A/N: Here I am. And if you've all seen Teen Titans Trouble in Tokyo, you'll know that Madarame is based off Brushogun from that movie. Which makes sense if you think about it. He is an artist, so it's only fitting he's the only DC Villain I know of that uses paint to fight. But if he's a brush, or an artist, you'll find out this chapter.
I do not own Persona 5 or Batman Beyond. They are works of Atlus and Warner Brothers Animation. Now let's begin
Leblanc
Sojiro was worried.
When Ren didn't come home at the time he usually does last night, he was concerned. He figured the kid was out being a dumb teenager like most kids his age do. It was only after Sojiro usually closed up shop when his concern turned to worry.
He tried to call him several times, but the boy didn't answer. And in this city, that never meant anything good. He was then able to get in touch with Bruce Wayne, who's phone number he acquired after Mr. Wayne offered Ren a job. The older man said that Ren was running an important errand for him, and that he was unable to call at the moment because he was focused on the job. He told Sojiro it was okay to lock up and Ren would be able to get home soon. The kid had a spare key, so he could get back in if he did lock the door.
But it wasn't just last night that had Sojiro worried. Ever since Ren had started this job for Mr. Wayne, He's been coming home later and later. He's even gotten calls from school about him either missing or even falling asleep in class. And sometimes in the morning, Sojiro would notice Ren was staggering when he walked, almost like he was injured all over his body, even though the kid tried to hide it. And then there were the bruises on his face.
Sojiro had wanted to ask Ren several times what was going on with the kid, but the boy was never free. Always busy with friends, school, work, or some other stuff. He only hoped and prayed the kid wasn't involved in anything too dangerous, which was a lot to ask for in a city like this.
As he continued to prepare Leblanc for the day, he heard footsteps coming from upstairs. He turned and gasped at the sight.
Ren was dressed in his Shujin Academy uniform, which was currently a mess. His hair, usually a clean organized mess, was now even more ruffled up than usual, and by the smell his body was producing made it seem like the kid hadn't taken a shower. Not only that, but the boy was extremely pale, and he had dark bangs underneath his eyes, which were also red, like he was crying non stop for a whole week.
Ren didn't say a single word as he sat at the bar counter where his breakfast curry was waiting for him. He then began to dig in, slowly, almost like he was trying to savor every last bite, as if it was the last plate of curry he would ever have.
Sojiro decided to take a chance. "Hey, you okay kid?"
Ren stopped eating.
It was a stupid question, Sojiro chastised himself. Obviously the kid was far from okay as one could be. But Sojiro couldn't help but ask.
"I'm fine." Ren answered in a detached tone as he then continued eating. Sojiro knew he was lying, and wanted to say something, but nothing would come out of his mouth. So he just decided to go back to preparing Leblanc.
Soon enough, Ren finished the curry in front of him. "Thanks for breakfast." He said in that same detached tone. Sojiro didn't turn back as he heard Ren stand up from his seat. However, he heard no footsteps retreating.
"Actually, thank you for everything Boss." He said, his tone slightly warmer, full of gratitude. "Thanks for taking me in, and giving me a place that finally felt like home again. Thanks for always looking out for me as you did, even if it wasn't obvious. And thanks for teaching me how to make your curry and coffee for as long as you did. I'll never forget any of it."
Sojiro didn't like the word Ren was using. By the sound of it, it sounded like the kid was saying goodbye. And not a "Goodbye see you later tonight," but a "Goodbye forever". Deciding that he needed to get to the bottom of this, Sojiro turned around. "Look Ren! Just tell me what's-"
He stopped mid sentence when he saw that Ren had completely vanished from the Leblanc. Sojiro was shocked, he didn't even hear the door opening and closing. He then quickly ran upstairs to see if he went back upstairs to fix himself up.
But when he got to the attic, Ren was nowhere in sight. But what surprised him was that the whole attic was clean, almost like how it was before Ren arrived, except cleaner and more straightened out. What surprised him more is that there was no sign of any of Ren's belongings.
He then looked to the side and saw a note left of the workbench with the spare key to Leblanc Sojiro gave Ren. He walked over, picked it up and began to read it.
'Thanks again. For everything. I cleaned up for the next troublemaker you take in.'
- Ren
He sighed to himself. He thought of chasing after him, but he heard the doorbell chime, signaling that customers were here. He had to make sure his business stayed afloat, both to support himself and Futaba. He could only hope Ren would be okay.
As he sat aboard the train that was taking him to Shujin, Ren simply tried to enjoy the ride. One of his favorite things growing up in the city was riding the train with his parents. There was something magical about seeing the city pass by as you rode in it.
But now, the ride felt bitter sweet.
This was likely the last time he would ever ride the train. After he got all his affairs in order, he planned on turning himself into the police. While he had no intention of telling him his identity as Batman, he was going in for murder. He didn't want to do it, but he knew he had to. After all, he had broken the vow he made with Bruce. That he wouldn't kill. But that's exactly what he did last night in a fit of rage. He didn't deserve to be Batman, or to have friends. He was dangerous, and the only way to keep others safe from himself was to turn himself in.
