"You're not Logan... not even a dwarf."
Yashida received the two, even though he immediately recognized that the other party wasn't Logan, yet he greeted them politely. That's the grace of a Martial Family.
However, since these two mentioned that person's name, it indicates at least some sort of association.
Just yesterday a red-haired woman came, and now it's a bizarre-looking middle-aged man. Things can't be that coincidental.
Yashida wanted to hear what exactly this was about.
While the other was observing him, Su Ming also observed Yashida's face and one side of his body, where scar tissue from burns had appeared on the skin surface, indicating it was once a serious injury.
He smiled at Yashida, not directly answering that question, but instead asked directly: "Your injury?"
"Nuclear bomb. I wasn't in camp back then, but out for some matter, happened to be caught in the blast."
Yashida didn't avoid the question, standing tall as if war wounds were an immense honor. He was already middle-aged now but behaved like a schoolchild who won an award.
Su Ming realized the situation had changed; since he was blasted in a different location, does this mean Logan was never in the POW camp then?
"Do you remember Logan Houtley?" asked Su Ming first.
Yashida nodded with a smile, showing some nostalgic expression as servants finally brought tea and snacks. Gin unreservedly began to eat.
"I remember, a Canadian, very stout, like a tank man," Yashida gesturing in the air, describing Wolverine's robustness: "But he's not a dwarf, not like you said."
Su Ming glanced at Gin; she was proactive in eating, but maintained some grace, so he didn't mind her.
He looked back at Yashida Ichiro: "I want to find him, but I can't reveal my identity. This appearance is, naturally, fake; I need you to tell his whereabouts."
"The girl yesterday proved herself to be related to Logan, so I told her what I knew," Yashida sat upright, looking sharply at Su Ming, "Forgive me for saying, you haven't shown any reason for me to believe you."
With his words falling, from the beams of the living room, beneath corners of tatami mats, and behind fake rocks in the courtyard outside the corridor, appeared many ninjas dressed in black.
Their tachi gleamed under the moonlight, cold gazes locked on the two still drinking tea and eating snacks.
"The Yashida family's black-clad Ninja Army? The ninja's stealth skills are certainly admirable, but such a bluff can be spared."
Su Ming placed his teacup on the table, casually remarked, and merely glanced over the ninja's weapons before ignoring them.
Gin similarly showed no special reaction as these were merely mortal warriors, she could take on a hundred of them.
The smile spread over Ichiro's burned face, his palm supporting on his knee: "Oh? You're not afraid? They're battle-hardened elites, with more lives in their hands than they can count."
"Ha, the one who should be afraid is you, know why?"
Su Ming also smiled at him, like shaking his head in disappointment.
"Wish to hear the details."
Yashida raised a hand, subtle footsteps sounded all around the room.
Su Ming raised one side of his lips, softly said: "Because... Hydra lives..."
"!!!"
Yashida's palm froze in mid-air, as a knowledgeable person, he naturally knows what that phrase signifies.
Cut off one head, two grow back, Hydra is a giant force the Yashida family dare not provoke.
Though Germany and Japan were defeated in World War II alike, Hydra was not defeated, only Red Skull and Zola's divisions got raided, whereas others' powers remained intact.
He squinted at the short man opposite, wanting to discern any flaw, but the other's gaze steady, eyes carrying a contemptuous smile, everything unequivocal.
Seeing the ninja's weapons, Su Ming knew the Yashida family hasn't mixed with Hydra yet.
Indeed, Yashida isn't Japan's richest man yet, merely a retired officer with some family background, such men are abundant in Japan, less than the eye of Hydra.
Only when Stryker's division dispersed, Viper Orelia comes from South America to Japan, rebuilds her division, only then will the developed Yashida come in handy.
At least a few years should be left.
During Su Ming's expressionless internal calculation, Ichiro eventually turned his palm, made a waving gesture, the ninjas encircling the room jumped out of sight, vanishing into the night.
Everything seemed like it never happened.
More smile appeared on Ichiro's face, at last, he truly felt fear, showed a hint of flattery: "Turns out, it's Hydra's esteemed master, my apologies for the offense, but now, times are difficult, cautiousness is required."
"Your home's ninja quality isn't bad, stronger than Hand Union, deserving the term elite." Seeing the other submitting, who knows what story he imagined, but Su Ming didn't mind flattering, "Then, could you now tell me Logan's whereabouts?"
"He wasn't trapped in Nagasaki long, once during a storm, escaped with a comrade from prison. Unfortunately, back then he held me hostage, but when safe didn't kill me, let me go back."
Yashida told the truth at that time Captain Warren intended to kill him, but Logan intervened and decided to let him go. He still feels grateful to this day.
