Chapter 106 – Rock, Paper, Scissors

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The air was filled with thunderous explosions as every single one of Tony's micro-missiles was obliterated midair by Smith's ki blasts.

Off to the side, Bulma was stunned by Smith's power — she never imagined a human could reach such a level. It was beyond anything she'd ever seen.

"Sir, all missiles intercepted," came JARVIS's calm report.

"What?" Tony blurted out, incredulous. He knew Smith was strong — extraordinary, even — but this? To shoot down missiles with his bare hands? It defied reason.

Smith looked at Tony's frozen expression and smirked.

"Come on, Tony. Don't tell me you're already out of gas. I'm barely warmed up."

Tony narrowed his eyes at the jab. Without another word, he raised his hands and fired twin repulsor blasts — no way anyone could dodge pure light-speed energy, right?

But to Smith's eyes, Tony's movements were painfully slow. He could've easily sidestepped, but instead chose to take the hit head-on just to gauge the damage.

Boom!

When the smoke cleared, Smith's bulletproof suit was shredded, revealing his sculpted torso — unscathed.

Bulma's eyes sparkled at the sight of his well-defined physique.

"So cool…"

She hadn't expected Smith to be one of those slim-looking guys who secretly packed that much muscle.

"Sir," JARVIS added, "it appears our attack did not penetrate Smith's defenses. In game terms… not even a scratch."

Tony gritted his teeth.

"I can see that."

"Fine then," Tony said through his comms. "JARVIS, charge the chest beam to maximum."

A brilliant light began glowing at the center of Tony's arc reactor as he transformed it into a concentrated laser weapon.

Whoosh!

A searing beam of energy shot toward Smith, powerful enough to melt through Bucky's vibranium arm. Smith, however, didn't even bother to block — he simply dived down, letting the blast shoot harmlessly overhead.

"Tony," he called over the comms, "my turn."

Smith closed the distance in a blink, then suddenly shouted:

"Scissors!"

Thud!

With a sharp punch, Tony and his Mark III suit went flying backward.

"Warning: Armor integrity down 20%."

Before Tony could react, Smith followed up with:

"Rock!"

Boom!

A vicious uppercut sent Tony rocketing skyward, leaving a contrail in his wake.

"Warning: Armor integrity down 30%."

Still airborne and stunned, Tony saw Smith flash above him, hands raised.

"Paper!"

Wham!

Smith brought his hands down in a devastating slap, sending Tony plummeting into the ocean like a falling meteor. The impact churned up a massive spray of seawater, drenching the beach and making it rain.

"Warning: Armor integrity down 50%… Flight systems compromised…"

Sparks flashed across Tony's HUD, and then… black. JARVIS cut out.

With his suit dead and sinking fast, Tony felt panic creep in. Surely Smith noticed he was in trouble, right? He wouldn't let him drown just to win, right?

Smith, hovering above, smiled faintly to himself at the sight of the massive splash below. The rock-paper-scissors combo — a playful technique inspired by Goku — still packed quite the punch. It was his first time using it in years.

Just then, Bulma's voice crackled over the comms.

"Smith-nii, JARVIS reports he's lost contact with Tony. His armor's completely shut down."

Smith blinked, realizing he'd overdone it. No wonder Tony hadn't come back up yet — his Mark III had become an underwater coffin.

"Ah hell," he muttered.

Diving headfirst into the ocean, he quickly spotted Tony's limp form sinking into the depths. Grabbing him by the arm, Smith launched back up, breaking the surface and flying them both to safety.

He tore off Tony's faceplate, revealing his friend's pale but breathing face.

"You okay?" Smith asked dryly.

Tony coughed weakly, then grinned despite himself.

"Guess you'll have to give me a lift home. You wrecked my ride."

Smith chuckled, hoisting him under one arm as he rocketed back toward the villa, Bulma following close behind.

…

Inside the villa, Smith sat on the couch in a fresh shirt and suit borrowed from Tony. Bulma perched next to him, still wide-eyed from the spectacle.

Tony entered in clean clothes, rubbing his neck as he eyed the two on the sofa.

"Smith," he said, "you're… probably the strongest person on the planet, huh?"

Smith thought about it. In Marvel's world, he knew he didn't even crack the top ten. Odin, Thanos, the Celestials, the Living Tribunal… even on Earth, there were monsters like the Ancient One, the emerging New Celestial in the core, Khonshu, the Eternals, the Panther God, Carol Danvers, maybe even an angry Hulk…

He smirked.

"Believe it or not, Tony, I don't even rank."

Tony gawked.

"Buddy, don't be modest to the point of arrogance. Before you, the strongest guy I'd ever heard of was Steve Rogers — and he was still just a dude with a shield who could get shot to death."

Smith only smiled at him knowingly.

…

(End of Chapter)

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