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66.3% With Ope Ope no Mi in Hunter x Hunter / Chapter 181: Chapter 181: Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver (Part 1)

Chapter 181: Chapter 181: Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver (Part 1)

"You..." Maya Hansen's words made Stark's face immediately darken. For Stark, nothing was more detestable now than issues related to weapons, especially those exploited by terrorists, which had his involvement.

The scene of being attacked by weapons he had created was an unforgettable memory for Stark. It was for this reason that he shut down Stark Industries' weapons manufacturing division.

Although the Extremis Virus being used by terrorists technically had nothing to do with Stark, because of that formula, Stark felt a sense of responsibility.

This also highlighted Stark's brilliance. Even though he was primarily an engineer, his understanding of biotechnology was deep. Maya Hansen was undoubtedly a genius, but she still couldn't compare to Stark.

Without Stark's formula, Maya wouldn't have advanced the Extremis Virus to this level. This underscores the importance of inspiration in innovation.

It's like the saying about fixing a machine: drawing a line costs one dollar; knowing where to draw the line costs $9,999.

For some people, what seems like a starting point is an insurmountable barrier for others.

"It's okay; this isn't your fault." While Stark was fuming, Pepper comforted Maya Hansen gently, using Stark as an example to show she could start over.

"The main issue now is investigating the connection between Killian and Mandarin, and their ultimate goals."

Knowing Killian's problem from Maya Hansen was one thing, but figuring out how to act was another. Killian was no small figure; he had connections with the Vice President and even the Iron Patriot. Even Stark, with all his influence, couldn't move against such a person without concrete evidence.

Moreover, due to government involvement, Stark couldn't even seek help from S.H.I.E.L.D. because it was an internal affair of the USA, making it hard for S.H.I.E.L.D. to intervene.

Killian had seized a perfect opportunity.

Stark suspected this might be a setup by the government and Mandarin to boost the Iron Patriot's reputation and restore the government's credibility lost after the Battle of New York.

It's widely suspected among the upper echelons that certain countries collaborate with terrorists for self-serving reasons. No threat means no justification for massive military expenditures.

Though public trust in the government declined post-Battle of New York, military budgets increased. None desired another battle of that scale.

Moreover, the recent Nine Realms convergence in England's London led the world's five great powers to unanimously boost military spending.

This inadvertently accelerated Hydra's Insight Project, a plan endorsed by Fury, who feared another similar threat.

However, Fury, ever the skeptic, secretly instructed Natasha and Shuri to intensify their investigation of this project.

"This..." Pepper and Maya fell silent when Stark suggested the possibility of government collaboration with Mandarin.

"If they could deploy three attack helicopters so quickly, some influential people might be involved," Stark continued, linking the attack helicopters to powerful figures.

Though the USA was awash with guns, deploying attack helicopters required significant power.

"Regardless, I need an explanation for this." Stark resolved to get to the bottom of it, determined to avenge Happy and protect Pepper.

"You all stay here and don't go out. Daniel, please keep an eye on things." Stark headed to his lab, instructing JARVIS to start the investigation.

Since the explosions were human-induced and multiple incidents occurred, Stark decided to trace the origins. According to Maya, these explosions were side effects of the Extremis Virus, something even Killian wanted to avoid.

Maya deduced Killian's collaboration with Mandarin because the explosions happened at sites Mandarin claimed to have attacked in his videos.

This might deceive others, but not Maya, the chief scientist. Mandarin's videos seemed to cover up Extremis Virus explosions.

Since terrorism involves explosions, it would cover up the true cause, avoiding a deeper government investigation.

"The first such explosion happened in Tennessee?" Using JARVIS's data analysis, Stark quickly identified the initial explosion site, where a 3,000-degree blaze was recorded—rare even in the USA.

Stark decided to investigate in person, flying to Tennessee in his Iron Man suit. Meanwhile, Daniel monitored Killian's activities through Red Queen.

"aim, huh? This guy is courting death." Stark needed evidence due to high-level government involvement, but Daniel didn't.

Daniel was furious at Killian because the explosion happened at the Chinese Theater, affecting many Chinese and three children who were there. Daniel wouldn't let such a person off easily, and he also needed the Philosopher's Stone.

Moreover, Killian had the Extremis Virus, which Daniel had been waiting for.

"I can take action against Killian here, but Stark needs a resolution. Otherwise, he'll keep digging and might discover my involvement. That's troublesome."

"Looks like I can't leave here for now. It's a pity Robin isn't here. Otherwise, she could handle this. I'll have Red Queen monitor Killian for now."

"I have matters to attend to. I need to leave for a while," Daniel said, making an excuse to leave.

He wasn't too worried about Pepper and Maya's safety. They were at one of Stark's secret villas, unknown to most and guarded by JARVIS and Iron Man suits.

