CHAPTER 13&14

"Master, he's eating at the restaurant ahead. The red car that just pulled up by the side of the road is his, and the driver is his personal chauffeur, named..."

On a busy street in Sokovia, David pointed toward a restaurant and gave Carl a quick rundown of the situation.

Carl nodded, then opened the car door and stepped out onto the street.

"Alright, you and the others pull back. I'll handle the rest."

"Yes, boss!"

David didn't question Carl's plan or ask how he intended to handle things. He simply nodded and used the communicator to instruct all nearby operatives, including himself, to withdraw.

To them, Carl wasn't just their boss—he was their master and the benefactor who had saved them from a desperate, dead-end life three years ago.

Executing his orders to perfection wasn't just loyalty—it was purpose.

"Transformation Jutsu!"

Instead of approaching the restaurant directly, Carl circled around and slipped into a quiet alley. There, he performed the transformation technique and assumed the appearance of a traffic cop he had just seen on the street.

Making sure the coast was clear, Carl calmly walked to the red car and knocked on the driver's window.

"Step out, your car is illegally parked."

"Illegally parked? Are you kidding, officer?" the young man in his twenties scoffed as he rolled down the window, clearly annoyed.

Carl gave a sly grin.

"Not kidding at all."

In a flash, he pulled a small spray bottle from his pocket and blasted it through the open window into the driver's face. The young man barely had time to react before his eyes rolled back and he slumped unconscious.

Sometimes, a good gadget beats brute force.

Carl hadn't spent the past three years just training in martial arts—he had also paid top dollar to learn firearms and tactics from professional mercenaries.

With his enhanced reflexes and physical abilities, combining martial arts with firearms had greatly increased his overall combat efficiency—especially when it came to taking down enemies quickly.

He opened the door, dragged the driver to the passenger seat, then drove the car into the alley. After stuffing the unconscious man into the trunk, he performed the transformation jutsu again, now taking on the appearance of the young driver.

He returned to the original spot just in time.

Ten minutes later, a middle-aged man with a beer belly, flanked by several bodyguards, emerged from the restaurant and got into Carl's car.

"Back to the office."

"Yes, sir," Carl replied smoothly in the driver's voice.

As soon as the doors closed, Carl spun around, pulled out the same spray bottle, and delivered another precise dose to the unsuspecting man's face.

"Transformation Jutsu!"

Now disguised as the middle-aged man, Carl stepped out and waved off the bodyguards in the cars behind.

Then, without delay, he got back behind the wheel, drove away from Sokovia, and disappeared into the remote mountains with the unconscious man in tow.

The middle-aged man's name was Hades, the boss of a food group in Sokovia. He wasn't very well-known—at best, he was a third-rate figure in the city's business circle.

However, after Uncle Li's investigation, they found out that this man had actually been cooperating with the Hydra base in the nearby mountains. Every month, his company's trucks delivered supplies to the base—box after box—for over ten years.

If this guy claimed he had nothing to do with Hydra, nobody in their right mind would believe him.

Of course, just in case, some deception was still necessary.

...

Carl dragged Hades out of the car and tossed him onto the ground. He unscrewed a bottle of mineral water and dumped it over his face.

"What the hell…"

Hades sat up in a daze, wiping the water from his face, eyes full of confusion.

"Long live Hydra! Hades, something's happened. You dared betray the organization—Lord Baron sent me to deal with you!"

Carl pulled out his pistol and pressed it against Hades' temple, scaring him completely awake.

"Long live Hydra! Mike, wait, wait, this is a misunderstanding—it's all a misunderstanding! I would never betray the Baron, or the organization! Please, let me contact him myself!"

He was stunned. The driver who had been with him for years turned out to be a spy sent by the Baron to monitor him?

Even worse, he was now being accused of betrayal and faced execution—right here.

Who set him up?

"The Baron has spoken. I'm to execute you on the spot."

Carl shook his head with an icy stare and chambered a round into the pistol.