He knew he would probably be sent to prison for life, but he was fine with that. As long as the others worked to get rid of Shido then he would have no regrets. He just had to talk to a few people, then he would turn himself into the police before the sun went down today.
He pulled out his phone, seeing the numerous missed calls and texts he got from his friends Ann, Ryuji, and Mishima, some from Sojiro from last night. Nothing from Bruce, but he expected that, there was no way he would want anything to do with Ren after he killed someone.
He ignored the feeling in his chest and dialed a number. It rang three times before the person on the other end answered.
"Hey my little Guinea Pig, to what do I owe the pleasure." Takemi's voice came from the other end.
Ren smiled sadly. "I just wanted to call and say thank you for all your help." He could almost feel the surprise on her face as he said those words. "If not for you patching me up after I fell in that dumpster, I would have never been able to save that boy. And that's all thanks to you. I hope everything goes well with your research into crawfords and that you cure Miwa and any others affected by it. But I'm sorry to tell you that you're gonna need to find a new guinea pig for it. That's all I wanted to say. Goodbye."
"Now hang on! What's this abo-" He hung up before she could finish. He then pulled up another contact and waited for them to answer. After two rings, they did.
"Hey Ren." Iwai's voice came through, his voice filled with concern. "I heard from Kaoru what happened last night. Do you want to-"
"Iwai," Ren stopped him, "I just wanted to call and say thanks for all the help you've given me in going after Shido. I hope you'll continue to help others even without me there. Take care of Kaoru and look after him okay. And don't forget what I said. You can always be better. So don't ever stop trying. That's all. Bye Iwai."
"What the slag you are saying kid?! Don't do anything stu-" He then hung up on Iwai as he let out a sigh as his train came to a stop.
'Three down. Seven to go.'
Shujin Academy
As the bell for homeroom ending rang, Ms. Kawakami sighed in relief that it was finally over. Her part time job was really starting to get to her. But she had to get the money from those people. So she had to work harder.
She was about to fall asleep when someone called to her. "Ms. Kawakami." She jumped slightly as she saw Amamiya standing before her.
He looked horrible, even worse than she did. She wanted to ask what was wrong with him, but she didn't have the time and energy to worry about her students' problems. "What do you need, Amamiya?" She asked, hoping to get this over with and catch up on some sleep.
She looked in surprise when he smiled genuinely at her. "I just wanted to say thank you for all your help since I've started here." Her eyes widened, fully awake at the shock of his words. "You tried your best to help make me feel comfortable here, despite what all the students and teachers have said. And I'm grateful for all you do for us, despite being so exhausted all the time. I do hope you become a little more selfish and take care of yourself more often. I wouldn't want you collapsing on the others in this class when I'm gone."
His words shocked her. He was thanking her? She hadn't done much for him, or anything really since he came here, but he still thanked and praised her. Even wanted her to take care of herself. But his words caused her to be worried. What did he mean by 'when he's gone'?
Amamiya then bowed to her, shocking her again. "Thank you once again for your help. And I hope you continue teaching. This city needs more teachers like you." And with that, he left without another world, leaving Kawakami shocked dumb and staring after him.
So much for her nap break.
"Did you see the video last night of Batman?"
"You mean when he killed that power ranger cosplay? Sure did! Man, it was brutal!"
"You think he's gonna be like that one who showed up a few years ago?"
"Well hopefully he'll disappear just like that one did. Man, I really thought he was different from the others."
"Same here man. I really hoped he'd be the real death and not another psycho."
As he heard the comments made by other students in the hallway, Mishima couldn't help but clench his fists in frustration. He too saw the video of Batman killing that criminal, but he just knew that couldn't be the case! Ren wasn't like that. At least, he thought he wasn't like that. After all, if he didn't kill Kamoshida and him, who had made him suffer at Shujin, then why would he kill some random cosplayer who he didn't know and did nothing to him. He just couldn't believe it.
But apparently, he was the only one who thought so. Activity on the Bat-Site had dropped significantly after the video went viral. Many people even began to make harsh accusations and comments about Batman and the Gotham Knights. He had to find some way to make this right.
"Mishima."
The blue-haired boy's head shot up as he saw Ren standing in front of him.
"Ah Ren! Perfect timing!" He said excitedly as he looked through his phone. "I know some of the comments on the site have been harsh, but don't worry, I have a plan that if you release a official statement, maybe people will be convinced you didn't-"
He stopped as Ren's hand grasped his shoulder, causing him to jump slightly. "Mishima." Ren began, and it was then he took note of Ren's face. The boy looked horrible. And his tone sounded defeated. "Just let it go. You don't have to try so hard anymore."
"Wh-What do you mean?" Mishima stuttered.
"I know you made that site to make up for leaking my record and Shiho." Ren said. "But you don't need to try so hard to earn redemption. I've long since forgiven you, and so has Shiho. So you don't have to keep punishing yourself anymore."
