Irisviel suddenly became excited, and her reaction in the chat group quickly drew the attention of everyone.
Howard Stark: speechless "Madam, what exactly do you mean by that?"
Irisviel: a little embarrassed "Oh, it's nothing… I just couldn't help myself."
Couldn't help yourself?
Howard Stark: helpless "I really didn't expect you to be a rotten girl."
Irisviel: nervous laughter "Haha… ha… ha…"
Lucas: laughs "Calling her just a rotten girl is an understatement! Don't underestimate Irisviel—she's a super rotten girl. She even fantasizes about her husband… with other men!"
Irisviel: "…"
Speechless.
Golden Lion Shiki: "Group Leader, can you tell us about this so-called love triangle in this world? This kind of drama is always entertaining! And this time, it's something completely different from what I've encountered before!"
Howard Stark: hesitant "Group Leader… who exactly are the other two involved in this love triangle with my son?"
Lucas: "One is your dear friend—America's beloved hero, Steve Rogers. The other? The Winter Soldier, the man who killed you."
Fire Fist Ace: "Wait a damn minute! You're telling me… Tony Stark is caught in a love triangle with the guy who murdered his father?!"
Ace was dumbfounded. The mere thought of himself being in a love triangle with Akainu made him feel physically ill.
Howard Stark: awkwardly defending Tony "No, no, it's not what you think! Sergeant Barnes… wasn't in control of himself when he killed me. Before that, we were friends."
Sebastian Shaw: "Controlled? I know some people have mind-controlling abilities, but they're usually mutants. Howard Stark, did you provoke a mutant or something?"
Howard Stark: "I don't know who was behind it. All I remember is that when I died… Sergeant Barnes wasn't himself."
Lucas: "It was Hydra. Barnes was brainwashed and turned into the Winter Soldier."
Howard Stark: shocked "Hydra?! But… they were wiped out!"
Sebastian Shaw: "As far as I know, Hydra was indeed eliminated. But their motto is 'Cut off one head, two more shall take its place.' If they resurfaced, it wouldn't be surprising."
Howard Stark: grimly "If that's true, this is bad. Hydra was once a global threat. If they still exist, they're a serious danger. Group Leader, can you help me wipe them out?"
Lucas: "Wipe out Hydra? That's easier said than done."
Senju Hashirama: surprised "No way! With your strength, Group Leader, you can't destroy Hydra?"
Lucas: "If Hydra stood in front of me and declared war, I could obliterate them with one hand. But they're a hidden organization, spread across the world, and they won't fight me head-on."
Hydra wasn't strong—they were persistent. They had their claws buried in every corner of the world. Lucas simply didn't have the time or patience to root them all out.
Uchiha Madara: "Then why not unify the world and crush them with overwhelming force?"
Howard Stark: panicked "Absolutely not! As dangerous as Hydra is, I don't want to see this world plunged into war—especially not a war where our opponent is the Group Leader."
Lucas: amused "Relax. I have zero interest in ruling this backward planet. There's nothing valuable here, and the risks outweigh the benefits. I'm not going to waste my time causing chaos."
Thank god.
Howard Stark let out a relieved sigh. Now that Lucas had outright dismissed Earth as unworthy of his attention, Stark no longer had to worry about it being taken over.
Shamelessly, he seized the opportunity to shift the topic back to Tony.
Howard Stark: "Anyway! Back to my son—how exactly did he get involved with Steve and Barnes?"
Lucas: "Don't worry, it's not that obvious. It's more like how Senju Hashirama and Uchiha Madara were… or how Lancelot and his queen were. It's subtle, something they're not even fully aware of themselves."
Howard Stark: "Oh? That's a relief, then."
Senju Hashirama: "…"
Uchiha Madara: "…"
Lancelot: "…"
Irisviel: "Wait, that's it? That's so boring!"
Howard Stark glanced at Irisviel's chat messages, utterly speechless.
This woman is a lost cause…
With a sigh, he muttered, "How did this happen? Tony grew up a normal kid. He's always been a playboy who loves women. How could he possibly… Wait!"
Something suddenly struck Howard, and he quickly asked:
Howard Stark: "Hold on! As far as I know, Captain America is missing, and Sergeant Barnes is still brainwashed by Hydra. So… how the hell did anything even happen between them and Tony?"
Lucas: "Well, it's not now. It happens years from now. Captain America gets thawed from the ice and revived. Later, Barnes regains his consciousness—with Cap's help."
Howard Stark: "Twenty years from now? But Tony's still just a carefree playboy. Even twenty years later…"
Lucas: grinning "A lot can change in twenty years. Maybe after being a playboy for so long, he finally wants to switch things up? Maybe he gets old and frail and decides to switch offense and defense?"
Howard Stark: "Group Leader, you said Tony's situation is similar to Uchiha Madara and Senju Hashirama's, right?"
Lucas: bluntly "Yeah! That's why I said maybe—it's just my personal guess."
