Before Ryuuto could even speak, Katie Dee grinned and said,
"This is my birthday present for you."
"My birthday was months ago," Ryuuto replied flatly.
Katie shrugged.
"Birthday gifts can be late too, you know? When we first met, your birthday had already passed—so I couldn't give you one then. I'm just… making it up now. But don't open it yet. Wait till you're alone."
Ryuuto raised an eyebrow. "Mysterious much? What the hell's in it?"
Katie's smile turned playful. "Just open it when you're alone, okay? Not because I don't trust anyone—" she glanced meaningfully at Natasha Romanoff "—but because it's something only you should see."
Natasha gave a small laugh.
"That's fine. A birthday gift's between you two anyway. You can decide when he opens it."
"Good." Katie smirked. "Then I'll leave you two to your… detonator business."
She waved lazily and stepped through the wall using her phasing ability, vanishing into her room like a ghost.
Ryuuto frowned.
"You know, living next to Katie is a nightmare. She phases through walls whenever she wants. The other morning, I nearly had a heart attack. I was brushing my teeth, looked up at the mirror, and boom—she just popped out of it. Wearing a white nightdress. Like freaking Sadako crawling out of the TV."
He exhaled, shaking his head. "Good thing I'm built different, or I'd have fainted right there."
Natasha chuckled. "So she often walks into your room like that?"
"Yeah," Ryuuto nodded. Then he noticed the odd look in Natasha's eyes and quickly added,
"She's my sister. Even if she barges in like that, it's normal."
"That's… one way to see it," Natasha teased. "You're siblings, after all. I guess even sleeping in the same bed wouldn't be weird for you two."
Ryuuto squinted. "Why does it sound like you're actually serious?"
"I'm just stating facts." Natasha hid her smirk and turned back to the table. "Now—let's focus on this detonator."
"Isn't there any better way to neutralize it than just shocking it?" Ryuuto asked.
Natasha didn't answer immediately. Her gaze went distant—thinking, calculating. She'd gone through every kind of military training imaginable, and if anyone could figure this out, it was her. Ryuuto, on the other hand, could only wait and hope she came up with something smarter than "try not to die."
After a long minute, Natasha asked quietly,
"Why do you want to disable the chip, exactly?"
Ryuuto folded his arms.
"Because this kind of tech targets Mutants. If we don't find a universal way to disable it, every Mutant's at risk. Anyone captured could be forced to wear one—and then what? Game over. I want to make sure that possibility becomes zero. I want every chip like this to just… fail. Randomly. Turn these so-called control devices into junk. You get me?"
Hearing that, Natasha's eyes softened with respect. She hadn't realized just how far ahead he was thinking. After a few moments, she said,
"Maybe… we can use radiation."
"Radiation?" Ryuuto frowned. "Explain."
She nodded. "Radiation interferes with electronics. If we expose the detonator to controlled radiation—Tony's lab has the right equipment—we might be able to destabilize its internal circuits."
"That sounds like a pain."
"Not really. You just need to bring it to Tony," Natasha said. "He'll handle the rest."
Ryuuto sighed. "Alright, alright. I'll drop it off."
He turned slightly and called out,
"Shion, locate Hela."
[Ding! Summoning protocol: engaged.]
A few seconds later, Hela appeared, her expression neutral as always.
"Teleportation duty again?" she muttered.
"Yeah, sorry," Ryuuto said with a small grin. "Malibu. Tony Stark's villa."
Hela wrapped an arm around him.
A flicker of green light—and they vanished.
Meanwhile, Susan Storm walked into the room, towel-drying her hair. Seeing Natasha alone, she asked,
"Where's my Ryuuto?"
"He went to Tony."
"Huh?" Susan blinked. "You say that like I can't see him anymore. Also, what's with that tone?"
Natasha frowned. "Why did you shower before coming here?"
Susan arched an eyebrow.
"Is that weird? When you go meet someone, you don't go all sweaty and gross, right? Basic manners."
Natasha's cheeks reddened slightly. "I… might've overthought things."
"Oh, I know what you were thinking," Susan teased, leaning closer with a mischievous grin. "You like him too, don't you?"
Natasha's silence said everything.
Smirking, Susan whispered into her ear,
"Then maybe the three of us should just sleep together tonight."
Natasha's face went crimson.
"You're insane!"
She stormed out, leaving Susan laughing quietly to herself.
At that exact moment, Ryuuto appeared in front of Tony Stark's villa in Malibu, ocean breeze washing over him. He dismissed Hela, who returned to the Underworld in a swirl of shadows, then walked toward the glass door. It opened automatically—classic Stark tech.
Inside the lab, Tony was hunched over a robotic arm, welding sparks flying. Ryuuto tossed him the detonator.
Tony caught it midair and turned it over.
"You find the White Queen?"
"Yeah. But she slipped away."
Tony snorted.
"Figures. Satellite scans came up empty too. Probably hiding somewhere off-grid. And this—" he tapped the detonator "—is one of those Mutant control cuffs, right? What do you want me to do, gift-wrap it?"
Ryuuto smirked.
"Make it useless. The sooner, the better."
Tony raised an eyebrow, half-impressed, half-annoyed. "You really know how to ruin a man's weekend, Red Mirage."