In the hotel room, moonlight filtered through the gap in the curtains, and gentle snores filled the air. David, who was sleeping soundly, shifted in his sleep. The comfort of the bed made his posture quite unruly, and with a loud thud, he knocked into something hard.
His head bumped against the nightstand. Letting out a muffled groan, David half-opened his eyes, twisted his body a bit, and was about to drift back to sleep when his gaze landed on the bed next to him, and he instantly froze.
Someone was sitting upright on the bed, motionless.
Seeing this, David's drowsiness vanished in an instant. He held his breath, staring at Logan, who was sitting there like a statue in deep meditation. The room was eerily silent.
Seeing something like this in the middle of the night was really terrifying. David had too vivid of an imagination to ignore it any longer, and called out in a trembling voice: "Logan?"
"Hmm?" Fortunately, the person who turned around had a human face. The familiar sight made David, who had made up a lot of horror stories in his mind, breathe a sigh of relief, 'It seems I don't have to exorcise any ghosts tonight.'
"What the hell are you doing?" David complained, covering his chest.
Logan did not expect that David would wake up in the middle of the night and simply replied, "I am thinking about life."
"You're a lunatic."
David rolled his eyes. He was still sleepy, so he couldn't even be bothered to argue with Logan. He simply turned over and buried himself in his blankets again, quickly falling silent.
Logan chuckled, and when he saw that David was sleeping again, he swallowed back the words he had been about to say.
After returning from Paulownia Forest, he hadn't been in the mood to sleep. Instead, he had been focused on recovering his Chakra as quickly as possible.
For once, the well-informed Elder had actually been helpful. Though his analysis was complex, it had at least given Logan some clarity on his situation. Logan now had a rough grasp of how his connection to transmigration worked, though the full mechanics still left him feeling uncertain.
But one thing was clear: his top priority was returning to the Ninja World, and to activate the drawing tablet, he needed a massive amount of Chakra. He had already expended quite a bit over the past two days, which was why he was now sitting in bed, meditating.
Unfortunately, it was not very useful... Because of how Chakra functioned sluggishly on Earth, no matter how much effort Logan put in, his recovery rate was painfully slow.
His frustration grew, but there was nothing he could do about it. Checking the date, he realized today was the 24th, only two days before the arranged marriage. Regardless of how time flowed between the two worlds, he had to gather enough Chakra by tomorrow. (T/N: I don't know how the Author made the date. In Chapter 288, Diane said Happy Christmas Eve to Logan, indicating that it's already Christmas Eve. But now, it's already tomorrow, but it's 24th December again.)
'What should I say when I got there? Finish the conversation I had left incomplete last time? That would feel awkward without any buildup...' The image of a face illuminated by candlelight surfaced in his mind, making Logan smile wryly.
As for the engagement, was he supposed to run to the Daimyo or the Minister of Internal Affairs to request a cancellation? Not a chance. No one would take him seriously, and revealing his identity might even attract unwanted attention from Konoha. There was too little time and too few options.
Logan was an assassin, a man of action, so the fastest solution that came to his mind was violence.
Logan held no political sway in the world's largest nation, the Land of Fire. If he wanted a softer, more diplomatic approach, by convincing Sumika to fake an engagement and stall for time, that would be the choice of an idiot. And it would definitely come with conditions.
In the end, only one option remained.
'Steal the bride?'
Logan scratched his cheek in embarrassment. It sounded absurdly cliché. The groom, whom he had never even met, would certainly have opinions about it. But Logan himself? He didn't care.
However, this choice came with consequences and there would be a mess to clean up afterward.
Logan understood that he himself had no obligations anymore. He wasn't technically a member of Konoha, and he might not even count as a member of Akatsuki anymore. He had no chains binding him, and he had no fear of repercussions. But Sumika wasn't like him.
The other party is a ceremonial envoy, had a home, a stable life, and responsibilities. If she refused the engagement, she would be offending the powerful elite. What would happen to her then?
Maybe she would not be able to stay in the Land of Fire's Capital anymore. Logan could undoubtedly take Sumika away without hesitation and find a remote place to confidently avoid future troubles.
But would Sumika be willing? Leaving behind her homeland, the comfort of being served by attendants… could she truly smile and nod, following him to a place so remote that Capital's elite could never find her?
Even if she did, could he protect her for a lifetime? A world where she no longer had to dance at ceremonial rituals, no longer had to compile court documents… where she was surrounded by strangers, forced to tread cautiously, without a single friend… Would that really be a good life?
That thought left Logan in silence. There were too many uncertainties, too many things he couldn't guarantee. In the dimly lit room, the streetlights outside cast a pale yellow glow. He sighed deeply, 'This plan… doesn't seem so great after all.'
If she wouldn't be happy, then what difference would it make from one prison to another? Logan didn't want to watch Sumika's once vibrant and colorful life turn dull and gray because of a single impulsive decision.
His Chakra was still recovering at a snail's pace, so faint it was like dripping water into a vast river, completely imperceptible. Logan sighed again. In the stillness of the night, his thoughts drifted.
Back then, he had promised to take Sumika to a paradise free from strife. What he said at that time was actually the modern world where he was.
'If only I could bring her here.' Logan looked at the backpack on the sofa, which contained the magical tablet.
His mind flashed back to his earlier inquiries: The intricate Space-Time Formula had transported him, but what about someone else?
This was a question he had actually asked once before. When he was in Paulownia Forest and confirmed that the drawing tablet had the Space-Time Teleportation Ability and that he could return to the Ninja World as soon as possible, Logan's thoughts changed and he immediately asked the Elder.
This can be said to be the second question that needs to be answered urgently after confirming the nature of the drawing tablet.
The answer had been seared into his memory. Under the crimson sky, the Elder had first dismissed the idea outright, "The starting point of being able to teleport lies in your special nature, Hattori. Others can't use it."
But as if thinking about something, the Elder carefully weighed the digital tablet and spoke in an uncertain tone, "Then again… perhaps it's not impossible."
Hearing this, Logan's heart had nearly leaped out of his chest.