Kurohane's eyes swept across the endless expanse of sand before him, then shifted to the desert-camouflaged off-road vehicle that faithfully accompanied him. A strange peace settled in his heart, even coaxing a faint smile to his lips.
A full three months had passed since Tony Stark, the flamboyant playboy, had vanished as if swallowed by the earth in the Middle East. Three months, too, since Kurohane had set foot on this foreign land, working shoulder-to-shoulder with other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents in a search and rescue operation that felt increasingly futile.
How could a Tony Stark, in the midst of his euphoric happiness, abandon his close friend, James Rhodes, to be accompanied by fans? The excessive champagne, the countless camera flashes, the boisterous laughter inside the speeding Hummer, the off-key singing echoing... it all ended tragically when a group of ruthless bandits from the Ten Rings organization suddenly ambushed them!
When Kurohane arrived at the scene, the sight that greeted him was nothing but the charred remains of the Hummer's frame, scattered among a dozen large craters from rocket explosions. Bloodstains? Gone without a trace, cleaned up with terrifying professionalism. This Ten Rings group was definitely not amateur!
Kurohane, as a Hydra spy infiltrating S.H.I.E.L.D., felt no discomfort whatsoever with his dual identity. Frankly, half of S.H.I.E.L.D. were Hydra sympathizers; no wonder some nicknamed it the 'Snake Shield Agency'.
For Kurohane, this identity was actually very advantageous. He could obtain valuable information from Hydra, then 'selflessly' eliminate 'traitorous' Hydra agents to earn justice points. In S.H.I.E.L.D.'s eyes, these actions were naturally seen as brilliant achievements, while before Hydra, he could argue that it was all part of his undercover mission, a necessary sacrifice to gain Nick Fury's trust. One mission, two benefits! A truly perfect combination!
Like now, the mission given by Nick Fury from S.H.I.E.L.D. was to rescue Tony, and the mission from Hydra was similar: rescue Tony. Only, Nick Fury reasoned that Tony was a descendant of one of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s founders, making it a mission laden with political significance. Hydra, on the other hand, was eager to kidnap Tony to gain access to Stark Industries' advanced weapon technology, and of course, the playboy's invaluable family wealth.
Kurohane calculated in his mind. This playboy, Tony Stark, would eventually transform into Iron Man. After all, without superheroes, there would be no supervillains to challenge them. If Tony didn't become Iron Man, then Tony's 'kind' uncle, Obadiah Stane, would never become the terrifying villain Iron Monger.
Killing ordinary criminals could give him 1 justice point. Eliminating supervillains? Surely the points should be more than that, right? For the sake of his justice point coffers, he should let Tony suffer a little first, then act after Tony truly became Iron Man!
Moreover, by being in S.H.I.E.L.D., he would have the opportunity to interact with many superheroes who would emerge in the future! Currently, the timeline was still around the first Iron Man movie. After this, it would most likely proceed to The Incredible Hulk. Imagining the bulletproof green giant, Kurohane felt his current abilities were still far from sufficient. Supervillains like Abomination clearly couldn't be defeated with firearms alone. He had to quickly win the lottery to obtain more powerful abilities!
Regarding Tony's current whereabouts, S.H.I.E.L.D. had indeed failed to find him, but that didn't mean Hydra had also failed. A week ago, Hydra had successfully tracked Tony's location. Under Kurohane's careful observation, he had thoroughly investigated the Ten Rings' stronghold where Tony was being held.
Around a hundred fully armed combat personnel, ranging from large-caliber heavy machine guns to anti-tank rocket launchers, were available. If the quality of the personnel was slightly higher, this hundred-man team could easily overthrow the regime of a small African country. It's just that this was the Marvel world, and Tony Stark could even assemble advanced armor with makeshift equipment to escape.
However, for Kurohane, apart from his deadly [Death Marksman] skill, he had no other abilities. Facing a hundred armed gang members? He clearly needed thorough preparation!
In any case, the time was almost up. Tony's homemade Iron Man armor would definitely be completed soon. If his rescue efforts were delayed, every Ten Rings member eliminated by Tony would be a huge loss for him!
