Chapter 206:
"That middle-aged man in his fifties being received by Tetsubaki is the Daimyō of the Land of Water."
The Jar Merchant hid in the branches of a nearby tree, using the dense leaves to conceal himself.
"Mhm. The three people protecting the Daimyō of the Land of Water from behind should be members of Kara. I learned about them from Greedy Wolf—they're Delta, Boro, and Code."
"Something's off. Why isn't Evilmoku here? With a chance like this to potentially eliminate another Armor Warrior, there's no way Evilmoku would pass it up…"
The Jar Merchant carefully observed the Daimyō's entourage, but Evilmoku was indeed nowhere to be seen.
"No, something's wrong! Jar Merchant, we have to get back immediately!"
Just as Shuyu finished speaking, a mass of black mist appeared over the mountain villa where the Daimyō of the Land of Fire was temporarily residing.
From within the mist, a horde of winged creatures emerged.
"Legion Mutant Beasts!"
Hearing the Jar Merchant's voice, Shuyu turned to him with a questioning look.
"They're essentially the army division of Mutant Beasts. Not very strong individually, but there are a lot of them."
The Jar Merchant explained to Shuyu.
At that moment, the loudspeakers installed throughout the Land of Iron began to sound.
"Attention all citizens of the Land of Iron: unidentified enemies are attacking. Please evacuate in an orderly fashion. All samurai, protect the citizens as they retreat."
Inside the government building of the Land of Iron, the elderly Mifune once again donned his samurai armor and took up his katana.
Masses of civilians began urgently evacuating with their families in tow.
"This situation really is a mess…"
Mifune murmured to himself as he stared at the dense swarm of Legion Mutant Beasts in the sky—but now wasn't the time to sigh.
With a grim expression, Mifune looked toward the crowds. The beasts were slaughtering innocent civilians and attacking the samurai protecting them.
Elsewhere, Boro watched the Legion Mutant Beasts in the sky and said, "Looks like our leader's getting impatient."
"These monsters… you summoned them?!"
Hearing Boro's words, Tetsubaki drew her ever-present katana and created some distance.
Within the mountain villa, every swing of Sasuke's sword felled a Legion Mutant Beast.
"What the hell is going on…"
Caught off guard by the sudden attack, the Daimyō of the Land of Fire still hadn't figured out the situation.
"Judging by these creatures' appearance, they're similar to Evilmoku—but they seem much weaker."
Shinki, using his Magnet Release, killed one of the Legion Mutant Beasts and commented.
"They might be weak, but there are just too many of them."
After using Wood Release to take out one of the creatures, Sarada gave a wry smile. She looked up at the black mist in the sky; more and more Legion Mutant Beasts continued pouring out of it.
"Damn it… These monsters… Even though we gave the evacuation order in time, the casualties are still this high… At least another half hour is needed before the remaining citizens of the Land of Iron can fully retreat."
After helping a family of three escape an attacking beast, Mifune was panting heavily, exhausted—his body could no longer support prolonged combat.
Tetsubaki was kicked into the air by Boro.
"So much for samurai."
"Boro, quit playing around. Don't forget, we've got other tasks to handle."
Delta, standing in the back, spoke impatiently.
"Yeah, yeah, I got it." Boro gave Delta a goofy smile, then turned serious as he glared at the recovering Tetsubaki. "Lava Release: Scorching Star Shatter!"
Tetsubaki could clearly feel the ground trembling beneath her feet, as if something was charging toward her.
Just then, a figure appeared beside her, scooping her up and leaping away.
At the spot where she'd just stood, a pillar of water shot out from the ground into the sky. Wherever the droplets landed, the ground was instantly corroded.
"You're one of the Konoha ninja who came with the Daimyō of the Land of Fire?"
Tetsubaki looked at Shuyu, who had just saved her. The Jar Merchant had also now arrived in front of Delta, Boro, and Code.
"Let's get out of here."
Shuyu said.
"You're not worried about your comrade?"
"He's more than capable of taking care of himself."
As Shuyu spoke, as if to back up his words, a powerful golden chakra erupted around the Jar Merchant.
He vanished in a blur, reappearing right in front of Boro: "Nuclear Release: Nuclear Blast Fist!"
His punch landed squarely on Boro's abdomen. The explosion that followed forced Boro back a few steps, though the damage quickly healed.
"Heh… This is my proud regeneration ability."
"In that case, I'll just keep hitting you until you can't regenerate anymore!"
"Aren't we going to help him?"
Watching Boro get thoroughly beaten, Code asked Delta.
"Hmph, no need. That kind of opponent isn't something you beat just by throwing more people at him. Besides, since we're dealing with a member of Hydra, naturally it should be S.H.I.E.L.D. who steps in."
Delta replied as he looked calmly at the Daimyō of the Land of Water.
Under his gaze, the Daimyō began to change, revealing his true form—
A liquid metal robot.
The liquid robot stepped forward to take Boro's place.
Though it lacked in offensive capability, its fluid nature made it virtually immune to physical attacks.
"Damn… As expected of a Hydra member… Even with my strong regeneration ability, I almost thought I was done for."
Boro, now with his clothes torn and his chest heaving, looked like he'd barely survived.
Delta shot him a glance and said, "As long as the Core is intact, you can't die—right?"
"Well, yeah, you're not wrong… I won't die, but the pain's still very real."
Boro scratched his head as he spoke.
The number of Legion Mutant Beasts emerging from the black mist in the sky gradually began to dwindle. Eventually, Evilmoku finally appeared, standing before them all.
"Everyone, be careful!"
Already transformed into Flame Dragon Hero, Tentō warned the others.
"Evilmoku!"
Sasuke locked eyes with Evilmoku.
"So the Flame Dragon Armor has shown up, after all."
Ignoring Sasuke, Evilmoku focused intently on Tentō. Leaving only a blur behind, he suddenly appeared in front of Tentō, grabbing him by the neck and lifting him into the air.
At the same time, Sasuke sprang into action, appearing beside Evilmoku. He held his Kusanagi Sword in one hand and aimed for the arm holding Tentō—but Evilmoku easily blocked with his free hand.
"Lightning Release: Chidori Blade!"
Sasuke channeled lightning chakra into the Kusanagi Sword, which sparked with blue arcs of electricity.
"Ninjutsu has no effect on me…"