S.H.I.E.L.D.
The more Natasha investigated, the more alarmed she became.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s seemingly impregnable ranks had already been infiltrated.
By investigating Desmond and looking into the people he associated with,
a hidden force gradually surfaced.
Just as she was about to dig deeper, Desmond died.
He died aboard his ship.
Every lead was cut off. Several S.H.I.E.L.D. agents implicated by the information they had gathered also tried to flee, then successfully committed suicide.
With no leads left, the investigation came to an end.
Apart from flagging the government officials connected to them for special attention, they had essentially failed this time.
Fury's expression was grim. He had never expected the S.H.I.E.L.D. he took such pride in to be infiltrated.
How many of their people were inside S.H.I.E.L.D. remained unknown.
An organization as vast as S.H.I.E.L.D. could not conduct a thorough investigation of everyone.
The enemy's decisiveness startled Fury.
They had abandoned Desmond's businesses and funds without a second thought.
Everyone had died before S.H.I.E.L.D. could investigate further.
Their ability to anticipate his moves was most likely due to those S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who had committed suicide.
Now that the dead could offer no testimony, Fury could only set the matter aside for the time being.
Still, Fury felt uneasy. Their way of lying low and committing suicide without hesitation reminded him of an organization that had already been destroyed.
A suspicion arose in his mind, but he concealed it well.
He looked at Natasha and Barton with an unreadable expression.
"Natasha, take a break."
Barton had noticed the exhaustion on Natasha's face.
"I'm not sleepy." Natasha rubbed her face.
Seeing Barton fully equipped, she asked, "A mission?"
"I'll need to be away for a while." Neither Barton nor Natasha mentioned the details of the mission.
As agents, they knew that one