Two M24 sniper rifles were mounted firmly, accompanied by an M4A1 automatic rifle complete with four magazines of ammunition. Three smoke grenades and three fragmentation grenades were tucked securely into his vest. The most advanced bulletproof vest and helmet protected his body, complemented by a tactical mask and night-vision goggles.
Fully armed, Kurohane observed the enemy stronghold about two hundred meters away. He had chosen a strategic sniper position long ago. There was no other way. If he wasn't strong enough to withstand a barrage of bullets with his body, he had to exploit his advantages in accuracy and range!
As Kurohane surveyed the enemy situation through his binoculars, he noticed strange movements inside the Ten Rings' stronghold. They seemed agitated, hurrying towards a cave!
Kurohane: "(°o°:)"
What a coincidence?
Only one thing could make these people panic: the discovery of Tony assembling his armor!
BANG!
His index finger pulled the trigger. The sound of the M24 sniper rifle shattered the silence of the desert. The Ten Rings member closest to the cave instantly collapsed, his head blown apart!
[Killed one Ten Rings Gang member, Justice Points +1]
Seeing the long-awaited increase in his justice points, Kurohane couldn't help the faint smile that graced his lips!
Three months! Forget about villains, finding even one person in this barren desert wasn't easy! Finally, this young master had succeeded!
BANG! BANG! BANG!
[Killed one Ten Rings Gang member, Justice Points +1]
[Killed one Ten Rings Gang Squad Leader, Justice Points +2]
...
With each crack of the sniper rifle, another Ten Rings member's life was extinguished. Cold and precise calculations were ingrained in Kurohane's mind, ceasing only when his rifle's magazine ran empty.
As Kurohane swiftly replaced the magazine, the remaining Ten Rings members hastily sought cover, suddenly making Kurohane's sniper work more difficult!
However, there was one thing that made Kurohane even more excited: a squad leader was apparently 'more valuable' than ordinary members! The theory that the higher the status and power of the villain killed, the more justice points obtained, proved to be correct!
With his previous series of shots, Kurohane had sealed off access to the cave entrance, which was likely Tony's hiding place. He also focused on disabling defensive positions and enemy commanders. Now, four corpses with shattered heads lay at the mouth of the cave, like a grim warning to anyone who dared to approach.
Kurohane reloaded his magazine and continued to bombard the enemy stronghold with accurate fire. The tactical level of these people was surprisingly low; they hadn't even mastered effective cover-seeking techniques. After eliminating several unlucky and less skilled members, Kurohane shifted his target.
He aimed directly at the fuel tanks of the vehicles inside the stronghold!
BANG! BANG! BANG!
The fuel tanks of several modified pickup trucks equipped with heavy machine guns exploded in flames, instantly engulfing the entire vehicles. Several violent secondary explosions followed, turning the trucks into giant fireballs!
As a result of Kurohane's 'barbaric' actions, the Ten Rings members finally managed to pinpoint his position. Under the command of a leader hiding behind cover, several reckless members sped towards his position in vehicles. Even more insane, those sitting in the passenger seats leaned their upper bodies out, raising anti-tank rocket launchers, aiming at Kurohane's position, ready to fire!
Whoosh!
The sound of the sniper rifle echoed again. The driver of the Ten Rings truck died instantly. The truck swerved, overturned, and tumbled in the sand. The rocket that was supposed to be fired from the passenger seat went off course, hitting another fuel truck with a trail of smoke!
[Killed four Ten Rings Gang members, Justice Points +4]
With the blessing of his [Death Marksman] skill, even moving targets on vehicles could be easily taken down! As for destroying two trucks at once with a single shot? That was just pure luck, requiring no special skill!
Kurohane quickly dropped the sniper rifle in his hands and grabbed the M4A1 assault rifle. Taking advantage of the thick smoke generated by the truck explosions, Kurohane moved as fast as lightning, like a ghost, approaching the Ten Rings stronghold!
Turns out, firearms could also be very useful!
"My sweet justice points! This young master has come to take you home!!!" Kurohane whispered excitedly, his eyes gleaming as he stared at the approaching stronghold.
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