Enjoy.
xXx
( Unknown Location )
Naruto walks up behind Gizmo whos fingers blur across the keyboard while the dozen of screens lighting up of shadows of the room fill with numbers of computer codes. Standing behind them are the rest of the Akatsuki, although it's hard to see them in the shadows. Ghost Rider is an exception since it is literally on fire and lighting up the area around itself, showing a bored Mammoth behind it.
"Are you nearly finished?" Naruto asked the young genius.
Gizmo smirks and his typing speed seems to get even faster while the numbers on the screens almost blur down the screen from his typing speed. "Just give me a minute. Hacking into every satellite around the planet is harder than it fucking looks. Speaking of which, are you sure you don't want me to do something with the Watch Tower? In five minutes, I can probably disengage their artificial gravity system" asked Gizmo, looking over his shoulder to Sage and hoping to get the okay to do it. He could also hack the security cameras and upload the footage of floating and panicking Heroes on the internet. He can already see the millions of views he'll get on his channel.
Unfortunately, Sage shakes his head in a negative to Gizmo's wishes. "No need for that. We just want to show the world we exist, not to show boat the Heroes. Besides, if I wanted to do something to the Justice League, I'd do it personally." Gizmo looks back at Sage with disbelief in his eyes. Even that's putting a limit to what the leader can do.
"So who's going to be the proud face of Akatsuki?" asked Poison Ivy in a sarcastic manner. She doesn't really care for being a speaker for the group. Yes, she swore loyalty to the Akatsuki and isn't going to back down on the agreement she made with Sage. Not when he's training her to be a better champion for mother nature herself. There's also the fact that she can get favours off the Sage instead of money. Favours that mean a lot more to her than piles of gold. Unknowingly, she rubs her stomach in the exact same spot where a black mark of the sun now rests. The same mark in which the Sage blessed her with and now allows any and all chance of actually giving birth to her own child.
Even in the shadows, Sage can almost feel Harley Quinn jumping up and down with her arm raised. "Ooh! Ooh! Pick me! Pick Me! I want to do it!"
Deadshot scoffs from within the shadows. "I don't think the public will like the idea of the Joker's former sidekick being the face of Akatsuki." Harley blows a raspberry at Deadshot's direction in response to his snarky remark.
"Red Hood, your up" spoke Sage in finality as he turns to the direction where he knows the former Boy Wonder is hiding in. Harley moans in disappointment while Deadshot and Mammoth chuckle.
Jason controls himself from looking startled for being chosen and points at himself, feeling unsure if he heard Sage right. "Really, you want me?" For some reason, the thought of being chosen as the face of Akatsuki is quite empowering. With Sage hiding and supporting them in the shadows, they need someone to act as leader, at least in the publics eye. He just didn't think it would be him of all people. Yes, he leads a few gangs in Gotham to control crime but to be known to the public to lead people like Ghost Rider, Deadshot and Poison Ivy is something different entirely.
Naruto nods with a small upwards twitch of his lips and walks beside Red Hood. "Of course. You are a symbol of people who aren't afraid to kill criminals if necessary. That makes you the perfect candidate to be the face of Akatsuki. You showing them that you have a team at your beck and call will not only get the attention of the public but will also frighten the evil in the country to their roots." Naruto pats the vigilante's shoulder and walks deeper into the shadows as Jason's eyes stare into his back.
"And when we're done here, we move to the rest of the world."
( Watch Tower )
Batman isn't one to get frustrated easily, having trained for years to hide his emotions to make it easier to spread fear to the Villains who do nothing but cause death and destruction all over the world. However, he's almost infinite amount of patience is starting to slowly chip away at him. The reason for it being the latest incidents between Villains in several cities and them ending with a kill count. What has him feeling annoyed is how he can't find anything about them which may help him find out the reason for the attack or who's the real perpetrator for the attacks.
Typing rapidly on the keyboard of the Watch Tower's Super Computer, several pages of information and pictures are brought up onto the screen. The pages show pictures of the several Villains who all but disappeared for an entire year. They are also the same Villains who attacked and killed others, such as Black Mask, Doctor Cyber, Doctor Light and Kingpin while also being the reason for the disappearance of other powerful men, like Lex Luthor and Norman Osborn.
Batman narrows his eyes behind his cowl as he rereads the information of the Villains for the tenth time while trying to decipher something from the taken pictures. He has already shown his findings to the founders of the Justice League an hour ago but he is personally trying to figure out the end game of these Villains.
Harley Quinn's picture was taken in one of the hallways of Black Mask's building. In it, she is winking towards the direction of the security camera while walking down the hall with a bloody sledgehammer hanging off her shoulder. Littering behind her are the many bodies of Black Mask's men who are staining the walls and rug with their blood and brain matter, courtesy of the insane jester. Batman already has enough information on her skills and unpredictability to know how to handle her if the time comes to face her. A time Batman hopes to happen soon as she may be the perfect lead to finding the Joker's whereabouts. After all, she can always be found hanging off the Joker's hip and the fact that she is wearing the same symbol he found at the Joker's hideout means that he could be a member as well.
Deadshot's picture is of him climbing the fire escape of a building near the time of Kingpin's death. Something that he doesn't believe to be a mere coincidence. What has Batman confused about the picture is how it doesn't show any of Deadshot's usual weaponry on him which may have taken the shot which killed Kingpin. He can't imagine anyone else who may have the skill of taking such a complicated shot from that long distance but it does require a specialized sniper which can't be hidden on Deadshot's person.
Clicking a tab, a second picture appears beside the file which shows the bullet that was found in Kingpin's head. To the normal person, it looks like a common .22 LR bullet. In close inspection, Batman found black lines decorating the bullet. From the patterns, it looks like a form of Magic symbols which may explain how the bullet pierced through the armour platings of Kingpin's armoured limousine from such a long distance. He needs to show the bullet to Constantine when he finds him from whatever he does when he disappears. Maybe even Doctor Fate the next time he comes back from his current mission.