The distinct click of the gun sent Hades into a panic. He started begging frantically:

"Mike, you can't believe that! You know me! I helped you cover up that mess with the female college student last time—have I ever let you down? Just let me call the Baron and explain…"

"Looks like your loyalty isn't as strong as you thought. That makes this easier."

Carl's mouth curled into a cold smile. Hades was so scared he was about to wet himself.

But that was exactly what Carl needed—for this test.

It was now completely clear that this man was Hydra, and more importantly, not a brainwashed fanatic who'd bite a cyanide capsule without hesitation.

"Mike… wait, what are you saying?"

Hades finally realized something was off from Carl's words and demeanor.

But it was too late.

Carl didn't answer. Instead, he stepped forward, crushed Hades' hand bones with a brutal stomp, and said coldly:

"From now on, I ask, you answer. If you hesitate even slightly, or I think you're lying… I'll shatter your bones one by one and let you hear every crisp snap."

"I'll talk! I'll say everything!"

Hades screamed in agony, nodding like crazy, face contorted in fear.

He finally understood—Carl wasn't Hydra. And he certainly wasn't his driver Mike.

But at this point, he didn't care anymore. He didn't want to die, and he sure didn't want to keep enduring this pain. So he spilled everything.

Twenty minutes later, Carl stood up, clapping the dust off his hands. Hades was dead, his neck snapped, and nearly one-third of his bones crushed.

Carl had verified everything—twice, even three times over. When one's life is on the line, 99% certainty isn't enough.

He had no choice. Soon, he'd be infiltrating Hydra's mountain base alone. If Hades had lied about even a small detail, or tried to mislead him, Carl could end up surrounded and dead.

"You weren't innocent either."

Carl muttered as he dragged the unconscious driver Mike from the trunk—and snapped his neck without hesitation.

"Earth Release – Earth Burial!"

He pressed his hands to the ground, and the soil opened up, swallowing the bodies of Hades and Mike in silence.

Earth Burial, an E-rank Earth Release ninjutsu. It had no offensive power, but was perfect for burying corpses.

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CHAPTER 14

"Transfiguration!"

After briefly cleaning up the traces, Carl formed seals with both hands, and with a soft "bang", changed from the young driver into the potbellied Hades.

"Sometimes these auxiliary ninjutsu are even more useful than offensive ones."

Driving Hades' red car, Carl sighed inwardly.

Although the Transformation Technique was just an E-rank basic ninjutsu that every beginner ninja learned, it was incredibly effective in this Marvel world—where no one could detect Chakra.

If he didn't possess the Transformation Technique, it would have been impossible to lure Hades to the outskirts for interrogation without leaving a single trace behind.

After all, whether he acted himself or sent his men, the city was full of surveillance cameras—it would inevitably leave evidence.

Once everything was over, if someone with the right resources investigated carefully, they could easily trace things back to Carl and his group.

But that wasn't the only problem. Even with Chakra-enhanced physical abilities and access to some offensive ninjutsu, it would still be nearly impossible to storm the Hydra base and rescue Dr. Smith alone.

Not to mention taking down Baron Sterak and wiping out the entire base.

Right now, Hydra hadn't obtained the Mind Scepter yet. They also hadn't reverse-engineered advanced energy-based defenses using the Mind Stone or Chitauri tech.

But even so, their basic arsenal of guns, cannons, and conventional defenses far outclassed his D-rank ninjutsu like basic fireballs.

So charging in guns blazing was suicide. Stealth was his best shot.

Only by sneaking in and capitalizing on his superior individual strength could he hope to pull off the triple objective—and come out alive.

Without the Transformation Technique, there'd be no chance of infiltrating a Hydra base that had surveillance and detection systems covering every inch of space.

His current proficiency in the technique wasn't top-tier—he'd only learned the basics due to time constraints.

But with more training, one could use the Transformation Technique to take on the form of other people, animals, or even objects like a stone, a vase, or a weapon.

Of course, there were limitations.

First, even if you transformed, if you couldn't mask your Chakra signature properly, any trained sensor ninja would see through the disguise immediately.

Fortunately, this world wasn't full of chakra-sensitive shinobi—so this concern didn't apply here.

