Amado had braced himself for some kind of punishment, but it turned out to just be a fine. He had so much money now he couldn't spend it all, so he didn't care about profit sharing or anything of the sort.
Since his Big Brother wanted to fine him, then so be it.
He adopted a look of remorse, ready to accept his punishment. "I'll follow whatever Big Brother says. Next time, I'll definitely go to the lab!"
But then, he immediately broke into a wide smile, pulling Torifu excitedly towards a side room.
The moment they entered, Torifu froze, even doubting his own eyes.
"This... did you make this yourself?"
Amado patted his chest, a proud look on his face. "Of course!"
What lay before Torifu wasn't some ordinary household appliance or even fireworks.
It was a bicycle.
Torifu remembered showing Amado the blueprints for a bicycle about a month ago.
However, Amado had been extremely busy at the time and only glanced at it.
Feeling a bit sympathetic towards his younger brother, Torifu didn't give him any new tasks.
The bicycle blueprints remained in his ring and were never handed over to Amado.
He himself had almost forgotten about the matter, yet Amado had actually built it himself!
After just one glance!
Torifu looked at Amado in astonishment, who sported a proud smile. "You've truly given me a surprise."
Bicycles would be beneficial to the entire shinobi world as it was vast and expansive.
Within each nation were countless villages, all at a certain distance from one another.
Shinobi were fine; they traveled at incredible speeds, capable of reaching the Land of Fire's border from Konoha in almost a single day.
But ordinary people couldn't. The Land of Fire had no roadside post stations; between villages lay only endless plains and forests.
This made travel extremely inconvenient for ordinary people. Most spent their entire lives confined to their own villages.
It was only in recent years, with the absence of bandits in the Land of Fire, that many strong young men chose to leave their villages and venture out.
But even then, it was only on foot. Carriages drawn by horses or oxen were only for nobles.
However, if bicycles were available, communication between villages would become much easier. If the flow of people within the Land of Fire could increase significantly, the nation would surely become wealthier.
Furthermore, there was a certain probability that children of ordinary people could become shinobi.
Increased movement between villages could also supply Konoha with many potential ninja.
In short, this invention would have a profoundly important impact on the current shinobi world, an impact Torifu couldn't fully articulate at the moment.
"You built this yourself after only glancing at the blueprints?"
"Of course. That day, you thought I merely took a quick look, but I actually memorized it. Then, using my years of accumulated knowledge, I successfully created it."
Torifu patted Amado's shoulder. "Excellent. Push it into the courtyard. I want to see if I can ride it."
Amado, who had built the bicycle, naturally knew its purpose.
Although he had made its appearance almost identical to the blueprint, the exterior was, ultimately, the least important part.
Whether it could be ridden would only be known after Elder Brother tried it. As for why Amado didn't try it himself?
Of course, he didn't know how!
This was the first bicycle born in the shinobi world; how could Amado possibly know how to ride it?
As Torifu and Amado wheeled the bicycle out, Kaito and Yahiko, along with Konan, had just finished their training and were about to head back.
Kaito was chatting and laughing with Yahiko when he saw the Hokage emerge from the building, pushing an unknown object.
He was filled with confusion, and a little fear.
He was afraid he might have stumbled upon some unspeakable secret of the Hokage, and confused about what exactly this thing was.
It looked like an iron frame with two wheels attached; a truly peculiar design.
Torifu saw the children approaching and had no intention of avoiding them.
After pushing the bicycle to an open area, he swung his leg over it.
He gripped the handlebars, placed one foot firmly on a pedal, and pushed down. The wheels rolled forward, and his other foot naturally followed.
And so, under the astonished gazes of everyone in the courtyard, Torifu leisurely rode the bicycle.
This feeling, he hadn't experienced in thirty years. The last time he rode a bicycle was probably a shared bike…
"This feeling, it's truly nostalgic."
Even though he hadn't ridden a bicycle in thirty years, the moment Torifu got on, he immediately rediscovered the familiar sensation.
It was almost muscle memory; he could effortlessly control the bicycle without any warm-up.
"This! What on earth is this thing?!" Kaito exclaimed in surprise, looking with disbelief at the Hokage swiftly moving around the courtyard.
Yahiko and Konan were also stunned. They didn't know what their Master was doing, and stood by, feeling quite helpless.
"We don't know either. Perhaps it's a new invention from Amado-sama?"
As soon as Yahiko said this, Kaito immediately accepted it. Amado-sama was a renowned inventor in the shinobi world; the good life their Land of Iron now enjoyed was inseparable from Amado's inventions.
But this thing… was it a vehicle?
Seeing the rapidly spinning two wheels, Kaito couldn't help but think of it as a vehicle.
Just as Kaito's brain was nearing overload, Torifu, who had been leisurely cycling, brought the bike to a stylish halt with his foot.
One foot remained on the pedal, the other braced on the ground to maintain balance.
This posture, combined with Torifu's sage-like appearance, looked quite incongruous.
Yahiko and Konan immediately ran to Torifu's side, examining the bicycle closely.
"Master, what exactly is this thing?" Konan was clearly very curious about the bicycle.
Torifu stroked her head. "This was made by Amado. I've named it a bicycle. It's a tool for transportation, greatly reducing people's travel time and physical exertion."
Torifu succinctly explained it to his two disciples, and being intelligent, they immediately understood what it was.
At the same time, their eyes lit up!
This thing looked so cool! Riding it around Konoha would definitely be fun!
"Master, is Amado-sama's creation up to standard then? When can it officially go into production?"
Yahiko and Konan were naturally very familiar with this process. Many of Amado's inventions had failed Torifu's tests and couldn't be mass-produced.
Torifu considered for a moment. "It's up to standard. As for mass production, that will likely have to wait until after the New Year, since everyone is currently on holiday and no one is working."
These words were undoubtedly a shot in the arm for Yahiko and Konan. If it could be produced, they would be relieved.