That sudden kick sent Whiplash rolling awkwardly for two full circles.
The lashes that should have killed Iron Man slammed into the floor with no aim at all.
In the gap while Whiplash was struggling to get back up, Captain America picked up Tony's briefcase.
"If you've got any trump card, use it now!" he said, then threw the case to Tony.
Seeing his portable armor right in front of him, Tony's face lit up instantly.
He opened the case and pressed both hands down into it.
In a flash, the armor surged out through his hands and spread across his body at high speed.
By the time Whiplash climbed up again, the enemy in front of him was no longer the miserable Tony Stark.
It was Iron Man, brimming with confidence, and an equally confident Captain America.
And also…
A "normal" Kryptonian who did not want Iron Man stealing the spotlight.
Just as Iron Man was about to face off with Whiplash, Heisenberg finally stood up.
He clapped his hands, drawing the eyes of the drinkers who had been absorbed by the fight.
"That's… the nightclub boss, right?"
"So it's him!"
"I heard he killed Kingpin!"
"And he took Kingpin's enforcers. Those bastards are grabbing territory for him now, aren't they?"
"But why would he dare walk out?"
"Even if he killed Kingpin, that doesn't mean he's qualified to face that kind of enemy. That's Iron Man's opponent. Look at those lightning arcs!"
"But he really does look arrogant, just wearing pajamas!"
"Yeah, what a waste he's still wearing pajamas!"
The girls wiped the corners of their mouths. Heisenberg's half-exposed muscles were simply too appetizing.
After pulling in most of the attention, Heisenberg spoke to everyone present.
"Anyone injured in my club, call the hospital. I'll cover the medical bills."
"Anyone causing trouble in my club, I'll handle those bastards."
"Tony, you caused me trouble, so compensate my floor and couches as soon as possible."
"And you…!" Heisenberg glanced at Whiplash with displeasure. "Being able to track Tony's whereabouts is impressive, but did you not check whose territory this is?"
"You, who the hell do you think you…"
Boom!
Before Whiplash could finish, Heisenberg's casual slap had already smashed into his face.
There were too many guests on site, so Heisenberg did not blow Whiplash apart.
He only slapped Whiplash's head into spinning two full circles.
In the next moment, with his mouth and nose now facing toward his own back, Whiplash collapsed with a heavy thud.
In the very next second, cheers erupted from all directions.
"Ahhh, that was so cool!"
"How could it be that easy?!"
"How strong is his hand?!"
"So this is Heisenberg, the big shot who killed Kingpin?!"
"Don't mess with him. I don't think even Iron Man can take a slap like that!"
"Bare-handed, my God!"
The guests were probably full of alcohol.
So not only were they not afraid, they started excitedly discussing it instead.
Someone had already called the police, and officers would come to investigate the club soon.
But the customers actually used their buzz to sit back down, drink, and talk excitedly about what they had just seen.
Aside from the unlucky poor souls who got hurt and were sent to the hospital, everyone else drank without restraint.
Even with Whiplash's body lying right beside them.
New Yorkers really were something.
After killing Whiplash, Heisenberg's eyes quietly glowed red.
Whiplash's crude chest reactor shattered at once.
The reactor Whiplash wore was far too primitive. The radiation was basically everywhere, and Heisenberg did not want his customers getting cancer.
After that, Heisenberg brought Tony, Captain America, plus the free bonus Coulson and Happy, up to the top-floor villa.
Five grown men lay back on lounge chairs, as if sunbathing under midnight starlight.
A chef team that had prepared in advance was grilling barbecue outdoors by the pool.
That was also why Tony's mouth kept making smacking sounds.
As he ate, Tony complained, "Can't we get burgers? I like those more!"
"Heh, I like barbecue," Heisenberg replied casually, then tossed an entire grilled wing into his mouth and chewed it up.
His wild, mannerless way of eating should have disgusted Coulson, who had received gentlemanly training.
But in reality…
Coulson only felt like it looked delicious.
In Heisenberg's words: "When chewing bone feels about the same as chewing fatty meat, believe me, meat with the bone is the best moment of being a carnivore."
After swallowing the wing, Heisenberg smiled faintly and teased Tony.
"How does it feel?"
"How does what feel? The feeling of almost getting killed?"
"No, no, no. The feeling of being saved by your uncle."
Heisenberg said it with a grin. Tony nearly spat out his meat.
A moment later, Tony swallowed, took a swig of alcohol, then cursed.
"You're taking advantage of me, damn it!"
"Hahahaha. I'm not talking about me." Heisenberg laughed and pointed at Captain America. "I mean your Uncle Rogers."
That gesture made Tony look at Rogers in confusion.
After hesitating, he turned back. "S.H.I.E.L.D. agent? I'm familiar with their kind, but this guy… he looks familiar…"
"Yeah, just familiar," Heisenberg said. "In the photos he left behind, he always had a mask on."
Heisenberg tossed Rogers a bottle of beer.
"At a time like this, you still won't introduce yourself to your little nephew?"
"Uh… you aliens have heard of me too?"
"I read comics after coming to Earth. The famous Captain America, Germany's most feared enemy, and also your dad's best friend."
Heisenberg watched Tony's expression with interest. Tony froze so hard he even stopped chewing.
"Captain America…" Tony asked blankly. "You're still alive?"
"I…"
For some reason, Rogers suddenly wanted to beat Tony up.
Maybe Tony realized his slip too. He rubbed his beard, then asked again.
