The Black Snow
By Icha
Rating: K+
Disclaimer: Batman, Wonder Woman, Dr. Light II, and Katana belong to DC Comics. All Japanese characters with the exceptions of Dr. Light II, Katana, Yasu and Imako are from my imagination. Thanks to Athena Phoenix for beta reading.
Chapter 8. The Crows, the Eagle, the Dragon, and the Bat"It seems that I should be the one who says that, ladies."
Suijiro's smug face was clearly seen on the Batscreen as the Batman monitored the event in the basement of Eiga from the flying Batwing. The Dark Knight clenched his jaw as he increased the speed of his jet. He was very sure that Diana and Tatsu would handle the Iwamura men well, but he was still worried. He didn't like this feeling – the feeling of attachment and anxiety over Diana's safety. He felt a bit guilty about Tatsu, as he wasn't sure if he would be this anxious if Diana weren't inside the Black Snow headquarters. He knew both women very well. Katana had been his colleague since the early days of the Outsiders. Diana...well... not only he had met her during her first few weeks of innocence in Man's World, and they had fought side by side many times, now she was also his lover. He wanted to be with Diana as long as Time permitted them, and he surely didn't want it to end tonight.
What if there were a situation when he had to choose between saving Diana or Tatsu? Not that it would happen tonight. He was very sure that both warrior women would be just fine. But what if, in the future, he had to choose between Diana or other friends? Say... Tim? Dinah? Dick? Barbara? Or the lovely Selina Kyle, whose love had turned into mutual friendship? Or even the stubborn old Ollie, or the annoying Kyle? Who would he choose? If he chose Diana, would that be unfair? And why did all those thoughts suddenly come up now? It was just not the right time!
The Batman watched Suijiro signal his men to attack both women. He frowned and looked out the cockpit window. Ginza was almost in front of him. Soon he would be able to fight side by side again with Diana. This thought improved his mood. Fighting alongside Diana was always interesting. It was true that she was incredibly strong, in Superman's class even. But first of all, she was trained as a warrior, and she actually loved using her warrior fighting techniques rather than brute strength. She was also keen to build up her fighting skills, one of the many reasons she usually trained with him. One of the many reasons he loved having her around.
The Batwing had reached Ginza, hovering over the Kabukiza. From a long black wooden box, the Caped Crusader took a pair of katana and wakizashi, all encased in black bat-patterned scabbards, each ornamented with a delicate bat-design on the tsuba (sword guard) and tsuka (sword handle). He hooked his katana to the left side of his utility belt, slipped the wakizashi in front, then grabbed Tatsu's and Diana's bags. Quickly, he opened the cockpit, aimed his grapple gun at a lamppost in front of Eiga, then swung away. He would contemplate on his motives for saving Diana over his friends later on.
With a slight 'thud' he landed in front of Eiga. Many passersby just gasped when they saw the Batman appear in Ginza. Batman didn't often have crimes to solve in Japan – Gotham kept him occupied. He had gone to Japan once or twice on League business, but never to Ginza. Ignoring the comments from the crowd, he ran into the department store, his cape swirling behind.
Running between the packed and amazed visitors to Eiga, the Dark Knight went to the particular section where Diana and Tatsu had entered the basement. He found the hidden curtain behind the picture of two girls with summer hats, slid the curtain aside, and faced the metal entrance door. He had the Batwing auto-analyze the code numbers before, so he knew what number to enter on the panel. But he didn't have the palm pattern of the lady in the kimono section for the second verification. He could scan the panel for some 'palm reading' results, but then he would have to analyze and separate several palm patterns from one another. He could also look for the kimono lady and drag her here for access. But there was no time for either option. He reached for his utility belt, took out some plastic-rubber balls, pressed one of them at the panel, and detonated it. He took a few steps behind and covered his face and body with his Nomex-Kevlar-lined cape as the micro bomb exploded with some smoke, destroying only the panel section. He walked past the smoke, kicked the door open, and entered. Behind him, the nearest smoke alarm cried and caused the shoppers to panic.
xxx
Suijiro's men approached silently, swords and guns at the ready. Diana and Tatsu stood still, shoulders relaxed, listening to every movement, every breath, and every step surrounding them. They had been in battles before, and surely this one was no different, even if they didn't have their weapons with them.
Slowly taking off her red coat, Diana inhaled, looking at the ceiling, and suddenly said, "You know, actually I really want to have a look again at that purple kimono." She then hung her coat from her left arm.
Tatsu's fine eyebrows arched. "You mean the blue one? The one with the cranes and fish?"
