Chapter 9: This Wicked Old Bastard is Really Bad
They had to be careful. If they were discovered by the enemy's forces of over a hundred men, they wouldn't stand a chance as the heirs of their nation. Their guns hadn't even been drawn, and they would perish miserably before defending their people.
"Hmm, when the time comes, the clan leader and elders will only need to use explosive tags, detonating them in large areas," Uzumaki Ryuto explained. "I estimate there won't be many ninja guarding the ships, and they likely won't stay long."
After all, they were dealing with one of the five great ninja villages!
To destroy a small nation of elderly and disabled people, the enemy wouldn't expect the Whirlpool Village's ninja to fiercely break through their defenses. And they certainly wouldn't anticipate...
Someone was crouching in the bushes, attempting an ambush!!
This was their advantage. As long as the Land of Whirlpools remained cautious and didn't foolishly charge in shouting "For glory!" they would have a chance of victory.
Ryuto sighed. This victory would truly be built on wealth!
If he didn't know the secret salt-making technique and sell some discreetly, they wouldn't have raised enough funds. In ancient times, salt was extremely valuable.
However, Ryuto didn't dare sell too much. If others discovered the Land of Whirlpools had abundant salt reserves, it might not just be the Hidden Mist Village attacking. The five great nations could unite against them, driven by greed!
What did ninja carry out missions for? For profit!!
What caused the Ninja World Wars? Profit, again!!
As for Konoha, they likely wouldn't openly attack, only preaching about longstanding friendships and mutual understanding. Then...
The higher-ups of the naive Uzumaki clan would be moved to share their techniques with Konoha.
Or if the Land of Whirlpools fell, Konoha would emerge, condemning the other nations while claiming the Whirlpool's assets as their ally.
Thinking of this, Ryuto felt annoyed, with unspoken words on his mind.
He would settle the score with them eventually.
When Hashirama sold the Tailed Beasts, why didn't the five nations approach the Land of Whirlpools instead of the minor Hidden Eddy Village? Was it because the Uzumaki clan wasn't insignificant enough, or because the Whirlpool lacked funds?
Ryuto's inner thoughts speculated...
On one hand, Hashirama probably thought they were good friends under Konoha's protection, so the Whirlpool Village wasn't needed. After all, if given to them, wouldn't it belong to Konoha anyway?
Damn, from ancient times people have seen the Land of Whirlpools as Konoha's!
On the other hand, Ryuto suspected foul play by Tobirama. The Uzumaki clan could suppress the Tailed Beasts with their immense chakra and vitality. If the Whirlpool Village had a Jinchūriki, wouldn't they have their own Whirlpool Shadow leader? How would the "big brother" Tobirama handle that? If his brother Hashirama were alive, he might not act out of respect for his wife. But without him...
Who cares! This was a man willing to experiment on the Uchiha clan that founded the village alongside Hashirama!
How else could he have known that awakening the Sharingan causes an evil chakra to emerge in their minds?
You don't think the Uchiha told him, or offered their clansmen for research?
Don't be ridiculous!
So to ensure only Konoha had Jinchūriki, and prevent other villages from obtaining them, he would undoubtedly sabotage the effort - which is likely why other villages showed such great progress in fūinjutsu after the Land of Whirlpools' destruction.
Ryuto strongly suspected this was also Konoha's reason for refusing to help - they only needed one Uzumaki as a Jinchūriki, preferably their own. As for the rest to avoid being obtained by other villages, the Whirlpool nation could perish!!
The Hidden Mist had already imported two Tailed Beasts from Konoha after all!
Did they just keep them as village decorations?
So even if they didn't have a Jinchūriki yet, to obtain the fūinjutsu and Uzumaki clan members, they would definitely attack.
It wasn't their land anyway. If the situation looked unfavorable, they could just destroy it with powerful attacks. How could the Whirlpool nation counter that?
Damn it!
They had no Kage-level ninja currently. The elders could only use the Dead Demon Consuming Seal at that point.
This was a truly unbreakable sealing technique!
Didn't the Third Hokage frequently use it later on?
If the Fourth learned it from Kushina, then who taught the Third?
No need to ask, he definitely stole it. This wicked old man was truly evil, probably waiting in the shadows for Kushina and the Fourth to die before begrudgingly raising the clueless Prince Naruto.
How utterly calculating!!
To undo the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, one must first obtain the Death God's mask, which still remained in the Uzumaki clan's shrine, not taken by Konoha yet.
See, this exemplified killing someone, stealing their wife, and seizing their property!
But containing the Tailed Beasts was no easy feat. Apart from Mito, the Uzumaki clan currently had no Kage-level ninja. If regular Jonin could seal the Tailed Beasts, why did the Fourth Hokage have to act?
They could have just ordered some Jonin to learn the Dead Demon Consuming Seal, then wildly charge at the beasts using it on the battlefield.