"Ren…"
"So do yourself and everyone else a favor and take down the site." He said, shocking Mishima. "Sooner or later, it won't have any meaning from now on. Tomorrow morning, there will be no more Batman. So just save yourself the trouble and take it down before tomorrow."
Ren gave Mishima a pat on the shoulder as he moved past him and further down the hall. Mishima turned to look at his back as he walked away in shock. He tried to say something but no words came out of his mouth.
"Are you sure that's what he said?" Ryuji asked as he and Ann moved up the stairs to Shujin's upper floors.
"Positive! He said it before homeroom ended for me to bring you up to the roof. That he had something important to say." Ann confirmed.
"What do you think it is? You think it has something to do with what happened last night?" Ryuji thought.
"I don't know, maybe." Ann said, concern for her friend evident in her tone.
Soon enough they opened the door to the roof and saw Ren standing close to the edge, overlooking the whole school. Ann gasped as she began to tremble in worry. That was the same spot Shiho had jumped from. He wasn't thinking of…
"This spot right up here." Ren spoke up. "When I saw Shiho jump from the ledge, that was when I decided I could no longer stand on the side lines and let evil continue to have their way in this city. Little did I know that I too would be consumed by that same evil." He looked down at his hand and clenched it tight. "And worse yet, I've dragged the people closest to me into that same evil, almost infecting them with it."
"Ren…" Ryuji tried to say something but stopped when Ren turned to them with tears in his eyes.
"I am grateful to have had friends like you guys during my time here. And I'll always cherish it for the rest of my life." Ren said, his tone indicating he was hiding something.
"Ren, what are you saying?" Ann asked, almost afraid to know.
Ren took a deep breath. "I'm turning myself into the police."
"WHAT?!" Both of them shouted in disbelief.
"Why would you do that?!" Ryuji asked.
"You know why Ryuji." Ren answered darkly, his head tilted down. "I killed someone. I broke Batman's code."
"But it was an accident!" Ann tried to argue. "And besides, Saico-Tek wasn't-"
"No, it was no accident." Ren interrupted her as he looked down at his shaking hands. "I wanted to kill him. And I did. I was so angry and frustrated that I couldn't stop myself, even after he stopped breathing."
"Why are you so upset about this?!" Ryuji said, and Ren's head shot up in anger at that.
"'Why am I so upset'?" He repeated the question as he walked up to Ryuji and glared at him. "Here's a thought Ryuji. Why don't you kill someone in blind anger and then tell me the exact same thing?!"
His words and tone caused Ryuji and Ann to back away in fear. Ren noticed this and looked away in shame. There was silence for a long time before Ren took a deep breath.
"I have to do this. It's the only way to protect you and others from me. I'm dangerous." Ren explained. "There's no telling when I'll snap and hurt someone. So this is the best solution. Don't worry, I won't tell them I'm Batman or anything, so you guys and your families will be safe."
Ryuji and Ann seemed too shocked by Ren's words to say anything. "I got a few more stops to make before I turn myself into the cops. So this is goodbye." Ren said as he walked past them to go down the stairs. "Don't worry, I'll try and talk to Bruce about keeping you guys. Hopefully he won't say no since you didn't do anything wrong."
And with that, he left the two on the roof. The two stared off in his direction before they turned to each other. "Does he seriously not know?"
As Ren rounded the corner in the school's hallway he ran into someone. He was about to apologize when he saw who it was. Brown hair, dark red eyes, dignified and respectful air around her. There was no way he could mistake her as anyone but Makoto Niijima. But he did find it slightly strange that she was holding a manga, and upside down.
"Ah! Sorry Amamiya!" Makoto said, blushing in embarrassment. "I was so focused on my book that I wasn't paying attention to where I was going at all."
As Makoto began to rattle off more excuses, Ren just ignored them as he looked at her. Even now, after being on the receiving end of her cold demeanor more than once and learning about her sister, he still found her beautiful. He wanted to tell her how he felt. That he found her to be the most beautiful and cutest girl he's ever seen. He braced himself.
"Makoto," Him calling her name caused her to stop her rant and look at him. He opened his mouth to say something…
And then closed it with a shake of his head. No. He couldn't do that. It wouldn't be fair to her or himself. So he settled for the next best thing.
"I'm glad to have met you." He told her, causing her to blush more. "I'm glad to have gotten to know you, even if it wasn't all that much, during my time here. I hope you get into a good college someday. Though to be honest, I also hope you stop being so strict as you are now. It's not a bad thing, but people may misunderstand you if all you do is criticise or boss them around."
Makoto seemed confused at his words. It almost sounded like he was praising and thanking her which made her happy. But at the same time, he seemed to also be lecturing her, which made her mad.
"Anyway. Have a good life, Makoto." He said as he moved past her made his way down the stairs for the exit.
As she walked him off, now Makoto was sure there was something going on with him. Maybe he was Batman, or a part of some gang, she didn't know which. But she knew there was something he was hiding. And she was going to find out.
Wayne Manor.
Ren paid the cab driver extra for driving him up here in record time. He took a moment to admire the scenery for a moment before making his way up to the house. He smiled as he walked through the gate.
