As the driver made his way through the snowy roads of the elite resort town, Naruto was lost in thought. Distracted by the pinging memories and stray observations he couldn't even enjoy the picturesque surroundings. His enjoyment of the natural beauty was further hampered by not wanting to be here; here being Veritas, a meeting of thought leaders, titans of industry, and anyone that could trick a venture capital firm into overvaluing them.
It was decidedly not the type of people he wanted to be around but Mr. Wintergreen had been insistent he attend the gathering. He'd found the man had been incredibly insistent lately, over a number of things; so much so the two even got into an argument the morning after he killed Waller. It felt fresh, even as it'd happened five weeks previous. He didn't want to think of it but his mind kept returning.
"Mr. Wintergreen, how soon can the pilot be ready?" Naruto asked as he finished backing his bags. Eiling's last known location was Dakota City. If he were lucky the General would still be there but if not he could pick up the trail, either way the result would be the same.
"And what will you do with Miss Quinn?" Wintergreen asked.
Naruto noticed his question was answered or even acknowledged. He zipped the black suitcase as he mentally ran down a list of what he still needed to pack. "Once she wakes up and drys out, offer her a ride to where she needs to go. Now, the pilot?"
"I didn't contact him, sir," Wintergreen admitted.
"Oh," Naruto said in mild surprise. He hadn't thought he'd been unclear in his request. "Why not?"
"Because you need to stay out of the search for General Eiling," his valet said. Naruto sat on the bed, sliding his suitcase to the side. He was getting confused as Mr. Wintergreen never did things like this.
"Maybe so but I'm not. He was in on the decision to detain Pam. He's partially responsible so he dies. Him and anyone who stands with him. This… this shouldn't surprise you." Naruto did not like that he sensed disappointment from Wintergreen.
"This is not about General Eiling, Amanda Waller, nor the Justice League. This is about Mr. Luthor, sir. You are allowing your father to derail you from your chosen path. I fail to see why you'd allow him to win after years of denying his wishes."
"I can't help whatever webs of nonsense Lex spun before his death and yes, it has occured to me getting the attention of Cadmus and the pajama people lined up perfectly with his untimely demise. The problem is, even if this is what Lex wanted a shark's got to swim. I am who I am and backing down when people come at me isn't an attribute of mine."
"Then you risk it all, Master Naruto. All that you wish to see accomplish, all the good you could achieve. All for ego, sir. I thought you better than that."
Naruto laughed. He knew Wintergreen thought he was being dismissive but that wasn't his intent and he reassured the man of it before he explained, "This isn't about proving something to myself. I get no charge from beating people weaker than myself. Nor is it about reputation, I make sure no one can prove I do these things."
"Then what, sir? I know you loved Miss Isley, I understand wanting revenge. Did you not get it last night?"
"Revenge… is hollow," Naruto said with a shake of his head. "Killing Waller didn't dull the pain nor did I suspect it to. It was about honor, honor and consequences."
"You don't prescribe to any code of honor I know of, sir," Mr. Wintergreen said but Naruto understood the man to be calling bullshit.
"I don't because I don't need to. Codes of honor often act as substitutes for laws and are needed between people who would have to enforce it themselves. From the samurai to American gunslingers and duelists, even the mafia. The actual makeup of the "code" is less important than why it's necessary and what it signifies. Between like individuals you are not free from consequence nor am I incapable of meting out said consequence.
Waller, Eiling, Intergang… they thought themselves beyond any system that could hold them accountable. They thought even the arms of supervillainy were too short to reach them. They were without honor and inoculated from the laws of man. They targeted Pam because they didn't think I was like Lex, not ruthless like him. Well, in her last moments Amanda knew different."
"I worry, sir. To beat Lex you may have to forgo your inclinations. I've had no luck unraveling the traps he left in your past and I may not be able to be. You're doing good with LexCorp. Your employees are happy, your special projects will start breaking ground within months. The world doesn't need the nameless warrior. It needs Naruto Uzumaki."
"I'm both. It's not either or."
