The fuse burned rapidly, sparks skipping through the dim transfer station.
Naruto steadied the blasting tube with one hand. Blood seeped from the canvas wrapped around his left arm and dripped onto the iron pipe. He fixed his eyes on the mottled wall ahead, calculating the shockwave's angle of spread.
The ventilation grate overhead shattered, sending metal fragments flying in every direction. Hundreds of mechanical spiders glowing with purple light poured down, their sharp mechanical legs clattering against the ground. The transfer station's escape route was completely sealed off.
These mechanical spiders were enormous, with barbs at the ends of their eight jointed limbs. They quickly formed ranks, their compound eyes locking onto the intruders with red light. The spiders in front opened their mechanical mandibles, high-voltage arcs crawling through their mouthparts.
Two seconds remained on the countdown.
Naruto's right leg tensed. He kicked Sara precisely in the waist, sending her crying out as she flew behind the load-bearing pillar where Minato Namikaze stood.
Minato reached out and caught her securely. The two of them had just withdrawn into the blind-spot shelter when a deafening explosion swallowed the entire space. The ground shook violently, and dust sifted down from the walls.
The directional blasting tube erupted with terrifying kinetic force. A straight column of fire, carrying a high-pressure shockwave and flames ignited from coal dust, blasted forward.
The first thick, mottled wall was torn apart in an instant. Broken bricks and rebar collapsed inward. The underground fortress was forcibly gnawed open, leaving a three-meter-wide hole as heat waves rolled through the air.
Before the smoke had cleared, more mechanical spiders surged through the blasted opening. The energy-storage tanks on their backs lit up with glaring purple light, and viscous purple energy webs spewed from their mouthparts, attempting to seal the