Chapter 109: Chapter 103
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Since Stern's debacle at the hearing, Pierce still highly valued the technology of the whip.
Even preparations were already made, just waiting to get the relevant technology from Ivan Vanko and then make a big move!
To give HYDRA, the dragon lurking in the shadows, powerful wings!
Everything was progressing smoothly; Pierce's undercover had been monitoring Ivan Vanko from the beginning without any issues.
But who could have expected...
After Nick Fury captured Ivan Vanko, he suddenly used a secret force to isolate him.
Even with the vast resources at Pierce's disposal within SHIELD, he couldn't find Ivan Vanko's whereabouts!
So, yes.
Now, Pierce couldn't say that he got the technology from Ivan Vanko, let alone know where Ivan Vanko was being held.
Considering HYDRA's current level of infiltration into SHIELD, there's only one reason for this:
Nick Fury didn't use SHIELD's conventional resources.
Instead, he used his own private powers.
That's why no information was leaked.
The only question is, why did Nick Fury do this?
Is it because he knew HYDRA still existed from Stern and was aware of some HYDRA moles within SHIELD?
Even so, there was no need to avoid using SHIELD's power entirely, right?
This reaction seems somewhat over the top.
Unless, Nick Fury has realized that HYDRA's infiltration of SHIELD has gone beyond the normal level of infiltration seen in other intelligence agencies.
Has it reached an abnormal level of infiltration?
So, is that really the case?
Did Nick Fury really learn more HYDRA secrets from Stern?
Had he been keeping a low profile, causing only minor disturbances as a façade?
Was it all an act for himself, for other HYDRA moles he suspected existed within SHIELD?
To lull everyone?
Alexander Pierce couldn't know for sure.
But regardless, this had already raised Pierce's alert level.
"If this was just Nick Fury being overly cautious, then it's one thing.
But if Nick Fury has really noticed something, then I need to take certain measures," Pierce thought.
"Yes, sir."
Pierce's HYDRA senior undercover spoke, "Besides that hammer, Nick Fury also ordered Coulson to surveil two people."
With that, the counterpart placed information about Jane Foster and Darcy in front of Pierce.
Pierce glanced over it briefly.
One was an astrophysicist, and the other was her assistant.
Both had achieved somewhat in their field, but that seemed to be all.
Pierce couldn't see anything about these two that would grab Nick Fury's attention.
Of course, Pierce understood.
Since Nick Fury had people watching these two, then they must not be ordinary figures.
"Keep a close surveillance on them, Nick must have his reasons," Pierce gave such an order to his senior undercover in front of him.
"Understood!"
The other replied immediately.
"Also, find out where Nick has hidden Ivan Vanko as soon as possible."
"The technology of the Ark Reactor is also very important to us."
"Moreover, study and analyze Roger's blood samples as soon as possible. I will allocate various resources to cooperate!"
After a pause, Pierce continued issuing a series of important commands.
"Understood, sir!"
"And, secretly keep an eye on Nick Fury, I need to know how much he has discovered about HYDRA."
When the senior undercover was about to leave, Pierce seriously added more.
Thus began a new round of covert confrontation between Alexander Pierce and Nick Fury, two top agents.
For Pierce, his goal was to find out where Ivan Vanko was as quickly as possible without alerting Nick Fury, while also probing into how much Fury knew about HYDRA.
As for Nick Fury, his main concern was how to safely secure Ivan Vanko's technology while keeping it from HYDRA, and also to do so without alerting anyone.
Their objectives were opposed to each other from the start.
So, the confrontation between them was silent but filled with undercurrents.
It would be fascinating if it were made into a spy drama.
However, since both Pierce and Nick Fury were restrained and cautious enough, this smokeless confrontation lasted one and a half months and was mostly at a stalemate.
Although Pierce hadn't figured out Vanko's location yet, he had some solid clues.
Given time, Pierce was confident he could secure Vanko's technology quietly.
What about Nick Fury's side?
Although Fury had already secured the whip technology and even secretly engaged scientists for further development, he dared not start forming a whip special forces team yet.
Throughout the month and a half, Fury had keenly sensed a secret force watching over him!
Even though they were cautious and hardly left any traces, who was Nick Fury?
The king of agents!
With his awareness of SHIELD's infiltration situation and heightened vigilance, he was naturally able to pick up on something.
It seems the notebook was spot-on; HYDRA's infiltration truly reached a disturbing level.
Fury was almost certain that there must be some top-level agents within SHIELD, possibly level eight or nine, who were HYDRA moles!
Otherwise, it's impossible to wield such enormous power.
"Nick has indeed noticed something!"
Alexander Pierce became increasingly certain of this on his end.
After all, like Nick Fury, he was also a king of agents.
Even if Fury was extremely cautious, it's impossible not to leave any traces.
After this round of confrontation, both Pierce and Fury had a deeper "understanding" of each other.
This round of confrontation ended in a draw without a clear winner.
However, on another battlefield, it must be said that Fury had won a splendid turnaround.
At Stark's luxurious mansion.
