Looking at the blue energy sphere expanding wildly in Peter's palm, and then at the desk lamp and pen holder beginning to tremble from the sheer gravitational pressure of the energy fluctuations...
Nick Fury felt his throat go bone-dry.
He had seen many things in his time. He had seen alien spacecraft, he had seen superpowered individuals, and he had seen a Flerken that looked like a ginger cat but could swallow entire worlds.
But this thing in front of him...
He had never seen anything like this in his life!
The energy sphere seemed to have no upper limit! Even more terrifying was the fact that the brat still looked perfectly calm—no flushed face, no heavy breathing.
Damn it! Consuming this much energy, don't you feel like your body's been hollowed out?!
If one phrase could describe Nick Fury's psychological state right now, it would be: Regret. Massive regret.
He had originally thought that with the world's most powerful intelligence agency in his hand and "Captain Marvel"—who could punch through alien fleets—as his trump card, he could handle any threat on Earth.
But now he realized he was wrong. Distant water cannot quench a nearby fire! Even if he pressed that pager this very second, by the time Carol Danvers flew back from the depths of space, his ashes would have been scattered by the wind eight hundred times over!
He was beginning to wonder if Peter was an Inhuman or something similar. But that didn't make sense! Richard and Mary Parker... that couple were recorded as elite S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, and there was zero record of any superpowers in their lineage.
Countless thoughts raced through Fury's mind, but they eventually converged into one crystal-clear realization. He had kicked a steel plate—and a Vibranium one at that!
"Kid... calm down. Let's talk this out like reasonable people... I never said I wouldn't agree to your terms, did I?"
The instinct for survival overrode the Director's dignity; Nick Fury finally chose to "follow his heart" (retreat).
Peter merely quirked an eyebrow. "Kid?"
Sweating, Nick Fury tried again. "Little brother?"
"Sir?"
Finally, Fury closed his eyes and shouted in exasperation, "Sir Arbiter!"
Hum~
The Big Ball Rasengan in Peter's hand vanished instantly—so fast that Fury and Coulson briefly wondered if it had all been a shared hallucination.
Natasha watched Peter with an extremely complex gaze; he didn't feel like a high schooler who had just come of age at all.
Meeting his eyes, Peter nudged his chin toward the space in front of him. Natasha rolled her eyes beautifully, but she still obediently brought him a cup of coffee with extra cream and sugar.
Peter took a small sip, looking at the pale-faced Nick Fury with a half-smile. "I learned an old saying today: 'Arrogant at first and humble later; thinking of it makes one laugh.' I wonder what it means..."
Fury's pale face flushed to the color of pig liver, fire smoldering in his single eye. That wretched brat! He had run S.H.I.E.L.D. for years; when had he ever suffered such humiliation?
Yet, he couldn't lash out. The shadow of death cast by that blue energy sphere still loomed over his heart. He forced down his anger, his brain spinning to regain some semblance of initiative.
"Ahem..."
Fury cleared his throat loudly, forcing a change of subject. "Peter... Sir Arbiter, I believe it's necessary to educate you on the existence of S.H.I.E.L.D... blah blah blah... in short, the enemies we face are far more troublesome than you imagine."
"And," he stared intently at Peter, finally throwing out the card he had prepared, "the enemies we face are not entirely unrelated to you.
In fact, the deaths of your parents are closely linked to S.H.I.E.L.D.'s arch-nemesis: HYDRA!"
Fury expected to see Peter lose his composure, but Peter only let out an ambiguous, cold laugh.
HYDRA and the Winter Soldier they control? Peter knew more about them than Fury did. He didn't just know they existed; he knew S.H.I.E.L.D. had already become "HYDRA-Shield." Aside from agents like Coulson and Hill, almost no one in the high-level ranks was clean!
Looking at the expectant Director, the "Arbiter" finally showed some "mercy" and gave him a chance to show off his oratory skills. "Go on."
Disappointed by the lack of shock, Fury nonetheless adjusted his tone and continued, "HYDRA was the arch-enemy of Captain Steve Rogers. As far as I know, your parents' deaths were related to a conspiracy by this organization!"
"But because those events happened so many years ago, much of the data is unverifiable. However..." Fury's voice suddenly turned passionate. "Just recently, our people found the Captain, frozen for years in the North Pole!"
"We were worried that forced thawing would cause irreversible damage to his body, but your ability... is exactly what's needed to awaken this legendary hero! If you can wake the Captain, we might get key intel on HYDRA from him.
This isn't just about avenging your parents; it's about the safety of the entire world!"
Fury's tone was grand, as if inviting Peter to join a noble cause. But in the next second, the "little hater" showed his true colors:
"However, to prove your ability won't harm the Captain, I need you to demonstrate your healing power to me first!"
Fury couldn't help but smirk inwardly. He felt like a damn genius! He could verify Peter's power effortlessly and trick him into reviving Captain America for free. Who else but him could think of such a masterstroke?
Clap, clap, clap~
Meeting Fury's excited gaze, Peter clapped his hands slowly. "Mr. Fury, I have to say, you certainly know how to play a good game."
Fury's heart sank; an ominous premonition bubbled up.
"With just a few words, you want me to be your free labor and wake up Captain America for you? You really know how to get something for nothing."
"But..."
BANG!
Peter's tone shifted violently as he slapped the desk, shattering the solid wood into splinters on the spot.
"The Captain, who crashed into the ocean in 1945, is going to provide key intel on my parents' 1994 plane crash? Do you even use your brain before you make up lies?"
He then turned to Natasha, making a face and gesture reminiscent of Donnie Yen's "Screaming at the Boss" meme:
"And you call yourself the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D.? You can't even get your lies straight..."
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