Durban, Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa-
-January 29, 2007, 1830h local-
"Where are we?" Natasha quietly asked.
"Somewhere near Durban." Naruto answered with a shrug.
"South Africa? What are we doing here?" Natasha continued still confused about what they are doing there until she started to connect the dots.
The salvage yard in Dunbar is the base of one of the most successful black market weapon sellers, Ulysses Klaue. SHIELD can't even touch him since a lot of influential politicians in Africa and Asia avail his services.
Rumor has it that most of his income comes from a heist he did 15 years ago. SHIELD has no idea what he stole, but it can't be good based on the money trail they were able to dig up. Most of the items went towards illegal research companies, and when they raid those places, they always evacuate the materials first instead of the leaders or researchers. That alone shows how important those are.
"Are we here for Ulysses Klaue?" Natasha asked slowly, hoping that Naruto would just spell out what's going to happen. She rarely operates when she has little to no plan. It's just a recipe for disaster.
"Hey, you know him! This is going to make things a whole lot easier." Naruto exclaimed while still not getting her hint.
"Just tell me what we're going to do." Natasha finally said, getting straight to the point.
"Oh..." Naruto whispered. Natasha thought she would finally get some details until he heard his answer. "We're waiting for someone. They should be here any minute now."
Natasha is getting frustrated. The mystery works when it's part of their regular date that involves going halfway around the world for brunch in an ex-assassin's restaurant. But when it entails a slightly psychotic weapons dealer, it just isn't advisable.
They were waiting near the edge of the forest for 5 minutes when the trees rustled. The movements of the trees are becoming more pronounced until they are practically swaying violently, similar to when a helicopter is hovering overhead.
Natasha was still trying to find the source of the disturbance when she heard Naruto say in a bored tone,
"Damn. They're finally here."
Right after Naruto's statement, a trap door seemingly appeared 70m high up in the sky out of nowhere and opened. A black object rapidly dropped from it and landed 3m away from them.
Natasha stared at the object until it stood up. That's when she realized it is not an it but a he. The object is actually a man wearing a black overall with silver accents and a cat-like helmet.
Natasha's mind is in overdrive, running through her mental database, searching for anyone who has successfully built an active camouflage system and can create a super-soldier. The super soldier idea came from single evidence; the guy just dropped from 20 stories high and stood up like it was nothing.
The man walked over closer and stared at her for a moment before looking at Naruto. The solid white eyes of the helmet are slightly unsettling.
Naruto dismounted the bike without her dismounting first. She noticed that the motorcycle kept itself upright even without the stand. It just gets more amazing the more she knows about it.
But she needs to focus on the situation at hand. Natasha also dismounted the motorcycle and positioned the bike between the two probable super soldiers and her, giving her some semblance of cover while she draws her weapons. If the situation they are in turned sour, she needs to be able to respond quickly.
The man and Naruto stared at each other through their helmets. Natasha could feel the tension skyrocketing until both of them laughed hard. They removed their helmets simultaneously and hugged each other.
Natasha felt so stupid for not predicting that Naruto is already a friend to a super-soldier.
"How's the flight, and where's Okoye? I never saw you without her nearby." Naruto asked after they were done hugging.
"It was good—all clear skies. As for Okoye, she's finding a landing spot. W'kabi is with her..." The man answered, his smile dropping a little. "How about you? I see you're doing well for yourself." He said the last part while glancing at Natasha.
"Hahaha! I wish. This is our first date. Let me introduce you guys..." Naruto said with a laugh. They both walked closer to Natasha with Naruto leading. "Nat, this is the Crowned Prince T'Challa. The Black Panther protector of Wakanda. T'Challa, meet the beautiful and deadly Natasha Romanoff. The Black Widow." He introduced them with a smile and a small amount of theatrics.
Natasha removed her helmet during the introduction when she heard the man's name. T'Challa, the prince of an impoverished nation of Wakanda. Well, apparently not so impoverished if everything she says is true.
"I'm sorry about the surprise. Our friend here probably wants to give you a more exciting activity. Instead of maybe, skydiving or laser tag, he decided to bring you in a matter of national security and secret." T'Challa said with a bow, while not forgetting to send a jab to his friend.
Natasha couldn't help but smile at T'Challa's assertion. Naruto is certainly a bag of surprises.
