There was a knock on the door, and Natasha walked in.
"Tony!"
Natasha greeted him with a smile and naturally sat down in the chair opposite him.
"If you wanted to go to space together, you could have just told me directly, couldn't you? Did you really need to submit an application?" Tony said.
The two of them had a long-standing relationship, and could be considered friends.
Natasha smiled charmingly, "Isn't this just following the rules and going through the process?"
"Process?"
Tony rolled his eyes. "This isn't S.H.I.E.L.D., I don't have as many rules as Nick Fury."
Natasha pursed her lips, unsure how to respond. Her feelings towards S.H.I.E.L.D. were very complicated at the moment.
Both Tony and S.H.I.E.L.D. were doing the right thing for Earth, but their philosophies and methods were worlds apart.
Natasha was also conflicted; she no longer wanted to be a double agent.
"Alright, alright, let's not talk about that annoying black hard-boiled egg," Tony skipped over the bothersome topic.
"Why do you want to go to space? The symbiote should have fixed your... that thing, right?"
Tony gestured with his lips, and both of them understood what he meant.
Previously, the symbiote had repaired Natasha's lost uterus, giving her the right to live like a normal person.
She could have found someone to love, gotten married, had children, bought a house in a quiet place, and lived out her retirement.
But Natasha had unexpectedly chosen to remain with the symbiote team.
Natasha subconsciously glanced at her lower abdomen. The symbiote's function was an unexpected joy for her.
"Well... just think of me as wanting to see if there are any beings similar to me in the universe."
"That's it?"
"Yes, that's it..."
Tony pouted speechlessly. Was she not even going to bother hiding her perfunctory attitude?
However, since Natasha didn't want to say more, Tony wasn't particularly interested in prying.
Natasha had an exceptionally tragic past. Perhaps, like some other great women, she wanted to save similarly tragic lives in the universe?
Tony didn't want to delve too deeply into these thoughts.
"Alright, alright. I'd also love for you to join the space team. The team needs logistical support, after all, we can't just eat instant noodles all the time."
Tony made a small joke, making the conversation more relaxed.
Natasha shot him a look. "I'm not going to be the cook, Tony!"
"I know, I know. But compared to my team, I think there's a place that's even more suitable for you..." Tony changed the subject.
"Perhaps there, you can get what you want and do what you want to do."
Hearing this, Natasha showed a hint of interest and asked curiously, "What place?"
Tony replied in a mysterious tone, "I can't tell you that place for now."
"I think you should ask Lin Feng, and see if he's willing to let you go there."
"Lin Feng?"
Upon hearing the name, Natasha spaced out for a moment, and the scene of her first meeting with Lin Feng flashed in her mind.
To be honest, her first impression wasn't good.
Troublesome, cunning, and fond of taking advantage of others.
In subsequent meetings, Natasha developed more impressions of Lin Feng.
Up to now, Lin Feng was, in Natasha's eyes, an extremely powerful being active in the universe, who rarely appeared on Earth.
She considered herself to be quite familiar with Lin Feng, but his attitude towards her always made her doubt if he considered her a friend.
She could sense that Lin Feng inwardly disliked S.H.I.E.L.D., and perhaps it was because of S.H.I.E.L.D. that they couldn't become true friends?
If Lin Feng knew what Natasha was thinking, he would surely burst out laughing.
To be honest, both in the movies and after his transmigration, his impression of Natasha was very good.
It's just that he was often busy with matters in the universe, and even he and Susan inevitably felt a sense of distance at times.
Tony interrupted Natasha's recollection and continued, "That's right, you must have also noticed the disappearance of the two batches of female symbiote legions."
"It's related to Lin Feng?" Natasha asked.
As the chief instructor of the female symbiotes, the disappearance of hundreds of female symbiotes certainly didn't escape her notice.
However, Tony had given the order, and she had no right to question it.
"Yes, so I think you should ask Lin Feng. If he agrees, you will have a completely different experience."
"Believe me, it's better than staying with my team."
That's right, Tony's intention was to have Natasha go to Lin Feng's planet.
The symbiotes Tony arranged to be sent there were for two purposes: first, to protect the native inhabitants of the Star race.
Second, to ensure the safety of the Star race's transactions and dealings with cosmic merchants.
This undoubtedly involved a lot of deceit, mental battles, and even diplomacy.
Natasha's ability to handle these matters was unquestionable, and with her symbiote, her strength was even less of a concern.
Therefore, Tony felt that her going to the Star race would be more suitable than staying with his team.
After all, his team's primary objective in the early stages was to explore planetary resources and perform tasks that didn't require much communication. They didn't plan for large-scale communication with extraterrestrial life forms.
Natasha was somewhat tempted, but then she thought of Clint. "What about Clint?"
"Clint can come with me," Tony arranged.
Bringing Clint into his team was not a problem at all.
Once in space, whether Clint could contact Earth would be decided by Tony, and he would have to become Tony's tool.
Tony had already decided to make him do all the dirty and tiring work!
Since that black hard-boiled egg wanted to see what he was up to, he might as well reveal some information to him.
This would reassure him and also let him know that S.H.I.E.L.D. could no longer keep up with him.
Tony hoped that after this, the black hard-boiled egg would have a clearer understanding of the gap between S.H.I.E.L.D. and Iron Man, and stop making small moves, as Tony didn't know how much patience he had left.
"Alright..." Natasha pondered for a moment and felt that this arrangement was not unreasonable.
"In that case, I'll go find Lin Feng."
"Oh, and if possible, don't use that thing on Clint."
Natasha said with a hint of a request.
Tony nodded.
"Don't worry, we fought side-by-side. Clint doesn't need that kind of method."
What Natasha was referring to was naturally the Mind Stone.
And Tony indeed had no intention of using the Mind Stone on Hawkeye.
But he still couldn't escape the dirty and tiring work!
After all, as the saying goes, once they were in space, wouldn't Comrade Hawkeye be at his mercy?
After leaving Tony's place, Natasha went downstairs and drove her little car straight to Lin Feng's villa.
However, in her heart, she was thinking about the place Tony had mentioned...