Marvel: I am Iron Man

Viper?

Tony quickly went through his memories of all the Marvel characters and soon found the only one he could recall who used that codename.

Viper, also known as Lady Hydra, is a high-ranking member of the international terrorist organization Hydra.

But unlike other Hydra executives, when it comes to the impression this person left on Tony, he could only think of a few labels at a time.

Snow-white, large, possessing a skillful seduction technique, she is very adept at seducing her opponents.

Could it be her?

Tony frowned, looking somewhat worried.

It's not that he's worried the other party will use their skills to test him personally after the assassination attempt fails... No, if that's all, it's fine. He has a lot of confidence in Tony.

The crucial point is that if it really is this person, it's equivalent to Hydra having their eyes on your head. That's the real trouble.

Hydra, Marvel's organization, is a large entity that operates covertly within S.H.I.E.L.D. in modern times.

The most troublesome thing is not how strong this organization is, but that these people are really like "Hydra"—if you cut off one head, nine more will grow back.

No one knows how many branches or how many people they have hidden in the shadows. It's easy to destroy a Hydra base head-on, but to completely wipe them out of the world is a massive undertaking.

After repeated interrogations with the help of a lie detector, Tony became convinced that Drekoff, this good-for-nothing, had nothing more useful to him and quickly lost interest in him.

But Natasha quickly stepped forward and trampled Drekoff under her feet.

"Yelena!" Natasha ignored the other's agonizing cries. "She's not here. Tell me, where is she?"

This was Natasha's last concern in the world, her sister... at least in Natasha's heart, she still regarded her as a sister.

By this time, Drekoff, having endured Tony's continuous electroconvulsive interrogation, was already on the verge of collapse and utterly unable to withstand the pressure. Upon being asked this question, he immediately cried out in anguish, "She's not at the base, she's... in Russia! She's on a mission, I can tell you her disguise and address..."

But before he could finish speaking, Tony lazily interrupted him from behind: "You don't need to worry about it. I've already taken over your system, and I can see all the information you have."

As she spoke, Natasha felt a message coming to her SHIELD communicator. She opened it and found a mission briefing including her name, address, and other details, along with Black Widow agent Yelena's personal file and photo.

Natasha glanced at Tony, who was standing by the control panel behind her, only to see him wave his hand at her without even turning his head, as if to say it was nothing.

A look of surprise and disbelief flashed across Drekoff's pained face: "You... I have the best firewall, the best system, how could you...?"

"You cracked your firewall in two minutes?" Tony said casually. "Actually, it only took me a minute. The rest of the time I just browsed around and downloaded your data in case I need it later."

He thought for a moment, then added.

"Oh, by the way, your security protocols are way outdated, they feel like they're from the last century. You need to catch up with the times, buddy."

Derekov: "..."

If someone had said this to him before, Drekoff would have certainly dismissed it. But today, his prized aerial fortress was breached single-handedly, and his top agents were being crushed like ants.

And this metal shell, which can do all this so easily, tells him that you are outdated, which seems strangely convincing.

Soon, Tony had Jarvis download all the valuable information in the fortress. After confirming that there was no other information worth extracting from Drekoff, he used an arc pulse to physically exorcise the notorious leader of the Red Room.

This is absolutely necessary. If they don't personally ensure the enemy is obliterated, who knows if S.H.I.E.L.D. will spare Drekoff's life, then lock him up in some cell to try and extract some remaining value from him, and then someday he might escape, stage a triumphant return, and come seeking revenge...

To prevent this from happening, to nip such a dangerous possibility in the bud, Tony had to ensure that the other person turned to ashes here.

Natasha watched as her greatest enemy turned to dust under Iron Man's pulse, her expression complex.

She would soon need to make time to visit Yelena. She had almost never imagined that she would ever see her sister again in her lifetime.

What should we say when we meet again?

How will she react when she sees me? Will she feel resentment? Or will she simply treat me like a complete stranger...?

"Oh, right."

After dealing with everything at the scene, Tony suddenly seemed to remember something and turned to look at Natasha behind him just before leaving.

When are you coming back to work?

Natasha was stunned for a moment, not understanding what it meant.

Then she looked at the other person in surprise.

Could it be that this guy knew his identity all along, yet still asked him if he was going back to work?

But the other party acted as if it were perfectly normal.

It's like saying, "I haven't fired you yet, so of course you have to keep coming to work."

After a few seconds of silence, as if by some strange impulse, Natasha looked up, smiled, and said, "I'll consider it."

Tony waved again and walked out the door. Soon, the sound of engines roaring outside. Natasha, through the porthole, watched as a magnificent trail of flame disappeared into the clouds, the red and gold armor turning into a black dot and vanishing on the horizon.

Tony flew home and landed back in the lab. He shut off his jet boots and stood firmly on the launch pad, whereupon several robotic arms reached out from all sides to help him dismantle his armor.

Tony took a relaxing bubble bath, feeling as if all his fatigue had been washed away. He changed into a bathrobe and returned to his bedroom. He had clearly taken down a team of assassins who were looking for trouble, but his mood hadn't improved at all.

Hydra wants to kill him... or at least it's suspected to be Hydra, which is enough to raise his alarm. He needs to formulate a plan and put arrangements to counter Hydra on the agenda.

However, things still need to be done one step at a time.

Nick Fury had already had Howard Stark's belongings brought here. Currently, the highest priority on Tony's to-do list is still the replacement of palladium and the development of new elements.

Replace this highly toxic reactor in your chest as soon as possible; the sooner you do, the less suffering you'll endure.

The good news is that Tony, who has seen the movie, has found a way. The clue to extracting the new element was actually hidden by Howard Stark in the design model of the Stark Industries exposition held back then.

Once this is known, and with the corresponding technology and equipment, the extraction of new elements is only a matter of time.

With all the equipment and documents in place, Tony was making a big splash and preparing to start work when Jarvis reminded him that he had received a message.

"There is a voice message from Ms. Pepper Potts."