Tony looked at Charlotte Doyle and continued:
"You may not know this, but there have been ten explosions in this period, including yesterday's, and no explosive casings have been left at the scene."
"Either a new technology I'm unaware of has emerged, or they may have ninja support behind them."
"After all, the only people I know who can cause an explosion without leaving any trace are a ninja and Chen Haoran, but obviously he wouldn't do something like that."
Hearing Tony's words, Charlotte nodded, then thought for a moment before speaking:
"What you've said boils down to two issues: the Ten Rings and the ninjas."
"Let's address the first question: the Ten Rings and the Mandarin."
"Tony, don't you really have any impression of them?"
Hearing Charlotte's question, Tony asked in surprise, "Why?"
"Are you implying that I've had contact with them?"
Seeing that Tony was completely lost in thought, Charlotte spoke up, "In a cave in Afghanistan, in 2008."
Upon hearing Charlotte's suggestion, Tony's thoughts immediately drifted back to the past, to when he was betrayed by Obadiah, attacked and kidnapped by terrorists, and trapped in a cave. He remembered that it was during that time that he created the first generation of Iron Man Armor.
"You mean, the Middle Eastern terrorists who kidnapped me were the Ten Rings?"
"Wait a minute, I already wiped them out back then."
"Could it be that they've returned?"
Charlotte explained, "The Ten Rings is an organization with a very long history, dating back over a thousand years."
"This organization has been conquering ever since its inception, sweeping across every corner of the world for thousands of years."
"They infiltrated and secretly subverted various regimes, rewriting history."
"And what you destroyed was merely that branch of the Ten Rings in the Middle East. It was just a division of the Ten Rings, like your branch office, and an insignificant one at that."
Upon hearing Charlotte Doyle's words, Tony paused for a moment and murmured, "Is this another terrorist organization with a long history?"
He then shook his head and said, "No matter how long it has existed, it has angered me, and that is its death."
"It's a good time to settle both old and new scores at once. This time, I'm going to uproot him completely."
As he spoke, Tony clenched his fist, demonstrating his determination.
Charlotte didn't tell Tony that the leader of the Ten Rings for the past thousand years had been the same person, since the Ten Rings that appeared this time was just an imposter.
After all, an organization that has existed for a thousand years and an enemy that has lived for a thousand years are two different things. Moreover, Tony asked about the Ten Rings, not whether the one on TV was real or fake.
Seeing Tony's determined expression, Charlotte nodded and said, "It's good that you have this resolve. I'm just telling you that this organization is not simple, and you need to be careful when dealing with people like this."
"As for your concern about whether there are ninjas behind the Ten Rings, to be honest, I'm not really sure."
"No bomb casing is very easy for ninjas. It's not a sophisticated technique. Any Explosive Tags can explode without leaving any casing. As for increasing the size of the explosion, you just need to increase the number of Explosive Tags."
"In addition, some powerful Ninjutsu can also achieve the same result, not to mention the Explosion Release ninjas of Iwagakure who are skilled in explosions."
"However, I can confirm one thing: none of my ninjas were involved."
"As for ninjas from other villages, or even missing-nin, I'm not sure if they were involved."
"However, hiring a ninja is not an easy task; the other party may not have something that would impress the ninja."
Tony stroked his chin thoughtfully for a moment, then said, "Could it be that they bought Explosive Tags from other ninjas and then used them to carry out terrorist attacks?"
Charlotte shook her head. "An ordinary person without Chakra cannot detonate Explosive Tags."
"This thing only works in the hands of a ninja."
Tony thought for a moment and said, "In that case, the possibility of the other party being a ninja is very low. It seems that the other party has developed some new technology."
Just then, Tsunade came out of the sterile room and said, "Happy's treatment is over. Now, apart from the fracture that requires some rest, the other injuries have fully healed."
"But he's asleep now, he should wake up in a few hours."
