I Became Spider-Man's Cousin in Anime Crossover

Chapter 416 Turning the Tables

"Because I'm on a covert operation involving highly classified government intelligence, I can't reveal the details of the mission to you, not even a tiny bit, Spider-Man. I hope you understand."

Fortunately, when he called Tony to frame him, he had anticipated that Tony would question why he was being chased by the Iron Monger, and thus prepared a corresponding explanation.

Therefore, when faced with Peter's question, Sitwell not only did not show any guilt, but instead put on a stern face and responded in a cold, official tone.

He deliberately straightened his back—despite the tearing pain in his left arm wound from the movement—to make his posture appear more "official." His eyes also sharpened; he was no longer the terrified "victim," but a "professional" carrying out an important mission and forced to remain silent.

Ultimately, before his identity as a Hydra agent was exposed, Sitwell, in name only, was a secret agent belonging to the official government.

This identity is his talisman, his get-out-of-jail-free card, and his pass that allows him to walk in broad daylight.

Therefore, most of the time, no matter how illogical or bizarre Sitwell's actions were, he could deflect most of the doubts by simply uttering the words "state secret".

This is the rule of the game in the bureaucratic system. Even if the other party knows that Sitwell has problems, they will inevitably have to watch Sitwell get away unscathed because of the law that "a higher-ranking official can crush a lower-ranking one".

But what Sitwell didn't expect was...

Spending a lot of time with Riley, Peter, whose heart should have been as pure as a blank sheet of paper, was also tainted with some of the cunning and ruthless traits characteristic of a modern-day Jia Xu.

"Of course, of course. It's a top-secret mission. Just like in the movies, don't ask questions you shouldn't ask. I know the rules."

Peter raised his hands and made a "I understand, I understand" gesture.

His tone sounded very cooperative, even showing a hint of understanding that "I understand your difficulties."

Before Sitwell could even feel happy, Peter put down his hand, changed the subject, and continued to press Sitwell for answers.

"But if it really was just a classified mission, then why would the Iron Monger—you know, the one Tony made specifically for Mr. Obadiah for self-defense—follow you all the way from Stark Industries to here?"

His voice remained light and cheerful, even carrying a casual, conversational quality, as if he were simply curious about something trivial.

But the problem itself was like a precise scalpel, directly cutting through the protective shield that Sitwell had woven with "state secrets".

Sitwell's heart sank.

How did Spider-Man know that Iron Monger started his pursuit from Stark Industries?

Having just arrived at the scene, he should have only seen the chaos in Times Square!

"You're wondering why I know this? The answer is simple: my suit's AI just searched publicly available information on the internet."

Peter seemed to see through his confusion and offered an explanation, his tone even sounding a little smug.

"Justice—my AI assistant—discovered at least twelve surveillance cameras in different locations that captured footage of Iron Monger flying out from the direction of Stark Tower. Then, it chased it all the way down Seventh Avenue to Times Square."

He tilted his head, and the big eye pattern on his mask blinked.

"Furthermore, according to the recording times of those videos, the time when the Iron Monger started the pursuit was exactly... um, let me see..."

Peter raised his wrist, and a small, semi-transparent display screen appeared on the surface of the nanosuit, with data scrolling rapidly on it.

"—It was exactly 6:30 PM. At the same time, the surveillance footage from the main entrance of Stark Industries showed five people who entered Stark Industries together. However, when they came out, they had changed into civilian clothes, clearly having disguised themselves, and then split up and left in different directions."

Peter looked up at Sitwell.

"One of them headed towards the Western District Expressway and was later confirmed to be driving that... uh, the black SUV that was blown up by the Iron Monger. The other four moved towards different subway stations. But they were all caught and knocked unconscious by the Iron Monger one by one, losing their ability to move freely."

His voice paused.

"And you, Mr. Sitwell, are the fifth and the last... You came out of the Stark Industries underground parking garage exit and then went into the sewers."

Each sentence is like a puzzle piece, precisely pieced together.

Every piece of information comes from publicly available, undeniable surveillance records.

Sitwell felt a cold sweat begin to break out on his back.

He only belatedly realized that they had been so astonished by the black Spider-Man's rapid growth that they had focused most of their attention on guarding against the black monster...

This led them to greatly underestimate the Spider-Man in front of them, who was not to be underestimated either!

It's not just about his combat prowess, but also his phenomenal information gathering ability!

In the short time it took to talk to this kid in the tight-fitting suit, his AI assistant had already completed a series of complex tasks across the entire internet, including collecting evidence, organizing timelines, and reconstructing the events.

And the reproduction is... damn accurate!

"That's just standard safe evacuation procedure."

Sitters broke out in a cold sweat, forcing himself to remain calm, his voice still carrying an "official" composure as he stubbornly defended himself.

"Once we've completed our intelligence gathering, we'll disperse and evacuate to avoid being tracked. This is standard procedure for intelligence operations."

"Standard procedure? An interesting way of putting it..."

But Peter still wasn't going to end the conversation. He sounded even more confused and pressed on with his questions.

"But... if you are really carrying out a 'legal' covert operation within Stark Industries, then why 'avoid being tracked'? With your authority, Mr. Tony would cooperate with you simply by giving a notification, right? Why bother with some clandestine operation while Tony is away?"

"After all, theoretically speaking... you and Tony shouldn't have any conflicts; you could be considered 'allies,' right?"

This is yet another fatal problem.

If the mission is legal, why sneak around like a thief?

If the mission is legitimate, why be afraid of being tracked?

If Tony Stark is truly an ally, why would his armor hunt down an "ally"?

Sitwell's lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but his mind went blank for a moment.

All the contingency plans, all the lies, all the excuses, all seem so pale and powerless in the face of this ridiculously simple question.

Because he couldn't explain it.

It is inexplicable why a "legitimate Security Council inspection" would turn into an escalating escape.

It is inexplicable why Stark Industries' defense system would classify him, a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, as a "threat that must be eliminated."

unless……

Unless this operation itself is shady.

Unless their purpose is not "patrol" but something else.

"That was... out of consideration for human compassion."

Sitwell racked his brains, pondered for a moment, and finally stammered out a weak and feeble explanation.

"You probably know how Tony behaved during that globally televised press conference, right? That's enough to show that his emotional state has been very unstable lately. We were worried that notifying him in advance would affect the objectivity of the mission. So we chose to sneak in, collect the data, and then quickly leave. We just didn't expect his defense system to malfunction like this."