Underneath Deadshot's picture is one of Poison Ivy, taken by a spectator's phone from the window of one of the buildings near the scene of the fight. It shows Poison Ivy smirking at the dazed new Hero, Spider Man from a rooftop in New York.
Batman remembers a few months ago when Spider Man applied to join the Justice League. He also remembers denying his acceptance, finding the young hero to be too rash and inexperienced to be taken seriously. Ignoring the thoughts of the rookie, Batman frowns in thought as he reads a few witness reports of the fight between Poison Ivy and Green Goblin. A lot of them saying that the Meta-Human showed skills and strength which she did not possess a year ago. A few even state how she caught the Green Goblin's Glider with her bare hand and barely moved an inch, something that Bruce finds unlikely since one of the many abilities she has isn't super strength. However, he reluctantly believes it to be true since there are a too many witnesses admitting to the same thing for it to be a lie. It just adds to the many more mysteries that's plaguing his mind.
After reading up about Poison Ivy's file, Bruce reads one of the more interesting ones, belonging to a low ranking Villain who goes by the name, Mammoth. There are two contrasting pictures of him with one showing Mammoth from a year ago, eating away from an ice cream van he is lifting over his head and another which was taken from an ATM. It shows Mammoth lifting Doctor Light with one hand and the other with his fist held back, ready to punch. He would like to have another picture of the scene but the apparent shock wave of the punch destroyed the ATM camera and every other in the vicinity.
Bruce wonders if Mammoth is using a drug to enhance his already impressive strength, maybe something like Venom. It would explain a lot about the increase in muscle mass, speed and his durability. Beside Mammoth's file is a report given to him by the Titans which explained their interaction with him. Green Arrow's apprentice, Speedy even mentioned the change of behaviour in the Meta-Human who went from an idiotic brute to a cold/almost professional killer in the time of his disappearance. Bruce makes a note to visit Jump City and have a word with Mammoth's former ally, Jinx when he has the free time. He reads up the more common knowledge of Mammoth's past with some of it being that he was stationed in Jump City, has a B-Rank Villain of a sister named Shimmer who is hiding off the grid somewhere in Metropolis and he was once a member of the organisation H.I.V.E and clashed with the Titans a lot which are being led by his third student, Tim at the moment.
The next file causes Bruce to frown sadly since it's of his second student and partner, Jason Todd who has taken up the mask of the Joker's former persona, Red Hood. Unlike the Joker, Jason made the name Red Hood into a fearful symbol in Gotham, just like his Batman persona. Bruce would be proud if he isn't so disappointed in how his once deceased partner chose to kill criminals instead of doing the right thing and subduing them for justice to handle their punishments. Even if they don't officially have the consent of any world government, not even the Justice League have any right to choose if a man or woman should live or die. The picture is of Red Hood smashing through the window of Black Mask's office. Being the effortlessly safe crime lord that he was, Black Mask never had any cameras in his office to prevent any evidence of his misconduct to be used on him in a court system so Batman has no way of seeing what occurred inside. All he found were corpses, a destroyed office, a desk in a wall and eventually, the corpse of Black Mask and his assistant and helicopter pilot on the rooftop.
Another file shows a picture of the mysterious Rider who Diana and Supergirl had the fortune to meet, although briefly. The picture is of the Rider facing off against the two heroines while holding a bloody mask of the deceased Doctor Cyber. Deceased in terms of the blood on the helmet since the only part that they could find of the former Villain/Terrorist was a burnt hand. At least he got some new information on the Rider with it being that it has pyrokinetic abilities and super strength.
There are two more files along with them with one belonging to one, Gizmo who Bruce believes to be involved with the attacks since he can usually be found with Mammoth. Those machines that helped Mammoth in Jump City were said to be very advanced with the most worrying part about them being their cloaking device. With Gizmo's high intelligence, it is possible of him to have created such machines, although he wonders who's funding them since such creations can't be cheap.
The last file doesn't have a picture with it and very little information on whoever it is. Batman made the file for the person who disguised themselves as Kingpin and was most likely the same person who kidnapped Lex Luthor in the first place. Batman narrows his eyes as he watches the feed from one of the security cameras in Lex's office. Not only are they a master of disguise but they show impressive skills in fighting and strength to actually defeat two women who Batman believes to have some sort of relations with the Amazons, if they aren't ones themselves.
"Still looking over the files?" asked Superman as he walks beside Batman and pats his shoulder.
Batman shrugs off the hand from his shoulder and concentrates on the files, trying to find some sort of clue on who is leading this group. "They're all connected. They wear the same rings and logo as each other. After every attack, they have left their marking to mock us. I'm just trying to figure out who is leading them" told Batman.
Superman looks at the computer screen and back at Batman with a look of interest on his face. "You think there's a hidden face in the shadows? It could always just be one of them."
Batman shakes his head to show he doesn't believe that. "Highly unlikely. While they are all dangerous in their own right, none of them show any capacity to lead a team functionally" remarked Batman.
"Not even Jason?" asked Superman.
"Not even Jason" Batman stated. "Jason never showed too much maturity, even before his 'death'. Now, I fear his sanity is hanging on a thread and I can't even do anything about it." Batman drops his head slightly showing the Man of Steel that he does feel guilty and responsible for his former Boy Wonder who has taken to the life of killing.
Superman pats Batman on his back to show his support for the Caped Crusader. "I'm sure it isn't your fault. There's just some people who don't want to be changed" said Superman, his face turning somber as he remembers his past. "Back on topic, why couldn't it be any of the others of the group in red and black clouds?" he asked, hopin got get off the topic of Batman's greatest mistake.
Batman looks back at the screen, his serious persona back on. "Harley Quinn and Mammoth lack the mentality needed to lead. Gizmo and Poison Ivy have their own interests in mind and very rarely care about anything else but themselves. While Deadshot is an impressive tactician, he is more of a follower than a leader, hence why he is a mercenary for hire. That only leaves Jason and the Rider but I highly doubt it's either of them." Batman brings up a picture of Jason in his Red Hood disguise and the Rider. "I may have thought Jason everything he knows but not even he can lead a group of Meta-Humans by himself. The person leading them must be powerful enough to control them, especially Harley and Deadshot."