This was where he first met Bruce Wayne. Where his life changed forever. He still remembered how amazed he was when he saw an old man fight off those Jokerz with nothing but a cane. Only to be in more awe when he learned that old man was none other than his childhood hero, the Batman.
And that's what made this stop all the more harder. He failed Bruce. After Bruce had put his faith and trust in Ren, he betrayed that and broke the code of Batman. He almost wanted to skip this whole trip and turn himself into the police when those thoughts came rushing to his mind.
But he steeled his resolve as he continued up the trail to the mansion. He had to do this. So that when he finally did turn himself in, he could do so with no more unfinished business.
As he opened the door to the mansion, he was greeted by the ever faithful hound Ace, barking furious for whoever opened the door to leave. When the animal recognized who it was, it calmed down.
Ren smiled. He still remembered how vicious and distrusting Ace was to him when he first came here. But over time, the dog softened and soon grew comfortable around Ren.
"Hey Ace. How are you doing?" He asked as he knelt down and began to give Ace a scratch behind the ear. He had to admit, he was gonna miss this dog a lot. "I gotta leave Ace." Ace seemed to whine at his words as he pulled the dog into a hug. "Make sure you always be a good bad dog for Bruce alright. And try to get along with Morgana. I know he sometimes acts like a cat but that doesn't mean he is one."
Ace then gave off a noise that sounded like he was going to try to do so. Ren smiled as he gave Ace one last good pet before entering the house.
"Ren." Said boy looked up the stairs to see Morgana descending. Judging by his appearance, he had just woken up from a nap, which the boy tended to do a lot, considering he was the youngest of the four Knights. "What's going on?"
Ren smiled. He was gonna miss the kid a lot. After all, he had almost become like the little brother Ren had always wanted when he was still with his parents. "Can we talk for a bit?" He asked.
After the two sat down on the couch in the large living room, Ren then shared with Morgana what happened last night, and his plan to turn himself into the cops after he talked with Bruce. Needless to say, Morgana wasn't happy with the idea.
"You can't do this Ren!" He cried. "Your Batman, a hero! You can't just quit after one small mistake and leave me alone!"
Ren smiled at the boy's spirit. It was honestly what Ren found most inspiring about Morgana. He could be a brat and a pain at times, but he was always the most passionate about the Gotham Knights. One could argue that he was the heart of the group more than Ren was.
Ren then placed a hand on Morgana's hair and began to ruffle it, much to the boy's irritation. "I'm gonna miss that fire in you, Morgana." He said honestly, shocking the boy. "And a bunch of other things about you I'll miss."
"Ren." Morgana said, sadness in his tone.
"Even though we weren't partners for a long time, you were, without a doubt, the best Robin I could ask for." Ren said honestly. "Make sure you never lose that spirit of yours. And do try to get along with Ryuji."
Morgana wanted to argue some more, but his words of praise left Morgana starstruck, unable to speak. Ren took a look around and saw that one person didn't seem to be in the manor.
"I assume Bruce is in the cave?" Morgana nodded, still unable to speak. Ren sighed as he got up from the couch and moved toward the clock at the side. He felt a bit of nostalgia as he remembered when he found the bat stuck on the other side of the clock, which eventually led him to discover the Batcave.
Activating the mechanism, the door opened and the stairwell down to the cave opened up. Ren was shaking. Out of all the people he wanted to close accounts with, this was the one he was most afraid of. But, better to just suck it up and get it over with. Taking a deep breath, he descended down the stairs.
He took his time, as he was in no hurry. When he reached the main entrance of the cave, he was greeted with the familiar sound of bats screeching from above. He took a moment to admire all the scenery in the Batcave, from the old Batmoblies to the trophies Batman had collected over the years, to the suits he had lined up on display. It all felt surreal that this would be his last time seeing it all.
Finally, his eyes settled on the Batcomputer, and in the chair currently typing away on the keyboard, was the original Batman himself. Taking another deep breath, Ren moved to stand beside him.
"Hey Mr. Wayne." He spoke up, expecting things like "Why are you still here?" Or "You have no right to speak to me?" something along those lines.
But Bruce was silent, and that was torture in its own right. He didn't even spare Ren a glance.
Coughing to find his voice, Ren spoke up again. "I guess you saw everything last night huh? You saw me… kill Saico-Tek?" Bruce's hands slowed while typing, but he didn't say anything.
"Anyway." Ren continued, seeing that Bruce wasn't gonna speak up. "I thought you might want this back." He said as he pulled out the Batsuit from his bag and put it on the desk. "I cleaned it as best I could, so there shouldn't be any more blood on it."
Silence.
"I'm turning myself into the cops after I leave her." Bruce then stopped typing, but didn't say anything. "Don't worry, I won't say anything about you, Ann, Ryuji, or Morgana. I won't put you guys in danger, I just figured this would be for the best. Since I broke my vow."
Nothing came from Bruce. No action, movement, nothing.
