Uchiha compound

Fugaku quietly sipped at his tea while he examined the papers before him. Lately, he'd picked up the habit of working from home. The Hokage's office was 'noisy and disorderly' by his standards. He preferred the quiet, relaxing surroundings of his garden. He was sitting in the open, a pillow beneath and a table before him. Nobody disturbed him here, it was a secluded part of the Uchiha compound. Some councilors talked behind his back, it vexed them that the Hokage of Konoha still works from his clan estate. But what can they do?

Stroking his pen on the paper, Fugaku didn't notice the young boy standing before him. He groaned, and the Hokage finally looked up, sporting a smile. Sasuke always had an unusually mature face, but such behavior from a child was wholesome for many. The younger boy looked around and back at his father, preparing to speak.

"What is it, Sasuke?"

"I need to ask something." Fugaku put his pen down and straightened his back,

"What?" The boy looked at his father,

"Why did you change my squad?" The older man sighed and replied,

"It wasn't me, the HR committee handles that.

"Still, I want an answer." Fugaku put his hands on his knees and explained,

"It's for your good. Your new team has Uchiha in it, you can learn more about your kekkei genkai."

"Kakashi-sensei has the Sharingan too."

"But our clansmen know better." Sasuke could think of no reply. His father continued,

"I know you can't leave your friends and sensei, but this change is for your good. You will learn much under your new leader." Sasuke balled his fists,

"Still..." Fugaku was tired and didn't want to continue this argument. He sighed and concluded,

"Fine. Since you're so stubborn, here's a deal. I will return you to team 7 if you can learn and show me the fireball volley technique." Sasuke was hesitant. This jutsu required excellent timing and chakra control, you had to fire up to ten fireballs continuously/simultaneously, like an archer volley.

"I accept." Came the response, Fugaku smiled and dismissed him,

"Very well then, don't discuss this with me until you've shown me the jutsu."


Land of Fire Capital

Maximus stood alert in a clearing outside the capital, a bow in his hand. Shigehira, their tutor, was beside him wearing his loose kimono and eased manner. It was late morning, with bright sunlight although not hot. Still, sweat trickled down the bridge of his nose as he gazed at the vast rice fields before them. His sensei was in no hurry and kept things at his pace. He pointed his finger at a distant scarecrow and commanded,

"Alright, let's see how good you are." Maximus put an arrow to the string, pulled it back, set the aim, and swiftly let go. The projectile cut through the air and produced a whoosh sound, hitting the lower torso. After weeks of training, he could finally get a straight shot.

Matsumae squinted his eyes and passed a judgment,

"The aim was good, but you lack power. A shot like that won't do much damage." The pupil was pleased and considerate, carefully listening. His teacher continued,

"Improving your arm strength and gaining more power will take weeks. Yet there's another, cheaper way."

"What?" Shigehira smirked,

"Chakra. I think they taught you weapon enhancement in Konoha?" Maximus immediately understood. Matsumae took the bow from his hand and displayed,

"This is a light one, you should get a heavier bow. Anyways, you do pull the string," His fingertips turned blue and chakra surged through the weapon, coating the string. As he let it loose, the arrow thundered like a lightning strike and hit the nearby trees, exploding as splinters of wood and bark flew in all directions.

Maximus was left dumbfounded, his tutor was indifferent. Shigehira handed the bow back, shook his hands, and commented,

"Impressed, are you, by chance? That is pretty easy to do. You need precision and chakra control," Maximus took the bow and readied an arrow,

"Now, concentrate chakra on your fingertips, use any affinity. When you feel you're ready, shoot." The pupil did as taught, and closed his left eye to aim. Matsumae could feel the energy in the air as Maximus' hand glowed blue.