Superman nods his head in understanding of what Batman is trying to explain. There has only been one person who has been able to control Harley Quinn and that's the Joker. Harley's insanity makes it difficult to control as she is prone to kill her allies just as much as her enemies. It's only because of Joker's matching insanity and the fact that he made her into what she is today that he could always reel her in.
Deadshot on the other hand is a mercenary who is paid to take orders. However, he isn't one to take orders constantly, not unless he is being paid or forced by someone more powerful than him.
"What about the Rider?"
"The Rider has never shown any signs of being anything more than a flaming violent skeleton until recently when Wonder Woman and Supergirl confronted it. Besides that, it would have needed to break into Arkham Asylum without being noticed when Harley and Deadshot disappeared. Every report of it's sightings have explained of an over amount of extreme violence, no matter the situation. I doubt it has the capability of sneaking into Arkham when it could just as easily smashed its way through the walls and guards."
Superman hums in thought, wondering who could possibly lead the odd group to kill other Villains and even kidnap his rival, Lex Luthor. Just like the Joker, Lex is one of those Villains who you don't like to mess with since he has the money to kill anyone he wants and make it seem like they disappeared from thin air. With his money splashed in the right direction, Lex could have anyone he wanted erase from every file in the government. Almost a scary thing with how much power one can have with just money.
"Besides, someone clearly trained the group. Quite well in fact." Batman brings up picture he took of all the crime scenes. "Mammoth shows off more power, durability and speed than he had a year ago. All of Speedy's arrows all bounced off him without even making a scratch on him and he almost hit Kid Flash with one of his punches. A punch that is now strong enough to create shock waves. I assume that he is taking Venom but it may be possible that he was actually trained under the guidance of someone."
Batman eyes the pictures he took of Black Mask's office. "The four men I found in Black Mask's office were all crushed to death. From the bloodstains on Black Mask's desk, I'm assuming that was the cause of their deaths however, I found the desk through a wall down the hallway. I want to know who could throw the desk hard enough to go through a wall and I can make a good guess that it was Jason."
"You think Jason has the strength to actually do that?" asked Superman while looking the picture of the desk through the solid wall. While he can do something like that with just his pinkie finger, a human will find it very difficult to break down a solid wall with their fists.
"A year ago, no. Now..."
The solemn silence is all Superman needs to know. "I'm guessing the same can be said with Poison Ivy."
Batman nods his head. "Poison Ivy has no enhanced physical benefits from her powers. No, something or someone has been improving their skills and I want to know why. This ghost in the shadows may also have something to do with Joker's disappearance." Batman brings up the picture of the crime scene in the Joker's warehouse he took a year ago. The picture shows the exact same symbol of the cloud which the recently formed group have left behind. "This incident occurred in the recent timeline of Harley and Deadshot's disappearance from Arkham. As well as when everyone else disappeared off the grid. Whoever this is, they have been spending the last year honing the skills of their recruits for a fight."
"A fight? With us?"
Batman shakes his head. "No, I don't think so."
Before they can speak some more, Flash blurs into the room, looking nervous. "Guys, I think you need to see this."
xXx
In the main hall of the Watch tower, where the majority of the Justice League hang out with each other, everyone is currently watching the surrounding screens with interest. Flash blurs back into the room with Superman and Batman following close by.
"What's going on?" asked Superman as he looks around the widespread room and notices that everyone is watching a screen. His eyes widen in recognition when he recognizes the red and black cloud on the screens as the symbol that is of the new group. "Isn't that..."
"Yes" muttered Batman, narrowing his eyes at the many screens before looking towards Black Canary who is frantically typing at a console. "What's the situation?"
"Bad. We've been hacked and I can't find out who's doing it" replied Black Canary as she types a few more times before slamming her fists against the panel in frustration when she gets locked out of the system. What really pisses her off is how a small pixel character appears in the middle of the black screen and chuckles with a toothy grin. Batman looks over her shoulder and narrows his eyes when he notices that the pixel character looks an awful lot like Gizmo.
Static covers the screens which gets Batman and Black Canary to turn their attention to them. When the static disappears and the connection is complete, Batman is caught off guard when the masked face of his former Boy Wonder appears on every screen. He doesn't show his surprise but inwardly, he is trying to figure out what's happening.
"We... are the Akatsuki!"
( Metropolis - Daily Planet )
"Akatsuki?" wondered Lois Lane as she and the rest of her co-workers stare up at the TV screen which shows the face of one of the more well known faces of Gotham. Not someone with Joker and Bane notoriety but still someone who isn't above killing. Yes, all his murders have been criminals in all sorts of degrees but they're killings nonetheless.
"Akatsuki? That sounds an awful like Chinese" said Lana Long with her arms folded underneath her breasts.
Lois's boss, Perry White scoffs at the notion. "Wrong, try Japanese. I'm a bit rusty but I'm nearly positive that it means Dawn."
"All of you are probably wondering who we are and what are our goals? Even with a mask on, everyone can see Red Hood's smirk form underneath the fabric. "We have one goal in mind and that's the betterment of the planet!"
( Gotham City - Icebourg Lounge )
"Betterment of the planet? What the hell is he spouting out?" exclaimed Penguin as he grabs a raw fish from the pile in front of him and throws it at his large flatscreen TV.
The former criminal was calmly enjoying his dinner and watching a documentary on penguins when all of a sudden, some unknown sap changed his channel to the Red Hood character spouting out crap about some Akatsuki group he couldn't give a damn about. He clicks on his remote control and almost snarls when he finds that it isn't working and in his frustration, he throws the remote at the television and watches in satisfaction as it shatters and sparks.
The surrounding bodyguards stoically ignore their laughing boss as they are use to such behaviour from him. One of the bodyguards to Penguin's right stands at attention when his boss snaps his finger towards his direction. "You! Get me a new television and hook it up for me. Be quick about it!" ordered Penguin before he takes a large bite out of one of his raw fishes.
