Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Chapter 266: S.H.I.E.L.D. is second-rate when it comes to protecting Earth.

The combat effectiveness of any organization depends on its organizational structure and discipline.

Why has H.I.E.L.D. performed so much better than the other branches of Hydra?

This Hydra branch originated from S.H.I.E.L.D., inheriting the organization, discipline, and management system of this largest intelligence organization.

However, recently, Shaza has discovered that after Nick Fury launched his investigation, more and more Hydra agents have been tracked down and forced to shed their S.H.I.E.L.D. shells.

These agents of Serpent Shield, who were previously disciplined and excellent, simultaneously abandoned their discipline the moment they revealed their identities, turning into trash resembling terrorists.

He had to consider whether his previously established neutral stance was problematic in the life-or-death battle between S.H.I.E.L.D. and S.H.I.E.L.D.

After careful consideration, Xia Zuo changed his stance.

Because although S.H.I.E.L.D. is annoying, they are law-abiding and their efforts are aimed at maintaining order.

Shazor is the biggest beneficiary of the current social order and economic rules, so of course he will act in his own interest and position to help Lanik Fury.

In any case, all of this black braised egg's efforts will benefit itself.

After pointing out the existence of Hydra within S.H.I.E.L.D., Shazor stopped talking about that topic and instead began discussing Asgard.

"The situation in Asgard is somewhat similar to Norse mythology, but also somewhat different."

"In a narrow sense, Asgard is a floating continent; in a broader sense, Asgard comprises nine worlds, including Earth, and is known as the Nine Realms."

"The Nine Realms are essentially nine living celestial bodies, distributed in different locations within the universe, connected together through a mysterious mechanism called the World Tree, forming a whole."

"Starting 2000 years ago, Odin, the king of the gods, conquered the nine realms and made them part of Asgard."

"This god-king is still in power. For 2000 years, he has challenged and defeated the cosmic empires or gods that have invaded the Nine Realms one by one."

"So, although Odin is a treacherous and cunning old man, from our Earth's perspective, he is definitely a heroic figure."

"Thor is the son of Odin, the king of the gods, and is destined to inherit the throne of the gods."

Nick Fury broke out in a cold sweat: "So, this incident—"

Xia Zuo replied, "Yes, this time it is the ruler of the Nine Realms using a piece of his own territory to test and temper his son's character, and to promote Thor's rapid maturity."

Phil Coulson's face turned pale as he carefully recalled whether he had used excessively rough methods when he captured Thor.

Did he use any profanities involving his parents?

Fortunately, after careful recollection, Coulson confirmed that none of the above were true, and he breathed a long sigh of relief.

Steve frowned and said, "Odin, Thor, the gods, they actually treat Earth like a playground, and even destroyed a small town. Asgard has no respect for Earth at all."

Xia Zuo retorted, "You can't say that. If we're really talking about it, Asgard has sovereignty over Earth, so it's only natural for them to do things on Earth."

"You know, over the past thousands of years, Earth has been invaded by extraterrestrial enemies more than once, and each time it was Odin who stepped in to protect Earth."

"Our American military, when dealing with the Koreans, doesn't it usually cause trouble? Losing a couple of people is no big deal."

Steve glared and retorted, "But this is wrong, and the crimes committed by the US military are wrong too!"

Xia Zuo sneered: "Captain, I know you are an upright hero, but from Earth's perspective, I cannot accept your view of Odin as right and wrong."

"Only if one day you can defeat Odin, or replace Odin to protect the Earth, will you have the right to tell the King of Gods that this is wrong."

""

Steve Rogers stated firmly, "Of course I will protect the Earth, even at the cost of my life!"

Xia Zuo waved his hands repeatedly: "No, no, no, that's not right. What I need is not your determination, but your absolute guarantee."

"If you are simply not capable of doing something, your promises and determination are worthless."

Captain Rogers stared intently at Xia Zuo, and after a long while, he sighed silently and lowered his head in frustration.

Captain America is not a saint; he is a tough guy who has been through the war and knows how cruel war can be and how cold reality can be.

He was indeed powerless to protect Earth from the threats of the universe, and of course he had no right to criticize Earth's protectors.

