Betty tugged Bruce Banner's shirt free from his waistband, adjusted it a little, and said,
"This looks better."
Bruce Banner smiled and nodded.
"Okay."
Just as their eyes met, Bruce suddenly noticed soldiers surrounding the school grounds. His expression shifted instantly.
Betty noticed the change and asked,
"What's wrong?"
"They're here," Bruce said, eyes locked on the approaching soldiers in the distance.
Betty turned and saw them too.
Bruce said quickly,
"Betty, listen to me. You need to go—get as far away from me as you can."
"But Bruce…" she began.
"No time! Go!" he snapped.
With that, Bruce turned and sprinted across the empty school field, unwilling to risk Betty's safety.
At that moment, several military vehicles roared into the campus square. Dozens of soldiers poured out, surrounding the area.
Armored trucks, tanks, and even sonic cannons were deployed.
Seeing Bruce on the move, General Ross scowled.
"Damn it. The snipers aren't in position for another three minutes. Who was the idiot who moved early?!"
Clearly upset that Bruce had detected them too soon, Ross was starting to feel like the operation might fail again.
Blonsky charged out of the trees with a squad and reported,
"He's headed toward Sector 270!"
Bruce weaved through the campus woodland, darting away from denser troop movements, using the terrain to his advantage.
Ross, watching Blonsky pursue, called out,
"Blonsky! Mind your distance!"
Blonsky halted, but his team lagged behind, clearly spent. Even at full sprint, they couldn't keep up with the enhanced Blonsky.
"Sir, the best time to hit him is before he transforms. One tranquilizer should do it."
Eventually, Bruce ducked into the library, with soldiers in hot pursuit.
Inside, Bruce looked at the two items in his hands—one was a Dragon Ball, the other a USB containing gamma radiation research.
He clenched his teeth and shoved the USB into his mouth.
But the Dragon Ball? It was too big—about the size of a golf ball. No way he could swallow it or… anything else. Just impossible.
So, he stuffed it into his shoulder bag and slung it around his neck.
That was the best he could do for now. Then he took off again, running deeper into the library.
A soldier spotted him.
"Target sighted!"
…
Outside—
Betty ran frantically, finally throwing herself in front of a military command vehicle, arms spread wide.
"Stop! Stop!"
As the vehicle halted, she shouted,
"I know you're in there!"
"Please! General!"
Inside, Ross looked at his daughter through the window, speechless.
"Sir?" an officer asked beside him.
"Dad!" Betty cried.
Hearing that, Ross finally opened the door and stepped out.
Betty rushed over.
"Dad, please. Let him go."
"You don't understand. Go back inside," Ross replied firmly.
Then he turned to a nearby soldier.
"Where is he?"
"Target is on the skybridge between the two buildings. Awaiting orders."
Ross grabbed his radio.
"Don't engage! I repeat—don't engage!"
He wasn't protecting Bruce. He was protecting his own troops. Ross knew all too well—if Bruce was attacked, the Hulk would emerge.
Soon, the soldiers sealed both ends of the skybridge, trapping Bruce inside.
"He's contained," came the report.
Bruce looked around—snipers had taken up positions on all the rooftops, aiming right at him.
"Launch two sleeping gas rounds," Ross ordered.
If they couldn't attack directly, they'd knock him out instead.
Several soldiers moved below the bridge, aiming grenade launchers loaded with tranquilizer gas.
"Fire!"
Thud-thud!
Two grenades shattered the glass and released thick white clouds of gas into the bridge.
Seeing the gas pour in, Bruce tore off his jacket and covered his nose and mouth to avoid inhalation.
Then—he saw Betty struggling outside, being tackled to the ground by soldiers.
His heart pounded. Anger surged. The gas thickened.
His eyes turned green.
"ROAR!"
Bruce Banner transformed into the Hulk and let out a deafening roar.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
Nearby officers with power level scanners watched their devices explode as the readings shot past 150.
Ross winced watching the monitors fry.
Those things weren't cheap.
The Hulk took a single step forward—
CRASH!
The glass shattered. The metal frame blasted apart.
Ross muttered,
"Now you understand, daughter…"
Hulk now stood in full form—only a pair of elastic pants remained intact. His shirt and shoes were gone. A canvas bag dangled from his neck.
Betty, now realizing the truth, froze. That giant green creature… was Bruce. Two soldiers grabbed her and began pulling her back.
"ROAR!!!"
Hulk bellowed furiously at the soldiers, enraged by their constant attacks.
Then—he ripped the canvas bag from his neck and pulled out the Dragon Ball, clutching it in his palm, trying to crush it.
But no matter how hard he squeezed, the Dragon Ball didn't crack.
"ROAR!"
He roared again in frustration.
Ross frowned and picked up his radio.
"What did he pull out of that bag?"
"We couldn't see, sir. His hand blocked our view," a soldier replied.
Then, Hulk gave up on crushing it—and hurled it into the distance.
WHOOSH!
Like a meteor, the Dragon Ball flew across the sky, vanishing beyond the horizon in seconds.
…
(End of Chapter)
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