"And what if there comes a point you have to make a decision? That being both simply holds you back from either path?"
"Eh!" Naruto exclaimed. "You sound like that big, dumb puppy," Naruto complained. As headstrong as he was, and as much as something deep inside called for Eiling's head, he wasn't immune from the counsel of others. If Clark and Wintergreen agreed then there was a good chance this may be a mistake. Maybe he did need to let things play out and focus on his real work. Maybe shutting down Cadmus would be enough. He shook his head, he'd make it be enough.
"Fine, I'll cancel my trip. Have Mercy schedule a meeting with my nautical design team. I know we still have some time before those oil transport contracts are fulfilled but I want some ideas on how to retrofit those ships. And I need to get in touch with the director of the interstate regional alliance about some projects." Naruto began unpacking his suitcase. As Wintergreen departed, Naruto couldn't see his smile but he could sense it.
"We're here, sir," the driver said as he pulled up to the cabin, though calling it a cabin was very misleading. The multi-story vacation home could comfortably house a family of six. It had a dedicated domestic staff and a view overlooking the mountain range. He was sure there were more amenities he hadn't bothered to look into but it was as luxurious as he'd expect for such an event. Naruto tipped the driver and the bellhop that carried his bags up the wooden stairway. Once unpacked he meditated knowing he'd need a great deal of patience to deal with these people.
Elsewhere in the same resort, Bruce Wayne was donning his billionaire playboy mask. He'd much rather be doing his real work as nothing of value would be accomplished here. He understood the value of maintaining appearances and he didn't want to seem like a recluse. The enduring mob war in Gotham, his work with the League and his investigation into Uzumaki had kept him from the public eye. He was normally better about balancing his mission with the requirements of being the Wayne heir but had been dropping the ball.
He'd been feeling like that often lately. Not being able to stomp out this mob war, which subsumed a majority of his time, was frustrating. His nights were getting longer as he patrolled or went undercover to routinely hit dead end after dead end. He could feel the exhaustion and how it was dulling his senses. Pushing himself to rest only when he absolutely needed it was hampering him but every hour out of commission was an hour Black Mask or the Maroni could involve some innocent in their war, as if the general terror wasn't enough.
Alfred insisted he come here. He was going to refuse outright but couldn't think of a reason why outside of a reflexive desire to do so. His leads had run dry for the moment, he needed rest and the downtime would give his mind time to work through everything. He was a believer in the unconscious mind's ability to process information in ways the conscious mind couldn't. He agreed, to the relief of Alfred and departed shortly after. Now he stood in front of his closet deciding on his evening wear for the nightly mixer. The clothes helped him get into character.
Naruto sat at a table tucked away out of the way. He was here, he'd spoken to multiple people so he'd fulfilled his obligation to be social for the night. He took a swig of brandy from the wide bottomed snifter. The flavor bordered on too oaky for his taste and he thought it could have been uncasked a year or two earlier. Still, it was fine.
Placing the glass down, he scanned the room out of habit and boredom. Smaller cliques were starting to form within the private meeting area. The largest was by the fireplace as a mustachioed blond held court. Everyone seemed to be enjoying themselves. He picked up his glass and he let slip a silent, '"fuck". The expression caused by someone approaching him.
He pulled out the chair across from Naruto as if he owned the joint, though given this lot he may. Settled in with a matching drink in front of him, the older man sat silently as he took his own drink of brandy. "A little oaky," he said.
"I thought it was aged perfectly," Naruto retorted. The two returned to silence, background conversations and the flickering of the candle between them punctuating the verbal impasse. This was, Naruto could admit, childish. He knew all he needed to know about the man in front of him and that same man would never know enough about him.
There was no way to square that circle and Bruce's attempt to provoke him into a hasty retaliatory effort demonstrated as much. He may not have much use for Gotham's hero but the man wasn't an idiot. When very smart people do incredibly dumb things it's safe to go dick, heart or hidden motive. But with an obsessive like Bruce, hidden motive was the superior bet.
