Coulson's smile seemed even more genuine upon hearing that the serum would be ready for trade.
"Thank you, Miss Temari. We'll come back in a week to complete the transaction."
Temari nodded without saying much.
At this point, Coulson placed another briefcase he had brought on the table and opened it.
Inside the case was not anything else but a shuriken made of adamantium alloy.
"Miss Temari, this is a shuriken made of adamantium alloy. In the hands of a ninja, it can be very effective and is said to rival the capabilities of chakra metal."
"I wonder if, apart from vibranium, you and the Hidden Sand Village behind you need this kind of adamantium alloy."
Upon hearing Coulson's words, Temari took the shuriken out of the box and held it in her hand. She placed her index finger on the circular ring at the end of the shuriken and spun it around.
Then, she gripped the shuriken and infused it with chakra. The shuriken transformed into a chakra short sword.
Since Temari's chakra was wind-based, the slicing ability of the wind attribute on the chakra short sword was undoubtedly revealed, showing its formidable killing power.
However, Temari didn't swing the chakra short sword in her hand to unleash the power of the ninja tool. Instead, she stopped the chakra output, and as the chakra disappeared, the shuriken's original form reappeared.
Temari didn't play with the shuriken anymore but placed it back into the box.
Temari looked at Coulson and gently asked, "Are you interested in serlling the formula for this metal?"
Temari knew that this metal, unlike vibranium, wasn't from outer space. Both adamantium alloy and secondary adamantium alloy were products developed by the US military through specific methods of alloy configuration.
Upon hearing Temari's question, Coulson shook his head directly.
"Miss Temari, we only sell metals and have no intention of selling formulas."
Hearing Coulson's response, Temari shook her head regretfully and then said, "That's a pity. It seems we can't cooperate in this direction."
"Mr. Coulson, you'd better prepare in advance for the unique items you mentioned earlier. Perhaps their existence will be more attractive to us."
Hearing Temari's words, Coulson felt a little regretful. It seemed that what attracted wandering ninjas was not what interested Temari from the Hidden Sand Village. She seemed to prefer energy blocks and vibranium.
"In that case, I'll go back and apply to the Director to bring something that interests Miss Temari."
"As for this shuriken, consider it a gift from my visit."
Hearing Coulson's words, Temari didn't refuse. "In that case, I'll accept it."
What Coulson didn't know was that whether it was adamantium alloy or secondary adamantium alloy, Hydra had already traded with the Hidden Sand Village.
With a channel established, Temari wasn't interested in Coulson's adamantium alloy. She was more interested in the relatively scarce vibranium.
After some thought, Coulson then said, "Miss Temari, could I ask you to investigate and verify the information about Kabuto, the more detailed the better."
Upon hearing Coulson's words, Temari thought for a moment but didn't refuse. Instead, she said, "This will require our ninjas to enter the Fire Country for investigation. The reward for this task won't be low."
"After all, the target is not a wandering ninja from the Country of Wind but from the Country of Fire."
Hearing Temari's words, Coulson suddenly thought of Charles Agency, which was backed by the Leaf Village of the Fire Country. Investigating Kabuto's information there would be more convenient and faster.
After realizing this, Coulson still asked, "How much is the task reward?"
Temari extended two fingers and then said, "200 energy blocks. This is just the initial price. If there are ninja battles during the investigation, the price will increase."
Coulson was taken aback. He hadn't expected the cost of investigating in the ninja world to be so high.
Temari had carefully considered and set the price, knowing that investigating ninjas in the ninja world, even wandering ones, was at least a B-level task, so it couldn't be cheap.
After obtaining the information he wanted, Coulson didn't linger any longer. He left with the two puppet dolls and headed towards the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters to report the information to his superior.
As Coulson left, it was already night. Temari closed the Sand Puppet Shop for the day.
…
Jotunheim-
Inside the Jotunheim royal court, Thor was resting, while Charles was refining chakra. It had been almost a day since the end of the battle.
As Charles was practicing, he sensed the approach of chakra energy, indicating that Madara Uchiha had returned.
Charles stopped his practice and just as he opened his eyes, he saw Madara Uchiha appearing in front of him.
"Well done, not neglecting your training," Madara praised, then casually tossed a small package over.
Charles caught the package thrown by Madara, feeling a bit puzzled. He asked, "What's inside?"
Madara crossed his arms and said nonchalantly, "I saw you collecting these on the battlefield. I thought they might be useful to you."
"I went out to kill a group of summoning beasts and found this, so I brought it back for you."
Charles was a bit surprised. "Summoning beasts?"
"Yes, those creatures you fought today. Aren't they summoning beasts?"
"Isn't this their habitat?"
"I looked around roughly, and there wasn't a single human here."
Hearing Madara's words, Charles finally realized that Jotunheim indeed had no humans. The beings here were all frost giants, mountain giants, and other creatures with ice and earth attributes.
And to Madara, all these non-human entities were categorized as summoning beasts.
Charles didn't bother to explain the difference between the two categories to Madara. He simply accepted it as it was.
Opening the package in front of him, he found ten Earth Hearts inside.
Madara Uchiha had managed to find and defeat ten commander-level mountain giants somewhere, acquiring these Earth Hearts.
Looking at the contents in his hand, Charles thanked, "Thank you, Madara!"
