Chương 10: Bloodscream.

When HYDRA needed mercenaries to capture Noah, they hired two notorious individuals: Bloodscream and his partner Roughhouse, both known enemies of Wolverine.

Bloodscream, whose real name is William Knoblach, is a mutant vampire with super strength, speed, and agility. He can drain people's life force through touch and has enhanced durability and slow aging. He has a long history of conflict with Wolverine dating back to World War II. Although he can heal from injuries, it's not as fast as Wolverine's healing.

Roughhouse, on the other hand, is a formidable figure— big, muscular guy with a tough appearance and a rough attitude, which matches his name. He's from a island called Madripoor and has super strength, toughness, and the ability to heal quickly.

They took the HYDRA job because it seemed like easy money—just taking down one target. It was a perfect fit for their skills and mercenary instincts.

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Currently, Bloodscream and Roughhouse found themselves in HYDRA's Siberian sub-base, which was highly likely to be the next target of White Reaper. As they reviewed the data on Noah, Bloodscream couldn't help but chuckle.

"Hehe, looks like they've bitten off more than they can chew this time, eh Roughhouse? Gotta admit, the kid's got some impressive abilities. I'm almost jealous," Bloodscream remarked.

"Yeah, they should've known what they were getting into with these experiments on kids. You handle this one. I can't bring myself to fight a kid, especially one who's had powers for only two years," Roughhouse replied firmly.

"Always the soft spot for kids, huh? With powers like his, he's hardly even human anymore. Anyway, I'll take care of it myself th—"

Boom

Bloodscream was cut off mid-sentence as a tremor rocked the base, prompting a broad grin from him.

"Looks like the kid couldn't wait," he said with satisfaction.

Just then, an HYDRA soldier entered their room to deliver orders from the commander. Bloodscream rose from his seat, heading towards the exit while addressing Roughhouse.

"Time for some fun. Shouldn't take long," he said confidently, eager to confront their target.

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"Let's see what will you do against someone with abilities like you?"

Noah paid little heed to the commander's rambling, focusing instead on sizing up his opponent. Despite the opponent's unimposing appearance, Noah sensed danger lurking within the man's hands from the earlier sneak attack, prompting him to dodge the assault entirely.

'I don't even know who this guy is supposed to be, but if HYDRA hired him to deal with me, he must possess some serious abilities,' Noah mused to himself. 'He didn't attempt to injure me just now; instead, he seemed intent on touching me. That suggests he has some kind of power activated through physical contact. I need to steer clear until I figure out what he can do.'

Noah's concerns were proved right when the opponent began touching nearby HYDRA soldiers, leaving their bodies withered, mummy like state due to the bodies bleeding uncontrollably from wherever they were touched. The once-withered soldiers then rose like zombies, and Noah noticed a surge in the opponent's power, solidifying Noah's resolve to avoid any physical contact. Bloodscream, reveling in the influx of lifeforce, grinned and spoke to Noah confidently.

"Let's start our match, kid. I'm fully powered up now. And for the record, my name is Bloodscream. Remember it."

"Just come at me, you Dracula wannabe," Noah retorted.

Bloodscream just grinned and lunged towards Noah with surprising speed. Though Noah was momentarily caught off guard, he transformed into light, effortlessly evading Bloodscream's grasping hands. Reappearing behind Bloodscream, Noah unleashed a powerful light beam, sending Bloodscream hurtling away. As Bloodscream regenerated, he commanded his zombie HYDRA soldiers to attack Noah. In response, Noah conjured swords of light akin to the Gate of Babylon, swiftly dispatching the undead soldiers.

Undeterred by his initial failure, Bloodscream morphed into a monstrous form, further enhancing his strength. With a primal growl, he launched another assault on Noah, striking with rapid succession. Noah, embodying light itself and wielding both devil fruit powers and masterful Observation Haki, swiftly danced through the battlefield, evading each of Bloodscream's attacks while countering with precise strikes of his own using a light sword.

