Chapter 52: Bonus - : A New Threat?
This bonus Chapter is for reaching 2.5k stones.
To think it would be achieved so fast. I am a victim of my own success.
Like, how is a fanfic ranked No 3 in powerstones on the whole website, just behind two novels?
On a real note, I am sure the powerstone flow will die down soon. Whatever goes up must eventually come back down. So I’ll hold on until that day.
The next bonus is still at 5k, though.
Anyway, enjoy the Chapter. You guys earned it.
As always, get cracking.
...
"A group that is made to save the world in its moment of great peril, or so my boss says." Natasha shrugged. "We already have one member; he’s a pretty big deal."
"Why does this sound like a band recruitment?" She moved back, tilting her head.
"I see that you’ll get along with the other recruit just fine." Natasha rubbed her neck with a small smirk. Her task was to observe Gwen and see if she should be recruited for the Avengers Initiative.
Although she was supposed to take her time doing this, Fury had called for faster action all of a sudden.
And even if she had spent the better half of her time here probing John, her duties weren’t neglected. Spiderwoman had passed with flying colours in every category a hero needed.
However, Gwen didn’t have the full information, and her mind started to go in one direction.
’Did they find out about John too?’ She couldn’t help but feel bad that he had publicly helped her, only for her cover to be blown like this.
"Wait, I forgot to ask one question." Gwen pushed Natasha back into the wall. "Are you going to expose my identity to the public if I refuse to join?"
"You could’ve asked that normally." The Widow blinked incredulously, but she continued with the usual matter-of-fact tone. "No, we won’t do that; in fact, we can help you hide yourself even better. We will even assist you in your hero activities if you want, but that one depends on how well you can negotiate."
"Ok, lead the way, and no funny business." Gwen stepped back like a cat whose tail was stepped on.
"Will you slam me into a wall again if I do something?" Natasha fixed her collar.
"I might." Gwen’s voice lowered.
"You are threatening me with a good time here."
Gwen rolled her eyes at Natasha’s smirk as she picked up her folder from the floor.
’I need to make sure they don’t know about John, at least.’
But even if they didn’t know now, with the way they narrowed her down, how much longer until they get to John?
Still, working with him on a team was a fascinating idea. Fighting to save the world while watching each other’s backs was really something.
’Ok, brain, stop with the fantasies. We already agreed to team up.’ Gwen focused her mind.
Walking after Nadine Roman while gathering all her brain cells for whatever waited for her.
***
Upon reaching back home, the first thing John did was draw the First Chapter of Princess Mononoke.
Even if his mind had a hundred thoughts running through it like unruly horses. Somehow, that made his focus sharper.
The panel started to come together one line at a time. Soon, those panels became a page in a little over 20 minutes.
This was when John locked in and started working on the rest of the pages; his drawing speed had already passed human limits thanks to his overpowered stats.
And Hanma’s bloodline helped him refine his movements with each line, cutting out unnecessary exertion of force and finding the quickest route for the next line. The time it took for a page kept getting shorter, and after 4 hours of back-bending drawing, the Chapter for Princess Mononoke ended with Ashitaka leaving his village.
After making sure he hadn’t messed up any parts and rereading the Chapter a few times to fix a few minor mistakes, John scheduled it for release at 9 PM and collapsed on the bed. Allowing himself some much-needed time for reflection.
"Time to roast myself." No one else could do it if he did it first.
Regardless, the PayPal thing wasn’t his brightest idea. And as useless as it seemed to cry over spilt milk, John couldn’t help but worry about the future if he didn’t learn from this.
Still, why was SHIELD looking into an online author? They weren’t that free, were they?
He could ask Natasha, but that’ll only give her more chances to mess with him.
’She really has no mercy.’ John could still remember her wet tongue on his neck, not to mention the weight and firmness of her breasts against his body. And that ass...
’Brain, you gotta stop flashing me 4k pictures of that shit. I am happy that you are capable, but please stop.’ Now that he was embarrassed, his brain tried to make him horny and forget it all. And he didn’t like it was working in a way.
But he didn’t want to be horny; he wanted to be happy and spread the stories in the world of Marvel.
’I didn’t know I’d get the payment model from the system back then.’ His brain kept repeating excuses to save the last of his dignity.
On top of that, even with the mistake, he was able to get through this somehow. It was a good thing he hadn’t played the all-knowing, mysterious character in front of Black Widow. That had worked in his favour.
"I have heard of a main character having plot armour; do they give it to writers these days as well?"
Thankfully, Natasha decided to give him a chance. Still, what would she do after he helped her?
As much as he wanted to keep delaying helping her, this was still Widow. Martial prowess wasn’t her main strength. And, since SHIELD had already tasted blood, they would pursue John Doe further.
There was no need to fight them; with his strength and a little coordinated effort from Natasha, he could easily slip into their inner circle to get insider info on why they were doing this.
As for the connection with John, he could simply stay as the illustrator. If he played his cards right, he could even become the middle man between John Doe and SHIELD.
But, to play this part, he needed the Conqueror’s Haki first. There was no knowing if that 24/7 suspicious baldy would send a telepath his way to get his secrets.
Conqueror’s Haki was the most economical purchase, as other mental defence powers were a touch too expensive for his broke ass. Not to mention the additional value he’d get out of it.
But that meant that RCT would have to wait. So, he had to play the game of cat and mouse with Natasha for a much longer time than he expected.
"I guess I have to sacrifice my body to keep her distracted." He closed his eyes as if accepting his fate.
On a real note, John looked at the notifications pouring in from the newly released Manga.
He saw Tony, Anna Marie, and even the newest addition.
[Jane Foster pities Ashitaka. +5EP]
John could understand the feeling of pity, but the one thing that worried him was Gwen missing the release. They did talk about it, and she seemed pretty excited for a fantasy-type story after Fight Club.
’Has she still not recovered from Look Back?’ He chuckled, remembering her reaction at the ending of that one shot and what that led to.
Still, what worried him was that he wasn’t happy with this EP accumulation. John needed more EP, and he had spent quite some time storyboarding Princess Mononoke.
"Guess I should release a second manga alongside this one. But a short one won’t do." He already had the work fresh in mind from last night’s training, and unlike Princess Mononoke, this one already had a manga form.
Plus, this was a mid-length series, so it should serve as a good warm-up before he touched big series and also tell him of his limits. Not to mention that he quite liked the question this manga asked.
Now, the real question was how much EP would this manga earn him?
"Well, Urasawa has never let me down even once." With a dry chuckle, he picked up the stylus. Remembering the great works this single mangaka had given the world, John started to work on the first Chapter of Pluto.
With the finished work already in his mind, he had one volume done by sunrise. And with a devious smirk, he decided to release it all without any announcement.
"I can finally train now." John stretched his almost hunched back and stood up.
After making sure to close the curtains tightly, he entered the specialized training room. It was the same room he used for Haki training, but there was a box of pebbles by the door. John took a handful and allowed his cursed energy to flow through them.
Grinning at the already increasing EP, he decided to use the time he had before afternoon lectures to the fullest.
However, the next day, his lips twitched at the new notifications.
[Reed Richards is heavily invested in the new work. +10EP]
No, it wasn’t this one; this guy has been around since Fight Club started. It was the second notification that made him shake his head.
[Loki is trying to find where you live. +100 EP]
First, it was SHIELD; now the literal God of Mischief wanted his address?
’I am just trying to share the stories I love with the world; what the fuck do you all want from me?!’
Soaking in the cold bath, John could only cover his mouth with his palms as it looked like he wouldn’t have a peaceful day for a while.
...
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