"No, that was the one offered to you, remember?" Diana waved her right hand and turned her whole body to face Tatsu. "I mean the deep violet one, the one on the right. I think I have enough money here to buy it." She lifted her handbag cheerfully.
"Oh...I see..." Tatsu nodded after a thought. "I prefer the black one with the dragon, at the left hand side when we first arrived." She shifted herself to face Diana as well. "I think I like the color."
Diana smiled. "It suits you, indeed." And with that, she threw her handbag at the nearest gunman to her right, disorienting him for a while. Then promptly she tossed her expensive but light-weighted Donna Karan coat, using it as a lasso to strangle another man's neck, pulling him towards her, and kicking him back after introducing him to her punch. The warrior then leapt and screamed a war cry towards another man holding a katana and wakizashi. She pushed herself to the man to the ground; her right hand seized the wakizashi. By the time the man fell down, Diana already firmly grabbed the wakizashi, her left hand slid down to twist the man's wrist and seize his katana. The Amazon warrior jumped back at her feet as the other Yakuza men raised their swords or aimed at her.
At the same time as Diana jumped, Katana also ducked and swept the man in her left side in his feet. She threw herself to the ground as well, then by using the man's inertia, grabbed and swung him to protect herself, right as she heard some gun shots aimed at her. Unintended, the man in her hands became her shield, and he died right away killed by his own friends. Katana didn't waste her time; she grabbed the dead man's katana, throwing his body towards his friends, then somersaulted a few times to get more space. She leapt to a table, finding herself surrounded by more than ten Yakuza – mostly armed with swords.
xxx
Diana tried to remember when was the last time she fought without her vambraces to protect her. She usually wore her silver vambraces everywhere, even in charity parties or dinner, as that particular weapon of hers were also fashionable. Once or twice she didn't have her vambraces with her, and she had to save some people from ordinary burglars or stupid teenage gangs. But never she was unarmed, surrounded by a bunch of Yakuza killers, all with their swords and guns. This is very interesting. At least I have a pair of swords already. Quickly she interchanged her swords, so that she held the katana with her right hand and the wakizashi with her left hand, as most right-handed swordsmen did.
The Amazon shifted her weight to another leg, slowly stepping sideway to measure her enemies. She was surrounded by at least eight men and women armed with guns, as well as five Yakuza with swords. From the corner of her eyes she could see more Yakuza running inside through the same door where Suijiro came from. Good. Let the game begin.
xxx
Looking down from the table, Katana smirked. Slowly, she made a small circle to monitor her surroundings. She had a better position now, and she also held a katana already. She missed Soultaker, wishing that she had her loyal sword instead. But this katana would also do. She swung her newly seized katana lightly, judging its weight, and satisfied that it was indeed a good sword, light enough to swing, heavy enough to strike. She nodded to herself, holding her sword with both hands in front of her solar plexus, eyes fixed at a single point in front of her. C'mon boys, jump up. I'm ready here!
As if on cue, the Yakuza yelled their war cries, and started to jump to the table. Stupid men. With ease, Katana swung her sword, taking her enemies down one by one. Blood started to splash, awakening her warrior spirit.
xxx
A series of gunshots whizzed toward Diana as she ducked and ran. Not away from her assailants, but toward them. She raised her short wakizashi and used it to deflect the bullets with the speed she usually applied when she welcomed the shots with her vambraces. Diana was lucky to find a good wakizashi to use against the bullets, as most of the Iwamura men didn't use the short-bladed sword. Only some higher-level people like Uchida, Tadaki, Shiori, and of course Suijiro and Masahiro used both katana and wakizashi. Mastering the two-way swords was a bit tricky, and not all of the men had the patience and skill to do that.
During their silent moments after being exposed, Diana had quickly planned that she would seize a katana and use it to parry the bullets, while her other hand just deal with the attackers by punching, or even grabbing the swords. But now, with the wakizashi as her emergency 'vambraces', everything was made easier. Diana continued welcoming her attackers with her katana, swinging it the way Amazons swung swords, with hard attacks and precise strikes.
xxx
Katana was a samurai. A Japanese warrior who were not afraid to kill. During her first few strikes, she had killed two Yakuza with thin slices of Iaido technique. She even grabbed another katana, thus now she held a sword in each hand. Some Yakuza had started to shoot. Cowards! I hate gunmen! Perhaps that's why I befriended Batman.
Yet, as she ducked to avoid the bullets, Tatsu realized that there was one thing that separated her from the Batman. She didn't hesitate to kill. After all, she was a samurai raised in Japan. A true samurai kills because he or she needs to kill, not because he or she is bloodthirsty.
