Chapter 111: The Hulk (Conclusion)

Roar!

"Stark has really pissed off the Hulk this time," Daniel Davis muttered, watching as the Hulk, enraged by the missile attack, grew visibly angrier. The Hulk's power increased with his fury, seemingly without any upper limit. While others had physical constraints, the Hulk's strength had no such bounds. In theory, if the Hulk could sustain his anger indefinitely, he might even be able to take on Thanos one-on-one.

Of course, that was just a theory. As a human, it was hard to maintain a state of continuous rage, and Bruce Banner was constantly searching for ways to control his anger.

"If the Hulk had the Berserker Staff and managed to stay angry long enough, he might be able to defeat Thanos," Daniel mused, watching Spider-Man and Iron Man scramble to avoid the rampaging Hulk. But he quickly dismissed the idea. Using the Berserker Staff to control the Hulk could backfire disastrously. Once Thanos was defeated, the Hulk himself could become the next threat. Ordinary anger might allow some sense of friend and foe, but perpetual rage could drive anyone insane.

This was why Daniel rarely used the Berserker Staff in battle. For most people, even the Asgardians, using it meant pushing their physical limits, which would eventually exhaust them. But the Hulk had no such limits, and his boundless energy could lead to even greater chaos than Thanos could ever cause. After all, Thanos only wanted to wipe out half of humanity, but the Hulk could potentially tear the entire planet apart. The Marvel Universe's Earth was already perilously fragile—Daniel recalled that in *Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.*, the planet was destroyed, supposedly by Skye's abilities, though he hadn't followed the series closely enough to confirm that.

"What kind of monster is this?" Stark, inside his Iron Man suit, yelled in disbelief as the Hulk, seemingly impervious to his attacks, charged at him like an unstoppable force of nature.

Thanks to the Infinite Extension Charm provided by Daniel, Stark had added a Gatling gun to his suit, along with a vast amount of ammunition. However, even this formidable firepower only slowed the Hulk's advance slightly.

"Tony, it looks like you could use some help. Room!" Daniel suddenly appeared beneath Stark, waving his right hand to activate the power of the Ope Ope no Mi fruit, creating a spherical "Room" that encompassed the Hulk. He then swung his blade.

"As expected, no effect at all," Daniel sighed inwardly as the Hulk remained completely unaffected. This confirmed that the Hulk's incredible defense wasn't just physical but involved some form of energy-based protection.

"Tony, fall back and stop attacking him," Daniel advised through his earpiece, just before teleporting to safety himself.

"Get Spider-Man to stop attacking too," he added, seeing Spider-Man moving in to engage again.

"What's going on?" Stark's confused voice crackled through the earpiece.

"If there's no enemy, he'll leave on his own," Daniel explained.

"Are we just supposed to watch him leave?" Spider-Man's voice chimed in, as Stark had linked their communications.

"He's unstoppable right now, unless you want to demolish New York," Daniel replied.

As they all retreated from the battlefield, the Hulk remained alone on the street, roaring and venting his fury. The surrounding ground, cars, and buildings bore the brunt of his wrath. After a moment of destruction, he let out a final roar, glanced at the military helicopters in the distance, and then leaped away, vanishing into the horizon.

Where the Hulk had stood, a massive crater remained, a testament to his tremendous power.

Once the Hulk had disappeared, Spider-Man quietly slipped away, and Daniel and Stark also left the scene, leaving the cleanup to the government. Given the scale of the destruction in bustling New York, it was clear that the following day would be chaotic.

"What the hell was that thing?" Stark muttered repeatedly in his mansion, after removing his Iron Man suit.

"As far as I know, it's the result of the military's attempt to replicate the Super Soldier Serum, which inadvertently created an incredibly strong and durable being. His true identity is Dr. Bruce Banner," Daniel explained as he tended to Stark's injuries.

Stark quickly had JARVIS pull up information on Banner, which left him astounded. Banner held more doctorates than Stark himself.

"These guys..." Stark muttered as his wounds healed under Daniel's care. Once he was no longer in pain, Stark immediately had JARVIS project holographic footage of the earlier battle with the Hulk.

After watching the footage several times, Stark, oblivious to Daniel's presence, began sketching a new suit of armor on his computer.

"Is this the Hulkbuster Armor? Could this battle have prompted Stark to start designing it?" Daniel wondered as he saw the massive suit taking shape on the screen. Among Stark's Mark series suits, the Hulkbuster was the largest. 

Realizing that conventional weapons were ineffective against the Hulk, Stark had swiftly conceived a countermeasure. Daniel couldn't help but be impressed.

"Maybe he's secretly developing armor to counter wizards too," Daniel speculated, recalling how Stark had conducted numerous experiments related to magic. It was plausible that Stark was preparing for every possible threat.

"I'll head back now," Daniel said as Stark became engrossed in his work. He had intended to meet with Banner, but the unexpected turn of events had thwarted that plan. At least he had managed to collect some of Abomination's tissue samples.

"Ross must be out of his mind. Does he think creating super serums is as simple as making coffee?" Daniel mused back at his home, examining Abomination's tissue. The sample contained a mix of various enhancements, including the T-Virus and gamma radiation—a chaotic blend.

