—120 km East of New York City, Altitude: 12,000 meters
The "Halo" transport aircraft sliced through the sky like a silver blade, racing towards New York City.
"Cortana, have you tracked the location of the Cosmic Cube?"
Kagura Hitomi sat in the cockpit, activating a holographic display to review mission intel and reconnaissance data.
Natasha Romanoff, Bucky Barnes, and others were already online.
"The tracking is complete. The target is moving along the New York ring highway at a speed of 80 km/h. Destination unknown—it appears to be evading pursuit."
As Cortana reported, a highlighted route appeared on the holographic map in front of Kagura.
"Eighty kilometers per hour?" Kagura zoomed in on the map with a flick of her fingers.
"So, it's being transported in a vehicle?"
"Your intuition is sharp, Master. That's highly likely."
Cortana confirmed, "Natasha Romanoff is en route for visual confirmation, and traffic control is being enforced in the relevant areas."
"Understood.
"Deploy Griffin Security Agency's operation plan and notify Tony Stark."
"He's technically part of Griffin, but stress the importance of confidentiality. Tell him not to act recklessly, and absolutely do not leak this to Nick Fury."
"Orders confirmed, Master."
"Good. Now it's time for us to get to work."
Kagura switched channels. "Natalie Sister, can you hear me?"
"Loud and clear, Hitomi."
Natasha Romanoff's voice came through smoothly. "By the way, you can just call me Natasha. Natalie was just an alias."
"No way! Pfft!" Kagura stuck out her tongue playfully. "Natalie is my personal nickname for you now! You're stuck with it forever!"
"Ugh, fine. Whatever."
Natasha sighed in resignation. "I'm approaching the target now. It's a transport convoy marked with 'Penguin Logistics.' Deploying drone scans and notifying authorities to block the roads."
...Wait, what?!
Penguin Logistics???
WTF!
Those little punks hijacked one of my company's trucks?!
Kagura was stunned at first—then furious.
"Alright, Sister, got it. I'll be there shortly."
Despite her rising anger, her voice remained calm and composed as she spoke with Natasha.
"Understood. I'll initiate the operation as planned."
—New York Ring Highway
Traffic was still heavy when the control order was issued.
To their credit, Loki's controlled mercenaries weren't idiots.
To prevent the Cosmic Cube from being captured, they placed it in a moving truck, keeping it on the highway to avoid being pinpointed.
However, unlike Bruce Banner's static tracking technology, the "Argos" high-performance surveillance satellites covered almost the entire globe.
Even if they drove into a tunnel, they wouldn't escape Rhode Island Industries' tracking systems.
A transport truck marked with "Penguin Logistics" branding cruised along the highway, escorted by several armored jeeps, blending into the traffic to avoid suspicion.
Not far behind, a futuristic motorcycle sped toward them.
The deep red machine, named "Akira," was a visual marvel—its sleek, cyberpunk design exuded an unmistakable futuristic style.
Golden energy capacitors lined its frame, glowing faintly, while dazzling golden rings surrounded its front and rear wheels.
But Akira was more than just a stylish ride.
Kagura had designed this high-tech marvel specifically for Natasha Romanoff, taking inspiration not only from the legendary bike in Akira but also from a certain badass machine in Final Fantasy VII.
It housed an advanced arsenal, covering nearly all of Natasha's operational needs.
"Target at 800 meters. Deploying drone scanners."
Dressed in a sleek black tactical suit—an upgraded version of Kagura's first-generation combat wear—Natasha activated her integrated intelligence visor and took the lead in the Cosmic Cube recovery mission.
On her command, panels on Akira's rear unfolded, releasing four sleek, black reconnaissance drones resembling miniature flying saucers.
Powered by high-energy micro-capacitors, the drones featured seven miniature ion thrusters along their undersides and edges, granting them superior maneuverability compared to traditional rotor-based drones.
The drones shot forward, maintaining speed with the Penguin Logistics truck, then activated full-spectrum scanners to probe its interior.
Blue scanning beams swept across the truck's surface, revealing high-density gamma radiation inside.
"Got it! Hitomi, I've got a lock on the Cosmic Cube. Moving to intercept."
With that, Natasha twisted the throttle, sending Akira roaring ahead.
Of course, Loki's mercenaries weren't amateurs. They quickly realized they were being tailed.
'Ra—ta—ta—ta—ta—ta!'
Gunmen in the transport truck's passenger seat leaned out, firing precise bursts at the reconnaissance drones.
Two of the "unarmed" drones were instantly destroyed.
On the other side, the remaining two drones met the same fate under fire from the escort jeeps behind them.
The sudden gunfire and explosions sent the highway into chaos.
Panicked drivers swerved, horns blaring in protest.
The convoy transporting the Cosmic Cube had no intention of sticking around. Accelerating sharply, they attempted to shake off their pursuer.
To make matters worse, the last escort jeep in the convoy popped open its roof hatch, raising an automated remote-controlled weapon station.
'Da—ka da—ka da—ka!'
A .50-caliber heavy machine gun locked onto the deep-red Akira and unleashed a hailstorm of bullets.
Natasha ducked low, evading the incoming fire while activating Akira's onboard shield system.
The bike's arc reactor flared to life. Panels at the front slightly opened, revealing radiant golden energy conduits.
A second later, the energy solidified into a honeycomb-patterned, semi-transparent shield, deflecting the storm of bullets effortlessly.
Griffin Security spared no expense when it came to cutting-edge technology.
With Rhode Island Industries backing them, cost and proprietary risks were irrelevant.
Naturally, Kagura saw no reason not to equip Natasha's bike with a pure-energy shield derived from Bifrost dark energy technology.
Seeing their bullets were useless, one of the mercenaries in the jeep pulled the pin on a grenade and hurled it backward.
Natasha swiftly maneuvered, dodging the resulting explosion. "Well, how thoughtful of you."
The red-haired beauty frowned. "Akira, engage combat mode."
At her command, Akira's front chassis transformed, revealing twin rapid-fire pulse cannons.
The handlebars shifted seamlessly into trigger grips.
"Here's my return gift. Hope you like it."
Natasha smirked and pulled the trigger.
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