Justice

by Black' Victor Cachat

Dealing with villains is all part of being a superhero, the Justice League knows this. So how do they handle the new supervillain gang that can't decide whether they're good or evil? And said gang, the Straw Hat Pirates, are just desperate to get home to fulfil their dreams, whatever it takes. And they have no problems with fighting more believers in 'Justice' along the way

8. Not all Fun and Games

I do not own either One Piece or Justice League Unlimited.

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Beta read by the wonderful rose7anne101 and MasterQwertster. Make sure to check out their stories!

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Justice

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Chapter 8: Not all Fun and Games

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Previously:

The Straw Hat Pirates continue to quietly strengthen themselves, especially by recruiting more and more villains. However a Halloween celebration turns grim when the Joker provokes Sanji, leading to the latter crippling him. The League comes to the hospital where the Joker is being held, but the Clown Prince, further unhinged by his inability to laugh, escapes.

Meanwhile at the same time on Halloween night, the rest of the Straw Hats undertake a mission of their own.

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Contains spoilers for manga chapter 881

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Warning: some events in this chapter are occurring before chapter 7, which ended on the night of October 31st. Just keep an eye on the dates.

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October 20th

Gracefully Green Lantern floated into the boardroom through the large open windows.

"Thanks for having me," he said cheerfully, despite his gruff voice.

"The pleasure's mine," answered billionaire Bruce Wayne as he extended his hand. "How could we pass up a meeting with the Justice League at their request? Any chance of Batman joining us?"

"Sorry, no," said John Stewart as he raised his Ring hand to shake. "He said he'd be too busy, and gave me permission to be here in Gotham City."

"Pity," Wayne genially smiled. "I dare say he'd have a few things to say about this too."

Behind the CEO of Wayne Enterprises, the rest of the men and women sitting around the table gave their own polite greetings, a few also getting up for a handshake. No autographs from the hero though, not in Batman's city. They had their hometown pride after all.

"Well then," Wayne said. "Coffee? Tea? Something to eat?"

"I'm good, thanks," Green Lantern assured them.

"Let's get started then," and the billionaire nodded to Lucius Fox, who managed the day-to-day running of his company.

The older man promptly got down to business. "Just so we're all on the same page, we're discussing setting up insurance for homes, business, and other private property destroyed by super-villains, as well as damage caused by super-heroes, or the authorities in the process of arresting said villains, given the danger they represent."

"That's right," Green Lantern nodded. "Usually the Justice League and the independent heroes do their best to help fix it up afterwards, especially Flash and Superman who can do it pretty quick, or guys like Batman pay for it. Unfortunately, we don't always have the chance, or it's not something we can take care of. And frankly we don't have an infinite amount of money. What the Justice League is hoping to help form is something that would help people with rebuilding their lives, while we're dealing with the next threat."

"Of course," Wayne nodded. "And as Gotham City has so many super-villains, the loss of livelihood we see here is consequently much higher too. Wayne Enterprise has provided relief where we can, but I know Commissioner Gordon has been pushing for something like this for a while now."

"I presume," Fox put in, "that this will be a non-profit organization?"

"Of course," Green Lantern firmly agreed. "A public service, and not something that can be abused. Which is the main reason why we need your professional help with this. We need a company that will not serve to benefit from super fights, will investigate insurance fraud, and make sure the money is used for what it's supposed to be. Otherwise people might misuse it and only worsen the situation. Yet at the same time, when it gets going, it's got to be independent and self-sustaining, so it still has to make its own income. Putting together all that is outside of our areas of expertise."

"Of course," Wayne said, with a firmness that made all his subordinates sit a little straighter. "I don't see any reason why we can't accomplish this. I presume you brought some preliminary ideas and figures?"

Nodding, Green Lantern pushed forward the folder they had all seen him bring, while Fox pulled out his own.

"I must say," Fox added, "I'm glad to see you doing this. Was it your idea initially?"

Green Lantern waved a dismissive hand. "We came up with it together when we saw how much our fights were escalating. I'm the one with the background with the ins and outs of construction, and have seen some similar stuff on other planets, so I volunteered to meet you."

"Either way," Fox stated with conviction, "you're doing a good service. Now, let's see how we can carry it out."

The window exploded.

Instantly Green Lantern was up, forming a dome barrier to protect everyone from the shards of glass. A loud noise caught his attention, as at the same time a buzz saw burst out of the floor near Bruce Wayne, and cut a hole for him to fall through. He was gone before Green Lantern could safely multitask without risking the lives of everyone else in the boardroom.

The loud boom of a rocket then rattled the room, and he caught a glimpse of something zipping away at extreme speeds.

!JUSTICE!

It spoke well of Batman's self-control that he was not silently cursing right now.

There he was, at a meeting with Green Lantern and his board of directors, working to help improve things for people outside of doing battle with super-villains, and now one had abducted him. And not just anyone. He had a depressing suspicion of what the motive behind this was.

"I suppose I'm a hostage," he deadpanned. "I'm sorry, but could we schedule this for another time?"

What? Bruce Wayne's parties, galas, company events, etcetera, were regularly gate crashed by criminals. Which only made this all the more embarrassing since a) his kidnapper had somehow disarmed or evaded all his precautions, b) had done so right in front of a fellow League member, and he had to play the victim, and c) she was probably only doing it for the thrill of it. Oh, and he would have to wait to be rescued, since 'Batman was busy.'

Batman knew he would be counting his blessing if Alfred was not ribbing him about this tonight. Or Dick calling to 'make sure he was feeling alright.'

"You bet!" was the gleeful claim of the criminal currently steering the vehicle Batman was handcuffed too, which was nothing more than a rocket with seats strapped on.

Roxy Rocket, ex-stunt-double turned adrenaline-junky crook. Wearing her aviator's jacket, with her long red hair trailing behind her, she was undoubtedly as attractive as she was skilled. Despite his circumstances as she swerved through skyscrapers at breakneck speeds, Batman knew he was in no danger. Together they dodged death and destruction by only a hairsbreadth, as she wove and improvised with finely honed intuition. She was just that good.

"Sorry to ruin your afternoon," Rocket went on, "but I've got a hot date with you tonight."