Throughout the skirmish, Noah's agile movements and precise attacks continued to wound Bloodscream, forcing him to increase his own efforts. The battle intensified as Noah tapped deeper into his abilities, adapting in the battle with each exchange. With each clash, Noah gained a clearer understanding of Bloodscream's abilities and weaknesses, gradually turning the tide of the battle in his favor.

The intense battle left the whole area into ruins. HYDRA soldiers ran to take cover, those who came between two fighters didn't even had the chance to scream before getting killed. But if one were to look closely at the fight, it was quite clear that Noah was easily dominating the battle, with Bloodscream getting new wounds every second making even the regeneration of his body unable to keep up.

After some time Noah decided it was enough, since he didn't want to destroy the base completely yet, since he wants to loot first. So he phased through one of Bloodscreams attack and swiftly cut of both the legs and hands of Bloodscream and fired a high concentrated light beam at him. The concentrated attack left Bloodscream on the floor without any further movements, with his state of life unknown.

"Heh, what were you saying again, oh so mighty commander?" Noah smirked at the commander, who was taking cover behind an armored vehicle.

The commander knew that they couldn't do anything more to Noah with their current strength. He spoke with determination, his voice unwavering,

"No one in HYDRA is afraid of death. Your strength is growing. All we can do now is ensure you go down with us to our graves." He reached out and retrieved a remote control, placing his thumb on the red button. "As long as I press this, the base will explode instantly. Even you won't escape unscathed from the blast."

Noah shrugged dismissively. "That's assuming you can do it."

Flash

A dazzling golden light dispelled the darkness. The commander instinctively closed his eyes against the sudden brightness, but he quickly recovered and prepared to press the button. Unfortunately for him, before his thumb could descend, a strong hand clamped tightly around his wrist. Feeling the sharp pain, the commander opened his eyes to find Noah standing in front of him, having appeared in the blink of an eye.

Momentarily stunned, the commander tried to react by reaching for his gun with his free hand. But in the next instant, Noah's knee struck his abdomen.

Boom

An explosive shock wave erupted behind the commander from the impact, causing him to convulse and collapse. Simultaneously, the remaining HYDRA soldiers shook off their momentary dizziness, turned around, and prepared to attack. However, Noah's eyes gleamed with a sudden intensity.

Rumble

In an instant, it felt as if time itself had frozen. A commanding aura, akin to that of a dragon, surged outwards from Noah, sweeping through the entire base.

A visible red halo swept across the base.

The overwhelming aura seemed to penetrate every person in the base, crushing their resistance instantly. The soldiers' eyes dulled as they fell limply to the ground, unconscious. The base's walls and guard towers cracked under the sheer force of this power.

Noah knew about the base's self-destruct mechanism but dared to infiltrate alone, relying on the Haki powers he had gained from the Nexus Sharable powers a year ago—a power that seemed almost unfair against weaker opponents. With everyone in the base unconscious, Noah began his search for loot with practiced efficiency. Material goods were of secondary concern; he sought confidential documents, money, and HYDRA's advanced technologies.

While he didn't find any groundbreaking new technologies, Noah did come across the formula for nutrient solution. In Noah's estimation, this discovery held significant value, especially in increasing his physical capabilities, which had been steadily increasing day by day due in part to enhanced nutrition. The nutrient solution meant a lot not only to him but also to Wanda and their allies.

His mission deemed successful, Noah left the symbol of their group itched on the ground with his marking power— A grinning demon with a half moon at his soldier and the name of their organization <ECLIPSE> written below. Then he transformed into light, vanishing into the night sky. After gaining some distance, he pressed the remote control's detonation button.

Rumble

A powerful tremor reverberated through the night, accompanied by a massive eruption of flames that illuminated the surrounding area. Watching the mushroom cloud rise, Noah remained as light and disappeared into the vast expanse of the night sky.

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Shoutout to my patreons CHEONMA,Tony Brittain, Watcher32 and Expert00. Thank you so much for your support.