One of the operatives on the bridge pulled out a grappling hook to join the fight below.
Unnoticed, Sam crept up behind him with a knife, silently cutting the operative's rifle sling. Sam grabbed the rifle and delivered a swift kick, sending the operative plummeting off the bridge.
With one enemy down, Sam immediately opened fire on the four operatives below.
"Bang! Bang!"
Two quick shots took out two operatives. Feeling a surge of confidence, Sam muttered to himself, realizing he wasn't as useless as he thought—the enemies had simply been too powerful before.
Meanwhile, Steve, holding his shield up, neutralized the operative wielding the heavy machine gun.
The last operative finally reacted, diving behind a car for cover and firing back at Sam on the bridge.
Sam shouted down to Steve, "Go! I'll handle this!"
Steve gave Sam a brief glance, then dashed toward Natasha's position, leaving Sam to hold off the remaining operative.
At the same time, the Winter Soldier reloaded his grenade launcher and cautiously advanced toward Natasha, blowing up a police car that had arrived on the scene.
Behind a parked car, the Winter Soldier paused, hearing what sounded like a voice.
"Landing point: Virginia Street, 2300 block. Rendezvous in two minutes."
Tracing the source of the sound, the Winter Soldier crouched and rolled a grenade under the car, readying his rifle to fire the moment Natasha appeared.
But when the grenade exploded, all it destroyed was a car—and Natasha was nowhere to be seen. It turned out to be a phone playing a pre-recorded audio message.
"Boom!"
The car was engulfed in flames, but Natasha used the distraction to her advantage. She leapt from behind and kicked the grenade launcher out of the Winter Soldier's hands.
She landed on his shoulders, immediately wrapping a garrote wire around his neck to strangle him.
The Winter Soldier managed to wedge his left hand between the wire and his neck, preventing her from tightening it. With his enhanced strength, he backed up, slamming Natasha into a car behind him.
Seizing the opportunity, he grabbed Natasha with his metal arm and hurled her across the road. She crashed into another car and fell to the ground.
"Bang!"
As Natasha struggled to get up, the Winter Soldier picked up his grenade launcher, aiming it at her.
Thinking quickly, Natasha threw a round dart at his metal arm. It stuck, emitting a surge of electricity.
"Zzzap!"
The electrical charge temporarily disabled his arm, causing him to lose his grip on the grenade launcher.
Natasha took the chance to escape, sprinting away as the Winter Soldier angrily yanked the device from his arm and crushed it with his left hand. After flexing his arm to confirm it was fully functional, he resumed his pursuit.
While running, Natasha yelled to the crowd around her, "Run! Get out of here! Go!"
She debated whether to call for backup using a second phone she had. But she hesitated. If she used her emergency resources now, it might jeopardize their mission to infiltrate the Triskelion later.
She decided not to. She would regroup with Steve and handle the Winter Soldier together.
Determined, Natasha pushed herself to run faster.
"Crack!"
"Ah!"
A gunshot shattered a car window, and Natasha cried out as a bullet grazed her shoulder, causing her to stumble and fall forward onto the pavement.
Natasha fell to the ground, clutching her wounded shoulder as she quickly took cover behind a car door to avoid a second shot.
Her sharp eyes scanned the surroundings, searching for the Winter Soldier's position.
Since receiving the serum, she hadn't suffered an injury until now—being hit by a bullet was a sobering reminder of her mortality.
"Thud!"
The Winter Soldier leapt onto the hood of the car, aiming his grenade launcher at Natasha's hiding spot, ready to fire.
At the critical moment, Steve rushed in, launching an attack to divert the Winter Soldier's attention.
Seeing Steve charging, the Winter Soldier swung his mechanical arm in a powerful punch.
"Clang!"
Steve blocked the strike with his shield, the impact ringing out with a heavy metallic sound.
Undeterred, the Winter Soldier shoved the shield aside and followed up with a kick to Steve's midsection.
"Boom!"
Steve was sent flying, while the Winter Soldier lost his balance and fell onto the car roof.
As he sat up, the Winter Soldier fired his weapon.
"Rat-tat-tat!"
Steve, quick to react, raised his shield to block the hail of bullets.
But after several shots, the grenade launcher was out of ammunition. Without hesitation, the Winter Soldier discarded it and rolled off the car to the ground.
Steve, seizing the opportunity, closed the distance between them, only to discover the Winter Soldier had a backup weapon—a Vz61 Scorpion submachine gun strapped to his back.
"Rat-tat-tat-tat!"
The Scorpion's rapid-fire rounds forced Steve to retreat, using his shield to deflect the shots and a nearby car for additional cover.
When the Scorpion's magazine ran dry, the Winter Soldier attempted to reload. In that split second, Steve leapt forward, delivering a powerful kick to disarm him.
The Scorpion went flying, but the Winter Soldier drew a pistol and fired at point-blank range.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
All the shots hit Steve's shield, allowing him to close in and land a solid punch to the Winter Soldier's face.
"Thud!"
Reeling from the hit, the Winter Soldier abandoned his gun, grabbed the shield with his metal arm, and swung his right fist toward Steve's face.
"Thwack!"
Steve staggered but held his ground, pulling back on the shield to reclaim control. The Winter Soldier, however, spun the shield forcefully, using its strap to twist Steve's arm.
Though Steve turned with the motion to avoid being thrown off balance, the Winter Soldier managed to wrest the shield from him.
Steve immediately launched a series of punches.
"Clang! Clang! Clang!"
Each punch landed on the shield, but the Winter Soldier capitalized on an opening, striking Steve in the chest with his metal arm and sending him tumbling back several meters.
As Steve got back to his feet, the Winter Soldier hurled the shield like a frisbee.
"Whoosh!"
Steve barely dodged the flying shield, which embedded itself deep into the rear door of an SUV.
Now wielding a tactical knife in his right hand, the Winter Soldier charged at Steve, initiating another fierce round of combat.