During the next seven days, the research institute practically became Tobirama's home.
For a scientist, as long as there are new projects and new fields to explore, the excitement is like a bear finding honey.
Tobirama barely closed his eyes at all, yet his spirit was abnormally high. The vast database stood wide open to him, filled with knowledge he had never even heard of.
Radio waves, frequency conversion, energy transmission…
It was common to see two figures in the lab locked in fierce argument.
They would go back and forth until their faces were flushed, arguing over how to improve a certain formula, or how to optimize chakra conduction for a new material.
Tobirama's experience and Orochimaru's knowledge intertwined.
One was a grandmaster of ninjutsu development; the other, a madman of biotechnology.
They set aside all status and identity, and simply explored the unknown day and night without rest.
Sometimes, Orochimaru would question the spatial perception model behind Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique), claiming that the energy loss was far too great.
Tobirama would counter that Orochimaru's bioelectricity theory lacked stability in extreme combat conditions.
Even when their arguments got so heated it seemed like blades might be drawn at any moment, Tobirama never relied on his overwhelming power to simply swat Orochimaru aside. Out of mutual respect for a fellow scientist, he preferred to win the other's acknowledgment with research results.
The outcome of their quarrels was often the same: the two of them would each bury their heads in their respective lab benches, attempting to prove their own theories with experimental results—only to end up integrating each other's findings into their own research.
On the morning of the seventh day, Tobirama walked out of the lab, dark circles heavy under his eyes, his hands bearing more than a dozen forehead protectors of strange design.
He went down the long corridor straight toward the Divine Court headquarters.
At the holographic sand table, Shinju, Minato, Jiraiya, Kakashi and the others were already gathered. When they saw Tobirama walk in, they could all feel that unique aura of "a man who has just finished something monumental" coming off him.
Tobirama placed the forehead protectors on the conference table.
Minato picked one up and examined it carefully.
The main body of the protector was not metal. It felt warm and smooth to the touch, made from some kind of black composite material he had never seen before.
In the center, instead of Konoha's symbol, there was a tiny embedded square. Faint blue light flowed slowly within it.
On one side of the band, a finely designed attachment extended out, sized perfectly to cover one ear.
Jiraiya couldn't help asking, "Second Hokage-dono, is this some kind of new weapon?"
"The first project was originally supposed to be an improved version of Edo Tensei (Impure World Reincarnation), but that will likely take quite a long time. In the meantime, I developed something new. I call it the 'Divine Court Type-1' instant communicator," Tobirama said lightly.
He picked one of the communicators up, put it on himself, and adjusted the device in front of his ear.
"Its core principle comes from my ultra-long-distance sensing of Hiraishin formula marks. I can perceive any object I've marked, no matter how far away it is. Orochimaru's research allowed me to understand how to transform that sensing ability into a chakra frequency capable of carrying information."
He pointed toward the window.
"I've established three large chakra signal base stations around Konoha. Their function is to magnify and stabilize my sensing range by several hundred times. Inside each communicator, a unique Hiraishin formula mark is micro-engraved. As long as the wearer is within the signal range of the base stations, they can use this device to engage in real-time, zero-delay voice communication with anyone else who has a communicator."
Everyone present was processing Tobirama's explanation at high speed.
Zero-delay voice communication.
The weight of this achievement was enough to overturn the common sense of any ninja.
What was their fastest method of information transfer up to now? Summoned animals, messenger hawks.
Even the best messenger hawk would need several hours to fly from the Fire Country's border back to Konoha. A lot could happen in those hours—enough to change the course of a war.
But this device in Tobirama's hand had reduced that time to zero.
As the successor to Hiraishin no Jutsu (Flying Thunder God Technique), Minato understood the underlying principle better than anyone.
He could sense his own formulas, but the range was limited, and the information he perceived was extremely vague—only enough to pinpoint direction and location.
Tobirama, however, had turned that vague perception into a clear and stable high-speed information highway.
"How secure is it?" Kakashi asked. As a former ANBU, his greatest concern was intelligence confidentiality.
"All communication content is transmitted through encrypted chakra," Tobirama explained. "The 'key' to decrypt it is my unique Hiraishin formula itself. Unless an enemy can completely decipher Hiraishin, any attempt at eavesdropping or decryption is impossible. It's far more secure than any existing coded scroll system."
"I doubt they could crack my Hiraishin formula even if I taught them hand by hand," he added calmly.
Minato then asked the most critical question: "What's the current effective range?"
"With three base stations operating at once, the signal can completely cover the entire Fire Country," Tobirama replied, each word firm and clear. "And that's only the first step. In the future, as long as we build signal base stations along the major roads between the great nations, this communication network can cover the entire ninja world."
The entire ninja world.
Jiraiya's breathing grew heavy.
He thought of his intelligence network that sprawled across the continent.
In the past, it might take him months to collect scattered information and compile it into something usable.
With this device, he would be able to speak directly, in a single day, with informants hiding in places like the Rain Village, the Sand Village, and any number of other hidden corners.
For the intelligence structure of the entire ninja world, this would be a devastating, revolutionary blow.
It meant the Divine Court's command system would be as flexible as an arm responding to thought, with reaction speed rising to a terrifying level.
Any sudden incident could be detected by headquarters at the very first moment, and a response could be formulated and dispatched immediately.
Shinju looked at the shock on everyone's faces and said calmly, "Let's test it."
Kakashi nodded, picked up ten communicators, and put them on.
His figure blurred for an instant and vanished.
Everyone in the room could sense his chakra appear tens of kilometers away, at Konoha's main gate.
Inside the hall, one of the communicators connected to an amplification jutsu activated.
After a brief moment of silence, Kakashi's voice came through, clear as if he were standing right beside them.
"...This is Kakashi. Can you hear me?"
There was no noise in the sound at all, no delay of any kind.
Shinju answered into the communicator on the table, "We hear you very clearly."
Far away at the village gate, Kakashi was clearly a little excited. "...This is incredible."
This simple exchange of words marked the end of an old era.
Traditional ninja combat doctrine suddenly appeared primitive and inefficient.
Information delays, the risk of messengers being intercepted—before the "Divine Court Type-1" these were hard constraints; now, they were relics of the past.
Minato closed his eyes, already running simulations in his mind.
A small squad on a mission outside the village could report their progress at any time and request reinforcements whenever necessary.
The command center could adjust orders in real time according to the ever-shifting conditions of the battlefield.
Two units separated by a hundred kilometers could coordinate perfectly, launching the most optimal joint offensive.
The Divine Court would possess the perspective of a god.
Watching everyone's reactions, Tobirama himself felt a complicated surge of emotion.
For his entire life he had developed countless forbidden techniques, each one pushing further into the realm of "destruction."
But this time, what he had created was something that would "establish" a new order. This feeling was far more satisfying than creating Edo Tensei (Impure World Reincarnation).
Shinju picked up one of the communicators and handed it to Tobirama.
"Second Hokage, you've worked hard. This is an invention capable of changing the balance of the world."
Tobirama accepted the communicator and nodded. "This is only the beginning. There are still far too many things in the institute's data to study. Orochimaru and I still have a lot we can do."
He mentioned Orochimaru as casually as if he were talking about an ordinary colleague.
This made both Minato and Jiraiya feel a bit unreal. These two men, each a peerless genius in his own time, had actually produced such astonishing chemistry working together.
Under the guidance of Namikaze Shinju, Konoha had already veered away from everyone's expectations and was rushing toward a brand-new, utterly unpredictable direction.
Today, they formally stepped into an information age of their own.
(End of Chapter)
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