On this day, the aerial combat unit once again arrived over the town, but this time they weren't dropping dangerous projectiles. Instead, they were deploying special, harmless projectiles that wouldn't endanger lives but would simply allow people to rest for a while.
Although past events proved that Konoha's aerial combat unit wouldn't dare to drop explosives among civilians, the Daimyo's army remained terrified. Konoha Ninja Village still maintained its principles for now, but no one knew when those principles would be broken, leading to a catastrophic disaster.
In the eyes of the Daimyo's army, they didn't care what happened to the civilians, as long as they weren't dragged into it. Whenever they had time to complain, they would secretly curse their superiors for dragging them here to fight against Konoha Ninja Village.
Suddenly, the defenders on the city wall saw the aerial combat unit dropping a dense barrage of objects, and they immediately trembled with fear. The incessant explosions from before left a deep impression, and if caught in them, even if not killed instantly, they would die in the torment of scorching pain.
The civilians forced to stand on the city wall as hostages also shivered. They couldn't tell what the aerial combat unit was dropping, and all they could think of was the explosive fire they had seen in the town earlier. Their minds went blank, and they felt as if they might die there.
However, when those dense projectiles exploded, what appeared was not the familiar and terrifying fire, but rather colorful clouds of smoke.
The defenders on the city wall subconsciously didn't react, instinctively trying to dodge, but the smoke quickly enveloped the entire city wall. They didn't understand what it was at first, their bodies extremely tense, and by the time they realized the situation, they already felt their strength draining and their limbs weakening.
They looked at each other, seeing the civilians already fallen asleep on the ground, and some samurai had also collapsed. They immediately understood what it was—anesthetic bombs—which were among the traditional ninja tools, alongside smoke bombs, anesthetic bombs, and poison gas bombs.
However, such items were generally used in solo combat. On an open battlefield, they were easily affected by wind direction, and unless there was a Wind Release ninja, they would be difficult to use effectively. In siege warfare, due to factors like height, distance, and angle, they also couldn't play a significant role.
But now, the aerial combat unit could directly airdrop them onto the ground. Large quantities of anesthetic bombs didn't even have time to be dispersed by the wind, and combined with the structure of the city wall, the anesthetic gas quickly enveloped everyone, knocking them unconscious. Those who lasted longer were the samurai with strong physiques, including the Chakra Samurai.
The Chakra Samurai's bodies were almost devoid of sensation; no amount of pain could hinder their actions. However, as long as they were living humans, they relied on neural activity to move their bodies. Anesthetic bombs precisely inhibited neural activity, and this was not something Chakra Samurai could be immune to.
Of course, due to their strong physical constitution and the use of chakra to stimulate their meridians, they had a certain degree of resistance. They barely managed to stand, not collapsing like the other samurai.
The Chakra Samurai now had only one thought: to eliminate all the civilians. This was the order they were to execute when facing a desperate situation.
And just as they were about to act, agile Konoha ninjas had already scaled the wall. They threw out projectiles, which exploded, creating whirlwinds. The impact wasn't great, but it blew away all the anesthetic gas and halted the Chakra Samurai's movements. Their normally strong physiques should have allowed them to remain steady, but due to their reduced reactions, they were actually knocked to the ground.
Immediately, the Konoha ninjas moved swiftly. Their bodies were unaffected, while the Chakra Samurai's movements had become sluggish due to the anesthetic gas, drastically reducing their combat effectiveness. The Konoha ninjas who charged up were all rare elites, and they quickly defeated the Chakra Samurai on the city wall.
The samurai providing reinforcement from the rear also did not escape the aerial combat unit's attack. After dropping anesthetic bombs on the city wall, the aerial combat unit continued forward, dropping more anesthetic bombs—on this sortie, the aerial combat unit carried a large number of summoning scrolls, all filled with anesthetic bombs. They had been painstakingly collected in a short time, and they were used without any hesitation.
And just as Sarutobi Hiruzen and others had judged, although the presence of civilians prevented the aerial combat unit from dropping bombs, the fact that the samurai were mixed with the civilians—if they had been clearly separated, there would have been a way to divide them—meant they couldn't fully utilize their concentrated combat abilities, allowing the ninja squads to strike.
Smoke billowed through the city in waves. In the open areas of the city, the effect of the anesthetic bombs was less potent. Some Chakra Samurai who could use Wind Release nature transformation could even swing their swords to create gusts of wind, dispersing the anesthetic bombs—if it were explosives based on explosive tags, that would be asking for trouble, but unfortunately, the aerial combat unit couldn't use them now.
At this moment, two figures descended from the sky. One landed steadily, while the other stumbled slightly but quickly regained balance thanks to a good foundation.
These two were Shimura Danzo and Uchiha Kagami. Konoha's combat command headquarters anticipated that the anesthetic bombs wouldn't be particularly effective in urban combat and that powerful ninjas would be needed to obstruct the enemy. Thus, they personally accompanied the aerial combat unit.
Although Shimura Danzo had never learned to use aerial combat ninja tools in the past, he was a master of Wind Release. No special training was needed; simple flight was achievable. He also had no intention of performing acrobatics in the air; as long as he could reach this location, it was enough. The samurai on the ground, due to the anesthetic gas, couldn't draw their bows and retaliate.
Uchiha Kagami wasn't a master of Wind Release, but he possessed the Sharingan's copying ability. He could barely copy the movements of others performing flight, and relying on the Wind Release propulsion mounted on the wind wings themselves, he could still follow behind Shimura Danzo.
"Before the others arrive, this is our battle, no problem, right?" Shimura Danzo drew the sword from his back, looking expressionlessly at the nearby samurai, who were tense but trembling slightly.
"Of course, no problem." As Uchiha Kagami spoke, he had already used his Sharingan to cast several genjutsu, hypnotizing the ordinary samurai nearby and knocking them to the ground. As for the Chakra Samurai, just as they raised their swords, they were pierced through by Shimura Danzo's Vacuum Spheres, hitting vital points or areas capable of movement—like legs—ensuring that even if they didn't die, they would lose their combat capability.
Shimura Danzo's fighting style was completely different from that of his good friend Sarutobi Hiruzen. Sarutobi Hiruzen had a wide variety of powerful ninjutsu and abundant chakra, making his battles astonishingly grand. Shimura Danzo, on the other hand, had previously operated as an Anbu member, specializing in Wind Release ninjutsu and a fighting style that leaned towards quick, solo combat.
Just as Shimura Danzo and Uchiha Kagami were eliminating enemies within the city, the Konoha ninjas who had secured the city wall let in the main army, which quickly spread throughout the town, intending to swiftly take control.
The Daimyo's army's plan to stall for time thus failed.