Now, it is Odin, the king of gods, who is protecting Earth from alien invasion. Odin is trying to cultivate the next generation of gods so that he can become a responsible god-king. This has resulted in the deaths of a few people on Earth. Who dares to say that Odin did something wrong?

If the safety of these few people leads to the failure of cultivating the next generation of God-King, resulting in a gap in Earth's protectors, and ultimately triggering an alien invasion war, millions of people will die as a result.

So, was protecting the lives of those initial few people right or wrong?

Captain Rogers remained silent, and Nick Fury spoke up, asking, "Mr. Shazo, how can we ensure that the Asgardian God-King won't cause fatal damage to Earth?"

Xia Zuo waved his hand: "You don't need to worry about this, because it's not something you should be concerned about."

"However, to avoid you overthinking, I've decided to tell you something that will put your mind at ease."

"First, as you already know, Odin, the king of the gods, is forging his son Thor. The reason he is in such a hurry is because his lifespan is coming to an end; he is about to die."

"As a dying ruler, Odin is now preoccupied with his kingdom, queen, people, and son, and has no interest in Earth whatsoever."

"Secondly, Odin has not set foot on Earth for the past 500 years because the Earth's guardians will not allow it."

"Our Earth's protector is very strong. She not only stopped Odin, but also other enemies who coveted Earth, including demons and gods."

The S.H.I.E.L.D. agents' eyes lit up, but Nick Fury's expression turned very sour.

The proud and arrogant Nick Fury found it hard to accept Shazor's words.

He firmly believed that S.H.I.E.L.D. was the strongest organization protecting the world, and that he himself was the one who carried the weight of the world's safety on his shoulders. How could there be an even stronger guardian?

On what grounds?

Because he touched a raw nerve with Nick Fury, even his best-kept composure crumbled, and Shaza could see through his disbelief and resistance.

Xia Zuo scoffed, "Nick Fury, although you've seen a lot of the world, you've never actually come into contact with the core high-ranking members of an alien civilization."

"The high-ranking officials of the Shi'ar Empire, the Skrull Empire, and the Kree Empire, which dominate the universe, all know that the Sorcerer Supreme of Earth is the most powerful and invincible sorcerer."

"Among the dimensional demons that traverse the multiverse, there are even more terrifying legends related to the Sorcerer Supreme."

"The Sorcerer's Guild, founded by the Sorcerer Supreme, is the most powerful magical force on Earth and the strongest organization protecting the planet's safety."

"Over the centuries, the Sorcerer Supreme and the Sorcerer's Guild have destroyed countless demons and evil spirits."

"The sorcerers forged terrifying legends about the earth from countless bones, threatening all outsiders."

"Even the most powerful demons in Hell must hide and be extremely careful when they come to Earth, lest they reveal their whereabouts and be targeted by the Sorcerer Supreme."

Nick Fury's face was extremely pale; even with his racial talents, he looked almost ashen.

He gritted his teeth and asked, "The Sorcerer Supreme and the Sorcerer's Order—if they are truly that powerful, why wouldn't I know about them?"

Xia Zuo looked at him and said ambiguously, "Because you're not up to par. Your proud S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Sorcerer's Guild are not on the same level."

Nick Fury coughed up a mouthful of blood.

In fact, Director Lu Dan's feelings were very complicated. Upon learning of the existence of the Sorcerer Supreme and the Sorcerer's Guild, he felt that the pressure in his heart was greatly reduced because he knew that there were humans on Earth who could fight against Odin, the King of Gods.

On the other hand, he couldn't help but worry: if the Sorcerer Supreme's ambitions grew and threatened the safety of the Earth, who would restrain her?

The King of Spies truly lived up to his reputation as a terminal case of paranoia. He suspected everyone except himself and speculated about others from the most sinister angles.

Of course, he himself is unaware of how annoying his fault is.

In Nick Fury's view, his thoughts were not due to paranoia, but rather because the responsibility of protecting the Earth was too great to afford any room for complacency. He had to prepare for the worst and strive for the best outcome.

So many years have passed, and he has always thought and acted in this way, and he has indeed successfully protected the safety of the Earth.