During the escape, he saw Logan blocking dozens of bullets for the Captain and still staying lively and agile. It's likely these people sought him out due to this ability.
This kind of ability that seems immortal is truly exhilarating.
"Oh? It seems he has a good relationship with you normally?" Su Ming stroked his mustache, indeed quite amusing, no wonder Gin was so happy at the time.
Yashida nodded: "Honestly, I feel ashamed, as an Imperial Warrior, my attitude towards prisoners of war was indeed different from the others, Logan had a big appetite, so I often gave him extra meals, and whenever he had time, he would teach me some English."
"Hmm, go on, tell me about his whereabouts." Su Ming asked casually, because letting someone go or killing someone due to personal feelings is indeed Wolverine's style.
Yashida sighed lightly and slightly bent down: "I can tell you, but please don't harm him, he is my friend."
"Haha, no need to bait me, I can see your little intentions clearly, don't worry, Hydra will never forget any friends." Su Ming said in an insinuating manner.
Yashida's fist hammered his knee, making up his mind: "After the war, many former prisoners came to visit me. Because other prisoner camps, even after the Emperor announced defeat, they still slaughtered the prisoners, only I released them."
"Those prisoners thanked me, and inevitably chatted with me about things when they came, Logan having superpowers was kept in a dry well then, he was a celebrity among prisoners, so many people mentioned him."
"Most wanted to ask his whereabouts, but one person told me he once heard that near Hiroshima, a foreign superpower user resembling Logan appeared, yet none of us knows the exact location."
After saying these, he seemed to have put down the burden in his heart, quietly waiting for Su Ming's response.
Su Ming recalled the map in his mind, Hiroshima huh, where there's a nuclear bomb there he is?
The question is whether he went there himself or was led there? Captain Warren who broke out together with Logan was Romulus's man.
Throughout Wolverine's life, he's been secretly manipulated by Romulus.
The oldest Mutant on Earth is named Selene, born in the Stone Age in Central Europe, now at least 17,000 years old.
Next is Saul, born in the Celestial Dynasty, later migrated to Mongolia, now about 6,000 years old.
Then the third is Apocalypse, born around 3000 BC in Egypt, not quite five thousand years old now.
It's a pity he never left Egypt before being sealed for the first time, hence he naturally thought of himself as the oldest mutant, a god....
The fourth is Red Demon Azazel, born more than a thousand years before the Bible's emergence, around 2000 BC.
Following that, the fifth is Romulus, during his era, Apocalypse has been sealed, while other mutants lived secluded everywhere, he was the strongest mutant then.
He and his brother founded a city to play, roughly around 700 BC.
His name is Romulus, so his city is named 'Rome'.
He created the country of Rome himself, and also established the legion and the Elder Council, defining Rome's system.
Only, as the mythology says, he and his brother grew up drinking milk from a she-wolf, wolf nature was deeply ingrained in his bones, before Rome was built, he killed his brother and all those who helped him but later became somewhat of a hindrance.
Being Caesar for some time, he felt it was boring, like Apocalypse, always being supreme is rather empty.
So he feigned death and escaped, the Ancient Roman people commemorated him, but still revered him as a deity — Quirinus.
However, he disappeared on his own accord, much luckier than Apocalypse, instead of being sealed, he could roam freely.
So over the past two thousand years, he secretly played around everywhere, uninterested in becoming a god, his greatest hobby being nurturing others to become gods and then killing the god for fun.
Two hundred years ago, he by chance saw Logan and took a liking to his ability.
Coincidentally, Logan's ability is almost identical to his, just Logan's mutant ability is too weak, Romulus is ten times stronger in all aspects.
However, it's fine being weak, he could be slowly nurtured.
The nickname Wolverine was actually secretly gifted to Logan through someone else's mouth by him, referring to the wolverine, known in the animal kingdom for being tough.
Romulus, on the other hand, is a real wolf, the sole Wolf King.
He's always been manipulating Logan's destiny, Logan's friends, comrades, enemies, lovers, about seventy percent are Romulus's people.
These people take turns continuously acting various melodramatic scenes around Logan just to mold Logan into the person Romulus desires.
If the nurturing doesn't go well, he uses various means to make Logan lose memory and start the nurturing from the beginning. If Logan finds a sense of belonging and tries to settle down, he will remove all ties for Logan.
Yes, it's like this, Logan's girlfriends and wives, most have directly or indirectly died at Romulus's hands, and Logan knows nothing, until now he hasn't even sensed the presence of such a dark hand.
In this era, besides the Hellfire Club of Black Queen Selene, the second largest mutant force is in Romulus's hands.
So many mutants can achieve endless things with it, even Su Ming has to handle carefully.