Sacrificing one Jonin to capture an entire village's Kage or Tailed Beast - what a bargain!
Ryuto shook his head. It seemed he truly needed to defend against the Tailed Beasts.
Otherwise, if the Hidden Mist Village unleashed their two beasts, rolling and crashing around, they would be doomed.
The Tailed Beasts were embodiments of pure chakra!!
These living cauldrons of destruction could shrug off regular attacks by simply shedding layers of their chakra cloaks.
As a last resort, they might have to build fortifications from corpses. Otherwise, if they let their guard down and the Land of Whirlpools fell, Ryuto would be forced to flee, evading not just other villages but Konoha as well. Because...
One Jinchūriki was enough for them.
Moreover, Ryuto had little confidence of prevailing against Konoha's ranks of elite ninja. He couldn't afford to provoke them.
"Just pour this oil over the Hidden Mist's ships," Ryuto told the clan leader and elders. "Then we can ignite it with a fire-natured ninjutsu."
The wooden ships of this era should burn well with the oil.
If not, they would truly have to fortify with corpses. No matter what, this fleet had to be stopped here.
"What preparations should we make in the coming days?" the leader nodded. "Surely we won't just wait here?"
"No, we'll lay some trails first," Ryuto considered. There were already a billion explosive tags waiting for them ahead!
They couldn't allow the enemy to escape, which was why the citizens were told to evacuate - to create the illusion of the Whirlpool people fleeing.
So clothes, luggage and other items had to be scattered at sea and along the trails, staging a scene of flight. This was an enormous undertaking!
An entire nation was "fleeing" after all...
But they couldn't just randomly discard items. The trail's path had to carefully lead the Hidden Mist forces into the explosion perimeter.
"If so, let's begin now!" the leader said. "The Hidden Mist's vanguard will likely depart first, so we must act quickly."
...
"Captain, we're about to enter the Whirlpool's waters," a Hidden Mist ninja with their village's forehead protector called from the bow, complaining. "The war is almost over, why start another one now?"
"Silence, Tayu," the captain glared coldly. "As ninja, we simply execute our missions."
Here's the continuation:
"I know, I know," Tayu waved dismissively. "There's no one else around to hear us anyway."
"Enough, Tayu," another squad member said wearily. "We're just the vanguard, tasked with finding a secure campsite for the main forces while surveying the Whirlpool's current state."
"But this is still an act of war!" Tayu frowned. "I've had enough of this blasted war already."
"The war is nearing its end, with Konoha's victory clearly in sight," another squad member adjusted his glasses. "The Second Mizukage hasn't achieved major victories, fueling discontent within the Hidden Mist. So to placate the unrest, he initiated this invasion of the Whirlpool - their alliance with Konoha has left them weakened, and their location near the Land of Fire allows us to monitor Konoha's movements if we capture it."
He inwardly added, to prepare for the next great conflict.
"How dull," Tayu shook his head sadly. "I just can't stand war anymore. It's too horrible. My parents died in the last one, along with Yosuke, Kairi...they're all gone."
Tears filled his eyes as he shouted, "So why start another war when it's supposed to end? Don't you understand?"
The squad fell silent, hearing Tayu's outburst.
The captain sighed. "This is the way of the ninja, Tayu...do you understand?"
No one liked war, but ninja had no choice in the matter.
"I don't understand. I hate war," Tayu growled at the captain. "Why can you all wage it so calmly? Why?"
"Silence, Tayu," the captain barked, seeing Tayu's rage overtaking his reason - words that could disrupt morale on this ship full of squad mates. Uttered further, the captain would be forced to kill him.
Tayu fell quiet, the captain's cold, furious tone snapping him out of it. In wartime, one couldn't say anything to demoralize the troops, especially with his comrades already looking grim from his words. If he continued...the captain would...
"I don't understand. I don't understand anything," Tayu hung his head, tears dripping onto the deck, voice low.
Why did war have to exist?
...
"I see them," the clan leader held up his spyglass. "Three ships, around a hundred men - it's the Hidden Mist's vanguard force."
"Should we engage them?" the head elder looked to Ryuto. Now everything followed Ryuto's strategy. Attacking with just their five could prove difficult.
Ryuto considered it. Five against around a hundred would be troublesome!
They lacked the strength for a head-on battle. But letting the enemy roam the Whirlpools freely risked them discovering the preparations, which would also cause problems.
What to do?
"Elder, inform our ninja to have a sizeable but not overly powerful force intercept the vanguard before the explosion perimeter, maintaining a safe distance. Surround them and make the Whirlpool seem unafraid to die," Ryuto instructed. "Don't kill too many, allow some to escape."
The only option was to have them wait at the perimeter's edge to greet the Hidden Mist's "fireworks" along with the main force soon after.
The leader frowned, unsure of Ryuto's plan, but didn't question him in these critical times of war. Any doubts in the commander could prove disastrous now.
(end of chapter)
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