- In Marvel: I Start by Marrying Scarlett Witch [Complete]
- MWM Chapter 416
“I took four vials of Pym Particles from the 1970 base. Two were used by Tony and me when we came back, so we have two left—just enough to make another trip to 2014!” Steve immediately pulled out two vials of Pym Particles from his pocket.
Earlier, when the four of them had attacked Leo and been easily overwhelmed, Steve was struck by Leo’s extraordinary abilities. Now, seeing his potential, Steve’s hope was rekindled.
Seeing how much trust Steve, the always steadfast Captain America, placed in Leo, Hawkeye—Clint Barton—clung to this newfound hope as well, like a drowning man grasping at straws. He said urgently, “Let me go back. I know where her body is. I can bring her back!”
“I can’t guarantee she’ll be revived, only that I’ll try,” Leo warned, seeing the flicker of hope in everyone’s eyes.
Meanwhile, Tony and Banner were already at the controls, working to restart the Quantum Tunnel.
“Even if there’s only a one-in-a-thousand or one-in-ten-thousand chance, it’s worth trying,” Steve said. With the two extra vials of Pym Particles, they had the means to attempt the rescue.
As for the particles they’d need to return the Infinity Stones later, once Hank Pym was back, they could easily produce more. There was no need to hesitate over these two vials.
With the Soul Stone placed aside, Hawkeye pressed the button on his wrist. The Quantum Suit enveloped him again, and he stepped back into the machine.
“Start it up!” Banner initiated the machine, and Hawkeye’s form vanished.
A second later, he reappeared—this time with Black Widow, Natasha Romanoff, in his arms, dressed in her own Quantum Suit.
“Let’s begin,” Leo said. With Natasha’s body safely retrieved, he instructed Hawkeye to place her on the table beside the Quantum Tunnel. Taking the orange Soul Stone from Tony’s hand, Leo prepared himself.
“Sage Mode!” He combined his true essence with chakra, forming Sage Chakra. His left eye, the Rinnegan, immediately shifted into a golden Yin-Yang Rinnegan. Then, Leo burned his inner cosmos, pouring vast mental energy into his Yin-Yang Rinnegan. He activated the Human Path’s ability to absorb souls, focusing directly on the Soul Stone.
Suddenly, a terrifying force specifically designed to target souls began pulling at the Soul Stone. The stone reacted by emitting a brilliant light, releasing powerful soul energy to block Leo’s efforts.
However, despite the Soul Stone possessing a degree of consciousness, it couldn’t fully control all of its soul energy. After less than a minute, Leo’s Rinnegan broke through its defenses, penetrating into the depths of the stone.
“I see it!” With the power of the Yin-Yang Rinnegan, countless souls appeared before Leo’s eyes—souls that had been sacrificed over the years to claim the Soul Stone, as well as the souls enslaved to guard it.
Leo quickly identified Natasha’s soul. His eyes widened as he summoned all his strength, pulling her spirit out of the depths of the Soul Stone.
Each Infinity Stone was forged from the core laws of the universe during the Big Bang, and each held immense power. But the extent of their power often depended on the wielder’s strength. The Soul Stone, the most unique, was the only one with sentience. Yet, despite this, it couldn’t fully control itself.
While the stone could remain hidden and impose its ritual of soul sacrifice, it couldn’t freely roam the universe at will. Thus, when Leo held it and used his soul extraction ability, there wasn’t much the Soul Stone could do to stop him.
Leo’s Rinnegan was already formidable, and its evolution into the Yin-Yang Rinnegan made it even stronger, particularly when dealing with souls. With the mental energy boost from his cosmos, he had the endurance to see the task through.
“Her body’s still warm. There’s still time.” Leo touched Natasha’s body, confirming it still had warmth. He quickly returned her soul to her body and activated the Rinnegan’s power to fuse her soul back with her physical form.
“It’s done!”
Moments later, Black Widow’s eyes fluttered open.
“Natasha!” Banner rushed forward, overwhelmed with emotion, as did Clint and Steve.
Once everyone was sure Natasha was alive, they all turned to Leo in gratitude.
“Thank you, Mr. Leo.”
Tony and his group were especially thankful that they had brought Leo back with them. Without him, Natasha would have truly been lost.
“Though we come from different worlds, in mine, you’re all my friends too. Besides, this was just a simple task,” Leo said with a light smile and a shrug, trying to downplay the act as something casual.
This event drastically increased everyone’s trust in Leo. Initially, the Avengers had been wary of him, sensing that his world was different and that he possessed incredible powers. And with the six Infinity Stones in their possession—an unimaginable temptation for anyone—it was only natural for them to be cautious.
Now that Natasha was alive again, the next task was to combine the five remaining stones into the Iron Gauntlet Tony had designed, snap their fingers, and bring back everyone who had been erased by Thanos five years ago.
But this was no easy task—especially when handling the Orb containing the Power Stone. A misstep could blow up the entire base.
Fortunately, Tony had already designed specialized equipment, combining Earth’s technology with that of Wakanda, to safely dismantle and install the stones.
So, the team headed to the special lab Tony had prepared, and naturally, Leo followed. He wanted to witness the power of the six Infinity Stones firsthand when the snap was made.
Meanwhile, Nebula, who had been walking behind the group, quietly slipped away. Everyone else was preoccupied with assembling the Infinity Gauntlet, so no one noticed her absence—except Leo.
Leo knew that this wasn’t the 2023 version of Nebula, but the 2014 version, still loyal to Thanos. Due to the fact that both Nebulas had mechanical parts in their bodies, 2023 Nebula’s memories had been unintentionally shared with 2014 Nebula. This allowed Thanos to learn about the Avengers’ plans.
Thanos had then captured 2023 Nebula, stolen her Pym Particles, and used Titan’s technology to mass-produce them, allowing him to send his Sanctuary II warship and army into the Quantum Realm.
The Nebula who had returned with Rhodey was, in fact, 2014 Nebula. She was now sneaking away to activate the machine and summon Thanos and his army from the Quantum Realm, just as the team prepared to assemble the Infinity Gauntlet.
Leo didn’t stop her because he needed events to proceed naturally to complete his main mission.
(End of Chapter)