"Flattery will get you everywhere," Batman smiled, turning on the charm, while letting his eyes smolder with (false) desire. "Although I'd still like to do this some other time. I do have a meeting to finish. And then maybe I can pay my 'ransom' personally?"

"Too bad! I've just stolen you out from under the nose of one of the Justice League, and I'm—"

"Going right to prison?"

Despite Roxy's shock, she maintained control of her ride as she snapped her head around to see Green Lantern effortlessly keeping pace with her.

Faster than she could react, a blade shot out from his Ring and cut off the seats she and Batman were riding on, making them come off the rocket and into a green bubble that both safely canceled their inertia. Another one formed around the rocket, letting it harmlessly explode within.

A little more manipulation with the constructs, and Batman was safely in his own separate bubble, with the handcuffs removed, while Roxy was scowling at Green Lantern. She had known he could fly fast, and use various abilities to make him the perfect challenge, but she had assumed she was still good enough to succeed, while his (supposedly) failed pursuit would give her the necessary thrill. Then she brightened and jabbed at his Ring. "Can I get one of those?"

"No," was his flat retort. Turning his attention to Batman, "Are you alright, Mr. Wayne?"

"Call me Bruce," he smiled. "Shall we get back to our meeting?"

"No chance for that date then?" Roxy asked half-heatedly. She had just been teasing before, yet a playboy billionaire was still a playboy billionaire.

"Sorry," Batman shrugged to communicate how helpless he felt. "Green Lantern came all this way to talk. And afterwards, I have a meeting with . . . a certain someone tonight. I can't be late for her—them, I mean. You understand."

"Yeah I do," Roxy huffed, sticking to reliving the thrill of that chase, however short it was. Maybe next time I'll…

!JUSTICE!

Later that evening

"I'm ever so glad that Green Lantern was able to rescue Bruce Wayne," Alfred dryly said in his British accent, bringing Batman his dinner. "Despite the interruption, I do hope your little get-together still proceeded as planned?"

"We've made excellent headway, but we won't be able to implement those changes just yet. As much as everyone wishes otherwise, it'll take at least another month.

"As for Roxy Rocket, she was as cocky as usual," grunted the Dark Knight. "Unfortunately, she's a symptom of a growing problem. Crime's spiking in Gotham. Including metahuman crime. Although last time she left the city."

As he had been reflecting lately, over the last few years both he and the Gotham Police Department had been making serious inroads towards reducing crime. Wayne Enterprises' relief efforts and social outreach programs had also been making progress in stopping the conditions that helped encourage crime in the first place.

Batman was not blind. People were more likely to rob when they were desperate for cash to pay their rent, so they and their families were not kicked out onto the streets. Or how people who felt they had no future were ripe targets for drug dealers, making them willing to do anything to feed their addiction. Batman's more violent, nightly activities were still necessary to stem the flow, save lives, and give a more vivid incentive to not start in the first place. He handled the threats the regular cops were just not qualified for, and overall helped the legal authorities do their jobs.

Think of it as bad cop, good cop, where the bad cop could punch you in the face, and/or dangle you off a building until you cooperated, and then vanish before the good cop got there. And that good cop was not particularly motivated to find bad cop in the first place, so you had better make a deal with him before bad cop comes back . . .

"In the last few months," Batman elaborated, "more and more criminals from out of town are coming here."
"Yes, you said as much," Alfred agreed. "And I'm still confused as to why. After all, criminals protect their 'turf,' as it were, here just as viciously as elsewhere. If not more so, given how entrenched the underworld is here, and with so many super-villains at that. So what has changed? Does the League have any insight?"

Grunting, Batman pulled up some other files. "No, I haven't asked them."

Resisting the urge to roll his eyes, Alfred's carefully neutral tone still held a drop of acidity. "Perhaps you should ask them then, sir. To get a second opinion, as it were."

"You may be right," Batman admitted, seeing his own lack of progress. "But there's something else I want to discuss with them first." He pointed at the profile pictures up on the screen, with a few lines of information detailing who they were, psychological summaries, threat level, and weaknesses. "While supervillains seem to be coming towards Gotham, a bunch of them have also dropped completely off the radar. What's concerning isn't just that some of them are powerhouses in their own right, it's also that most of them are not known for being subtle and patient. Certainly not enough to be quiet this long."

"And you don't think they've suddenly become reformed, upstanding citizens," Alfred heavily concluded. Not that he could blame Master Bruce as he saw the list.

Volcana.

Parasite.

Gorilla Grodd.

Solomon Grundy.

And others . . .

"Clark should have some insight into some of them of course," Batman mused aloud. "And then we can look into what's happening with Gotham."

Sighing, Alfred shook his head. "If you insist, Master Bruce."

!JUSTICE!

Watchtower

At that very same time, Hawkgirl was doing her own analyses, combing through hints and clues.

Obviously tracking super criminals was a difficult task, given the effort they put into hiding themselves, and she was still fully integrating herself into the ins and outs of this world. Still, as one of Thanagar's former instructors into espionage, she was anything but complacent.

Other tidbits were interesting her however, as it appeared that some gang bosses had mysteriously gone under. Investigations had concluded that a rogue meta-human was responsible. While separately they did not add up to much, after looking at the evidence and testimonies again, Shayera now wondered if the Straw Hats were actually the culprits.

"Hmph," she grunted aloud.

"Something the matter?"

Recognizing the sound of Green Lantern's voice, she found herself frowning more. The two of them had been arguing more and more lately, and she could not bring herself to explain why. Despite this, she could not find it in herself to avoid him, or feel actually violent about it. This confusion only frustrated her even more. Not being sure about how to behave or react wasn't like her at all.

"The Straw Hats," Shayera answered without turning around. "I think they've been doing more than just robberies. Looks like they might've been taking out some rival crime bosses along the way."

Stepping up close, Green Lantern leaned forward to read the original reports himself, making her snap at him. "What? Don't trust me?"

"It's not that," he growled back. "I just want to get an idea of what you're talking about!" Grimacing, he cut himself off and handed her one of the cups of coffee he had brought. "Here."

