Marvel : Ms. Hyuga's journey

— Manhattan, August 2008 —

Naori walked casually through a luxurious shopping mall in Manhattan. She wore a branded summer dress with a floral pattern, radiating an elegant aura that mesmerized anyone who saw her. Her thick black hair was tied simply, adding to the relaxed yet classy impression. Behind her, two bunshins, using transformations as bodyguards, walked with blank expressions, each carrying a stack of shopping bags full of branded goods.

With her chakra doubled, although not yet on the level of a certain blond boy, Naori could now easily use the shadow clone jutsu.

One of the bunshins sighed, shifting the shopping bags that were starting to make his hands sore. "I can't believe we're, manifestations of such an amazing jutsu, just becoming delivery men," he complained.

The second bunshin added, "Yeah, it's just not fair. The main body enjoys life, while we work hard. Is this chakra democracy?"

Naori, without turning around, casually responded, "You're not a democracy, you're a delegation. And remember, you are me. So technically, I'm also the one working hard."

The first bunshin sighed louder. "In that case, the main body should feel some of this burden too. How about we swap roles?"

Naori smiled slightly, then paused to try on a pair of high heels. "Unfortunately, that's impossible. Besides, you just need to last until you puff... disappear."

The two bunshins exchanged frustrated looks but said nothing more.

While she was busy choosing clothes, Naori's phone rang. She took it out of her branded handbag with one eyebrow raised. "Hello?"

"Ms. Naori, this is Agent Coulson," a calm voice answered on the other end of the line.

Naori sighed deeply, putting down the dress she was picking. "Oh, Agent Coulson from the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division. Wow, your organization's name always sounds like a breathing exercise sentence. Have you considered changing to a shorter name?"

Coulson chuckled softly. "Actually, that's one of the good news I wanted to share. We now use an acronym—SHIELD."

Naori smirked, returning her gaze to the clothing rack. "Great, you finally took my advice. So, what's so urgent that it's disturbing my leisure time?"

Coulson became more serious. "We have a situation involving Tony Stark. Obadiah Stane has stolen his armor technology, and they might be fighting. We need help from Kaguya Hime."

Naori raised an eyebrow, keeping her focus on an elegant black dress. "Hmm, Tony? What's stopping that genius playboy from handling his own problems?"

"Stane is using a much larger and more brutal suit of armor. I think this is going to be a tough fight for Tony Stark without assistance."

Naori paused for a moment, thinking. Then she said casually, "Alright. But I'm not going alone. For a situation like this, I think Yugao is more suited. Her raw strength is perfect for dealing with someone in armor."

Coulson sounded hesitant. "Yugao, huh? I'm not sure why you're not interested in handling this yourself, but I guess she's reliable enough."

Naori smiled thinly. "Trust me, she's an expert in matters like this."

"Alright, we'll arrange the details," Coulson said before hanging up.

After the conversation ended, Naori put her phone away and continued browsing for clothes. Her two bunshins sighed heavily.

"Really, even important missions get handed off to others. The main body really does have it easy," complained the first bunshin.

The second bunshin nodded while carrying more shopping bags. "I think it's time for a work stoppage."

Naori just smiled slightly, lifted a dress, and stared at it in front of the mirror. "Go ahead, strike, but don't forget, you'll puff… disappear before that happens."

Her bunshins sighed in resignation, continuing their roles as bodyguards and porters while Naori continued her shopping contentedly.

…

When Yugao finally arrived at the location, the night sky in Los Angeles appeared dark with a scattered few stars. Far above, two armored figures flew at high speed, engaged in a fierce battle.

"Looks like I'm late," Yugao thought, sighing.

However, she quickly defended herself in her mind. 'It's not my fault the mission was last-minute and I had to fly commercially. Where's their Quinjet, anyway?' With a slight frown, she looked at the plane ticket in her hand before tearing it in half.

Just then, her phone rang. She answered it without hesitation, her voice clearly reflecting her irritation.

"I just got here! And seriously, Coulson, you didn't even provide a Quinjet this time? After this mission, I want a refund for the plane ticket! By the way, where are you now?"

Coulson, in his usual calm tone, replied, "Apologies for our shortcomings this time. Right now, I and several SHIELD agents are securing Virginia Potts. Obadiah Stane has already attempted to chase her using a large suit of armor. You can focus on observing Tony Stark's fight and provide assistance if needed."

Yugao narrowed her eyes, attentive. "Got it," she replied briefly before hanging up. Her gaze turned to the sky, where Iron Monger flew low like a burning meteor. But just as it was about to hit the ground, Obadiah activated his thrusters and made a rough landing on the factory building's roof.

Yugao sprinted quickly, using the building's walls as a vertical path. Her movements were agile, defying gravity, as if the laws of physics were just concepts to be ignored.

At this point, only Yugao's body was produced using Jutsu, while all her equipment was real.

If she were to be struck by a fatal blow, when her body disappeared into a cloud of smoke, all her gear and clothes would remain behind, including her undergarments.

To avoid an embarrassing situation, Yugao had to fight extra cautiously.

On the roof, Tony Stark was cornered, his body encased in armor appearing small compared to Iron Monger. Obadiah's grip on Iron Man was tightening, making it difficult for Tony to move. In the midst of this critical situation, Tony called Pepper via his communicator, asking for help to activate the large fusion reactor.

