Capítulo 15: The Real Mariko
Mariko stared nervously at Max in silence. Max, however, appeared unfazed during the inspection, which finally allowed Mariko to exhale a sigh of relief.
She hesitated, wanting Max to return her clothes after the check. To her surprise, a small door suddenly materialized beside Max.
The door was about the size of a shoebox, and Max casually tossed her clothes inside.
"You..."
Mariko instinctively reached out to stop him, but the door swiftly closed and vanished.
Max remained silent, his gaze fixed on Mariko.
That gaze stirred an inexplicable sense of guilt within her.
....
Several minutes later, footsteps echoed in the alley.
It was Yukio. She held a knife in one hand and a small device in the other.
Drip by drip, the device emitted a faint sound. Yukio hastened her pace and then... she saw the clothes on the ground. This sight left her momentarily stunned.
The clothes were still there, but the person had vanished. Where had they gone?
Yukio scanned her surroundings and quickly left to begin her search.
....
"How did you know?" Mariko asked, her face pale.
"Let's go!"
Max offered no explanation, merely pushing Mariko and leading her forward.
Initially, Max hadn't anticipated the possibility of a tracker on Mariko. After all, the Mariko from the movie was a fragile girl who had no interest in running a family business. It was unlikely that she foresaw her father's kidnapping plot and brought a tracker to her grandfather's funeral.
But Wolverine and Yukio had arrived too quickly! Max transported Mariko through an alternate dimension to a randomly chosen hotel. There was no chance of being discovered there. Yet, Wolverine and Yukio had immediately located the door and stormed in as if they had known they would be there all along.
The only plausible explanation was that Mariko had a tracker on her, and they were privy to her whereabouts from the outset. This raised the question: why had Mariko brought a tracker, as if she had foreknowledge of the kidnapping?
When Max saw Wolverine and Yukio, he pieced together how they had tracked them down and deduced who had hired the Ninja Clan to abduct Mariko.
It was Mariko herself!
This was the only way to make sense of Mariko's actions. Despite her outward appearance of fragility, she possessed hidden skills, including the concealed dagger beneath her pillow. If she carried a tracker just in case due to insecurity, why not bring a weapon as well? Unless she had no intention of resisting and believed there was no real danger.
Following this logical line of thought, it became apparent that she was orchestrating her own "kidnapping." This method served to clarify two key points:
1. She was not as fragile and innocent as she appeared.
2. She had ambitions to take control of the Yashida Group.
If she truly had no interest in managing the company, as she had portrayed, and knew it was her father's lifelong pursuit, she could have simply relinquished control.
"This woman is quite formidable," Max thought as he observed her retreating figure. Mariko's demeanor appeared genuine.
In the movie, Ichiro had allowed Mariko to take control of the company, reasoning that she had little knowledge of its workings. This decision allowed him to sustain his life after suppressing Wolverine's Self-healing Ability and continue clandestinely managing the company. However, a particular dialogue between Yashida Shingen and Mariko in the movie resonated:
He remarked, "Genes are truly marvelous, I can only say that mine are like my father's, but when I looks at you, I see my father himself!"
Reflecting on Yashida Ichiro's actions, if Yashida were a conniving individual, then Mariko was undoubtedly no innocent bystander; she was, at the very least, a shrewd player in the game.
Both her father and her grandfather may have been deceived by Mariko. Growing up in the epicenter of power, her true ambition might have been to wield control over the family's influence.
"Where are you taking me?" Mariko, who had remained silent throughout the journey, suddenly inquired.
Max smiled and glanced to the side as he replied, "What do you think of that apartment? It appears to be newly constructed but not occupied yet!"
Though he phrased it as a question, Max had already nudged Mariko forward and began walking in that direction.
After finding a well-appointed but vacant unit, Max and Mariko stepped inside.
There was nothing but emptiness.
Mariko swiftly grasped why Max had chosen this location – it effectively prevented her from escaping. Unless she was unconcerned about exposing the naked self of the Yashida Group's heir to everyone, her only option was to remain here obediently.
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