After giving Orochimaru his orders to forge the Uru metal armor and the rings, Senju Haruto left Wakanda once again.
He had to admit, Orochimaru possessed real leadership qualities—and a certain ruthless efficiency. Under his command, Wakanda ran like clockwork. Haruto didn't need to worry about a thing.
As for the Land of Fire, Kakashi and the Konoha Council were handling matters there. Knowing how to delegate was often better than doing everything yourself.
Passing through a portal created by the Suspended Ring, Haruto returned to the New York Sanctum.
"Welcome back, Supreme Sorcerer," Arthur greeted, immediately setting aside his work the moment he sensed Haruto's presence. He approached respectfully, bowing slightly.
"Mm," Haruto nodded, then asked about Kaguya, Banner, and Stark.
Of the three, the one he worried about most was Kaguya.
Her power far exceeded even the Hulk or Stark's—but mentally, despite her thousand-year lifespan, she still had the mind of a child.
According to Arthur's report, when Kaguya wasn't sparring with the Hulk, she spent nearly all her time… binge-watching TV shows.
"Binge-watching?" Haruto blinked, surprised by that development.
Then again, the sorcerers living in the New York Sanctum weren't exactly ascetics. Outside of their training hours, their lifestyle wasn't so different from that of modern people.
With such easy access to entertainment, it wasn't strange that Kaguya had been drawn in by modern technology—and become completely hooked.
As for Dr. Banner, countless battles with Kaguya had changed him.
He had finally begun to accept the Hulk—not as an enemy, but as part of himself.
Once, Banner had been willing to risk anything to rid himself of the Hulk. Now, he could look that green giant in the eye and see… an ally.
He handled the thinking; the Hulk handled the fighting.
And after picking up some basic magic techniques, Banner's own combat ability had grown.
Most importantly, the Hulk no longer fought like a brainless beast charging in blindly.
That reckless, smash-first style only exposed weaknesses when facing opponents of equal strength—like the time Thanos had humiliated him.
What the Hulk lacked now was technique, and there was probably only one man in this world who could truly teach him that—Senju Haruto.
"As for Mr. Stark…" Arthur's tone changed.
Just as Haruto had expected.
Stark was struggling with palladium poisoning. After failing to find a cure even with Arthur's help, he had left the Sanctum to be alone.
"I tried to contact you during that time, but…" Arthur hesitated, "I couldn't reach you."
He knew he couldn't find a solution himself, but he believed that if anyone could help Stark, it would be Haruto. Unfortunately, no matter how many times he tried to reach out, there had been no response.
"I wasn't on Earth," Haruto said simply, brushing the matter aside.
In truth, he had already known about Stark's condition.
But it was only a temporary problem.
When Stark was on the verge of death, Director Fury would conveniently help him uncover the answer—a new element that didn't exist on Earth.
The structure of the Cosmic Cube itself.
With that discovery, Stark would not only cure his palladium poisoning but also vastly improve the power output of his Arc Reactor.
So, Haruto hadn't been too worried.
If it weren't for the system's requirement to witness Stark creating the new element, he probably wouldn't have even bothered returning.
"I see," Haruto said after a moment, pretending as if he'd just learned of it from Arthur.
He didn't stay at the Sanctum any longer.
New York might have been one of the most famous cities in the world, but to him, it wasn't large at all.
If he wished, he could expand his spiritual sense across the entire city in an instant.
And in that vast field of perception, no matter how hard Stark tried to hide, he couldn't escape.
It didn't take long for Haruto to locate him—alone on the rooftop of a skyscraper, sitting at the edge, gazing down at the glittering city below.
Stark had already appointed Pepper Potts as the CEO of Stark Industries and handed the War Machine armor over to Colonel Rhodes.
He looked like a man who had put his affairs in order… and was quietly waiting for the end.
Yet Haruto didn't approach him immediately.
Instead, he contacted "Nick White"—the clone of Fury disguised through White Zetsu's transformation. Naturally, he obeyed Haruto's every command without question.
And with his top-level S.H.I.E.L.D. clearance, locating Howard Stark's old belongings was a trivial matter.
Among those relics were not only Howard's notes on the Cosmic Cube, but also the frustration of a man limited by his era—and his deep love and hopes for his son.
What Haruto couldn't quite understand was…
Why had S.H.I.E.L.D. kept those belongings instead of giving them to Tony?
Would Fury really have hidden them forever if Tony had never become Iron Man?
"Forget it," Haruto muttered, shaking his head.
He stowed the items away for now and appeared before Stark in the next instant.
His sudden arrival startled Tony so badly that he almost slipped off the edge of the roof.
Thankfully, the Iron Man suit's automatic systems activated just in time, stabilizing him in midair.
For most people, that suit was a dream come true.
"Haruto."
Tony's face looked haggard, his voice weary.
He knew that if Haruto had come looking for him, it meant he already knew everything.
"I know," Haruto replied calmly, his gaze flicking to the faint blue veins creeping up Tony's neck—the visible signs of palladium poisoning.
"According to Jarvis's calculations," Tony said quietly, "I've got maybe a month left."
"Neither modern science nor magic can slow it down, let alone cure it."
"I'm dying, Haruto."
He said it with unsettling calm, as if he'd already accepted it.
He knew there was no known element capable of replacing palladium.
If he removed the Arc Reactor, the shrapnel lodged near his heart would kill him instantly.
Whether fast or slow—it didn't matter. Death was inevitable.
"Not every element," Haruto said suddenly.
Tony blinked. "What do you mean?"
"Exactly what it sounds like," Haruto replied with a faint smile. "Come with me, Stark. I'll show you the answer."
With a simple gesture, he opened a portal to Stark's personal workshop and stepped through without looking back.
Tony sat there for a moment, stunned—then stood, exhaled slowly, and followed him in.