Chapter 726: Team Recruitment

As the hooded man was looking through the newspaper, a woman approached and sat down directly across from him. It was Skye, who had witnessed everything at the explosion site.

Lowering her voice after sitting down, Skye said, "Act natural."

The hooded man looked at her with confusion and asked, "What?"

"Just pretend we're talking," Skye replied.

"But we are talking," the hooded man responded, still puzzled.

"Exactly!" Skye glanced around the café, then continued, "You never know who might be listening."

Realizing there might be some truth to her words, the hooded man asked, "I don't even know who you are."

"I'm Skye. And you're the Hooded Hero," she said, a smile playing on her lips.

"You're not planning on sticking with 'Hooded Hero' as your name forever, are you?"

"Wait, what? No, no... I'm just a worker," he quickly denied.

Skye grabbed a sticky note from the table and, still smiling, said, "Sure, but only during the day."

"I saw you with my own eyes—you're a hero. A real superhero..."

"I'm not a crazy fan or a stalker, but..."

"You were really, oh my god, so handsome!"

After expressing her excitement, Skye tried to calm herself down before continuing, "You're in danger."

The hooded man, serious now, replied, "You've got the wrong person, miss."

"No, you're doing this wrong," Skye insisted.

"The girl you saved at the hospital really wants to thank you. It might even be 'that kind' of thank you."

"And here you are, hiding. The video of you saving that girl has the highest view count right now. Yet, you can't even find a job," she said, clearly having noticed the marked job ads in his newspaper.

The hooded man closed the newspaper, leaned back, and asked, "What do you mean by 'danger'?"

Seeing him finally acknowledging his identity, Skye said, "S.H.I.E.L.D."

"What shield? Should I be carrying a shield?" he asked, still not fully understanding.

"S.H.I.E.L.D.," Skye repeated, "the government. They hunt people like you. Scary, black-suited government agents. They knew New York was about to go to war before it happened, and then they cleaned it all up overnight. Nobody even realized what was happening."

"How long do you think it would take for them to deal with you?"

The hooded man replied, "And you wonder why I'm hiding?"

Skye countered, "But what if you didn't hide? What if you stepped out into the public and told everyone you're a hero? Just like those other superheroes."

He shook his head and said, "I'm just a regular guy."

"Regular people have jobs, benefits—I can help you," Skye offered.

"I'm great with computers, super great. I can help you create a brand-new identity, a mask to hide behind."

At this, the hooded man's interest faded. He stood up and said, "I don't know what you're talking about."

Seeing him stand up to leave, Skye hurriedly tried to stop him. As the hooded man stood up, Skye bumped into him slightly.

"Of course, you can keep using your old name, Hood," she said quickly, realizing he wasn't interested.

"Listen to me," she urged, "you've already stepped into the public eye, and there's no escaping that now."

"With great power..." she hesitated for a moment before continuing, "comes even stranger problems. You won't be prepared for what's coming."

"My office is..." she tried talking, but the hooded man turned to leave, sarcastically saying, "You have an office?"

Skye blocked his path, insisting, "Yes, I do. It's a... mobile office."

"It's a van. I live there—by choice. It's parked in the alley around the corner, free Wi-Fi, you're welcome anytime."

The hooded man looked at her, nodded, and said, "Thanks."

But then he still walked around her and left the café.

Watching him walk away, Skye wasn't disheartened. She smiled and waved, saying, "They'll come looking for you."

Once he was out of sight, Skye pulled out a work ID badge she had stolen from him when they bumped into each other. The photo and name on the badge confirmed his identity: Michael Peterson.

"Michael, I know your name now," she whispered to herself before exiting the café through another door.

…

S.H.I.E.L.D. –

Administration Division -

Melinda May was stamping documents when she heard Coulson's voice behind her.

"Agent May."

Without turning around, May refused directly, "No."

Coulson walked over to her, smiling. "Looks like you already know."

May continued sorting through her files, not even looking up, "I'm not going back into the field."

"Yeah, I get it. It's nice and cozy here," Coulson remarked.

"Ever considered adding a moat?"

May glanced up at him with a smirk, but Coulson continued, "I just need you to fly the Quinjet, handle ground transportation, and oversee the scene. It's not a combat mission."

May, still organizing her files, replied, "Then you don't need me."

"Oh, I do. We're going to be operating on our own now—choosing our missions, making our own decisions, no more red tape."

Coulson looked around the office and added, "This place is all about red tape, isn't it?"

May chuckled softly, a hint of self-mockery in her tone.

May looked at him, asking, "Are you really only asking me to fly the Quinjet?"

Seeing that he had piqued her interest, Coulson smiled as he walked away, saying, "This isn't a request. But the Quinjet is pretty nice."

Coulson then left May's office—he had another person to meet.

As she watched him leave, May smiled to herself.

"Maybe I should consider changing jobs. The Quinjet doesn't sound too bad."

…

Leaving S.H.I.E.L.D., Coulson drove his beloved car towards Chinatown.

He soon arrived at a sushi restaurant, the same place where he had first met Kabuto Yakushi.

Coulson ordered two servings of salmon sashimi, tempura, and miso soup. Once the food was served, a man walked over and sat down across from him.

It was none other than Kabuto Yakushi.

Without saying a word, Kabuto picked up a piece of salmon sashimi with his chopsticks and ate it.

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