But codes in the U.S. were different. There, they had their own code of conduct. The Batman was one of the most loyal heroes with a 'no killing' policy. Katana respected that policy, so she strived not to kill in every Outsiders' mission in the past, despite her own desire. She knew Batman didn't approve of her killing – though Wonder Woman would understand that, being a warrior as well. Yet, this was Japan, where two hundred years ago, samurai still had wars and conflicts as their main occupations; hence killing was a normal thing. And the very same spirit still ran through the veins of Tatsu Yamashiro. That spirit vibrated every time she defended her own life or the life of innocents, if necessary by taking another life. Just like this time.
xxx
Ducking to avoid a sweeping sword, Diana raised her left hand to grab her attacker's wrist and throw it aside using his momentum. She heard his wrist bone crack as she rolled to the front, leapt back to her feet, and found that her original assailants had reduced to only one shaking man, trying to aim with his gun. Up until now, Diana had only injured her enemies without killing any. Yet she knew that these Yakuza were different from New York gangsters, or even the cruel Gotham mafia. These Yakuza were trained with the ancient Japanese spirit, ready to kill anyone in their way. Their swords were very sharp, and their aim was precise. It was rather hard to deflect bullets without her vambraces. She had already gotten two or three thin slices in her arms, wounds that would heal fast. But she had to admit that the Iwamura indeed wielded high quality swords that could do the slicing very efficiently, thus very lethal, even in the hand of the minor killers in the group.
Nonetheless, the wakizashi in her hand was still made of ordinary steel, not the unbreakable silver-amazonium alloy. After a few minutes of dodging bullets with the short sword, it finally broke off. Diana had to toss it off, then deflect the bullets with her katana, while seizing another katana from one of the attackers to continue fighting.
Now the Amazon warrior stood tall, blood dripping from both of her swords, her crisp white Oscar de la Renta dress damaged and turned red, tainted with the blood of her assailants. Upon detecting more footsteps, she turned to see more than ten Yakuza coming, with Tadaki as the leader. Diana prayed that she didn't have to use lethal force upon them.
xxx
Katana jumped off the table, rolled to a rather empty space, and stood tall. She had finished off most of her attackers, with two or three people still living with major injuries. A spray of blood tainted her left cheek, dripping down to the corner of her mouth. She didn't brush it off. She looked around to find more and more men and women surrounding her. Shiori stood in front of them. Although she hadn't been fighting with Tatsu, splatters of blood from her fellow Yakuza already stained her black hakama and face. Strays of her reddish hair fell down to her face, making her a deadly beauty. She raised her own black katana with both hands, ordering calmly to her men, "This one's mine."
xxx
"Interesting fight you have here," Tadaki commented in Japanese, not even bothering to translate, as he understood that Diana spoke Japanese well.
"Interesting Kuroyuki story you have there," Diana shrugged and replied in Japanese as well. "Are you sure you didn't make it up?"
The eyes of the 'grizzly bear' reddened in anger. "I'm never joking about the Black Snow! It was my grandfather who invented it, and he made our family famous because of that. I'm not going to let you take that away from us!"
"Too bad that your family got famous notoriously," Diana held one of her katana up high, while positioning the other one in front of her sternum to strike. "Ready when you are."
xxx
"Don't count on it," Tatsu Yamashiro smirked at Shiori. She relaxed both shoulders, hands still firmly holding both katana. "Are you sure you don't want to give up?"
"Bakero!" Shiori swore in Japanese. "You shut up right now!"
"Wow. Your mom sure didn't teach you courtesy," Katana snorted, raising one katana high and lowering the other one in equal opposite forces.
xxx
Bang!
A loud explosion stopped the two major fights. All eyes went fixed at the entrance, where a thick smoke suddenly clouded the view. From behind the smoke, a tall dark figure appeared, dragging two unconscious Yakuza men with him.
"I believe I can still join the party," the Batman murmured while throwing his victims aside.
Suijiro gritted his teeth. Actually, the security cameras of the headquarter had been recording Batman's presence since he blew up the metal door at Eiga. However, none of the Iwamura men, including Suijiro, noticed that, as they were distracted by Wonder Woman and Katana. After exposing both women, somehow Suijiro knew that the Batman could find this place. He had summoned most of his men for aid. But judging from how well both women defended themselves, he feared that his men were not enough. And now the Batman appeared, and perhaps soon, Dr. Light too.
"Of course you can, Mr. Bat. I'm the host here. Allow me." With a slight tilt of head gesture from Suijiro, more than ten men and women ran circling the Batman; half of them holding the guns while the rest held swords.
