The cold wind blew through the black conifer forest, causing the branches to tremble slightly, and clumps of snow fell.
Mu Yang took a step to the left, dodging a clump of snow that was about to hit him. He raised his hand, pointing towards a low, rocky wall hidden within the conifer forest. Steve followed his gaze, also looking at the ordinary wall.
That was where the entrance to the Hydra base was recorded in the intelligence reports.
Since it was a secret base, it naturally had to be well-hidden. It wouldn't be a secret base if it could be found at a glance.
The rocky wall at the entrance was just ordinary rock, but it had been specially treated and was embedded on an iron door. Entering the base required a series of verifications. If the verification failed, the person would be attacked by weapons hidden around the wall, and they would be riddled with holes within a second.
Steve naturally couldn't pass the verification, so he used a simpler method.
Boom! ...
Regardless of how strict the verification method was, a single bomb could handle it.
The blast wave swept outwards, rustling the branches of the trees. Snow cascaded down, and fragments of stone and iron shot outwards like bullets, severing many branches.
Mu Yang had dozens of large and small fragments of stone suspended in front of him. If he hadn't been prepared, he would have been bruised and battered at best, and in need of emergency medical attention at worst.
As for Steve? He had dozens of holes all over his body, and his head was little more than a mouth. But for a Devil Fruit user, these were trivial matters. Flames slowly burned, and the missing parts gradually recovered.
Before his body was fully restored, Steve charged into the smoke with his shield. He had gone out of his way to retrieve the shield from the glacier earlier.
At the moment of the explosion, an alarm also sounded inside the base.
"Intruder! Intruder! Combat personnel on all floors, please proceed to engage the enemy immediately! Intruder! Intruder! Combat personnel on all floors, please proceed to engage the enemy immediately!..."
Combat personnel on each floor, regardless of what they were doing, pressed the button on the earpiece in their left ear. They heard a "beep," followed by a voice saying, "Connected to the public channel."
"Squads one and two, eliminate the intruders. Squads three and four, protect the researchers. Squads five and six, guard the warehouses storing the items. Squads seven and eight, go…"
Steve listened to the orders in his earpiece as he ran, silently analyzing the situation.
He knew Bucky's location; the intel had it.
If the enemy's deployment was as he heard, then he'd only need to deal with squads one and two, and part of squads five and six.
He just worried the information he received was a deliberate deception. A smokescreen.
Thinking about it, Steve suddenly paused.
Wait a minute, why am I overthinking this?
Just charge in, find Bucky, and charge out. That's all that mattered.
At that moment, a group of black-suited men with handguns ran out from the corner of the passage ahead.
Whoosh—
Steve threw his shield, and he himself transformed into flames, chasing after it.
Clang!
The shield successfully struck an enemy's head, and the sound echoed through the passage, knocking the enemy unconscious.
The shield bounced back, and Steve, following closely behind, caught it and threw it again, knocking out two more. He then seized two handguns and started firing!
"Bang bang bang—!"
The enemies naturally fought back, and a dense volley of gunfire erupted in the passage.
However, the results for both sides were not the same.
Steve was completely unfazed, taking down one enemy with each shot.
Hydra panicked, retreating in disarray.
"The intruder is a mutant, immune to physical damage."
"Group one and two, do your best to stop the intruder! Groups nine and ten, provide support! Groups three and four, protect the researchers' retreat! Groups five and six, enter the warehouse and move the important items!"
This base was just one of Hydra's many research facilities, not a particularly important one, and it had no way to deal with mutants.
Receiving orders from the higher-ups, the enemy's attacks suddenly became fiercer. Relying on sheer numbers, Steve was quickly riddled with bullets. The constant, high-intensity barrage prevented him from reforming into his human shape, and he couldn't fight back.
Looks like the wish to save Bucky while killing more Hydra agents wasn't going to be fulfilled.
Whoosh—
Flames erupted, and Steve transformed into a ball of fire, soaring over the heads of the crowd. Bullets followed him, but they couldn't stop him.
"The intruder has broken through the blockade."
Members of Squads One and Two reported the situation while chasing a ball of fire. It was obvious they couldn't keep up; they lost sight of it after only a dozen seconds.
"We've lost the intruder!"
"Understood. Go to other floors and assist Squads Three and Four in protecting the researchers."
Steve moved quickly through the corridors. He smashed every camera he saw with his shield, eliminated small groups of enemies, and launched surprise attacks on larger ones. Then, using his Elementalization ability, he charged into the enemy ranks. He took advantage of his invulnerability to physical attacks, employing a hit-and-run strategy.
The enemy's attacks did nothing to him, possibly even endangering their own teammates.
When he attacked, it was one punch, one shot, or one shield strike, and they were down.
His efficiency was so high that the enemy began to flee at the sight of him. But would Steve let them escape?
Impossible.
Flashbangs, smoke grenades, hand grenades.
None of it managed to harm Steve.
"Release the Winter Soldier units to stop the intruders. The rest of you, provide cover for the researchers and evacuate the important items."
New orders were issued from the command center.
So, everyone in the base joined the evacuation, and the five Winter Soldiers stored there were awakened, armed with melee weapons, and sent to attack where Steve was.
Steve didn't forget his purpose this time, which was mainly to rescue Bucky, and secondarily to deal with some Hydra agents.
"Considering you released Bucky, I won't chase after you."
Steve picked up a dagger and sprinted towards the direction the Winter Soldier squad was approaching from.
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After navigating several turns and running up a few flights of stairs, Steve finally saw Bucky.
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The two sides glared at each other before simultaneously charging.
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His shield, like a hidden weapon, whistled through the air, striking towards one of the Winter Soldiers.
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That Winter Soldier ducked to avoid the shield. At that moment, Steve ran up and plunged the dagger in his right hand downwards.
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His hands crossed, the dagger plunged in, and blood splattered.
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Relying on his Elementalization, Steve, lacking defense, was pierced by three knives and, to add insult to injury, had his chest impaled by an Iron Hand.
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Ignoring the other four, Steve clenched the dagger and pressed down hard, while his other hand pulled out a gun.
Bang!
"One down."
The remaining four retreated as Steve charged one of them, wielding his gun and dagger.
Trying the same old tricks! Trying the same old tricks! Trying the same old tricks!
"So... it's just you left, Bucky!"
Steve picked up his shield and disregarded defense, focusing entirely on offense. He slammed the shield against Bucky's head.
After exerting a great deal of effort, he finally knocked Bucky out.
Turning into flames, he enveloped Bucky within them and flew out of the base.