7 The Final Showdown

Chapter 6 The Final Showdown Temujin was warned by a shepherd of the planned sneak attack. His party scattered and Toghril's men gave chase. Eventually, Temujin and nineteen of his men arrived on the muddy shores of Lake Baljuna. They came from nine

different tribes. They included Christians, Buddhists, and Muslims. Some, like Temujin, worshipped the Eternal Blue Sky. The men were low on food. When a wild horse appeared, the men took it as a positive sign. Temujin's brother, Khasar, captured and killed the horse, and the men ate it. They drank muddy water from the lake and pledged their eternal allegiance to Temujin. They would not be defeated so easily.

Temujin sent messengers to tell his soldiers to march toward Toghril's troops. Horse stations were established all along the route. When Temujin and his men left Lake Baljuna, they rode their horses as fast as they could. When their horses tired, fresh horses were waiting for them at the horse stations. Temujin called this the "lightning advance," because of how quickly he and his men traveled. Toghril, thinking Temujin was days away, did

not expect the attack so soon. Victory was swift for Temujin. Toghril tried to escape and was killed. Temujin continued on to the western steppe. There he would fight the Naiman tribe—who had allied with Jamuka—for control of the entire steppe. Temujin was greatly outnumbered. The night before the battle, Temujin told each of his men to light five fires. This would make his army appear much larger than it really was. Before sunrise, he ordered some of his men to attack in small groups in a "tumbleweed formation." Squads quietly approached the enemy, then spread out and shot arrows from different positions. Before the enemy could fire back, Temujin's men scattered again. This confused the enemy.

When daylight broke, Temujin's soldiers formed lines of men standing side by side. The first line of men shot arrows at the Naiman troops, then made way for the next line of men with another round of arrows. This was called the "lake formation," because the men were like the waves of a lake—as soon as one line of soldiers disappeared, another stepped forward to take their place. In response, the Naiman spread their defense into a long, thin line. Now, Temujin reorganized his troops into the triangle-shaped "chisel formation," which penetrated deep into the

enemy lines. The Naiman had been outsmarted and outfought. On one moonless night, many tried to escape. Without the moonlight, they could not see and fell into a deep gorge. The few remaining Naiman soldiers were defeated the next morning. Jamuka and a small band of his followers escaped to the forest. For a year, they wandered, hunting and eating wild animals, just like Temujin had as a boy. Eventually, Jamuka's men grew tired and turned him in. For their disloyalty, Temujin had them executed.