Chapter 159: The Black Widow

Just as Natasha managed to stand up, she was kicked down once more by the mysterious assailant. Yet, Natasha had discerned the intruder's true objective: to acquire the case, with no intention of harming her.

Suddenly, Natasha produced a device, firing a steel wire that bound the attacker's ankle. A steel spike shot from the other end, embedding itself firmly into a pillar of the bridge. The steel cable instantaneously retracted, dragging the mysterious figure toward the upper pillar of the bridge. Meanwhile, Natasha immediately broke into a sprint toward the car, seizing the present opportunity to retrieve the case.

Just as the assailant was about to be reeled into the bridge pillar, a long blade was drawn from behind. With a single slash, the steel wire around the ankle was severed. Utilizing the momentum, the figure flew toward Natasha, who had just reached the car and picked up the black case.

Securing the case, Natasha caught sight of the figure descending from the skies with a long blade swinging directly at her. She rolled to the side to evade the strike, scooped up the round shield from the ground, and braced herself to fend off the continuous assault.

The mysterious figure snatched the case right out of Natasha’s hands and unleashed a flying kick square against the round shield she held before her chest.

The force of the kick hurled Natasha off the bridge, sending her plunging toward the rushing river below. The round shield clattered onto the pavement by the roadside.

Retracting the long blade, the assailant popped open the small black case, only to find it utterly empty.

A miscalculation! The figure walked to the ledge, peering down at the churning river below, but Natasha’s silhouette had already vanished without a trace.

Picking up the round shield, the mysterious assailant reported the failure to the Red Room headquarters, confirming that the asset was in the hands of Natasha Romanoff, the Black Widow.

The headquarters did not issue a reprimand. Instead, they dispatched their elite strike team, tasked with hunting down Natasha and reclaiming the vital "asset" at all costs!

Far downstream, Natasha swam from the icy, biting river water to the bank and hauled herself ashore.

A light drizzle began to fall. Natasha walked over to a large boulder by the shore, lay down, and gasped heavily for breath.

Tonight's ambush left her filled with doubt. Who was this mysterious person? Initially, she had assumed it was someone sent by Secretary Ross to capture her, but the assailant had held back from delivering a fatal blow.

Astonishingly, the combat style was an exact match for her own, interspersed with techniques belonging to other members of the Avengers—clearly the result of prolonged, deliberate training.

The moment the assailant exposed the true objective as the case, suspicion bloomed in Natasha’s mind. The case must have been sent to her by someone else.

The only ones who would mail something to her were her former comrades—the fellow Widows with whom she had trained since childhood. The fact that this individual sought the item implied a connection to the Red Room organization, yet the Red Room had long since been thoroughly eradicated by her own hands.

Reaching into her pocket, Natasha extracted the contents of the case. When she had retrieved the case on the bridge, she had seized the opportunity to secretly pocket what was hidden inside.

The contents consisted of a bundle of small laboratory vials filled with an unknown red liquid that emitted a faint crimson glow.

There were well over a dozen vials in the bundle, and wedged between them were two photographs depicting Natasha alongside her childhood companions.

Natasha finally realized who had sent her these items. Damned be that woman! She always knew how to stir up trouble! Natasha cursed her internally a hundred times over.

...

In the Hungarian capital of Budapest, Natasha stepped off the train, having arrived in a city she had never wished to return to.

Given that her travel was currently restricted by the United Nations, taking a plane carried considerable risks, whereas traveling by train was vastly safer. Natasha found herself momentarily missing Arthur; if he were here, he could simply conjure a portal to take her anywhere she desired. She really ought to give him a call!

By now, Arthur was likely in London alongside Steve Rogers attending Peggy Carter's funeral. Better to leave him undisturbed for the time being.

Blending into the crowd, Natasha walked into the city and made her way toward a weathered apartment building—her former residence. Her old companion should be waiting for her right here.

Stepping cautiously while keeping a watchful eye on her surroundings, Natasha recognized that the city of Budapest held immense danger for her. She climbed the old-fashioned spiral staircase all the way to the fifth floor.

Reaching a rubbish disposal chute in the fifth-floor corridor, she opened the hatch and felt around inside until her fingers brushed against a handgun.

This was a weapon she had stowed away here long ago. Securing the firearm, she proceeded to her former dwelling, Room 502.

With practiced caution, Natasha slid her key into the keyhole, turned the lock, and pushed the front door open.

"I know you're outside!" A familiar voice drifted from within the apartment.

"And I know you're inside!" Natasha replied in Russian.

Drawing her handgun, she stepped carefully into the apartment, scanning her surroundings in search of the familiar face.

"Then why are you creeping around like this is an enemy stronghold?" a woman's voice inquired from the interior.

"Because I don't know if I can trust you," Natasha replied as she advanced. The apartment was quite spacious, featuring numerous rooms.

"Fascinating. I was about to say the exact same thing." The woman's voice echoed from deeper inside.

"Shall we talk like adults, then?" Reaching a doorway, Natasha peered inside and immediately spotted the woman she had come to see.

The woman possessed a round face, blonde hair, and fair skin, standing at roughly the same height as Natasha. She, too, held a weapon, keeping her guard up as she watched Natasha. It was none other than her childhood companion and fellow trainee, Yelena Belova.

"Are we really going to do this?" Both women pointed their guns at each other, holding completely still, yet their hearts surged with emotion at the sight of one another.

Natasha slowly advanced toward Yelena, who retreated step by step.

"Drop your weapon, or you'll regret it!" Yelena warned.

"You drop yours!" Natasha retorted, quickening her pace as she closed the distance, prompting Yelena to back away faster.

"Watch your step!" Natasha cautioned, warning Yelena not to trip.

In that exact instant, both moved with lightning speed, disarming one another in unison using identical motions, only to find themselves aiming each other's guns right back at one another.

Yelena suddenly launched an attack, executing a high kick toward Natasha and grabbing her head to smash it mercilessly against the wall. Yelena possessed formidable strength.

Natasha countered by clamping her hand around Yelena's throat, slamming her head backward into the kitchen cabinet behind her, instantly fracturing the wood.

"Stay down! Stay down!" Natasha roared, shoving her forcefully down onto the kitchen counter.

Yelena snatched a plate from the sink, bringing it down hard on Natasha's head, before grabbing a cleaning rag nearby and lashing out viciously.

Natasha intercepted the rag mid-swing, looped it around Yelena's neck, and dragged her toward the stove.

Struggling desperately, Yelena planted a foot against the countertop, leaned backward, and kicked out powerfully against Natasha's stomach, hurling her airborne across the room to crash heavily onto the floor.

Both scrambled back to their feet, glaring daggers at one another. Yelena whirled around, grabbed a kitchen knife from the counter, and advanced rapidly upon Natasha.

Realizing the danger, Natasha snatched a wooden rod from a nearby table. Yelena closed in, slashing downward with the blade, but Natasha sidestepped the blow.

Dodging left and right, Natasha evaded a flurry of knife strikes. Just as Yelena raised the blade for another thrust, Natasha lunged forward and seized her knife-wielding wrist.

Yelena grabbed Natasha's other wrist in response, and both applied judo grappling techniques simultaneously. Yelena twisted Natasha's arm and hurled her crashing to the floor.

As she fell, Natasha hooked her foot around Yelena's ankle and swept her down onto the floor as well.