Naruto: My Progress in Konoha.

Uchiha Haruki glanced over his shoulder in the direction from which the kunai had come. On the rooftop that had been empty just moments ago, a ballista and two silhouettes had suddenly appeared.

Of course, what made Haruki feel like this was a real opportunity wasn't merely this sudden discovery. Long before they revealed themselves, his Sharingan had already detected something unusual. Otherwise, he wouldn't have launched his attack.

What gave him hope was the fact that this ballista was only guarded by two individuals.

In the past, the Hidden Mist always stationed three ninja per ballista—one to defend against Haruki's attacks, and the other two to operate the weapon and retaliate. Now, with only two present, a proper counterattack would be much harder for them to pull off.

With that realization, Haruki quickly scanned the surroundings. Confirming that no other ballista had yet locked onto him, he seized the moment. Without hesitation, he spun around 180 degrees and dove straight back toward the rooftop.

The Mist Chūnin who had intercepted his earlier kunai turned pale the moment he saw Haruki circling back. He frantically threw more kunai in an attempt to block him.

But such sluggish attacks were no threat to Haruki.

His Sharingan spun subtly, and with a light flap of the chakra wings on his back, he weaved through the flying blades like a butterfly dancing among flowers.

When he got close enough, Haruki quickly formed hand seals and unleashed a jutsu—Fire Style: Dragon Fire Technique!

Fwoosh!

With his mouth wide open, he expelled a torrent of fire-style chakra mixed with air. A blazing fire dragon roared to life, leaping across more than ten meters toward the two Mist ninja and the ballista.

"AHHHH!!!" ×2

Two agonized screams rang out as the flames engulfed the Mist ninja, turning them into human torches as they thrashed about in pain.

Simultaneously, the ballista was caught in the blast, igniting in an instant.

Still unsatisfied, Haruki pulled another kunai from his pouch and hurled it through the flames, embedding it in the already-burning weapon.

BOOM!

With a thunderous explosion, the ballista was reduced to a heap of scrap metal—completely destroyed.

Only then did Haruki nod in satisfaction and ascend back into the sky.

However, even that short delay was enough time for the rest of the Mist ninja to respond.

All around him, on the rooftops of nearby buildings, more ballistae shed their camouflage and locked onto him, firing explosive-tagged bolts to prevent his escape.

Haruki's Sharingan spun continuously, tracking every incoming arrow and calculating their trajectories. With agile flaps of his chakra wings, he dodged them all.

Although he occasionally got caught in the shockwaves of the explosions, he remained mostly unharmed.

After evading a full round of attacks, Haruki climbed higher and swept his gaze across the rooftops below.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up.

Several of the ballistae were inexplicably manned by only two Mist ninja instead of the usual three.

Looking further, he spotted Mist commanders scrambling to send reinforcements to those undermanned positions.

"A chance!"

Without hesitation, Haruki changed direction mid-air, drawing a graceful arc as he dove toward the ballistae lacking full teams.

"Fire!"

"Keep firing!"

"—!"

Below, the Mist ninja yelled in panic when they saw Haruki doubling back once again.

However, reloading ballistae took time.

Having just finished one round of firing, it was difficult for the Mist ninja to reload in time. Haruki had already left their attack range—and now they had to start over.

Seizing the window, Haruki pushed Wind Style: Wings of Wind to its limit. In less than three seconds, he closed the gap to within twenty meters.

Without slowing down, Haruki drew multiple kunai and scattered them in a wide arc toward the nearest ballistae.

Sparks danced along the weapons.

A closer look would reveal that each kunai carried an explosive tag.

Haruki hadn't predicted this exact opportunity—he had simply been prepared for one. For days, he'd kept explosive-laden kunai ready in his pouch. It just so happened that today, he finally got to use them.

As the kunai flew in, the Mist ninja preparing to operate the ballistae panicked. They dropped everything to counterattack, throwing their own kunai and shuriken to intercept.

Haruki's lips curled into a slight smirk.

He swiftly formed hand seals and unleashed another jutsu—Fire Style: Phoenix Sage Fire Technique!

In an instant, dozens—hundreds—of small fireballs erupted from his mouth, each one like a seed of flame, scattering across the sky like a celestial flower showering embers.

Under this barrage, the Mist ninja had no time to manage their ballistae.

Haruki took advantage of the chaos and unleashed a barrage of attacks: Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique followed by Wind Style: Blade of Wind. In mere moments, three ballistae were destroyed.

A fourth one, though not fully obliterated, was too damaged to be of use anytime soon.

Now, only sixteen ballistae remained usable—a full quarter had been taken out.

With fewer weapons left, the Mist's defensive firepower had significantly weakened.

Haruki flapped his chakra wings and narrowly avoided several incoming bolts. Then, with a burst of speed, he dashed toward another ballista.

This one was defended by a standard three-man squad.

Two of them immediately aimed the ballista, locking onto Haruki's position.

The third ninja didn't wait—he launched a preemptive strike using a Fire Style jutsu.

A narrow stream of fire shot from his mouth, like a focused laser beam aimed at Haruki.

Narrowing his eyes, Haruki formed hand seals in rapid succession and cast Water Style: Water Formation Wall!

A curtain of water rose instantly in front of him, intercepting the beam.

SSSSHHH—!

Steam hissed violently as fire and water clashed.

At that moment, a bolt from the ballista came soaring toward him.

Without a second thought, Haruki sidestepped mid-air, narrowly evading the projectile.

Before the enemy could reload, Haruki changed hand signs again and released Wind Style: Blade of Wind!

A translucent wind blade tore through the air with deadly speed.

"Watch out!"

The Mist ninja who had cast the fire jutsu shouted in alarm—but it was too late.

SWOOSH!

The blade sliced cleanly through the ballista and the two operators—cutting them in half.

"Hiroichi! Haruna!"

The third Mist ninja cursed under his breath. "Damn it!" Furious at his fallen teammates, he quickly formed seals and counterattacked with Fire Style: Great Fireball Technique, hurling it toward Haruki.

Haruki's eyes sparkled with intrigue as he watched the massive fireball approach.