"As for the fracture, you can have him take Wax Bath at the Continental Hotel. He should be Reparo in one night."
Hearing that Tsunade had finished treating him and even provided a method for healing his fracture, Tony said gratefully, "Thank you!"
Tsunade, not caring about your thanks.
Tony looked at Charlotte and said, "Now that Happy is out of danger, I'm relieved."
"As for the fracture, I'll arrange for someone to take him to the Continental Hotel after he's rested."
"But I don't have any of your issued Gold Coin. How about I pay with the New Element?"
Charlotte nodded. "Okay."
Charlotte then took out 10 Gold Coin issued by the Continental Hotel from her Storage Space and handed them to Tony.
"Just have someone give this to the hotel reception and say you're using Wax Bath treatment."
Tony accepted the Gold Coin and nodded. "Okay, I understand."
"Now that Happy's matter is resolved, my next task is to eliminate the Ten Rings."
Charlotte looked at Tony and asked, "Do you need any help?"
"No, buddy, this is my own revenge."
Charlotte nodded. "Good luck on your journey."
Charlotte didn't stay long at the hospital and left with Tsunade, while Tony drove back home. He had already responded to the Mandarin of the Ten Rings and believed that the Mandarin would make a move against him soon, so he needed to prepare.
On the way back to base, Tsunade asked in the car, "You said that the Ten Rings has a history of a thousand years. Do they have what you need?"
Charlotte nodded and said, "Yes, they have the Ten Rings. It's useful to me."
After thinking for a moment, Tsunade said, "Since this thing is in the hands of an evil organization, we should take it back."
Charlotte smiled and then said, "I've been waiting for such an opportunity."
"I have a story here about the Ten Rings and Ta Lo Village that might interest you."
······
On the other side.
After returning home, Tony gave his assistant a task: to take care of Happy at the hospital. He handed over the ten the Continental Hotel Gold Coin Charlotte had given him and told his assistant to take Happy to the Continental Hotel after Happy woke up and to tell him how to use the Gold Coin.
After doing all this, Tony went to the basement to investigate the Mandarin and the Ten Rings.
Jarvis: "I've compiled a database of Mandarin for you, Master."
"They were all intercepted by S.H.I.E.L.D.., the FBI, and the CIA."
"Initiate virtual crime scene reconstruction."
As the virtual crime scene was reconstructed, Tony stepped inside to examine the data and asked, "Okay, what do we know?"
"The name 'Mandarin' is an ancient Chinese title for a strategist in war, meaning 'advisor to the king'."
Tony analyzed, "Based on the videos broadcast from these hijackings, he's using South American insurgency tactics, and he speaks like a missionary."
"A celebration was being held at the scene of the incident, and there were many theaters..."
After glancing at the intelligence Jarvis had gathered, Tony said, "Shut it down."
As Tony spoke, Jarvis closed the intelligence he had gathered and said, "The heat generated by the explosion exceeded 3,000 degrees Celsius."
"Any object within 12.5 yards was instantly vaporized."
Looking at the virtual scenario displayed by Jarvis, Tony said, "No bomb fragments have been found within three miles of the Chinese Theatre."
"No, Master."
Tell me about Happy.
As Tony finished speaking, a virtual image of a heavily injured Happy appeared before them, and based on the look in Happy's eyes as he fell and the position of his finger, it seemed to be pointing at something.
Tony walked to the side and sighed, "I don't know when it started, but bombs don't even look like bombs anymore..."
"Are there really no missing-nin involved?"
They identified what Happy was looking at before he was seriously injured: a soldier's nameplate that read Jack Tagatt.
Tony asked, "Were any soldiers killed?"
"According to official records, no, Master."
"Bring back the heat-generating characteristics."
"Include 3000 degrees as a factor in the statistics."
Just as Tony gave the order, the statistics were completed and displayed to him, showing him several pieces of the collected information.
"Shenyun has completed its calculations."