"Miami, huh? It's time to act." Through Red Queen, Daniel tracked Killian's movements.

Stark, being somewhat stubborn, didn't initially use JARVIS for surveillance, leading to many problems later.

As Daniel prepared to act, Stark was in a small cabin, lamenting while sitting next to a cute boy.

Despite Daniel's intervention, Stark, overly confident in his suit's capabilities, had it destroyed by an Extremis assassin sent by Killian. 

The Extremis Virus, capable of generating 3,000-degree heat, could cut through Iron Man suits like butter. Originally, Killian had used it to cleave Stark's suit in half.

Despite Daniel's intervention, Stark met the boy, Harley, as he did originally.

Had it not been for his pride, Stark could have contacted Daniel or JARVIS for help. However, he didn't want to reveal such an embarrassing failure.

Apart from Stark no longer suffering from anxiety attacks, the rest played out similarly. With Harley's help, Stark investigated the disabled veterans' issue.

Maya Hansen, seemingly naive, had worked with Killian without realizing the full extent of his plans, forcing Stark to investigate personally.

In a way, Stark's involvement positively altered a smart kid's destiny.

Western children are encouraged to tinker and build, unlike in Eastern cultures, where such behavior might be discouraged.

Stark's encounter with the Extremis assassins was a coincidence. Maya Hansen's disappearance had made Killian cautious, prompting him to send agents to erase evidence.

Initially, Killian hadn't intended to create Mandarin. He planned to use the Extremis Virus's regenerative abilities to do business with the government. Such a drug would be highly sought after worldwide if it had no side effects.

The world is filled with people disabled by various circumstances. Without the virus's side effects, Killian could quickly build a company rivaling Stark Industries.

Unfortunately, the virus's side effects forced Killian to hide the truth, leading to the terrorist charade. Eventually, he even developed a genuine desire to become a terrorist.

American veterans, especially those discharged due to injuries, often live in dire conditions and are easy targets for exploitation.

Hydra's Centipede Virus experiments also exploited veterans, as did the Extremis Virus.

These soldiers had no other way to survive.

Like Krauser, who was expelled from the military due to his infection, but luckily encountered Daniel and was cured.

Despite that, he only worked as a mercenary, a far cry from the prominent figures he once knew.

"So this is the Extremis Virus. Fascinating," Daniel thought, securing a vial of the virus and its inhibitor.

"This Colonel Rhodes is truly dense." Daniel observed as a female Extremis agent incapacitated the Iron Patriot, shaking his head.

Had Daniel known Iron Man was similarly defeated, he'd see them as comrades in misfortune. Unlike Rhodes, Stark had JARVIS's help, allowing him to turn the tables. Rhodes, lacking such support, fell.

"Looks like the Iron Patriot lacks JARVIS," Daniel concluded from Rhodes's quick defeat, revealing the suit's shortcomings.

"Such unethical scientists have no place in this world." In a mirror dimension, Daniel watched scientists analyzing the Extremis Virus. He opened a portal and entered their lab.

He quickly incapacitated the scientists with web bombs but soon discovered many had injected the Extremis Virus, burning through the webs with their flames.

"No wonder they're so eager to analyze the virus; they're trying to save themselves," Daniel thought as he used earth alchemy to trap the flaming scientists in earthen prisons, which they quickly destroyed.

"These flames are troublesome," Daniel mused, contemplating the challenge of capturing them alive.

Bang, bang, bang.

Hearing the commotion, guards rushed in and fired at Daniel, who used a Stunning Spell to no avail, likely due to the Extremis Virus.

"You forced my hand." Reluctantly, Daniel abandoned the Philosopher's Stone and used lethal force. In the Marvel world, he avoided using the stone to prevent detection by powerful beings like the Ancient One.

The guards were easily dealt with, but the virus-enhanced scientists were tough to kill. Bullets healed quickly, even headshots.

Daniel's fight against the Extremis-enhanced scientists was challenging, showcasing the virus's formidable regenerative powers.

___________________

Read Ahead

P@treon.com/Mutter


Chapter 182: Chapter 182: Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver (Part 2)

"Let's see how much you can recover," said Daniel Davis, determined to kill. He picked up a gun from one of the fallen guards and started shooting at the scientists injected with the Extremis virus.

The Extremis virus, no matter how powerful, couldn't restore infinitely, just like the G-virus.

Boom.

Under Daniel's relentless shooting, one of the scientists reached his limit and instead of regenerating, exploded violently. The high temperature from the explosion instantly destroyed the entire lab and engulfed everyone else in it.

Thus, a chain reaction of explosions followed.

"What a waste," Daniel couldn't help but feel a bit regretful as he looked at the lab destroyed by the explosion. It housed a lot of high-tech equipment he had planned to take back.