Accepting the peace offering, she took a sip of the bitter drink. While normal coffee was not particularly appreciated by her alien taste buds, she had discovered enough salt and cinnamon made it pretty pleasant. Even better, it was a genuinely new foreign experience for her. Didn't realize he knew I liked it that way.

"Yeah, definitely looks like they've been into this too," Green Lantern continued. "Did you see that report Superman put together?"

Not even bothering to look at the files the man had pulled up, Shayera nodded her head. "You mean the one collecting the facts the Soul King groupies try to ignore?"

"Precisely," grimaced the ex-marine, now-space cop. "The Straw Hats might console themselves saying they're only robbing from the big companies and laboratories, or beating up other crooks, but everything has consequences."

Bank vaults had been emptied. Museums robbed of historical artifacts. Jewels disappearing into the night. Major companies had lost machinery wholesale, entire supplies of materials, or whatever else was desired by the self-proclaimed pirates.

Several of those businesses had been unable to recover, and forced to shut down, putting people out of work. And insurance could only cover so much.

People, innocent people, losing their lifesavings, children's education, retirement, the whole shebang.

Moreover, with the rising tide of supervillain crime, both the League and ordinary law enforcement were being pushed to the limit as they tried to investigate and manage every crime. While the Straw Hats were not solely responsible for that, they were still a major contributor.

Taxes were being lost too, which contrary to belief were not designed exclusively for lining the pockets of politicians; they also made a country run.

Build roads.

Schools.

Hospitals…

It was not just the pride of heroes and cops who were hurt by 'Captain' Luffy and his gang.

With a sigh, Green Lantern rubbed his eyes. "We'll get through this," he promised. "We'll stop them all. And with our work for social relief, like we're doing with Wayne Enterprises, which should help even more."

"Yeah, I saw the news about that," Hawkgirl noted. "Any troubles with that kidnapper? Rocket or something?"

Truthfully she was more interested in hearing about Bruce Wayne. As a literal outside observer to this planet, she was less convinced he was just a playboy billionaire, whose sole redeeming quality was his generosity at charities, hard work, and talent at finding people trustworthy enough to manage his affairs so he could continue to spend money as fast as possible. Moreover, he was reported to have several times met Batman in public, removing him as a potential suspect.

Except with the amount of money Batman threw around (such as building a honking space station, without leaving any paper-trail Hawkgirl could trace), he has to have a wealthy backing. Unfortunately, there were a lot of rich men and women in Gotham City who might be willing to do so, and Wayne was not the only one who had lost family members to crime. And that was assuming Batman's backer was not lying low and hiding their wealth through various false identities so no one would suspect them in the first place. She gave a mental snort. Or he's doing it all on his own, living off the grid as Batman 24/7, while doing something like playing the stock market under various aliases. It's also equally possible that he set up those meetings with a fake Batman to throw people off; he's certainly sly enough for that.

"Nah," John reassured her with a dismissive wave. "The only trouble was relocating to a different office room, and putting up with Wayne's dillydallying in choosing a new one that was 'appropriate.' Honestly, the cafeteria would've been good enough for me."

"Good. Now go get some rest. I'll keep looking for any clues."

He bristled, yet she ran over him. "You've been up for hours, and I just started," she told him with a touch of irritation. "Don't think that because your Ring can keep you from needing food and sleep, it doesn't mean you don't need any downtime." It could also handle bodily functions, which frankly was not something she wanted to know in greater detail.

Scowling, he nodded and walked off, although not before getting in the last word. "I'll want to see your results when I get up."

!JUSTICE!

October 22

The warm sun was lighting up the opening of the newest Cherry Blossom Medical Center.

Originally founded and owned by the Straw Hat Pirates, when they had been discovered, they had been forced to divorce themselves from it as thoroughly as possible. While the former employees had received a nice final pay cheque, and had been given shared ownership of all the property, all of 'Dr. Mikan's' patents and private notes had been put onto the public domain. Meaning that everyone could now develop what had once been exclusive products.

Despite this, the company had rallied together, and were still a major producer of advanced medical supplies, remaining stiff competition for LexCorp and Wayne Enterprises.

They were also not fans of the Justice League.

Things had been fun and profitable under their old bosses, until the heroes had made a frankly illegal search of the premises based upon mere suspicions. Yes, Sanji Kuroashi (the pervert) and the others had clearly been doing some shady stuff, even before Luffy's major revelation at the Soul King's concert, yet that did not change how the League had lacked any concrete evidence of that beforehand. Moreover, what had been discovered in the secret basement (which was illicit in itself) was hardly anything as serious as the corruption other businesses were engaged in!

They were a medical company for crying out loud! And not one that had done any remotely unethical experiments at that!

Which meant it was a bitter pill to swallow when the Justice League approached them to help rebuild themselves back to their present status. Offering support to alleviate the stigma of being a company formerly owned by supervillains (even if Soul King retained a large fanbase). Given this aid, this meant the new board of directors felt obligated, for better or worse, to invite Wonder Woman who was standing before a crowd today, to the grand opening of a new building for expanding Cherry Blossom Medical's production.

"Tch! What a joke," scowled Sanji from behind his sunglasses. He had a hat on to cover his hair, large sunglasses to hide his distinct eyebrows, and was lost in the crowd. In front of him was a stroller, with the screen down to keep Chopper hidden. The fabric was special however, acting in reverse of a standard design so that his 'son' could see out far better than people could look in to see who was there.

"I'm just glad they're continuing it," Chopper said through his radio.

"I'm just glad Wonder Woman's the one hosting this," blushed Sanji, giggling a little as he fantasized about the heroine.

Safely concealed, Chopper just rubbed his forehead, letting his friend enjoy his delusions.

"—formed by criminals, this company will continue towards the advancement of mankind, without operating in secret."

"If you'd just left us alone we could've kept doing it, and better," groused Chopper. He had been proud of his company! He had been helping millions, if not billions of people!

"Simmer down," murmured Sanji, snapping back to reality. "Yeah, they were idiots about it, and got burnt by the press for it," –newspapers that would actually criticize those in power were a new and strange phenomenon for the pirates— "but there's no good in dwelling on it."

Then applause broke out as Wonder Woman finished her speech while they had been distracted. She stayed to shake some hands, and then flew away.

"Huh!?" chirped Chopper. "That's it?"

