out who you can at a distance. If we get overrun, let me take care of it.