But it was already too late.
A chain of thunderous explosions tore through the air.
BOOM!!! BOOM!!! BOOM!!!
"W-What is that?!"
"Are those some kind of advanced Exploding Tags?!"
Screams surged from within the ranks as fire and shrapnel burst everywhere.
Some shinobi were blown apart before they even realized what had happened. Others reacted quickly—Earth Release walls shot up to shield them, but new blasts kept raining down without pause.
Even so, explosions continued to punch through their defenses, sending bodies flying.
Some shinobi shifted to Lightning Release, detonating incoming bombs prematurely to minimize casualties.
"Move! Hurry, get out of this kill zone!!"
The Fourth Raikage roared, his voice cracking with urgency.
Ōnoki stared upward at the ominous swarm of dark shapes crossing the clouds—fighter-like constructs made of metal and roaring fire.
His expression hardened.
He instantly formed the complex seals of Dust Release and unleashed it toward the sky. A white beam flashed, erasing everything in its path.
"It's Kekkei Tōta! Evade now!!"
Jiraiya bellowed, eyes wide.
Several shinobi didn't even have time to scream. Dust Release was impossibly fast—instant disintegration for anything caught inside.
"Our objective is complete. Withdraw!!"
Jiraiya commanded as he ushered his forces out of the bombardment zone.
Umbrella's most advanced ordnance wasn't ready yet—the true anti-air weapons still in development.
For now, these bombs were their deadliest option.
Rumor had it they were testing something called a missile, but who knew when it would be ready?
And another weapon with the codename "Mushroom Bomb"—the name sounded almost laughable… could something with such a silly name really hold terrifying destructive power?
Below, Ōnoki managed to blast apart two of the metal birds—reduced to dust at the atomic level—but soon the rest of them disappeared beyond his range.
He slowly lowered his hand, his expression now grim.
All earlier contempt had vanished without a trace.
The Raikage was furious.
Kumogakure's Genin had been devastated—Jonin could endure, but for young shinobi, those bombs were nothing less than execution from the heavens.
If not for the quick actions of Kumogakure's elites, even more would have died.
Meanwhile, Iwagakure had fared far better—Earth Release users were naturally suited to defensive warfare.
Near the rear, the Sarutobi and Shimura clans—barely touched by the blasts—exchanged smug looks.
They had been shoved to the back as expendable cannon fodder earlier, but now… look who was laughing.
Still, beneath the arrogance, a cold fear brewed deep within them.
The Umbrella Organization was far more dangerous than anyone predicted.
"What kind of weapon was that?"
Ōnoki muttered darkly, frowning at the still-smoldering crater-fields.
"It feels similar to Explosion Release… but far stronger."
The battlefield stank of blood and burning gunpowder.
He inhaled slightly. Yes… gunpowder.
But how could ordinary gunpowder create devastation on this scale?
In the current shinobi world, gunpowder remained primitive—barely surpassing traditional Exploding Tags.
This was something else entirely.
Something new.
Something terrifying.
"What's falling from the sky?"
The Fourth Raikage and the shinobi around him stared upward, confused.
Strange objects plummeted down — yet not a single one carried chakra.
For a heartbeat, none of them reacted.
Ōnoki's expression darkened instantly.
Umbrella… it had to be them.
"Don't let those things hit the ground!! Stop them!!"
He shouted urgently.
But—
It was already too late.
BOOM!!! BOOM!!! BOOM!!!
The world erupted into fire.
"What—?! What is this?!"
"A new kind of Exploding Tag?!"
Screams tore through the battlefield as the ground churned with smoke and shrapnel.
If Deidara had witnessed such destruction, he would have laughed hysterically:
"Art is an explosion."
Earth Release barriers rose rapidly to block the bombardment — yet every second a new fiery blast rained upon them, cracking through their defenses.
Bodies flew. Blood splattered the torn earth.
Some shinobi switched tactics, using Lightning Release to force incoming bombs to detonate midair — preventing even greater loss of life.
"Evacuate this zone! MOVE!!"
The Raikage roared, lightning flickering wildly around his frame.
In the skies above — dark airborne shapes loomed like metal vultures.
Ōnoki's face hardened.
He gathered chakra — compressing it into the MOST dangerous element he possessed.
Dust Release.
A white flash tore upward, erasing anything in its path.
"That's Kekkei Tōta!! Dodge quickly!!"
Jiraiya bellowed.
But the beam was too fast.
Several unlucky shinobi were caught in it — turned to dust in an instant.
Jiraiya clicked his tongue and signaled a swift retreat.
"Our objective is complete. Pull back!"
Umbrella's true anti-air weaponry was still being developed — missiles and other advanced armaments.
For now, these bombs were their most powerful payload.
Rumor whispered of a terrifying new weapon too — one absurdly code-named the "Mushroom Bomb."
The name sounded childish…but something in Jiraiya's gut told him it was far from harmless.
Ōnoki unleashed another attack — reducing two more metal crafts into atomic particles — but the remaining aircraft climbed higher, out of his range.
His chakra faded, and he lowered his hands.
His expression — once disdainful — was now grim, ice-cold.
The Raikage trembled with fury.
Kumogakure's Genin had suffered devastating losses.
Only swift Jonin intervention had prevented even higher casualties.
For Jonin, these blasts were survivable.
For Genin?
They might as well have been execution sentences from the sky.
Behind them, the Sarutobi and Shimura clans wore smug expressions — having been positioned far at the rear… spared most of the carnage.
Who told the others to treat them like cannon fodder before?
Yet beneath their concealed gloating was fear.
Immense, creeping fear.
Umbrella… was far stronger than they had imagined.
"What kind of weapon is this…?"
Ōnoki muttered, voice low and shaken.
"It resembles Explosion Release… but this level of devastation—"
The air stank of gunpowder… blood… and burning flesh.
Ōnoki inhaled slightly.
Definitely gunpowder — but…Gunpowder should never create this much power.
In the shinobi world, gunpowder technology was primitive — barely stronger than a simple Exploding Tag.
But now?
This battlefield proved a new truth:
The era of chakra-only warfare… was beginning to crumble.
...
TN:
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