They're promoting the "Konoha threat" theory, and spouting nonsense about the Hidden

Chapter 52 I Laugh at the Whirlpool's Lack of Wisdom, and the Hozuki's Lack of Strategy [Please Read Further]

"Those idiots from Iwagakure, did they think I couldn't see his contempt for us before? Hah, serves them right! Now you know who the idiot is, right?"

"People say that the people of Kumogakure are simple-minded, but actually we are not simple-minded at all. Most of the time we are incredibly clever."

While leading his men in Lightning Release Chakra Mode, Moodybi kept glancing back to keep track of the pursuers' progress.

"That's... the Five-Tails?"

Even though they had fled to a great distance, the overwhelming figure of the Five-Tailed King Mu was still clearly visible.

"This guy is really crazy! He even carries something as dangerous as a tailed beast with him. Luckily, the tailed beast didn't go berserk before, otherwise our allied forces would have fallen apart before we even got here."

Moody said with lingering fear as he looked at the Tailed Beast that kept roaring and trampling the earth.

"However, no matter how cunning you are, in the end you still became our scapegoat."

As the saying goes, when you're escaping, you don't need to run faster than the enemy; you just need to run faster than your teammates to be saved. Moody now understands this principle well.

With the Five-Tails buying them time, it's safe to say that Kirigakure has no chance of catching up, and they can now safely return to Kumogakure.

With things having developed to this point, it can be said that the Hidden Cloud Village's attempt to seize the Tailed Beast Jinchuriki from the Uzushio Village has completely failed.

Even if Kirigakure and the Five-Tails fight to a draw, given the current state of the Cloud Village ninja, they might not be able to obtain the sealing technology for the Tailed Beasts if they turn around and fight back.

"My lord, we've reached Wochao Village just ahead."

Reminded by his ninja subordinates, Moody once again caught sight of the bustling Uzushio Village and the towering castle tower.

"Hahaha……"

Suddenly, Modibi stopped in his tracks, stood on a tree, and laughed wildly as he looked in the direction of Vortex Village.

"Why are you laughing, sir?"

The many Cloud Village ninja present were puzzled and looked at Moody.

If a low-ranking ninja stops laughing uncontrollably while fleeing for his life, he must be mentally unstable; but if it's a leader, then there must be a deeper meaning behind it.

"I don't laugh at others, but I laugh at the recklessness of Hozuki and the lack of wisdom of Uzumaki. If I were to wage war, I could ambush an army here beforehand, what could they do?"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a loud bang was heard, and the main gate of Uzumaki Village swung open. Leading the way was the third elder of the Uzumaki clan, and a group of Uzumaki ninjas suddenly appeared behind him, carrying explosive tags and charging over with howls.

"Retreat! Retreat now!"

Moody's smile vanished abruptly. He was all too familiar with this tactic of using shadow clones with explosive tags. Moreover, he didn't know if there were any pursuers behind him. If he wasted too much time and got surrounded, he would really lose his life.

As highly skilled practitioners of Lightning Release chakra mode, the escape speed of the Cloud Village ninjas was unparalleled in the ninja world. Although the Uzumaki ninjas managed to deceive the Cloud Village ninjas by digging deep underground, achieving the effect of a sneak attack, many of them still managed to escape.

"stop!"

Seeing that he could not catch up, the Third Elder of the Whirlpool did not pursue them, and immediately ordered the cleanup of the mess.

Soon, he encountered Hozuki Shingetsu and his two companions who were chasing after him.

"Oh? So quite a few Cloud Ninja escaped?"

"Yes! To be honest, with this Lightning Release Chakra Mode, it's true that most people can't catch up." Despite outnumbering the enemy, quite a few still managed to escape, leaving Elder Uzumaki somewhat ashamed.

"It's alright."

Hozuki Shingetsu shook his head nonchalantly; he had arranged ambushes along more than just this route, enough to keep Moody in check.

"Let's go," Hozuki Shingetsu gestured to his two companions to continue.

"Watch out, Tsuki~" Yukinagi's sarcastic voice came again, but Hozuki Shingetsu ignored it, while Yagura Karatachi watched from the sidelines.

-

A group of defeated soldiers were running rampant through the dense jungle. Their tattered vests, heavy breathing, and frequent glances back all indicated that this group of ninjas were already terrified.

"Lord Modibi, the Gourd Pass is just ahead. Once you cross this point, you'll be outside the borders of the Land of Whirlpools!"

One of the ninjas surveyed the terrain and spoke to Moody.

Hulukou is a place where mountains and rivers converge, and it is named for its gourd-like shape when viewed from above.

Modibi originally planned to rush out of the Land of Whirlpools in one go before resting, but seeing that the Cloud Ninja around him were all sweating profusely and looked exhausted, he had no choice but to rest here for a while, eat and drink his fill, and then continue on his way.

Judging from our observations along the way, the Hidden Mist Village has given up on pursuing them, so resting here shouldn't be a bad idea.

"Let's rest for ten minutes, then we'll be on our way! Once we reach Wano Country, the people from Kirigakure shouldn't follow us anymore, and then we can get a proper rest!"

After arranging the guards, Moody spoke to the ninjas.

Upon receiving their orders, the ninjas immediately scattered joyfully, some drinking water, some relieving themselves, and some resting.

Just then, another burst of jubilant cheers rang out.

"Hahaha……"

Upon hearing the laughter, many Cloud Ninja reacted as if to a stress response. Those who were drinking water immediately spat it out, those who needed to use the toilet pinched themselves to stop, and those who were resting immediately jumped up like zombies, looking around warily.

However, everything was quiet, and nothing happened.

So everyone turned their attention to the instigator, Moodybi, wondering what had gotten into this boss this time.

"Cough cough... I was just laughing because Uzumaki and Hozuki are not very resourceful. If I were to use troops, I would have ambushed a group of men right here, waiting for them to tire themselves out. Even if we escaped with our lives, we would be seriously injured. I only laughed because there was no ambush here."

However, the group did not relax. After waiting for a while without any further movement, they loosened their grip and continued to release the pressure.

"I told you there weren't any ambushes! His Hozuki and Uzumaki are nothing special!"

As if to bolster his own morale, Moody shouted loudly at the people around him.

Before the words were finished, two cannon shots rang out from the hillside, followed by deafening battle cries. A white-haired and white-bearded elder from the Whirlpool Clan, clad in armor, stroked his beard and roared, "The Whirlpool Clan has been waiting here for a long time!"

Immediately, a similar scene unfolded again, with a group of vortex shadow clones carrying explosive tags beginning to imitate the Arabs and charging fiercely into battle.

"Retreat! Retreat now!"

Seeing that things were not going well, Modibi began to flee again.

However, he was able to escape thanks to his superior stamina and ample chakra, but the other exhausted Cloud Ninjas didn't possess his strength. Just the fact that they had crossed the Uzushio Village from that great river without stopping and reached the border of the Land of Whirlpools was enough to exhaust most of their energy, let alone the fact that they had already gone through two fierce battles.

Even more distressed was the Cloud Ninja who was caressing his spear. He looked up at the approaching Uzumaki ninja, then down at his brother, and sighed deeply. He loosened his grip, giving up the struggle and letting things take their course, a look of enjoyment on his face.

Even in death, one should die in an easy way.

(End of this chapter)