Marvel Cybernetic Girl

"Grrr… Grrr…"

"Mmm… Mmm… M…"

After rolling around in bed for about half an hour, Kagura Hitomi finally decided to get up. She lazily threw on a tank top and walked to the bathroom to wash up.

"Jarvis, is Mr. Stark home? And Pepper?"

"Miss Pepper Potts left 57 minutes ago, invited to Washington D.C. for a security report hearing on 'Iron Man' at the Pentagon, scheduled for 1 PM."

Jarvis reported, "At 5 PM, Mr. Stark will be interviewed by Time Magazine; at 7 PM, he will head to Philadelphia for the Annual Financial Summit…"

"Wow, he's busy."

Kagura Hitomi sighed.

"Did Pepper leave any work behind that I can help with?"

"No, Miss Kagura."

Jarvis responded, "Breakfast has been prepared in the dining room. I wish you a pleasant day off."

"What about Mr. Stark?"

After finishing her morning routine, Kagura Hitomi walked downstairs to the dining room.

"Mr. Stark finished his meal 17 minutes ago. He's currently in the workshop, working on the Mark III assembly and adjustments."

"Seems like he's more focused on his 'Iron Man' responsibilities than on company matters."

Kagura Hitomi sat alone at the large dining table, where a modern, post-industrial styled breakfast setup awaited her.

"Mr. Stark seems pretty passionate about his new endeavor," Jarvis continued.

"Recent reports show he's spent 93% of his work time on developing and refining the Mark III."

"Speaking of which, Jarvis, what's your opinion on the possibility of using artificial intelligence to create a global defense system?"

"That's a bold idea, Miss Kagura," Jarvis replied.

"However, there currently isn't enough data or feasible methods to analyze it."

"Hmm."

Kagura Hitomi nodded thoughtfully, a gleam of possibility in her golden eyes. "I was just musing."

"By the way, could I stop by Mr. Stark's workshop to see what he's up to?"

Tony Stark's workshop had a strict identity verification system.

Kagura Hitomi had unrestricted access but couldn't operate the equipment unless Stark was away.

Out of courtesy, she usually asked before entering.

"Unfortunately, now isn't a good time, Miss Kagura."

"Why not?"

She raised an eyebrow.

"Two minutes and 47 seconds ago, news came in about armed militia attacking a town in Gaza. Mr. Stark is leaving in 13 seconds to handle the situation."

"Oh, I see."

Kagura Hitomi nodded, finishing up her meal. "Well, if Iron Man's off to 'work,' I guess I'll let him focus."

"Thank you for your understanding, Miss Kagura."

"Whew—!"

As she finished speaking, the red Iron Man suit shot past the window with a sonic boom, dispersing the clouds as it vanished into the sky.

"Safe travels, Mr. Stark."

Kagura Hitomi whispered to herself, gazing out the window.

…

Ding.

"Miss Kagura, you have a new visitor."

"Huh?"

Kagura Hitomi raised an eyebrow. Who could be visiting her?

"Unable to match the target to the database. Should I search the internet for more information?"

Jarvis asked, displaying an image of the visitor at the door on the wall monitor.

"It's her."

The screen showed a red-haired beauty dressed in a sleek black suit.

It was Natasha Romanoff, S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Level 7, or as they casually called her, Natalie.

Kagura Hitomi opened the door.

"Hey, Natalie!"

"Whoa, good morning, Kagura Hitomi. Taking a day off today?"

Natasha smiled as she looked at Kagura Hitomi's outfit.

"Huh?"

Kagura Hitomi looked down at herself— a white tank top, flip-flops… nothing else.

"Ah! Um… Yes… yes, today's my day off…"

Kagura Hitomi blushed, tugging nervously at the hem of her top and twirling her silver hair.

"I forgot something last night. Here, this is for you."

Natasha pulled a SIM card from her pocket. "It's a direct line to S.H.I.E.L.D. It's the same number as your current phone, but it connects directly to us."

Kagura Hitomi took the card. "Thanks, Natalie, for delivering it personally."

"No problem. It's my job." She grinned.

"Busy with work lately?"

"Sigh… it's alright," Natasha replied, with a slight sigh.

"Aside from your affairs, we've been monitoring Iron Man's activities, searching for Dr. Banner in South America, and following up on the guy who stole the arc reactor."

"Whoa, sounds hectic."

Kagura Hitomi smiled.

"Is it okay for you to tell me all this?"

"Of course. I'll only tell you things I'm allowed to." Natasha laughed.

"Oh, by the way, Agent Coulson wanted me to pass on a message."

With that, Natasha pulled out a note from her pocket and read it aloud.

"Miss Kagura, your intelligence reward is now fully accessible. Enjoy."

She looked up.

"That's all. I don't really get what it means, but Coulson said you would."

Kagura Hitomi smiled. "I know exactly what he means. Please thank Mr. Coulson for me."

Clearly, this message was about the final preparations for her "Bruce Wayne" identity. In a couple of days, she would start receiving tons of related intel and contacts.

From the fact that Natasha didn't understand, it was clear Coulson had kept the whole "Bruce Wayne" thing under wraps, even from S.H.I.E.L.D.

Apart from Coulson, Nick Fury likely knew, but most people had no clue about Kagura Hitomi's connection to the Wayne identity.

"Well, now that the message is delivered, I'm off."

Natasha hopped onto her bike, adjusted her helmet.

"It's been great meeting you, Kagura Hitomi. See you around."

"Mm, see you, Natalie."

Kagura Hitomi waved as Natasha rode off, then closed the door with a deep sigh.

She looked at the SIM card in her hand and inserted it into her phone.

[Basic Electronic Hacking/Activated]

With the skill activated, Kagura Hitomi accessed the SIM card's underlying circuitry.

Aha, as expected—there's a tracker.

Naturally, she found a hidden tracking module in the card that allowed direct contact with S.H.I.E.L.D.

Should she disable it?

She thought for a moment.

Well, maybe Egghead wasn't being malicious—he probably just wanted to keep an eye on her for protection.

She smiled. "I guess it's not a bad thing after all."

With her identity now in place, it was time to get to work.

Kagura Hitomi looked out at the vast blue sky.

Sigh, this might be my last day off.