The remaining two Rogue Ninjas looked at each other, their silent agreement evident in their eyes.
At the same time, they turned around and rushed towards Sumika!
Logan's expression grew colder as he saw their intentions. Releasing his control, the noise of the Chidori began to rang fiercely, its electric current screeching like a requiem for the damned. With a step, Logan chased after them at a speed far surpassing that of the two Rogue Ninjas.
The lethal sound of the squeaking electric current was so loud that one's heart would jump out of his chest. The Chidori rushed in behind them at a speed that was completely faster than expected, arriving behind the two in the blink of an eye. Seeing this, the skinny Ninja's face changed color. Gritting his teeth fiercely, he formed hand seals decisively.
"Earth Release: Earth-Style Wall!"
His companion behind him stared at him in disbelief!
A wall made of earth and gravel suddenly rose from the ground, blocking the terrifying chirping of Chidori, but the Rogue Ninja behind the skinny one was also blocked behind the earth wall.
"Boss, you..."
Bang! The voice stopped abruptly.
Logan didn't even blink, piercing through both layers of barriers that appeared in his line of sight with Chidori. Human flesh, earth and rocks barely slowed him down as the dazzling lightning burst through.
"Don't come any closer!"
The skinny Ninja, who betrayed his companions twice in a row, shouted hysterically.
Sizzle——
The raging lightning ball was almost at his doorstep, but eventually came to a halt in rapid motion.
Sumika, who had a pale face at the moment, was pushed by the skinny Ninja and blocked in front of him.
The shameless act of the skinny Ninja had indeed bought him a bit of time. No one dared to stop him when he rushed into the crowd of scholars and officials. The Chidori held by Logan had already frightened them so much that they dared not move.
Although the actions of the skinny Ninja were very hasty, just now, Logan knew he had about seventy to eighty percent certainty of blowing off the opponent's head. However, the remaining chance made him hesitate.
"Back off, back off!" The skinny Ninja narrowly escaped death's grasp, and his face drenched in sweat. The kunai in his right hand was firmly pressed against Sumika's slender neck, his words disjointed.
Logan looked into Sumika's face, which was now within arm's reach. They inadvertently made eye contact. From her crimson eyes, Logan could see his own murderous look reflected.
"I told you to back off! Can't you hear me?!" The skinny Ninja roared again, his kunai pressing harder against Sumika's fair skin, drawing a streak of blood, causing Sumika to let out a groan.
"I heard you." Logan dispelled the Chidori, the lightning disappearing, and he took a few steps back slowly, "Is this enough?"
"Hattori-san..." Sumika's eyes were filled with self-blame. Just as she was about to say something, her mouth was suddenly covered by the skinny Ninja's left hand, "Don't talk!"
The skinny Ninja, trembling with fear, glanced at the gradually cooling bodies of his two companions nearby. His legs were still shaking a little, thinking that the Konoha's Ninja in front of him was too strong.
"Keep retreating. Don't come within ten meters of me!"
'Does the plot really have to be so melodramatic…' Logan couldn't help but feel helpless at this turn of events. In the end, he could only retreat to a distance of nearly twenty meters.
The scholars and officials had already scattered and ran away long ago. But as they calmed down, they felt ashamed and afraid for having just watched Sumika being held hostage. The Samurai, who could still move, had surrounded the skinny Ninja, glaring at him.
The skinny Ninja was very emotional, but when he saw the surrounding people hesitating to approach, he knew that he had caught the real big shot. Feeling slightly relieved, he glanced around and was about to speak.
"It's not an option if this goes on. How about this?" Logan suddenly spoke up, staring into Sumika's eyes as she also looked back at him, "Why don't we flip a coin?"
"?"
The skinny Ninja looked a little confused and didn't understand what Logan meant. Even the Samurai, including Hanjiro, looked puzzled.
Logan took out a coin from his pocket and said, "Heads, you win. Take the 'treasure' and leave. Tails, you lose."
"Hey..." The skinny Ninja looked dissatisfied, 'Who the hell wants to gamble with you? The hostage is in my hands now, I can threaten you all at will...'
But Logan didn't give the other party a chance to speak, and just ignored him. As if he was immersed in his own world, he tossed the coin high up into the air with a 'ding' sound.
People couldn't help but look over.
