"You're so arrogant. Do you really believe you alone can stand against an entire nation?"
Inside the Wakandan laboratory, Princess Shuri frowned as she spoke. In her eyes, this intruder didn't seem particularly extraordinary, yet his words carried outrageous confidence. He had warned her father not to become his enemy. Did that mean he thought he could defeat Wakanda single-handedly?
The thought was absurd—insulting, even.
"An enemy of a country? Is that really so difficult?"
Kurogai 's calm voice flowed through the communicator. He didn't just dismiss Wakanda. Even against a far greater power, he implied, the outcome would be the same. The only question was whether he felt like doing it.
"Hmph. In that case, I'll wait for my father to deal with you. Then we'll see how bold you are!"
Shuri's sharp reply carried no hesitation. To her, Kurogai was simply boasting, nothing more. No one could possibly be stronger than an entire nation. She cut the feed, unwilling to waste more words.
Still, her curiosity didn't fade. Keeping the mine under constant surveillance, she waited for the inevitable clash, eager to see Kurogai brought to justice.
Kurogai only shook his head, a faint smile tugging at his lips. He had nothing to prove to a child. Turning his focus inward, he resumed drawing raw vibranium into himself, preparing to unlock his sixth pupil ring.
The chamber grew silent, broken only by the faint hum of energy as the metal responded to his will. Minutes passed—longer than expected. He could sense increased activity above. Wakanda would not leave its sacred mine unguarded.
Through his enhanced sight, Kurogai observed them before they arrived. Warriors moved into formation, led by a figure clad in the unmistakable armor of the Black Panther. By timing alone, this had to be King T'Chaka himself.
"My father is here. You should surrender while you still can," came Shuri's cheerful taunt over the loudspeaker. She was eager to see him humbled.
"Shuri, open the gate," King T'Chaka's commanding voice rang out.
"Yes, Father," she answered, pressing the control panel. The mine's reinforced gates rumbled open, revealing the elevator shaft that descended into the chamber. Wakanda's king would not walk blindly into danger; only technology could guide him safely into the vibranium heart.
Moments later, T'Chaka and his escort team emerged, their eyes locking on the lone intruder pressing one hand against the wall as raw energy pulsed around him.
"Intruder!" T'Chaka's voice boomed as his vibranium claws extended. "Surrender immediately or face the consequences!"
Kurogai withdrew his hand from the wall and turned, utterly calm. "I warned your princess. I don't wish to harm you. When my work is done, I will leave on my own."
"Your work?" The king's eyes narrowed. "You are trespassing on sacred ground and tampering with resources that do not belong to you. Leave at once, and I will spare you. Refuse, and Wakanda will not show mercy."
Kurogai's expression hardened. "Then it seems you will have to wait here, unconscious, until I'm finished."
"You dare—escort, advance!"
At T'Chaka's command, the Dora Milaje warriors surged forward, their vibranium spears crackling with energy. Each weapon could discharge powerful electric currents—technology masked in tradition. Against ordinary foes, they were unstoppable.
But not against him.
Kurogai's eyes flared gold as the fifth pupil ring snapped open.
In the span of a heartbeat, he vanished.
The warriors lunged at empty air, their strikes finding nothing. When Kurogai reappeared, every member of the escort collapsed to the ground, unconscious, their weapons clattering beside them.
T'Chaka's breath caught. He hadn't seen a single movement. Not one strike, not one step. His own senses—heightened by the heart-shaped herb—had registered nothing.
"What… what did you just do?"
The king's disbelief echoed in the chamber.
Shuri's gasp rang out through the speakers. "Father! Be careful! He knocked out the entire escort in less than a second!" Her instruments confirmed what her eyes could not: in that instant, Kurogai had moved behind every warrior, striking them with precision beyond comprehension.
It was faster than anything she had ever imagined a human capable of.
And now, it was only her father who stood between Wakanda and this intruder.