Beijing, 1968: Winter Soldier is fighting for his life against The Man with No Face, a failed Chinese attempt at a super-soldier which left the subject a ghost of a man, fading in and out of shadows, unable to be touched. Serving as a spy and bodyguard for Zhang Chin, he is under orders to capture his opponent for further experimentation….
New York, today: Bucky, now Captain America, is again engaged in combat against The Man with No Face, this time also facing Batroc the Leaper and his henchmen. The vengeful Man with No Face has scores to settle with Bucky though, and materializes enough to take him by the throat—allowing Cap to shock him with a discharge from his mechanical arm…as he learned in Beijing those many years ago, seeking to escape from China by any means necessary. Barely holding his own against the combined firepower of his enemies, Cap uses his shield to stave off Batroc but The Man materializes his hand inside his chest, causing great agony. Cap is at his foe’s mercy—when Black Widow shows up firing her stings at the enemy. The villains’ helicopter departs, hauling away their quarry—and Bucky learns what the Widow had discovered in her searches: the villains have hijacked the remains of the original Human Torch, which were being kept for study by UN scientists. Cap and the Widow make their getaway. Later at home, Bucky realizes what Zhang Chin wants with the Torch, having seen years ago what sort of work he was engaged in: creating a human weapon. "And I can’t let that happen. He was a friend of mine."