"No problem. Naruto somehow just finds a way to turn someone's world view around." Natasha greeted back.
T'Challa gave one last bow and faced Naruto.
"I see you have finally finished your bike..." He said while checking over the Raijin. The elegant black motorcycle with burnt orange accents certainly looks intimidating. "I want to see which is faster, mine or yours. We should race when we get back."
"Nobody would be racing anyone until His Highness settles our current predicament." A voice answered from some distance away.
Everyone turned around to look at where the voice came from, and they saw a pair of man and woman walking towards them. The man is wearing a blue cape with a sword at his hips, and the bald woman is wearing red armor while carrying a spear. The woman is observing Natasha, like ascertaining if she was a threat.
"Okoye! W'kabi! What took you so long!?" Naruto asked animatedly.
"Naruto." Both greeted him with a small bow.
"Don't be like that! We're going to be a team later, so you guys need to loosen up! Isn't that right, Nat!?" Naruto let out loudly, trying to pump up Okoye and W'kabi.
"I still have no idea what we're doing, so I'm not going to weigh in on this." Natasha answered with a small shake of her head.
Naruto looked a little disappointed and looked at T'Challa for support, but he just got more dejected when he heard his answer.
"The bruises she gave me two days ago are still there—your on your own this time, my friend." T'Challa said with a smile.
"You guys suck..." Naruto answered with a pout before looking to W'kabi. "You should be the happiest of all. We're going to take down the last half of the reason why your father died." He said in a slightly serious tone.
"The last half? What are you talking about?" W'kabi asked while taking on a more dangerous tone.
"Damn. You guys have too many secrets..." Naruto whispered to himself. "Just ask your king after I get my approval, or you could just ask Klaue..." He said to W'kabi. He then retrieved two objects behind him and tossed it towards Natasha. "You might need those..." Natasha examined what Naruto tossed her and saw that it is a baton and a mask with a red hourglass. "Just flick the baton, and it'll extend to a 6 feet long electrified staff. Oh. I forgot. You also need these gloves." He handed over a pair of gloves.
"Thank you. Usually, a guy gives teddy bear or perfume, but knives and electrified staffs are good too." Natasha said with a smile.
"How you wanna do this? Loud or Quiet? Personally, I want everything to go boom." Naruto asked T'Challa while putting on an orange grinning Japanese demon mask.
"We'll go quiet first. When we got him, you can go wild. Okoye would be air support. W'kabi, go with her..." T'Challa ordered while placing his mask. W'kabi was going to disagree with his orders, but a hard glare kept him in line. "You're too close too what's going to happen, and you're not a stealthy fighter."
"And he can!?" W'kabi countered.
Naruto decided not to answer, but instead, he just slowly disappear like he is gradually getting more transparent. As soon as he was gone, everyone heard a disembodied voice coming from everywhere.
"I can be stealthy if I want too."
W'kabi shivered, slightly fearful. Natasha, on the other hand, just kept cataloging anything Naruto did and trying to make sense of what he can do. Okoye just kept stoic disposition, but the tensing of her shoulders shows that she is still affected
"That's enough demonstration Naruto. You made your point." T'Challa said while fixing his gloves.
Naruto then appeared behind W'kabi.
"Alright! Let's do this. I have one more plan for our date." Naruto declared while winking at Natasha, but she didn't see it due to the mask. Okoye pulled W'kabi towards the Royal Talon Fighter to make sure he doesn't sneak into the fight.
"Good thing I'm planning our next date. This just feels too much like work." Natasha said in a joking manner. The spontaneity of it all, although slightly discomforting, makes the whole thing more exciting.
Naruto walked towards the motorcycle and mounted it.
"You're going to have to run there, bro." Naruto said to T'Challa. Natasha immediately got the idea and rode the bike too.
T'Challa surrendered to his fate ran towards the target ship, making sure to keep himself out of sight as long as possible.
Naruto had no problem with it and shot towards the ship. They rapidly passed over T'Challa, and Natasha saw a decrepit ship guarded by men with heavy weaponry. The one thing she noticed was that Naruto is a whole lot smarter than he looks.
Naruto is using the shadows caused by the setting sun and the miniature dust storm caused by the changing winds to cover their approach. When they reached the ship, Naruto tapped her legs, indicating they need to dismount. She got off and followed by Naruto.
