Dawn arrived.
Above the calm sea, a massive roar erupted, followed by the instant a two-hundred-meter diameter section of the sea violently exploded.
A gigantic octopus, so large it seemed to blot out the sky, suddenly leaped out of the Water.
"Holy shit!"
"Jesus!"
"Oh, God!"
In the S.H.I.E.L.D. Command Center, all the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents, who had been holding their breath and staring at the big screen, looked at the enormous octopus that appeared, reacting as if a terrifying female ghost had suddenly appeared in a comedy movie they were enjoying. They almost simultaneously let out a gasp.
Even Hill and Hand's eyes sharply constricted in that instant.
But… their positions were Director and Commander, respectively, and they were also women.
As everyone knows.
Violent organizations have always been a man's World, at least that's what most people believe, so to become a leader in a man's World, that woman must be stronger than most men.
So Hill and Hand suppressed their instinctive urge, trying hard not to gasp along with everyone else.
Just then.
A female Agent, covering her mouth, suddenly had her eyes light up.
"Look, it's Phoenix!"
"God, it really is Phoenix."
"He's not dead, so that means that merman is dead?"
"Merman?"
"I really wanted to call him a mermaid, but do you think he's a beauty?"
"Let's just call him a merman."
Hill and Hand listened to the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents' discussions, exchanged glances, and then looked at the big screen. After Hawk had lifted the giant octopus out of the Water and then casually discarded it, Hawk reappeared on the big screen, standing in the air again, shirtless.
Hawk's suit was in tatters.
When that giant octopus stirred up the underwater currents, his suit jacket was instantly torn to shreds by the turbulent Water.
This was also why Hawk reacted in time, otherwise, he wouldn't just be shirtless now, but completely naked.
However… how long had this damned octopus been alive?
It must have been at least twenty thousand years.
Hawk, standing in the air, frowned as he looked at the enormous octopus corpse, its head smashed, spread out on the sea surface like a waterfall.
Hawk looked down at this octopus, which had coincidentally appeared just as he was about to deal with Namo, and thought of Namo's nemo trident.
If nothing else, this giant octopus, which appeared at that time, was there to protect Namo.
As everyone knows.
DC Aquaman's nemo trident possesses the power to control the ocean and the ability to communicate with sea creatures.
And Marvel's Aquaman, Namo, his trident also has the power to control the ocean and the ability to summon sea creatures.
Hawk didn't actually take long to defeat this giant octopus.
He had been primarily searching for Namo underwater.
The result was obvious.
Namo had escaped.
Under the seabed where Namo was buried, Hawk discovered a deeper fissure, and Namo's aura had vanished at this crack.
He searched along that fissure for a while, and after confirming that Namo had completely escaped, he gave up, carrying this giant octopus as he leaped out of the Water.
After all, this was also his trophy.
He hadn't yet tasted what a twenty-thousand-year-old takoyaki tasted like.
And back in Waterfall Town, Hawk still remembered the scene of Gwen eating takoyaki at the town Christmas food party, saying it was her favorite snack.
So… Gwen would definitely love a twenty-thousand-year-old octopus.
Hawk thought to himself.
Just then.
Thump!
Thump!
Thump!
On the distant sea, five speedboats, in an attack formation, were rapidly approaching.
Hawk turned his head to look, raised an eyebrow, and instantly vanished from his spot.
When he reappeared, he was already on one of the speedboats.
The two S.H.I.E.L.D. agents on the speedboat were startled by Hawk's sudden appearance.
Sharon Carter, the moment Hawk appeared, had already handed him a black T-shirt with the S.H.I.E.L.D. logo, which she had prepared in advance.
"Here."
"Thanks."
Hawk took the S.H.I.E.L.D. T-shirt Sharon handed him, thanked her, and then looked at the T-shirt in his Hand and said to Sharon, "How many S.H.I.E.L.D. T-shirts is this for me?"
Sharon thought for a moment: "Fourth?"
Hawk shook his head: "Fifth."
The first S.H.I.E.L.D. T-shirt he got was after he showed off at Quantico.
The second was in Wakanda, prepared for him by Hill.
The third was in London, prepared for him by Natasha.
The fourth was in Texas.
Counting this one, he should have five S.H.I.E.L.D. T-shirts.
After Hawk put on the S.H.I.E.L.D. T-shirt, he said to Sharon, "Gwen said last time that she wanted to ask who your T-shirt supplier is. She plans to customize a women's version to match as a couple's outfit."
Sharon smiled.
"Gwen mentioned it to me, I already gave it to her."
"She didn't tell me."
"Just yesterday when she went back to New York, when I picked her up at the airport."
"…Thank you."
