A deafening roar, like a sudden bolt of lightning from a clear sky, instantly shattered the surrounding tranquility.
Flames shot skyward in an instant, the scorching fire like an enraged giant dragon, wantonly churning and devouring everything with its fangs and claws.
One corner of the shipyard, under the impact of this sudden explosion, became riddled with holes and a complete mess.
The thin workers were caught off guard by the sudden explosion, and frightened shouts rose and fell.
Some were thrown to the ground by the blast, seemingly about to be crushed by the massive hull of a wooden ship in the next second.
“Help!” Desperate cries echoed through the sky.
“Wood Release Ninjutsu!”
At the critical moment, a firm and powerful shout rang out.
The piece of wood that was about to smash into the worker suddenly seemed to be endowed with life; several wooden beams rapidly grew out, firmly propping up the ground and resolving the crisis invisibly.
The worker who had escaped disaster looked up and saw that it was the young man who had just arrived and worked exceptionally diligently, shouting at them:
“Get out of here quickly!”
Upon hearing this, several workers frantically fled into the distance.
Once they were safe, Yamato turned his gaze towards the rising thick smoke.
What on earth happened?
“Captain!” At this moment, Torune appeared next to Yamato with a Body Flicker Jutsu, reporting urgently: “I found many people at the dock transporting boxes onto the cargo ship.”
Before he finished speaking, another loud bang suddenly erupted from the factory building on the other side; various equipment and tools scattered in all directions under the impact of the explosion, like fallen leaves swept up by a strong wind.
“Are they abandoning this place and trying to escape?” Yamato raised a hand to block the flying wood splinters, his brows furrowed.
“Captain!”
A shout came from the sky, and an Ink Bird struggled to break free from the constraints of the thick smoke, flapping its wings and flying towards them.
Just as it was about to arrive, the Ink Bird suddenly shattered into countless ink dots, and two figures landed steadily in front of Yamato.
“Fu Yamanaka, Sai? Why are you two here? Is Chizhao’s side resolved?”
“Don’t worry about Chizhao’s side; rather than that, we obtained intelligence about this place from Gato....”
Fu Yamanaka briefly told Yamato the true purpose of the shipyard.
After listening to Fu Yamanaka’s report, Yamato’s expression grew even more solemn, and he quickly gave orders:
“Torune, use your insects to deal with the explosives.”
“Sai and Fu Yamanaka, you two will come with me to stop their escape plan; we absolutely cannot let them get away with this any longer!”
“Yes!”
Everyone responded in unison, then their figures flashed, instantly disappearing from their original positions, leaving only a wisp of smoke that had not yet completely dissipated.
Yamato, Sai, and Fu Yamanaka broke through the dense smoke, leaped onto the rooftops, and quickly approached the direction of the dock.
Stepping over various rooftops to reach the dock, they soon saw a group of people in the distance, frantically moving various boxes onto a cargo ship.
“We must destroy that ship.”
No sooner had Yamato finished speaking than, as the three were about to move closer, a dark shadow descended from the sky, smashing onto the eaves beneath their feet with the force of thunder, instantly sending tiles flying and dust rising.
Yamato and the others quickly leaped to the ground, dodging the heavy blow, and slid back a short distance.
“Fu Yamanaka, Sai, are you alright?”
Fu Yamanaka nodded: “I’m fine.” Sai also responded in a low voice, while his gaze vigilantly watched the faint figure in the thick smoke ahead.
“Good moves. How about considering joining us?”
A rough voice accompanied the spreading smoke, ringing out around them.
Several Rogue Ninja with grim faces and fierce eyes blocked their path.
Yamato recognized their appearances at a glance; almost all of them were Ninja who had defected from various Ninja villages, and he hadn't expected them to flee here and collude with the dark forces.
“Unfortunately, I already have a home and cannot stoop to your level!” Yamato formed hand signs and shouted loudly:
“Wood Release: Thorns Killing Jutsu!”
Accompanying Yamato’s attack, Sai immediately unrolled his scroll, his brush dancing, and pointed with his finger:
“Ninja Art: Super Beast Imitation Drawing!”
