As Tony was about to sign the drawing, Rhodey leaned in and said, "Listen, the Pentagon is freaking out."
"After the New York incident of aliens..."
"They need to show strength."
"Our primary task is to stop the Mandarin, but they're worried about potential ninja involvement."
"We've heard that several powerful rogue ninjas are still out there, causing trouble."
"If we can confirm there are no ninjas involved, they want to handle this themselves to showcase the country's strength and reassure the public."
Tony asked, "So is this a job for superheroes or not?"
Rhodey continued, "We need your help to determine if there are any ninjas involved with the Mandarin. If there are, superheroes will have to step in. If not, it's a matter for the state."
"Honestly, that's the higher-ups' perspective..."
Tony nodded. "I get it. You want me to find out if ninjas are involved so you can decide how to handle this, whether to show the nation's strength."
Rhodey agreed, "That's the idea. They need to instill confidence in the public."
"Got it."
Just then, Tony snapped the crayon while signing. He covered his face with his hand and sighed.
"Are you okay?" Rhodey asked.
"I broke the crayon."
The little girl asked, concerned, "Are you alright, Mr. Stark?"
Rhodey placed a hand on Tony's shoulder, "Relax, Tony."
The little boy, whom Tony had teased earlier, approached and whispered, "Were you scared facing all those alien monsters?"
At that moment, Tony felt a wave of panic. Unable to stay seated, he abruptly stood and rushed outside.
Tony stumbled out of the restaurant, muttering to himself, "I need to check my body."
"Armor!"
As his armor unfolded on the street, Tony stepped inside, but he collapsed to one knee, unable to stand.
"JARVIS, check my heart and brain."
"No signs of heart or brain abnormalities."
"Okay, could I be poisoned?"
"Diagnostics indicate extreme anxiety."
"Me? Extreme anxiety?" Tony was incredulous. How could he, Tony Stark, Iron Man, a super soldier, billionaire, playboy, have extreme anxiety?
Rhodey came out and tapped on Tony's faceplate. "Come on, man, you look terrible. Get out of there."
"Sorry, I need to go," Tony said, activating his armor and flying into the sky.
…
Meanwhile-
Charles Doyle was eating in the dining area of the base when he saw the news broadcast on the TV. Putting down his chopsticks, he said, "Looks like the Extremis virus has been developed."
"The Mandarin, Ten Rings."
"Heh, I wonder if this imposter will draw out the real Ten Rings holder, Xu Wenwu, or Fu Manchu..."
Charles was quite interested in the Ten Rings. Their power to grant longevity and immense strength intrigued him.
While he wasn't worried about his own longevity, as an Otsutsuki now he didn't have to fear old age. Additionally, Merlin's magic also granted him immortality, and he had methods like werewolves and vampires' gene, which also provided ways to live forever.
He also knew about the Old Man in K'un-Lun, whose dragon bones could extend life.
In terms of longevity, Charles himself had no worries.
However, he has many subordinates, and aside from someone like Orochimaru, others would face lifespan issues. Having an additional method was always a good idea.
Aside from the Ten Rings, the Extremis virus was another point of interest.
Although currently unstable, with the risk of self-detonation under emotional stress, if Orochimaru could research it, perhaps they could develop something akin to the Scorch Release or grant users Fire Release abilities.
As for the self-detonation capability, it could possibly be controlled or used as a last resort.
The Extremis virus's regeneration abilities were also impressive. For ordinary ninjas and regular people, such regeneration was a great boon.
After pondering for a while, Charles decided he needed to intervene in this matter.
He wanted to obtain the Extremis virus data and find the real Ten Rings holder.
…
Stark Industries Headquarters-
Happy, formerly Tony's personal bodyguard, had been promoted to Head of Security at Stark Industries.
As he walked through the company, he reminded every employee he encountered, "Badge."
Whenever he saw someone without a name badge, Happy made sure to point it out and insist they put it on.
When Pepper Potts arrived for work, Happy approached her with a suggestion.
"Pepper, Tony has a bunch of equipment in his basement," Happy said.
"It's a resource we could utilize."
As Pepper signed some documents, she responded, "Are you suggesting I replace all the cleaning staff with robots?"
"My point is, in human resources, people are the weakest link," Happy argued. "We should replace them immediately with those reliable robots."
Pepper was taken aback. "What?"
Seeing Happy still reminding employees to wear their name badges, Pepper interrupted, "Happy, I'm glad you're now the head of security. This position suits you very well."
"But..."
Before Pepper could finish, Happy smiled and said, "Thank you, I appreciate it."
"Since you took the position, employee complaints have tripled."
"You don't need to thank me," Pepper replied, annoyed.
Happy, still smiling, responded, "Thank you, that's a compliment."
"It's obvious someone is trying to hide something."
At that moment, Pepper's assistant approached and said, "Sorry to interrupt."
"Ms. Potts, your four o'clock appointment has arrived."
"Thank you."
Pepper turned to Happy and said, "Happy, we'll talk later, but I need to handle something pressing right now."
"What is it?" Happy asked.
As Pepper pushed open the meeting room door, she explained, "Someone I used to work with. He always tries to ask me out."
"It's a bit awkward."
Happy replied, "I don't like that either."
As the door opened, Pepper was stunned to see the person before her.
This healthy, mature-looking man was nothing like the person she remembered.
"Pepper!" he greeted.
Pepper was shocked. "Killian?"
Killian smiled. "You look great."
"You look amazing," Pepper replied, astonished.
In her memory, Killian was somewhat unkempt, with a limp and needing a cane, looking very much like a mad scientist. But now...
"I... I..." Pepper was so surprised she could barely speak. Finally, she asked, "What have you been up to lately?"
Behind her, Happy was scrutinizing Killian with his eyes.
Killian spread his arms. "Nothing special."
"I spent five years with a physical therapist. Please call me Aldrich."
Happy interjected, "You should be wearing a security badge."
Hearing Happy's comment, Pepper looked exasperated. She turned and said, "Happy, it's fine. Please step out for a moment."
"Are you sure?" Happy asked.
"Yes," Pepper confirmed.
###
More Chapters: patreon.com/gfdsa
Checkout my youtube Channel: http://www.youtube.com/@lki5247