"According to this flier," Sanji explained, "she had to hurry off to some other charity event. Something about raising attention on the plight of the homeless." Something which admittedly he was sympathetic about. Luffy and Idiot Mosshead might be of the opinion that if people wanted a better life they should just take it, and failing to meant they were weak, while Sanji had a more empathetic appreciation for what those sorts of people went through. The horrible circumstances that brought them to that point, and the ones that kept them there. Not to mention the hunger . . .

If the Justice League was raising awareness, to promote understanding, respect, and compassion, then more power to them in the cook's opinion. More importantly, unlike other 'concerned citizens,' they seemed to try and do it regularly, as opposed to just once a year. Hmm . . . I should talk to Franky about what he did for the homeless of Water 7.

!JUSTICE!

October 23

"If we rob Fort Knox," Nami argued, "then we can take all that gold back home with us!"

Most of the crew decided right then and there to stay out of this, playing possum while Nami's eyes were literally glowing. "And we need the cash to lay low for as long as possible!"

Ever fearless, Zoro argued, "Then we should rob the gold just before Franky's figured out how we can leave this world, so we don't have to store and protect it! Bills are easier to handle."

"But if we have it now we'll be able to take it right away from its hiding place!" Nami yelled.

"Not right now," Luffy said.

Nami paused. She had expected Luffy's support, except she could see that her Captain's head was bowed so that his hat shadowed his eyes, which meant he was actually thinking. "Nah," he finally said.

Nami blinked in surprise, but before she could start chewing him out, Jinbe spoke out. "Why not, Luffy? Are you concerned about something?"

"Well, we're trying to lie low, right? Keeping them from finding us is more important. So why go that big?"

"Hah!" smirked Zoro, who enjoyed seeing the witch hit an argument she could not beat.

"We do still need some funds to get by for the next few months," Robin diplomatically put in. "Where will that come from?"

Face still hidden, Luffy just shrugged. "I dunno. Something quieter. And maybe far away so they won't be waiting for us."

"They being the Justice League," mused Usopp, finally participating. "So maybe outside of the US where they're most centered."

"Sure. Whatever," Luffy yawned. Then he lifted up his hat to beam at Nami. "Don't you worry though. We're still taking all the gold we can once Franky can get us home. Might as well make our stay here worthwhile after all."

Whenever their Captain brought up one of his rare smart ideas, everyone knew better than to argue.

Satisfied, Nami sat back down, and started to brainstorm another rich place to rip off within her leader's new criteria.

!JUSTICE!

October 28th

Somewhere in the tropics

Carrying several hampers of canned and preserved food (and yes, this time he remembered the peanut was supposed to be chunky), and a few perishables for a treat for today, Clark Kent raced through the air to an overdue appointment.

To his shame he had gotten a few days behind on Claire Selton's supply run. True, she would have plenty to get her by for a few more weeks, but that was not fair to her. Besides, he had been late several times in the past, and all of the issues he and the Justice League had been dealing with over the last few weeks were no excuse. It was only an hour or so out of his day after all.

A minute later he arrived . . . to an empty island.

Sunny and tropical, the little plot of land had enough room for a single person to live comfortably, while being totally isolated from the rest of the world. As far away from civilization as Clark could find, without becoming an inhuman prison for the meta-human criminal, Volcana.

Grimacing, he changed course to head directly to the Watchtower in space.

!JUSTICE!

Watchtower

Later

"What were you thinking?" growled Batman.

Opening his mouth, Superman was cut off as his friend bulled on with as cold and biting a tone as he could manage. "You imprisoned an unstable meta-human in solitary confinement without any legitimate authority, sporadic oversight, and I suppose you'll be surprised when Volcana springs up again as a supervillain with her considerable power!?"

"I couldn't trust the normal penal system, given the rogue government factions after her," defended Superman. "I couldn't be sure they were all gone, and they wanted her either as their enslaved assassin, to sell her, or dead so they could dissect her! And those very same powers meant no normal prison could have held her! They'd have to imprison her in a containment unit, forced to wear an oxygen mask to breathe, 24/7!"

If anything, that only made Batman more incensed. "So you decided to be judge, jury, and warden yourself!?"

It was only the two of them, yet they both knew the rest of the League was going to have to hear about this.

"Well what was I supposed to do?" demanded Superman.

Truthfully, the penal system was a sore spot for the heroes. To work with law enforcement and the authorities, to prove themselves worthy of the trust of the people, included handing criminals over for lawful imprisonment. Indeed, all of the League regarded the police officers as the real heroes, as they did everything they could without the powers or resources people like Superman and Batman possessed.

Unfortunately, it also made it rather difficult for them to keep their prisoners locked up. Or prevent others from breaking them out. Not without violating their fundamental rights, which was a slippery slope that Batman knew certain people would jump on and abuse, if given the opportunity. Lex Luthor came to mind for one, especially as they lacked evidence to prove his own crimes. So far. But just a little bit longer . . .

"Not isolate her from human contact, and hope that said isolation would be enough to keep people away from her in the tropics!" snapped Batman. "Or that you'd be able to drop by often enough to see her! You should know what that does to people!"

Grimacing, Clark bowed his head to glare at the table. Then took a deep breathe to think on what he was being told. . . . And despite her flirting, I always remained her captor. No matter how much it was supposed to help her. Not to mention she already had trust issues beforehand.

"She still chose to be a criminal," he sighed. "So if we see her, we'll have to arrest her again. Maybe I can negotiate for a more lenient sentence though."

"If we see her again, she'll be a dangerous threat," shot back his less-than optimistic friend. "Her pyrokinetic powers and mastery of them, makes her one of the most powerful metas on the planet! And according to the Metropolis police reports for the heist where you first met her, she would have burned alive everyone at that yacht club if you hadn't been there!"

Clark knew that Bruce was referring to the original reports, which he had somehow uncovered; the rogue federal operatives who had been tracking Volcana down, had inserted their own altered versions, as part of covering their tracks. No point in asking how he had found them. Unfortunately, that did not change the fact that Volcana had proven a willingness to risk the chance of homicide over finesse in committing crimes; albeit out of no small amount of desperation to stay ahead of said operatives.

