Yinsen was visibly anxious. He knew all too well how ruthless these terrorists were—they didn't value human life in the slightest. But to his surprise, Stark appeared composed.

"Yinsen, it's fine. With him here, we can escape," Stark said calmly.

He was referring to Kurogai. Stark had seen Kurogai open a spatial portal before, so he trusted that Kurogai Blackwood could get them out safely. With that assurance, Stark began to recount how they ended up in this situation.

Just like in the original events, a group of mercenaries had targeted Stark for his weapons. But this time, there was a twist—part of their interest stemmed from a new prototype weapon that Stark had recently developed, based on the energy beam technology Kurogai had once shared with him.

Kurogai was stunned. That meant he had unknowingly played a role in triggering this incident. If he hadn't given Stark that weapon, perhaps things wouldn't have escalated this way.

"Wait... have those new weapons been released yet?" Kurogai suddenly asked, glancing at Stark.

In the original timeline, Stark's capture was orchestrated by Obadiah Stane, a corrupt shareholder within Stark Industries who wanted control of the company's advanced tech. Kurogai suspected the same man might be involved now.

"Of course not," Stark replied. "The damage potential is too high. I haven't even presented it to the board. Only a handful of trusted people know about it."

Stark's expression darkened as he finished, clearly realizing something.

"Sounds like someone close to you isn't as trustworthy as you thought," Kurogai muttered. He didn't press further—this wasn't his battle to fight. Instead, he changed the topic.

"How's the Iron Man suit coming along?"

"The initial designs are done," Stark explained. "I was waiting for materials to be delivered, which is why I didn't bring the suit this time. Otherwise, I wouldn't have ended up in this mess."

---

Meanwhile, back at the cave entrance, the situation was quickly unraveling. The unconscious guards had been discovered, and the remaining soldiers were converging toward the cave.

This wasn't just about security anymore. In this rundown terrorist base, Stark was the only person of value. The rest of the facility could be burned to the ground for all they cared.

"Boss, the brothers on gate duty are down," a soldier reported. "Also… surveillance picked up a third person in the cave."

The criminal leader's eyes lit up.

"Well then, if they're bold enough to stay… we'll make sure they never leave."

He signaled his troops. In moments, the terrorists surrounded the cave, weapons raised, ready to fire.

"To whoever broke into our base, this is your only warning. Come out now and surrender, and we might let you live!" the leader shouted.

They couldn't risk harming Stark, which was the only reason the cave wasn't already reduced to rubble.

"It's over. We've lost our chance to escape. They'll kill us," Yinsen muttered, his face pale. "We waited too long."

"Relax, Yinsen. We're not dying today," Stark replied confidently. "Not with him here."

He knew exactly who Kurogai was. After all, he'd run extensive background checks on him. Kurogai was no ordinary man—he possessed powers beyond comprehension.

"Even Death won't take your lives today," Kurogai said with a small smirk, rising to his feet.

He didn't believe in leaving threats behind. If he simply escaped with Stark, these criminals would still be a danger later. No—he would deal with them now.

With quiet determination, Kurogai stepped out of the cave and into the open, walking straight toward the heavily armed group.

"There he is! That's the intruder!" a soldier shouted.

"Kill him!" the leader barked.

All guns turned toward Kurogai, ready to fire. But before the first trigger was pulled, Kurogai already had a sleek pistol in his hand—pointed at himself.

[Aleph]: Temporal Acceleration Engaged – Instantaneous Movement Enabled.

In the blink of an eye, time around Kurogai warped. Bullets floated in the air as if frozen, suspended in slow motion.

He moved calmly, weaving between the airborne rounds, nudging each bullet ever so slightly—redirecting them toward their original shooters.

Once finished, he stepped back to his original position.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

A wave of gunfire echoed through the night, but the outcome was not what the terrorists had expected. All their shots hit… themselves. One by one, the soldiers dropped to the ground, each with a bullet wound to the forehead.

Not a single scream.

"What… what did you just do?" the leader stammered, eyes wide with horror.

"I simply returned their bullets to sender," Kurogai said coldly, lowering his pistol.

---

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