"I have a problem," Bruce said, the silent standoff broken and unlikely to return. "I have this generator. Capable of tremendous power but inconsistent, unpredictable. It almost seems as if it only works when it wants, at its own whims. That much power is dangerous. Using it frivolously or selfishly is even more so. My engineers tell me I should just let it be, it hasn't done significant harm to anything that wasn't already tainted. I seem to be alone on this one."
"I think it's telling," Naruto began while creating a soundproof barrier so they couldn't be overheard, "that in this little metaphor I'm a thing you own and expect to control while your comrades are your employees. Or is that the crux of the problem. We're all just pieces on a board you've created and you control?"
"You've shown what you can do when something violates your personal code. I worry about what happens when you don't get your way or if you become bored."
"Well, I won't put on a funny suit and punch poor people."
"Always with a quip. It isn't a substitute for substance."
"Says the broken, little boy wearing the grown man armor. Did you ever really leave that alley, Bruce? Or did you send out enough pieces to play at being human?"
"Whatever pieces came back were influenced by undeniably good people. Can you say the same?"
"Let's see, I diligently and competently run a multinational. I improve the lives of my employees, make them feel valued and respect them fully as humans. In return, they are healthier, happier and that spreads to their communities; so does their increased purchasing power. You pretend to be a vapid, manslut so you can bend to a psychological compulsion without interference.
Are we seeing the example of Lex's influence compared to Thomas and Martha Wayne? Or the impact of early childhood trauma? Maybe it's neither and I'm just built different."
"You must be, I'm not a killer," Bruce offered. Naruto laughed as he could feel the man's sincerity. He actually believed that.
"You really think you haven't killed anyone? Not even accidentally? At no point in your career did you maybe cause a brain bleed that went undetected? Or some other injury that went without treatment? You always apply the perfect amount of force to the right areas? Never broken a rib that punctured a lung?"
"What's next, are you going to blame all of Joker's victims on my refusal to kill?" Bruce asked.
"No, because I'm not an idiot. He was just a man, it was the incompetence of our criminal justice system that let him escape or never managed to treat him. I have absolutely no problem with your refusal to intentionally kill. Why are you surprised?" Naruto asked. Bruce said nothing so Naruto continued. "You cross the line, you seem to have no use for legal rights but in that way you're no different from a good chunk of policing. But if you were out there just wasting supervillains… we'd have crossed paths much sooner."
"But it's ok for you to murder people."
Naruto looked down at his drink and replied "I haven't murdered anyone. Murder is wrong."
"Clark believes in you but I don't see it. The power, sure, you've got it. But the selflessness, the drive to protect, those are absent. All your gifts and you do nothing with them."
"Two questions, Bruce; what problem can my abilities solve that cannot be solved by other means normal people have access to? Secondly, will your work outlive you?"
"That's a dodge," Bruce countered.
"Those two questions are the point entirely. Now, if you'd excuse me it appears an Errol Flynn lookalike wants a word with you." Naruto left. He'd gotten nothing out of the exchange but was sure the Detective would pour over every microexpression. The man would punch himself out eventually but his concern for it diminished as he sensed something from his cabin. He kept a sedate pace until he was sure he was alone and unobserved. A shunshin later and he was back at temporary housing.
"Hey," he said with a smile as he saw her on the couch. He plopped beside her and she giggled at his antics. "Didn't think you'd be able to make it."
"Caught a lucky break," Kara explained. The two had been in a weird space given their undefined relationship and news of Pam's demise but slowly they were finding their rhythm again. Whatever they were, he was happy to get some alone time with her and accepted it might be just for the night.
Instinct saved his life. The curved, single-edged blade that was to plummet through his neck missed as he moved to the side, though still close enough to get nicked. His arms grabbed those of his assailant but his iron grip kept the attacker in place. With more strength than skill he forced the both of them to the side of his bed and felt fortunate he landed on the dark clothed man. Three hard punches knocked him out and gave Bruce enough time to collect his wits. That was a League of Shadows assassin.