"It's the Batman, not Mr. Bat, in case you never read newspapers." Batman took out both of his katana and wakizashi from the scabbards, ready to strike. The fluorescent lamps on the ceiling shone upon the wavy blades of both swords, causing them to emanate ethereal steel-blue light.
xxx
Diana just realized that she held her breath for a while upon seeing Batman again. It was amazing how the mere presence of that brooding guy could lift her spirits. She knew he wanted to come to help her fight these men, but she wasn't expecting that to happen. She didn't know what had happened in Narita. She just assumed that Bruce would be there for quite a while, and that she and Tatsu would just have to deal with the Black Snow headquarters alone, which was fine by her. But of course, she would prefer to have Bruce fighting next to her. Especially when he brought her and Tatsu their weapons.
Shifting her attention back to Tadaki, Diana smiled. "Excuse me for a while? My friend over there has something for me. I'll be back!"
With that, she flew off fast towards the Batman. Punching several guys and dodging many bullets on the way there, she noted that Batman would soon begin to display his command of Japanese sword arts. She had examined his swords in the Batwing on the way from Junboku no Koya to Ginza, and was very pleased with their strength and beauty. But now, seeing Bruce in action with a pair of katana and wakizashi, Diana couldn't help admiring the fine mixture of the man and his swords.
"Nice swords," she landed smoothly next to Batman, deflecting some bullets with her almost ruined katana.
"I can order you a pair later," Bruce commented matter-of-factly, and then tossed the bags he had been carrying to Diana. "Here's your stuff."
"Thanks! Just right in time," Diana grinned. Not wasting any time, she immediately opened her small bag, took out the lasso, and then swirled the lasso upon herself. A bright light covered Diana of Themyscira as she suddenly blurred out of everyone's vision, only to appear a second later in her complete Wonder Woman uniform. Her stained dresses, shoes and other undercover accessories were magically stored neatly inside the bag Batman carried earlier.
Diana threw the bag out of the way and turned to Bruce. "See you later!" Upon her remarks, she flew off, leaving the silent Batman with his opponents.
With her vambraces, it was easier for Wonder Woman to dodge all the attacks and fight back. She threw her lasso towards a bunch of Yakuza standing behind Shiori, and tossed them out of the way. She dove in next to Katana, grinned, gave her the other bag, then took off to Tadaki.
Quickly, Katana opened the bag and took Soultaker out. She didn't even bother to change her costume. She didn't have any vambraces or armor to protect her, but her loyal katana was enough. She deliberately wore a Kenzo suit that was made of synthetic leather-like material that pretty much suited her performance tonight. It wasn't as comfortable as her warrior suit, but right now she just wouldn't bother to even put on her mask.
"Soultaker," she proclaimed proudly as the gray steel shone brightly beneath the fluorescent light. "You might want to be careful now."
Shiori snorted. "I've heard of your so called magical katana. I don't believe that, and I'm willing to prove it tonight."
Katana assessed her surrounding rapidly. If she and Shiori were going to have a duel, the space in this basement was just not going to be enough. More and more Yakuza coming in, and with Batman's presence, it would be very crowded and unpleasant for a descent fight. Upon meeting her for the first time, Katana had speculated Shiori's power from the way she brought herself, and she concluded that though this woman seemed to be supervised by Tadaki, actually her skill was beyond the grizzly man. Suddenly, Katana was very interested in testing her skill against Shiori.
"Not enough room." She simply commented.
Shiori smirked. "We'll go outside."
Then the Yakuza woman suddenly leapt towards Katana, and screamed the war cry, slicing her sword towards Tatsu's throat. Katana dodged the attack with Soultaker, impressed by the momentum of the two swords, and turned around to see that Shiori had ran towards the exit door. Without hesitance, Katana ran to follow her.
xxx
Author's note:
Okay! As promised, the fight has started. And I can't tell ya how pleased I was to be able to write those scenes. Not that I'm blood-thirst or what, it's just that I was worried that I couldn't portray a descent Japanese sword fighting.
I chose to leave out Wonder Spin, and opted for the lasso to change Diana's costume. I've seen it before in the GA/SA WW comics, so it should be all right. Also, I am not really sure about the composition of Diana's vambraces (or bracelets), but it was definitely not only silver. The old Lynda Carter WW TV series mentioned 'Feminum' metal, but it sounds weird to me. So I chose the 'silver-amazonium' alloy, which sounds cool, IMHO.
And for any Katana's fans, I hope I portrayed Tatsu correctly. She was basically written based on my memories on the early days of the pre-crisis Outsiders, a long long time ago.