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Banner turned around, confused, just in time to see Jiro raise a hand—
A new portal suddenly opened up beneath General Ross's feet!
"What?!" Before Ross could even react, he was sucked straight into a swirling golden vortex.
Banner's eyes widened. "Jiro! What was that?"
The scene on the other side of the portal flashed by—
A scorching African desert. A run-down mining site. Ragged workers swinging pickaxes.And a man cracking a whip at them.
The next second, the portal snapped shut. General Ross was gone—completely vanished.
Jiro turned around at last, looking at Banner calmly."You didn't want to kill him. I respect that.""But I really didn't like the way he treated me."
Banner opened his mouth, but had no idea what to say.
Wanda let out a snort of laughter."So, General Ross is off to experience the life of a miner now?"
Kara crossed her arms and asked with interest,"Where exactly is that mine?"
"Some blood diamond mine in West Africa," Jiro replied casually.
"No comms, no military presence. Just sixteen hours of manual labor every day."He glanced at Banner."Honestly, that's being merciful."
Banner was silent for a moment, then gave a helpless smile and shook his head."Anyone who goes against you should be scared."
"Thanks for the compliment."Jiro stepped through the portal first."Come on, let's go home."
Wanda quickly followed, while Kara glanced thoughtfully at the spot where Ross disappeared. She muttered under her breath,"Huh... the rules of this world are kinda fun."
As the last shimmer of golden light faded, silence returned to the military base.
Thousands of miles away, in an African mine, General Ross crawled up from the sand, covered in dust.Right away, a supervisor's whip lashed through the air toward him.
"Hey, new guy! No slacking! If you don't dig up twenty carats today, you don't eat!"
S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters
A golden portal swirled open right in the middle of the command center at S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ. Jiro, Wanda, Kara, and Banner stepped out.
Tony Stark, busy working on a holographic interface, looked up sharply. He blinked, stunned for a second—then exaggeratedly yelled:"Wow! Your entrances just keep getting more dramatic, huh?"
He hurried over, giving Banner a quick once-over."Dr. Banner, you look... uh, better than I expected."
Banner adjusted his glasses with a wry smile."Almost got turned into a lab rat by the military. I've had enough of that crap."
Tony clapped him on the shoulder."Welcome back, science bro."
Jiro skipped the small talk and got straight to business:"Tony, it's time for you to step up."
Tony raised an eyebrow. "What's that supposed to mean?"
"You're in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D. now," Jiro said flatly.
"Banner's safety is your responsibility. If anyone threatens that, let the Hulk and Adam teach them a lesson."
Tony spread his hands. "Ross isn't gonna be easy to deal with."
"No need to deal with him. He's not coming back," Jiro cut him off.
"I've already sent out the footage. Now the whole world knows the military's been hunting down a guy who literally helped save the Earth."
Tony blinked. "Wait, what footage? JARVIS, why didn't you tell me?!"
JARVIS immediately projected Jiro's global announcement into the air.
Tony watched it, his eye twitching slightly."Jiro, you're starting to sound more and more like a villain."
Jiro just shrugged."I'm just helping them face reality."
Kara stood off to the side, curiously eyeing the high-tech gear around S.H.I.E.L.D. HQ."So this is your world's version of the Justice League's HQ?"
"Close enough," Tony shrugged."But we're a bit cooler. At least none of us go dark side."
Banner let out a sigh."Tony, what now?"
Tony dropped the jokes and got serious."Easy. You're officially joining S.H.I.E.L.D.'s science division. I'll give you access to a top-level lab."
He winked."And while we're at it, maybe we can pick up work on the Anti-Hulk Armor 1.0 again. You know, for you to use."
Banner gave a helpless laugh."You really don't give up, do you?"
Jiro looked at Tony. "If the government pushes it, I'm ready to send them straight to God."
Tony rolled his eyes. "You're always like this. I am the director of S.H.I.E.L.D., you know. If the government tries anything funny, I'll leak the classified data on their little human experiment project—courtesy of misused military funds."
Jiro nodded. "Good."
He turned to leave, but Tony suddenly called out, "Wait, that's it? You're just leaving?"
Jiro glanced back. "Something else?"
Tony pointed at Kara. "Aren't you going to introduce your new teammate? Even though, yeah, I already know who she is."
Kara smiled slightly. "Kara Zor-El. Kryptonian."
Tony dramatically clutched his chest. "Another Superman?! JARVIS, get me some Kryptonite, ASAP!"
Jiro ignored him, raised his hand, and opened a glowing portal. "Let's go."
Wanda waved at Tony. "Don't forget to treat us to dinner!"
Kara gave Tony a curious look. "You look forty, but you talk like you're twenty."
The three stepped into the golden vortex and vanished, leaving only Tony and Banner behind.
Tony let out a long breath. "Well, I just got roasted. But seriously, this is gonna be big trouble."
Banner adjusted his glasses. "You mean Jiro openly threatening the military, or the fact we now have a female Superman on our team?"
Tony grinned. "Both. Kinda thrilling, isn't it?"
Washington, D.C.
White House – Underground Meeting Room
At the long oval table, The President sat with a grim expression, flipping through a document. His fingers tapped slowly on the table.
Across from him sat several mysterious figures in dark robes. Their faces were hidden in shadow, only their cold, glinting eyes faintly visible in the dim light.
"'Superhuman Regulation Act'?" the President looked up, frowning. "You do realize how much chaos this will cause once it's announced?"
The figure in the center slowly spoke, voice low and hoarse. "Chaos? Mr. President, this world is already spiraling out of control. The Steel Man, Superman, Hulk, mutants, all kinds of unknown heroes… These superhumans are way beyond the government's control. Any one of them could threaten national security at any moment."
The President sneered. "So you want me to sign this act, force every superpowered individual to register with the government, and treat those who don't as criminals? Then what—you plan to go arrest them?"
"Frankly, I've considered this before."
"Exactly," the hooded man leaned in slightly, revealing a confident smile. "And we'll make sure order is maintained."
The President suddenly slammed his palm on the table and stood up. "Why the hell should I listen to you?! Who are you people to tell the U.S. government what to do?!"
Whoosh!
The mysterious man's eyes flared bright red, and an overwhelming wave of pressure slammed into the room.
The President froze. He had no doubt—if he said another word, this guy would kill him on the spot.
"Because we understand what the real threat is."
The voice had lost all disguise. It echoed, cold and inhuman.
The President's face turned pale. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead. He stumbled back and collapsed into his chair.
"I... I understand," he muttered, swallowing hard. "The act will be pushed out soon."
The red glow in the man's eyes slowly faded. He sat back. "Wise choice, Mr. President."
They stood and silently left the room, leaving the President alone, his hands clutching a now sweat-soaked document.
Moments later, he pressed the intercom, voice hoarse: "Get a meeting ready. We're moving forward with the Superhuman Regulation Act."
"....."