"The satellite the Nexus has been established, generating body temperature records for the past 12 months."
Looking at the large number of thermal records in front of him, Tony frowned slightly and then said, "Remove all the areas where the Mandarin attacked."
"Master, there have been numerous records of temperatures exceeding 3000 degrees Celsius in Africa and South Africa, and these occurrences are happening very frequently."
Tony glanced at the locations, then shook his head and said, "No, those places are too hot, and the area is too large."
The places Jarvis showed were the locations where Hidan performed the Jashin sacrifice, and the high temperature from the explosion was left by Deidara when he cleaned up the traces.
However, Deidara's bombs had a much larger range and higher temperature. After all, each one wiped out a village or even a small town, making the scale of the attacks far more terrifying than the Mandarin attacks. It was just that because the attacks occurred in Africa, they didn't cause as much of a stir as they did in New York, and no terrorist organization publicly admitted to being responsible.
Upon seeing the thermal signal from Rose Hill, Tony noticed the temperature was exactly 3000 degrees Celsius, the same as the temperature of the explosion, and said, "That..."
Jarvis asked, "Are you sure it's this?"
"It happened before any known Mandarin attack."
"It was an incident in which they committed suicide together with a bomb."
As he spoke, Jarvis revealed the cause of the incident and released news from local media.
United States Today weekend edition: Explosions claim six lives.
"Adjust the point."
"The temperature characteristics are quite similar, around 3000 degrees Celsius."
Looking at the unfolded information, Tony murmured, "Two soldiers."
He then asked, "Have you ever been to Tennessee?"
Jarvis immediately began planning. "Flight planning to Tennessee is underway."
Tony then waved his hands to deactivate the virtual imaging, at which point a virtual screen appeared showing a guest knocking on the door.
Tony asked in surprise, "Can anyone else come knocking on the door?"
He then tapped the box with some frustration and said, "We should have been under complete security lockdown. I just threatened a terrorist organization that has existed for thousands of years."
Who's knocking?
Jarvis explained, "That's all I can do, Master."
"Who told you to tell the whole world your address?"
Tony had no choice but to put on his Iron Man Armor and leave the basement, heading upwards.
Seeing a beautiful woman knocking on the door, Tony opened it despite some hesitation.
The moment the person entered, the mechanical equipment at the entrance scanned them to determine that they posed no danger.
Seeing that the other person was about to walk forward, Tony held out his hand and said, "Just stand there."
Tony looked at the other person and opened his mask, saying, "You're not the Mandarin, are you?"
"Yeah?"
Maya Hansen looked at Tony and said, "Don't you remember?"
"Just as I expected."
Looking at the beautiful woman in front of him, Tony wondered to himself, "Is this one of my previous Lover?"
He then said, "Don't mind me, I even forgot what I had for breakfast today."
Jarvis, standing nearby, reminded him, "Grain-free waffles, Master."
Tony said helplessly, "Oh, yeah."
Maya Hansen looked at Tony and said, "Okay, I need to talk to you alone."
He glanced around and continued, "This won't do; it's urgent."
Tony glanced at the other person, then turned and walked into the house, saying, "Before, I definitely wouldn't have had any objections, but now I have a serious girlfriend."
Just then, two packages fell from above. Tony stared at them, momentarily stunned. At that instant, Pepper Potts' voice came from upstairs. "Tony, do we have guests?"
Tony stepped out of the Mark 42 armor and said, "Yes, this is Maya Hansen."
"A scientist in the field of botany, a friend of mine, but not very close."
Tony turned to Maya Hansen and whispered, "Don't tell me I have a 12-year-old kid I've never met sitting in the car outside waiting for me."
When Maya Hansen saw Tony say that, she deliberately added, "He's already 13 years old."
Tony was so startled by what the other person said that he jumped in fright.
Maya wasn't joking and immediately replied, "No, but I need your help."
Tony asked, puzzled, "Help with what?"
Why now?