However, the shinobi quickly changed his aim and fired at the ground. Shigehira was puzzled, but upon seeing the arrow he couldn't help but chuckle. The shaft was charred black from fire chakra. His student was disappointed, the tutor consoled him,

"Don't make that face, every new weapon has its technique. You need practice. Everything comes with time." Once again determined, Maximus aimed another arrow and fired. This time it hit the scarecrow near the center and pierced deep (courtesy of the chakra) yet nowhere close to his master's shot.

"That's more like it." Shigehira remarked.

With rejuvenated morale, they continued practice till sunset. Accuracy wasn't the goal, power was. At first, Maximus only learned to use raw chakra (elemental ones could easily damage the weapon in the hands of a rookie).

As the sun set behind the citadel and the scarecrow riddled with arrows cast a shadow, the student couldn't help but wonder,

"I never saw anyone in Konoha using a bow, at least nobody famous. Here too, only some individuals decide to completely master it. Is the bow so bad?" A hint of doubt fell on his face regarding his weapon of choice, Matsumae tackled his doubts,

"Every group has their fighting style. The shinobi focus on ninjutsu and genjutsu, and samurai opt for Taijutsu and the various weapons. If both groups used the same weapons and techniques, why would the Daimyo require both a hidden village and feudal vassals when he could keep one?" Maximus nodded in understanding, master and pupil sat down and continued the discussion,

"For shinobi, the bow is clumsy at best once the enemy has detected you. It's not fast to use like kunai and shuriken, which can be thrown by simple muscle memory. This weapon is suited more for an army than a warrior. In traditional battles, the bow is essential, and deadly when massed volleys take place. But for an individual samurai? It's only a skirmish weapon. You shoot a few arrows, take down a few enemies, then draw your sword or spear and charge." Maximus questioned,

"So how's it useful for me?" Shigehira laughed,

"Skirmishing, exactly! When I say 'a few enemies' I mean 3-4 soldiers, and that's an entire shinobi squad! Anyone who can master the bow and hide his chakra signature can wipe out chunin (anything below Jonin) squads on his own; a squad of these can easily hold chokepoints like bridges and passes, and a platoon can ambush any army."

"So why don't people learn it?" The tutor shook his head,

"Too much time to learn and specific requirements. Mastering the bow with chakra can take years, or months if you're the greatest arrow prodigy. Your chakra reserves shouldn't be too large to hide, but also substantial enough to allow powerful techniques repeatedly. I recommended this to you because you meet those needs." Maximus' fears were alleviated as he realized the worth of the bent stick and string he was holding. But now, it was the master's turn to inquire,

"I heard you served in the Roman campaign against samurai rebels. I read about it too, can you tell me something about their new weapons?" The pupil swirled his thoughts and constructed an answer,

"What you consider 'new' is completely usual for them, they've been using gunpowder for a century. I couldn't see the finale, when they besieged the jungle stronghold, as I was swiftly recalled after the assault on the Land of Frost capital. What I learned from letters is that they sailed warships down the broad river, and smoked the fort with cannons. The land assault was also a cakewalk, the muskets and artillery made it easy to break the peasants and their masters." Shigehira nodded and added,

"A friend in those parts told me about the Roman muskets. I've never seen one through my own eyes, can you describe it to me?" Maximus didn't turn but replied,

"It's a very smoky and noisy thing, yet deadly. The musketeers always traveled in groups, their effective* range was shorter than bows, but a disciplined volley could break any armor and any charge. They commence the battle with several volleys of lead and then let the others fight hand-to-hand. Once the enemy is locked in a melee, they flank them and shoot. They also use crossbows for this but they're rare nowadays." A moment passed in silence as both men pondered over the same thing, Shigehira spoke first,

"What do you think? Can we combine these bow techniques with that?" Maximus stared at his tutor, who had a certain glint in his eyes. This was deliberate and Matsumae knew how absurd his opinion was,

"Well, that is if you can smuggle any of it from the fort armories." Both men chuckled lightly and soon got up, for it was getting dark.


Author's notes

*Technically muskets have a longer range than bows, but after a certain distance the unpredictability of the bullet's flight nullifies this advantage.