Hakaru had turned around to try and speak to Jyun, who was still perturbed by the Avatar's judgment of their way, when he heard a familiar low bellow from above.
He turned, just to see Aang's flying bison coming down to land.
The Avatar jumped down from Appa, a serious, anxious expression on his face.
"Kill the firelord already?" The chieftain asked, only half joking. "You are more powerful than-"
Aang quickly cut him off. "A fire nation army is headed this way!"
A few of the other hunters heard what the Avatar had said, including Jyun, and they were all listening intently.
"Go on." Hakaru instructed.
Sokka jumped down, ready to explain his idea as to what they should do. "A large fire nation army is headed through the forest directly to the village-your village." "There are too many for you to fight, so you should evac-"
Sokka was cut off by the booming laughter of the surrounding yautja. "Surrender?" one asked, incredulous. "To those dogs? I would rather fall on my own spear."
Jyun nodded in agreement. "Why would we give up a fight that we have basically already won?"
Aang stared, open mouthed. "You can't stand and fight them! They outnumber you, three to one at least!"
"Yeah," Katara chimed in "If you stayed you could be overwhelmed, and the people in your village…"
She stopped. She didn't want to think about what the Fire Nation would do to all of those innocent people, like they did to her mother.
"Numbers don't matter. We are fighting in our forest, with the weapons and training of the yautja. We won't be defeated!" Jyun exclaimed, and the others growled in agreement.
Sokka thought, "But all of those Fire Nation soldiers… "
Jyun stepped closer "Yes, that's all they are, soldiers…" He turned, pacing. "Paid to fight for their country, all trained the same way: enlist when they are sixteen, take simple weapon and combat technique classes, and test their mettle on civilians, defeating opposing armies by outnumbering them ten to one." He finished, and then stood atop a tree stump so he could be seen by all.
"Yautja!" he called, and everyone in the village looked to him.
"A fire Nation army marches towards us, seeking to destroy the warriors, and enslave the women and children."
Jyun stopped to see their faces. None of them wore the face of fear, or panic. Instead, they wore expressions of bravery, and an eagerness to fight.
Jyun resumed, "They will not make it this far. We will engage them before they get here, and we will make them wish they had never heard of the yautja."
"How? Because we are warriors!" He yelled, the crowd bristling at his words. "Ever since we were born, we have been trained for battle. Baptized in the fires of combat. We fight ruthlessly, to the last man, and we take no prisoners, no survivors!"
"Together brothers, we will destroy our invaders, and make them feel true fear! They will taste the steel of our spears and the might of our blades! The last thing they will see is the ferocity of the world's deadliest warriors, and it will follow them into hell and haunt them for all eternity!"
"Brothers… sharpen your blades and ready your armor, for tomorrow.. We Fight!"
At the last phrase, the yautja all let loose bloodcurdling howls, screams begging for blood. Jyun started to chant the Kiss of Midnight, and soon had the entire village, with spears raised, singing it with him.
He felt the adrenaline surge through him. "Oh yes," he thought "fire benders will die tomorrow."
The trio looked on, open mouthed, and utterly surprised. They were going to fight a fire nation army that outnumbered them drastically, and took pleasure in the fact that blood would be shed?
These people disturbed Aang more than thought humanly possible. And as he saw the yautja dancing with their spears, he suddenly felt very sorry for the Firebenders who would face them in battle.