Kingpin was excited, preparing to negotiate with the Hand. Shin didn't care what he did.
Out of sight, out of mind. Kingpin's operations were basically illegal—drugs, arms deals, and the like.
Although Shin didn't like him very much, it wasn't his community being harmed, and in some American states, even marijuana was legal. He couldn't bother with it.
Still, Shin was very interested in the dragon bones, so he instructed Kingpin to contact him directly if any trouble arose.
The Hand and Daredevil had already appeared, and Iron Fist would likely show up soon too. That would eventually lead to the rise of the entire Defenders team and Kingpin would truly have his hands full.
Groups like the Avengers, X-Men, and the Fantastic Four had their own major enemies. Their interactions with Kingpin were only occasional.
But the Defenders, Spider-Man, and the Punisher were different. They were essentially enemies by nature. Out of ten stories, at least four or five had Kingpin as the final boss.
Turning on the TV, Shin was about to catch the news when another explosion roared outside.
Activating the Rinnegan's abilities, Shin swept his gaze across the city... and there it was. Iron Man, fighting against Iron Monger.
The two clashed fiercely on the streets of New York, sparks flying everywhere. Before long, Tony Stark began to fall into a disadvantage.
Just like in the movie, his armor's energy reserves were running low, and he had jumped into battle anyway.
Shin expected the plot to follow the original: Tony luring Iron Monger into a high-altitude freeze.
But suddenly, several sharp arrows whistled through the air, striking key joints of Iron Monger's armor.
With a deafening blast, Iron Monger's battle suit exploded, weapons and parts scattering everywhere.
Surprised, Shin scanned the area again... just in time to spot Hawkeye perched on a tall building, slowly lowering his bow.
'What the heck?' Shin thought. As far as he remembered, the only S.H.I.E.L.D. agent involved in this battle originally was Coulson, who mostly ran around with Pepper Potts. Why was Hawkeye here?
However, Shin only wondered for a moment before letting it go. This wasn't a pure Avengers world, nor strictly based on the movies. It was natural for changes to occur, especially with his interventions causing butterfly effects.
Besides, Iron Monger's armor was crude. Though it looked imposing, its bulkiness made it an easy target for skilled marksmen.
Tony's cold-hearted uncle hadn't intended to fight personally in the armor. It was just a prototype meant to be mass-produced for profit.
Unfortunately, Pepper Potts found evidence of his crimes, and desperation forced his hand. Then, Tony, who was supposed to be dead, showed up in full Iron Man gear—and the battle unfolded.
If Obadiah had known he'd have to face Iron Man directly, he would never have designed such a clunky suit.
But it was too late for regrets. Although Obadiah wasn't critically wounded thanks to the massive armor absorbing most of the blast, without it, he was helpless.
A swarm of S.H.I.E.L.D. agents rushed in, swiftly handcuffing him.
Shin shook his head. "How miserable… lifted the table, only to get arrested immediately."
...
The Iron Monger incident ended up as just a small episode. The only thing that truly annoyed Tony Stark was that, during the press conference, everyone focused on the mysterious sniper who had shot down Iron Monger, Hawkeye, rather than his grand reveal as Iron Man.
Still, Tony's announcement sent Stark Industries' stock soaring. Recently, Kingpin was smiling from ear to ear, his social standing elevating rapidly.
Although he had always been an upper-class figure and major capitalist, military-industrial enterprises, especially in Marvel Comics, wielded a different level of influence and national status.
However, Kingpin's laughter didn't last long, because the newly minted superhero Iron Man began visiting his Fisk Tower almost daily!
This messy situation actually traced back to when the Punisher was captured by Kingpin.
Kingpin had intended to torture him for information, but S.H.I.E.L.D. rescued the Punisher that very night.
Apparently, Nick Fury had some ties with the Punisher. At the time, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s spies were closely monitoring Kingpin, and infiltrating his organization wasn't difficult.
Thus, the Punisher was extracted without much fuss.
Not only that, but the Punisher, true to his reputation as a level-10 agent and peak human, managed to steal a miniature arc reactor on his way out.
He delivered the reactor to S.H.I.E.L.D. as a goodwill gesture. While S.H.I.E.L.D. began attempting to crack the technology, suspicion immediately fell on Kingpin.
They assumed Kingpin had stolen the tech from Stark Industries. After all, Kingpin was a board member there, but they didn't realize that not even Stark's own board members had access to that technology! Only Tony Stark himself had the knowledge.
Nick Fury, scheming as always, secretly tipped off Tony Stark.
Tony was stunned.
In theory, no one else should've had access to the miniature arc reactor. Could it be Obadiah's doing?
But even if it was, Obadiah only had possession of the reactor for an hour or two, barely enough time to flee and equip the armor, let alone crack cutting-edge technology.
Determined to investigate, Tony suited up in his newest Iron Man armor, newly painted and styled—and stealthily infiltrated Kingpin's turf.
Despite Kingpin's shady reputation as New York's underworld king, he was publicly a philanthropist, a major capitalist, and even a shareholder of Oscorp and Stark Industries!
Tony Stark had the nerve to fight terrorists in the Middle East, but he wouldn't openly attack a fellow board member of his own company.
If he did, he'd be sitting in prison the next day. After all, that's not how the real world operated, every board member had skeletons in their closets.
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