It took Gekkō Hoshiyomi a while to fully absorb all the information transmitted back by his shadow clone. After once again marveling at Mito's brilliance, he refocused and explained to Uzumaki Masahiko and the others:
"My shadow clone just dispelled—it sent back a flood of information all at once, and my mind's been in a mess trying to process it."
Masahiko, however, was far more concerned about the Konoha reinforcements than Hoshiyomi's condition. He leaned in, his voice tinged with urgency:
"Thank you for everything, but I have to confirm—did you say we'll begin the operation at dawn tomorrow?"
He was burning with anxiety. Barely half an hour ago, he'd seen the sealing barrier at the clan shrine shatter. Never in his life had he wished so desperately for time to move faster.
Every second on that boat felt like torture. Each time he closed his eyes, he could picture his clan members being butchered. Rationally, he knew that even with a thousand people, the Uzumaki couldn't be wiped out in mere hours… but emotionally, it tore at him.
So hearing that the operation would begin at dawn—of course he was thrilled.
By now, Hoshiyomi had fully recovered. He nodded firmly, took a deep breath, and addressed the group:
"Yes. Torifu-sensei is leading about two hundred jōnin and special jōnin. They'll arrive around noon tomorrow. We'll begin the operation around 1:00 a.m. It should be enough to hold them off."
He paused, then added with emphasis:
"Let me repeat the plan. In a moment, Masahiko and I will disembark and head toward the enemy's ships.
Jiraiya, you and the others will sail the route Masahiko used to get Kushina out. That area should be less guarded, but remember to turn off the engine not far from the shore so you don't alert anyone.
Even if there are guards, you should be able to handle them. Once they're dealt with, don't rush in immediately. Around 5:00 a.m., make some noise in the forest. Stir them up a little.
When they hear activity from your side, their first instinct will likely be to fall back and investigate. That's when Masahiko and I will blow up their ships at 5:10.
Hearing simultaneous disturbances from two directions, they'll probably prioritize checking the ships.
That's when you charge in—tell the people of Uzushiogakure that reinforcements are right behind them.
Do not engage the enemy directly. Hold the position, fortify the defenses, and wait for Konoha's troops to arrive.
Even if the enemy is strong, our numbers plus sealing techniques will be enough to hold the line.
The most important thing is that all of you stay alive."
"Understood!"
Everyone nodded seriously. It was a plan they'd crafted over a full day of discussion. The timing had been simulated and recalculated multiple times. If all went well, it would keep them safe.
"Alright. It's 6:00 p.m. now. Let's rest in shifts—each person takes one hour of watch. That gives everyone five hours of sleep. At 1:00 a.m., we begin."
...
Their watch rotations went smoothly. No incidents occurred.
At exactly 1:00 a.m., the last watch—Uzumaki Masahiko—woke everyone up. The seven of them ate a light meal, then began their respective tasks.
Hoshiyomi and Masahiko jumped directly off the boat, swimming toward the sector where the coalition fleet was anchored.
Meanwhile, Jiraiya and the others sailed toward the coastline where Masahiko and Kushina had escaped earlier.
3:00 a.m.
Jiraiya's group cut the engine and quietly slipped ashore. Just as expected, six jōnin were stationed on watch nearby. But they were no match for Tsunade's team.
Sakumo Hatake activated his Lightning Release Blade Art, instantly taking out a careless Jonin with a move called Void Severance.
The other five reacted, preparing to strike—but each was intercepted. Orochimaru, Shinku, and the others each took on one.
One Iwagakure jōnin tried to flee and report—but was caught in a genjutsu cast by Shinku Yuhi, freezing him in place.
In terms of overall strength, Shinku might've been the weakest among them. But in terms of first-strike lethality, he was arguably more terrifying than Sakumo.
After creating a fully original series of genjutsu techniques, Shinku had become the top genjutsu user in Konoha—and the first to reach jōnin rank solely through genjutsu.
Against enemies without kekkei genkai or strong mental resistance, he was a nightmare—because he made them see things far worse than death.
....
At the coastline of the Land of Fire, Torifu Akimichi and his reinforcements were taking a short rest. They'd brought a large warship and were preparing to launch straight toward Uzushiogakure once adjustments were complete.
"Everyone rest for fifteen minutes! Then we board and set sail!"
Torifu looked into the distance, where flames burned over the sea.
His fists tightened involuntarily.
Hoshiyomi and the others... you'd better be okay.
...
At 4:30 a.m.
Hoshiyomi and Uzumaki Masahiko arrived at the location of the four-village allied forces' ships. Without a word, they slipped beneath the waves and began placing explosive tags under the ships.
Each tag was wrapped in oiled paper—already waterproofed, so there was no danger of failure.
Hoshiyomi was cautious and activated Transparent Escape, becoming almost undetectable. Masahiko, who lacked such a bloodline ability, could only suppress his presence and come up for air when absolutely necessary.
Once again running low on oxygen, Masahiko quietly surfaced. He took a deep breath and was about to dive again when he suddenly felt a violent gust from above.
Startled, he instinctively dodged backward—barely avoiding a fatal blow. But he still felt a sharp sting in his arm. Looking down, he saw a razor-sharp chain blade had grazed it.
He tried to dive, but suddenly his body went numb—he couldn't move.
Focusing his senses, he saw that the wound had already turned purplish black—the chain blade had been poisoned!
"Hmph. I told them you'd probably try to sabotage the ships.
But no one listened. These brats nowadays... too inexperienced."
Masahiko's eyes widened in terror.
A bizarre blue-faced puppet had appeared on the deck of the Sunagakure ship. It was dressed in a pristine white robe, with a ferocious glare carved into its face—eerily lifelike.
Behind the puppet, in its shadow, stood a hunched old man—smiling wickedly.
"Bad luck, kid. You just happened to run into me.
Really, dying by my hands? That's a privilege."
The old man gently curled his finger.
In response, the puppet raised its head—and from its bald crown, three sharp chain blades shot straight toward Masahiko's head.