April smiled, took a deep breath, and didn't continue the topic. She held up the data disk and said: ...
"We need to talk." Her gaze swept over Hawk and the four turtles one by one. "About these photos, about Shredder, about that damned 'Wild Can'."
Her gaze locked onto Hawk again, carrying a reporter's instinct to unearth the truth.
"Respected Mr. Hawk, though it might be impolite, I still want to ask, are your abilities—absorbing explosive energy and shooting lasers from your eyes—also the result of some human experimentation?"
The air instantly froze.
The four turtles' gazes also shifted. Michelangelo let out a silent whistle, breaking the brief silence: "Whoa, the reporter lady is really direct."
Raphael impatiently tapped his katana hilt on the ground, sending up sparks: "Listen, sweetheart, this isn't the time for a press conference! Shredder's minions could be on our tail any minute!"
"Calm down, Raph!" Leonardo said gravely, his blue headscarf fluttering slightly in the wind. He turned to April, "April, we understand your shock and questions. Hawk saved all of us, including you." He pointed to the data disk.
Hawk didn't immediately answer April's question. He waved his hand, indicating it was fine.
"I believe Ms. O'Neil means nothing else; she's simply curious, and I can satisfy your curiosity: no!"
April nodded, as if a taut string had slightly loosened.
Whether it was true or not still needed investigation, but at least with the Lane family's credibility, his words held a certain degree of trustworthiness.
"In my years as the King, I've often dealt with the Foot Clan, the Hand, and other criminal organizations in Brooklyn. Believe me, any evidence you have won't be enough to bring them down!"
He pointed to the data disk in April's hand, "Its role, at most, is to expose them and temporarily hinder them."
Hawk knew all too well how resilient these villains were. Even when Shredder in Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles was finally imprisoned, he still escaped, and even released the alien Krang.
And his ultimate fate was to be dealt with by Krang!
This profoundly demonstrated that the most effective way to deal with such boss-level villains was physical elimination!
Pure violence for violence!
Just then, a large truck slowly approached from a distance, its headlights illuminating the resting group.
The four turtles instantly rose and drew their weapons, ready to engage.
The two women also stood up nervously, backing away.
Everyone thought it was more Foot Clan reinforcements.
But Hawk waved his hand, calming them down.
As the truck approached, they realized the driver was an Asian girl who looked only about twenty years old.
"You're quite fast." Hawk praised, looking at the sleepy-faced Koo Ja-yoon.
Koo Ja-yoon rolled her eyes. The moment her gaze fell upon the four turtle... men beside them, all her sleepiness vanished, and her jaw almost dropped to the ground.
Pointing at the four turtles, her eyes wide, she stammered, "Wha... wha... wha... what is this?"
Seemingly accustomed to it, or perhaps having anticipated it, the four turtles paid no mind. The most flamboyant of the four, Michelangelo, walked forward gallantly: "My dear lady, my name is..."
"Bang—"
Before he could finish, Michelangelo was punched by Leonardo, the leader: "Let's go, no time for chatter."
Then, he turned to Koo Ja-yoon and said, "Sorry, we call ourselves the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Apologies for the trouble at this late hour."
Koo Ja-yoon's mouth twitched. She quickly waved her hand, looking strangely at Hawk, as if to say: No wonder you asked me to drive a truck, what are these things?
December 27th, 1:00 AM, S.H.I.E.L.D. Triskelion
Piercing alarms ripped through the tranquility of the Triskelion headquarters.
In the deep underground command center, Nick Fury's single eye was fixed on the massive central satellite monitoring screen, a shared channel from SWORD.
On the screen, a coordinate point flashed with dangerous red light, accompanied by a waterfall of complex energy reading analysis data.
"Energy signature comparison results?" Fury's voice was low as thunder, carrying an undeniable pressure.
"Analysis complete, sir." A technical agent's voice held a hint of disbelief. "Highly consistent with the residual readings from the core explosion in Busan... over 92% match!"
Fury's fist slammed onto the control panel with a thud.
"Hawk!" The name was squeezed through his teeth, filled with long-suppressed fury.
"What have you done this time? Huh? Whatever you've done! This time, I'll catch you red-handed!"
"Target coordinates locked!" Fury made an immediate decision, his voice echoing through the command center. "All airborne Quinjets, proceed immediately! Simultaneously deploy ground rapid response units, codename: Operation Iron Curtain, objective: Traveler!"
The order was swiftly relayed like a cold tide. The base instantly buzzed with activity, the roar of engines growing from distant to near, blinding searchlights tearing through the night sky. Quinjets, like black reapers, swooped towards the incident location.
Heavy armored vehicles and fully armed special agent teams followed close behind, raising clouds of dust.
Inside the cabin of one of the Quinjets, Natasha Romanoff—S.H.I.E.L.D.'s top agent, the Black Widow—checked her equipment expressionlessly.
But her peripheral vision was fixed on the touchscreen of her personal encrypted communicator, seemingly undergoing intense internal struggle.
A moment later, she overcame some thoughts, her fingers rapidly tapping on the screen, and a concise message was instantly sent:
[Satellite lock, withdraw!]
[Favor debt +1.]
The recipient of the message was Hawk, currently S.H.I.E.L.D.'s highest priority target for capture.
Seconds later, Natasha's encrypted channel quietly flickered, and a reply arrived:
[Received, Smith Squat Enthusiast. Favor noted.]
[Can owe you another, help me find out: Where is the Foot Clan HQ? What company are they fronting?]