Ryuuto was halfway to finding Magneto when a thought slammed into him.
"Wait. Mystique mentioned something… Natasha."
Right. She said Natasha Romanoff had been knocked out and dumped somewhere. Which meant the Black Widow wasn't just "busy"—she was Mystique's latest cosplay prop.
If that was true, then the real Natasha was still lying around like discarded luggage.
"…Tch. Can't leave her like that."
He switched direction immediately. With Rock Lee's speed packet boosting his legs, he cut through the rainforest like a blur. Within minutes, he found her—collapsed in the undergrowth, curled on her side as if dozing.
Ryuuto crouched beside her, pressing two fingers under her nose. Steady breathing. Good. He thumbed lightly against her lips until her eyes flickered open.
Natasha blinked up groggily, head pounding, and froze when she realized she was cradled in his arms.
"…What happened?" she muttered.
"I should be the one asking you," Ryuuto replied.
She frowned, memories piecing back together. "I was heading toward you. Then—someone hit me from behind. I blacked out."
"Mystique," Ryuuto said simply.
"Why? I've never crossed her."
"She wanted to be you. Knocked you out, put on your skin, hugged me and everything." He grinned shamelessly. "Honestly, she was pretty convincing."
Natasha's eyes narrowed. "…And how far did that little act go?"
"Further than you'd like to imagine," he teased.
For the infamous Black Widow, who carried a name dripping with lethal reputation, the truth was painfully ironic—she had never even dated, much less what her codename implied. That tiny detail made Ryuuto's jab land harder than she'd ever admit. She turned her head away, cheeks stiff.
"Relax," he said, softening slightly. "Mystique's tricks don't fool me for long. You're still the original."
"…I'll meet up with the others. What about you?"
"Me? I'm going to have a chat with Magneto."
Natasha's eyes widened. "Magneto? He's here?"
"If Mystique's around, why wouldn't he be?"
"You can't fight him," she warned sharply. "He's not someone you can—"
Ryuuto cut her off with a lopsided smirk. "I'm not here to beat him. I'm here to test myself. Banner was just a warm-up."
"Banner was a warm-up…?" she echoed, speechless.
He offered a hand. "Want me to carry you, or can you walk?"
That snapped her out of it. Natasha stood on her own, brushing dirt from her suit. She wasn't the type to cling; she knew staying with him would only weigh him down.
"Fine. I'll regroup with the team. Don't get yourself killed."
"Already told them to pull back," Ryuuto added. "A helicopter full of metal is basically a free toy for Magneto. They'd just get wrecked."
Natasha nodded once, sharp and decisive. "We'll rendezvous at the mountain peak, ten kilometers out."
Neither of them specified a time. But Natasha had already decided: if he didn't show, she would come back for him—dead or alive.
Ryuuto stretched his shoulders, grinning as she vanished into the forest. Then he turned toward Magneto's last known position.
[Ding! New Quest Issued! Eliminate Toad and Sabretooth! Reward: Three bottles of Life Potion!]
Ryuuto sighed. "Seriously? No data packets again?"
[Relax, Host. There'll be bread, milk, and everything else eventually.]
Ryuuto blinked. That tone was… different. Almost emotional.
He asked silently: "Oi, Shion… you starting to think for yourself? What are you, Ultron-lite now?"