The TV screen displayed Colonel Rhodes speaking seriously at a press conference. "A statement has been issued regarding what happened at Stark Industries last night and has been shared with the public," he said.
In the next room, Tony Stark was busy making final adjustments, holding the latest newspaper that read "Who is Iron Man?"
"Iron Man, this name is interesting, but a bit misleading," Tony mumbled with a small smile, glancing at Pepper, who was busy fixing his tie.
"Then what do you think is more accurate?" Pepper asked, gazing at Tony through the mirror on the vanity.
"Technically, the suit is made of a gold-titanium alloy, not iron," Tony replied, shrugging. "But I get it. As a title, it's pretty expressive."
Pepper shook her head, trying to stifle a smile. "All your scientific explanations have already been recorded, Tony. Just focus on the speech."
As Pepper was finishing the final touches on Tony's makeup, Coulson suddenly appeared at the door with a flat expression.
"The statement is ready. You're on the cruise with Miss Potts, and you spent the night on Avalon Island. It's backed up by testimony from 50 other people," Coulson said, handing Tony the documents.
Tony quickly scanned it. "Wait a minute. So, according to this script, I... a romantic vacation? With Pepper? I feel like SHIELD is getting too creative here."
"It's the most convincing scenario," Coulson replied expressionlessly. "Anyway, the fact that you're with Miss Potts is what must be believed."
Pepper glanced at Tony with an arched eyebrow. "Yes, Tony. What do you think?"
Tony sighed, rolling his eyes. "Sure, why not? If this means we're free from annoying questions, I'm in."
"Oh, and one more thing," Tony said teasingly, turning to Coulson. "Where's Obadiah in all this? It seems he's disappeared from the script."
Coulson replied without hesitation, "He... went on vacation. We arranged everything. Sometimes, small plane accidents are unavoidable."
Tony stared at Coulson with a flat expression. "You realize this sounds like a cheap movie script, right?"
"My job isn't to write movies, Mr. Stark. Just read the statement, and it'll all be over. Only a minute and a half left," Coulson said as he left the room.
Pepper helped Tony into his suit. "Alright, you ready?"
Tony gave a small smile and said, "You know, 'Iron Man' is actually a pretty cool name. It's way better than 'Tin Man' from Grape Girl."
Pepper chuckled lightly. "You know, you really should stop calling her that, Tony."
…
At the press conference, Colonel Rhodes stood at the podium. "Mr. Stark will make a statement. He will not be answering any questions from the press. Thank you."
Tony walked confidently to the podium, holding the script in his hands. He looked at the eagerly awaiting reporters.
"Some people suspected I was involved in the incident on the highway and the factory rooftop last night..." Tony began, reading from the official statement.
Suddenly, a female reporter interrupted from the front row. "Mr. Stark, do you really think we're going to believe this statement? One of your guards suddenly appeared—"
Tony raised his hand, cutting the reporter off. "I know this sounds weird, and of course, you can doubt the official statement. But don't insinuate that I'm some superhero."
"I didn't say you were a superhero," the reporter responded.
Tony smiled. "No? Well, that's too science fiction. Besides, I'm no hero. I have a lot of personality flaws and tend to cause chaos..."
Beside him, Rhodes whispered sternly, "Stick to the script, Tony."
Tony turned with a sly smile. "OK!"
He held his script seriously, as if about to read it again, then paused for a moment.
"I am Iron Man," he said suddenly.
The room exploded with cheers, camera flashes, and reporters scrambling. Tony stepped down from the podium with a satisfied smile.
At home, Naori, who was watching the live broadcast, choked on hearing Tony's declaration.
When Tony said, "I am Iron Man," Naori flinched. She coughed hard, her jade pipe slipping from her hand, and hot ash from her cigarette fell onto her foot.
"Ugh! Ugh! Damn Stark, you're really crazy!" Naori grumbled, trying to put out the cigarette ash with a nearby silk cloth. However, the cloth was too delicate, causing Naori to yelp as her fingers touched the hot ash.