The bodyguard nods and runs off the large iceberg that Penguin is having his dinner on and makes his way to the back room. While running, he runs by the bar where two bodyguards are listening to the radio which is also under the control of Gizmo.
"The planet is literally dying and nobody is doing anything to save it. Famine, droughts, genocides, nuclear weapons, and murder is only samples of what is slowly killing off the planet and ourselves."
( Star City - Hidden Hideout )
"Well, doesn't he sound cool~" said Captain Cold/Leonard Snart from the crate he's sitting on beside an old beaten couch. Directly in front of the small TV is Captain Cold's partner and best friend, Heat Wave or rather, Mick Rory who takes a deep chug of his beer from the couch.
"So what? Not like I care for the planet. I'd rather see it all burn" said Mick before chugging the rest of his beer. Finishing it, he throws the empty both behind him, not caring for where it lands.
Leonard gets up from the crate and walks behind the couch and leans against it, directly behind his partner. "Don't get me wrong, I'm not one for mother nature and harmony but the guy is making sense, I'll give him that" remarked Snart. Mick and himself have spilled plenty of blood as well since it's sorta required to escape the police.
Mick scoffs before he reaches into the cooler by his feet and pulls out a can of beer and opening it with a hiss, the pyromaniac tilts his head back and drinks its contents. Taking a breath, Mick cracks his neck to fix up his joints. "How am I suppose to take them seriously if they're just some group of hippies? What are they gonna do? Hug me to death?" he choked out a laugh before he takes another drink.
Leonard Snart opens his mouth to reply but a glance to the television causes his voice to get caught in his throat. Coughing into his hand, he taps his partner on the shoulder and points a finger to the TV. "You might have jinxed us, Mick."
While in mid-drinking, Mick points his attention to the TV screen, only to spit out the alcoholic liquid in his mouth when he sees what's on it. "Holy shit!"
( Watch Tower - Main Hall )
Gasps and mutters fills the hall as Red Hood moves out of the way from the screen to show something horribly incredible that catches everyone, including Batman and Superman off guard. The Cape Crusader and Man of Steel are still trying to process what they are seeing.
As of on the screen, the Joker's unmoving corpse swings from side-to-side while it hangs from the chains wrapped around his wrists. Red Hood appears beside the swinging corpse and wraps an arm around the Joker's shoulders.
"Some of you watching might recognize this clown as the Joker. He was one of the most vile and disgusting piece of garbage on the planet and I know that hundreds if not thousands of people can attest to that. He killed men, women and even children for one sole reason. A laugh." Red Hood's eyes narrows in hatred to the Joker as he shoves the body away and takes a few steps forward to the camera which backs up, allowing plenty of view of Red Hood and Joker's swinging corpse which adds to effect.
"The Joker destroyed families and any chance of happiness for them so he can have a laugh. Blood of innocents cover his hands and all he did was laugh. As a victim of the Joker myself, I understand the pain of everyone who has suffered under the Clown Prince. Red Hood raises his arms above his head in a sign of victory."Only now, we can finally rejoice! No more shall we suffer at the hands of the Joker! No more shall we cower under the Clown Prince! For he is dead!" Red Hood drops his arms and stares into the camera, making it almost seem like he is personally staring at everyone watching. "And the Akatsuki are the ones responsible for his death."
"Jason...'what have you done?" thought Bruce Wayne while he watches the screen in horror while his former protégé spouts out madness from the screens.
"That's not all folks, we have one more guest for you."
Red Hood walks away from the Joker's corpse while the camera follows him into the darkness. A few seconds later, a spotlight shines down into the darkness and shows Red Hood beside a kneeling individual that everyone in the Watch Tower recognizes.
"Lex!?" exclaimed Superman as he watches Lex who is kneeling beside Red Hood with his hands tied behind his back and a gag in his mouth.
"If some of you don't recognize him, let me explain. This bald chap..." Red Hood pats Lex on top of his head for emphasis, causing Lex's glare to intensify almost tenfold. The vigilante ignores the glare and continues.
"Just so happens to be Lex Luthor, billionaire and CEO of Lexcorp. He is also the man who has caused the deaths of thousands and the worst part about it all is that nobody knows anything about it. For as you see, he is a very wealthy man who has no need to dirty his hands. Hence, he pays others to do the dirty work for him. Lex Luthor has used bribery, blackmail and even assassinations to get away with anything. Even the destruction of his Lexcorp building in Gateway City last year. An incident in which killed over two hundred of his employees and forty bystanders. All for the sake of killing Superman."
Superman remembers that incident well. It was when they got an anonymous call from an employee in Lexcorp which mentioned Luthor killing one of his other employees. Having known of Lex Luthor's power with money, both he and Wonder Woman flew to Luthor's office in his building, only to find a man strapped to his chair with a ticking clock on the desk. Within a few seconds of arriving, the building exploded in a glory of flames which threw the Heroes into the next building with a few burns but no serious harm. The same couldn't be said to everyone else in the company building as they all died from either the explosion or the collapse of the building. Superman wanted to badly take Lex Luthor to jail but at the time, they didn't have any evidence that he was the cause of the explosion as he was at a business meeting in New York at the time.
Red Hood walks around a struggling Lex Luthor and pats him on the head. He pulls out a pistol from his holster and pulls back on the barrel to hear his gun click in an almost ominous way."So then, I don't think anyone is going to complain if this stain is suddenly erased."
To the horror of everyone watching, the former Robin places the barrel of his gun to the back of Luthor's head with the clear intention to end the life of the billionaire. Said billionaire realizes how close to death he really is and struggles even more against his restraints but it's all for nothing. He can't even stand up to run since Poison Ivy has his legs tied down to the floor with roots.
Pausing for dramatic effect, Red Hood smirks underneath his mask and pulls the trigger.
Superman jumps forward in a weak attempt to stop the death of his rival but it's all for nothing.
( Metropolis )
"NO!" yelled Mercy and Hope from inside their expensive loft. The two Amazons can only stare at the TV in shock, anger and horror as their employer crumpled to the floor with a bullet-size hole in his head.