The great thing about the mask, Naruto can use his Shinigan to scout the whole ship. When he memorized the entire layout and hostile numbers, he disabled his eyes. He pulled Natasha close and lifted his mask.
"Tell me if you don't want to do this since I have another thing in mind we could go to." Naruto asked sincerely, making sure that Natasha is still enjoying their date.
"I have been in only one real date before..." Natasha started while lifting her mask, staring deep into Naruto's cerulean eyes. "So, I'm not an expert, but I can honestly say that I'm having more fun than I have in a long time." She finished sincerely.
Naruto couldn't help but feel a wave of attraction hit him during that moment while staring back at Natasha's green eyes.
"Motherfucker! Go for it!" Kurama's voice blasted in his mind. Naruto turned off the connection before the date started to make sure there's no distraction during the date, but the bijuu banded together for Kurama to send the message.
Naruto didn't bother arguing with Kurama and decided to follow his advise. He cupped Natasha's cheeks and gave her a chaste kiss.
Natasha recognizes the fact that setting is not ideal for the first kiss, but hell, if it doesn't feel amazing. Maybe she's a little crazy for feeling this way for someone she barely knows.
They were about to dive in for a more sensual kiss when they heard a throat being cleared behind Naruto. They both looked toward its direction and saw T'Challa leaning against the ship's haul.
"Oh. Don't mind me. Go on." T'Challa teased.
Naruto is trying to find the appropriate answer, but he just settled on how he felt.
"I hate you."
Natasha and Naruto replaced their mask and adopted a more professional personality.
"There are 155 guys on board. The target is in an office above the engine room. How would you like to do it?" Naruto reported what he saw.
"One day I'm going to find out how you always do that, but for now, me and Ms. Widow are going to start at the bottom, and you're going to the top. Everyone would take out as many as they can while keeping everyone else in the dark. When one of us captures Klaue, everyone will evacuate outside while Naruto gets a minute of fun. Any questions?" T'Challa laid out the plan. When no one spoke up, T'Challa nodded, and they separated.
Natasha finally noticed that the huge motorcycle they we're just riding on is suddenly gone, but she has no time to ponder over it since they were nearing the entrance. She also has no idea how Naruto would get up there, but after everything she knows Naruto can do, she wouldn't be surprised that he can walk on walls.
They both approached a hole in the hull, and T'Challa took a peek inside. He signed that four guys are standing guard at the entrance, and two guys are at a railing. He would take down the two guys upstairs while she would take care of the four guards.
T'Challa ran inside the entrance and jumped 6m high and pulled himself towards his targets. While the four guys below froze for a moment, Natasha rushed in and hit the first guy in the face that immediately knocked him out. She followed it up by hitting the next two guys on the torso almost simultaneously. The voltage running through the staff must have been high since the attack dropped them immediately. The final guard is taken down with a well-placed jab at the man's face.
When she was done, T'Challa is waiting for her to finish.
"I'm impressed. You're almost as good Okoye with a staff." T'Challa complimented.
The duo blitz through the ship, taking out everyone they encountered until they finally reached the office they were after. Inside is Klaue talking with someone on the phone facing away from them.
Natasha took out her gun and placed it firmly on Klaue's head, which caused him to stiffen up.
"I have to call you back. I have an incoming call..." Klaue said the other end of the line before turning it off and raising his hands slowly. "I don't know who you are, but I'm sure we can work something out." He negotiated.
"Turn around." T'Challa said.
Klaue slowly turned and saw two masked people, a man and a woman. The alarming thing was that one of those masked people is the Black Panther.
"Heh. Wakanda finally found me, huh..." Klaue said with a maniacal smile. " What are you going to do? Kill me!?"
"No. You're coming with us." T'Challa answered before placing something on Klaue's face that caused him to lost consciousness.
"You should open that shelf." Naruto's suddenly said behind them, pointing towards an empty shelf.
T'Challa nodded and pierced the wall Naruto pointed him at using his Vibranium claws. He ripped it open and saw hundreds of canisters of rock shards.
"Great, Bast. How did he take so much?" T'Challa whispered to himself before contacting the Talon Fighter.
"What are those rocks?" Natasha asked.
"Vibranium Ore." Was Naruto's only answer.
The answer to the question SHIELD was looking for is stating right at her, and it doesn't look good.