"Since you're both in such a hurry to leave," Ryuuto said, his lips curling into a dangerous grin, "then take this farewell gift. On the house."
The spatial rift Loki and Mandarin had escaped through was collapsing fast. Ryuuto didn't chase. He just stood there, Sharingan spinning like a storm. Those two clowns weren't getting away that easily.
"Kamui."
Before the violent energy blast ahead could reach him, he redirected it through the half-closed portal. The explosion roared from the other side—a gift delivered straight to Loki and Mandarin's doorstep. It wouldn't kill them, but it would hurt like hell.
"Run—now!" Loki's panicked voice echoed for a moment before the portal snapped shut.
Watching them vanish, Gambit's face went pale. "They… they're gone!? Ariel, hurry up! Get us out of here before that psycho turns on us!"
But before the teleport could trigger, Quicksilver's expression turned cold. With a sharp kick, he sent Gambit flying across the battlefield.
"What the hell, Quicksilver!?" Gambit spat blood, eyes wide.
"Forget him, Ariel! Teleport us, now!" Quicksilver barked.
"Okay!" Ariel's trembling hands glowed as she tried to open another gate.
Gambit's face twisted with rage. "You bastards! You think you can just ditch me?" He ripped a deck of charged cards from his coat. "Fine! Then everyone dies here!"
He flung them all, glowing pink and unstable, toward Tony, Quicksilver, and Ryuuto without hesitation.
Tony raised a brow inside his helmet. "Banner, Ryuuto—time to clean house."
"Been waiting," Hulk rumbled, cracking his knuckles.
"Fire Style: Dragon Flame Bomb!" Ryuuto formed a single-handed seal, spewing a torrent of fire that collided midair with Tony's lasers. The wall of flames devoured Gambit's cards and turned the sky into a storm of ash.
A split second later, Iron Man's repulsor beams and Hulk's fists smashed into Quicksilver and Ariel, sending them tumbling and broken.
Quicksilver coughed blood, snarling, "Ryuuto! Our Brotherhood won't forget this!" Then, with Ariel's last spark of power, the two vanished into a flicker of light—gone.
Only Gambit remained, trembling, surrounded by three monsters in human skin.
He forced a laugh. "You… you really wanna push this? Let me walk away and we can call it even. I'll disappear, you'll never see me again. Deal?"
Ryuuto tilted his head, eyes half-lidded. "You think you're in a position to bargain?" His tone dripped with mockery. "That's cute."
Tony folded his arms beside him. "You played with Quicksilver. You pay the bill."
Hulk loomed, fists clenched like boulders. "We smash now?"
"Smash now," Ryuuto agreed.
"Wait, hold—!" Gambit's words cut off as Hulk charged, fists swinging like meteors, while Tony's lasers burned craters around him. Ryuuto followed, a blur of movement, landing a brutal kick to Gambit's ribs.
"Still breathing? Tough guy," Ryuuto said, half-smiling. "Then let's fix that."
"Ultimate Uprising!" Gambit screamed, yanking a final card from around his neck. Energy surged into it, swelling it to the size of a small building. The glow pulsed violently. "If I die, you're all going with me!"
Tony's HUD screamed warnings. "That thing's about to blow!"
Banner tensed. "He's really gonna do it?"
"Relax," Ryuuto muttered, clapping his hands together. "He won't."
Shadow Possession Jutsu!
His shadow shot forward, binding Gambit's. The man froze, eyes wide in terror.
"Try moving," Ryuuto said, his grin sharp as a blade.
But Gambit laughed, manic and unhinged. "It's too late! You can't stop it now!"
"Wanna bet?"
Ryuuto's chakra surged, and a second shadow technique snapped Gambit's neck clean. He dropped like a puppet with cut strings.
"Sand Shield—Crane Guard!"
Sand erupted from beneath Ryuuto's feet, swirling up into a massive dome around them. The world went white as Gambit's card detonated.
The explosion shook the ground for miles, a mushroom of dust and flame tearing into the sky. When it cleared, Ryuuto, Tony, and Banner stood unharmed beneath layers of reinforced sand.
Gambit lay in the dirt nearby, barely breathing, too shocked to comprehend his own failure.
"You done?" Ryuuto asked, stepping over. "Good."
He delivered a swift roundhouse kick—the Leaf Whirlwind—sending Gambit's head snapping sideways before he collapsed, unconscious.
"Hey, Tony," Ryuuto said, dusting off his hands. "This guy's all yours. Bet Fury'll give you a medal for dragging him in alive."
Tony chuckled, visor glinting. "You know, kid, you're starting to grow on me."
Ryuuto smirked. "Don't get used to it, old man."