Hawk heard this, looked at Sharon, thanked her, and then his gaze fell on Sharon, who, though smiling, still had a hint of fatigue in her eyes.
It was obvious.
Sharon had come here non-stop after picking up Gwen.
Hawk's heart stirred, and he looked at Sharon: "Alright, ask whatever you want, I'll tell you everything!"
Sharon's eyes held a smile.
"Any question?"
"Anything!"
Hawk sat directly on the deck, looking at Sharon and spreading his Hands: "At this moment, I am an open book, I will tell you everything, without reservation. Oh, and you can take the octopus, just leave me three tentacles, the fat kind."
Sharon heard this and immediately turned to nod at the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents on the other speedboats.
The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents on another speedboat immediately contacted the nearest S.H.I.E.L.D. vessel.
Sharon then also sat directly on the deck.
"That merman just now…"
"Merman?"
Hawk raised an eyebrow.
Sharon explained: "The one who fought with you, the nickname given to him by Mullen at S.H.I.E.L.D. Command Center."
Hawk's expression cleared.
"Alright, his name is Namo Mackenzie, the King of the underwater kingdom Talokan."
"Talokan?"
"Atlantis, Talokan's predecessor was Atlantis."
"Hiss!"
Sharon gasped: "The lost Atlantis?"
Talokan, she had never heard of it.
But Atlantis, that was quite familiar, after all, it was a kingdom that now only existed in legends, and some scholars even believed that Atlantis did not exist at all.
Sharon used to be one of those.
As a result… "Atlantis really exists?"
"Of course, but it's been renamed, now called Talokan, an underwater kingdom, and their people all live in the Water."
Hawk reviewed the information about Aquaman Namo Mackenzie and Talokan in his memory palace.
"Talokan's current location should be somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean."
"Atlantic Ocean?"
"Yes."
Sharon nodded, then remembered the merman.
"That merman…"
"Escaped."
"Escaped?"
Sharon seemed somewhat shocked, her eyes wide as she looked at Hawk.
Hawk looked at the expression on Sharon's face and couldn't help but chuckle.
"You seem more shocked than I am?"
"Of course."
Sharon nodded subconsciously, then realized and said to Hawk, "I mean, this is probably the first enemy who has escaped from your Hand, right?"
Hawk blinked, looking at Sharon: "Is it?"
The last Eternal… oh.
S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn't on Skull Island last time, so they didn't know.
Hawk then chuckled, looking at Sharon: "Namo Mackenzie's nickname should be Aquaman, just as I cannot kill a Hell Lord in Hell, I also cannot kill an Aquaman in the ocean, at least not yet."
This was the truth.
Although he had found Namo's weakness, it didn't mean he could kill Namo on the spot.
At least not now.
If it were on land, if he had landed that punch on Namo's weakness just now, Namo would undoubtedly have died.
But this was the ocean, Namo's home turf.
So… by the time he dealt with the giant octopus that Namo had summoned to protect him, Namo had already taken the opportunity to escape.
"However…"
"Even if he didn't die, he's already critically injured."
"And severely so."
"He won't recover for at least a year."
Hawk thought of Namo, who, despite narrowly dodging his full-power strike at the last moment, was still sent spitting blood by most of the punch's force, and a slight smile played on his lips.
Don't forget, he was constantly manifesting the power of his Sixth Sense Silver Little Universe.
Even without wearing the saint cloth, every punch and kick he threw carried a wisp of Phoenix Fire.
Phoenix belongs to Fire.
Namo belongs to Water.
Fire and Water are incompatible.
Even if Namo was Aquaman, what then? If he could control his Water power without relying on his trident, perhaps he could recover in ten days to half a month.
But the current Aquaman Namo was like Thor, who is written as Thor but read as Hammer God, he was a Fork God.
So, Namo's injuries wouldn't heal for at least a year, and during that year, he would endure the burning of the Phoenix Fire that Hawk had struck into his body every moment.
This was also why Hawk wasn't angry at all when he discovered Namo had escaped.
Sharon heard this, looked at Hawk, and her expression was serious.
"We will keep a close eye on this guy. Once he appears, I will notify you immediately."
"Don't worry, if I say he won't be out for a year, he won't be out for a year. Don't be so nervous."
Hawk looked at Sharon, who was even more nervous than him, chuckled, then raised an eyebrow and looked at Sharon.
"Oh, by the way."
"Over in Talokan, there are also Vibranium deposits, and there's also a special herb there. The original Talokan people gained the ability to breathe underwater after eating this herb."
"If the Five Great Benefactors are interested, you can go look for it."
"If you find it, let me know. Just like with Wakanda, I'll help you clear the area."
"…"
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