Howard Stark: tired sigh "…"
Lucas: "Relax. Your son is a classic scumbag. After having his fill of fun, he eventually settled down with a reliable woman and had a lovely daughter."
Howard Stark: relieved "Really? That's good!"
Lucas: "But before his daughter even reached adulthood… he heroically died."
Howard Stark's heart clenched.
Howard Stark: urgently "Group Leader, you should be able to change his fate, right?"
Lucas: laughs "Of course! That was just the original timeline. Everything changed the moment I appeared."
Irisviel: "Wait, Tony Stark actually got married and had a child?"
Lucas: "Why not? Senju Hashirama was married with kids. So was your husband. Just because someone has close friendships doesn't mean they're incapable of settling down."
Irisviel: "That's true!"
Senju Hashirama: "…"
Can you guys stop talking about me? I have my pride!
Somewhere in the One Piece World, Senju Hashirama looked depressed, feeling the need to find a strong opponent to spar with—just to vent his frustration.
[*Tl:Please assume the Marvel world in this story is a mix of multiple Marvel, and not particularly MCU]
Marvel Universe – Tony Stark's Residence
Lucas arrived at Tony Stark's bedroom, casually turned on the lights, and woke up the two people sleeping inside.
A woman shrieked in terror.
Rinnegan Genjutsu!
Lucas's eyes flickered, and an illusion immediately calmed the screaming woman. She fell back into unconsciousness, leaving only Tony Stark, who remained unexpectedly composed.
"Don't panic. No need to cause a scene," Lucas said, observing the young Tony Stark.
Tony took a deep breath, then let out a smirk.
"Alright," he said, still lying in bed. "Since I know that panicking won't help, and since you haven't hurt me yet, I assume you want something. If it's money, just tell me how much—so we can skip the unnecessary drama."
Howard Stark, watching from the chat group, felt proud of his eloquent son.
Lucas: smirks "Why do you assume I'm here for your money?"
Tony Stark: arrogantly "Because I'm the richest man in the world! If it's not for money, what else could you possibly want?"
Lucas gave Tony a long, deep stare before chuckling.
Lucas: "What if I just came here to kill you? You're a little too full of yourself, kid."
Suddenly, a wave of Conqueror's Haki burst out.
Tony Stark's body collapsed with a thud, his entire body drenched in cold sweat.
Lucas: mocking "You can't even withstand a little Haki, and yet you act so composed? Now, I ask the questions, and you answer. Got it?"
Tony nodded dumbly, the arrogance completely drained from his face.
Lucas: "Where is your father's grave?"
Tony's face darkened. "Why do you want to know?"
Lucas: "Your father entrusted me with his resurrection. But I need his life information to do that."
Tony's expression twisted in anger.
Tony Stark: "No. You're not disturbing my parents' rest!"
Chat Group
Whitebeard: "Even knowing he's outmatched, and that his life could be at stake, he still refused the Group Leader without hesitation. @Howard Stark, you have a good son. How about I take him as my godson?"
Howard Stark: "You'd have to ask him about that! I admire his spirit, but what should we do if he refuses to cooperate?"
Lucas: "Easy fix!"
Lucas activated his genjutsu ability again, forcibly manipulating Tony Stark and making him lead the way. Since Tony refused to cooperate, he had no choice but to resort to more direct methods.
As for any resentment Tony might harbor later? Lucas wasn't worried. Howard Stark could handle that conversation.
Following Tony's lead, Lucas soon arrived at Howard Stark's grave. With a wave of his hand, he extracted the necessary DNA and placed a White Zetsu as a sacrificial medium.
Then, he activated Edo Tensei—Reanimation Jutsu.
A moment later, Howard Stark's soul was forcibly pulled from the afterlife.
Moments Later
At that moment, Lucas released Tony Stark from the henjutsu.
Tony Stark: groggily waking up "Huh? What's going on…? WAIT—WHAT THE HELL?!"
His eyes widened in pure horror as he took in the eerie surroundings. He was standing in a graveyard—his father's grave, to be precise.
And standing before him…
Was Howard Stark.
Tony Stark: "NO! NO WAY!"
His voice cracked as fear overtook him. His legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed on the spot.
For the first time in his life, Tony Stark—self-proclaimed genius, billionaire, playboy, philanthropist—was terrified beyond reason.
At the end of the day, he was still a young Tony Stark—not the hardened Iron Man he would later become.
Howard Stark, who had initially been pleased to be resurrected, watched his son's terrified reaction… and his expression darkened.
Little by little, his amusement faded, replaced by a gloomy scowl.
Howard Stark: "..."
Meanwhile, Tony's mind was in full breakdown mode.
Tony Stark: "NO, NO! This isn't real! I'm the greatest scientist in the world—I don't believe in ghosts!"
His breath hitched. His hands trembled. He muttered to himself, trying to rationalize the situation.
"This must be a hallucination… a dream! Yeah, that's it—I'm just dreaming!"
Howard Stark smirked.
Howard Stark: "A dream, huh?"
He took a step forward.
Howard Stark: "Well then… let's test if this is really a dream!"
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