The vast Hidden Mist ninja force swarmed onto the beach of Coin Harbor like hordes of crabs coming ashore. Even a master like Jiraiya looked pale, gasping heavily. Chakra depletion was one issue, but the main problem was that those Portuguese man o' war had disrupted their long-distance running rhythm.
Everyone took their pills and waited for their chakra to gradually recover. Just then, countless searchlights suddenly blazed to life, illuminating the entire Coin Harbor beach as bright as day, casting the Hidden Mist ninja's faces in stark white.
"Friends who braved the raging waves and traveled thousands of miles to our Yuexi Peninsula—such friendship is truly precious! Hahaha!"
A tall figure stood before the searchlights, holding a large chakra-powered megaphone and speaking arrogantly.
"Kakuzu?!"
Karatachi Yagura had never met Kakuzu in person, but he had seen his photograph in Ao's ANBU files.
"Oh my, what an honored guest! So it's the Fourth Mizukage! Coming so late—you haven't had dinner yet, have you? Come! Brothers, serve our Hidden Mist friends some hot pot!"
Karatachi Yagura gritted his teeth, gripping his spiked iron club tightly.
In an instant, bone-chilling cold shot from his tailbone straight to the top of his skull.
Karatachi Yagura understood everything in that moment!
This was all a trap!
Karatachi Yagura looked young, but he wasn't some naive fool. To emerge victorious from the brutal competition in Hidden Mist Village and become Mizukage, he had never been as innocent as he appeared.
He had suspected that corpse named Dangping Saburo—appearing at such a perfect time in such a perfect place was inherently suspicious.
But every detail had been flawless. Even the usually meticulous Ao couldn't find a single flaw.
He had no choice but to believe it was a coincidence.
But now...
There was no time to consider these matters.
Even knowing it was a trap, he had to grit his teeth and jump in.
The blinding lights made it impossible for everyone to see the situation clearly. However, Karatachi Yagura knew that Yuexi Peninsula only had about 7,000 combat-capable ninja. If they fought desperately, the outcome was still uncertain.
But the current problem was how to survive the next fifteen minutes.
Whether it was Hidden Mist's stockpiled pills or Konoha's imitations, they were all based on the first-generation products manufactured by Silver Sand Pharmaceuticals. Their effective time was exactly fifteen minutes.
If they could endure these fifteen minutes, this battle could still be fought.
Karatachi Yagura gritted his teeth and pointed his spiked iron club at Kakuzu.
"Kakuzu! Do you dare fight me one-on-one!"
Kakuzu was slightly stunned, then burst into wild laughter.
"Oh my, Mizukage-sama, how humorous you are! Someone of such high status wanting a duel? Oh! I understand—you're waiting for the chakra enhancement pills to take effect! Hahaha!"
Having his thoughts exposed, Karatachi Yagura felt somewhat embarrassed and angry. The Seven Ninja Swordsmen immediately drew their blades and positioned themselves protectively in front of him, hurling curses at Kakuzu.
"Attack! Whoever takes Kakuzu's head becomes lord of Yuexi Peninsula!"
Karatachi Yagura's baby face was already somewhat twisted, the scar beneath his eye writhing like a centipede, making him look particularly fierce!
This strategy was the most correct choice—attack instead of defend, using lives to fill these fifteen minutes. Then the Hidden Mist ninja could gradually turn the tide with their advantage in elite fighters.
Under great rewards, there are always brave warriors. The Hidden Mist ninja grabbed their kunai and ninja tools, howling as they charged toward the distant searchlights.
Kakuzu watched the tide of people surging toward him with indifference, speaking calmly to Eishō beside him:
"Light the fire!"
Eishō nodded and picked up the chakra megaphone, shouting loudly:
"Light the fire!"
Instantly, these three words echoed across the entire Coin Beach.
Light the fire? For what? To heat oil? There must be something fishy. Jiraiya, who had been charging at the front, became more cautious and gradually slowed his pace...
A dozen or so Hidden Sand ninja stepped forward boldly, seemingly unafraid of the surging Hidden Mist ninja, calmly forming hand seals.
"Crystal Release: Long Wall Technique!"
As soon as the words fell, a multicolored crystal wall over ten meters high and seemingly endless in length suddenly appeared before everyone. Several Hidden Mist ninja charging at the front couldn't stop in time and crashed into it, bloodying their heads.
"What is this?"
A familiar feeling washed over Suikazan Fuguki.
This? These were those villagers!
Indeed, these were ninja from the Takenaka clan. When Yuexi Peninsula was under construction years ago, the Takenaka family had contributed greatly. The landmark Crystal Palace was their handiwork. Some members of the Takenaka family had chosen to settle on Yuexi Peninsula. For them, building highways in the desert was no problem—constructing a wall dozens of kilometers long at the harbor was child's play.
Seeing Karatachi Yagura troubled by the crystal wall, Suikazan Fuguki offered helpfully:
"Mizukage-sama, don't worry. Though this crystal wall looks solid, it's simple to break. Just use high-frequency..."
Before he could finish, another pig-like howl came through the Hidden Sand's chakra megaphone.
"Heat the oil!"
The ground began trembling violently. The entire Coin Beach became like a pot of boiling chocolate—flames, sand, and shockwaves churning endlessly, as if countless giant orange flowers bloomed in an instant. The massive explosions were deafening, drowning out shouts and screams. Flying sand became like high-speed spinning bullets, piercing through bodies.
"Truly spectacular!"
Viewing the entire beach explosion through the crystal wall was quite a different sight.
"How could it not be spectacular? Sixteen million explosive tags! And we bought them at a premium. Sigh, it's quite painful."
Kakuzu shook his head.
"Now I understand why you bundled ten explosive tags together and buried them half a meter deep in the sand."
Eishō said.
"Tell me your thoughts?"
"First, they're not easily discovered. Second, sand is naturally loose and tends to limit the explosive tags' energy. Ten tags in a group, densely placed—the power stacks up, and the reduced lethality from sand interference becomes negligible."
Kakuzu nodded with satisfaction.
"The key to this plan's success was Karatachi Yagura's mindset."
"What mindset?"
Kakuzu stroked his chin thoughtfully.
"How to describe it? Like a starving rat looking at cheese on a mousetrap."
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