Stepping out of his bedroom door, a shift duck evaded a sword swing. From his crouched position he kicked the shadow in the knee and made them buckle and finished with an uppercut. A clang was hard as Bruce used the discarded blade to deflect an incoming strike. Before the attacker could regroup, Bruce latched onto an arm and dislocated the elbow then followed with a haymaker. He tossed his would-be killer over the railing and jumped over himself. Three more shadows appeared and attacked in unison.
The three make use of the darkness and open floor plan, weaving in and out as they attack in unison. Bruce felt his long ignored exhaustion. He saw the attacks but his movements weren't as crisp as they normally were. It took more effort to generate the power in his strikes or speed in his evasions. He was defending ably but this was a much harder fight than it should be. However, one positive was the hard fighting was taking a toll on the final three assassins. He grit his teeth as they charged.
A leg kick was easily checked by his raised shin. A left cross caught before it could strike his chin. A leg sweep had him lose footing but he drug the puncher down with him. He rolled as soon as he hit the ground, the followup attacks just missing him. Having created some space, the two that were still up were out of rhythm, one reached him faster and Bruce headbutted Ra's disciple and connected two short hooks to their chin. As one dropped, the other appeared, sword swing in motion. Bruce turned into their guard and flipped the assassin over. A few downward punches rendered them unconscious.
"Ugh," he bellowed when the final member grabbed him and slammed against the wall of windows. The installation shook in displeasure and Bruce agreed. The Gotham billionaire tried to break the shadow's hold but it was for not. His attacker wasn't doing much attacking, only holding him in place. Everything he tried to reverse position or break the grip failed.
Searing pain soon followed. The sound of shattered glass came just after the echo of a gunshot. Both men dropped, an unsightly pool of blood surrounding them. It hadn't been the first time Bruce was shot but it was unspeakably painful. He fought to remain conscious, though he couldn't explain why. Was it will? Spite? Arrogance? He didn't have an answer. Thinking was becoming as hard as breathing, the air in his lungs feeling as heavy as water. His final thought was if his work would outlive him.
Upon his return to consciousness Bruce felt in incredible pain. He welcomed the sensation as it meant he was, for the time being, alive. However, that didn't make any sense. He was too far away from any of the neary doctors to render aid but was sure by the feel of the bed he was still in his cabin. With a moderate amount of effort he opened his eyes, the action alerting Green Arrow and Supergirl.
"You had a close call there, Bats," Green Arrow said.
"League?" Bruce asked.
"We caught several of them but the shooter got away from us," Supergirl confessed. Bruce closed his eyes and grunted, she took it as acknowledgement that she'd spoken. It wasn't difficult to put together the events of his rescue. Supergirl had gotten Naruto to heal him and his healing abilities must be in the realm of the miraculous as Bruce knew he had several organs damaged by that shot. The two must have become closer, he doubted Naruto would save him otherwise.
"Naruto?" he asked and hoped his meaning was clear.
"I'm here… heh, I sound like All Might." Bruce decidedly did not like the man being in the room completely undetected but shelved it for later.
"What did you do to me?"
"I regrew several of your internal organs, removed the bone shards the bullet caused to puncture them. Repaired your cracked ribs and even removed some scar tissue."
"Thank you," Bruce said.
"You're welcome, though the Captain and Sex Pest did the heavy lifting. I just extended your stay is all."
"Hey!" Green Arrow protested but he went ignored.
"Not saved?" Bruce question. Most would say Naruto saved his life and yet he hadn't.
"The wave always returns to the source," Naruto replied. Bruce grunted again, in no mood for eastern philosophy at the moment. He appreciated their efforts but he needed Naruto to know this one act hadn't changed things. He wouldn't look the other way should Naruto commit another crime. However, it did finally see it, or at least, some of it. Even with his advanced gadgetry and training, he wasn't a healer. A super who could do that would be invaluable.
"Anyway, this isn't like normal surgery so there's no post-op care or anything. The pain is due to that degree of healing taking a toll on your body, even if I buttressed most of it. Once the pain subsides you should be able to move around. I'd recommend you take it easy but it's your life, do what you want."