"I just wanted to say, thanks for everything." Ren admitted. "You gave me purpose and hope when I felt I had no chance at all to change anything in this city and my own circumstances. And I'm sorry I let you down. Please, just don't be too hard on Morgana, Ann, and Ryuji. They are good people. Much better than me."
Nothing.
"Would you just say something!" Ren yelled at Bruce, clearly having enough of the silent treatment. "I'm here pouring my heart and soul out to you, and you can't even be bothered to spare me a glance! Was I such a disappointment that you have to pretend that I don't even exist?! Or was I so insignificant that you can't be bothered with the time to address me?!"
He got nothing.
Ren sighed. He should've expected this. There was no way they would have built up that strong of a relationship to warrant him being entitled to any of that from Bruce.
Deciding that he finished his business, he then turned around and walked over to the stairs that would lead him back up to the mansion.
"What do you want me to say?"
Ren froze at those words. He then turned around and looked in shock to see Bruce had turned his chair and stood up to walk over to him.
"What do you want me to say Amamiya?" Bruce asked again. "'It's alright', 'You don't deserve the suit', 'You're a murderer'? It doesn't matter what I say, nothing will change what happened that night! No matter how much you want it to!"
Ren backed away in fear slightly as Bruce loomed over him. But Bruce actually grabbed Ren by his shirt and pulled him in close.
"You want to be pitied? Punished? Stop being such a child and grow up already!" Bruce shouted. "This isn't some cartoon, or movie, or some random kid's fanfiction, this is real life! And all actions have consequences! If you're looking for someone to tell you you screwed up then take it to the police! Don't waste my time coming here and asking to be punished!"
Ren looked down in shame at Bruce's words. He was right. All he wanted was someone other than the police to punish him, to make it easier for him to turn himself in, because he knew if someone other than him believed he deserved it, then he really did have to go. But that thought was stupid and childish, like Bruce said.
Bruce then decided to let go of Ren and moved back to his chair. "It's pointless for you to ask others for punishment. Especially when you don't deserve it."
Ren looked up in surprise. "What do you mean?"
"I mean what I said." Bruce sat down in his chair. "You don't deserve to be punished."
"Are you kidding me right now Bruce!?" Ren shouted as he walked over to the old man. "I deserve to be punished!"
"No, you don't."
"What makes you think that?! Even after I went against the vow you made me make and kill someone!"
"Because what you 'killed' last night wasn't even real to begin with." At Ren's confused look, Bruce pulled up two pictures on the computer. One held a picture of a molecular structure of one substance while the other cycled through a bunch of different ones to find a match.
"I sent Robin, Red Hood, and Catwoman back to the crime scene to get a look at Saico-Tek. I had them gather a sample of the ooze from his body for me." Bruce revealed, ignoring the pained expression on Ren's face. "I ran a full Molecular analysis. After a few thousand comparisons I found a match." The screen then showed two identity strands of molecule structures. "That wasn't blood on your suit, it was ink."
"Ink?" Ren said, as if Bruce had grown a second head as he turned to face the boy.
"Yes. It's 'blood' was actually ink. And so was the rest of him." Bruce revealed. "So see, you couldn't have killed, or even hurt Saico-Tek in the first place. Because he was never even real to begin with."
Ren let all this newfound information sink in. Saico-Tek wasn't real. Which means he couldn't be killed. Which means he didn't kill anyone!
Relief flowed through Ren's whole body like a tsunami. He collapsed to the ground, full of relief as he had a smile on his face and tears of joy fell from his eyes. He didn't kill anyone, meaning he didn't have to punish himself any longer. The relief and joy he felt was indescribable.
"Don't look so relieved." Bruce interrupted his moment of bliss. Ren looked back up at Bruce in confusion. "While it's true that you got lucky this time and didn't kill anyone, it won't happen again. That anger and brutality you unleashed on Saico-Tek could have easily been unleashed on a normal person, and end up killing or crippling them."
Ren was shocked at Bruce's words. At first he thought the original Batman was comforting him, but it also seemed like he used this as an excuse to lecture Ren.
"Anger is a big part of being Batman, I won't deny that I've had moments when I've nearly crossed the line when I lost control of my anger." Bruce confessed. "But the moment you feel you've lost control, you have to get control back. Use your anger and rage as a tool to help you, instead of letting it control you. Else the next time something like this happens, you won't be pummeling a body of ink."
Ren took in all of Bruce's words and nodded in acknowledgement. He was right, as usual. He let anger and frustration cloud his judgement, the memories of his abusive foster family didn't help either. If he was gonna continue being Batman, he had to get a handle on his anger and make sure nothing like this ever happened again.
As Bruce saw Ren absorb this lecture, he smiled to himself. Despite what he said about not being a child, he couldn't help but be slightly relieved by Ren's anxiety and worry over the possibility of killing someone. It meant that Ren valued the life of others, even those who were deemed evil and insane.
'He truly is different from him.' Bruce thought before he shook his head to get the thoughts out of his mind. No need to bring up bad memories, especially memories regarding him.
"Okay." Ren spoke up, bringing Bruce back to the present. "So what's next?"