Tony Stark and Black Widow stood side by side. Both of them widened their eyes, staring intently at the numerical projection in front of them without blinking.
Beep beep beep!
They saw codes and data flashing rapidly before their eyes, baffling to anyone else and dizzying to witness.
After about thirty to forty seconds, a new interface suddenly popped up.
The original codes and data vanished, replaced by relevant information and materials.
Tony Stark and the Black Widow's spirits both lifted.
"Sir, decryption successful!"
Jarvis's alert tone also rang out at this moment.
Under Jarvis's control, massive amounts of information and materials unfolded before Tony Stark and the Black Widow like a celestial maiden scattering flowers.
Looking around, it was densely packed everywhere.
"You've succeeded."
"It seems that the chief's decision to collaborate with you was the right choice."
The Black Widow couldn't help but admire the data around, after scanning it briefly.
"Of course."
Tony Stark, never knowing what modesty was, naturally accepted the Black Widow's praise.
"Jarvis, filter out the data concerning the Winter Soldier."
With Iron Man's command, the vast intelligence information quickly hid away under Jarvis's operation, leaving only the key intelligence on the Winter Soldier.
Indeed, the investigation on the Winter Soldier had made breakthrough progress.
Given that the Winter Soldier hadn't left much of a trace, the individual investigations by Nick Fury and Tony Stark weren't very efficient.
But once the two joined forces, it meant the strongest intelligence and technology came together, achieving a result greater than the sum of their parts.
In this month and a half,
Both sides truly complemented each other in intelligence and action, making rapid progress.
And finally, they achieved significant results.
Tap!
A light touch on the digital projection, and a top-secret file opened up.
Tony Stark and the Black Widow began to quickly browse through it.
Their expressions turned extremely grave.
"So, the Winter Soldier really is Bucky Barnes from the Howling Commandos!"
"He didn't die after falling off the train into the snowy mountains but ended up in the hands of Hydra, who turned him into a super-soldier!"
This news was indeed explosive.
Even the Black Widow, a seasoned agent, couldn't hide her surprise.
"So, it really is you, Bucky Barnes!"
Tony Stark's eyes were glued to the data, his voice unconsciously carrying a hint of murderous intent.
When Iron Man had previously seen that Captain America had survived for seventy years, he boldly speculated that the Winter Soldier might be Bucky Barnes.
After all, the two looked exactly alike.
Yet, when the investigation confirmed this, Tony Stark was still taken aback.
The Winter Soldier was actually Bucky Barnes!
However, Tony Stark's face soon showed an unwavering coldness and sharpness.
So what if he's Bucky Barnes?
Iron Man didn't care about all that.
This man killed his parents, and he must die!
"Stark, what are you thinking?"
The Black Widow's perception was very sharp; she sensed the change in Iron Man's mood and looked at him meaningfully.
"I'm thinking about what to eat for dinner. It's a troublesome problem, isn't it?"
Tony Stark responded, clearly evading the Black Widow's question.
The Black Widow knew this, but she didn't say much, only reminding Iron Man meaningfully, "That kind of troublesome problem is worth thinking about, don't you think?"
"I've thought about it."
Tony Stark responded meaningfully as well.
"Copy the data for me; I need to take it back to SHIELD."
The Black Widow didn't continue on this topic but instead addressed Tony Stark seriously.
"Jarvis."
"It's already done, sir!"
Jarvis quickly copied the relevant data onto a drive, which Tony Stark then handed over to the Black Widow.
The Black Widow, having nothing more to say, took the drive and quickly left Iron Man's presence, heading back to SHIELD at her fastest speed.
"Jarvis, has the IP address been cracked?"
After the Black Widow's departure, Tony Stark seemed to become a different person, his whole body emitting a chill.
His voice sounded even colder.
"Sir, the decryption is complete."
A corresponding geographic coordinate was projected in front of Tony Stark.
Iron Man glanced at it emotionlessly and then immediately instructed Jarvis.
"Get the Destroyer Armor ready."
"As you wish, sir!"
Mechanical arms started moving swiftly, wrapping Tony Stark in a thick metal shell in just a short moment.
The Destroyer was online.
"Jarvis, what are you waiting for?"
The cool Destroyer Armor flew out of the luxurious villa and disappeared into the vast sky.
With a clear target, it flew southeast, moving non-stop.
It swiftly covered a distance of nineteen kilometers, heading deep into a forest.
"Sir, there's a secret base ahead that matches our coordinates exactly!"
About seven or eight kilometers into the forest, a very secretive base was detected by Jarvis.
Correct.
It was the Hydra's secret base, where the Winter Soldier was kept frozen.
"Full speed ahead!"
Iron Man's spirit lifted, immediately issuing this command to Jarvis.
The Destroyer Armor traced a long flame trail in the sky, charging through with dominating force.
Eventually, it landed outside the base with an extremely cool posture.
"Iron Man!"
"No, it's the Destroyer!"
"Why is he here!"
The Hydra agents guarding outside the base were immediately alarmed.
After their faces changed, they quickly grabbed their weapons and charged at Iron Man.
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