"Hot! Hot! Damn it!" She stood up, waving her long skirt that almost caught the ember. Her coughing echoed through the previously silent room. She finally grabbed a glass of water, drank it quickly, and sighed in relief.
Naori sat back down, rubbing her forehead with the back of her hand. Her gaze was fixed on the screen, showing Tony stepping down from the podium with a satisfied smile.
She leaned back in her chair, took her now-empty pipe, and refilled it with fragrant tobacco. With a calm motion, she lit the pipe, inhaled slowly, and exhaled white smoke that formed abstract cloud-like patterns in the air.
Unlike Naori, who possessed enough power to bring down a small country in a night, Tony Stark, without his armor, was just an ordinary man!
Naori marveled at Tony's courage to reveal his identity to the public.
'Well, it's his nature that makes Tony Stark even more interesting,' Naori thought with a soft smile.
…
— The night before the press conference —
The Malibu sky was adorned with sparkling stars, the sound of waves crashing on the beach faintly heard in the distance. On the balcony of a luxury villa, Yugao sat in a lounge chair, gazing at the sea, enjoying the night wind carrying the scent of salt. However, her peaceful moment was interrupted by the ringing of a phone.
Reluctantly, she reached for her phone. Upon seeing Nick Fury's name on the screen, she sighed deeply. "Can't I just have one peaceful night?" she muttered before answering.
"What's up, Director? Don't you think I need some rest? If this keeps going, I'll report SHIELD to the Department of Labor!" Yugao complained half-seriously, half-joking. Her face was adorned with a pout that she purposely displayed, even though she knew Nick couldn't see it.
On the other side of the line, Nick Fury's deep voice came through, calm but authoritative. "20 million."
Yugao paused for a moment, her brow furrowing. "What?" she asked, confused and curious.
"I'll add $20 million to your commission if you do a little extra work," Nick explained in a flat but convincing tone.
Immediately, Yugao's eyes lit up. She sat up straight, ignoring the fatigue that had previously dominated her body. "Hehe... I love you, Director! SHIELD is really lucky to have a leader like you!" she said enthusiastically. "So, what do you want, Director? Just say it! A kiss from a purple-haired girl like me? Or maybe you prefer blondes? Oh, or if you want someone with black hair—wait! Unfortunately, the main body—uh, I mean, Miss Naori requires much higher fees." Yugao began rambling with a wide grin, even wiping her mouth as if she were about to drool.
Nick Fury, hearing Yugao's chatter, felt the hairs on his neck stand up. In his mind, the image of himself being kissed by the Kaguya Hime members passed by unbidden, making him feel incredibly uncomfortable.
'No! As the man called "Agent King," I can't be swayed by such cheap temptations!' Nick thought, steeling himself. 'These ninjas are such deceitful creatures!'
"Stop talking nonsense, Yugao," Nick cut in finally, his tone more serious than usual. "Tomorrow, Coulson will arrange a press conference for Tony Stark, but I have a bad feeling. I need to be there in person. Wait for me at the airport tomorrow morning."
Before Yugao could respond, the call ended.
Yugao stared at her phone screen with a frustrated expression. "Ugh, in almost six years of living in this world, only Nick Fury isn't affected by my charms! What is that man made of?!" She puffed her cheeks like a sulking child and threw herself back into the lounge chair.
The night wind blew again, causing strands of her purple hair to flutter gently. She sighed deeply, her gaze returning to the sea.
"Hmph! If it weren't for the 20 million, I'd have ignored his call. But oh well... money is always a good enough reason," she muttered with a small smile. "Tony Stark, it looks like we'll meet again tomorrow. I hope you don't make me regret taking this job."
Yugao stood, stepped inside the villa, and stretched her body. Despite the fatigue, the thought of the big bonus was enough to reinvigorate her.
…
— The night after the press conference —
On Nick Fury's orders, Yugao helped him sneak into Tony Stark's villa in Malibu.