Suffice to say, Clark, and the rest of the Justice League, now kept a close eye on any and all institutes that helped people with paranormal abilities. Particularly to ensure no vulnerable children went 'missing' again.

"Volcana, no!" cried Superman as she confronted the helpless man who had ruined her life. "Let the courts deal with him."

"You'll understand if I'm a little skeptical about the justice system," she replied lashing out at Superman with fires powerful enough to even hurt him a little. Especially since he did not want to hurt her. "I prefer my own justice. And if you're not part of my solution, you're part of my problem."

Later when she was lying on the beach he had set her up at.

"Food, shelter, sunshine, could be worse."

"Could be Metropolis Woman's Prison," he smiled back, "if you weren't so, volatile."

"Polite to the end. Your mother raised you well."

"I was lucky."

Now her face hardened with bitterness. "Yes. You were."

A woman who had been betrayed by everyone she had ever trusted before even meeting him.

Rubbing his face, Clark gave his friend an apologetic look. "I'd just wanted to help her after all she's gone through. Give her some peace, and a life where she didn't have to rely on stealing. Instead, I only made it worse, didn't I?"

Saying nothing, Batman merely turned his attention back to reading up on Project: Firestorm. A US black ops program to create a super-powered assassin, and who had given Superman too much trouble for his peace of mind; even if the alien had been holding back a lot.

!JUSTICE!

November 1st

(About the same time as Superman meets Joker in New Orleans, which would still be October 31st in America)

"—personally," Franky was saying, "I really want to have a good chat with Superman. I know we're kindred spirits."

"Oh," Brook curiously asked. "How so?"

"Well, first he does what he wants without worrying about what other people think, like a real man! And that's including how he's not afraid to show his face either. Everyone knows who he is because he goes around without a disguise on. And, he wears his underwear on the outside! He doesn't care that people know he's a pervert!"

Brook was almost doubled over laughing, Solomon Grundy chortled, Zoro smirked, and Jinbe's lips twitched in amusement.

"What!? I'm serious!" boomed Franky, setting them off more.

Shaking his head, Zoro rested his hand on the hilts of his swords. "Speaking of which, we really should get serious. Time to get to work."

The five of them were on a rooftop, staring down at a large bank from atop a neighbouring building. While closed for the evening, there were still people going about on the street. Usually the pirates would discretely rob the place of all its cash, except their specialists for that were all out enjoying Halloween.

Moreover, now that the League was on to them, it was decided that any special tricks they had should be kept in reserve, lest anyone learn about them. On the other hand, simple brute force was rather straightforward, and honestly would not reveal too much, hence the line-up for this heist, while the others enjoyed Halloween. Besides, not only was everyone besides Zoro too large and distinctive to be out partying, their appearances also forwent discretion anyways. Finally, Nami and Robin wanted the money ASAP, so the crew could all disappear back into the shadows until the heat died down, using the cash to maintain their operations in the meantime.

They were still taking precautions however, which was why they were not in the United States of America (or "United Steaks of America" as Luffy kept calling it), choosing a prominent London bank instead.

Yes, in his spare time, Franky had built a stealth jet for them to cross the Atlantic in. Because he is awesome. In addition, he had benefited from how Robin, Nami, and Brook having ridden a super-stealth bomber during the whole incident with the crazy Amazon lady, and brought back lots of useful tips, including a copy of the manual and blueprints Robin had memorized.

As a final precaution, they all put on big cloaks to cover themselves. For while they were abandoning subtly, and none of them besides Zoro could walk down the streets in public without standing out anyways, Jinbe cautioned that there was still no need to make themselves identifiable.

Of course, giant figures (for the humans who lived here at least) wearing fully concealing cloaks one early morning after Halloween, were still pretty noticeable. Especially since Zoro's swords still stood out, and he would never consent to leaving them behind. Not to mention how he carried three of them, and had green hair. It was weird how no one (besides Sanji) seemed to pay attention to that in their own world where that colour was even rarer, yet it stood out more here with all the posers who used dye. Nami had tried to convince Zoro to change it, but he had steadfastly refused, even in the face of a rising debt. It was his hair, and he could do what he wanted with it!

Hence the crowd of people getting away from the bank as fast as they could once they saw them.

"Pretty smart," Zoro sneered, before kicking in the doors to the bank. "Well, no matter. Let's make this quick, and get out of here."

"What about Justice League?" growled Grundy, having forgotten about that part of the briefing.

"According to Robin, we're good," Franky reassured him, albeit quieter than usual. Low profile and all that. "League's either occupied, or elsewhere, like up in space. We just have to move fast."

With that in mind, they continued into the bank, smacked the guards aside, and walked right past the empty teller booths.

"Grundy, if you please?" Brook politely asked, holding a gloved hand towards the vault.

"Why me?" asked the zombie.

"Because if we are discovered, they already know you have super-strength. They won't know what we can do," the skeleton elaborated, even as Zoro cut down the cameras. "Just a precaution."
Shrugging, Grundy walked up to the massive, reinforced steel door, and with barely any effort, wrenched it out of its frame

Fighting the urge to use super-speed to hurry it along (also a significant clue for investigators), Brook, Jinbe, and Franky hurried in, and started throwing money and wealth into bags, while Zoro walked back outside to stand guard.

To his pleasant surprise, a flying horse came charging at him.

In the same way a cat enjoys having a mouse run past it, when the feline is feeling bored.

Leaping down from his steed, was a man clad in gold chainmail armour, which made Zoro's Observation Haki tingle, as did the naked sword in the man's hand. "Villain!" cried the newcomer. "Surrender now!"

"You're Shining Knight, or something, right?" Zoro acknowledged in recognition. After all, he had asked Robin to look up whoever passed as a swordsman in this world. Of course, given the pitiful results, he had not tried hard to retain any of the details. Particularly for one of the independent heroes who did not even warrant membership into the Justice League. Then Zoro let his bloodlust shine through. "What brings you here?"

The man's face hardened, as gimlet eyes recognized his foe's passion, yet he did not yield.

He seriously did not know what he was dealing with.

As a pirate crew, each member of the Straw Hats had a job to do for their Captain.

