["We'll find him sooner or later! Our satellites are running facial recognition, biometrics, and behavioral pattern scanning!"]
[Leading the way was Okoye, the head of the Dora Milaje, with the new king of Wakanda, T'Challa, following closely behind. Natasha stood in front of a car, waiting for them.]
[Okoye approached her without hesitation, speaking bluntly: "Step aside, or I will move you myself!"]
[T'Challa smirked at her remark and held out a hand. "That would be interesting, though."]
[Natasha locked eyes with T'Challa. "Do you really think you'll find him?"]
[With a calm expression, T'Challa walked to the car and opened the door. "My resources are considerable."]
[Natasha turned slightly and said, "Yeah… It took the world seventy years to find Barnes. So you can probably find him in half the time."]
[At those words, Black Panther immediately sensed a hidden meaning. His expression became serious. "You already know where they are."]
["I know someone who does," Natasha admitted with a nod.]
"What's going on? Why am I up there?"
T'Challa—still a prince at the time—stared at the Sky Screen in confusion. He had no idea why he and Okoye were featured, especially alongside Natasha. Though he seemed to know her, they weren't close.
At that moment, Wakanda's king, T'Chaka—still alive—was equally surprised to see Okoye and T'Challa together.
Something significant must have happened. Otherwise, Okoye, as the captain of the Dora Milaje, wouldn't have been traveling with his son for no reason.
"It seems Wakanda's secrecy won't last much longer," T'Chaka sighed. If T'Challa had already made contact with Natasha, then Wakanda's Vibranium technology and the power of the Panther Goddess would eventually be exposed to the world.
He needed to reconsider Wakanda's future.
Natasha, too, was caught off guard. She didn't even know T'Challa yet, but that didn't matter. Tony had already started digging into his identity.
"The prince of a small African nation… T'Challa," Nick Fury murmured as he read the information Tony had uncovered, his mind racing with possibilities.
The identities of Okoye and the unknown third person were eventually discovered, but Tony had no idea who this "Barnes" they were searching for was.
Steve Rogers, however, froze in place. It took him a few seconds to process before he muttered, "Barnes… Bucky Barnes?"
"Who?"
Barton, sitting beside Steve Rogers, turned to him with curiosity. "Do you know him, Cap?"
Hearing Barton's words, everyone's eyes turned to Steve Rogers.
Shaking his head instinctively, he responded, "No! That's impossible. Bucky died a long time ago. He was killed in that battle… There's no way it's him!"
Nick Fury narrowed his eyes. Something clicked in his mind, but without concrete proof, he kept his thoughts to himself.
[On the other side, Steve Rogers stepped out of a small car. Sharon Carter followed suit.]
[She smirked and teased him, "I don't think you quite understand the concept of a 'getaway car.'"]
[Unfazed by her teasing, Steve Rogers simply replied, "This car is low-key."]
["Right. Because low-key is exactly how I'd describe it," Sharon said sarcastically, opening the trunk to reveal a Vibranium shield and Falcon's equipment inside.]
[Inside the car, Falcon (Sam Wilson) and the Winter Soldier (Bucky Barnes) sat waiting. Bucky suddenly asked, "Can you move the seat forward a little?"]
[Sam, without even looking back, deadpanned, "No."]
[Meanwhile, Steve Rogers continued talking to Sharon. "I owe you another favor."]
[Sharon pursed her lips. "I'm keeping track."]
[Bucky, having given up on the seat situation, shifted slightly to get a better view of the conversation. But his movement caught Sharon's attention. She glanced at him and spoke calmly: "He tried to kill me before."]
[Steve Rogers sighed, offering an apologetic nod. "Sorry. I'll remember that too."]
[Sharon smiled slightly at his words before turning her head, her expression unreadable. Steve Rogers looked at the equipment in the trunk.]
["They'll come after you," he warned.]
[Sharon shrugged but remained unfazed. "I know."]
[Steve Rogers met her gaze, his expression filled with gratitude. "Thank you, Sharon."]
[Sharon held his gaze for a moment before, without warning, she leaned in and kissed him.]
[Their foreheads touched briefly as Sharon whispered, "This feels so…"]
["Late," Steve Rogers finished for her.]
["You're right," Sharon chuckled, before playfully tracing her hand over his chest. "I should go."]
[Steve Rogers nodded. "Okay."]
[As they parted, Sam and Bucky—still sitting in the car—exchanged knowing smiles, looking at Steve with amused expressions.]
[Seeing their grins, Steve Rogers, who had been smiling himself, suddenly looked at them with mild exasperation.]
"Oh my God! What should I do?!"
Sharon Carter buried her face in her hands, overwhelmed by embarrassment. She had actually kissed her great-aunt Peggy Carter's man! How was she ever going to face her again?
On the other hand, Peggy Carter, lying in her hospital bed, squinted at the Sky Screen, watching the kiss unfold. Then, she turned her head toward the elderly man sitting beside her.
"I don't remember you ever mentioning this little romance with my niece," she said pointedly.
The old Steve Rogers gave a bitter smile but remained silent.
He knew what fate had in store for Sharon. She had been among those turned to ashes by the Infinity Gauntlet. Looking back now, it had taken him a long time to move past that moment.
After the war, he had traveled back in time, found Peggy again, and fulfilled the dance he had once promised her. He had chosen to stay in that era, living out his life beside her.
But the Sky Screen…
It changed everything.
Everything he had known, everything he had experienced—it was all different now.
He had considered warning everyone about what was coming, but the Sky Screen had blocked him from doing so. Other than Peggy, he couldn't tell anyone. Not even in writing.
Compared to his older self, the younger Steve Rogers was visibly emotional. He had seen Bucky on the Sky Screen!
His best friend—his brother—was alive.
Tony, noticing Steve's reaction, immediately started searching for Bucky Barnes. There was no way a living person could survive in modern society without leaving some kind of trace.
Meanwhile, Sam stared at the Sky Screen, stunned.
At that point in time, he had still been working with veterans in Washington, yet here he was—alongside Steve Rogers and some long-haired stranger in the backseat.
As for Bucky, Sam was sure he had never met him before.
Elsewhere, deep within a hidden facility, an artificial intelligence activated a monitoring system.
Dr. Arnim Zola, his consciousness now residing within a vast network, watched the feed with keen interest.
The Winter Soldier… Bucky Barnes…
It seemed his control over him was slipping.
Zola's digital presence flickered as he calculated possible countermeasures.
Bucky could not be allowed to escape.
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