The movie opens with a battle taking place at night on a desolate seaside beach between Sunagakure ninja and soldiers wearing bulky suits of armor. Despite their best efforts, the Sand-nin are slowly overwhelmed by the sheer strength of their mysterious opponents. The timely arrival of reinforcements led by Kankuro and Gaara turns the tide, with Kankuro slicing apart a suit of armor with his puppet, and Gaara dispatching a large number of enemies en masse with his signature Desert Imperial Funeral. However, when Gaara orders the Sand-nin to shine a flare at the retreating enemies, a large warship, which resembles a pre-World War I dreadnought arrives to reinforce them. The ship then opens fire with its guns and Gaaras sand armor barely manages to protect his comrades.