War has always been a catalyst for scientific progress. Most cutting-edge technology, if you trace it back far enough, started out as a way to kill people.
The ninja world was no exception.
Ever since the Wind-Cloud Alliance began bombing Konoha, the village's research teams had been working around the clock on air defense. Hiding in bunkers and taking hits wasn't a long-term strategy. So, Konoha rolled out a new generation of anti-air giant crossbows.
The tech wasn't rocket science—just a clever upgrade of the Craftsmen Country's Eight-Ox Crossbow. The loading was easier now: two ninja could string an arrow in about ten minutes using a pulley system. The arrows themselves got tail fins for higher altitude, a hollow triangular head packed with explosive tags that detonated on impact.
With these, the devastation from air raids dropped sharply.
But as Konoha adapted, so did the enemy.
Sunagakure's puppet masters responded with new flying puppets and fresh tactics.
Konoha's Eight-Ox crossbows could reach up to 4,000 meters; Sunagakure's flyers could hit 5,000. Of course, that number was a bit misleading—5,000 meters was the max control range, but no puppet master could stand inside Konoha and operate their puppet.
To work around this, Sunagakure developed a new kind of aerial threat: the mother-child flying puppet system.
The concept was simple. The entire puppet control center was housed in a massive "mother" puppet. Some puppet masters would pilot the mother up to 5,000 meters above Konoha, circling overhead. Inside, other masters controlled smaller "child" puppets, which would dive-bomb targets below. (Think of it as ninja-style precision bombing—explosive tags were too scarce for carpet bombing.)
These dive bombs were fast, erratic, and nearly impossible for the crossbows to predict or intercept.
Konoha's casualties spiked.
But when the enemy shifts, so does Konoha.
Chief Strategist Nara Shikaku quickly came up with a counter. He noticed each mother puppet could only carry five child units. So, if you could nail all five diving puppets, the threat was neutralized.
Shikaku reorganized the air defense squads. Normally, each crossbow had one spotter and two loaders. Now, he added a controller—always a Nara clan ninja skilled in Shadow Imitation Technique.
Here's how the tactic worked: As soon as the Hyuga clan's observation posts spotted a flying puppet, they'd sound the alarm. Within five minutes, Konoha's air defense was ready. Every five crossbows formed a group, each with a leader. When the mother puppet started releasing child units, the group leader assigned targets—one per crossbow.
As the child puppets dove, the spotters fired arrows toward their general direction. The Nara controllers then stretched their shadows into thin, long cords, connecting them to the arrow tails and guiding the arrows for precision interception. Take down all five, and the bombing threat was gone.
After a short adjustment period, the Wind-Cloud Alliance's air raids became almost useless. By the time Danzo's inauguration rolled around, large-scale bombings were rare.
But today, on the Fourth Hokage's big day, the long-absent bombing returned. Only one mother unit appeared, but every air defense ninja was on edge, eyes glued to the black dot circling overhead.
Everyone knew: at a moment like this, shooting down the child units meant glory and promotion. Missing them meant disgrace.
The mother puppet began circling above the Hokage building. Nara Shikaku shouted:
"Position Three! Position Four! Position Seven! Get ready!"
These three squads were closest to the Hokage building—three on one. Based on past success rates, interception was almost a sure thing.
Position Three had the best angle. The squad leader was none other than Shiranui Panma, the guy Hiruzen once caught playing mahjong on the wall.
Panma's eyes, his rangefinder, and the mother puppet in the sky lined up perfectly. He tracked the altitude as the puppet circled.
"Altitude 4,780. Out of range."
"Altitude 4,830. Still out of range."
"Forget it. Focus on the child units."
Danzo watched from the platform, face full of pride as the ninja worked the crossbows with practiced skill.
Yes, this was it. Konoha needed the guts to face danger head-on. My comeback starts with this air defense battle above our village.
Let those broken puppets become the fireworks for my coronation!
"The mother unit's hatch is opening—heads up!" Hyuga Hizashi called.
All three spotters locked their eyes on the sky.
But—
What spilled out of the hatch wasn't child puppets, but a rain of paper slips.
Each slip was folded into an arrowhead, so instead of fluttering like snow, they dropped straight down.
"Are those explosive tags?!" Shikaku gasped. That many tags couldn't be intercepted. He was about to order an evacuation when Hyuga Hiashi spoke up.
"Doesn't look like explosive tags—just plain paper with writing."
The papers hit the ground in a rush.
People bent down, picked them up, and unfolded them.
A bunch landed on the Hokage building's rooftop. One fell right at Danzo's feet.
He picked it up and read:
"Upon hearing Danzo has inherited the Fourth Hokage mantle, I present ten thousand taels of gold in celebration. Respectfully, Jinghang."
"Ten thousand taels of gold?" Danzo frowned.
Just then, Hyuga Hizashi called out again.
"Something else is falling!"
Ten black dots dropped from the mother puppet's hatch.
"All positions, prepare!" Shikaku ordered, though something felt off. These weren't child puppets—they had no flight path, just dropped straight down.
Whatever. Shoot first, ask questions later.
For Konoha's seasoned air defense squads, this was child's play.
Ten crossbow bolts streaked up, striking the ten black packages and exploding them in midair.
Danzo smiled, satisfied.
So much for Jinghang.
But what happened next stunned everyone.
The exploded packages scattered into a "yellow rain," showering down on the crowd.
"What is this stuff? It stinks!"
"Ugh! It's shit!"
"That's messed up!"
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