“Can you show me your mastery of the two jutsus before we proceed?” Max asked, folding his arms.

“Okay,” Thena said, determination in her eyes. She closed them, formed a Ram seal, and shouted, “Transformation Jutsu!”

In a puff of smoke, she transformed into Max.

Max circled her, inspecting every detail. “Not bad… very solid and convincing,” he muttered. Then he paused, considering. “With a few adjustments in height and build, it would totally look authentic.”

Thena released the jutsu in a puff of smoke, reverting to herself.

“Now it’s your turn,” she said, a sly grin spreading across her face. “Transform into me.”

“Oh? Is that a challenge?” Max asked, raising an eyebrow.

“Maybe,” Thena replied, crossing her arms.

Max smirked. Without a single handseal, he shifted his chakra, and in a swirl of light, he transformed into a perfect replica of Thena.

Thena walked around him slowly, inspecting every detail. “Hmm… looks convincing enough,” she said smugly.

“Jealous?” Max teased.

“No,” Thena pouted. “You just made me look smaller than I am.”

“Smaller where?” Max grinned.

“You know exactly what I mean!” Thena shouted, folding her arms and sticking out her bottom lip.

“I don’t know ,that’s how it looks to me,” Max said, shrugging casually.

“DAD!” Thena yelled, grabbing a small rock and tossing it at him. Max dodged easily, laughing.

“Okay, okay! I’m sorry!” he said, wiping a tear from laughing too hard.

Thena huffed. “Just teach me the jutsu already!”

“Alright, alright,” Max said, calming down. “But seriously, you need to stop staying up late watching TV. You’re picking up bad things from it.”

“I don’t have much else to do besides training,” Thena said defensively.

“True,” Max conceded, rubbing the back of his neck. Then, after a moment’s thought, he said, “Then it’s settled,you’re going to school starting next month.”

“School? Really? But I don’t even have records, and I still need to train to get stronger!” Thena exclaimed.

“Don’t worry about that,” Max said confidently. “You can train on weekends or early mornings. School won’t stop you from improving and also,this way you’ll get a chance to meet kids your age and maybe even have freinds.”

Thena’s shoulders relaxed as she hugged him. “Thanks, Dad.”

Max patted her back. “Alright, now let’s get back to training.”

Thena let go, but her eyes suddenly snapped east. “Someone’s coming,” she said, her voice tense.

“I know,” Max muttered.

Seconds later, a sonic boom split the air. Older Thena landed gracefully before them, rising to her full height.

“Hello, Max,” she said

“And who’s the little one? Is this your kid?” Nina asked, tilting her head.

Max blinked, confused.

“You wound me so badly, Max,” Nina continued dramatically, placing a hand on her chest. “To think you would forget about your own sister!”

Max realized what she was doing and decided to play along, a small smile tugging at his lips. “Ahh, Nina… it’s been a while. I almost didn’t recognize you.”

Nina walked toward him, and they embraced in a warm hug.

“You’ve changed,” she said as they pulled apart.

“I can say the same about you,” Max replied with a grin. Then he turned toward Thena and waved. “Come on, say hi to your Aunt.”

Thena hesitated for a moment, then shyly walked over. Nina crouched down to meet her at eye level.

“What’s your name?” Nina asked gently.

“Thena,” she replied, fidgeting with her fingers.

“That’s a lovely name,” Nina said with a warm smile. “I’m Nina, Max’s sister. You can call me Aunt Nina.”

With a flourish, Nina pulled out a scroll and opened it. A puff of smoke appeared, and a bucket of ice cream materialized. Thena’s eyes went wide.

“Oh! Do you like ice cream?” Nina asked, smirking.

“Yes!” Thena exclaimed eagerly.

“Then this is all yours,” Nina said, handing her the bucket.

“Thanks, Aunt Nina!” Thena shouted, hurrying off to sit under a nearby tree.

Nina turned to Max, raising an eyebrow playfully. “Nina? Seriously? Couldn’t you have thought of any other name?”

“Well,” Max replied, shrugging, “your arrival was unexpected.”

“So… are you going to live with us?” he asked after a moment.

“I don’t know,I haven’t decided yet,” Nina replied her tone calm.

Meanwhile

HALL OF JUSTICE

Rain poured outside the vast glass dome as the Justice League gathered around the main console.

