The Ancient One Arrives

It didn't work?

The X-Men team froze, while Iceman's eyes turned bloodshot, fury filling his chest.

The woman he liked had kissed another man. Even though she had been forced to do it, still—

Rogue wasn't exactly pretty!

Among American women, she was barely an eighty at best. Maybe... perhaps even a little lower.

But Kino had never understood what "refusal" meant.

Or rather, he never refused "meat" delivered right to his door.

Rogue was a little dazed!

What did "not part of the same system" mean?

She was so busy being dazed that she even forgot to make the escape Ben was supposed to...

Kino's Devil Fruit ability and mutant ability did not belong to the same system, so Rogue could not steal his abilities. However, she could steal his "life force." Yet Kino, the "Child of the Phoenix" who possessed the undying bird fruit empowered by the Phoenix Force, was, in essence, Ben—a "deity" who controlled life.

Put it this way—

Rogue could only steal 1 point of life force per second, while Kino had 10,000 points of life force, and after being injured, he recovered 2 points per second.

So Rogue's life-stealing ability failed as well.

Only when a warm, large hand stroked her face did Rogue suddenly wake up. This was not the time for her to be distracted.

"Must be painful, huh?"

"Huh?"

Kino's eyes brimmed with deep pity. That unusual look touched the softest part of her heart. Ever since her mutant ability had awakened, she had never felt such concern in anyone's eyes.

Her eyes could not help reddening.

"Wolverine has had it rough, but compared to you, his misery is simply... not worth mentioning!"

"You've been in pain ever since your powers awakened, haven't you?"

"To stop others from touching you and having their lives stolen away, you can only wrap yourself up tightly. Summer is here, yet you don't dare wear a single one of those beautiful outfits. No matter how hot it gets, you can only cover yourself up."

"You can't feel your boyfriend's burning chest!"

"You can't kiss him!"

"You even have to wear gloves just to hold hands."

"But can a relationship like that still be called a relationship?"

"Whenever night falls, you can only lie alone in bed, unable to feel the warmth of your other half. Only emptiness, loneliness, and cold embrace you every single moment!"

"You can't do what normal women do with the men they love. That feeling of soaring into the clouds has been gone from your life for a very, very long time, hasn't it? How many years has it been since you last did that?"

"You can't even become a mother!"

"Decades from now, when your life reaches its end, there won't even be anyone by your side. No children at your knee, no one to see you off. You'll lie in a hospital bed, surrounded only by doctors in white masks, watching you close your eyes with their mechanical, indifferent gazes."

"It has robbed you of your 'entire life.' Believe me, this is absolutely not a blessing. It's a curse!"

With every sentence Kino spoke, Rogue shed another stream of tears. By the end, she covered her face with both hands, crouched on the ground, and burst into loud sobs!

"I can let you live like a normal person!" Kino held out his hand.

Boom—Rogue's mind shook violently. She raised her head in disbelief. "Y-you... what did you say?"

She had heard him clearly, but she wanted to hear it again!

"I can let you live like a normal person!" Kino repeated.

"R-really?" Rogue stopped crying and looked at Kino with hope in her eyes.

"Of course! Once you want—"

"No need. I can do it right now!"

Every moment, every minute, every second, she had dreamed of escaping this "curse"! She wanted it so badly. She thought about it every moment, and she could not wait to escape this miserable life!

At the end of "X-Men 3," she had chosen to leave for love.

"!" Kino suddenly frowned, gently pushed Rogue away, and turned to look behind him. "That can be discussed, but wait a moment. We have guests!"

Buzzzzzz—

At that moment, the spatial magic Kino had set up began shaking violently. Then... three seconds later—crack—it shattered!

The instant it shattered, a black Chevrolet Suburban rammed through the school gates like a mad beast... and charged in.

It wailed as it lurched forward, leaving tire marks all over the ground before finally stopping.

Nick Fury pushed open the car door with a pale face and stared at the school, which looked as though it had been through an earthquake. "What? What... happened here just now?"

Kino had sealed off the entire Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters with spatial separation. To those outside, the school still looked exactly as Ben had always known it, but the roads had been folded and blocked. Although Nick Fury seemed to be driving toward the school gates, he had actually only been going in circles.

Of course, he was no idiot. He had realized long ago that something was wrong.

From the moment he first saw the school to—reaching the school gates—it should have taken only three minutes, yet he had been driving for nearly half an hour!

The school gates were clearly only a hundred meters away, but he simply could not reach them!

Yet just a second ago, it had felt as though he had smashed through a pane of glass and, with a boom, crashed through the school gates!

Emmmmmm...

In reality, he simply had not been able to react in time!

While the spatial magic had still been active, he had been roughly thirty meters away from the "school gates"!

But—the instant the magic was broken, the school gates suddenly crossed those "thirty meters" and flashed right in front of him!

So, unable to brake in time, he barreled straight inside.

Fortunately, Nick Fury's Chevrolet Suburban had been modified—the same one from "Captain America 2."

Kino ignored him and instead looked to the other side. "Hi, Hill!"

Maria Hill gave him a cold glare, and he awkwardly rubbed his nose.

"Professor Charles, we meet again."

Nick Fury shot Kino a fierce glare and decided not to pursue his issue for now. He would deal with the immediate problem first.

Professor X had already returned to his wheelchair. Though he still looked somewhat disheveled, he had more or less regained Ben's image of a wise elder.

"Nick Fury, director of S.H.I.E.L.D.! What? Is S.H.I.E.L.D. attacking Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters today?"

"NO!" Nick Fury shrugged, washing his hands of the matter completely. "He... he isn't with S.H.I.E.L.D. He's just... just a 'part-timer'!"

Kino turned his head: Didn't you say I was a consultant?

Nick Fury shot him a look: No, you're overthinking it. Just a part-timer!

"So today's matter was merely a misunderstanding?"

Professor X was somewhat irritated. A misunderstanding?

How was Scott losing an arm supposed to be handled?

But he did not dare speak too harshly. After all, Kino was not an easy person to deal with!

"Of course! Uh... S.H.I.E.L.D. will cover the repair costs this time. Also—"

Before Nick Fury could finish, Kino interrupted him. "Mr. Director, when we're discussing classified matters, could we perhaps not do it in front of outsiders?"

Outsiders?

Nick Fury's brow tightened!

There were other people here, so Ben instinctively drew his pistol.

Then he saw Kino walk straight toward an open patch of ground nearby and reach out to grab the air!

That was right!

He grabbed it!

Then he actually heard the sound of a mirror shattering!

Next, the image flickered like a kaleidoscopic bubble illusion...

Uh, it was a little dizzying!

The flickering vanished, and a cloaked figure wearing a beige monk's robe... or perhaps a Taoist robe... in any case, something in a very strange style, appeared!

"Good morning, Sorcerer Supreme—the Ancient One!"