Second, transformation didn't grant the function of the transformed form. If you became a detonator, for example, you wouldn't actually explode—you'd only look like one.

Third, maintaining the disguise during direct attacks was extremely difficult. If the object you transformed into was struck, the Chakra control would often destabilize, and you'd revert to your original form. In short, becoming a sword didn't mean you could actually be used to cut, nor would a transformed shield block bullets like a real one.

However, when mastered, the Transformation Technique could serve as a foundation for more advanced and powerful techniques.

For example, Konan of the Akatsuki developed her Shikigami Dance—turning her entire body into countless paper slips for attack and evasion. Or Jiraiya's Frog Transformation Jutsu, used to turn captured enemies into harmless frogs during interrogation.

Many high-level jutsu were just evolved forms of basic techniques.

Carl had learned the Transformation Technique from Chiriku at the Temple of Fire, who taught him its true potential—not as a mere disguise, but as a versatile, battlefield-ready jutsu with strategic applications.

"Mr. Hades, why are you here? Didn't you just deliver the supplies last week?"

At the first line of defense outside the Hydra base, a group of soldiers halted the red vehicle. The lead captain, clearly familiar with Hades' car, stepped forward and knocked on the window.

Carl took a deep breath. He didn't recognize this junior officer.

Though he had tortured a great deal of information out of Hades, and the man had been with Hydra for years, there were still many lower-ranking personnel Carl wouldn't be able to recognize—or impersonate based on vague descriptions.

The more he spoke, the greater the risk of slipping up before reaching Baron Strucker.

So he slammed the car door open and dramatically collapsed to the ground, panic and fear etched into his face.

"Quick... take me to the Baron... the Baron is in danger... there's a traitor... in the base... it's him… yes..."

Before he finished the sentence, Carl closed his eyes and activated a martial arts technique to slow his heartbeat and breathing, simulating unconsciousness.

The team leader was visibly startled.

"Mr. Hades! Mr. Hades!"

He quickly knelt beside Carl to check his vitals, then barked at his men:

"Move! Get Mr. Hades back to the base—now!"

Hades had barely spoken one sentence before collapsing, but what he revealed in that single breath was alarming. The possibility of a traitor within the base and the Baron being in danger was enough to send chills down anyone's spine.

Without delay, the incident was reported up the chain of command.

As Carl was transported toward the base in the back of a patrol jeep, he secretly sighed in relief.

According to Hades' intel, the Hydra base had six security checkpoints. If Carl had tried to walk in using Hades' identity but outside of the scheduled delivery window, he'd be interrogated constantly along the way.

This ploy let him bypass all checks and reach Baron Strucker directly—quickly and without scrutiny.

After all, who would suspect a loyal old Hydra affiliate, injured, dying, and bearing critical intelligence?

The only risk had been his acting. He wasn't a professional by any means, but thanks to his ability to manipulate his vitals with Chakra and martial arts, his performance held up.

Racing through five security posts, Carl arrived at the main gates in the patrol jeep and was immediately carried inside on a stretcher by medics in white coats.

Inside the base's infirmary, Carl was placed on a hospital bed.

The man examining him now was none other than Dr. Lister, Hydra's former head of human experimentation and currently the base's chief scientist and second-in-command.

"Dr. Lister, what's Hades' condition?"

Baron Strucker, clad in a black leather coat and adjusting his monocle, entered with two guards in tow.

Dr. Lister frowned, checking vitals.

"It's odd. No physical trauma, but his heartbeat and breathing are extremely faint. He may have been hit by some kind of exotic ability or unknown tech. I'm going to try reviving him with the electroshock device to stabilize his heart."

"Save him at all costs," Strucker ordered sternly.

Under normal circumstances, Hades' death would mean nothing—he was far from a key figure, and easily replaced.

But now? He'd mentioned a traitor, and danger to the Baron himself.

Those few words carried far too much weight to ignore.

Who attacked Hades? What threat is he referring to? Is there really a traitor within Hydra's walls?

The answers had to be extracted—before it was too late.

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