Chapter 22 22: The Counterattack
"That's… the military convoy!"
A member of Stark's board exclaimed in shock.
The military convoy had exploded—
just moments after leaving Tony's villa.
What on earth had happened?
Boom—!
Boom—!
Boom—!
A series of explosions rang out one after another.
The entire convoy that had just arrived—
was wiped out.
The blasts and flames drew countless eyes.
Obadiah's expression turned extremely grim.
This…
was not part of the plan.
Frank had been taken into the transport vehicle.
The moment he got inside, the soldiers' attitudes completely changed.
The politeness from before vanished.
They immediately began beating him—
punching, kicking, even smashing his head with rifle butts.
Despite being restrained and abused, Frank remained calm.
He even took the opportunity to gather information.
"You weren't planning to let me reach the holding facility alive, were you?"
"You should understand—we're just following orders."
The leader's response was practically an admission.
"I see. If your goal was Tony, taking me away should've been enough.
So why go the extra step and kill me?"
"If you want someone to blame, blame yourself for interfering in Afghanistan."
"As expected… those terrorists were connected to you as well?"
Frank had already suspected this.
Now, he had confirmation.
Qin Xiao had told him those people were linked to Obadiah.
Now it seemed the military was involved too.
"You know too much."
The leader gave a signal.
Bang!
Bang!
Several soldiers immediately pulled the trigger.
Whoosh—
Whoosh—
Bullets struck Frank's body in an instant.
"The target resisted and has been neutralized on the spot!"
The leader even reported this "fact" over the comms.
Resisted?
Frank was restrained the entire time.
There had been no resistance at all.
Seeing Frank riddled with bullets, the leader nodded.
"Set up the scene."
Several soldiers began preparing the cover-up.
But then—
Frank's mocking voice sounded.
"You're really quite direct, aren't you?"
The figure that had supposedly fallen—
stood up again.
Not only that—
the restraints on his body were gone.
His body had turned into something like mud—
the bindings had been completely useless.
"You're not human!"
"You're a mutant!"
The soldiers' voices were filled with panic.
This situation had escalated beyond expectations.
One soldier immediately activated his communicator.
"Report! Target is a mutant—elimination failed!"
They were all experienced.
At such close range, if they couldn't kill him—
then they were the ones in danger.
Sending this message was the last thing they could do.
Frank grinned.
"No. I'm not a mutant.
I'm a Devil Fruit user."
He made no attempt to stop them from reporting.
In fact, he deliberately clarified it.
He remembered Qin Xiao's words—
If you want to thank me, make the name of Devil Fruit users known.
Clearly, this battle with the military—
was the beginning.
Bullets continued to pass through his body.
Whenever attacked, his body naturally turned into swamp.
All gunfire—
was ineffective.
Frank lunged forward like a beast.
The space inside the vehicle was too small—
there was nowhere to escape.
With one motion, he grabbed a pistol from a soldier's waist.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
Three shots rang out.
The soldiers who had drawn their guns were immediately taken down.
The vehicle lost control and overturned.
The escort vehicles in front and behind came to a halt.
Everything the soldier had reported—
had been heard clearly.
Now, they were on high alert.
They might not understand what a Devil Fruit user was—
but they knew what a mutant was.
A group of soldiers quickly surrounded the overturned vehicle.
Bang—!
Bang—!
Bang—!
Heavy impacts came from inside.
Moments later, the twisted door was blasted open.
A figure stepped out—
completely unharmed.
On his chest—
a white skull emblem.
Frank.
Fully transformed into the Punisher.
Then—
everyone froze in shock.
In his hands—
was a rocket launcher.
And it was aimed directly at the lead vehicle.
Where the hell did he get that from?
"Move aside!"