Maya said seriously, "Because I read the newspaper today, and I think you won't live to see the weekend."
Tony said earnestly, "I'll be fine."
At that moment, Pepper Potts came down and said, "I'm sorry, Happy is in the hospital."
"I thought there wouldn't be any customers."
When Tony saw Pepper Potts approaching, he said, "That's quite a surprise."
Pepper Potts joked, "And she's my ex-girlfriend."
Tony explained, "It doesn't look like it."
Maya Hansen also stated, "No, it was just a one-night stand."
Seeing that Maya had spoken directly, Tony had no choice but to nod and say, "Yes."
Pepper Potts looked at Tony and said, "That's definitely your style, isn't it?"
"A passionate night..."
Pepper Potts looked at Maya and said, "So, you really did dodge that jerk."
Tony exclaimed in surprise, "What?"
"I'm sure..."
Before Tony could finish speaking, Pepper Potts interjected, "Trust me, we're leaving here right now."
Tony refused, saying, "Hey, didn't we already agree on this?"
"I'm not leaving."
Pepper Potts: "Let's go!"
Tony: "A man saying no..."
Pepper Potts interrupted again, "Get out of here right now."
Maya Hansen chimed in, "Good idea, let's go."
Tony retorted, "Sorry, that's impossible. Don't touch her bag."
Just as the two were arguing, Maya Hansen noticed the television on the wall, which was showing Tony's address, and said, "Excuse me, is this situation on TV serious?"
Tony looked at the television and saw a missile flying towards his Villa in the live broadcast.
Upon seeing this location, Tony had just turned to look out the window when he saw the missile strike and explode instantly outside the building.
"Boom!"
The Villa's windows shattered instantly, and the shockwave from the explosion blasted Tony and Pepper Potts, who were closest to the octagon, into the air.
Tony was flying in the air, reacted quickly and immediately controlled the Mark 42 to automatically fly and put it on Pepper Potts to protect his girlfriend's safety.
Tony, on the other hand, crashed into the wall, causing him to gasp. Fortunately, he had been injected with Physical Enhancement Serum, so the shockwave from the explosion at that distance wouldn't injure him.
Outside the Villa, in addition to the News Corp helicopter that had been broadcasting the entire event live, three armed helicopters also appeared around the Villa and activated their weapon systems. Two airborne heavy machine guns appeared from both sides of the helicopters and aimed at Tony's Villa.
Tony, who had fallen to the ground, got up and saw Maya Hansen, who had been knocked unconscious by the shockwave of the explosion. He then looked up and saw that the wall above was about to collapse. Just as Tony was about to roll over to avoid it, Pepper Potts, piloting the Mark 42, shielded Tony from the falling concrete and said, "I'm here to protect you."
Tony retorted defiantly, "I'll protect you first."
At the same time, he gave himself an excuse. "I knew it, we can't stay here anymore."
Tony had just gotten up and hadn't had a chance to leave when three more missiles were launched, striking the Villa. The shockwave from the explosions blasted Tony to the other side of the Villa once again.
Tony got up from the ground and shouted to Pepper Potts, "Hurry up, I'm coming out with you!"
With the bombardment of four RPG missiles, the Villa could no longer withstand the devastation, and the floorboards beneath their feet instantly broke, separating Tony and Pepper Potts.
Seeing Pepper Potts roll over to help, Tony immediately shouted, "Don't come any closer, go save her!"
"I have my own way."
"Don't be silly! Go save her! Get out of here quickly!"
"Hurry up!"
Knowing that Tony had been injected with Physical Enhancement Serum, Pepper Potts did not refuse Tony's request. After removing her mask, she went to help Maya Hansen first, knowing that she and the others were a burden to Tony and needed to leave the scene first.
Pepper Potts immediately helped Maya Hansen up and then flew outside. With the help of a Repulsor Blast, Pepper Potts carried her out of the Villa and onto the open ground outside.