Protecting the Earth is Nick Fury's pride, and even the strongest pillar of his personality.

As a result, Xia Zuo told him that the world's safety was none of his business, and that he was unaware of the real dangers the Earth had faced in the past few decades.

Those demons, dimensional demons, alien monsters, and cosmic empires that could destroy, conquer, and devour the Earth were all eliminated and driven away by the Sorcerer Supreme.

S.H.I.E.L.D. deals with targets that threaten local peace, such as cults, terrorists, dangerous animals, and evil warlords.

S.H.I.E.L.D. is indeed only doing small-scale operations, or even picking up scraps that others don't want.

To be honest, how many years has S.H.I.E.L.D. existed? Haven't there been similar targets in the past 500 years?

Of course there are, and more than one.

It was in the process of dealing with the strongest of these targets that the frontline soldiers gradually reached a consensus, which led to the establishment of the Strategic Scientific Corps, the predecessor of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Since these enemies did not cause the world to be destroyed before S.H.I.E.L.D. was established, will the world really be destroyed after S.H.I.E.L.D. is gone?

Nick Fury dared not think any further; if he did, his sense of justice would crumble.

He put those thoughts aside and became increasingly convinced that the plan he was now undertaking was necessary.

Only by mastering unlimited energy can S.H.I.E.L.D. improve itself, extend its reach into currently unknown territories, and truly shoulder the responsibility of protecting Earth.

After experiencing extreme emotional fluctuations, Nick Fury's inner defenses faltered, and his thoughts were slightly revealed, which was captured by Shazo's [Mind Network].

Seeing how stubborn this guy was, Xia Zuo just sneered and gave him the order to leave: "I've said my piece. You decide the rest!"

"Chief Nick Fury, you've asked all the questions you wanted to ask, right? There shouldn't be anything else, right?"

"Of course, I can't answer any other questions either, after all, I'm not some omniscient and omnipotent god."

Shazo's refusal and insistence on kicking him out were so firm that even with Nick Fury's thick skin, he couldn't stay any longer.

He stood up, politely extended his hand to shake hands with Shazam in farewell, and then led all the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents away.

After they left, Abomination and Skye, who hadn't uttered a word the whole time, both breathed a sigh of relief.

Abomination curled his lip and said, "This director of S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't seem very smart."

"In this dog-eat-dog world, he actually thinks he can persuade people stronger than him to obey his orders and fight for his ideas with just his words. It's utterly absurd."

Xia Zuo shook his head and said, "You're being a bit too harsh on him. It's not that Nick Fury doesn't want to pursue power, but that's just how he is. He can't improve any further, so he can only rely on political maneuvering and rhetoric."

"Think back to when you were still Bronsky, how desperate did you feel facing the Hulk?"

"Although your current strength is still not as great as the Hulk's, and it is unlikely that you will ever reach the Hulk's level, you have already been lucky enough to have taken a big step forward on the path of pursuing power."

Hatred fell silent.

Skye then asked, "Boss, I feel like while you're giving Nick Fury hints, you're also intentionally letting him do wrong things."

""

Xia Zuo raised his hand and activated electromagnetic force to shut down the surveillance system in the living room before speaking: "Skye, you're right. I did intentionally let him do something wrong."

Skye frowned and said, "Boss, with our current capabilities, what inside S.H.I.E.L.D. can't we get our hands on?"

Xia Zuo said, "Yes, I can't get my hands on those things that everyone's been eyeing without making a sound."

"My hypnotic persuasion is not omnipotent. When too many people know about an event or an object and it receives a lot of attention, even if the manager's memory is erased, it will be restored under the reflection of many memories."

"By then, our operation will be exposed."

Skye asked, puzzled, "It doesn't matter if the memories are restored, right?"

"I remember you tried this before, boss. At most, you could recall when the thing was lost, but you would never remember that it was us who did it."

Xia Zuo said, "The reason we can't remember is because others don't know us and can't recall us through reflection."

"But this thing is different. Among those who pay attention to it are extremely powerful magicians and mysterious mental experts. They have the ability to directly awaken erased memories."

"I have to be careful enough."

",