- In Marvel: I Start by Marrying Scarlett Witch [Complete]
- MWM Chapter 414
Everyone looked at one another, unsure of what to say. Finally, Tony broke the awkward silence.
“I forgot to bring my phone with me when I left, and I didn’t tell Pepper. She probably thought I was with you, so she used my phone to call you.”
A rather flimsy explanation.
“Is that so?” Leo’s expression briefly flickered with doubt before he raised his thumb, ready to answer the call.
Tony realized they couldn’t bluff their way out of this anymore. He gave a quick glance to Steve and Scott, and then swiftly tapped his chest twice. In an instant, his advanced nano-Iron Man suit enveloped his body.
“You might not believe me, but we don’t mean any harm. We just need to borrow the Mind Scepter for a bit, and we’ll return it shortly.”
Wearing his suit, Tony quickly snatched the Mind Scepter from Leo’s hand.
However, Leo simply smiled and raised his left hand, revealing the Mind Stone, which he had discreetly removed from the scepter just as Tony took it.
“I think what you’re after isn’t the staff, but this stone. Now, tell me, who are you really? Why are you pretending to be Tony and Steve?”
“We are Tony and Steve!” Steve suddenly lunged at Leo, aiming to tackle him and seize the Mind Stone.
But before he could even reach Leo, the latter grabbed him by the neck and slammed him into the wall with one swift motion.
“You’ve mimicked their moves pretty well,” Leo remarked.
Tony, seeing this, immediately transformed his hands into powerful electro-shock devices and pressed them against Leo’s chest, flooding him with a high-voltage shock. He didn’t want to hurt Leo, so he avoided using lethal weapons, hoping just to knock him out.
“Strange. This suit is actually more advanced than the one the real Tony wears. But unfortunately, this amount of electricity can’t hurt me.” Leo casually glanced down at the electro-shock devices on his chest. Then, activating his Lightning Release Chakra Mode, he flicked Tony on the forehead, sending him flying as though he’d been hit by a truck.
“Take this!” Scott, in his Ant-Man suit, shrank down to the size of an ant and jumped at Leo’s feet, hoping to use his full-sized strength while maintaining his tiny form to catch him off guard.
Unfortunately, before he could even get close, Leo’s lightning-infused chakra zapped him, forcing Scott back to his normal size.
While Tony, Steve, and Scott were effortlessly knocked back, a new figure descended from above, punching toward Leo. It was Bruce Banner, who, after some debate with the Ancient One, had finally succeeded in borrowing the Time Stone. Seeing his teammates in trouble, he launched an attack without hesitation.
“Partial Enlargement Jutsu!” Leo’s right arm instantly expanded, and he effortlessly caught Banner’s punch mid-air, then swung him around and slammed him into the ground.
“Impossible!” Tony, Steve, and Scott, who had just gotten back on their feet, were dumbfounded as they watched Leo toss the Hulk around like a ragdoll.
“Something’s strange… Hulk isn’t Hulk, and Banner isn’t Banner. Who are you really?” Leo asked, his voice calm but carrying a subtle weight as he played the part of someone oblivious to their true identities.
Then, he looked more closely and feigned surprise. “Wait… how do you have the Time Stone?”
There were undoubtedly several powerful beings monitoring the Avengers’ time travel mission. Leo needed to act as if he had no prior knowledge of it. If he wanted to join the Avengers on their journey to 2023 and complete his main mission, everything needed to seem plausible.
“The Ancient One gave it to me willingly. We’re not the bad guys,” Banner quickly raised his hand, showing the Time Stone.
Leo hesitated for a moment before responding, “The Ancient One gave it to you willingly? Well, that makes sense. With her power, you wouldn’t be able to take it by force.”
Seeing the opening, Tony jumped in to explain, “Leo, we’re from a universe eleven years in the future—”
“Let’s move somewhere else to talk first,” Leo interrupted, noticing the growing crowd of onlookers drawn by their skirmish. He pulled out a teleportation book and opened it, releasing a flurry of pages that wrapped around Tony and the others, transporting them to a secluded estate outside New York City.
“Alright, now explain what’s going on.”
Looking at the group, who were still slightly disoriented from the sudden teleportation, Leo’s expression turned serious.
Tony quickly recounted everything that had happened.
“I can’t believe such a thing is possible.”
Leo appeared genuinely shocked after hearing their story. He paused for a couple of minutes, deep in thought, as the four Avengers watched him with hopeful eyes. Finally, he spoke.
“I can give you the Mind Stone, but on one condition.”
“What condition?” Tony asked, his brow furrowing slightly.
Things had already veered far from their original plan, and he was worried that Leo might ask for something impossible.
Leo smiled. “Don’t worry. To be honest, I still have some doubts. I can’t fully trust your story yet. After all, what you’ve described is very different from what has happened in this world.”
“So, I want you to take me with you when you return to 2023. If what you say is true, and you save the half of the population that disappeared, I’ll come back with Banner when you return the stones. But if it’s not true, don’t blame me for what happens next.”
“But we only have enough Pym particles for one person, and you don’t have a quantum suit,” Scott chimed in.
Taking Leo to 2023 wasn’t really a big deal. After all, the timeline they were in had already diverged significantly from theirs, so it wasn’t like they’d cause any catastrophic effects. The real issue was that time travel wasn’t easy. Their quantum suits were custom-made, and they had a very limited supply of Pym particles.
“Oh, that’s not a problem. You can carry me along just like you’re carrying the Infinity Stones. I can change into other things.”
As he spoke, Leo clapped his hands together, using the Transformation Jutsu to turn into a small box—with the Mind Stone neatly placed inside.
“Oh, my God, that’s one unique ability,” Tony muttered, startled by the sight of Leo transforming into a box.
But after a moment, all four Avengers nodded in agreement.
“If that’s the case, then we’re good,” Tony said.
With that, Tony and Steve adjusted the time settings on their suits and headed to the military base in New Jersey in 1970.
Meanwhile, Banner and Scott, carrying the Mind and Time Stones, along with Leo in his box form, returned to the Avengers’ headquarters in 2023.
(End of Chapter)