Pierce saw Bucky almost turn his head and immediately shouted in panic.
Then he glanced at the Crying Face Wooden Idol – thankfully, it hadn't moved.
"Really?"
Bucky's voice was skeptical.
"You didn't see it, but I saw it clearly."
Pierce said this as he took a bite of his steak.
Back when the Chitauri attacked New York, S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ was heavily damaged.
Pierce was lucky enough to survive. His cell collapsed, allowing him to escape.
On his way out, he saw the Crying Face Wooden Idol snapping people's necks left and right.
He later learned of its properties from a researcher.
That's when he got his twisted idea – and had the Winter Soldier rescue it along with him.
"I already know exactly how to use it. I've got a bunch of damn old 'friends' I've held back from killing because it'd be too troublesome. But now, with this thing doing it for me, no one will ever trace it back to me. It'll be my best assassin!"
Pierce's eyes gleamed with mad excitement at the thought.
"Oh, that's a decent idea. Too bad you'll never get the chance to carry it out."
At that moment, Natasha's voice rang out within the helicopter.
Everyone turned to see her – wings spread behind her back – standing casually inside the aircraft.
"Hello, everyone."
Natasha gave them a sweet smile.
"BANG BANG BANG!!!"
The agents in the helicopter, all highly trained operatives, immediately opened fire on her.
But just before the bullets reached Natasha, they froze midair, floating harmlessly in front of her.
Then, with a flick of her finger, all the bullets reversed course!
They shot straight back into the agents who had fired them.
Only Bucky reacted instantly when he saw the bullets stop, ducking and sprinting forward to reach Natasha.
Like a magician, a dagger appeared in his hand as he thrust it towards her throat.
But in that instant, Bucky felt his entire body pinned down by an invisible force. He couldn't move at all.
He couldn't even lift the dagger.
Natasha raised her eyebrow slightly, and an immense gravitational force crushed Bucky to the floor, immobilizing him instantly.
"That just leaves you."
Natasha narrowed her eyes at Pierce, who was trembling in terror.
"Let me go! If you let me live, I'll give you unimaginable wealth!"
Pierce shouted desperately.
"No – I could even work for you! I can give you all my Hydra resources and connections! With your power, why waste time under Nick Fury? Don't you want to be the boss yourself!?"
Pierce tried to tempt her with promises of power and wealth.
"What you're saying… does sound pretty interesting."
Natasha chuckled lightly.
Seeing her reaction, Pierce's eyes lit up with hope. But the next words out of Natasha's mouth were like a bucket of ice water dumped over his head.
"But I refuse. I'm not interested."
With a casual flick of her hand, Pierce felt an invisible grip tighten around his throat. He couldn't breathe.
He instantly blacked out and collapsed.
"At my level… being a boss or not is meaningless. Absolute power is all that matters."
Natasha said calmly, then walked over to Bucky.
Though he couldn't move, he was still conscious.
"I've heard the Winter Soldier committed countless assassinations, killing many high-ranking officials. Your mind must hold plenty of evidence."
Natasha crouched down and placed her hand on Bucky's head, preparing to extract his memories.
As she examined them, her expression suddenly turned to shock.
"What!? There's something like that hidden!? This is… unbelievable…"
...
Meanwhile, Rogers had used clock up to rush into S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ.
Following the coordinates provided by the screen, he quickly found the painting's location.
But the worst had already happened.
Several people had already seen the painting.
With the battle just over, everyone was busy gathering information, treating the wounded, or taking shelter.
Some had taken the chance to tidy up the area for anything useful.
That's when they discovered the painting of Eyes Everywhere.
People couldn't help but gather around, discussing the bizarre artwork and wondering who had painted it and why it was there.
Seeing this, Rogers let out a heavy sigh, his heart sinking. He had gotten here as fast as he could – but it still wasn't enough to prevent this.
"Give me the painting!"
Rogers rushed forward and snatched it up, careful not to look at it himself.
"Now tell me – has anyone here seen eyes like the one on this painting?"
He swept his gaze over the crowd.
Hearing his question, many looked confused.
But then voices began to answer.
"I saw it… was that an illusion?"
"I thought it was just my eyes playing tricks. You saw it too?"
"Oh god, I saw it as well!"
More and more people spoke up, admitting they had seen the Eyes Everywhere.
Rogers felt his heart freeze.
He couldn't imagine what their lives would be like from now on.
According to the screen, the eyes would never disappear – and only multiply over time, relentlessly tormenting their minds.
In the end, it would drive them insane.
And there was no cure.
The only solution was to isolate them and let them waste away.
Just like in the DC Universe, where the Nightmare-infected were dealt with the same way.
Thinking of this made Rogers feel as if his heart had stopped beating.
He had always lived to protect others, but now, he was powerless – forced to let them die slowly.
It was unbearable.
"Beep beep beep!"
At that moment, Rogers' communicator went off – it was Nick Fury calling.
"Captain Rogers, I see you've secured the painting. Don't let anyone else touch it. Leave the rest to me."
Nick Fury's voice came through.
He had already seen everything through the screen.
Rogers' expression said it all – he didn't know what to do.
Which meant that the dirty work now fell to Nick Fury.
"…Understood."
Rogers nodded helplessly.
It was out of his hands. All he could do was leave it to Fury to clean up the mess.
This feeling of running away from responsibility made him feel wretched – but he had no choice.
[Marvel Universe – Eyes Everywhere successfully contained. Reward: Rogers gains the Microcosmos.]
As the screen announced this, Rogers felt an explosion of energy within him – a powerful force surging throughout his entire body.
He felt the Microcosmos awaken within him, but he simply sighed.
He had no heart to savor this new reward.
(End of Chapter)
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