Tank Cannon Fires

The reconnaissance of the battlefield was complete, and the objective for the Rocket Launchers had been perfectly achieved.

"Everyone, keep up! We are heading to the capital of the Land of the Moon."

The Rocket Launcher battalion immediately packed up their equipment, boarded their vehicles, and set off behind the tanks.

Captain Yamagami carefully inspected the area; seeing no errors, he let out a sigh of relief.

"I truly never imagined that I, a mere ordinary person, would be able to wield chakra."

"This pair of Chakra Gloves was invented by our Second Uzukage."

Inside the Rocket Launcher battalion, before the rockets had launched, everyone had been stiff with tension, their entire bodies wrapped in anxiety.

As ordinary people, this was their first time having the ability to face ninjas; the Chakra Gloves in their hands heralded an era belonging to the common man.

After the launch, they had been drenched in cold sweat, and the excitement following the liftoff had left them drained of strength. Now, aside from the drivers, everyone lay motionless in their seats.

Arriving at the Land of the Moon encampment and seeing the devastation, Uzumaki Shori issued an order.

"Halt. Stand by in position."

Rows of neatly arranged formations appeared before them.

"The five ninjas in the first row on the right and the twenty soldiers of the Daimyo's army in the first row on the left: stay behind to treat the wounded."

"Uzukage, we wish to go and fight as well."

"Do not leave us here," the soldiers who were ordered to stay behind pleaded.

Uzumaki Shori swept his gaze across them and spoke.

"Their crimes shall be judged after the war ends. Perhaps some among them do not deserve death; do not abandon their lives."

"I hope that future wars can be handled in this manner, spreading out from our Land of Whirlpools to manifest our benevolence and righteousness."

The soldiers left behind fell into a brief silence.

"Understood, Lord Uzukage."

"Very well, do not be disheartened. Once the treatment is complete, you may catch up with us."

Uzumaki Shori finished speaking, boarded his tank, and signaled for the advance to resume.

It would take approximately one day to travel from the Land of Whirlpools to the capital of the Land of the Moon.

They were still two hours away from the capital.

"Boom, boom, boom."

The mechanized units from the other two front lines converged.

Uzumaki Ashina led his team in from the right to merge with the group.

The team led by Uzumaki Jiro merged in from the left.

All units gradually drove into formation with Uzumaki Shori's main force.

The two team captains rose, leaped through the air several times, and arrived before Uzumaki Shori.

"Lord Uzukage, I never expected the Land of the Moon's forces to be so fragile. One round of rocket fire and they were scattered," Uzumaki Jiro said.

"It was the same on my side. One round of rocket fire and they all knelt and surrendered," Uzumaki Ashina said with a smile.

The Moon Ninja Village was composed of elite ninjas from several villages who had defected during the ninja wars; the intensity of their combat prowess could be imagined.

They had previously lived in peace with the Land of Whirlpools, and no one had expected them to jump out and provoke them.

"Now, let us arrange our tactics."

Uzumaki Shori pointed at the map and spoke.

"We will concentrate our forces entirely on one point, forming an equilateral triangle, and use the Weasel Tanks to pierce directly through the enemy city walls."

"The Uzushio Ninjas will remain behind the Weasel Tanks, providing support and offensive maneuvers should any situation arise."

Uzumaki Ashina applauded, agreeing that in the face of their tank torrent, the Land of the Moon would surely be crushed, destroying the enemy's final line of defense with overwhelming force.

The lead Weasel Tank could already see the capital of the Land of the Moon.

"Report, Lord Kirikage."

"We have arrived at the capital of the Land of the Moon," the driver of the lead vehicle shouted.

"There is no need to decelerate. Everyone, accelerate into the triangle formation and launch the assault!" Uzumaki Shori immediately issued the command.

Land of the Moon, Royal Hall.

"Reporting to Your Majesty, the Land of Whirlpools' army has appeared on the outskirts of the capital and is approaching rapidly," a soldier of the Land of the Moon reported.

The King broke into a cold sweat; he had already deployed three separate forces along the three main roads.

He had clearly notified the armies that if one side were attacked by the Land of Whirlpools, the other two were to provide support.

What was happening now? Could it be that all three forces had been wiped out by the enemy?

This was simply too fast! Even if they stood still and let them be hacked to death, it shouldn't have been this quick.

"Shabadaba, what are we to do? Didn't you say we could hold off the Land of Whirlpools for a month?"

"Your Majesty, please set your mind at ease. The moment the soldiers notified me, I already arranged for someone to head to the Land of Lightning to deliver the message."

"As long as we hold out for three days, reinforcements from the Land of Lightning will surely arrive."

Shabadaba was feeling irritable and restless; the situation in the Land of the Moon was truly dire. He had defected from another ninja village only to come here and enjoy the good life.

Should he just defect directly to the Land of Lightning? But the Land of Lightning would never accept rogue ninjas from other villages.

"Gelu, head to the city walls and arrange for the soldiers to stand guard. You must hold out for three days, do you understand?"

"Lord Shabadaba, this subordinate understands. I shall go and make the arrangements at once." After saying this, Gelu walked out.

The city gates of the capital of the Land of the Moon were finally within the firing range of the Weasel Tanks.

"Tank gunners, prepare! Aim for the city gates immediately. Fire at will!" Uzumaki Shori issued the order at once.

"Tank gunners, acknowledged."

The tank gunners activated their Chakra Gloves to control the tank cannons, swapped in armor-piercing shells, and prepared to destroy the enemy gates.

"Calculate target trajectory! Cover the entire city wall with artillery fire. Fire!" the tank gunner shouted.

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Nearly 300 Weasel Tanks fired while on the move.

"Boom!"

The shells slammed directly into the barrier of the Land of the Moon's capital, triggering explosions that caused the barrier to shudder violently.

Gelu swayed on the city wall, unable to suppress the fear rising in his heart.

Seeing that the barrier had not been breached, he let out a sigh of relief.

The tank gunner shouted again.

"Secondary reload complete! Continue covering the entire wall with artillery fire. Fire!"

"Bang, bang, bang!"

Gelu had just set his heart at ease, but the enemy's shells came raining down once more.

He had originally been thinking that with the barrier in place, there was no need to worry about the enemy's artillery.

However, this time, the barrier could not withstand the bombardment of the tank cannons.

"Boom, boom, boom!"

The barrier was shattered instantly by the armor-piercing shells, and the projectiles hurtled straight toward Gelu, who formed hand seals.

"Substitution Technique!"

The wooden log from the Substitution Technique was instantly blasted into ashes.

Gelu stood not far away, gasping for air. The scent of death had just washed over him; he had been only a hair's breadth away from meeting his end there.

But he had only dodged one shell; the subsequent shells were fired one after another. Gelu saw that the artillery fire had already covered every path he could have used to escape.

Shell after shell appeared before Gelu's eyes in the sky.

"I will not be buried with the Land of the Moon!"

His pupils gradually dilated as he let out a final scream.

"Boom!"

The shells landed, unleashing a series of explosions.

The city wall began to be pierced through by the armor-piercing shells, which then detonated from within.

The mud and bricks were no match for the artillery assault, and the wall began to collapse.

An entire section of the city wall of the Land of the Moon's capital was razed to the ground by the artillery fire.

The soldiers on the city wall had already begun to flee during the first round of artillery fire against the barrier.

The barrier that had originally protected the Land of the Moon now had a wide-open path through it.