In essence, Ross had injected Emil Blonsky with a cocktail of enhancement agents, transforming him into Abomination. This was only possible in the Marvel Universe; in any other world, Blonsky would likely have died instantly.

"This reminds me of Hydra's Centipede Soldiers and the C-Virus," Daniel thought. "They also mixed different agents. Don't these people understand basic scientific principles?"

Even with the powers of the Ope Ope no Mi fruit, Daniel wouldn't dare such reckless experimentation. While he had conducted tests combining the Blood Orchid and the T-Virus, they were strictly controlled and never involved human subjects.

Ross and Hydra's approach, however, involved throwing countless lives into the mix, hoping to find a match. It was sheer luck that Blonsky survived and transformed into Abomination.

"Dealing with Banner will have to wait," Daniel concluded. "Banner's current goal of expelling the Hulk is misguided. They need to find a way to coexist." Banning the Hulk wasn't feasible for ordinary people. Even the Ancient One might struggle. Perhaps only a snap with the Infinity Gauntlet could achieve such a feat.

As Daniel had predicted, the next day, the entire USA—and indeed the world—was in an uproar. The destruction caused by the Hulk and Abomination, along with the deaths and damage, were undeniable evidence. Massive protests erupted, with people demanding answers from the military for conducting bio-experiments.

Some protesters even brought up the Raccoon City incident, alleging it was another case of military bio-experimentation gone wrong, covered up by claims of a nuclear power plant accident.

The situation escalated, with leaders from the other four major powers calling to inquire about the incident. Although the USA soon classified related information and footage, some of it still leaked.

The USA often criticized other countries for conducting bio-experiments, but now the tables had turned. Countries were understandably concerned, given the incredible power displayed by the two giants. While national governments could handle such threats, it would come at a high cost.

Despite the government's attempts at damage control, the response was inadequate. The combination of two monstrous battles and the lingering fear from the Raccoon City incident eroded public trust in the government and the military.

To quell the outrage, the government quickly scapegoated several high-ranking officials. General Ross was the first to go, as the creator of both the Hulk and Abomination. He couldn't escape responsibility. However, due to his past service, he was spared imprisonment and instead stripped of all his duties.

Others weren't as fortunate. Many were arrested, subjected to public trials, and paid a heavy price to restore some confidence in the government. This bought the USA some support from the United Nations, preventing a complete loss of faith among the populace.

However, the current president's chances of re-election seemed grim.

Meanwhile, the S.H.I.E.L.D. internal investigation was temporarily halted, giving Alexander Pierce a sigh of relief. He had feared that Fury's investigation would expose Hydra's deep roots within S.H.I.E.L.D.

Although Fury wanted to continue the investigation, the Security Council directed him to focus on dealing with the spate of terrorist attacks that had erupted in the wake of the Hulk and Abomination's battle. This left Fury no choice but to reassign personnel.

In the aftermath of the battle, the USA experienced an uptick in terrorist activities, keeping the FBI and CIA on their toes.

Even before the Hulk and Abomination clashed, international terrorist attacks had increased. This was part of Pierce's strategy to divert attention from the S.H.I.E.L.D. internal probe, spreading Hydra operatives thin and ensuring they died in the field to avoid detection.

Of course, these agents didn't actually die; they were simply relocated to other Hydra branches. This intel came from Sunil Bakshi, allowing Daniel to understand the orchestration behind these events.

Nick Fury and Peggy Carter, despite their keen intelligence, couldn't have imagined the depth of Hydra's infiltration within S.H.I.E.L.D. Over 90% of the agency was Hydra, including two top leaders.

 Although their investigation uncovered some issues, like the release of Daniel Whitehall, it didn't touch the core.

Years ago, a younger Carter had pursued similar inquiries, only to come up empty-handed. Hydra's members were anything but foolish, having hidden for so many years. They strategically placed their people in key positions, using powerful networks to suppress S.H.I.E.L.D. operatives. Even influential figures like Gideon Malick held sway that Fury and Carter had to acknowledge.

"It's unbelievable that they haven't been exposed yet. Staying in the shadows is truly invincible. Why would they risk stepping into the light, where shadows can't survive?" Daniel pondered, shaking his head after reviewing the intel from Sunil Bakshi.

Previously, Daniel had no insight into S.H.I.E.L.D.'s internal dynamics. With Bakshi's information, he gained a significant understanding of both Hydra and S.H.I.E.L.D.'s inner workings.

If Fury had continued his investigation, Pierce would have resorted to his last-ditch effort: assassinating Fury. With Fury out of the way, Pierce, as the former director of S.H.I.E.L.D., could take over leadership. Despite Carter and Captain America's return to youth, they couldn't oppose him because Carter was no longer in the leadership role, and the world's powers wouldn't accept her command of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Pierce refrained from this plan because he knew only Fury could strengthen S.H.I.E.L.D. And a powerful S.H.I.E.L.D. meant a powerful Hydra. Projects like Insight needed the combined resources of the world's powers, something Hydra couldn't accomplish alone.

Had he known about Hydra's deep infiltration, Daniel wouldn't have needed to negotiate with Fury for Quinjet fighters. Many of the Quinjets reported destroyed were, in fact, hidden away by Hydra.

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