In fact, Daniel was already very wealthy and didn't lack these things. This was probably a case of old habits dying hard.

The power of the Extremis virus explosion was immense. However, for Daniel, who had a very good shield, it wasn't a problem. It wasn't the Protego from the Harry Potter world nor the Armament Haki from the One Piece world.

It was the portal from Kamar-Taj. By opening a large portal in front of him, he could transfer the flames elsewhere, protecting himself completely.

Perhaps because of the portal he opened, despite the chain explosions, the power was transferred away, leaving the underground lab relatively intact.

"Who are you?" As Daniel left the destroyed underground lab and emerged above, he was confronted by a dozen people, led by Killian. The explosions seemed to have alarmed him.

Behind him was his chief henchman and bodyguard, Savin, the pilot of the armed helicopter that attacked Stark's seaside villa.

"You don't need to know who I am. You just need to know what I'm here to do," said Daniel, opening the Mirror Dimension.

If he had opened the Mirror Dimension during the earlier fight, the underground lab wouldn't have been destroyed at all.

"What is this?" The sudden change startled Killian. "Fire!" He immediately ordered, and his henchmen aimed their guns at Daniel and pulled the triggers.

"Don't be so hasty." Daniel moved with a Soru technique, leaping into the air and throwing five web grenades below.

Boom.

With the explosion of the web grenades, Killian and his men were all bound. However, in the next moment, flames erupted from the arms of Killian and Savin, burning away the webs and killing the henchmen bound with them.

"Only two, huh?" Apart from Killian and Savin, none of the other henchmen could produce flames, indicating they hadn't been injected with the Extremis virus.

Whoosh.

Killian, with his arms glowing with red flames, glared at Daniel, took a deep breath, and spat a ball of fire at him.

"You can breathe fire. Seems better than the G-virus, if it weren't for the explosion side effect," thought Daniel as he dodged the flames with Soru.

"I almost forgot about this, Room." While blaming himself for forgetting, Daniel activated his Ope Ope no Mi power and cut Killian and Savin. The Extremis virus was powerful but couldn't withstand the power of the Ope Ope no Mi.

He had completely forgotten about using his Devil Fruit power in the underground lab, which could have easily solved the problem.

Cut into pieces, Killian and Savin couldn't activate their Extremis virus abilities.

"It seems I haven't developed the habit of using my Devil Fruit power all the time," Daniel reflected. His oversight was understandable.

In both the Marvel and One Piece worlds, Daniel rarely used his Devil Fruit abilities in combat to ensure his true power remained undiscovered.

He preferred using magic whenever possible. With his enhanced physical skills, he only used his abilities when he couldn't win otherwise.

Moreover, these people were ordinary humans, even those injected with the Extremis virus. They were still ordinary humans.

The Extremis virus performed better than the G-virus, but it had its shortcomings. It didn't significantly enhance physical strength.

Its attack power came from the high-temperature flames. Without the flames, there was almost no attack power.

Killian in the original story was defeated by Pepper. Despite injecting the Extremis virus earlier and understanding it better, he still died at Pepper's hands.

"That's Stark. Why is he here? Fortunately, I had my Observation Haki activated; otherwise, he might have been blown up," Daniel thought after defeating Killian and Savin and interrogating them. He sensed Stark's presence as he exited the Mirror Dimension to clean up, grateful he hadn't turned off his Haki.

Otherwise, accidentally killing Stark would have been a major scandal.

"Luckily, I didn't leave any traces. I should wear a mask for secret operations next time." With Stark's appearance, Daniel had no choice but to leave to avoid meeting him.

With Killian and Savin captured, Killian's plan couldn't proceed. From the interrogation, Daniel learned Killian's plan.

Killian planned to kidnap the president and kill him, then let the vice president take over. The vice president's daughter had a disability, and Killian promised that the Extremis virus could cure her. This persuaded the vice president to join his plan.

Once the vice president became president, he would support Killian's AIM, allowing him to control the president and eventually surpass Stark Industries.

Killian never forgot how Stark left him waiting on the rooftop on Christmas night, while Stark spent the night with a beautiful doctor. The difference infuriated Killian.

He not only wanted to destroy Stark Industries and make Stark taste poverty but also wanted to steal Pepper from him.

With Killian and Savin missing, and Stark finding the fake Mandarin, an actor, and rescuing the Iron Patriot, Rhodey, Killian's plot was soon exposed.

The president ordered an investigation into AIM and Killian. AIM quickly collapsed, and Killian's whereabouts remained unknown. The information from the fake Mandarin and the explosion led to the conclusion that Killian and Savin might have been caught in the explosion due to the Extremis virus's side effects. The high temperature made DNA testing impossible.

