After Nawaki captured the first island, he discovered that, as expected, all the surrounding bridges had been destroyed, and the Mist Ninja originally stationed there had all withdrawn.
Large numbers of Mist Ninja appeared along the edges of the surrounding islands. Having received the news, they had rushed over from nearby areas. Thanks to the interconnected bridge network spanning the outer islands, the Mist Ninja could deploy their forces flexibly, moving more than three times faster than ordinary ships. With this absolute speed advantage, whenever the enemy attempted a multi-pronged attack, the Mist Ninja could concentrate their superior forces and defeat the enemy troops scattered across the various islands one by one.
If the attackers instead chose to use a single island as a beachhead and gradually encroach upon the surrounding island chains, Kirigakure could defend while harassing the enemy's rear base. Even if some islands were occupied, the attackers' forces would become increasingly dispersed and isolated on lone islands, while their logistical burden grew ever heavier. Kirigakure, meanwhile, could exploit the terrain to the fullest with guerrilla tactics on the islands while constantly harassing the enemy's supplies at sea, dragging them into an endless quagmire of war.
Thus, if an ordinary Shinobi Army encountered the Mist Ninja's defensive system, it would lose no matter how it fought. Even with ten times the manpower, it would be dragged to death by logistics.
Unfortunately, the force Nawaki led was no ordinary Shinobi Army. The Mist Ninja's seemingly impregnable defensive system was built entirely on the mobility advantages provided by fleets and bridges! But before Nawaki's high-tech carrier groups, both advantages had vanished without a trace. No matter which tactic Nawaki chose, he could easily smash through Kirigakure's defensive system.
To balance attack speed and defense, Nawaki divided his four hundred thousand