With the concerted efforts of various official institutions, the interim leader, who suddenly found himself receiving unexpected support from many officials, once again contacted the Avengers, urging them to quickly assign someone to protect him. He expressed his deep concern about his safety, fearing that he might be assassinated by some extraordinary individual while working, which would plunge the entire USA into chaos. He suggested that the Avengers wouldn't want to see such a scenario unfold.
The interim leader had already guessed the intentions of these official institutions as they increasingly reached out to him. They were looking to use him as a means to counter the Avengers. However, the interim leader, despite wanting to cooperate more with the Avengers, couldn't reject this opportunity. He decided to go along with the flow.
For the interim leader, there were neither permanent enemies nor friends. Although he preferred to side with the Avengers, he realized that the Avengers, who hadn't responded to him, likely didn't see him as important. Therefore, he had to use the power of official institutions to pressure the Avengers. As long as he could achieve his goal of ensuring his personal safety and demonstrating his control over power, offending the Avengers was a risk he was willing to take.
When the Avengers received the interim leader's message, their previously calm demeanor was once again disrupted. They were frustrated by how clueless the interim leader was. The previous leader had never tried to make trouble for the Avengers, even when official institutions targeted them collectively. The previous leader chose to stay out of it, knowing that it wasn't his place to interfere.
Now, with the interim leader in place, the Avengers were beginning to appreciate how reliable the former leader had been. After venting their frustration, they turned their attention to Martian Manhunter.
"How's Tony doing? Has he finished developing the new armor?" they asked. Martian Manhunter, with his special abilities, might have some insight into Tony Stark's progress.
"Don't look at me, just ask J.A.R.V.I.S. directly. I don't spy on you guys!" Martian Manhunter replied righteously, causing the Avengers to roll their eyes, including Reed Richards and Bruce Banner, who had joined the Avengers recently. They had been wary of Martian Manhunter's abilities at first, but over time, they had grown accustomed to him.
While Martian Manhunter might have a history of peeking, he was known for keeping secrets, so the Avengers didn't worry too much. As they debated whether to interrupt Tony, J.A.R.V.I.S. had already informed Tony Stark, who emerged from his lab, clearly annoyed.
"Ready to head out?" Martian Manhunter asked.
"Huh?" Pietro was the first to react, accusing Martian Manhunter of spying on Tony. Martian Manhunter awkwardly cleared his throat and fell silent, waiting for Tony to speak.
"If these official institutions want to challenge us, let's go," Tony said with a smirk. "My armor is ready. We'll show our strength and defeat them with my armor, leaving them with no room to argue."
Martian Manhunter, however, cautioned Tony not to underestimate them. "General Ross might be troublesome. Your armor might not be enough."
"Don't worry, we've got you," Tony replied with a grin. "I'll handle Ross with my anti-Giant armor, but if it's not enough, you can take him down with your powers."
Martian Manhunter hesitated but seemed intrigued by the idea. Tony, not waiting for an answer, instructed Steve Rogers to arrange a meeting with the official institutions in half an hour.
The official institutions, having made up their minds, were determined to force the Avengers to serve as the interim leader's bodyguards, hoping to expose the Avengers' identities in the process. Soon, both sides gathered in a stadium, along with the excited interim leader, who was thrilled at seeing so many Avengers in one place.
In contrast, the members of the official institutions were wary, relieved not to see Robert and Clark but still cautious around the Avengers. They knew that even without those two, the Avengers were still formidable. But they were confident that by working together, they could handle the Avengers.
As the meeting began, the interim leader tried to speak, but Steve Rogers interrupted him. "The Avengers are too busy to serve as bodyguards. Our priority is to protect the public during extraordinary events. The safety of the nation comes before any individual leader."
Normally, such a statement would have been met with resistance, but coming from Steve Rogers, the embodiment of American values, it was difficult to argue against.
Nick Fury then spoke up, acknowledging the importance of the public but pointing out that the stability of the nation also depended on the safety of its leader. He suggested that if the Avengers couldn't handle both responsibilities, then maybe other institutions, like S.H.I.E.L.D., should take over some of their duties, including the protection of the interim leader.
Tony Stark scoffed at Fury's suggestion, reminding him of the times the Avengers had saved the lives of official members when they were powerless against threats. "You talk big about stepping in, but when it comes to actually dealing with extraordinary events, you all fall short."
Fury responded calmly, insisting that S.H.I.E.L.D. was simply offering to help where the Avengers claimed to be too busy. Tony, however, was not about to back down, challenging Fury to prove that his side had the strength to take on such responsibilities.
Fury, in turn, hinted that the Avengers were all talk, asking where these "powerful measures" were that the Avengers were supposed to have. Just as he finished speaking, a new piece of armor appeared in front of everyone, catching Fury off guard.
Tony laughed, challenging Fury with a smirk. "This is what I've been working on. You called us selfish for not sharing our technology, but if you're so eager to share, why don't you hand over that space stone—oh, I mean the Tesseract—for us to study?"
He further mocked S.H.I.E.L.D. for withholding their own research, especially considering the revelations from the previous leader about S.H.I.E.L.D.'s secret experiments. Tony made it clear that if S.H.I.E.L.D. wanted to play the game of sharing, they would have to play by the same rules.
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