For the last week, they have been using all of Lexcorp's resources to find the CEO of the company but everything ended with no positive results. They even got the help of the Penguin since the nightclub owner has a lot of contacts all over Gotham and a few within the other cities. Not even his spy network was enough to find any clues on the whereabouts of their boss. Then all of a sudden, their TV turns over to an unknown channel which they can't change from.
It goes on spouting out about some new group called the Akatsuki which they couldn't care less about. It didn't involve them so they dismissed them, right until they showed the dead body of Joker. Their surprise only turned into shock when it showed their missing boss tied up with Red Hood who is known as a high functioning sociopath who will kill anyone who he deems a criminal. It shouldn't have been a surprise to them when they see him pull out a gun and shoot their boss but it still angers the pair greatly.
Within seconds, Mercy pulls out her phone and rings up a contact. She immediately roars into the phone when her call gets connected. "Listen here and listen good, I don't care how much it costs or who does the job but I want Red Hood and whoever is apart of that Akatsuki group of his dead within the month. You here me? DEAD!"
( Unknown Location )
"*giggle* Looks like he's finally getting started." The unknown figure smiles as she watches events on earth play out in front of her from a small dimensional portal she made for herself. She giggles again when she sees Lex die by the hand of Red Hood or rather, Jason Todd. "You never do cease to entertain me, do you Naruto?"
In the middle of a large field of black roses, one of the roses crumbles and dies beside the figure but she ignores it since she has 'helpers' to deal with it. One 'helper' rises from the dead flower and disperses into black smoke to complete its task. "Wonder if he knows how much trouble he's actually in. *giggle*, wouldn't want to be him right now" she giggled to herself, watching the stoic face of her favourite human and enjoys the thought of how much attention he is actually getting from the lower but powerful beings in his dimension and he doesn't even know it.
From what her brother mentioned, a few Gods have been looking into the source of power that has shown up exactly 378 days in human terms. Of course, it doesn't take much for her to find the source of said power which just so happens to be her most favourite human who disappeared from her sight thousands of years ago. Just barely over a year back and he's already causing worldwide trouble for himself and everyone around him. She can tell that she's going to have a good time watching him, especially knowing the fact that thousands of years ago, Naruto did something that even her big brother couldn't fathom. Something which should have been impossible.
Although, she is also quite curious over how powerful he is after missing for so long. "I wonder if any of my siblings will notice if I went down for a quick visit?"
Closing her eyes for a moment to think, the unknown individual doesn't notice Naruto looking around before he sets his eyes on the location where she has her portal stationed.
xXx
Blue eyes scan their surroundings when their owner feels something odd. Even without the Rinne-Sharingan, Naruto can easily see through the darkness and what's putting him off is that he can't see anyone but his Akatsuki members. Not even their emotions. To someone else, they would play it off as nothing but not Naruto. When you encounter powerful individuals who can accomplish almost god-like feats, you tend to get paranoid with who may be watching him to find a moment to strike. There is also the fact that he has power that makes his previous opponents look like ants in comparison.
Blue eyes vanish and change into the Rinne-Sharingan. Almost immediately, Naruto finds the source of his uneasiness which is a small cut in the dimension in the corner of the dark warehouse he and his Akatsuki are residing in. In a blur, a kunai drops into his hand from his sleeve and he throws the weapon into the portal before it closes. Eying the area for a moment, he shifts his eyes back to normal and watches on as Red Hood introduces Akatsuki to the world with nobody the wiser.
Except for Ghost Rider who eyes Naruto for a few brief seconds.
xXx
"Uh oh." The hidden figure realizes that the person she's stalking is looking at her portal. She closes the connection but not fast enough to stop the kunai which flies at her in inhuman speeds. Easily enough, she catches the weapon which would have pierced her eye and looks at the weapon in her hand. "*giggle*, too slow Naruto. You'll have to improve if you wa-" Her voice gets caught when she notices a flaming paper tag that is attached to the end of the kunai. "Isn't that a-BOOM!"
Before she can touch the paper tag, it explodes in a flurry of flames that causes the black roses to bend from the force of the explosion. A few moments later, the explosion dies down and the flames start to shrink and die in a speed that shouldn't be possible. Within second after the explosion, the flames all die out, leaving the perfectly harmless victim and field of black flowers.
The unknown figure looks down at her hand where the kunai once was. After a few moments of awkward silence, the hidden figure giggles to herself before her giggles turn into a laugh that could make the coldest man smile. Before the effects of her laughter eventually causes her to lose control of her powers and kills him. "Hahahahahaha! That's why you're my favourite! Hahahahahahaha!"
( Xavier's Mansion )
"Xavier, you don't think that's..." asked the hairy blue figure which is Professor Hank McCoy who goes by the Mutant name, Beast. In the large living room of the mansion, Professor Xavier, Beast, Cyclops, Jean Grey, Colossus and Logan are the only X-Men in the mansion who are not on a mission and are the only ones there to watch the birth of Akatsuki. The Mutant children in the mansion are outside playing as Xavier cancelled all classes when the media was taken over.
Xavier sighs and rubs his brow. "There's no definite chance that it's him but there is a high probability. It wouldn't take much for someone of his power to stay hidden. This Akatsuki group will make a good cover story for him if he really is the one leading them."
Logan cracks his neck. "You mean the guy who saved you lot eleven years ago? Must be strong to best Apocalypse's ass" said Logan, having personally seen the worldwide detestation which Magneto caused, only because Apocalypse powered him up.
"I wouldn't say save. More like helped us out a bit" said Cyclops, folding his arms stubbornly.
Jean turns to her boyfriend and frowns. "If it wasn't for him, we'd be all dead. I'm just hoping to get the chance to thank him. We owe him so much."
Scott turns away from his girlfriend and scowls in distaste for the man who killed the Mutant God eleven years ago. Yes, he might have saved them but it isn't like they needed his help. They could have handled him eventually. What's worse is that Jean has a sort of fan girl tendency for the mysterious stranger ever since he saved them. He can remember all the times where she would tell the younger Mutants in the mansion about him and gush about hoe hpe defeated Apocalypse by himself. Like as if they didn't have anything to do with it!