But Madara Uchiha seemed indifferent to Charles's thanks, merely nodding in acknowledgment.
Afterwards, knowing his time here was short, Madara instructed Charles on the use of his Mangekyō Sharingan.
Disappointed that Charles hadn't yet awakened his Susanoo, Madara felt it was essential for him to unlock this power.
To him, the Susanoo was the true strength of the Uchiha clan, surpassing even the Amaterasu and Tsukuyomi held by Charles's eyes.
With Madara's guidance, Charles became more proficient in using his Sharingan and Mangekyō Sharingan, gaining additional techniques in their application.
As the 24-hour limit approached, Madara dissipated into specks of starlight.
Charles admired Madara, the leader of the Uchiha clan, feeling his charm up close during the 24-hour ninja card experience. He decided that if the opportunity arose, he would bring him to his world.
With Madara's departure, Charles continued his training. Until the arrival of the Asgardian army, he and Thor could only practice and spar here.
…
S.H.I.E.L.D. Triskelion Headquarters-
After completing the final combat test, Kabuto returned to his room.
In his room, he didn't dwell on his day at S.H.I.E.L.D. He had expected interrogation or coercion, but it seemed they had no intention of using such methods for now.
Inspecting his room carefully, Kabuto found numerous surveillance devices. He dismantled them all and tossed them outside before returning to his bedroom to rest.
As for the contents of the three boxes, Kabuto had no immediate plans to investigate. They remained untouched in his room.
Meanwhile, Nick Fury's office was still illuminated. He was reviewing Kabuto's report, watching the footage of him dismantling the cameras and discarding them outside.
"It seems such small actions can't escape the scrutiny of a ninja's investigation. Impressive counter-surveillance skills."
Reviewing the report, which provided a comprehensive analysis of Kabuto, Fury marveled at the terrifying power of this wandering ninja, who hadn't even been formally evaluated yet.
The other ninjas from major ninja villages would surely be even more formidable.
Nick Fury glanced at the chakra detection center, which indicated D-level chakra fluctuations.
Nick Fury wasn't sure if the individual was deeply hiding or if this was his true strength.
The energy fluctuations at this level were even inferior to those of newly graduated Genin from ninja villages.
While Nick Fury was reviewing the data, Coulson returned and knocked on Nick Fury's office door.
Nick Fury pressed a button on his desk, and the door opened automatically as Coulson walked in.
Seeing Coulson, Nick Fury asked, "How's the situation?"
Standing in front of Nick Fury, Coulson replied, "There are indeed wandering ninjas in the ninja world."
"I've learned from Temari at the Sand Puppet Shop that they do indeed live in the ninja world, a planet separate from Earth."
"They haven't concealed this fact, but they were surprised that we found out so quickly."
"As for Kabuto's identity, they don't know either. They don't pay attention to a wandering ninja like him."
"But Temari said that if we're willing to pay a hefty sum, they're willing to send someone to the Land of Fire to gather information about this wandering ninja. They assure us that the results won't take long."
"But I think it would be better to entrust this matter to Charles Agency. After all, they're backed by the Hidden Leaf Village in the Land of Fire, making it easier for them to investigate their own country's wandering ninjas."
"As for the Adamantium alloy, their interest remains low. Unless we sell the formula for the alloy, they're more interested in our Item 084."
"The transaction for the enhancer serum is also not a problem; they say they're ready to proceed at any time."
Hearing Coulson's report, Nick Fury nodded.
"It seems that Kabuto hasn't deceived us. The information he provided is indeed true, and the ninja world, the Five Great Nations, and wandering ninjas all exist."
"What do the ninjas from the ninja villages say about the strength of wandering ninjas?"
After a moment of thought, Coulson replied, "Based on my observations, Temari seems to hold wandering ninjas in disdain."
"According to her, the disparity in strength among wandering ninjas is significant, to the point where it's like night and day."
"Unless they're exceptionally famous, most of them might not even be able to defeat the students at their ninja academies."
Upon hearing Coulson's response, Nick Fury tossed him the report in his hand.
"Take a look at the chakra fluctuation detection results."
Coulson saw the large letter 'D' on the report and sighed, "It seems that the wandering ninja we've recruited falls into the category that Temari considers weak."
"Director, in that case, do we still need to use energy blocks to investigate his detailed information?"
Nick Fury thought for a moment before solemnly saying, "Investigate. Even if his strength is weak, we still need detailed information about him in the ninja world."
"If he's a notorious criminal in the ninja world, we need to be prepared to respond."
Coulson nodded. Since their director wanted an investigation, he would commission Charles Agency, backed by the Hidden Leaf Village, to investigate thoroughly.
It would also be an opportunity to let them know that they were aware that the ninja world where they resided was on another planet.
"Coulson, now that Kabuto has joined our S.H.I.E.L.D., have you considered taking on the role of his supervisor?"
"Hill recommends you to be his supervisor. What do you think?"
Upon hearing that it was Hill's recommendation, Coulson shook his head. "Director, as you know, I haven't been mentoring new recruits since that incident."
Not surprised by Coulson's refusal, Nick Fury continued, "Consider it, or if you have someone else in mind, feel free to recommend."
"Alright, Director, I'll recommend a suitable candidate."