Above the vast, clear blue sea, the sun blazes overhead.
Tens of thousands of black-clad craftsmen, heavy machinery operators, and ninja engineering teams are working frantically across the vast sea border between the Land of Waves and the Land of Water.
"Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!"
The earth and the deep sea resonated together in a deafening, deep echo.
Dozens of the Akimichi Clan giants, each as large as a hill, were bare-armed, standing in the shallows, shouting deafening chants as they rammed massive steel beams, each weighing tens of thousands of kilograms, into the seabed.
In the core area of the deep sea.
The newly surrendered Kirigakure Water Release Jonin mobilized all of them, using their exquisite high-level Water Release to part the vast waves and stabilize the underwater foundation.
The first batch of Super Black Iron Divine Wood was cast and smelted day and night in the blast furnace of Iron Fist Heavy Industries.
Like towering, black, stabilizing pillars.
It pierced deep into the raging deep-sea fault lines and plunged into the hard earth veins that had never seen the light of day for millions of years!
A giant cross-sea super bridge that is tens of kilometers long and over a hundred meters wide.
Like a black and gold steel dragon that suddenly raises its head from the depths of the ocean!
Extending violently eastward from the golden harbor of the Land of Waves, it completely traverses the deep-sea storms and reefs that were once known as the Death Forbidden Zone.
This includes the isolated Land of Water, the transit hub Land of Waves, and the vast inland Land of Fire.
They have been connected into an inseparable land transportation system!
"It's done... it's really done!!"
On the towering white marble ribbon-cutting platform on the Nippon Land of Waves.
With a full head of white hair and a weathered face, the bridge-building master Tazuna's legs buckled, and he collapsed heavily to his knees on the smooth, hard bridge surface.
This old craftsman once had to hide and even go to Konoha Genin hire ninja to save his life in order to build a small wooden bridge for his poor compatriots.
Holding the cold, hard black iron armor on the bridge, he trembled violently, tears streaming down his face!
In the past, Gato was tyrannical and domineering. The people of the Land of Waves were so poor that they couldn't even afford a bowl of white rice, and the land was littered with corpses of the starving.
The Senju the Great had only been here for a few months.
The bully's home was raided on the spot, the Bounty Station was completely shut down, the daimyo bowed down in submission, Mizukage immediately prostrated himself in worship!
Now, with the combined resources of the three great nations, they have created this miraculous structure, worthy of being recorded in the annals of the Shinobi World, atop towering waves!
"Waaaaah... The children of the Land of Waves will never have to go hungry again!!"
As he wept, Tazuna repeatedly kowtowed to the familiar figure behind the ribbon-cutting platform.
Above the steps.
Senju Kenya, shirtless, his brightly colored shorts fluttering in the vast sea breeze.
He was wearing flip-flops, a white jade pipe between his teeth, and large brown sunglasses.
He was casually toying with an oversized pair of Pure Gold ribbon-cutting scissors in his hand.
Beside him.
The new Fifth Mizukage, Mei Terumi, was dressed in a magnificent long dress, her red hair flowing, her beautiful eyes shimmering with tears, and she was practically leaning against Kenya.
Behind him stood Zabuza Momochi, leaning on his heavy sword; Haku, holding a tray; and Shizune, her abacus nearly flying off her hands.
"Alright, old man, why are you looking so gloomy on such a joyous day?"
Kenya exhaled a thick cloud of blue smoke, grinned widely, and casually waved his golden scissors:
"Snap!"
The huge red silk ribbon spanning the bridgehead snapped in two!
Tazuna wiped away his tears, so excited he was incoherent, and loudly proposed:
"Great Emperor! This bridge is a miracle bestowed upon the entire Shinobi World by you. I humbly beseech you to officially name it ' The Senju the Great's Supreme Divine Bridge '! May your merits be sung for eternity!"
"Don't give me that, it's so tacky."
Kenya rolled his eyes and pointed to the two towering, jet-black fist statues, each several tens of meters tall, on either side of the bridgehead:
"I never do things with those fancy, flowery phrases."
"This bridge is entirely made of Lao Tzu's Black Iron Wood, so let's call it the ' Iron Fist Bridge '!"
"Simple! Easy to remember! And durable!"
"Waaaaaah!!"
With the bridge officially announced as completed and open to traffic.
A piercing roar from a ship's horn exploded across the ocean!
Dozens of large industrial trains, pulled by heavily armored deep-sea behemoths, were loaded with the latest rare ores, top-quality seafood, and duty-free specialties mined by the Land of Water.
It roared and surged along the smooth and sturdy double-track railway, rushing towards the Land of Waves!
Meanwhile, from the Land of Waves side, dozens of trucks carrying top-of-the-line riot armor and blast furnace machinery from Konoha Iron Fist Heavy Industries roared towards the Land of Water!
It's connected!
It's completely connected!
The once isolated and impoverished Land of Waves has, in this instant, become the sole super hub and duty-free free trade port connecting the Five Great Nations with all the overseas islands!
Merchant ships thronged the streets, and carriages and horses moved like dragons.
Wealthy merchants from all over the Shinobi World waved their silver notes and flocked in, frantically buying up land and shops at the docks and bridgeheads!
"Boss! We've struck it rich! We've made a fortune!!"
Kato Yosuke pushed up his gold-rimmed glasses, which had slipped down to the tip of his nose, and his voice was practically screaming:
"In just half a day today, the toll fees for the cross-sea bridge and the actual cash receipts for warehouse rentals in the free trade port have exceeded a full 80 million taels!"
The Shizune next to her was clutching a thick ledger, trembling with excitement.
" Kenya... the Land of Water has just announced an additional order for the third phase of the project!"
"The overall current asset valuation of the Iron Fist Chamber of Commerce... has officially exceeded 150 billion taels!!"
150 billion taels!
An astronomical figure that could completely buy out and crush the entire traditional economic system of the Shinobi World!
Kenya, wearing flip-flops, wobbled to the top of the towering steel observation tower in the very center of the bridge.
The sea wind fiercely tore at the black " Iron Fist " cloak on his back.
He stood against the wind, one hand on his hip, a white jade pipe between his teeth, looking down at the steel dragon that stretched across the ocean below.
The world's affairs are entirely within our grasp.
However.
Just as tens of thousands of civilians and ninjas were caught up in the peak of their extreme revelry.
"Sizzle--!!"
At the gloomy northern horizon, a dazzling, extremely violent, deep blue Inazuma of lightning suddenly tore open!
Accompanied by a deafening, piercing sound of thunder.
A gigantic black-feathered thunder eagle, several meters long and completely enveloped in high-level Lightning Release Chakra, tore through the void and roared in!
On the hawk's sharp claws, a top-secret gold scroll, crafted entirely from pure thunder gold and imprinted with deep cloud patterns, was clearly clutched!
It was a letter brimming with ferocious battle intent, stretching from the highest peak of the Land of Lightning all the way to the sea borders of the Land of Fire.