Later
When the other Knights arrived after Bruce called them, Ren took a moment to apologize to all of them for his harsh words. They quickly forgave him and then got focused.
"So how are we gonna take Madarame down? Go over there and beat the crap out of that abusive old dreg!?" Ryuji said, cracking his knuckles. After hearing from Ren how Madarame was treating Yusuke, Ryuji too was reminded of his own experience with abusive parents, specifically his alcoholic father. He wanted nothing more than to make that old man pay.
"No, that's too reckless." Bruce warned the blonde.
"But we know that Madarame's involved in art forgery. Isn't that enough to take him down." Ann said.
"True, we know about it. But no one else does." Bruce explained. "The courts won't believe the words of some random kids over a famous artist like him. Plus Madarame could use this as a case where he can in turn blame you all for trespassing. Now if one of those kids happened to be Madarame's pupil and even lived with him…"
Their eyes widened as they realized what Bruce was saying. "You're saying we need Yusuke in order to take Madarame down." Ren said.
"Correct."
"But that's pretty much impossible! Anything that dude hears bad about Madarame goes one ear and out the other!" Ryuji cried.
"I have to agree with Ryuji." Morgana said. "I may not have interacted with him as much as you three." He pointed to the teenagers with him. "But even I could tell from what you said that he's completely devoted to this Madarame guy, despite being a victim of abuse."
"That's understandable." Ren said as he thought back to the conversation he overheard between Yusuke and Madarame when he snuck into the shack. "Despite being clearly abused and taken advantage of, Yusuke refuses to believe it. After all, we're talking about the man who took him in and raised him after his mother died."
"So how are we gonna convince him if he won't listen to us about Madarame?" Ann asked, clearly worried for Yusuke.
"The only way Yusuke can be freed from this delusion he has of Madarame, is for him to see his true colors for himself." Bruce said, having experience dealing with these sorts of people.
"How are we gonna do that though?" Morgana asked.
The group took a moment to brainstorm among themselves in silence. Then, Ren's eyes widened as a light bulb went off in his head.
"I have an idea."
The Next Day - Madarame's Shack
"I'm grateful that you took the time to come back and be willing to model for me Takamaki." Yusuke said, grateful, before a confused look formed on his face. "Before we begin, however, I must ask… Why are you wearing so many clothes? And why is this small child here?"
As for the first question, Ren had told Ann about Yusuke's desire to create a nude painting of her. Much to her and the others' shock, he asked her to go and model for him, but only to buy time till Madarame came back. When Ryuji expressed his belief that Ann couldn't do it, Ann declared that she would show them a 'model's resolve' as she put it. She then decided to wear almost everything she had in an attempt to buy more time for herself. Currently she was sweating up a storm in her clothes.
As for the second, after hearing the plan Ren had come up with, Morgana had declared that he would go with Ann to meet Yusuke, 'to protect his Lady Ann's honor' as he put it. While the reasoning was stupid, they all agreed that it was probably a good idea for her to have some backup. No telling what Madarame would do when Yusuke learned the truth.
"I've just been feeling a little chilly lately, but I didn't want to cancel. So I'm wearing all this to keep warm." Ann answered the first with a nervous smile.
"I'm just here to see the process of making a painting." Morgana struggled to say with a straight face, barely able to hide his anger.
They had gone over that they had to seem like they were ignorant of Yusuke's request of Ann, cause if they knew what he wanted to paint when he didn't even share it with them, he would then become suspicious.
Yusuke didn't seem to mind so much. "Well, if you could please take your clothes off, I'll share with you the idea I have." Yusuke said bluntly, and Ann became flustered at how Yusuke could say such a thing with a straight face.
As Yusuke and Ann began talking, Morgana stepped back and activated his comms. "Lady Ann's beginning to take off her clothes, very slowly thankfully." He spit out the words, it made him feel sick she had to suffer through this. "How's it going with you guys? Where's Madarame?"
"He just got on a train that will be taking him to the neighborhood. He should be there soon?" Batman reported as he and Red Hood sat on a building's gargoyles looking down as the artist entered a train.
While Ann and Morgana were working to help Yusuke see Madarme's true colors, Ren and Ryuji were paired off to look after the man himself. If they wanted this to work, their timing had to be perfect. The plan was for Madarame to walk in on Yusuke discovering the forgery operations, Ren thought that would be the perfect moment for Madarame's mask to shatter and for Yusuke to see him for what he really is. So Ann and Morgana would take Yusuke to Madarmae's vault the second they knew he came home, and Ren and Ryuji were watching him to let them know when the time was right.
Red Hood groaned as he saw Madarame step onto the train. "Argh! I can't stand all this waiting around!" He cried as he turned to Batman. "Why don't we just bust him now!? We can make him tell Yusuke everything after we beat his old butt!"
"Believe me Red Hood, I want nothing more than to do the beating myself." Batman said honestly as he clenched his fist, his mind flashing back to his abusive foster family. But, he took a deep breath and loosened his fist. The last time he let his anger get the better of him, he technically beat someone to death, even though the person wasn't real. He had to follow Bruce's warnings and control himself, if he didn't want a repeat of what happened, this time on an actual person.
