Steve and Bucky raced through the tunnel.
"Surrender immediately!" Police cars sped after them. Ordinary officers had no business interfering in a conflict that even special forces struggled to handle.
The distance between Steve and Bucky was too great—he couldn't catch up on foot. Spotting an opportunity, Steve rolled forward, smashed through a police car window, yanked the driver out, and took the wheel, continuing the chase.
Tony couldn't fly properly inside the tunnel. An oncoming car nearly collided with him, while another pursuer closed in behind.
"Eat my exhaust, Sam!"
Tony increased his output. Blue flames burst from his foot thrusters, propelling him forward at high speed. Panels on his back opened, releasing micro-missiles—two of which locked onto Sam.
"Are you trying to kill him?!" The tunnel was too narrow for Sam to maneuver effectively. He was forced to fall back, keeping his distance.
Boom!
An oncoming vehicle clipped Sam's wing, nearly tearing off the roof. Fortunately, the driver escaped with nothing worse than a close shave.
Sam struggled to stabilize himself, slamming into the tunnel wall before dropping hard to the ground. He could no longer keep up with Tony.
Steve spotted the incoming missile in the rearview mirror and immediately leapt out of the car window.
A second later, the vehicle exploded, flipping through the air.
Even so, Bucky couldn't escape Tony's pursuit. Ahead, the road was sealed off—special forces lined the tunnel, rifles raised, ready to take him down. There was no way through.
Tony descended, targeting Bucky directly. Just as he was about to fire, Steve's shield came flying in from a distance, knocking the weapon aside. Steve himself followed, tackling Tony to the ground.
"Everyone—stand down!" the soldiers shouted.
Tony ignored them. His eyes never left Bucky. The hatred burning inside him demanded release.
The man who killed his parents—there could be no reconciliation.
Seeing Tony charging again, Bucky dropped low, narrowly avoiding the impact. Even with a super soldier's body, taking a hit like that would put him out of commission.
Tony was using himself like a projectile, with no intention of stopping.
"Stand down! I repeat, stand down!"
The soldiers raised their weapons, ready to fire at any moment.
"Tony! Stop!"
War Machine arrived just in time. Rhodey hovered overhead, the Gatling gun mounted on his armor trained on Tony.
"Don't make this worse," Rhodey warned. "Stand down—now!"
Steve finally caught up, and the sight was almost ironic—the Avengers, who rarely stood together anymore, now gathered here in opposition.
"Captain," Rhodey said coldly, "congratulations. You're a criminal now."
The soldiers moved in immediately, restraining Bucky. Steve and Sam were also taken into custody and placed in restraints.
"Tony…"
Tony cast Bucky a cold glance, standing motionless as if weighing whether to ignore Rhodey and finish it himself.
In the end, reason won out.
Tony stepped out of the suit and walked slowly toward Rhodey.
"I won't be cuffed until my lawyer is present."
Money had its advantages. The soldiers hesitated, exchanged looks, and chose not to force the issue. Instead, they kept a close watch on him.
Tony walked over to Bucky with deliberate steps. For a moment, hatred flickered in his eyes—but he suppressed it.
Under escort, the group was loaded into police vehicles and transported to Berlin for processing.
...
Meanwhile, their protagonist…
"Should I add ketchup first… or pepper?" Renzo frowned at the menu on the table. He was trying to change Wanda's diet. Over the past few days, he had watched her eat nothing but sandwiches, hot dogs, pizza—high-calorie food with little nutrition. With nothing urgent to do, he had decided to learn some cooking and handle all three meals for her.
But…
Looking at the charred mess at the bottom of the pot, Renzo rubbed his nose awkwardly. It seemed he didn't have much talent for cooking.
If only he could taste food with this body—then his skills would surely improve rapidly!
Naturally, Renzo blamed his failures entirely on that limitation, not on his own lack of ability.
"What are you doing? Is that… pepper?" Wanda walked over. "Huan… Renzo…"
She stumbled over his name slightly—Chinese pronunciation wasn't easy.
"There's still a lot of room for improvement," Wanda said, glancing at the blackened contents of the pot. It was so burnt she couldn't even tell what it had been.
"No wonder Pietro doesn't want to stay with you."
Renzo smiled sheepishly. Over the past few days, every time he tested his cooking, he had dragged Pietro along. At first, Pietro endured it—but after a few attempts, he started finding excuses to disappear, often vanishing at incredible speed.
Left with no options, Renzo had turned to Scott. After two tastings, Scott also vanished—apparently retreating home to take care of his daughter.
Renzo felt unfairly targeted. He just wanted to become a good cook—was that so wrong?
"At least your egg drop soup isn't bad…" Wanda picked up a spoon and tasted it, blowing gently. "Hmm… not too salty. That's progress."
"Want to go out and eat? I think I should learn from a proper restaurant."
Wanda looked at him in surprise. She wanted to go out too. The Avengers compound was large, but staying in one place too long was suffocating—especially for someone like her.
"They won't let us leave," Wanda said, lowering her gaze, her tone tinged with disappointment.
"They" referred to the Secretary of State and the others. With Natasha signing the Sokovia Accords, Wanda was effectively confined until further notice. She was still under supervision.
After the incident where civilians were accidentally harmed, it was already a concession that she wasn't under stricter control. At least she could still move around the compound—and shop online to pass the time.
"Pietro's in the game room upstairs. He hasn't come out for three days. I'm going to check on him later." Wanda blinked at Renzo, her eyes bright and innocent.
Renzo felt his face heat up slightly. Fortunately, in Vision's form, nothing showed.
"Well… maybe don't bother him. I keep noticing ingredients going missing whenever I turn around. I suspect…" Renzo pointed upstairs.
Wanda covered her mouth and laughed softly.
Beautiful.
Renzo felt his face grow even warmer.
__________________________________________
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