In the long silence, Peter reached out and gently patted Tony's shoulder.
"Tony, I can understand how you feel."
"But you must realize one fact: Bucky is not the true murderer."
"He was just a weapon brainwashed and controlled by HYDRA, with no consciousness of his own."
"The ones we should truly resent are those who manipulated the weapon."
"Those HYDRA bastards are the ones we should truly eliminate!"
Hearing this, Tony suddenly looked up, his sharp eyes staring straight at Peter.
He seemed to want to see clearly through this gaze whether Peter's words were sincere or if he just didn't want to lose a good card like Captain America.
In response, Peter didn't offer much explanation; he just looked back at Tony calmly and openly.
There was no trace of evasion in those eyes, only full sincerity and determination.
After a long while, Tony withdrew his gaze.
After taking a few deep breaths, he put on that arrogant look he usually showed the public:
"I've seen far more than you have. If even a Little Brat like you understands this logic, do you think I wouldn't?"
At this point, he took a large swig of alcohol and then looked at Captain America, speaking fiercely:
"Old Popsicle, let me put the ugly truth upfront."
"I know perfectly well who the murderer is and what the weapon is."
"But that doesn't mean I'll permit the weapon that killed my father to wander around in front of me."
"So, from now on, tell that son of a bitch to stay far away from me!"
Tony's words were very blunt, but the Captain didn't show any dissatisfaction because of it.
In the kind Captain's heart, he knew that in this matter, Bucky was ultimately in the wrong.
The fact that Peter and Tony were willing to spare his life was already very magnanimous.
He really had no right to sanctimoniously demand that they not only forgive his old friend but also treat him as an equal comrade-in-arms.
"I understand," the Captain said, taking the initiative to bow deeply to Peter and Tony.
"On behalf of Bucky, I thank you for your mercy. Of course, when Bucky and I meet, I will also have him kneel and apologize to you. This is what he owes you; he must atone for the crimes he committed."
"Then..." Peter looked at Captain America and Tony and asked,
"Are you ready? I think it's time for us to begin our revenge."
As he spoke, Peter subconsciously glanced at the night sky outside the window; it was currently a dark and windy night.
It was perfect for them to thoroughly clean out those shady HYDRA members without anyone noticing.
To this, Tony was naturally impatient.
Without a second thought, he donned the Mark III.
Captain America, however, was a bit embarrassed, as he was currently wearing neither his suit nor carrying his shield.
"Use this for now."
As Tony spoke, he threw over a shield he had previously used to prop up a table leg.
This was a replica Howard Stark had created while trying to replicate the original Vibranium alloy shield.
But because it contained no Vibranium and the proportions were completely wrong, it was just a relatively sturdy and durable ordinary alloy shield.
Although its practical utility couldn't compare to that super shield with nearly infinite defense, it was sufficient for temporary combat.
With a shield in hand, Captain America immediately felt more comfortable.
Thus, with Peter's cry of "Avengers, assemble!", the three of them left Tony's mansion.
To accommodate Captain America, who couldn't fly, Peter lent him the flying skateboard, while he himself used the witch rider driver's Hurricane Form for high-speed flight.
After flying for about five or six minutes, Peter arrived at the secret Base where Felicia had been "kidnapped."
This was also HYDRA's second Base established in New York, aside from S.H.I.E.L.D.
The three of them exchanged glances, and without even needing to formulate a combat plan, they charged straight in.
A combat plan? That was something only needed when both sides were of equal strength.
Now that their own power was completely overwhelming and they even had an insider in the Base, what need was there for a plan under such circumstances?
Just rushing in would get the job done.
Boom!
A blast from Tony's palm cannon destroyed the Base's alloy gate.
Meanwhile, Peter activated his Byakugan and flicked several marble-sized Chakra bullets in succession, destroying all the alarms and surveillance devices.
Behind the iron gate, the HYDRA Agents, who were incredibly lax because they had never encountered an intrusion, didn't even have time to pull out their walkie-talkies to announce an enemy attack before the Captain threw his shield.
The sharp metal edge of the shield instantly slit the throat of the poor soul.
In the time that followed, the three were like tigers among a flock of sheep.
Wherever they passed, the HYDRA Agents hidden in this Base didn't even know what was happening before they died in a daze.
Since the three hadn't deliberately suppressed their noise during the attack, the sounds of battle eventually alerted some Agents.
Two Agents rushed frantically into the room of the Base leader, "Crossbones," shouting with trembling voices:
"Captain, the Director has broken in with Steve and Iron Man!"
The two Agents thought Crossbones would be as pale with fright as they were upon hearing this, and then hurry to notify Alexander Pierce and the others to prepare.
But the reality was that upon hearing this, "Crossbones" only gave a wicked smile:
"Is that so? Thank you for coming to inform me of such important news!"
And then... Pfft, pfft~
The two Agents subconsciously looked down and found that two water-blue spikes had pierced through their chests.
They looked at the owner of the spikes in disbelief, only to find it was their most trusted leader, "Crossbones"!
After cleanly dealing with these two, Crossbones... no, she should be called tide now!
tide shook the blood off her hands and turned to look at Bucky, who had been silently hiding in the shadows, saying:
"Congratulations, One-armed man, now you can have a happy reunion with your good buddy."
...About five minutes later, the entire HYDRA Base was thoroughly cleaned out through the internal and external coordination of Peter's trio along with Bucky and Felicia.
The two sides were also able to reunite in front of Crossbones' office door.
The moment they met, Felicia threw herself into Peter's arms.
Peter, after spinning her around in a circle, steadily set the beauty down.
This sickeningly sweet display made Captain America and Bucky, who had originally wanted to rush up for a passionate hug, freeze in place involuntarily.
For some reason, they felt... if the two of them were to hug now, it would feel like their friendship was taking a strange turn... "Bucky..." the Captain called out softly, his voice trembling slightly.
On Bucky's cold face, a hint of emotion appeared for the first time.
However, before he could say anything, a cold snort came from nearby.
It was Tony.
Without even looking at Bucky, he turned his head toward Peter and urged impatiently:
"Peter, that's enough. After we've finished off the HYDRA scum, you two can continue your flirting!"
Peter:...You really know how to use an indirect insult.