This conclusion was drawn to close the case quickly, especially since it involved terrorism. The government needed to assure the public. However, secretly, the government continued to hunt for Killian.

The aftermath included news praising the president and the country for solving the terrorist issue. Due to Daniel's intervention, the vice president's involvement wasn't exposed.

Only Killian and Savin knew about the vice president's role. With both missing, their henchmen were clueless.

"Killian's motive to target the president was partly justified," thought Daniel. The current US president, Ellis, had protected an oil company responsible for spilling a billion gallons of oil in international waters. Normally, such an incident would be severely punished, but the company supported the president's election.

"Does this mean I have leverage over both the president and the vice president?" Daniel pondered. While such leverage could be exploited, it wasn't very useful for him.

For minor matters, he could handle them himself. For major issues, even holding leverage over the president wouldn't suffice. For example, acquiring nuclear weapons wasn't within a president's authority.

"Still, having a couple of nukes would be a significant deterrent to the Celestial Dragons. Throwing two big fireworks at the Holy Land of Mary Geoise on the Red Line would be interesting."

The Mandarin incident quickly faded. People didn't care about outdated terrorists. However, Daniel knew it wasn't over because the actor was killed in prison.

"Is the real Ten Rings emerging?" Daniel noted it but didn't pay much attention, leaving such matters to the superheroes.

Characters like Kingpin and Madame Gao were for the superheroes to deal with.

"Daredevil's abilities seem like advanced Observation Haki," Daniel mused.

"It's time to find Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. They need time to train their abilities." Ultron not appearing was good, but the absence of Scarlet Witch, a top-tier superhero, was a big deal.

The Marvel world was dangerous, and Daniel didn't want such a powerful superhero missing because of him.

"Scarlet Witch is quite pretty," Daniel admitted, despite his preference for Eastern aesthetics.

"Too bad her boyfriend is gone because of me." Without Ultron, Vision didn't exist. However, this was a good thing as it saved Scarlet Witch future heartache.

The Mind Stone was powerful. Vision, though a robot, had a body resembling a human's due to the stone. He could have a girlfriend and even children.

With Vision and Scarlet Witch's abilities, their children would be extraordinary. However, neither in the original story nor now would this happen.

Sokovia was a chaotic country with many international volunteers working there due to its poverty and disorder.

Warlords, gangs, and thugs.

In such a chaotic place, Wanda's beauty naturally attracted unwanted attention. But Wanda and her brother Pietro were not easy targets. With Daniel secretly watching over them, their lives remained relatively peaceful.

"Without hatred for Stark and Stark Industries, their original animosity was likely instilled by Hydra. This saves me a lot of trouble," thought Daniel.

"Without the Ultron incident, Sokovia won't change either." Although the Ultron incident caused heavy casualties in Sokovia, it led to positive changes afterward, a great irony.

Without the incident, Stark wouldn't feel guilty and give extra attention to Sokovia.

"Hello to both of you." After considering for a while, Daniel decided to meet Wanda and Pietro as a magician.

"Are you a magician?" As an active superhero in the Battle of New York, even in Sokovia, Daniel's image was known.

"Yes," Daniel said, removing his mask. "I'm here to discuss something with you two. Our investigation shows you both have special abilities that haven't awakened yet. What do you think about becoming superheroes?"

"Can I become

 a superhero?" Pietro asked excitedly after hearing Daniel's words.

Without Hydra's instilled hatred, Pietro was just an ordinary young man.

Wanda, however, remained calm.

"Yes, I'm a magician and can help awaken your powers."

"Is it dangerous?" Wanda asked before Pietro could speak.

"To be honest, I can't guarantee it. That's why I'm here to ask for your consent. If you agree, I'll help you awaken. If not, we can forget about it."

Though theoretically, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver wouldn't be harmed, Daniel didn't make any promises.

"Are you really a magician?" Wanda asked after a moment of silence.

"Of course." Daniel demonstrated some magic with his wand. While magician costumes were widely available and many people cosplayed, real magic was his alone.

"I agree," Pietro said immediately, seeing real magic.

Seeing her brother agree, Wanda considered for a moment and also agreed.

"Before awakening your powers, I need to tell you some things," Daniel said, explaining the responsibilities and challenges of being a superhero.

"Can you promise not to use your powers for evil and to maintain world peace?" Daniel concluded.

"Do you mean I'll be very strong in the future?" Wanda quickly grasped the hidden meaning in Daniel's words.

"If you can fully master your powers, you won't be weaker than the current prince of Asgard." She was someone who could single-handedly fight Thanos.

"What about me?" Pietro asked, hearing his sister would be so strong.

"You shouldn't be weaker than Captain America."

___________________

Read Ahead

P@treon.com/Mutter


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