After they got themselves ready, the temporary team parted ways. Clint, Pietro, and Bruce headed for their own transport to Sokovia, leaving Satoru and the others to handle the situation in Norway.
…
[ Quinjet Cabin ]
On the way to Oslo. Steve, Tony, Thor, and Wanda were in the small cabin space of the Quinjet with Satoru.
Steve was at the front checking the flight path, while Tony sat across from Satoru, staring at his gauntlet. Satoru was leaning back in his seat, looking completely relaxed. Even with the black cloth of the Cyttorak tied over his eyes, he seemed to know exactly where everyone was.
"Okay, I have to ask," Tony said, breaking the silence. "The blindfold. Is it a fashion statement, or are you actually blind? Because I'd prefer the guy helping us to be able to see the target."
"I can see fine, Stark," Satoru replied, not moving his head. "In fact, I can see that your left repulsor has a loose internal seal. You might want to look at that before we land."
Tony paused, checking his palm readout. He frowned when the sensors confirmed a minor pressure drop he hadn't noticed yet. "Right. Great. Magic eyes. Is there anything you don't see?"
"Not really," Satoru said simply.
Wanda sat in the seat next to him, watching him closely. She still couldn't feel any thoughts or emotions coming from him even in such close proximity, which was starting to frustrate her.
"It is like you are not even here," Wanda said, her accent heavy. "I have never met anyone who felt so empty."
Satoru tilted his head toward her. "Empty is a bit harsh. I just don't like people crowding my head. It's better for everyone if I keep the door locked."
Steve looked back from the cockpit. "We're over the Atlantic. Fury has cleared our path, but we're still hours out. Tony, have you had any luck getting a lead on Ultron's specific entry point into the NEXUS?"
"I'm trying," Tony said, turning back to the holographic screens on his suit. "But with the Mind Stone in the mix and his full control over the net, you know how it is."
The cabin lapsed into silence, the only sound being the low, steady vibration of the Quinjet's engines.
Tony continued to swipe through data as he stood up to sit next to Steve.
Steve remained focused on the horizon. But, Satoru could still feel the weight of Wanda's gaze from the seat next to him.
She wasn't even trying to be subtle. Her eyes were fixed on the side of his face, tracing the line of his jaw and the way his white hair caught the dim blue light of the cabin. She was looking at him with a mix of frustration and curiosity.
Even for someone as self-aware of his good looks and confidence as Satoru, the intensity of her stare was hard to ignore.
He let the silence stretch for a few more seconds before he finally leaned his head back against the headrest, a helpless smirk tugging at the corner of his lips.
"You know," Satoru said, his voice low. "If you keep staring at me like that, people might start to talk."
Wanda didn't look away, though her fingers twitched slightly against the fabric of her sleeve. "I am only trying to understand what you are."
"Is that all?" Satoru turned his head toward her, the black fabric of his blindfold directly facing her eyes. "Because from where I'm sitting, it feels like you're trying to memorize my face. I get it, though. It's a lot to take in."
"You are very arrogant," she noted, her voice quiet but lacking any real bite.
He leaned in just an inch closer, lowering his voice so the others wouldn't catch the shift in tone. "If you really want to know what's going on in here, you're going to have to do better than a mental knock on the door. Maybe try asking nicely next time?"
Wanda felt a strange, unfamiliar spark of heat rise to her cheeks. She finally looked away, but the ghost of a smile touched her face for a split second. "I do not think 'nice' is something you respond to, Satoru Gojo."
"You'd be surprised," he murmured, before leaning back and closing his eyes—or at least appearing to.
Tony glanced over his shoulder, eyebrow raised. "Everything okay back there, or do I need to separate the children?"
"We're fine, Stark," Satoru answered. "Just having a little chat."
Tony shook his head and turned back to his monitors. "Right. A chat. Because that's exactly what we need. Glad to see you're taking this seriously."
"Tony," Steve said from the pilot's seat. "Let it go. We need to stay focused."
Thor, who had been sitting in the back staring at his hammer, finally spoke up. "The boy is not wrong to be at ease, Captain. A warrior who fears the storm has already lost the battle. It is the stillness before the clash that determines the victor."
Satoru let out a soft chuckle, though he didn't open his eyes. "See? The big guy gets it. You should listen to him more often, Stark. He's a God, after all."
Tony rolled his eyes but stayed quiet, his fingers flying across the holographic interface. Wanda sat staring out the window at the dark expanse of the Atlantic, but her mind kept drifting back to the teenager sitting just inches away.
"We're crossing into Norwegian airspace," Steve announced about an hour later. "Switching to stealth mode. Tony, status on the NEXUS?"
"Still quiet," Tony reported, his voice dropping the sarcasm. "Too quiet. If Ultron is in there, he's not making a sound."
It was at that moment that Satoru seemed to sense something as his head snapped toward the front-right of the aircraft. His smirk gone for the moment.