"Should we do something professor?" asked Colossus, his large and heavy frame straining the couch chair he's sitting on.
Xavier turns his wheelchair to face the occupants in the room. "For now, we do nothing. This isn't our fight until they attack us directly. For now, let's continue with our classes and training. Logan, I believe you have a class to teach in five minutes."
Logan grunts and pushes himself off the wall before leaving to his designated classroom. Cyclops and Jean get up from the couch and leave, one heading to the library to think and the other to the garage to work on his car. Colossus pushes himself up and heads down to the underground training room where Negasonic Teenage Warhead is waiting for him to train. Beast nods his head to Professor Xavier and leaves for the lab.
After everyone leaves the room, Xavier slumps in his wheelchair, feeling a lost of his energy. He has been going for the last two years without nightmares but the thought of that... 'Monster' showing up to light again isn't something he wants to handle anytime soon. Or any time for what matters.
Even after years of studying, he can't find anything on whatever that thing might have been. The closest bit of information he could find was an old dusty scroll he found in eastern Japan which mentioned nine powerful Demons that could destroy mountains and cause tsunamis with a flick of one of their powerful tails. It's probably just some lost folklore from years ago but it's still the closest he has found on something that might resemble the creature.
Blinking for a brief second, he finds himself back in that underground sewer with that gold cage holding back whatever is hiding behind it. Whatever it is, its massive red eye with rings and tomoes are staring down at him like as if he is a mere bug in its presence and to be honest, he can't help but agree in the truth to the matter. He's an Omega level Mutant who can read and control any mind on the planet with the help of Cerebro but it means nothing to the creature that can put him into such distress by just looking at him.
"If he really is responsible for this Akatsuki group, neither us or the Justice League can hope to stop them" thought Xavier. Getting himself together, he rolls himself out of the room and heads towards his office. He has some papers to grade which he hopes to take his mind off of current events.
xXx
Making sure that she's in an empty hallway, Jean Grey collapses against the wall and leans against it while trying her best to push back the entity from her mind.
"You can't ignore me forever."
The Omega level Mutant winces and pushes back against the entity that she can feel is slowly getting closer to victory. "Leave me alone! I don't need you or your power!" With the throbbing headache from fighting back an entity of limitless power, Jean isn't sure if she actually heard right when she hears the entity scoff at her.
"Don't get full of yourself, human. You weren't my first option for a host but 'he' isn't the best option at the moment so I guess you'll have to do."
Jean scowls and winces at the same time. "Why the hell not! Go to him and leave me alone!" she yelled in her mind. While she is sympathetic to the other person who actually caught the attention of the powerful entity in her head, she can't help but wish for the days where she doesn't have to spend hours everyday to defend her mind from being taken over. It's also hard to not speak about what's happening to her to the professor or the rest of the X-Men but the entity made it clear that if she vocally or mentally spoke to anyone about it, they wouldn't last long to spread the word.
"Sadly, that's not an option. Unlike you pesky humans, 'he' isn't weak minded. Even I'll find some trouble taking over his being without endangering myself. You should be honoured being my second option and for the chance of attaining my unlimited power!"
With one last powerful mental push, Jean inwardly screams in pain when she pushes back the entity from her mind. Collapsing to her knees, Jean breathes in deeply in exhaustion. The sad fact she knows is that it'll just be back sometime tomorrow, if not in a few hours.
"Who on earth can actually be a threat to that... thing!"
Jean herself is an Omega level Mutant with one of the most powerful minds in the world, on par with Professor Xavier's but it takes all of her energy just to fight off the entity. Yet everyday, she can feel it getting stronger and stronger, pressing against her defenses and she isn't sure how long she can keep it up. Whoever can actually scare off the entity from taking them over must be nothing but a monster.
( Washington, D.C - White House )
Sitting by the end of the long table in the White House is the President of United States, Matthew Ellis and his entire Cabinet who are sitting by the table and watching the large screen at the end of the room which is showing the footage of the Akatsuki. "What is the report on tracking back the signal?"
"We're working on it sir. Whoever is hacking our satellites is good but it won't be long until we find the trace of the hacker's location" spoke the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
"Good. I want these criminals in bars by the end of the day. No exceptions!" exclaimed Matthew while slamming his fist onto the tabletop.
"Sir, shall we call the aid for the Justice League?" asked the Ministry of Defence.
The President scoffs. "And show the world that we support them? No. The Justice League are not welcome in US soil and the quicker they realize that, the better." A few of the Cabinet members look at each other with nervous expressions that show they don't exactly agree with their country's leader. "Fury, what's the current progress with the Avenger Initiation?" he asked to the person standing to the side by the wall.
Nick Fury takes a few steps forward and smirks lightly. "At the moment, not so bad. The Cap and Hawkeye are a go ahead with the plan. I also have several agents, including Romanoff searching for potential candidates for the Avengers. Some including Tony Stark and Bruce Banner."
"Excuse me for asking but you want to bring in an irresponsible wildcard like Stark and a radioactive monster of muscle? Are you out of your mind!?" yelled the President.
Nick Fury doesn't even flinch to the President's outrage cry and waits until his done. "May I speak, Mr. President?" After Matthew's brief nod, Fury continues while he slowly walks around the meeting table with his hands behind his back. "I'm sure you're all worried over the current situation of the world today and this Akatsuki group aren't helping. There's also the so-called Justice League who believe themselves above the law of every country on the planet but no matter what we do, we can't get them to stop or at least keep them in line. The reason? We lack the public support to do so. As long as the Justice League continue to 'save the day', we can't do anything against them unless you want to face public backslash."
Matthew winces at the thought of such a thing occurring, especially with the elections next year. That's why he has ordered the Avenger's group to be formed. To not only even the playing field against the world threats and the out of control Justice League but to also make them the new face of justice. If he can sway public opinion from the Justice League to his Avengers, he can get the Justice League under control to the UN without any serious public disasters. That's a main reason why Captain America is to be the face and leader of the Avengers since he is not only a War Hero but the definition of democracy.