“What?!”
The several Rogue Ninja were caught off guard by the fierce Ninjutsu, but they quickly adjusted their mindset, narrowly dodged the attack, and retaliated with corresponding Ninjutsu.
For a time, the battlefield was filled with flashing blades and flying Ninjutsu; explosions and battle cries intertwined, making it exceptionally intense.
Thanks to Yamato’s extremely high combat power and the tacit cooperation of Sai and Fu Yamanaka, the scales of victory quickly tipped in their favor.
The ground was strewn with the bodies of Rogue Ninja, but a continuous stream of reinforcements was still arriving, attempting to block the three of them from the dock.
Fu Yamanaka panted slightly, moving a bit closer to Sai behind him:
“It seems… they want to stall us so the cargo ship can leave smoothly.”
Sai, whose Chakra was also somewhat depleted, felt the gravity of the situation: “What should we do then?”
Yamato clenched his hands again, preparing to form hand signs: “There’s no choice… we just have to push through!”
“Earth Release: Raging Mudslide!”
Accompanied by a familiar voice, black mud, appearing from nowhere, surged towards the Rogue Ninja like a raging flood.
“This… this is…”
As the mudslide approached, the Rogue Ninja watched the surging black torrent in horror; before they could react, they were covered in mud, their movements becoming extremely difficult, and the more they struggled, the deeper they sank, unable to extricate themselves.
The originally aggressive Rogue Ninja were now in a sorry state, completely losing the power to resist.
“Are you alright!”
At this moment, Chizhao, who had jumped down from the other side, quickly rushed towards Yamato and the others.
Seeing Chizhao safe and sound in front of him, Yamato also showed a relieved smile: “Chizhao, it’s truly wonderful that you’re safe.”
“Of course, that’s all thanks to having companions,” Chizhao said with a smile, then looked around with a puzzled expression: “Eh? Where’s Torune?”
Yamato looked at the smoke-filled surroundings: “The sound of the explosions has stopped; Torune should have successfully prevented subsequent explosions. Time is of the essence now; we must stop them from heading out to sea as quickly as possible!”
Just as Chizhao was about to follow Yamato and the others to the dock, Sai suddenly grabbed her hand:
“Riding an Ink Bird will be faster.”
Only then did she notice a lifelike Ink Bird already standing quietly beside them.
“Okay!”
Chizhao nodded and, together with Sai, ascended into the sky on the Ink Bird.
The crisp wind whistled past their ears, and the vast blue of the distant sea suddenly appeared in their sight.
If she weren’t on a mission, Chizhao really would have wanted Sai to take her to admire this boundless beautiful scenery in the air for a while longer.
“Hold on to me.”
Sai’s voice came from ahead, and Chizhao cooperatively held onto his shoulder, but in the next second, the Ink Bird violently lurched, and Chizhao uncontrollably pressed against Sai’s back, her hands instinctively wrapping around his waist.
Through the thin fabric, she distinctly felt the firm and powerful muscle contours of Sai’s abdomen.
“Mm, just like that.”
A satisfied smile played on his lips, and then he controlled the Ink Bird to fly steadily towards the dock.
“Oh no, the ship has already set sail!”
Chizhao exclaimed, anxiously wondering how to stop the departing ship, but her gaze had already caught sight of a familiar figure on the dock’s shore in the distance.
“That person is… Torune?”
She murmured softly, and Torune below had clearly noticed their figures circling in the air; he raised his right hand, giving them a unique Anbu hand signal.
Mission accomplished.
Just then, a deafening roar suddenly came from the cargo ship, which had already sailed far away, followed by billowing black smoke accompanied by raging flames, quickly engulfing the entire ship.
Four consecutive explosions echoed, interspersed with continuous screams from the ship, and accompanied by the tumultuous sea, all of it eventually faded away into the boundless ocean, returning to a deathly quiet calm.
Thus, the dark forces stationed on the Land of Waves island, as well as the black industrial chain, were finally completely shattered within this vast blue sea.