"But we have to be smart about this." Batman told his friend. "Right now we-I'm on the police's radar. If we go beating an old man without any proof, that would just bring more unnecessary heat on us. We need to be smart about this."
Red Hood sighed in acceptance. He knew Batman was right, didn't mean he liked it though. He then looked back to the train Madarame was on as it began pulling out of the station. "Well looks like he's on the move."
"Then let's follow him." Batman said as he jumped off his gargoyle, extending his wings and flying after the train.
"Why couldn't I get wings or rocket boots?" Red Hood grumbled under his breath as he switched his guns to grapple mode and shot off to a nearby building, zipping through the air as he followed his leader.
"Takamaki, it's been over ten minutes, and you haven't even changed out of half your clothing?" Yusuke said. Ann was down to wearing a jacket and an extra pair of jeans over her normal clothing. She was taking as long as she possibly could.
"I'm sorry. It's just a little embarrassing for me. I've never done this type of modeling before." Ann said, flustered.
Yusuke then held his hands up, creating a picture frame with them. "If you are worried about how your measurements will be perceived, rest assured, I can make them bigger or smaller if you wish."
Again, it was just so surprising how Yusuke could say things like that with a straight face.
"How dare you say such things!" Morgana shouted as he ran up to Yusuke. "Lady Ann is perfect the way she is! There's no way anything about her would need to be changed!"
The comment only made Ann more flustered.
"Oh? You're still here?" Yusuke asked, completely oblivious that Morgana was still in the room.
Ann sighed as he placed a hand on her forehead. Her phone then vibrated and she looked down at it.
REN: Madarame's outside.
"Hey Yusuke. If I may ask, where's the bathroom?" She asked. She looked to Morgana to see if he caught their code for when it was time, when he replied with a subtle nod.
Yusuke didn't seem to pick up on it as he pointed outside the room. "Down the hall to the right, then make a left, and it's the third door on the right."
"Umm, could you maybe come with me?" Ann asked in a feigned shy voice. "I have a horrible sense of direction."
"Yeah, and I have to go too. And my sense of direction is as bad as Lady Ann's." Morgana said as he acted like he had to go to the potty by performing the potty dance, which was humiliating.
Yusuke sighed. "Alright, I'll show you. Maybe this could help speed up the painting anyway." Yusuke muttered as he led them out of the room. He then led them down the hallway he mentioned as they turned the final corner of the hall, Morgana suddenly stopped.
"Hey, what's that?" He pointed. Both Ann and Yusuke looked to where he was pointing. There was the high security door that both he and Ren had mentioned. Where the supposed forgery was.
"That's a storage room where Madarame stores some of his prized possessions." Yusuke said.
"A storage room?" Ann spoke up.
"Let's go see what's inside!" Morgana shouted as if he was a kid waiting in line for ice cream.
"No you can't go back there! It's locked!" Yusuke tried to argue.
"The couldn't you open it up?" Ann asked.
Yusuke looked away. "No. Only Sensi has the authorization to do so. It will only open with his voice." He explained. "B-Besides, I'm not allowed to go near that door. Sensi strictly forbid me from doing so. So let's just go to the bathroom and-What are you doing?!"
His sudden shout was because Morgana began to pull something out from his bag. It was the Voice Synthesizer. Before Yusuke could do anything to stop them, the all heard the door to the shack open.
"I'm home!"
At the voice, Yusuke went pale. "Sensi!" With Yusuke distracted, Morgana pointed the gadget toward the door's voice panel and pulled the trigger.
"Madarame. Open." The device rang out. The door chimed as it then open. The action caused Yusuke to look back at the door in bewilderment.
"Huh?"
At that moment, Madarame rounded the corner and saw the whole scene. "What are you doing there?!" He demanded, his polite and humble facade cracking.
Yusuke turned to his teacher and frantically tried to explain. "It's… It's not what it looks like!" He cried.
Ann's eyes narrowed as she grabbed Yusuke by the arm and dragged him into the room, Morgana following them.
"Not in there!" Madarame shouted as he followed the three inside.
Overlooking the inside of the shack from the roof, Batman saw with his detective vision that they all entered the room. Now they only have to wait for Yusuke to see Madarame for who he truly is. And then, they would take him down.
"I have a question." Red Hood spoke up as he stood beside Batman. "Say this all works out and we get Yusuke to testify against Madarame, what's gonna happen to that weirdo when this is over?"
"What do you mean?" Batman asked as he kept a close eye on the conversation, even using his suit's enhanced hearing to pick up what they were saying.
"I mean, Madarame practically raised Yusuke right? If he goes to jail, who's gonna take care of that weirdo when this is all over?" Red Hood asked.
Batman had thought about the aftermath of Madarame's arrest and what it would mean for Yusuke. He seemed to have built most of his life around Madarame and painting. If one of those were to suddenly disappear, what would happen to him?
