Kakashi stepped into the bright conference room and stood directly in front of the main camera.
Every holographic face on the wall turned toward him at once. And the people instantly recognised him. He had been doing Shield missions for quite a few months and so they knew about him and his abilities but what they witnessed today changed their worldview entirely.
Some eyes showed respect for the man who had held back an alien army. Some showed curiosity about the masked stranger. But every single pair of eyes carried fear.
They had all watched the footage. They knew what he could do. They knew no bunker, no secret service agent, no private army could stop him if he decided to walk through their door and kill them.
"Good evening, everyone," Kakashi said calmly.
He let the silence sit for a second.
"Since the Avengers have been officially recognised, I will answer questions on behalf of the team."
It was a quiet power move. He was telling them, without raising his voice, that the Avengers answered to him now, not to S.H.I.E.L.D. and not to Nick Fury.
A council member from Asia spoke first, voice slightly shaking. He asked the question that was in everyone's mind but no dared ask.
"Are you human?"
The question hung in the air. They needed to know if he was another alien wearing a human face like Thor or Loki.
Kakashi answered without hesitation.
"Yes. Director Fury has my complete medical file. Blood tests, DNA, everything. You can request the reports."
A woman from Europe leaned forward.
"Then how do you explain your powers?"
Kakashi gave a small shrug.
"Training and experience, I guess."
Several council members blinked. One man actually laughed out loud before catching himself.
"Training?" he repeated. "You cut aliens in half, summon a rain of lightning and make your clones with training?"
Kakashi's eyes curved in what might have been a smile.
"I started young."
A general from a large military power raised his hand.
"What guarantee do we have that the United States will not use the Avengers as its personal army?"
Kakashi answered immediately.
"The Avengers Initiative exists to protect Earth from threats no normal military can handle. We do not belong to any country. Tony Stark has already refused to hand over his armour to the U.S. military, and he will keep refusing. He has made his stance clear. Bruce Banner was turned into a weapon by the U.S. military once. He wants nothing to do with governments. Captain America fought for freedom, not for any flag. We protect the planet. All of it."
Most faces relaxed. A few still looked doubtful, but they stayed quiet.
Gideon Malick spoke again.
"What about the Tesseract? It is a limitless energy source. We should continue weapons research with it."
Kakashi turned his eyes on Malick. The man froze. The temperature in the room seemed to drop.
"Let me remind everyone," Kakashi said quietly, "that this invasion happened because S.H.I.E.L.D. was experimenting with the Tesseract. The cube sends a signal across the universe. Someone very dangerous heard it. The safest thing is to send it far away. Thor has agreed to take it to Asgard. And Thor has agreed to guard it."
Alexander Pierce smiled smoothly.
"But Loki is Thor's brother. How can we trust Asgard with such power when one of theirs attacked Earth and caused so much destruction? And the cube is too valuable. What if Earth needs it again? I propose S.H.I.E.L.D. keeps it secure."
Kakashi did not blink.
"Your point stands correct." Kakashi said and Pierce smiled but his smile halted at Kakashi's next words.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. already lost it once. The Avengers will take responsibility for the Tesseract. If the world ever needs its power, Tony Stark and Bruce Banner are the two smartest men on the planet. They will know what to do with it."
A quick vote followed. The majority agreed. The Tesseract would stay with the Avengers.
One final question came from a nervous-looking man in a suit.
"What stops the Avengers from becoming a danger to the world itself?"
Kakashi looked straight into the camera.
"If we wanted to rule the world, we would not have risked our lives to save it from aliens. If any member ever goes rogue, the rest of us will stop them. That is our promise."
Pierce leaned forward, voice soft but sharp.
"And you, Mr. Hatake? We saw what you did to the Chitauri. You also contained both the Hulk and Abomination alone. I am not sure the entire team together could stop you if you decided to act against us."
The room became completely silent.
Kakashi tilted his head slightly. His eyes curved into the famous eye-smile that usually made children happy and enemies wet themselves.
"Well," he said softly, "that is a very good thing, then, that I am on your side."
A cold shiver ran through every person watching. No one spoke for several seconds.
Kakashi broke the silence.
"If there are no more questions, I will leave you to continue your meeting."
No one dared to ask another question.
Kakashi gave Fury a small nod and walked out of the room. The door closed behind him with a soft click.
Inside the conference chamber, Alexander Pierce waited until the red light on the camera turned off. Then he spoke again, voice calm and professional.
"Following the Battle of New York, it is clear we need stronger oversight. To that end, I propose Project Insight."
Kakashi heard the words through the door as he walked down the corridor.
'Project Insight, huh?' he thought, eye narrowing.
He already did not like the sound of it.
-----Author Notes---------
Y'all can now read the next 15 chapters of the fanfic on my pat*reon.
Also you can also now read exclusive one shots on it.
https://pat*reon.com/Charizard6
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