The moonlight shines down slantingly——
Logan also looked up, his thoughts unclear, gazing at the faint reflection of the metal.
A feeling he had never experienced before surged in his heart. As the coin fell before him, lightning flashed around his right hand.
Railgun operated at three times the speed of sound. What concept was this? When the skinny Ninja saw a flicker of light like a comet, half of his body had already been destroyed.
The skinny Ninja used Sumika as a shield in front of him, but due to her petite stature, half of the skinny Ninja's body was exposed.
Logan intentionally adjusted his aim and only try to graze the opponent's body. Yet, even this was enough to send the slender Ninja on his way, as half of his body disintegrated, leading to his demise.
The brilliant and brief power passing like a comet, stunning yet fleeting. The fleeting light streaked across dozens of meters into the dark forest behind before silently disappearing.
Everyone was completely dumbfounded upon seeing this.
Sumika was the first to react. She forcefully pushed away the half body of the skinny Ninja, which was still hanging onto her, and rushed towards Logan with all her strength.
Sumika directly threw herself into his arms. Without any preparation, the soft and warm feeling caused Logan to freeze in place immediately. He even forgot the joy of successfully executing a technique he had researched for a long time.
"Hattori-san…" The girl in his arms whispered, her shoulders trembling faintly.
For several seconds, Logan could only offer dry comfort, saying: "It's okay."
"It's not okay." Sumika still buried her head on his chest. In the end, she was still young. In modern society, she might have just graduated from high school, yet to be exposed to the brutality of the world. This was the first time she had faced life and death situation.
To the girl's response, Logan could only chuckle twice. He looked up at the Samurai, scholars and officials who had just snapped out of the stunning display of the Railgun. He raised his hand and said, "Who can help?"
The temporarily quiet campsite became chaotic again...
Fifteen minutes later, with the help of Logan and several maids, Sumika finally calmed down. Once the helpless officials and scholars were also comforted, everyone agreed it was time to leave this troubled place. They quickly packed up and set off immediately.
They pushed on through the night for quite some time before some of the weaker ones couldn't continue and they had to stop to rest. However, by the time dawn broke, although all the enemies had been wiped out, the group was preparing to hit the road again.
This made Logan feel very emotional, 'It turned out that the enemy attacks could have such a significant impact.'
The envoys regained their spirits, greatly reducing the time to reach the Land of Fire's capital. Logan's prestige among the group was truly established after his unquestionable performance that night. However, Logan didn't care about any of that.
Afterwards, Logan curiously asked Sumika what the 'treasure' those three wandering Ninjas were talking about. He wondered what could have attracted such desire.
The result was beyond Logan's expectation. It was neither a priceless jewel nor a scroll. When Sumika opened an ordinary box with a wry smile, what appeared inside was only a large pile of books...
These books were obtained during the final exchange of gifts in the Land of Tea. For people like Sumika, these things were indeed 'treasures'. But for those who were only concerned with money and material things, they might find these things too burdensome to carry.
Logan could only shake his head at this, not knowing what else to say.
One month later, the Land of Fire's capital.
Logan escorted the group of dozens of people into the city, and the people in the envoy group would report the situation themselves. Logan soon received praise, along with proof of completing the mission.
Having already bid farewell to everyone when entering the city, Logan was about to leave the city when a figure in red and white caught up with him.
"Hattori-san!"
Seeing that it was Sumika, Logan stopped in his tracks and asked, "What's the matter?"
"Are you leaving? Why don't you stay in the capital for a few more days?" Sumika bit her lip and looked at Logan with twinkling eyes.
"No, there are still many things I need to do in the village." Logan pretended not to notice Sumika's hint and politely declined.
"I will wait for you." Disappointment flashed briefly, and then Sumika immediately said firmly.
This was almost a confession. After saying this, Sumika's face immediately turned red.
Logan was not young in terms of mental age. He had already figured out Sumika's feelings during their journey together. He had also considered it, but their lives were just too different. He is no longer the high school student who would get excited for half a day just because someone of the opposite sex confessed to him.
"If I have time, I'll come by... I'll come to see you." In the end, Logan didn't want to be too heartless and said something polite.
"Yes!" Sumika nodded happily, and Logan waved his hand and walked away. She stood on the street, watching the Konoha's Ninja disappear.