Once the Daimyos had shopped to their hearts' content, Shen suddenly appeared before Aiko, who was wailing theatrically—her frame shaken by heart-wrenching sobs.
"Mother dear," he whispered, "I told you the Daimyos are loaded and clueless. Today's profit alone could support us for two years."
"Wahahaha—no! I mean hahaha!" In an instant, she flipped from tears to full-blown Uchiha-grade cackling.
Shen slapped a hand to his face—he knew all too well that once the Uchiha crazy-laugh gene hit, it didn't discriminate by gender.
[Ding! Congratulations, host! You've earned the title of Four Mad Laughs of the Uchiha, thirteen years earlier than in Konoha.]
Suppressing an inward sigh, he addressed the fourth recipient of the title: "Mother dear, won't you be attending the ceremony?"
Aiko composed herself slightly but noticed her younger son's expression—so cunning and devious it practically dripped mischief.
Giving his head a light pat, she chuckled, "Shen, you really should keep it low-key. We need to get rich quietly—that's the Uchiha way."
"Okay." The momentary blank look vanished from Shen's face as quickly as it came—back came his scheming smirk.
"Well whatever. Everyone else made decent profits too," Aiko thought, knowing fully well that while others might try staying low-key, everyone already knew the Uchiha had scored the biggest win.
After reminding them all to stay safe, she led the first batch of fifty students from the Uchiha Kendo Dojo toward the rail line grand opening site.
As one of Konoha's upper echelons, she couldn't possibly miss such an important event.
"What's the point of buttering up those self-important suits anyway? Making money isn't more fun—it's *way* more profitable!"
With that exact mindset, she took full advantage of the pre-ceremony moment to fleece some wealthy elites thoroughly.
Meanwhile at the Konoha Station track, something long and bulky draped in black cloth had mysteriously appeared.
Its nearly hundred-meter-long frame, five meters wide and five high, sent waves of awe through the entire crowd.
"Testing, testing," Kazushi called into the microphone before giving a nod of signal toward Third Hokage at a distance.
"It must be time," said Third Hokage and Third Kazekage simultaneously as they stood and stepped toward the shrouded object.
All eyes fixed on them.
Even the Daimyos, who'd grown bored after their extravagant shopping spree, were no exception.
Third Kazekage raised the microphone, visibly excited as he announced, "Four and a half years in the making, employing over fifty thousand shinobi, today marks the official launch of the shinobi world's first bidirectional railway line spanning 3,322 kilometers!"
"Hoooooo!!"
"Awoooooo!!"
The citizens of Konoha and Sunagakure erupted into cheers, passionately celebrating the groundbreaking achievement.
Before the excitement even settled, Third Hokage grabbed the edge of the hundred-meter-long black cover and yanked it off dramatically, revealing the star of the day.
Painted in alternating red and yellow, the train boasted ten ten-meter-long carriages behind a single engine—eleven units in total. The sight left everyone breathless once again.
"This," Third Hokage declared proudly, "is our shining protagonist today—the Asura Express! Now allow me to walk you through its impressive specs."
The Asura Express, a train whose name instantly revealed its creator, was truly living up to its name as the first ever train in the shinobi world.
Each carriage was ten meters long and stood five meters in both width and height, capable of carrying up to 70 tons. Ten carriages in total meant an impressive carrying capacity of 700 tons. Yet even with ten carriages, the Asura Express's power system had not yet reached its limit.
High capacity and long endurance were exactly what its designers originally intended. Therefore, at full power, the Asura Express could easily handle fifty, or even one hundred, carriages.
With a top speed of 150 kilometers per hour, traveling between Konoha and Sunagakure took less than a day and night.
"Please follow me," called out the Third Hokage, gesturing for the other Kages and various daimyos to board for the test ride.
The grim-faced Third Raikage felt the comfortable cabin temperature once inside, his expression growing even more serious.
"He even installed air conditioning capable of controlling the temperature."
He realized the designer must be someone with meticulous attention to detail.
"There are rotating seats and even a mysterious pane of glass behind us whose purpose I don't yet understand."
Such thoughtful design sparked strong curiosity within him about the true identity of the actual designer.
The Third Raikage claimed he had already figured it all out — the person pushed forward, Orochimaru, was definitely not the real designer. Anyone with eyes could see this was clearly a protective measure, meant to hide the true designer lurking behind the scenes.
Not far behind him, Hanzo's eyes gleamed with interest, his motives anything but innocent.
A group of village leaders with mixed intentions, along with astonished daimyos, sat down together promptly at three o'clock in the afternoon. They were about to take their first real journey into the unknown.
Nine hours after the Asura Express departed, Konoha remained unusually quiet late into the night.
The commercial street, usually open twenty-four hours a day, now lay eerily deserted, like a ghost town.
On the rooftop of a hotel, Shen sat quietly with his eyes closed, meditating.
He had only just begun to grasp the true meaning behind this mission.
At exactly one o'clock in the morning, Nayou beside him activated her Byakugan and began scanning for incoming enemies.
"This is going to be a long night," Shen murmured, suddenly opening his eyes. Under the soft moonlight, his pair of crimson pupils looked especially eerie.
"Ma'am, a dozen intruders have entered through the south gate. Should we eliminate them on site?"
The voice of a Hyuga clan member from the Scientific Combat Division came through the earpiece.
"Call me Deputy Commander. Ignore them for now," Nayou corrected swiftly.
Shen responded into the microphone with a sigh, "Mice should be let in before you exterminate them; otherwise, killing one only invites another."
"Yes, Commander!"
"Yes, Deputy Commander!"
After receiving their reply, he slowly lifted his gaze toward the moon above, feeling a wave of sadness: "Is my arrival really the reason this is becoming the Second Great Ninja War?"
Even if we drive them off tonight, they'll be back tomorrow — like weeds, cutting them down without pulling the roots only invites more trouble.
They captured all the intruders. The hidden villages behind them, though furious, could only swallow this humiliation for now. When the time comes, they will dare to infiltrate Konoha again.
Blood will be spilled before these greedy ninja learn what they can and cannot do.
Konoha is like a young lion newly matured. Facing beasts like cheetahs and jackals, there's no growth without giving them a brutal lesson.
But the consequence of this action would inevitably spark another war—one directed at Konoha.
The Third Hokage assigned this mission to Shen Uchiha not only to observe how his chosen successor would handle things, but also because deep down, he himself lacked the resolve to face this inevitable war head-on.
Half an hour later, Shen Uchiha withdrew his [Chakra Channeling Blade] and announced to Anbu and the Scientific Combat Division: "Mount a full-scale operation. Leave no one behind."
"Yes, sir!"
As he received their response, Shen Uchiha murmured to himself, "Hesitation isn't in my nature. The Third really has grown too old."
A Hokage's duty is to shield Konoha and avoid war at all costs.
But protecting the people comes first—above everything else!
Whether to release, imprison, or execute the intruders was no longer the Third Hokage's decision to make.
He had already passed that choice—and all the consequences—to its origin: Shen Uchiha.
"Let's go, Nayou," Shen Uchiha said, then unleashed a massive burst of chakra.
With determination blazing in his eyes, he leapt first from the hotel rooftop—over a hundred meters up.
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