Mind Stone Scepter

Stuttgart, Germany.

Because of the time difference across the globe, it was still night here.

"Kneel!"

Loki gripped the scepter and spread his arms, looking down imperiously at the crowded throng outside the concert hall. Light warped around him as he used Genjutsu to don Asgard’s gold-and-green attire.

"Or… die."

He pressed the scepter into the ground, releasing a shockwave that sent the crowd staggering in every direction.

"I am Loki, the God of Mischief and Lies, King of Asgard and Midgard. I was born bearing supreme glory, while you were born to be slaves, destined to be ruled by me…"

On the plane, Black Widow watched Captain America jump out without a parachute, then glanced at the absentminded Shimizu.

"Aren’t you going to help?"

"Let the ninety-year-old get some exercise first. I’ll hold the line."

Shimizu tapped the watch on his wrist and donned the Electric Light Puppet Battle Armor.

"Wade, I can hear you over the radio."

Captain America had just saved an elderly German man with his shield when he heard that disrespectful remark about old people through his earpiece.

In truth, Shimizu had merely been lost in thought.

Of the two most valuable Infinity Stones, one—the Mind Stone—had already appeared.

If Loki still intended to follow the original storyline, then the Mind Stone ending up on Earth was practically a sure thing. As long as he planned things properly afterward, there was a chance to get his hands on it.

Even if he alone did not carry enough weight to hold onto it, if he brought Stark in and made some concessions to S.H.I.E.L.D., he could at least secure part of the right to use the Stone.

Once that opening was made, there would be room to maneuver if he wanted to put the thing in his own pocket later.

What he needed to consider now was how to handle the Space Stone.

At present, virtually no one on Earth understood the value of the scepter in Loki’s hand. Everyone’s attention was focused on the Tesseract.

After all, the latter had already proven to humanity what kind of power could be drawn from it, while forces like S.H.I.E.L.D. knew very little about the Mind Stone on the scepter.

There was still plenty of room to maneuver around the Mind Stone, but too many people had their eyes on the Tesseract.

Not only forces on Earth, but also…

Shimizu extended a hand toward the ground below.

Captain America had likely only been thawed out for a short time, and his movements seemed somewhat stiff.

Loki, meanwhile, was a Frost Giant with an exceptionally powerful physique. He had also gone through many wars alongside Thor and the others over the past thousand years, so he was no slouch in a fight.

Not to mention that his Genjutsu and magic were not things Captain America excelled at dealing with.

Relying on his extremely sharp combat instincts and the shield in his hand, Steve Rogers was able to repeatedly block Loki’s attacks, but if this continued, it would only become a forced deadlock.

Loki’s Genjutsu was superb, incredibly lifelike. Even the aura and shadow were identical to the original body. Yet with the Transparent World enhanced by his high Mental Power, Shimizu could still barely see through it when fully focused.

Besides, he had no intention of seeing through it.

"Captain, please move aside."

Shimizu gave a warning over the radio, then controlled Electric Light to fire several modified Concussion Grenades downward.

They were nonlethal weapons. Aside from the deafening bang and blinding flash, they also produced shockwaves and infrasound. They were well suited for use in densely packed crowds—the Germans had not been scared off by the commotion at all, and had instead gathered at a distance to watch Captain America and Loki fight as though they were watching a circus show.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

The massive explosions finally sent the onlookers fleeing.

Steve Rogers held the shield fixed to his shoulder in front of him, crouching low as he turned sideways and covered his ears with both hands.

Loki’s Genjutsu clones burst like bubbles. His true body staggered, then raised the scepter toward Shimizu.

A blue energy blast collided with a plasma pulse beam and exploded in midair. Shimizu swiftly dove down, a Titanium Gold Alloy longsword extending from his right arm as he formed a hand seal with his left hand.

Separation Release: Snake Lightning.

The air boomed as streaks of bright blue high-temperature plasma lashed toward Loki like lightning, accompanied by a sword phantom shaped like a Chi Dragon.

As a fusion of Wind Release and Lightning Release, Separation Release could use most techniques from both. Snake Lightning was a relatively simple C-Rank ninjutsu from Lightning Release. Its power was moderate, its range was wide, and most importantly, it had very little windup.

With Shimizu’s current mastery of ninjutsu, even without the relevant ability, he could achieve an effect close to instant casting.

"I don’t like things that resemble lightning."

Loki’s eyes darkened as he gripped the scepter upside down, intending to give Shimizu a blast at close range.

But at that moment, a shield emblazoned with the Star-Spangled banner flew over and struck Loki squarely in the knee, forcing him to one knee.

Shimizu easily gave Loki a blast from his arm cannon, then held the Titanium Gold Alloy longsword horizontally before Loki’s face.

At the same time, a burst of noisy heavy metal rock blared out.

"Stark, turn off your noise."

Shimizu shouted into the radio.

"Okay, looks like I was a little late. You’ve already caught this… sorry, what was this little Bambi called again? Rabbit?"

"Not rabbit. Loki."

Captain America walked to Loki’s side and picked up his Vibranium round shield.

"Okay, maybe a seventy-year-old antique lacks a sense of humor."

A gold-and-red Iron Man Suit descended from the sky and opened its faceplate.

"I don’t think puns count as humor. Back in the army camps of my time, jokes like that weren’t allowed because they could cause comrades to misjudge a situation on the battlefield. I assume it’s the same in military camps now."

The young ninety-year-old spoke with an utterly earnest expression.

"Fine. I suppose there really is a huge generation gap between me and people of your generation."

Tony Stark put on an indifferent expression.

"Mortal, sooner or later, you will suffer for insulting the name of the great god Loki—mmph!"

Loki, who had been about to threaten Tony, had his mouth stuffed with cloth by Natasha before being cuffed.

"Great god, it’s time for you to come with me to a cell and submit to interrogation."

Natasha led Loki onto the Quinjet like he was a pet dog on a leash.

Shimizu, Captain America, and Tony followed aboard as well.

But before the jet could even leave Europe, lightning began flashing and thunder started rumbling in the sky.

Shimizu put away the Electric Light Puppet Battle Armor and dropped onto a seat to the side. He ignored Captain America and Tony’s bickering, and had no intention of joining Tony’s fight with Thor.

"You’re not going to help?"

Natasha, seated in the cockpit, asked Shimizu.

"It’s a pointless fight. Besides, someone has to keep an eye on Loki, doesn’t he?"

Shimizu toyed with the newly acquired scepter in one hand and pointed with the other toward Loki, who was leaning against a rock face in the forest below.