BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!!!!
The deafening explosions echoed non-stop as all the micro-missiles were detonated mid-air by Smith Dorr's energy blasts.
Off to the side, Bulma stood frozen in disbelief. She had known Smith was powerful—but this? She had never imagined a human could reach such terrifying strength. It shattered her understanding of possibility.
"Sir, all attacks have been neutralized."
"What?!"
Tony was stunned. What had just happened completely shattered his worldview. Sure, he knew Smith Dorr wasn't an average guy, but this was unreal.
He had managed to blast apart micro-missiles—actual missiles!—with just energy attacks. That was more effective than flares or anti-aircraft tech.
Smith looked at Tony, who had halted his attack, and smirked.
"Come on, put your back into it. I'm just warming up. Don't tell me you're already out of gas?"
Tony narrowed his eyes at the taunt. He raised both palms, activating his repulsor cannons. Let's see how fast you are against pure lasers.
The repulsor beams were quick after launching, but Tony's prep and aiming motions were painfully slow—especially from Smith's perspective. To him, Tony's movements were almost laughably sluggish. He could tell where the beam was headed the moment Tony lifted his arm.
Smith could've easily dodged it, but he chose not to—he wanted to test his limits.
BOOM!
As the smoke cleared, Smith's upper-body suit was in tatters, shredded by the blast. Beneath it, his muscular physique was completely unharmed—not even a scratch.
Bulma couldn't help but swoon at the sight.
"So handsome…"
She hadn't expected Smith to have that kind of body—lean in clothes, built like a tank underneath.
"Sir, it seems our attacks can't penetrate Mr. Smith's defenses," said JARVIS. "In gaming terms, we'd call that a no-damage hit."
Tony sighed.
"I can see that myself."
"Well, if the repulsors won't cut it, let's try this."
"JARVIS, charge the chest reactor to full capacity."
The arc reactor at Tony's chest began to glow, brighter and brighter. He'd modified it into a high-powered laser weapon.
BOOM!
A thick, blinding laser shot out at Smith. It was powerful enough to melt the Winter Soldier's metal arm with ease. Smith, however, wasn't interested in tanking it—he dipped low and evaded effortlessly.
"Tony, my turn."
Smith dashed forward, reaching Tony in a blink, and—
"Scissors!"
THUD!
With a muffled impact, Tony was sent flying backward, his Mark III armor spiraling through the air.
"Warning: Armor integrity down to 20%."
Smith's voice rang out again:
"Rock!"
BOOM!
He slammed an uppercut into the armor's midsection, sending the entire suit flying skyward.
"Warning: Armor integrity down to 30%."
Before Tony could react, Smith had already leapt above him.
"Paper!"
Smith struck downward with a palm, faster than Tony had been thrown up. He crashed into Tony with such speed it left behind a sonic boom ring.
BOOM!
Tony smashed into the ocean, sending up a towering plume of seawater that rained down like a storm.
"Warning: Armor integrity down to 50%."
"Warning: Flight system damaged!"
BZZZT—
Tony's virtual display flickered out. JARVIS had been knocked offline.
With no AI assistance, the suit began sinking fast. For the first time, panic crept in. If Smith didn't notice in time, this "friendly spar" might actually kill him.
Smith Dorr looked over the ocean and nodded, satisfied with his handiwork. The move he'd just used? Goku's Rock, Paper, Scissors combo. Childish name, devastating power. It was his first time using it, and it felt good.
Just then, Bulma flew over, shouting urgently:
"Smith! JARVIS says Tony's suit is critically damaged—he's gone dark!"
Smith blinked, finally realizing he might've gone too far. No wonder Tony hadn't flown back up.
Did I just knock him unconscious and let him drown?
Wasting no time, Smith rocketed toward the ocean, diving in like a missile. He found Tony quickly and grabbed his arm, hauling him back to the surface.
Once they breached the waves, Smith yanked off Tony's faceplate, revealing the man inside.
"Dude, looks like you'll be the one flying me home," Tony groaned. "You completely totaled my armor."
If Smith hadn't pulled him up in time, he really might've drowned. The Mark III nearly became his iron coffin.
Smith carried him toward the villa, with Bulma flying close behind.
---
Back at the villa.
Smith lounged in the living room, now dressed in a clean suit and shirt Tony had never worn.
Tony walked out in a fresh set of clothes, spotting Smith chatting and laughing with Bulma on the couch.
He smirked.
"Smith, with strength like yours, you've got to be the strongest guy on Earth, right?"
He phrased it as a question, but his tone made it clear—he believed it. In Tony's mind, the strongest people he'd known were folks like Captain America, who could still be taken down with a rifle barrage.
Smith considered it. In the Marvel Universe, let alone the wider multiverse, he was far from the top.
Even just on Earth, there were monsters in hiding—The Ancient One of Kamar-Taj, the unborn Celestial inside the Earth, Khonshu the moon god, the Black Panther's ancestral deity, the Eternals, Wenwu with the Ten Rings, Captain Marvel, and multiple versions of the Hulk…
Too many to name.
So, he shook his head and replied,
"You probably won't believe me, but I'm not even close to the top."
Tony blinked.
"Buddy, that's humble to the point of arrogance."
"Before you, the most powerful guy I'd ever seen was Steve Rogers. And without his shield? He'd die to rifle fire."
—End of chapter—
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