Chapter 149: Capturing the Winter Soldier Alive

Michael slammed his foot down hard on the brakes, the tremendous inertia nearly flipping the vehicle over. Once the car came to a stable halt, Michael and Gwen exchanged an astonished look.

Had they just walked into a major mess?

Michael was somewhat bewildered. He had simply been driving normally down the road when a group of people suddenly pulled out machine guns and started a firefight, instantly turning the highway into a battlefield. Truly, as expected of free America—a daily dose of gunfire.

"What is going on here?"

Gwen asked, her astonishment tinged with a hint of irritation. They had finally managed to carve out some time for a date, only for these people to ruin it.

Michael shrugged and said, "Probably some terrorists, I suppose."

"Look over there, it's Captain America."

Following the sound of her voice, Michael looked over and indeed saw Captain America charging forward amidst the enemy's sustained gunfire, effortlessly taking out the machine gunner.

He really had to wonder what those gunmen were thinking, stubbornly shooting directly at the shield. Couldn't they just sweep their fire across his legs? Wouldn't that resolve the battle in a matter of seconds?

The Winter Soldier emerged from the side, drawing Captain America's attention.

The Winter Soldier put his full might into a strike with his cybernetic arm, but it landed squarely on Captain America's shield.

The two exchanged a few blows. Bucky had his cybernetic arm, while Captain America had his vibranium shield; for a moment, neither could gain the upper hand.

As the fight continued, Bucky casually drew a pistol and fired at Captain America.

Captain America used his shield to deflect the bullets, and taking advantage of the moment Bucky's ammo ran out, he landed a punch straight to the Winter Soldier's face, using the opportunity to rip off his mask.

The Winter Soldier also knocked away Captain America's shield. For a brief second, the two stared at each other in disbelief. Captain America recognized him as his former dear friend Bucky, but the look in the Winter Soldier's eyes was entirely vacant and unfamiliar.

Falcon arrived in the nick of time, kicking the Winter Soldier in the shoulder and sending him sprawling to the ground.

The Winter Soldier rolled across the pavement, using the momentum to spring back to his feet and evade a follow-up attack.

Scanning his surroundings, he realized his comrades were largely gone, while Captain America's allies were closing in. Continuing the fight would not be in his favor, so he decided to retreat.

He raised his pistol at Captain America, fired a feint, and turned to bolt.

One of his teammates struggled to his feet, dedicating his final ounce of strength to the cause by hoisting an RPG and firing a rocket straight at Captain America.

Just as Captain America prepared to pursue, the rocket hurtled toward him, forcing him into a clumsy dodge.

To everyone's surprise, after bouncing off the ground, the rocket transitioned into a sliding motion, altering its trajectory. Trailing sparks and lightning, it burrowed directly beneath Michael's car.

Faced with this spectacle, Michael was utterly speechless. He had only stopped to watch the show—did it really have to be this coincidental?

Nevertheless, he acted with absolute decisiveness, pulling Gwen into his arms and executing a teleportation to successfully evade the blast.

"Damn it."

Gwen stared at the exploding vehicle, her lungs practically bursting with fury. She had gone to all that trouble to buy those things, and now they were entirely gone.

Gwen strode forward, blocking the Winter Soldier's path.

Michael wasn't particularly worried. After all, the disparity in their abilities was vast; he figured he would just let Gwen vent some of her frustration.

Seeing Gwen block his way, the Winter Soldier showed no hesitation or mercy despite her being a young woman, raising his cybernetic arm to throw a punch.

Gwen casually raised a single hand and caught the Winter Soldier's cybernetic fist with ease.

"A cybernetic arm? Are you human or a robot?"

Gwen couldn't help but feel a twinge of curiosity.

"You aren't a T-800, are you?"

The Winter Soldier was somewhat baffled. Catching a mechanical arm bare-handed—how was that even possible?

Gwen twisted his cybernetic arm back and forth to inspect it, and upon confirming it was pure metal, she remarked, "Whoever made this arm for you is brilliant. At the very least, our people couldn't build anything like this."

Such prosthetic limbs usually faced two insurmountable technical barriers: the first was how to interface with neurons, and the second was how to prevent metal toxicity and rejection.

Metal rejection was relatively easy to solve, but achieving a neural-metal connection was truly miraculous.

Unable to stomach such humiliation, the Winter Soldier drew his pistol and fired point-blank at Gwen.

Utilizing her danger sense and agile, nimble footwork, Gwen dodged the attack and delivered a swift kick to the Winter Soldier's chest.

The Winter Soldier was sent flying backward. Jarred by the intense pain, something seemed to stir within the depths of his memories.

Driven purely by combat instinct, he executed a kip-up to regain his feet, drew a combat knife, and lunged at Gwen.

Gwen nimbly sidestepped the attack, then delivered a resounding slap to the side of his head, knocking the Winter Soldier flat on the ground once more.

Just as she raised her hand to finish the guy off, Captain America leaped forward in time to halt her assault.

"Don't kill him."

"Why not?"

Gwen asked, puzzled. When dealing with this kind of enemy, knocking them out first was just common sense.

Captain America explained, "He was a friend of mine, Bucky. He used to be an outstanding soldier, too."

A friend and comrade of Captain America? Then why was he playing the villain?

Gwen couldn't help but feel perplexed.

"Then how did he end up like this?"

"I don't know, but something must have happened to him. It's like he doesn't even recognize me."

Falcon dropped down from above and said to Captain America, "This isn't the place to chat."

The group quickly relocated, rendezvousing with Black Widow and Maria Hill.

Black Widow actively avoided meeting Michael's gaze; the two hadn't crossed paths since their awkward parting last time.

As the group deliberated on their next move, Black Widow made an excuse and kept a close eye on Bucky.

Michael stepped up as well and said, "I'll go check on Bucky. Mind control and brainwashing are fundamentally the same."

"I'm counting on you," Captain America told Michael.

Michael nodded, turned, and walked into Bucky's room. Spotting Black Widow standing there in a daze, he asked, "Are you alright?"

Black Widow snapped out of her thoughts and retorted, "I'm just fine. What's the matter? Can't get over me?"

Turning to face Michael, she said with serene calm, "Actually, you don't need to feel guilty. That kind of thing is just business as usual for me."

"Oh."

Michael's expression turned somewhat unnatural. Is that really what a man wants to hear in a moment like this? Business as usual? Can that phrase even be used to describe us? That feels practically like an insult.

"So you're saying it was just routine protocol? Sounds like being an agent is a pretty taxing career."

Hearing Michael's sarcastic tone, Black Widow's expression grew cold as well.

"No, you're wrong. I'll admit, you're still quite impressive."

Black Widow stepped directly past him, placed her hand gently against Michael's chest, brushed it across lightly, and murmured, "Did you like it, little boy?"

Michael remained silent.

He had no right to speak right now; anything he said would sound like the excuses of a scumbag, even though the whole thing stemmed entirely from a misunderstanding.

"Even if you liked it, it doesn't matter. You're not the only one in my life."

With that, Black Widow trailed a finger up to Michael's chin, gave it a light, mocking flick, and walked away.

As she reached the doorway, she couldn't resist tossing back one last line.

"Little boy, don't assume that just because you possessed something once, it belongs to you forever."

Mocked and humbled, Michael offered a self-deprecating smile and stepped forward to examine Bucky's condition.