"We aren't strong enough to fight the Flash, or the Green Lantern and certainly not Superman. That's why we need wildcards like Tony Stark and monsters like the Hulk in order to even the playing field. Without them, we stand no chance against the Justice League and the other threats waiting for us."
Matthew Leans back into his chair and thinks. "I'm not sure about this. I've seen the reports about the Hulk and none of them are too pleasant. It tore apart some of our tanks with its bare hands for crying out loud."
"Then how about a test sir?"
This catches the President's and the rest of the Cabinet's interest. "A proposal?"
Nick nods with a smirk. "Yes sir. I propose that we send out who we have on a little errand with back up from S.H.I.E.L.D, a test per say. If they fail, it shows that we aren't nearly ready to face off against our enemies and I'll revise the whole team. If we succeed however, I get full control over who to recruit to the Avengers. How does that sound?"
Matthew holds back the urge to bite his lips and looks back to the screen where Red Hood continues his speech.
"We have accomplished what the Justice League fails to do every day. Dozens of times, the Justice League brought the Joker into 'custody' to face his crimes in prison and to give him medical help to rehabilitate him. What of the families who have lost a family member and will never get to see their smiling faces again? Do they not deserve an opinion? Don't their voices matter?" Red Hood narrows his eyes into the camera.
"The Justice League may ignore your voices but the Akatsuki won't. Villains who kill the innocent shall not escape unscathed from their crimes. The justice system continuously fails to carry out needed sentencing so we shall do it for them and neither the weak government or Justice League will stop us."
Matthew glares and turns back to a patient Nick Fury. "Very well. I agree with your proposition but remember Fury, I expect results."
Nick's smirk gets slightly wider and he nods before he turns to the door and walks towards it, his trench coat billowing behind him. "Of course, Mr. President."
( Watch Tower )
Red Hood's face fills the entire view of the camera, showing nothing but his mask and strong passionate eyes. "For we are the Akatsuki. The Judge, Jury and Executioners of the New World."
The screens all erupt into static, leaving the world in an awkward silence. After a few moments of silence, murmurs erupt in the room.
"Who the hell do they think they are?"
"They actually killed the Joker! And Lex Luthor of all people!"
"If they want a fight, they'll get one!"
Wonder Woman walks over to Superman and Batman and from the looks of her face, she looks slightly bothered by what she saw and heard. "Did they just declare war on us?" From her point of view, it sounded awfully like a declaration of war. It isn't like they showed a high opinion of the League which disturbs Wonder Woman. She's apart of the Justice League to make a difference in the world but the Red Hood's little speech hit her deep.
Batman scowls and shakes his head. "No. It was a warning. A warning for us to stay out of their way." Opening his communicater, he presses it to his ear and starts talking to the person on the other line.
"A warning we're going to completely ignore" told Superman, strongly. "They admitted to the world that they've killed and that they're willing to kill again. We can't let that stand, no matter the cost."
Batman says a thanks and places his communicater back into his belt. "We got a hit. Barbara was searching for the source of the signal since it started and found the source. Let's go."
( Gotham City )
In the outskirts of Gotham City, Batman climbs through the rooftop window of one of the many abandoned warehouses that line up the outskirts of the city. Superman and Wonder Woman calmly opens the entrance door and floats through, acting as the bait in case there is trap waiting for them.
"See anything?" Batman asked Superman who uses his X-Ray Vision to look through the walls and crates in the warehouse. "Not yet. It doesn't look like anyone was h-wait a minute. I see something." Flying past several crates, Superman floats to the ground where there is a computer set up with several screens connected to each other. Beside the set up is a camera that he guesses was used to record everything. "I think we found where they filmed the show."
"And where they killed Luthor" said Wonder Woman as she eyes the puddle of blood nearby. "There's no bodies either. Scoundrels must have taken them with them for who knows what."
From the rafters, Batman grumbles to the lost of Luthor and Joker's bodies so he can make sure they're the real deal. He stands up and goes to jump to the floor to check the computers but ducks when an arrow almost hits his skull. "It's a trap!" he yelled but in an almost sick sense of humour, the computers in front of Superman and Wonder Woman all turn on to show the familiar pixel of a grinning Gizmo before they release sparks and explode. Both Heroes are thrown to the other side of the warehouse and lands into a pile of crates that break upon impact.
Batman throws a batarang to the direction of where the arrow came from but uses his grappler to swing away when three more arrows pierce the steel beam he was sitting beside. Batman grabs a second grappler and shoots it at the direction of his ambusher and shoots himself at the direction. Seeing his prey, he releases his grapple to land on the same overhead walkway as his assailant.
"Oh no you don't" exclaimed said assailant who pulls back another arrow from his bow and fires it at Batman who charges and rolls underneath it. Rolling to his knees, Batman looks up and raises his fist to throw a punch, only to stop when he notices that there is an arrow tip just a few centimeters away from his face. "Ah, ah, ah~, I wouldn't do that if I were you."
Batman frowns while already thinking about a strategy on how to get the upper hand on his opponent. "Who are you?"
"Names Hawkeye but friends call me.. well, Hawkeye" answered the master archer with a grin. He looks down below to the ground floor without turning his head away from the mysterious Dark Knight and smirks. "Looks like back up has arrived."
Batman throws a punch at Hawkeye's stomach which connects, causing the archer to cough in pain but recovers fast enough to jump back in time to avoid a kick to the same spot. Batman jumps to close the distance but it doesn't seem to matter for Hawkeye who starts firing arrow after arrow at Batman who is forced to jump off the walkway in order to avoid getting pelted with arrows. Landing into a crouch, he rolls to cover as three more arrows trail behind him but stick into the floor instead. Leaning behind an aisle of crates, the Dark Knight pulls out a batarang and raises it to throw it but an arrow hits the weapon out of his hand, causing him to lean closer back into cover.
