— Stark Tower, Downtown New York City
In the penthouse lounge of Stark Tower, Tony Stark set up a small table with two glasses of the finest champagne and a beautifully arranged barbecue platter.
"So, Hitomi, what would you like to drink? Just so you know, alcohol is off the table," Tony said casually.
"Mm..."
Kagura Hitomi tugged at her long silver hair and grinned. "Then I'll take a Coke!"
"That's what I like about you—so easy to please."
Tony smiled and pulled a can of Pepsi from the fridge. "Here, pour yourself a drink. You've earned it."
"Tonight, we need to celebrate. We've accomplished something incredible."
He leaned back in his chair. "Granted, most of the credit for the Arc Reactor and the microwave transmission system should go to me, but you two each deserve... oh, let's say about 12% of the credit."
"Excuse me?"
Pepper Potts gave him an unimpressed look. "Twelve percent? For both of us?"
"If you negotiate, I might bump it up to 15%," Tony teased. "But no revenge plots—I did most of the heavy lifting while Hitomi was off bungee jumping for fun."
"Fine, 12% it is."
Kagura chuckled. "Twelve percent of the credit in exchange for a can of Coke? Sounds like a fair deal to me."
"Alright, alright. Don't take it too seriously, sweetheart."
Tony raised his glass toward Kagura. "I was joking. Truth is, this achievement wouldn't have been possible without your hard work and the support of Rhodes Island Industries."
"Especially the large-scale Arc Reactor technology—if it weren't for your team's designs, we'd probably just be starting test operations now."
"Now that sounds more like a proper acknowledgment."
Pepper quipped, "I swear, Hitomi looked like she was about to cry just now."
"I was not!" Kagura puffed out her cheeks. "A true lady like me is always magnanimous!"
"Alright, bottom line—thank you, both of you. You two are the most important people in my life."
Tony swirled his champagne. "So, Hitomi—thank you. Three thousand times over."
"Wow..." Kagura smiled, a flicker of mixed emotions crossing her face. "You're welcome."
"And what about me?" Pepper asked with a smirk.
"You're somewhere in the 600 to 900 range," Tony deadpanned. "But as compensation, I think the next building should have 'Potts' written on it."
"I'd rather have my name on the property deed," Pepper countered, clinking her glass against his. "How about that?"
"Ugh..."
Tony made a pained expression. "Do we really have to discuss this in front of Hitomi?"
"Pfft..." Kagura giggled. These two really had a great relationship.
Just then, J.A.R.V.I.S.'s voice interrupted the moment.
"Sir, Agent Coulson is calling. It appears to be an urgent matter."
"I'm not here," Tony responded immediately, taking a sip of champagne. "Does S.H.I.E.L.D. not understand personal time?"
"Sir, I doubt Agent Coulson will accept that excuse," J.A.R.V.I.S. continued. "Additionally, my security protocols are being overridden—"
"Is he trying to break in?" Tony frowned. "Leave him a message. Tell him to be brief—"
Before he could finish his sentence, the elevator doors slid open. Coulson strolled into the lounge, holding a tablet in one hand.
"Phil."
Pepper greeted him warmly. "Come in, we're celebrating the successful long-range wireless power transmission experiment."
"Good to see you too, Miss Potts, but I can't stay long," Coulson replied. "Mr. Stark, Miss Kagura, this is an urgent Avengers-level call."
"Boom. Security breach," Tony muttered. "And he just walked right in. That's on you, Potts."
He turned to Coulson. "By the way, what's with 'Phil'? I thought your first name was 'Agent'?"
"This is serious, Mr. Stark," Coulson said, handing over his tablet. "We have a big problem."
"First of all, I don't like it when people hand me things," Tony stated. "Second, my official consultation hours are Thursdays from 9 AM to 5 PM."
Pepper took the tablet instead. "Don't mind him, it's one of his quirks. I'll hand it to him."
Tony took the tablet, set it on the table, and opened the encrypted files. "I thought the Avengers Initiative was scrapped? Aren't you guys focused on some new energy project now?"
"That's precisely the issue," Coulson replied. "We seem to have lost something very important."
"Oh, great. That's never a good sign..."
Tony skimmed through the files. "Looks like our celebration is officially over."
Meanwhile, Coulson turned to Kagura.
"Miss Kagura, I have a special assignment for you," he said. "May I have a word in private?"
"Of course."
Kagura followed him out onto the balcony.
"Six hours ago, our Western Research Base was attacked," Coulson began. "The Tesseract was stolen—by Thor's brother, Loki."
Kagura's expression grew serious. "That's... bad."
"This is a Level 7 emergency. We are officially at war," Coulson continued. "But there's another issue."
"Another issue? What is it?"
"Natasha Romanoff has gone missing. We haven't been able to reach her."
"Ah..." Kagura awkwardly scratched her cheek. "Missing, huh..."
Of course, she knew where Natasha was.
Not long ago, Natasha had received a top-priority directive from Griffin Security and was currently carrying out a secret operation against Loki—under Kagura's orders.
It was only natural that S.H.I.E.L.D. couldn't contact her. That was Griffin's policy.
For any fully integrated member of Griffin, its orders always took precedence over those of any other organization.
"That's right," Coulson confirmed. "From what we know, 'Hawkeye' Barton has been brainwashed by Loki. With Natasha missing, we've suffered serious losses today, which means we need your help."
Kagura smiled softly and nodded. "I understand. I'll do everything I can to assist."
This was all part of her plan.
Without Natasha, S.H.I.E.L.D. would have no choice but to turn to her to fill the role.
"This mission could be dangerous," Coulson warned, taking a deep breath. "So please prepare your 'Flashblade' gear, Miss Kagura."
"No problem," Kagura replied. "What's the assignment?"
"We need you to go to Calcutta... and find a certain big guy."
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