For all Sanji's use to Zoro as a sparring partner, or dealing with other, less significant threats, Curly Brow's main job is too cook. For crying out loud, Luffy did not even know the man could seriously fight before trying to recruit him.

Jinbe is a former Warlord of the Seas, who answers to the title of Helmsman, because that is what he is expected to do.

Brook was brought aboard without Luffy having ever even personally seen him use his sword. He had been chosen because Luffy found a talking skeleton with an afro who asked to see women's panties too cool to pass up.

Robin? Because Luffy trusted her, not because she was one of the most dangerous women alive in either universe.

Franky? With him, Luffy had an idea of what the guy was capable of after he had helped them save Robin, except even then it was the personality of his future shipwright that mattered.

In fairness, Usopp did take his role of sniper seriously, even if neither he nor Luffy had any clue how much potential the long-nosed teen had truly had when he first joined up.

While the weather itself fought on behalf of their navigator, Nami was quite happy to avoid any battles.

Chopper was an exception since while Luffy had known the little guy could fight, he had not known the reindeer was a doctor. It was his strength of spirit that had made him stand out.

The point was, that Luffy had never recruited the others for their potential for laying waste to entire armies. They had developed that potential out of respect, loyalty, and love for their Captain.

Zoro?

I was chosen for my swordsmanship, he grimly thought, closing the lid over his cybernetic eye to shut it off.

For my ability to violently cut down whoever and whatever got in my crew's way. And this guy? He's in the way.

Worse, for him, he's so far beneath my level with a sword it's practically sad. A glance was all that was needed discern that.

Although that sword and armour were interesting. The 'breathes' they were giving off, were fascinating, and even confusing.

"This ends!" cried Shining Knight as he charged, sword raised high.

Curious, yet playing it safe, Zoro drew Shusui, his most durable blade, and imbued it with as much Armament Haki as he could muster, adjusted to meet the 'breathing' in that strange sword, and met the glistening edge of the enemy's blade head on.

For most swordsmen this was not only reckless, but worse, disrespectful to your weapon. However Zoro was used to cleaving straight through anything that came his way, and he could tell from Shining Knight's stance that he was used to doing the same.

The legendary swords locked together in a flare of sparks, sending the hero stumbling back a few feet, while the pirate stood firm. Both glanced at their personal weapons, and saw they were unmarred, displaying the power they both possessed. Moreover, that clash had made clear both wielded strength far greater than normal men.

Unbeknownst to Zoro, his lips were drawing back in into an inhuman smile, reminiscent of a cat who was now waiting for the tasty mouse to do something else to keep it remotely interested.

Or a starving tiger for that matter . . .

!JUSTICE!

Sir Justin, late of King Arthur's Court, knew that he faced a true villain.

One who hungered for nothing more than violence that was worthy of him drawing his blades.

On a professional note, Sir Justin was still curious as to why he carried three katana. While hardly magically adept himself, the knight was confident that neither of them were enchanted in any way. Unless there are sentimental reasons to carry them, or he can grow extra arms to wield them? he distractedly wondered. No matter. They shall not rob the fortunes of these good people. For all that though, this may be my greatest adversary.

Noble Gearradh had wrung with the sheer force of the impact, instead of continuing through. A weapon bestowed upon him by Merlin himself, which had never failed Sir Justin before.

"What is your name?" he asks his foe.

"Doesn't matter," and then the knave attacked, his actions as wide and ferocious as his smile.

And no less devastating.

Almost faster than Sir Justin could see, his foe ducked under Gearradh and delivered a vicious slash to his torso. The magic armour, enchanted by Merlin himself, held, but the world still blurred as Shining Knight was sent flying back across the street. For all that he had not been cut, the impact had nonetheless obviously inflicted physical trauma. Chest aches. Cracked some ribs I think.

Despite this, he rolled to feet, charging once more.

Barely did he block a slash at his face, and once more Sir Justin found himself rolling down the pavement. Drops of blood ran down from his face, yet once more he stood.

There was no sign of the other criminals in their obfuscating cloaks, which means they were either still robbing the bank, or had run off. No matter. There remained innocent people nearby trying to get to safety, and their hard-earned lifesavings were being stolen away. Moreover, they did not deserve to have to suffer the fear of being caught up in such events, or feel vulnerable at such crimes occurring. A knight's course was clear.

"Have you no shame, villain? Robbing those too weak to stop you?"

Now his foe appeared almost bored. "Then they should get strong enough to protect it. It's not like I'm killing anybody."

Grimacing, Sir Justin stalked forward. "So might makes right, and those weaker have only themselves to blame? There it tis once more, the creeping moral decay of the past thousand years."

"Oh?" sneered the man with visible derision. "So you're saying that everyone back in your time was moral and perfect?"

Snorting, Sir Justin leveled his blade. "Not perfect, no. Far from it even. However, in Camelot, every knight under King Arthur committed themselves to living with honour. To make the world better than it was before. And by our example, we did make a difference and bring a light to dark times. There were those who opposed this of course, and here I am now, with but another brigand before me."

Said brigand was unfazed.

A blur, and he was before Sir Justin, and this time the hero never even saw the strike that made sparks fly from his golden armour and bones creak as the sheer power of the strike still broke through. His flight down the street even farther this time. Except that his armour was still intact, and Gearradh remained in his hand. Sucking in a deep breath, Shining Knight pushed through the pain, and rose to his feet, glaring at the green haired criminal.

"You can't win," the villain noted, voice carrying down the now empty street. "And everyone's run off already, so there's no one to defend. Just give it up and go. You're going to die otherwise."

"Or you could surrender in turn," Sir Justin snapped back. While in part bravado, there was still sincerity to his words. Even greater truth in his next ones. "Besides, I will not forsake my honour and run."

Surprisingly, a contemplative look flashed over his foe's face, before resuming a feral smile akin to a beast. And yet, now there was a hint of something that suggested he was intrigued.

"What drives you?" asked the nameless swordsman. "Why do you fight so hard when you cannot win? You're too weak."

"Because tis my duty," Sir Justin answered as he advanced, Gearradh at the ready.