"Well, he's not hiding anymore," Satoru said, his voice suddenly sharp.
"What? My sensors are still clean," Tony snapped, leaning forward.
"The sensors won't help you now," Satoru said, standing up as the air around him began to hum. "I can sense him, the toaster's nearby."
Even after hearing that, Tony's helmet hissed shut, the gold-and-red plates of Mark XLIII locking into place over his face. "FRIDAY, talk to me. Give me a full sweep, multispectral."
"Scanners are clear, Boss," FRIDAY's voice replied, though it flickered with a static pop. "Wait. Detecting a localized gravitational distortion... and a massive energy surge. It's not on the ground, it's—"
"Right on top of us," Satoru finished, his smirk returning as he looked toward the ceiling of the jet.
Thor stood up, Mjolnir crackling with faint blue sparks that danced along his arm. He looked toward the hatch, his expression grim and battle-ready. Beside him, Wanda's hands ignited with a restless, flickering red mist.
Through the reinforced cockpit glass, several black dots appeared against the dark horizon, growing larger and larger. At first, they looked like a flock of birds, but no bird could maintain a flight path at this altitude and velocity.
"Tony, multiple incoming targets, twelve o'clock," Steve called out, fighting to keep the Quinjet steady as the wind resistance began to shift.
"I see them, Cap," Tony replied, his HUD lighting up with a swarm of red threat indicators. "FRIDAY, tell me those aren't what I think they are."
"Multiple Ultron sentries detected, Boss," FRIDAY's voice cut through the cabin, sharp and urgent. "And they aren't just at the front. We're being boxed in. They are approaching from all sectors—above, below, and the rear. We are surrounded."
"Thanks for the play-by-play, FRIDAY." Tony muttered, his repulsors whining as they reached full charge.
Suddenly, the Quinjet groaned under a series of violent impacts. The shrieking sound of metal tearing into metal echoed through the cabin as the sentries began to latch onto the hull. The craft bucked and swayed, the aerodynamic stabilizers fighting a losing battle against the mechanical weight clinging to the wings.
Satoru stood in the center of the shaking cabin, his feet seemingly glued to the floor despite the violent turbulence. He turned his head toward Steve at the front.
"Captain, open the hatch," Satoru commanded, his voice cutting through the mechanical screeching of the straining hull.
Steve glanced back, hesitant for only a second. He didn't know what Satoru was planning, but with Thor and Tony already powered up and Satoru's tone leaving no room for argument, he made a split-second decision. He hit the button to open the hatch.
The rear ramp hissed and lowered, immediately flooding the cabin with the deafening roar of freezing high-altitude wind. Before the ramp was even halfway down, several metallic limbs were reaching into the opening, clawing at the interior plating.
Three sentries dropped from the roof and landed in a triangle formation on the lowering ramp, their red optic sensors locked onto the heroes inside.
Thor raised Mjolnir, the air around him crackling with electricity. Wanda's hands flared with a restless crimson mist. Tony leveled his gauntlets, ready to fire. But Satoru was faster.
He stepped forward, placing himself between the Avengers and the metallic invaders. He calmly extended an open palm.
"I've got this." Satoru murmured over the roar of the wind, a terrifyingly casual smirk playing on his lips.
"Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue - Bolts of Balthakk (Jutsu Shiki Junten: Ao - Baretsuku no Raikō)"
...
[Author's Notes]: You might be wondering, 'Bolts of Balthakk'? What's that? Well, to those that didn't know, it's a particular spell that you can search up and see for yourself where I'm going with this.
I'm going to be implementing spells from the Mystic Arts and integrate it with Satoru's existing techniques, fueled by his Cursed Energy, which would develop into a much more comprehensive and empowering result than simply its base form we all know of in JJK.
I'm still looking for innovative ways to incorporate them. So, 'Bolts of Balthakk' wouldn't be the only spell that can be in cohesion with either Blue, Red, or Hollow Purple.
I might make a flashback chapter or a few showing how Satoru researched and learned about how he goes about this, in the time when he first started training the Mystic Arts.
If you have any suggestions, please don't hesitate to share.
Because I'm stressing the F out lol. Because a thought of mine lingered on how to make Satoru Gojo stronger than he is right now besides his dose of hubris, when Doctor Doom is someone I wanted to add eventually in this fic.
If I don't make Satoru stronger, on par, or at least survive against that guy, he's fucked. There's nothing more to say, end of story.
For those fellow Marvel Comic readers out there reading this, y'all know what I'm talking about.
For those that don't know him, do you guys know the phrase 'Jack of all trades, master of none'?
Doctor Doom is basically the definition of 'Jack of all trades, master of most, and the ones he ain't, he's a silver medalist ready to win Gold the moment he chooses'.
Anyway, enough of my rant lmao. You guys shouldn't be hearing this.