The moonlight reflecting off the ocean flowed gently into Tony Stark's luxury villa, bathing its interior in a silvery glow. The elegant interior design combined luxury with cutting-edge technology, from the plush leather sofas to the glass table adorned with futuristic ornaments. Yugao stood in the middle of the room with her arms folded, looking around in awe.
"This is what I call a home," she murmured while observing the abstract art hanging on one of the walls. "Whoever designed this villa must have been paid a lot."
Behind her, Nick Fury sat on the sofa, pulling out a small tablet from his leather jacket. He was unfazed by the surrounding luxury; his focus was entirely on the device he used to hack into JARVIS's security system.
Suddenly, an electronic voice blared throughout the room. "Miss Grape Girl and this man, you do not have permission to enter the room. Please leave immediately." The alarm lights in the corners of the room flashed, blinking red with a disturbingly intense frequency.
Yugao rolled her eyes at the ceiling. "Damn it, Tony! He even registered me as 'Grape Girl' in his AI database! How rude!" she muttered.
Nick Fury, who had just shifted his attention to the tablet screen, glanced briefly at Yugao. "Interesting nickname," he commented flatly before returning to typing quickly on the tablet. "Finish your complaining. I need to shut down JARVIS before he calls the cops."
"You know, Director," Yugao said casually as she walked around the room, her hand touching the ornaments on the table. "If Tony Stark has an AI this smart, why doesn't he program it to be more polite? I mean, 'this man'? At least he could try something like 'Honorable Director Fury.'"
Nick didn't respond. Within seconds, the alarm lights stopped, and the room returned to silence.
"Done," he said finally, putting the tablet back into his jacket.
Yugao stopped walking and looked at Nick with curiosity. "So, why are we here?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
Nick didn't answer right away. He simply adjusted his sitting position, remaining calm despite the silence making the atmosphere feel a little tense. Yugao, not used to the quiet, spoke again.
"Oh! I know!" she said suddenly with a bright expression. She snapped her fingers. "You must want to do something... exciting, huh? Staying at someone else's house in the middle of the night without permission. Director, I didn't know you had such a wild side!"
Nick, starting to sense a bad feeling, just rolled his eyes and sighed. "Yugao, don't start," he said, his voice sounding like a warning.
But Yugao didn't take notice. She hugged herself and walked backward with a teasing expression. "If I knew you had such a fetish, Director, I would've brought a camera. You're really an interesting man!"
Nick stood up slowly, his face expressionless, but there was clear anger in his eyes. In a low, threatening voice, he said, "Yugao, if you don't stop talking right now, don't blame me if I pull the trigger at your head."
Yugao's eyes widened, and she unconsciously swallowed. "Alright, alright!" she quickly said, raising her hands in surrender. "I'll be quiet... and wait in the dark."
Although Yugao knew she was far stronger than Nick Fury, seeing the bald, dark-skinned man with an eye patch threatening to shoot her made her hair stand on end.
Nick sat back down without saying a word, while Yugao sat on the floor, bowing her head like a child who had just been scolded.
Half an hour passed in silence before the villa door opened with a beep. Tony Stark stepped in, looking tired but still alert.
"Who's there? Grape Girl...? JARVIS, are you still there?" Tony asked suspiciously, his eyes scanning the room. He paused for a moment, then looked closer. As a true man, he didn't have a habit of running away in front of women, but he remained cautious.
That's when Yugao realized Nick Fury was sitting in the shadows, his back to the door.
'Since when did the Director have the ability to hide himself without even being noticed by an experienced Jonin like me!' Yugao complained silently in her mind.
Yugao, who had been observing from the corner of the room, spoke up. "Uh... there's an unknown man here looking for you," she said, pointing to the shadow on the sofa.
Tony squinted, examining more closely. When he finally saw Nick Fury, his eyebrows raised.
"I'm Iron Man? That's a nice thing to say," Nick Fury said, standing up with slow but authoritative movements. "Do you think you're the only superhero in the world?" Nick Fury said calmly, his eyes and tone indifferent, without an ounce of guilt after breaking into someone's house in the middle of the night.