Richard VS Hulk

What?

After hearing Richard's words, even the experienced Natasha froze for a moment.

She never would have imagined that, with a major battle about to erupt, Richard would ask her something like that.

Though she did not really understand Richard's thinking, she immediately began explaining.

"We're not here to capture you. We just happened to be passing by."

Natasha was telling the truth.

But because she still did not know why Hulk had forcibly emerged, she did not realize that her words were adding fuel to the fire, making Hulk, who already wanted to prove himself to her, even more unwilling to back down.

"I know you aren't here to capture me, but the big guy beside you is full of fighting spirit right now. He looks like he won't stop until he settles things with me."

Richard raised his left hand and pointed Masamune at Hulk.

Seeing Masamune pointed at him, Hulk lifted his right leg and stomped down hard, leaving a conspicuous crater in the street.

With the crater at its center, cracks rapidly spread outward like a spiderweb.

At the same time, Hulk spread his arms and let out another beast-like roar, like a gorilla.

Richard paid no attention to Hulk's actions and said to Natasha, "If you don't want to see me and this big guy destroy all of San Francisco, I suggest you get farther away."

"If you get hurt by accident, or die, he'll completely lose control."

After saying that, he casually twirled the over-two-meter-long Masamune in his hand.

Then, he raised Masamune to eye level, blade facing upward, left hand forward and right hand behind, assuming a two-handed stance he rarely used.

Although Sephiroth's dominant hand was his left, only when he held his sword with both hands did it mean he was truly serious.

If he used only one hand, it meant he had not yet brought out all his strength.

Richard was the same.

In all his previous battles, he had wielded his sword one-handed.

This was the first time he had held it with both hands.

Hulk did not understand swordsmanship.

But when he saw Richard's stance, the beast-like Hulk immediately "calmed" down. A serious expression appeared on his face, and his huge green eyes locked tightly onto Richard.

Seeing Hulk suddenly "calm down" and Richard assume a fighting stance, Natasha knew that she could no longer stop the two from clashing.

She said nothing more. Like the bystanders and young mutants who had left earlier, she quickly departed the intersection and moved to the side of the street more than a hundred meters away.

As she left, she pulled out her phone and began contacting the people at S.H.I.E.L.D.'s San Francisco branch.

She was not asking the agents from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s San Francisco branch to come stop Richard and Hulk. She wanted them to come "maintain order" and handle the aftermath.

After Natasha left, Richard and Hulk attacked at the exact same moment, as though by mutual agreement.

Their legs tensed simultaneously, and they shot toward each other.

In the blink of an eye, they had reached a distance suitable for close combat.

Hulk raised a fist larger than an ordinary person's head and smashed it viciously toward Richard's chest.

Richard swung Masamune at Hulk's fist.

Boom! Hulk's thunderous right fist collided viciously with Richard's Masamune. Amid the enormous sound, a visible Shockwave erupted from the point of impact.

The Shockwave swept outward at an astonishing speed, shattering all the glass in the nearby storefronts and cars.

Hulk really was worthy of his reputation. His body was incredibly tough! Richard marveled inwardly before lightly tapping the ground with the tip of his right foot. He retreated more than ten meters as though unaffected by gravity.

Although Richard had chosen to retreat, Hulk did not pursue him. Instead, he looked at his right fist with some surprise.

There was a clear, though not particularly deep, sword wound on the knuckle of his right middle finger.

Richard had not used skills such as Octaslash or Earth Shake. He had merely used magic to slightly enhance Masamune's sharpness and durability.

Even so, Masamune had still cut through Hulk's skin.

It simply had not pierced deeply into Hulk's right fist, having been stopped by the bone in his right middle finger.

Hulk knew that his body could not block every attack.

But he had not expected to be injured by a long sword that looked as though it could be snapped with a little force.

Though the wound was not serious, it was enough to surprise him.

While Hulk examined his right fist, Richard was also assessing Hulk's strength.

From their exchange just now, Hulk was still significantly stronger than him.

Fortunately, Hulk's strength was not as exaggerated as it was in the comics.

Otherwise, even with the force-dispersing techniques Richard had used just now, he could not possibly have fought Hulk to an apparent draw.

Compared with Ordinary People, Alpha-level Super Strength was indeed astonishing.

But compared with Hulk, the Marvel Universe's quintessential strength-based hero, Alpha-level Super Strength was not particularly powerful.

When Hulk finally looked away from his right fist, Richard attacked again without hesitation.

He instantly appeared before Hulk as though flying and swung Masamune once more.

But this time, instead of clashing head-on with Hulk, he slashed Masamune toward Hulk's neck.

In a contest of strength alone, he was no match for Hulk.

But in overall combat ability, Hulk was not his opponent.

Although he did not possess Richard's refined combat skills, Hulk's reactions were not slow.

Before Masamune could strike him, Hulk raised his right hand and slapped the incoming blade away.

At the same time, his left fist shot toward Richard's head like lightning.

Richard certainly was not going to test just how powerful Hulk's punch was with his own head.

Teleportation!

The Richard standing before Hulk instantly appeared behind him.

Slash! Before Hulk could react, Masamune swept across his back, leaving a wound that stretched across his entire back.

Unusually green blood gushed from the wound and ran down Hulk's back.

Although he had failed to detect Richard's presence just now, once he felt the pain from his back, Hulk knew Richard had appeared behind him.

Ignoring the pain in his back, he kicked off with both legs and charged at Richard like a heavy truck barreling along at full speed.

If he had been an agent of the Department of Mutant Affairs, then even if he knew Richard was behind him, he definitely would not have used such a tactic.

Rather than ramming Richard with his back, he would have preferred to immediately widen the distance or turn around and counterattack.

But Hulk was not an agent of the Department of Mutant Affairs.

To Hulk, the method of attack used in battle was unimportant. What mattered was whether he wanted to use it.

As long as he wanted to, not only could he ram someone with his back, he could even grab an opponent by the ankle and swing them around on the ground like a rope.

From a certain perspective, Hulk's fighting style somewhat resembled Sabretooth's. Both fought by following their physical instincts.

Facing Hulk's counterattack, Richard did not use Flash to leave. Instead, he raised his right hand.

Repel!

Bang! A tremendous impact like an explosion sound rang out.

Before everyone's eyes, Hulk, who had tried to ram Richard with his back, was sent flying like a golf ball, tracing a perfect parabola through the air.