In contrast, his foe retained a casual stance, hand and sword dangling at his side. An insult, declaring the hero was not a threat. And unfortunately true, Shining Knight calmly conceded. He was outmatched. Far more than when he had faced the ogre Blunderbore. Yet every second I buy, tis another moment for help to come. And even if it doesn't, I cannot run while there tis even the slightest chance of victory.

"'Duty,'" the word was sneered back. "Don't you mean 'Justice'?"

"They mean the same thing!" snapped Sir Justin as he swung his sword. "To be a protector against ones who would do harm to those who have done nothing to them! To stop those who act solely upon their own self-interest and greed!"

Gearradh locked against the black katana, and he met the boring gaze of his enemy's single eye. "Your sword is heavy with conviction," the villain conceded to the hero. "Except mine's greater." Then the pressure against Sir Justin's blade exploded beyond anything before, and he was hurled through the air by the sheer force, smashing into the building across the street and through several following walls.

Sir Justin blacked out for an instant, then stood up once more, limping as he made his way past the rubble he had left in his wake, following the hole he had made in his passage. That his sword was missing did not pause his advance. He did not despair. If necessary, he would die as befitted a knight; defending the weak from those who would prey upon them.

The man was waiting for him outside on the street, a glimmer of satisfaction in his hungry, predatory eye and smile.

Stumbling, Sir Justin made his way forward to pick up Gearradh for perhaps the last time, his adversary patiently waiting. He could not tell if it was a bloodthirsty need to strike down someone who could actually fight back, a need to demonstrate his dominance, or some sliver of virtue, but Sir Justin appreciated the chance to arm himself.

To stand with honour.

To fight for the ideals his Lord King Arthur, and all his fellow knights, had believed in till the end.

Then the villain spoke loud and clear. "My name is Roronoa Zoro, of the Straw Hat Piratess." With those words, he unsheathed another of his swords and placed it within his teeth. Then he reversed the grip of the black sword in his left hand so it was laying against his forearm. Finally he drew out the last sword, holding it more traditionally. "What's your name again?" Zoro clearly asked, despite the hilt between his teeth.

"Sir Justin, the Shining Knight," gritted out the last knight of King Arthur of Camelot. "Now, have at you!"

Once more he charged.

"Oni giri!"

Darkness.

!JUSTICE!

November 1st

"First the Joker escapes from us, and now Shining Knight's hospitalized," grimaced Superman as he looked at the other heroes assembled on the Watchtower. "Batman's on the scene?"

Sir Justin had woken up briefly at one point to gasp out: "Zoro," and "Straw Hat," before falling unconscious again.

"Yes," Green Lantern nodded. "Hopefully he can explain why they've changed their M.O. so completely. Even if we do know about them now, we had no leads to finding them. So what made them decide to come out so boldly?"

"They probably want to go back into deep hiding," Hawkgirl offered, "and wanted the money to do so ASAP. So they're hitting fast now so they can disappear." It was the only explanation she could think of.

"Still, it's strange that one group goes partying, while the other one commits a felony," Diana said. "Even if the latter are apparently pretty distinctive even with those cloaks on."

"Yeah, and now we have a better idea of who they are," Flash optimistically put in. "There's a bunch of big guys, and this sword guy. Plus we have a rough idea of at least how many others from the Halloween party."

"I bet one was Brook, trying to help throw us off the scent," growled Hawkgirl, remembering the dangerous and misleading skeleton.

"That's probably not all of them," Superman warned. "Or else they're being really reckless. Still, you're right. Even if they were in costumes, we've still got more clues than before."

"Volcana might meet one of the descriptions of the ladies traveling with Luffy," Flash noted, wincing a little as he brought back up that sensitive issue. "Real buzzkill. Man, I wish things'd gone better between us. I mean, c'mon, he was wearing my costume! He's a friendly guy, and travels with lots of hot women too! Why him and not me? Is it because he's a bad boy?"

Green Lantern snorted, and everyone else ignored the speedster's last comment.

"Ah well," the irrepressible Flash beamed, shining smile glinting. "I guess I'll just have to lay on the charm more!" Then he looked even cockier. "Hey! Maybe it was dressing in red," –i.e. again, Flash's costume for Halloween— "that did the trick."

"Uh huh, sure Hotshot," Green Lantern said, now rolling his eyes.

"Volcana's certainly a threat," Superman agreed, staying on track. "Except I don't think it's her with them. She hates authority figures, and wants to be as independent as possible. Even if it's just for money, I don't see her staying for long. And if they tried to force her, she'd lash out."

"Yeah, about that," Flash commented, putting aside his bag of chips and straightening up. "In all seriousness, they aren't acting like the kind of criminals we're used to."

"You're defending them!?" snapped Hawkgirl in disbelief.

Playing the peacekeeper, Superman held up a hand, before nodding to Flash. "What do you mean, specifically?"

"They didn't just save a lot of kids from being poisoned tonight, dying in the streets. How many crooks do we know who would stand up to someone like the Joker? Or come to a lady's defense like that? Except Black Foot did all that."

Stroking her chin, Hawkgirl considered the warrior code of Thanagar. While the women of her people were far more assertive and warlike than the ones of Earth, she thought she saw what her teammate was getting at. "They have a moral code, and stick to it. At least, more so than usual."

"And they still chose to make medicine," Wonder Woman threw in with regret. The re-opening of Cherry Blossom Medical had been a conflicting event for her. "They've saved lives," she emphasized, repeating Flash's earlier point.

"And a music star," Flash threw in. "And yeah, they're breaking the law left and right, including stealing a lot of money and stuff, and threw one of our own into the hospital. Doesn't change the fact that they're different from guys like Orm, Faust, Grodd, Joker, and all those other troublemakers."

"We still can't let them get away with breaking the law," Green Lantern all but shouted, sweeping his arms to encompass the Watchtower. "Otherwise what's the point of all this!?" As an ex-marine, and over a decade as a space cop, he hated the very idea of criminals just walking free. Especially when they had plenty of incriminating evidence against them.

"We won't," Superman promised. "However . . ." and now his eyes looked distant for a second as he considered Volcana. Gaze sharpening, he looks at each of his fellow Justice Leaguers in turn. "However, that doesn't mean we can't still find a way to solve this peacefully, without anyone else getting hurt. While they'll still have to make amends of course, the situation hasn't yet escalated too far."