The holographic screen flickered to life, replaying surveillance footage: a hooded figure slipped silently through the Hall of Justice, bypassing every defense protocol with unnerving precision.

The figure placed a USB drive on the central table,then vanished into the shadows seconds before the alarms blared.

“Okay, let me get this straight,” Barry said, breaking the tense silence. “Someone broke into our headquarters the most secure place on the planet—and didn’t steal anything?”

“Yes,” Batman replied, his tone cold and clipped as he typed into the console. “At exactly 0400 hours, the intruder left this.”

The display changed. A digital file appeared—its title glowing crimson:

[Project X]

File Classification: Omega-Level — Eyes Only

Lead Geneticist: Dr. Benjamin Cross

Subject Designation: THENA

Specimen ID: X-001

Objective:

Primary aim: to create a stable genetic duplicate of Subject P (Pietro Maximoff).

Attempts: 300 specimens cultivated.

Result: All failed except one—stabilization occurred only when Amazonian DNA (Source: Diana Prince) was introduced into the sequence.

Procedure Summary:

Hybridization protocols combined Pietro’s DNA with Amazonian markers.

Out of 300 trials, 299 terminated during gestation.

Specimen X-001 achieved full stabilization and maturation.

Abilities Observed:

– Chlorokinesis: manipulation and acceleration of plant growth.

– Regenerative Adaptation: rapid cellular recovery exceeding baseline metahuman levels.

– Progressive Enhancement: incremental growth in strength, speed, and durability over time.

Behavioral Notes:

Exhibits independence and accelerated cognitive growth.

Displays Amazonian discipline and resilience.

Conclusion:

Specimen X-001 is the sole success of Project X. Classified as a Prime Hybrid.

Replication attempts, even with Amazonian DNA, have proven infeasible.

Status:

Specimen X-001 — Terminated.

The screen dimmed. The silence that followed was suffocating.

“It’s a log,” Superman said quietly. “A personal one, by the look of it.”

“Wait,Doctor Benjamin Cross?” Barry asked. “Isn’t that the guy who died on Rose Island? You know,when Max blew the place sky-high?”

“He is,” Cyborg confirmed, scanning the file’s metadata. “This log was authored by him days before the attack. Looks like we finally know what kind of research was happening there.”

Barry frowned. “No wonder Max snapped. I thought it was bad when Bruce told us but I see now that it was much worse… and this says the only success was made using Max and Diana’s DNA.”

“Which,” Batman added without hesitation, “was the one Max killed.”

“Not cool, man,” Cyborg muttered, shooting Bruce a glare.

All eyes turned to Diana. She stood silently, staring at the flickering projection. Her hands trembling”

“Diana…” Superman began, gently.

But Batman’s voice cut through,”Whoever sent this knew exactly what it would do. She wanted you shaken or pit you against Max.”

Barry frowned. “Wait,how do you know it was a she?”

Batman’s fingers danced across the keyboard. “Because she didn’t bother cleaning up her trail.”

A 3D DNA strand rotated on-screen, highlighted in gold.

“She left fingerprints and trace DNA on the drive,” Bruce continued. “Female. Metahuman. And here’s the kicker…” He paused, letting the tension hang. “The DNA partially matches both Diana’s and Max’s.”

The room went deathly still.

“You’re saying” Superman started.

“Yes,” Batman said, his tone flat as stone. “Whoever broke in could very well be their clone.”

“Is it true that he killed her?” Diana asked, her voice low but trembling with fury.

“Yes,” Barry replied quietly. “We were there.”

Diana’s jaw tightened as she clenched her fists. Without another word, she turned sharply and began walking away.

“Diana, wait,where are you going?” Superman called out.

“I’m going to find Max,” she said coldly. “I want answers.”

Before anyone could stop her, she shot upward, blasting through the roof in a burst of speed.

“I’ll go with her,” Superman said, launching after her into the sky.

Batman’s eyes remained fixed on the monitor. “There’s something you should see,” he said. His fingers flew over the keyboard, pulling up CCTV footage from a mall dated a few weeks earlier.

The screen showed a white-haired man in a clothing store,standing beside a young, dark-haired girl.

Barry’s eyes widened as Batman zoomed in on the girl’s face. “Oh my god,” he whispered. “She’s actually alive.”

End of chapter

Sorry for the short chapter guys,I just wanted to keep my promise for our today,I hope you understand .and also don’t forget to drop them stones 😁

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep