"This… how is this possible!" Steve gently stroked the Vibranium shield; the palpable gashes beneath his fingers left him stunned.
It wasn't chipped paint; there were three deep claw marks!
He couldn't believe that anything in this world could leave marks on a Vibranium shield!
Vibranium was the hardest known metal; not even direct fire from a fighter jet's machine gun could dent it.
How had that person done it?
"Captain, are you alright?" Just as Steve was stunned, he heard hurried footsteps.
Rumlow, who had been leading the pursuit of Samuel and Conrad, had finally returned.
Seeing Steve sitting on the ground, frowning, Rumlow quickly knelt to check his injuries.
The other agents rushed to check on their fallen comrades and Black Widow's injuries.
"I'm fine."
Steve slowly got to his feet. Although Logan's attack was ferocious, he was a super-soldier with the Super-Soldier Serum, so these injuries were not a cause for concern.
"He got away. That guy is terrifying," Steve said in a grave voice, unable to stop recalling the details of the battle.
Although the opponent couldn't quickly finish him off, his fierce attacks and excellent combat technique had forced him to slowly retreat.
If he had fought him for much longer without outside assistance, he would undoubtedly have lost.
Thinking of this, Steve frowned.
"I didn't catch his accomplices either," Rumlow's angry words interrupted Steve's thoughts. Gritting his teeth, Rumlow said, "Those guys are like rats—they vanish in the blink of an eye. Besides, there are too many containers here and the terrain is complicated, so we can't do much about it."
Steve nodded, looked at the already open container, and said in a deep voice, "The person isn't the priority; hurry up and check if the cargo is still there."
As soon as he said this, Rumlow instantly reacted and quickly led Steve inside the container, turning on his flashlight to search the stack of cargo boxes.
"No."
Rumlow carefully examined the cargo but found neither BU-26 nor BU-27.
"Damn it, who took them?"
Rumlow searched the containers again, refusing to give up.
"Don't bother looking."
Natasha's voice suddenly resonated behind them.
Natasha looked terrible. Unlike Steve, she did not possess his physical strength. Logan's blow had left her pale. Supported by an agent, she slowly entered the container.
"We've been played. The intelligence was wrong. The cargo isn't here."
Natasha had seen Logan enter the container but ultimately returned empty-handed. She was certain the cargo had not fallen into his hands.
Steve frowned. After a moment's thought, he immediately ordered: "Report to headquarters, send more men, cordon off the entire pier, and search all containers."
Rumlow nodded emphatically, exited the container, and contacted S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters for reinforcements.
Steve turned to the other agents. "Review all security camera footage from the pier, including the nearby streets. We need to find the attackers' trail and determine their escape route!"
Several agents quickly got to work.
Only Steve and Natasha remained inside the container.
In the light of Steve's flashlight, Natasha noticed three scratches on the Vibranium shield.
"Captain, your shield…"
Natasha stepped forward in disbelief, lightly brushing the scratches with her fingers. Feeling the roughness on her fingertips, she withdrew her fingers as if shocked.
"Was it that person?"
Natasha looked up abruptly, her eyes wide, unable to believe what she was seeing. Someone could leave marks on Vibranium!
"Yes."
Steve's expression also turned very serious. He looked at the shield on his arm, gently touching the claw marks. Seeing the three claw marks, a name suddenly came to mind.
"Speaking of which, it reminds me of an old comrade. His Adamantium claws still deeply impress me," Steve muttered, lost in thought.
"An old comrade?" Natasha asked, surprised. Steve had been frozen for seventy years; anyone he called an old comrade would be at least a hundred years old.
Steve nodded. "A comrade from World War II. But I'm probably overthinking it. Seventy years have passed; it's impossible he's still alive. Even if he were, he'd be a hundred."
Natasha nodded noncommittally. "But the identity of these people is anything but simple."
Logan's superb combat skills and his team's sophisticated weaponry were beyond the reach of common organizations.
After a moment's thought, Natasha suddenly asked, "Could they be Hydra agents?"
She believed that besides S.H.I.E.L.D., only Hydra possessed such capabilities.
"Hydra?" Steve's expression suddenly transformed into sheer disgust. "I thought they had all been decapitated during World War II!"
"Hydra's severed heads grow back," Natasha sighed helplessly. "Let's report this to Nick Fury first; he has to pay for his faulty intelligence." Steve nodded, turned, and exited the container. He instinctively glanced at the spot where the fight had taken place, and the image of those gleaming metal claws under the moonlight flashed across his mind. He frowned instantly.
Those claws were so similar.
Could it truly be a coincidence? Did Hydra also have a super-soldier with claws?
Meanwhile, at a hotel near the port, the four men gathered in a room. The failure of the mission had left them all somewhat dejected, but Conrad was the worst off.
"Idiot! Who told you to kill someone from S.H.I.E.L.D.?" Logan stood in front of Conrad, a severe expression on his face, as he angrily reprimanded him. "S.H.I.E.L.D. has countless contacts with the Avengers. If we offend them, not even the Lawrence family will dare to protect us!"
Conrad remained seated in his chair, head bowed and silent, tightly crushing a beer can.
Logan stared at him; sometimes, he truly wanted to kill the idiot.
If S.H.I.E.L.D. thoroughly investigates the agent's death, even if we escape the United States, it won't matter!
Samuel backed away, sensing Logan's anger and too intimidated to speak.
Josh, however, remained relatively calm. To ease the team's tension, he quickly said, "Conrad acted impulsively. Besides, getting angry now won't change anything. The fact that the agent is dead is irreversible. Instead of getting angry, we should think about what to do next."
Logan took a deep breath, suppressing his fury, and said coldly: "The intelligence this time was wrong. I will contact Chris first to see what his plans are."
Logan left the room, and the door had barely closed when Conrad's silent face instantly transformed into rage. His internal fury made him crush the beer can in his hand, spilling beer all over the floor.
"Logan, I'm glad to hear from you. How did it go? Did you get the goods?"
Chris's cheerful voice came through the phone.
"No," Logan replied in a grave voice. "Your information is wrong. Those two crates are not in the container."
Chris, on the other end of the line, was stunned; his previous cheerfulness instantly vanished. "How is that possible? Are you sure you looked thoroughly?"
"I may be getting old, but I'm not blind!" Logan said sternly. Chris's clumsiness and inaccuracy had made them all work in vain all night.
Furthermore, he might have offended S.H.I.E.L.D. and Captain America, which was not in his favor.
He demanded: "What exactly do those two crates contain? S.H.I.E.L.D. even got involved; we engaged them, and Conrad even killed one of their agents! We are in a very dangerous situation!"
"Damn it!" Chris roared furiously upon hearing this. "That idiot!"
The person on the other end of the line took a deep breath and repeated: "Listen, Logan, that cargo is very important. We have to get it. Don't come back yet. I'm going to find out where it is!"
"Are you crazy?!" Logan snarled angrily. "This is New York. They might have already established a cordon around the entire city. Staying here is practically suicide!"
He paused and added: "If S.H.I.E.L.D. finds out I'm Wolverine, things will get even worse!"
"I know it's dangerous!" Chris responded candidly. "No one wants to offend S.H.I.E.L.D., but that cargo is more important. If you get it, I'll increase your reward to $100,000!"
"Not even a million!" Logan firmly refused. "A lot of money is just a pile of worthless paper if you're not alive to spend it!"
"Logan, one hundred thousand dollars is no small amount," Chris's voice suddenly turned threatening. "It's enough to buy a comfortable retirement home for your old man!"
Logan fell silent; it was a direct threat.
"One hundred thousand dollars, not a penny less!"
In the end, Logan had no choice but to accept.
Now that he wasn't by the Professor's side, it would be incredibly easy for Chris to harm him!
Hearing this, Chris smiled again. "A wise decision. I'll go gather information. Wait for my news."
With that, the call ended.
Logan stared at his phone, his expression icy. He clenched his fist and slammed it against the wall.
"Damn it!"
Chris, you will soon pay the consequences for your deceptive tactics.
Logan took a deep breath. He hadn't expected Chris to be so ruthless.
But it wouldn't be long before the Lawrence family also understood the consequences of such tactics.
Logan composed himself and turned his head to look at the port, which stretched not far away, beyond the window.
That place was no longer safe; S.H.I.E.L.D. would soon be after them. He had to find another place!