"You're actually still alive, then do you know Aunt Peggy married someone else?"
"I…!!!"
Veins bulged on Rogers' forehead.
And Iron Man kept muttering.
"Or are you a playboy like my dad? You stayed young all this time and never thought about being with Aunt Peggy?"
"I really think she got cheated. When I was a kid, she even held me!"
"Hahaha, I suddenly kind of like your mouth." Heisenberg laughed so hard he was delighted.
The atmosphere among the five of them improved a lot through the back-and-forth.
Downstairs, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Barbara was negotiating with the NCPD. No matter what, someone had died in Heisenberg's club, and a lot of people had recorded videos of Heisenberg killing someone.
But with Barbara leading S.H.I.E.L.D.'s elites, it was easily categorized as forced counterattack under a home-invasion murder attempt.
So Heisenberg naturally avoided the trouble of being questioned.
That was the point of Heisenberg using S.H.I.E.L.D.
That was also why he needed his own territory and his own subordinates.
It was not true that being strong meant trouble stayed far away from you.
On the contrary, the stronger you were, the more trouble came looking.
You could kill one person, two people, countless people.
But you could not just keep slaughtering forever.
Once Heisenberg's people eventually build a legal department on Kingpin's level, his life would become even more convenient.
Of course, after S.H.I.E.L.D. finished cleaning up, they naturally took Whiplash and his crude armor away…
…
At the same time, the Triskelion welcomed a new guest.
A special guest that made the agents extremely tense.
The moment that plane landed at the S.H.I.E.L.D. airfield, countless agents tightened their grips on their guns.
They were all elites, but they understood even more clearly what their opponent was.
If that guy had an accident, they could only fill the gap with their lives. There was no other way.
Luckily… Agent Natasha was still reliable.
Banner, dressed in rags, walked down the plane and looked at the agents who seemed to be "welcoming" him.
"Heh. I'm really honored. The reception is this grand."
"This is an accident," Natasha explained immediately.
She was confused too. They all knew she was bringing the Hulk back, so why were there so many agents here who might provoke him?
But then an agent stepped up and explained.
"Agent Natasha, and our new consultant, Mr. Bruce Banner, sorry for the misunderstanding."
"Iron Man Tony Stark was attacked at Kryptonian Elder Heisenberg's nightclub. Captain America was involved too. Heisenberg killed again. That's why we're assembled on alert."
Natasha and Banner exchanged a look.
Seeing Bruce's expression that could not bear to look at it, he probably thought S.H.I.E.L.D. dealt with scenes like this every day.
"You people… really have it rough," Bruce Banner sighed.
Natasha simply shook her head.
"With you, it'll get a lot better. But for now, let's not get involved in their mess. Come with me to see the director."
"Your call."
As they spoke, the two passed the tense agents and headed straight for Nick Fury's office.
When they saw Fury in person, Natasha was about to speak, but Nick suddenly raised a finger and blocked her mouth.
Natasha immediately shut up. Only then did Nick Fury speak in as low a voice as possible.
"His hearing is excellent, so when we talk, you are not allowed to mention his name."
"Intelligence believes he doesn't monitor New York 24 hours24 hours a day, but if his name is mentioned, it might trigger a special response."
"Careful enough." Natasha nodded. "So, tell me what happened tonight?"
Nick nodded, but he did not speak right away. Instead, he turned to Bruce Banner, reached out his right hand, and said, "Good to meet you, Dr. Banner."
"Believe me, you'll find we're different from certain generals."
"Hopefully." Banner nodded noncommittally, then sat on the sofa to the side and listened to Black Widow and the one-eyed spy.
"Our plan to bring Tony in hit a snag, so we had to use this approach. We used an attacker codenamed Whiplash to establish contact with Tony Stark."
"The plan is moving forward steadily. Coulson and Captain Rogers, and Tony and him, their relationship has made enough progress."
"Wait," Banner suddenly asked. "When you say 'him,' you mean… the 'him' you want me to guard against?"
"Exactly," Natasha confirmed with a nod.
Banner immediately looked dissatisfied.
"So your real goal isn't to take action against him. It's to trick him into your hands like you did to me."
"Especially once you have me and him, you can use him to balance me, and use me to balance him."
"Your算盘 is really beautifully calculated."
"So what, Dr. Banner?" Nick Fury fired back. "You want me to gather all forces and kill him before he commits any evil?"
"Or do you like being treated the way we're treating you?"
With that, Banner cooled down and sat back.
"OK, I get it. Don't worry. I'm just joking."
Banner waved his hand, smiled with embarrassment, and continued.
"After all, the trouble I bring in this area is much bigger than his, so I can accept your methods. But what about him?"
"Please don't call it 'methods,'" Nick Fury said seriously.
"For an extraterrestrial visitor, Earth sincerely welcomes his arrival."
"S.H.I.E.L.D. is a United Nations直属 agency. As humanity's representative, we extend an invitation. That is reasonable and justified."
"Fine." Banner sighed helplessly. "At least you're more honest than that general."
"You do intend to use me and him, but at least you understand balancing, instead of irrationally craving the Hulk's power."
Banner had already guessed what his future situation would be the moment he accepted Natasha's invitation.
No matter what, this situation was still better than what he originally imagined.
For a moment, he could not help feeling a little grateful toward Heisenberg.
If Heisenberg, that guy so strong everyone feared him, hadn't existed, Bruce might not have gotten this kind of treatment at all.
/-\
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