"He's a skilled archer. Maybe as good as Green Arrow. It's just a good thing he doesn't ha-" Batman gets caught out of his thoughts when an arrow lands beside the aisle of crates he's hiding behind. This arrow is different from the common ones Hawkeye shot at him before since this one has a metallic cylinder near the tip and is rapidly blinking a red light. Batman dives away as the arrow explodes and destroys what cover he had. "Specialty arrows." he finished his thoughts.
Hawkeye closes an eye and pulls back an arrow which he has aimed right a Batman's forehead. "Got ya." Releasing his bow, his arrow scales through the air towards his target but it doesn't hit its target. "Of course it wasn't that easy." Hawkeye mentally grumbles to himself while he looks down at the floating Superman who blocked his arrow with his chest. His arrow didn't even put a scratch against the Man of Steel.
"Enough of this. Come quietly and no harm shall come to you" told Superman with a glare to a nervous looking Hawkeye.
"Umm, Cap! How about some help over here!?"
Superman's eyes turn to the right in time to see an incoming shield and grabs the offending weapon with ease. What he hadn't expected was for the thrower to follow his shield and to jump up to Superman's floating level by kicking off of a pile of crates and dropkicking the edge of the shield into Superman's face. The force of the dropkick pushes the shield through Superman's fingertips and hits the end of it against the Man of Steel's forehead. The Hero flies backwards before righting himself in the air just before he can hit a support beam but grabs his forehead to ease the throbbing.
"Sorry, am I late?"
Superman glares down at the man who snuck up on him but before he attacks, he finds himself caught off guard again when he realizes who it is. "Captain America" he gasped out in surprise. Having lived on Earth for years, the Kryptonian has of course heard enough about the legend who saved two hundred American soldiers from Nazi captivity during World War II and the world from an atomic apocalypse. However, he was said to have died after crashing a plane full of nukes into freezing cold waters but yet, here he is in his memorable uniform.
Even Batman blinks twice to make sure he isn't seeing things. "Impossible. He should be dead! In the very least, an old man!" Noticing movement by the edge of his sight, Batman grabs his bulletproof cape and covers himself with it to block several bullets.
"By the order of the United nations, stand down now" stoically ordered Romanoff, also known as Black Widow while aiming her duel pistols at the Dark Knight. Batman's eyes narrow underneath his mask whole his hand slowly reaches down to his belt. Romanoff notices the movement and raises her guns slightly. "I wouldn't do that if I were you. I'm not sure if you noticed but you're surrounded."
To prove her point, red dots from the S.H.I.E.L.D soldiers weapons litter Batman from head to toe, as well as Superman and Wonder Woman. Around two dozen armoured soldiers walk out of the shadows of the warehouse with their weapons trained on the Justice League.
Hawkeye notices Superman tense up. "By the way, they're loaded up with Kryptonite bullets. Gifts from the ever so generous United Nations." Superman startles in midair at the thought of the soldiers packing bullets of Kryptonite. He even uses his X-Ray Vision to make sure that the archer is speaking the truth and lo and behold, he sees the glowing green light of Kryptonite that are shaped as bullets. Bullets that can easily tear him to shreds.
Wonder Woman lands to the floor and raises her arms to placate to the soldiers. "Rest yourselves. We mean no harm. We are just searching for the Akatsuki."
"Funny, so are we. Only difference is that we have the backing of eves government in the world" spoke a new voice from the direction of the entrance. The members of the Justice League turn and see a bald African-American man in a black trench coat. The man's most noticeable feature is the eyepatch on his left eye and the amused grin on his face.
"Who are you?" Batman all but demanded. Even now, he is trying to figure out a way to get out of their current predicament. With so many guns on them, not even he and Diana will be able to dodge or block all of their bullets and with said bullets being made of Kryptonite, not even the Man of Steel will be able to get out unscathed. There's also the three unknowns of Hawkeye, Captain America and the redhead who has the look of a killer in her eyes.
"And there it is! The charming personality which makes Batman. I'd say I'm your biggest fan but mama once told me to never lie."
"You didn't answer my question."
"No, I did not" replied Nick Fury with a nod as he walks beside Romanoff who has yet to take her guns away from Batman. "All you have to know is that I represent this fine land in which we call America and heck, maybe the rest of the world. Just came on down to find these new big fish, only to instead find some of our biggest problems, number one to three to be precise" he said, eying Wonder Woman, Batman and Superman in that order. "So we thought that we'd come on by and say hello."
"Hello~" sang Hawkeye from overhead and he even waves.
"I don't understand. We're all on the same side here" said Superman.
"Wrong. You're on your own side. You Heroes and your little super club spring up from the root works and proclaim yourselves as the protectors and saviours of the world." Nick turns to looks at all his S.H.I.E.L.D soldiers who have yet to take their sights off the Heroes. "But I have a question." He then turns back to face he Heroes. "Who asked you?"
"Excuse me?" asked Wonder Woman in surprise.
"Who asked you to do our jobs? In what way are you all above the law? Did the President give you guys the jurisdiction to operate in America because I just spoke with him and he didn't mention any of the sorts so if you guys want to clue me in here?" Nick raises a single brow as he gazes at the three Heroes. "No? Didn't think so."
"The people need our help because the governments neglect to do their jobs" told Batman with edge in his tone.
Instead of getting angry over the insult, Nick let's out a few chuckles that is enough to show that he finds it funny. "You know, you sound a lot like that Red Hood character from TV. I can see you thought him well." Nick's lone eye bears into Batman and he doesn't miss the slight tense of muscles. "That's right. I know that Red Hood was once Robin, the second Robin in fact. We also know that he died by the hand of the Joker and was resurrected in a Lazarus Pitt." Nick chuckles even more. "I guess they're even now."
"Who are you?" This time, Batman doesn't demand it but cautiously ask the man who is clearly high up in the government chain and has information that only a few know about. Unless they got it from the Joker, they should only know about Jason being Red Hood from a founding member of the Justice League.
"Someone who doesn't exist but enough about me. It's just a short visit anyway. By order of the President of the United States of America and the United Nations, the Justice League is hereby made redundant and will be shut down. Refusal to do so will declare yourselves an enemy of the country, planet and more importantly, an enemy of the Avengers."
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