"That's some great bedside manner, kid," Green Arrow quipped.
"You're dressed up like the Pied Piper of Robin Hoods so shut up. Look," he returned to Bruce, "you're fine and I've had my fill of the slumber party antics so I'm leaving unless you have one final threat you want to levy." Bruce remained silent so Naruto left, Supergirl along with him.
"Ok, Bats, I know who that kid is but I don't know who he is. Would you like to fill me in?" Green Arrow asked.
"Yes, but I'm going to need a favor."
Two days later, Ra's stared at a chess board, the ticking of the game clock filling the room. He was vexed. The attempt to kill the Detective should have succeeded and yet, confoundingly, it had not. His guard would be up now, vegelence doubled. Or, worse still, the Justice League would get involved. The most bothersome aspect of this was the man that sat across from him. He knew the man was playing his own game but Ra's had expected him to be more useful or insightful than he'd been up to this point.
"The game is blitz chess," the smug man said. Ra's made his move and stopped his timer.
"You will forgive my confusion. I simply fail to see why young Naruto would save the life of a man he doesn't respect."
"I couldn't say but understanding Naruto was never a cornerstone of this plan. More consistent than situational ethics, more affective than pure utilitarianism. Virtue ethics? Maybe occasionally. Look close enough and you might land on rank hypocrisy; if you're a lesser mind." The move made and Ra's could see the sacrifice play his opponent was planning.
"I require an heir, five hundred years is long enough. I can hardly hope to ensnare the boy if I cannot understand him. Slade has been of greater use in that arena." Ra's took an out of position rook with his queen's bishop. Mate in three.
"Slade has told you to stay away from him. Admittedly, it's excellent advice but let's not overstate matters. Naruto is the goal but he is not a game piece. Going in and thinking you can control him is a great way to die prematurely. The wedge between the Justice League, that's your way in." The man moved as Ra's had predicted. The counter was quick, mate in two.
"I'll have to spare the Detective for now but even his hostility toward the Uzumaki can't continue apace. Even he couldn't overlook someone saving his life," Ra's reasoned. The man laughed.
"Mate," he said and Ra's was near speechless.
"How?"
"Ten moves back I saw how you wanted to win and let you think you'd earned it without my knowing. As far as the Detective. While not unreasonable, he is an unnaturally talented and yet wholly normal man among demigods. And yet, from what you know of him he cannot countenance any of these beings existing above him. I wouldn't be surprised if he had detailed plans on how to defeat each member of the League, justifying it as a countermeasure should they ever go rogue.
Pair that kind of psychology with Naruto's dismissiveness of heroes and predilection for lethality when crossed. He may not be actively antagonistic but he won't be able to help himself from devising some kind of scheme to neutralize Naruto. I predict he's likely come to a conclusion already. The best hope you have for compromising my son is to target those he cares about and walk him into a trap."
"If we could get access to these plans… hmm, Vandal has been quiet insistent upon taking revenge against the Justice League. But to do this, much would be revealed about Naruto and Vandal will try to kill him if I reveal their history. Would you have a problem with that?" Ra's asked. Sure, he'd been cold and ruthless toward Talia but this was a line even for him.
"Ha ha ha ha, not at all. Let Vandal try. We both assume he'll fail."
"Then I shall inform him and grant him whatever resources he needs. I must ask, why are you willing to go this far Lex?"
"That's quite simple, for my son to be who he was meant to be the Justice League must die by his hands."
Finished
Sup. Seems a lot of you didn't like the interlude, some even thought it was a time skip (it wasn't). Oh well, it be like that. I'll be doing a few more of them and since they'll be the only chapters I name if you want to skip them you can. And if you feel like this story isn't for you anymore, that's understandable. You can feel free to stop reading but the need to tell me you're stopping is weird (and dickish).
Some of you may know the storyline I'm building to and if so, I hope I do it justice. Probably going to let this one cool a bit as I give attention to my other fics (not going to lie, my annoyance with some of my reviewers makes this easy) so I'll smell ya later.