"Ryuuto! Look at that!" Natasha Romanoff's voice cracked with shock as she staggered back, just released from Ryuuto's arms.
A deafening boom echoed across the skyline. Under their horrified eyes, the Pentagon—once a gleaming fortress of steel and glass—crumpled like tofu under a hammer, torn apart in an instant. Dust and debris filled the sky, the sun swallowed in a cloud of chaos.
"The Pentagon… really collapsed? My God… how is this even possible?" Natasha whispered, horror and disbelief painting every line of her face as she clutched her mouth.
Ryuuto's fists clenched. His heart thumped with unspeakable frustration and anger.
The sight was apocalyptic: the Pentagon reduced to rubble, chaos spilling into the streets.
[Drop! A-level mission triggered: a new lizardman emerges in New York City! Strength unknown!]
[Master, eliminate this newborn lizardman and receive five life potions as reward. Additional clues about the main lizardman will also be provided!]
Athena—no, Shion—chimed in with her usual cheeky, slightly lazy tone:
"What? Another lizardman? Seriously, how many of these freaks are running around?"
[To be precise, that one used to be human. Someone forcibly injected him with lizard DNA serum.]
Ryuuto's eyes narrowed. So the culprit hadn't even finished revealing their hand yet—and innocent lives were already at risk.
[Time is critical, Master. Complete this mission ASAP!]
"Ugh… Shion, you really know how to push a guy to the edge!" Ryuuto muttered, black lines practically radiating from his aura. The system was relentless.
But there was no time to sulk. Kicking off the ground, he vanished in a blur of high-speed movement toward the Pentagon's ruins, leaving the newborn lizardman mission for later.
On the streets below, chaos reigned. Gwen—Spider-Woman—was tangled in Rose's elite capture team, moving with incredible agility, webbing enemies and clearing paths. Banner, now fully the Hulk, raged uncontrollably, smashing anything in sight.
"Ryuuto, wait for me!" Natasha shouted, following instantly without hesitation.
At the same time, Ross barked orders to his genetically enhanced super-soldiers, eyes fixed greedily on Banner. "Capture him! Don't let anything stop you! Hulk's power will fuel the future army!"
Gwen spun through the battlefield in her red-and-blue costume, webbing and disarming Ross's soldiers one by one, a blur of precision and fury.
But Banner's might was unmatched. Under the Hulk's complete control, every super-soldier attack was obliterated. Limbs, armor, and bodies were shredded in a pool of blood.
"Idiot! Don't you think first? Use a cannonball to knock him down, then extract your target!" Ross yelled, spittle flying, utterly unconcerned for his troops' lives.
Reinforcements arrived, fully armed and ready to die for the mission, saluting Ross with unwavering resolve.
The chaos of battle twisted New York into a blackened inferno of smoke and fire, the city trembling under the combined fury of superpowers and military might.
Meanwhile, President Obama had been whisked away to safety, coordinating national defense amidst the crumbling Pentagon. His efforts only fueled Rose's ambition further, the madman grinning as he cornered the out-of-control Hulk, eager to extract Banner's genetic power for his army of unstoppable super-soldiers.
But at that moment, a lightning-fast figure tore through the battlefield.
"No one touches Banner!" Ryuuto roared, lifting a dozen vehicles effortlessly with both hands and hurling them toward Ross's soldiers. Explosions erupted in every direction, a fiery wall forming around the Hulk, giving him precious seconds of protection.
"Ryuuto… do you even realize what you're doing?!" Rose's fury boiled over as his plans were interrupted. "You dare oppose me? Do you know the consequences?!"
Ryuuto smirked under the chaos, eyes gleaming with that familiar "trash-to-legend" spark. If this was a universe trying to grind him down, it clearly hadn't read the fine print.
...
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