The scent of death has never been so clear.
Tony Stark lay in the rubble, his Mark 3 mask completely destroyed, the exposed half of his face covered in blood.
But he didn't close his eyes; his bloodshot eyes were fixed intently on the ceiling.
Bucky Barnes is raising his mutated left arm.
There was no hesitation, and no nauseatingly long-winded monologues like those of villains.
The bone blade fell.
The shriek had barely begun when it was drowned out by another, even more violent sound.
"Buzz--Boom boom boom!!"
That was the roar of the engine.
A black blur crashed into the convenience store's last remaining load-bearing wall.
There was no sign of slowing down.
The oddly shaped motorcycle slammed into Bucky's side.
"Bang!!"
The dull thud made everyone present wince.
The Shocker Rider No. 1, which was originally as steady as a mountain, was actually knocked sideways by this brute force.
His feet dug two deep furrows in the ground before he finally came to a stop after crashing into a wrecked police car.
But the figure on the motorcycle did not stop.
At the same moment of impact, he braced himself on the handlebars with both hands, and his whole body was launched into the air.
In mid-air, the dark figure curled up, then suddenly stretched out.
Pulled down by gravity, he plummeted rapidly, his right leg straight, his toes whistling as he hurtled towards Bucky's face.
Simple, direct, yet full of violent beauty.
Bucky had just regained his balance when he instinctively raised his left arm to block.
Thump!
A powerful blast of air shattered the surrounding glass, turning it into powder.
The dark figure used the recoil to somersault backward, landing steadily five meters in front of Tony Stark.
After landing, he didn't rush to attack, but instead made a move that no one could understand.
He bent his knees slightly, lowered his center of gravity, and clenched his fists at his waist.
Immediately afterwards, his right arm slowly slid across his chest, accompanied by a "creak" sound from the joints, finally settling into a powerful pose.
It was an ancient and highly ritualistic starting gesture.
Sunlight pierced through the dust, illuminating the true form of this uninvited guest.
It was completely black.
Unlike Tony's cold, metallic armor, this guy's armor has a strange, biological texture.
On that Locust -black helmet, similar in appearance to Bucky's, were also two scarlet compound eyes.
Another oddball.
Lying on the ground, Tony Stark laboriously turned his neck, looked at the back of the figure blocking his way, and couldn't help but roll his eyes.
"Ha..." Tony spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, his voice weak but still sharp-tongued, "What is this? A buy-one-get-one-free promotion at the Insect Expo?"
" JARVIS... tell me, does today's almanac say 'avoid killing insects'? Why are these horned freaks popping up one after another? Is there a pesticide shortage?"
Not far away, Steve Rogers also stood up, supporting himself with his shield.
He stared at the black figure, his deep blue eyes filled with confusion.
"Who are you?" Steve shouted.
The Black Knight did not turn around.
He remained in that poised-to-go stance, his red compound eyes fixed intently on Bucky not far away.
"I am Kamen Rider."
"Kamen Rider?" Tony scoffed. "That name sounds like it was copied from a third-rate comic book. What, is your superpower illegal parking on a motorcycle?"
The Black Knight ignored Tony's taunts.
Because Bucky on the other side moved.
Shocker Rider No. 1 was enraged; the muscle fibers in his left arm writhed wildly, and the bone blade more than doubled in size.
"Babble--!!"
The remaining Shocker Combatant also received orders and swarmed in from all directions, howling.
"Careful!"
Steve raised his shield, intending to rush over and provide support.
But the Black Knight was faster than him.
Faced with three combatants charging at him, he didn't use any fancy laser weapons or launch missiles.
He simply took a step forward, and his black fist slammed out, leaving afterimages.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The three crisp sounds overlapped.
That was the sound of a fist shattering bones.
Three combatants were thrown backward, their chest bones completely collapsed.
"Interesting..." Tony narrowed his eyes, his brain still analyzing rapidly despite his severe injuries. " JARVIS, scan this guy's data. I need to know what he ate to grow up like this, hormone-treated beef?"
"Sir, unable to scan." JARVIS's electronic voice carried unusual background noise. "A high-intensity, unknown energy field exists around the target."
In the center of the battlefield.
Bucky charged at the Black Knight, his Blade flashing as he attempted to cleave the troublesome "black bug" in two.
Faced with this fatal blow, the black- Kamen Rider did not retreat.
He sank his feet, crossed his arms in front of his chest, and forcefully blocked the mutated giant arm.
The shockwave emanated from the two people, sending surrounding debris flying everywhere.
Bucky's superhuman strength, honed by Doctor Shinigami, defies the laws of biology; each contraction of his dark green muscle fibers unleashes an even more terrifying power.
"The difference in strength is too great..." Steve stood up, supporting himself with his shield, and immediately grasped the situation.
That Kamen Rider had superb fighting skills, but his physical abilities were inferior to that of the modified Bucky.
"Babble--!!"
Upon seeing this, the surrounding Shocker Combatant screamed and pounced.
"How annoying."
The Black Knight suddenly withdrew his power.
This was an extremely risky move; if he made a mistake, Bucky would slice him in two.
But he gambled correctly. Bucky's body lurched forward due to inertia, and in that instant, the Black Knight ducked and delivered a sweeping kick to Bucky's shinbone.
Even with his reinforced bones, Bucky staggered half a step after that.
Taking advantage of the opening, Kamen Rider turned around and punched a Shocker Combatant was trying to sneak up on him in the face.
"Bang!"
That unlucky guy was sent flying backwards, crashing into the wall and impossible to pry off.
"Hey! You two over there!" the black knight shouted without turning his head, his voice hoarse from the voice changer, "If you want to stay and buy tickets to watch the show, I don't mind. But if you want to live, get moving!"
"Huh? You're ordering me around?" Tony struggled to raise his left hand. "I'm always the one giving orders..."
" Stark! Shut up!" Steve rushed over and grabbed Tony. "We have to go! Bucky is uncommunicative right now. We need to regroup!"
"Let me go! I'm going to blow that bastard up!"
Tony struggled, but the Mark 3 had lost all power; he was now just a cripple wearing a metal can.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Several muffled explosions came from the top of the ruins in the distance.
Immediately afterwards, four or five round objects flew in parabolic arcs and landed between Bucky and Kamen Rider.
"Laugh--!!!"
White smoke exploded.
This is not an ordinary smoke bomb; it contains a high concentration of magnesium powder and interfering particles.
The intense light and thick smoke turned the entire battlefield into a blind spot.
"Babble--!!!"
The Shocker Combatant lost sight of their target and wildly waved their weapons in the smoke, even accidentally injuring their comrades.
"Over here!"
Kamen Rider was prepared, or rather, this was part of the plan.
He grabbed Steve's arm with a strength that most people couldn't match.
"My Jaeger is still there!" Tony shouted. "That prototype was worth hundreds of millions of dollars!"
"You're about to die, why would you want that pile of junk?"
Without a word, the black knight actually picked up Tony with one hand.
The three stumbled and staggered out of the smoke-filled area.
The smoke cleared.
Bucky stood there, looking at the empty street.
He picked up the black briefcase, turned, and left.
The mission was accomplished. Although there were some minor hiccups, they did not affect the overall situation.