Boom!
A fierce punch aimed at Reno's abdomen. The attacker exuded confidence, and the punch was fierce, resolute, forceful, and unexpected, definitely capable of taking down its target.
But at the moment of the attack, Reno moved too. He stepped back, simultaneously reaching forward with his right hand, grabbing the wrist of the assailant.
How is this possible?
The assailant froze.
Reno's grip was steady and powerful as he stared at the man, his eyes sharp. "What are you doing?" he demanded.
The assailant smirked.
He lifted his leg and aimed a kick at Reno.
Reno released his grip, countering with a kick of his own.
This was military combat technique—simple, practical, lethal!
Their legs collided, and both staggered back a few steps.
Rubbing his chest, the assailant charged forward, throwing a punch at Reno's face. Reno dodged to the side, retaliating with a punch of his own. The assailant dodged, but his elbow struck Reno's chest. Reno pressed down with one hand, their arms colliding. Reno raised his knee, meeting the assailant's knee simultaneously, their actions mirroring each other once again as they collided with force. The impact was strong this time, and both emitted painful groans.
As they were about to separate, Reno's left hand grabbed the assailant's two fingers, twisting them upwards. The fingers snapped under his grip.
The assailant groaned in pain, his vision blurred, as Reno jumped up, delivering a flying kick.
This move was powerful but somewhat slow to execute. Under normal circumstances, Reno wouldn't use it because an experienced opponent might counter before the kick lands. But now, the assailant was in pain, his reactions slowed, giving Reno enough time to execute the move.
Once completed, the flying kick carried tremendous force. Landing on the assailant's chest could even fracture ribs. The assailant fell backward, unable to get up.
"Military combat technique," Reno snorted, striding towards the assailant. "Who sent you?"
Lying on the ground, the assailant groaned, barely coherent. "Do you think you've won?"
Reno paused, halting his steps, suddenly feeling pressure behind him. Another assailant emerged, grabbing him from behind. Simultaneously, two more figures appeared at the end of the alley, charging towards Reno.
Seeing the two assailants coming at him, Reno tilted his head back, smashing it into the face of the one behind him. The sudden blow caught the assailant off guard, striking his nose. Blood sprayed as the man instinctively released his grip, allowing Reno to seize his hand. With a powerful motion, Reno flipped him over, sending him crashing into the approaching assailant, and they both tumbled to the ground.
Reno turned towards the other assailant, delivering a fierce punch with his right fist. As he punched, his right middle knuckle protruded slightly. The protruding knuckle struck the assailant between the eyebrows, causing him to fall backward.
But as he succeeded, the first assailant had already lunged forward, delivering a punch to Reno's ribs.
The punch was heavy, but Reno only grimaced.
He raised his hand, bent his elbow, and struck down!
The blow landed on the assailant's head, causing him to collapse, unconscious.
However, at that moment, the two previous assailants had gotten back up. One of them lunged forward again, grabbing Reno's arm and shouting, "I've got him!"
This time, he maintained distance.
The other assailant, the one whose nose Reno had broken earlier, charged forward angrily. "You bastard! I'll show you!"
He aimed a punch at Reno's abdomen.
The punch dazed Reno, almost making him pass out from the pain.
But the assailant wasn't satisfied. He pulled out a retractable stun baton and struck Reno's head again.
He didn't activate the current because his companion was still holding onto Reno.
The blow caused blood to trickle down Reno's forehead.
The assailant chuckled triumphantly as he continued to strike Reno with the baton, causing him to bleed further.
"Stop, Ted, we need to take him back!" The assailant whom Reno had knocked out earlier stood up, assisting his fallen companion, and called out to the one holding the baton.
"I know, Bart, but this guy is trouble. Look, all four of us couldn't handle him—he knocked one of us out," Ted replied impatiently.
"Maybe more than one," Reno said.
"What?" Ted, the assailant, turned back in astonishment.
Reno kicked Ted in the groin.
"Aah!" Ted screamed in excruciating pain, his face contorting.
It was over.
"You piece of shit!" Bart, the other assailant, shouted angrily, dropping his unconscious friend and charging at Reno.
At the same time, the assailant holding Reno tightened his grip, preventing him from moving.
"I'll kill you!" Bart yelled as he rushed forward.
"Before that, watch your head," Reno said softly.
Bart looked up in confusion, only to see a flowerpot descending from above.
An airborne flower shop was passing overhead, and for some reason, the securely placed flowerpot became loose, prompting the shop owner to shout in frustration, "Oh, damn, my geraniums!"
Crash!
The flowerpot landed precisely on Bart's head.
Bart froze, his eyes rolling back, and collapsed.
"Oh, no," the last assailant muttered dumbfoundedly.
Reno turned to him, and the assailant gulped nervously. "You're in my hands..."
"Perhaps," Reno smiled. He pushed off the wall with his legs, slowly leaving the scene.
...
San Juan Mountain Sanatorium.
Clarisse Austin stepped out with wet hair, wrapped in a bathrobe, obviously just coming out of the shower.
As she passed by the room, a gust of wind blew in.
Clarisse turned to close the window, feeling puzzled. "Strange, I remember closing the window."
As if remembering something, Clarisse's pupils suddenly dilated.
She turned around, only to be met by a dark figure pouncing towards her...