Turning to Mei Terumi and the others, Charles said with a smile, "It seems you didn't cause Tina any substantial harm after all."
Sitting nearby, Mei Terumi countered, "If a Tailed Beast Bomb had hit her directly, I wonder if she could have recovered this quickly."
Charles chuckled at her remark, "Well, things that didn't actually happen—who's to say for sure?"
He added a reminder: "By the way, using something like a Tailed Beast Bomb in densely populated areas isn't a great idea. Unless you're aiming at the sky, it sounds like you're planning to level New York City."
Mei Terumi muttered, "I didn't even let Isobu charge it up fully."
It was clear that a fully charged Tailed Beast Bomb from Isobu could indeed destroy New York.
Charles looked at Mei Terumi with a serious expression, "In the ocean, in the desert, or in uninhabited areas, it's fine."
"But if you drop a Tailed Beast Bomb in the middle of New York, trust me, the U.S. will rain down a barrage of nukes on you in retaliation. They'll play the mutually assured destruction card without hesitation."
"After all, if New York is already in ruins, throwing in more destruction doesn't matter to them."
Mei Terumi nodded in acknowledgment at Charles's warning, "I'll be careful. I won't have Isobu fire a Tailed Beast Bomb in a city again. If it really happens, I'll immediately retreat to the summoning realm."
Charles's lips twitched. I meant 'try not to use it,' not 'use it and then hide in the summoning realm.'
However, after some thought, hiding in the summoning realm was indeed a viable strategy. Still, Nick Fury would likely call in Captain Marvel to punch her back to the surface.
Charles nodded reluctantly, "If it's a life-or-death situation, use it if you must. Worst case, retreat to the summoning realm and figure things out later."
"A Tailed Beast Bomb can be rebuilt from. A nuclear strike, on the other hand, would leave the land uninhabitable."
He then glanced at the three former members of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen recovering on their beds, "These three, who used to be part of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen, are now in your hands."
"There will be more reinforcements from the Mist Village later on."
"You should also start stockpiling energy-related items. The Sand Village, the Cloud Village, and the Sound Ninja are all taking action. You need to step up as well."
Mei Terumi looked at Charles and replied, "There's only so much of those here. I don't intend to follow their lead in pushing body-enhancement serums, though I'll keep some for strategic reserves."
"I'm planning to collaborate with S.H.I.E.L.D. on personnel training. After all, they've bought so many enhancement serums, and they'll need instructors and trainers, won't they?"
Charles raised an eyebrow, "What do you plan to teach them?"
Mei Terumi replied confidently, "Taijutsu, swordsmanship, and silent assassination techniques."
"Of course, we could also scam them a bit by teaching Chakra Refinement Techniques, knowing full well they can't actually refine chakra," Mei Terumi suggested with a sly grin.
Charles nodded slightly. Techniques like taijutsu, swordsmanship, and silent assassination could all be learned without chakra. Relying purely on physical fitness and combat skills was a feasible approach.
As for Chakra Refinement Techniques, those were another matter entirely. To refine chakra, someone would need a 'Chakra Seed', which could only be granted by a Sage-level individual or higher.
Without this seed, even teaching the technique would be useless.
"Forget about the Chakra Refinement Technique. There's no need to deceive them with something they can't use," Charles said decisively.
"For other aspects, feel free to explore some possibilities, but charge them a premium. Squeeze as much as you can out of them," he added with a smirk.
"After all, S.H.I.E.L.D. may not be around for much longer."
Hearing this, Mei Terumi was visibly startled, "S.H.I.E.L.D. won't last much longer? What do you mean? Is the organization going to be disbanded? Or is there a risk of its collapse?"
"If that's the case, could the Mist Village seize the opportunity to plunder resources?"
This idea of plundering instantly took root in Mei Terumi's mind.
Charles gave her an approving look, "I'll go check on those two. The Mist Village affairs are in your hands."
With that, he left the medical room.
…
Meanwhile-
At S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters-
In the director's office-
Nick Fury had just finished hearing Natasha Romanoff's detailed report. She had shared all the information she had gathered.
"So, Earth really did have guardians in the past," Fury mused.
He chuckled dryly, "No wonder we're seen as kids playing dress-up."
His expression grew serious as he continued, "This incident has revealed even more about the strength of the ninjas. Even a leader like the Mizukage isn't invincible.
"But that summoning beast of theirs is a truly terrifying weapon. Judging from this, it seems like every major ninja village might have access to something similar."
Fury recalled the events over the Atlantic. The ninja villages appeared to wield something akin to biological nuclear weapons.
Aside from lacking nuclear radiation, the destructive power seemed equivalent to high-yield nuclear bombs.
"What's unclear is how many of those types of summoning beasts they have and how many attacks they can launch consecutively. It's clear they've established a form of nuclear deterrence with these creatures."
Natasha nodded in agreement, "We'll need to investigate further. Coincidentally, I'll be visiting the Mist Village in a couple of days to handle the residency permits for the three new ninjas. That'll also give us an opportunity to explore potential collaborations."
"The Mist Village would also likely to start selling things like body-enhancement serums."
Nick Fury nodded, "I'll leave the Mist Village to you. As for that infiltration mission, your report mentioned some interesting findings."
Natasha elaborated, "While infiltrating Wakanda, I didn't gain direct access to vibranium or their inner habitat, but I did learn something important. They're investigating a series of population disappearances across Africa."
"I suspect this is related to Hidan from the Akatsuki. Based on the evidence left behind, it seems he's conducting rituals for the Jashin deity."
"What's different this time is that there are no corpses left behind; previously, mass bodies were a signature of his activities."
Nick Fury rubbed his temples, "The Akatsuki, huh? They're a formidable terrorist organization."
"I'll assign other agents to follow up on this matter."
"I'll report this information to the Security Council. If we can locate any Akatsuki members, perhaps it's time to test the power of nuclear weapons," Nick Fury said grimly.
The mention of nuclear weapons didn't surprise Natasha. After all, the Security Council had previously authorized a missile strike on New York.
Targeting the African continent would be even simpler.
As long as the Security Council and the five major powers agreed, the opinions of non-nuclear nations in Africa would carry little weight.
"Understood, sir," Natasha replied.
After Natasha left, Fury turned his gaze to a globe on his desk. He thought to himself, 'It seems there are many secrets on Earth that I still don't know. Beyond the Eternals, ninjas, and sorcerers, what other organizations might exist?'
The guardians of Earth seem to intervene only when the situation is apocalyptic. Perhaps that's why they didn't step in during the World Wars or other conflicts.
In a way, that's a relief. If they had intervened, the world wouldn't have developed into its current state. World War I and II might never have happened.
However, their response times appear to be quite slow. Even during the extraterrestrial visitations of the last century, these guardians didn't show up.
Was it because they didn't receive the news, or were they observing from the shadows, letting humanity deal with it themselves?
But now, they've started to emerge. Their near-immortal lifespans make them truly enviable. The Eternals seem to embody their name—eternal life.
Fury felt the pressure mounting once again. One by one, figures from mythology were stepping out of the shadows—first Thor and Loki, and now Gilgamesh and Thena.
Even the British branch had reported encountering some sort of "evil god" a few years ago.
Fury's thoughts turned toward the future, Will other pantheons also begin to appear? The gods of the East, the Norse, the Greeks, ancient Egypt, and Babylon—will all these mythical figures start showing themselves on Earth one by one?