Shining Knight was still alive after all.

Then Martian Manhunter came in to join them. "I just received word from Batman. Shining Knight is stable, and the doctors expect him to wake up sometime tomorrow. He reported nothing else."

"Which means they got away," Superman sighed. "Alright then, while Batman handles that, we'll continue looking for Joker. We'll join Batman in London tomorrow."

!JUSTICE!

November 2nd

He awoke to a beeping noise, staring up at a white ceiling he dimly recognized.

Then a warm, comforting face filled his vision, one that instinctively made someone know they were safe.

"How are you feeling," Superman asked, relief coating his words.

Sir Justin managed a rasping sound, and the head ducked back and came back with a cup of water. "Easy," his fellow hero said, as he gingerly tipped it so that it trickled down the knight's throat.

Recovering from his disorientation, Sir Justin realized he was in a modern hospital, having only seen them on TV, or when visiting patients. Never as an invalid himself. "I'm alive?"

Superman's eyes hardened, and his jaw clenched. "Yes. After the pirates nearly killed you, they took the time to give you some first aid. The ambulance picked you up before we got there." Ashamed, Superman forced himself to meet Shining Knight's gaze. "I'm sorry. We weren't fast enough, even with the time you bought us."

"Were any citizens hurt?" Sir Justin's raspy voiced demanded.

"No, just you."

"Oh, good," the knight sighed as he let himself relax back into bed. "Then all is well." He cracked one eye open. "Do you know how long I'll be here?"

"The Justice League will do what we can to speed up your recovery," Superman promised, "but for now it's best for you to rest."

"Indeed." For a moment the Man of Steel thought the man –further proof of the worth of humankind— had fallen asleep, yet then he stirred again to look at Superman. "The swordsman who beat me, his name was Roronoa Zoro. You said he also saved me?"

Reluctantly, Superman nodded. "Yes."

"So he does have some honour. Interesting. And no, someone that skilled… he meant for me to survive. He knew that would not kill me. But he is also right, I will have to do better next time."

With that he fell asleep.

!JUSTICE!

Listening to Shining Knight's heartbeat ease until he was definitely resting, Superman silently left the room.

Outside, the rest of the League was waiting along with a stern nurse who had made it clear that heroes or not, only one person was going in to see her patient at a time.

"How is he?" Flash asked first.

"He seems to be alright," Superman assured them. "Mostly just glad that no one else was hurt."

"A true knight," praised Diana, Flash and John grunting in agreement.

"So he took his loss well," J'onn asked, impressed at the human's resilience.

Irritably rubbing his head, Superman nodded. "Yes, but he's already planning for a rematch, and it's clear that this new swordsman of the Straw Hats' is no joke. Possibly even better than Brook."

"Shining Knight's a warrior," Diana bluntly said. "It's get stronger or die, and since the latter's out, there's only one thing left to do."

Privately, Hawkgirl agreed, except she did not want to allude to her people's martial culture. Fortunately, there was another way for her to contribute. "Remember what Star Sapphire said? How she thought the Straw Hat's leader was the man with three swords? Well now we've got an idea why."

"There's something else you should know," J'onn grimly added. He handed Superman a file folder. "While you were talking to him, we got a chance to read the crime scene report," he gestured at a police officer standing patiently nearby, "including what the first responders found." The Kryptonian had hoped to ask Batman about what he had found before going in, except his friend was absent. Also, his super-hearing had sensed that Shining Knight was waking up just as they had arrived, so he had gone to seem him first. All he knew was that the self-named pirates had escaped, and neither Batman nor the police had any leads. "According to this, despite having to flee a crime scene, not only did they take the time to lay him somewhere comfortable and make sure he would not die, they also left a message on the ground. Written in his blood."

A hint of anger infecting his voice, Superman read aloud what the emergency services had found: "'A true swordsman carries no wounds on his back. Also, a true swordsman is one who has learned how to not cut anything'?"

!JUSTICE!

"Zoro," moaned Usopp. "Did you really have to give him advice on how to become stronger?"

"Eh." Zoro shrugged his shoulders in disinterest. "We'll probably be long gone home before he figures it out."

"But why'd you have to go all horror-esque and write it in his own blood!? Ugh!"

"I didn't have anything else to use!" snapped Zoro. "I didn't want to ask Franky, because if he had something to write with it'd be in his speedo." Both men shuddered. "And I wasn't going to use my blood, because then Chopper would chew me out. Or I'd get it on my clothes, and then I'd have to wash them, and the witch would get angry at me for using that expensive stain remover. She screeches."

"Oh, right! Nami's scary… Robin's been a terrible influence on you."

"Shut it!"

!JUSTICE!

Author Notes:

For the record, Sir Justin's stand against General Wade Eiling is one of my absolutely favourite scenes. Alas, he is facing a different type of enemy here. Indeed, as much as the Straw Hat Pirates are incredibly good people, One Piece still operates with what TvTropes calls a Protagonist-Centered Morality. As for the bit about Gearradh, that is just something I decided to do myself. I mean, a magic sword that can cut through almost anything must have a name, right? In this case, MasterQwertster came up with it, and it means "cutting" in Welsh.

.

Superman gets a lot of grief for his prison for Volcana, but it is worth noting that the one she got anyways in canon when placed in regular prison was much worse. Stuck in a glass sphere (i.e. 0% privacy, and nothing besides the clothes she was wearing) filled with an inert gas, with a facemask strapped to her head as her only source of oxygen. Exactly what it was like for her when captive of those rogue government agents . . . :-( That is not to say I think Superman's so-called solution was a good idea; in fact it was a terrible, terrible idea doomed to failure.

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Roxy Rocket was a popular request for joining the Straw Hat Pirates, but in the end I decided against it. While it is true she loves excitement like Luffy, she is not adventurous like he is. She is more in it for the thrill of risking life on the edge, deliberately seeking challenges that might genuinely kill her. Far too dangerous to have as part of your crew, and I feel Luffy would recognize that. After all, he was willing to leave behind the Going Merry, no matter how much they all loved her, when sailing her became too great a risk, and let Usopp leave when he was willing to endanger the lives of everyone else to keep her.

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Next Chapter: 'The Siege of Gotham'

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