In the memories of many Konoha ninja who survived the Third Great Ninja War, that night during the Second Battle of Lishi Fortress became an inescapable nightmare that haunted their lives!
Flying puppets with high-speed rotors and piercing shrieks dove down in a black swarm.
In an instant, it was like shaking out a carpet woven from fire and explosions. People were swept into the air like discarded dust, caught in the shockwaves. Even more were obliterated the moment the flying puppets crashed and detonated, leaving nothing behind.
The power and magnitude of these explosions were absolutely insane compared to the earlier wooden puppets! Each impact wiped out everything within a basketball court's worth of space.
There was almost nowhere to run, nowhere to hide.
This was the bombing strategy Jinghang and Sasori had devised—carpet bombing!
Three thousand flying puppets, each loaded with 200 explosive tags! As Jinghang put it, "This time we're going all out like proper landlords—no need to be stingy!"
But Sasori disagreed. "We still need to be efficient. Every explosive tag must be used effectively. Each tag represents taxpayer money—if it doesn't take lives, we're failing our taxpayers."
Sasori drew a formation grid on the Konoha camp map: 3,000 flying puppets, fifty per row, sixty rows total, diving row by row over the Konoha encampment, gradually extending forward. Thirty rows would basically cover the entire Konoha camp, then they'd reverse direction and do it again—essentially plowing the camp twice.
Of course, this would cause some losses to the ground-based Arhat puppets, but mountain copper alloy could withstand far more than flesh and blood. As long as they weren't directly hit, the damage would be minimal. This level of loss was acceptable.
So the Arhat puppets advanced in waves from the front while flying puppets dove in sequence from behind. The massive Konoha camp was instantly engulfed in flames. Hiruzen Sarutobi had few ninja left around him, and their survival space kept shrinking.
"Could it be that heaven itself wants to destroy Konoha?!"
Hiruzen stared blankly at the brilliant fireworks before him, his eyes filled with despair.
"Lord Hokage! There's still hope!"
Minato Namikaze said firmly.
Like grasping the last lifeline.
"What method?"
"I've been observing—these flying puppets dive with intervals, about three seconds apart. As long as you can cross one bombing line within three seconds, you'll be safe. Let me show you!"
With that, he charged straight toward the sea of flames.
Minato didn't use the Flying Thunder God Technique—he wanted all the ninja to see clearly. Just as explosions erupted right in front of him, Minato stopped precisely at the edge of the blast radius.
After the explosion passed, Minato suddenly accelerated, covering over forty meters in just three seconds.
Boom!
Another round of explosions, but now behind Minato, who remained unharmed.
"Quick! Charge just like that!"
The explosions were nearly upon them—there was no time for further consideration. Hiruzen led the remnants, charging through the flying puppet bombardment.
Minato's battlefield composure and analytical ability rivaled that of the Nara clan, and this method proved highly effective.
Most of Konoha's survivors managed to break through the "bombing line," though some who couldn't master the timing perished in the flames.
...
"Brother Sasori, the Konoha ninja seem to have figured out the bombing pattern. Some are breaking through directly."
Xuechi Gao'ao reported.
"Really? So Konoha still has some clever people? Perfect—that'll save my Arhat puppets. Control center, attention: all flying puppets, rear formation to front formation, chase them down and bomb them!"
"But Brother Sasori, these flying puppets' attack range only reaches the edge of Konoha's rear camp. We probably can't chase them much farther."
Sasori smiled.
"How many Konoha ninja can still run?"
"Roughly... less than four thousand."
Xuechi Gaoyi glanced into the distance and answered.
"Heh, that's fine. Lord Kazekage is already waiting ahead with his forces. We'll bomb as many as we can."
Sasori laughed.
"Oh, and make sure to recover all the remaining puppets—they're all quite expensive."
Sometimes humans are creatures with incredibly tenacious survival instincts, finding ways to live no matter how harsh the environment.
As the "bombing line" gradually pushed backward, the ninja who escaped the inferno instantly breathed a sigh of relief. It was like dancing between the opening and closing jaws of death itself—a sensation beyond mere excitement.
Hiruzen surveyed the remaining people.
Probably less than thirty percent survived.
Before they could enjoy a moment of post-disaster relief, those buzzing flying puppets turned around and flew straight toward the Konoha ninja.
"Run!"
Minato shouted desperately.
A row of flying puppets had already begun diving toward the Konoha ninja.
"Charge toward the rear camp!"
Hiruzen decisively issued the command.
The Konoha ninja didn't dare hesitate, immediately rising to flee for their lives. Dozens of slower ninja were instantly swallowed by explosions.
Such brutal bombing was a life-or-death test of ninja stamina, chakra reserves, and willpower. Those who fell behind had no other choice—only death awaited them.
Finally, when all ninja had escaped the Konoha camp's perimeter, the flying puppets above only circled behind them, no longer launching diving attacks.
"This should be the control limit for those damned things."
Hiruzen was also somewhat breathless.
He had no time to grieve over the Eastern Army's massive losses—he had to figure out how to bring the remaining ninja back.
He believed that if Jinghang didn't kick them while they were down, it wouldn't match his character.
"Where is Hinata Rōji?"
Hiruzen asked.
"Haven't seen him—he may have fallen in battle."
Shikaku Nara replied.
"Are there any other Hyūga clan ninja?"
"Lord Hokage, most Hyūga ninja who came to fight were reserve members assigned to the rear camp, so..."
The flying puppet bombardment had started from the rear camp—these people might have died in their sleep during the first wave of attacks.
"Minato, Shikaku, how should we retreat?"
Hiruzen asked.
"If I were Jinghang, I would have secretly circled behind us the moment the bombing started, setting up an ambush on our retreat route."
Shikaku Nara analyzed, and Minato nodded in agreement.
"Then we should..."
"We should make a wide detour, avoiding the ambush positions ahead. Only then can we safely return to the village."
Minato drew a horizontal line in the sandy ground, then sketched an arc bypassing the line.
It was this arc that preserved the final spark of hope for Konoha's Eastern Army.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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