Everyone heard the sound and looked over, only to see Barton with his head lowered, his fists crackling.
Hayato Gokudera closed his mouth and looked at him silently.
So did the rest.
Although they couldn't see Barton's expression, they could all feel his anger at this moment... Being angry for the dead was respect for life.
And this feeling was also worthy of respect.
Even if the object of his anger was themselves, that remained the same.
Snap!
Just when Barton was about to burst out, a hand patted his shoulder from behind.
"...Fury?"
Barton turned his head, saw the familiar figure, and immediately opened his mouth slightly in surprise.
Fury didn't say anything, just shook his head lightly, pulled him behind, then faced Tsuna and his six Guardians.
After a while, he exhaled. "You destroyed two U.S. Marine battalions, but don't think there will be peace in the future!"
"Director Fury, you can't talk nonsense!" Tsuna looked at him indifferently. "We haven't left the building from beginning to end, so how could we have destroyed them?"
"..."
Fury was speechless.
Indeed, although he knew this was done by the Vongola Family, there were no traces of their involvement at the scene, and it couldn't be proven from any angle that they were responsible.
"Director Fury, I said that Vongola will abide by the rules of the game in human society, and naturally will also be subject to prosecution by the U.S. judicial department. If you suspect we did it, just sue us. As long as you can show valid evidence in court, we're willing to accept U.S. legal sanctions. As for now..." Tsuna looked at Brigadier General Talbot lying in the distance. "He seems to still be alive. You should take him back for treatment—maybe you'll find some useful clues."
(That is, there are no clues!)
When Fury heard the words, he understood immediately.
The other party dared to let him bring back the survivor so generously—that must be because they weren't afraid he'd find evidence. Even if Talbot didn't die, it was possible the other party deliberately spared his life to demonstrate to the United States.
But knowing that, Fury had nothing he could do.
At this moment, there was also a Quinjet suspended in high-altitude clouds, equipped with missiles enough to raze this area to the ground... This had originally been meant to threaten after talks collapsed, to escape smoothly or simply die together with the enemy as a last resort.
But after seeing two U.S. Marine battalions wiped out without firing a shot, he no longer had confidence that this backup plan would work.
(I should have pointed a gun at Talbot or threatened him with missiles to withdraw!) Fury felt some regret at this moment.
He'd had that idea at the time.
But S.H.I.E.L.D. had a good relationship with the White House yet didn't get along well with various other departments—was even hostile with some.
Especially the military and FBI.
Before S.H.I.E.L.D.'s establishment, they were the world's police, the largest in the United States.
But now, they'd been replaced by S.H.I.E.L.D.
Although it was a special department established to prevent crises hiding on Earth and from outer space, in their view, this honor should also belong to the United States, rather than an unknown organization jointly funded by the United Nations.
Therefore, the military had been committed to creating super soldiers and developing more advanced weapons and equipment. Military expenditures increased year by year, and they'd never given up trying to replace S.H.I.E.L.D.
Under such a relationship, if Fury turned his gun on a Chief of Staff of the Department of Defense, whom the president himself made a brigadier general, or aimed missiles at the U.S. military on U.S. soil... Even with justification, it would definitely become uncontrollable under the manipulation of U.S. officials hostile to S.H.I.E.L.D.
But now, things had gotten worse than before.
At that time, if he'd stopped Talbot, he would have been dismissed from his position as S.H.I.E.L.D. Director.
And now, it might completely trigger a war between the U.S. military and Vongola.
The tip of the iceberg shown by the Vongola Family was enough to cause huge losses to the army. If their power was fully displayed, the extent it would reach was completely unpredictable.
After all, the Vongola Family didn't only possess extraordinary power but also displayed weapons of super high-tech level. They also seemingly had the ability to time travel and couldn't be handled conventionally.
In the end, he'd still underestimated the Vongola Family.
No matter what he'd thought, the result wouldn't have been worse than threatening a U.S. military brigadier general.
As a result, Vongola killed everyone instantly, and the U.S. military didn't even have time to surrender.
(In the end, the power is still insufficient. If the power were strong enough, there'd be no need to be so passive!) Fury took a deep breath, and his thoughts returned from deep contemplation to reality.
He glanced at Tsuna meaningfully. "I hope Vongola can abide by the agreement from today's meeting!"
"The Vongola Family never breaks their promises!"
"I hope so!" Fury put his hands in his pockets, walked to the car, and commanded as he walked, "Barton, bring General Talbot with you. Hill, tell the White House about this and request that S.H.I.E.L.D. take over follow-up matters."
"Yes, sir!"
…
Convenience store.
"They're all dead!"
Quinn looked at the people coming and going outside the door with a melancholy expression.
It was rare that he hadn't gone out to wander today but stayed home to mind the store with focus. Without being distracted by other things, he naturally knew the real-time situation of each puppet, including what happened on Vongola's side.
From Fury's arrival for negotiation, to the army's arrival, and finally to Chrome using illusion to kill people—he'd grasped the situation in real-time.
He could have stopped Chrome from killing people, but he didn't.
Because he knew this kind of thing would happen sooner or later.
From the day he'd let Muzan and the Twelve Kizuki perform for his own selfish desires, he knew that day would come sooner or later, even with the restriction imposed that "the target must be someone who deserves it."
Because human desires cannot be satisfied.
When he took the first step for prayer value, he'd take the second step, the third step for prayer value... inexhaustibly.
Perhaps in the end, he'd slaughter all the multiverses to reach the same height as the One Above All.
What's more, when killing someone, you must be prepared to be killed.
As a rule maker, the United States stood above the ground, defined all opponents as guilty, and could pass judgment at will... Then, when the rules were broken, who would define the crime, and who would impose sanctions?
Certainly the new rule-makers.
And the only ones who could make rules were the strong!
Quinn pulled out a cigarette and lit it, took a slow inhalation, then slowly exhaled it, his expression returning to normal. "Six hundred soldiers contributed 6,300 prayer points, Barton contributed 1,600, and Fury contributed 2,100. I can do another hundred consecutive draws!"