"Sir, Natasha..." Hill hesitated.
Fury frowned. "What about her?"
"After the last incident, she's been staying at Stark Industries."
"And the symbiote was provided by Tony for her."
"Is it possible that..."
Hill pursed her lips, not finishing her sentence.
When Fury was swapped out, Tony, finding it troublesome, had given Natasha a symbiote and told them to resolve it internally.
However, the value of a symbiote was immeasurable to them, and Tony wouldn't be so kind as to offer it for free.
So, after resolving the SHIELD incident, Natasha had to work for Tony long-term as per the agreement.
Tony wasn't interested in Natasha herself.
After confirming his relationship with Pepper, he had become more reserved.
What he cared about was Natasha's skills.
Her combat experience and her espionage expertise were exactly what the symbiote army lacked.
Although Natasha's individual strength wasn't particularly impressive.
Her various experiences were undoubtedly a treasure.
Fury stared intently at Hill. "Are you questioning Natasha's loyalty?"
Hill didn't answer directly, but her implication was clear.
It wasn't entirely Hill's fault for being suspicious.
According to their investigations, the numerous symbiote army members were loyal to Tony to an unbelievable degree.
They had tried to recruit some members of the symbiote army before, but all their attempts had been in vain.
Therefore, Hill had reason to suspect that Tony Stark had some special means to ensure the loyalty of the symbiote army.
The analysis team's most likely conclusion was that the symbiotes themselves were problematic.
They could make their hosts absolutely loyal to Tony Stark.
Fury tapped his fingers on the table, agitated.
He had, of course, seen the analysis results.
Moreover, he knew that Natasha's reports during her time at Stark Industries had always lacked substance.
After a long pause, Fury stopped tapping. "Natasha underwent professional training, we must trust her loyalty!"
"However, send Clint over."
"And have Natasha try to bring him along!"
While he claimed to trust Natasha, Fury still had some reservations.
Hill's eyes lit up. "I understand."
Sending Hawkeye over was a move to appeal to her emotions.
Upon exiting the office, Hill immediately assigned the relevant mission to Clint.
Hawkeye Clint and Natasha had an unusual, almost familial, relationship.
If Natasha had truly gone astray, Clint would discover it quickly.
Poor Hawkeye, who was preparing for retirement, was called back again.
The day after the order was issued, Hawkeye Clint sought out Natasha.
Due to their missions, they hadn't seen each other for quite some time.
With Hill's reminder, Hawkeye soon noticed that Natasha was indeed different from before.
He couldn't quite pinpoint what was different.
It was as if Natasha was more carefree than before, and she now possessed a depth he couldn't understand.
In any case, Natasha seemed to have become stronger than before.
Natasha showed no unusual reaction to Clint's arrival.
However, at Clint's request, Natasha did fill in Clint's name on the application form for Tony's long-term mission.
The application quickly landed on Tony's desk.
Information about Tony's upcoming cosmic journey was intentionally circulated within the symbiote ranks.
Tony had merely stated that he needed a group of elites to accompany him on a very long mission.
Of course, the dissemination of information about the cosmic journey was also done at Tony's behest.
Any member of the symbiote army who believed they were powerful enough could apply, undergo an assessment, and await selection.
Clint's appearance also made Tony understand SHIELD's intentions.
They were clearly wary of him undertaking any clandestine operations.
Tony chuckled, patting the applications. On the screen before him, the conversation between Fury and Hill was playing.
He had never fully trusted SHIELD, and several blunders by SHIELD had only made him more cautious.
The micro-surveillance equipment in Fury's office had gone through several generations of upgrades.
The current surveillance equipment, integrated with Stark particles and nanotechnology, could even disguise itself as an invisible, normal dust particle.
Therefore, every move Fury made was exposed to Tony's view.
With these advanced technologies integrated into the surveillance, SHIELD, in its current state, had no way of detecting it.
Playing games with Tony Stark? They clearly had no idea of their own limitations.
As the video ended, Tony reached out and turned off the screen.
He was, of course, aware of SHIELD's investigations and attempts to recruit members of the symbiote army.
The entire symbiote army had undergone an 'insurance policy' with the Mind Stone, so it was impossible to recruit them.
Since they were all on Earth, seeing each other regularly, Tony didn't want to escalate the situation and create a full-blown conflict.
Tony understood Fury's personality; this action was just routine for him.
In Tony's eyes, Fury was just an insecure "black egg."
However, Tony hadn't used the Mind Stone on Natasha.
After all, she had fought alongside him, and their relationship was not the same as with his other symbiote subordinates.
Furthermore, Tony had discussed Natasha with Lin Feng previously.
Lin Feng's assessment of Natasha exceeded Tony's expectations.
According to Lin Feng, Natasha possessed a kind and righteous heart.
Her joining SHIELD was a result of circumstances and some coincidences.
If Natasha had to choose between the survival of Earth and SHIELD, she would choose the former without hesitation.
Of course, Captain America and Hawkeye would also make such a choice.
But unlike them, Natasha was more flexible in both her personality and her actions.
Captain America, at times, could be quite stubborn.
Take, for example, the "global armament" plan that Tony had mentioned.
Captain America couldn't be reasoned with on that matter; even after the snap incident, he still believed that they could overcome any challenge by facing it together.
However, Natasha could accept it, which stemmed from her personality and flexibility in her actions.
After a long period of thought, Tony instructed Jarvis to summon Natasha.
He had made up his mind about Natasha.
He was tired of the minor schemes of Fury and SHIELD.
As mentioned before, Tony was now operating on a different level.
He was already embarking on a journey to the stars; why would he be playing in the mud on Earth with them?