However, another calm and confident voice interrupted. "No need to endanger Miss Potts, Mr. Stark. Our reinforcements will handle this shortly," Coulson said, transferring the communication control to SHIELD.

Tony, half-desperate, responded with frustration, "Then hurry up!"

At that moment, Yugao appeared at the edge of the roof. She pulled out a scroll from her ninja bag and made hand seals. Instantly, with a puff! and a swirl of white smoke, a baseball bat inscribed with chakra absorption seals materialized out of thin air.

With the chakra absorption seals etched onto it, a swing from this baseball bat could have an effect similar to Tsunade's Chakra Enhanced Strength, though not replicating her full power.

The baseball bat, engraved with chakra seals, was now in her hand. Her purple hair fluttered in the night wind, reflecting the faint moonlight, giving a mystical aura to her appearance.

Tony turned and immediately felt uneasy.

"Hey! Wait! Grape Girl! Let me go before you—"

Too late. With a smooth motion, Yugao leaped toward Iron Monger and swung the bat right into the chest of the giant armor. The sonic boom echoed, and Obadiah was sent flying off the roof like a toy, crashing to the ground hard.

BOOOOM!

The impact created a small crater in the asphalt, and Iron Monger's grip on Tony weakened. The Iron Man armor was freed from the pressure, and Tony immediately activated his thrusters to move away from the enemy.

Yugao leapt off the roof with the agility of a ninja, landing smoothly beside Tony, who was lying on the ground. His Iron Man helmet opened, revealing Tony's sweat-drenched face and dried blood on his temples.

"Are you alright?" Yugao asked casually, as if they were just enjoying an ordinary night.

Tony looked at her with tired yet sharp eyes. "Ugh… do I look alright to you?" He slowly got up, trying to catch his breath.

Across from them, Iron Monger slowly got up, its massive armor creaking with mechanical noises. Its glowing red eyes looked threatening in the dark of night.

Tony turned to Yugao with a half-annoyed expression. "Hey, Grape Girl, what's your plan now?"

Yugao narrowed her eyes at the nickname. "Alright, Tin Man, my plan is... attack!" she replied, her tone full of sarcasm.

Without waiting for Tony's response, Yugao surged forward, lifting her baseball bat high. She dodged a massive swing from Iron Monger and then struck the giant armor's torso, creating a loud metallic thud.

Tony sighed as he closed his helmet again. Quickly, he shot into the air, firing a repulsor beam at Iron Monger to assist Yugao.

Inside the Iron Monger suit, Obadiah Stane growled angrily. "Don't underestimate me! You two will die here!" he yelled through the armor's loudspeakers.

Suddenly, Iron Monger raised its left hand.

Da-da-da-da-da!

The Gatling gun on its left arm spun rapidly, launching an unrelenting stream of bullets toward Yugao.

Seeing the danger approaching, Yugao quickly made hand seals. "Doton: Doryuhekki!" She slammed her hands to the ground, and a thick earth wall rose, protecting her from the barrage of bullets. Though it only lasted a second, that was enough for Yugao to leap out of the line of fire.

Iron Monger switched targets to Tony, firing missiles at him. Tony skillfully dodged and shot the missile out of the air.

BOOOM!

Yugao, hiding behind the rubble, ensuring no one was watching, activated her Byakugan silently. With her x-ray vision, she studied the internal structure of Iron Monger, finding a weak spot in the back of the armor.

"Nice," she muttered, deactivating her Byakugan.

She quickly snuck around, avoiding Obadiah's attention. With a piece of iron she picked up from the rubble, she stabbed the gap in Iron Monger's armor, striking the main connecting cable. Sparks flew from the armor, causing the giant machine to stutter.

"No!" Obadiah roared inside the suit.

Yugao didn't give him time to recover. She leaped high and swung her baseball bat with all her might. The strike hit Iron Monger's torso, sending the massive armor flying like a metal doll, crashing hard into the ground.

BOOOOM!

Iron Monger tumbled several times before finally stopping. Its front opened, revealing Obadiah, who looked seriously wounded, blood flowing from the corner of his mouth.

Yugao slowly walked toward him, her face expressionless yet full of authority. "Surrender," she said briefly.

Obadiah glared up with a face full of rage. "Who are you... why are you stopping me?"

"You don't need to know who I am. What matters is that your plan failed. So, surrender before things get worse," Yugao said, shaking her head coldly.

Tony landed beside her, staring at Obadiah with a mix of disappointment and exhaustion. "Let's end this here, Obadiah. You know, I always thought of you like an uncle."

Obadiah grinned widely but didn't respond. Yugao felt a bad omen and shouted, "Get back!"

Without thinking twice, Tony quickly flew away at full speed.

Moments later, the missiles on Iron Monger's body began exploding one by one. Huge blasts shook the night, creating a fireball that lit up the sky.

BOOOM! BOOOM! BOOOM!

Yugao and Tony watched the destruction from a distance. The flames gradually died down, leaving the remains of the scorched giant armor.

Tony opened his helmet and looked at Yugao. "You know, you're pretty cool for someone who uses a baseball bat."

Yugao smiled faintly. "And you're pretty resilient for someone who always plays with gadgets."

Tony chuckled weakly, then gazed at the wreckage of Iron Monger with a gloomy expression. Without saying another word, Yugao began to walk away, disappearing into the shadows of the night.