The new Marvel tie-in book, The Wakanda Files, reveals that T’Challa sent Shuri to investigate the murder of Howard and Maria Stark at the hands of the Winter Soldier.
The sudden death of Tony Stark’s parents had a lasting influence on their son’s life. Even within the MCU, his relationship with Howard plays a key role in his personal motives, not to mention the revelation that Bucky Barnes murdered them in the climactic moments of Captain America: Civil War essentially led to Iron Man and Cap almost killing each other. The incident broke the Avengers apart, ultimately giving Thanos an edge in the battle for the Infinity Stones.
Now, The Wakanda Files, an in-universe book written by Black Panther’s sister, Shuri, reveals that she investigated the crash site to determine what had really occurred. Here’s an excerpt from the new title that details this inquiry:
“My King, I have returned to Oakland following my investigation of the crash site. It is obvious there was foul play and valuable property was stolen from Stark. Would you like me to continue the investigation?”
It’d actually make a lot of sense for the King of Wakanda to keep a close tab on important individuals. But it was only after the Bombing of Vienna that T’Challa became involved with the events of Civil War. And even then, he didn’t talk about this with Tony, despite the fact that the ramifications of their falling out proved to be catastrophic for the Earth’s Mightiest Heroes.
Of course, the recently released Marvel book has also revealed that Shuri actively studied the super soldier program. So, it seems that overall, the Wakandans knew more about the Winter Soldier than they let on.