"You don't give Yusuke much credit." Batman's words caused Red Hood to look at him in surprise. "Yusuke's a lot stronger than we think he is. He could have killed himself due to the pain and suffering he took at the hands of Madarame a long time ago, but he still found the strength to keep persevering. If he was able to hang on this long with how Madarame was treating him, I have no doubt he'll be fine without the likes of Madarame in his life."
"I guess you got a point." Red Hood said as he stood up and placed his hands on the back of his helmet. He failed to notice a shadow approaching him from behind. "I guess I just worry since he's such a weirdo that he may not be able to make any fri-" He didn't get to finish his statement as suddenly something hit him from behind and sent him flying.
"Red Hood!" Batman cried as he turned to see the culprit, only for a fist to his face to send him flying. He quickly recovered and managed to land next to Red Hood in a crouched position. The two looked toward their surprised attackers.
One was Saico-Tek. Batman had to admit, the sight of the ninja thief filled him with relief. It meant that he truly didn't kill him. Standing next to him was a large yellow colored machine with a large mouth and swinging tentacles with scissor-like blades attached to it..
"What the slag is that thing?!" Red Hood cried pointing to the yellow machine.
"I don't know." Batman said as he narrowed his eyes at Saico-Tek. "You take care of it, I'll handle Saico-Tek!" Batman then fired off his thrusters and flew to engage the ink-ninja. Batman crashed into him and grabbed him by the stomach and flew off to another rooftop
"Hey! How come you're leaving me with that strange yellow robot!" Red Hood cried as he dodged a downward slash from the yellow robot.
"I am Timoko! Timoko! I will be your doom! Doom!" The robot said as it continued to swing its scissor whips. Red Hood dodged and vaulted over several whips as he pulled out his guns.
"Yeah, gonna have to pass on that pal!" Red Hood said as he opened fire, sending several Batarangs flying towards his opponent. The Batarangs did little to the robot's armor as it continued to swing it's arms at him.
Red Hood again dodged before he decided to change tactics and fired off at one of the scissor whips, severing it with some extra sharp Batarangs. He smirked in victory before the whip regenerated and flashed through several different colors before landing on yellow.
Red Hood's jaw dropped behind his mask. "How'd you do that?!" He didn't get an answer as Timoko swung its regenerated whip and sent Red Hood flying.
On another rooftop, Batman was currently battling against Saico-Tek. While their fight last time went mostly in Saico-Tek's favor, Batman, until the end, was holding back as to not hurt or kill anyone.
Now that he knew Saico-Tek wasn't alive or even real in the first place, he didn't have to hold back anymore. He attacked with the same ferocity and brutality as he did at the end, but unlike before he made sure to keep himself calm and controlled, not like a raging beast that couldn't stop until the thing in front of it was dead.
"Don't think you'll have the upper hand in this fight." Batman warned, even though he doubted Saico-Tek would even hear him. "I know what you are now." He said as he delivered a mean right hook that, with the suit's enhanced strength, would be able to kill a person. But as he suspected, Saico-Tek merely did the impossible body twisting ability and was able to snap his head back into place after turning it around in a 360 degree angle.
Batman didn't stop as he continued to press his attack.
Back inside the shack, Yusuke was beginning to have a panic attack in the dark space of the supposed storage room. "This is bad Takamaki." He said as he began to shake violently. He disobeyed his teacher, and would surely be punished for it.
"Are these the lights?" Ann asked herself as she flipped the switch.
With the lights coming on, all three of them gasped at what they saw, Yusuke being the most surprised. "What the…?!" He muttered.
"Is this Sayuri?" Ann asked as they all saw dozens upon dozens of copies of Madarame's famous painting.
"Why are there so many of them…?" Morgana asked as he looked around, though he and Ann had a pretty good idea.
"I have no idea…" Yusuke confessed, just as confused, if not more so, than the two of them.
Madarame walked in and glared at all three of them. "Get out!" He demanded.
Yusuke turned to his teacher. "Sensi, what is the meaning of this…?" He asked, still in disbelief.
Madarame thought about it for a moment before sighing. "I suppose I can't keep quiet about this now that you've seen this…" Madarame muttered before explaining. He then began to share that the original Sayuri was stolen by a former pupil. He said it led to an artist block which caused his students to hand in ideas. He said in order to further Yusuke's talents he had to see copies of the Sayuri and then meet a person who knew they were fakes. He then asked Yusuke for forgiveness.
Just as Yusuke seemed like he was about to, Ann spoke up. "Wait, there's something I don't get." The others looked at her. "If the original Sayuri was stolen, how were you able to make such detailed copies of it?"
Madarame seemed stumped by the question before explaining. "I… managed to find a detailed picture of the Sayuri in an artbook and used that as my template."
"So you managed to make copies from a photo of the original?" Morgana asked, skeptic. "I'm not sure how all this art stuff works, but don't people who generally buy paintings have a keen eye for the fine arts?"
"Good point Morgana." Ann praised, which caused the kid to blush slightly before she glared at Madarame. "This sounds like a lie to me!"
Madarame glared at her. "What would you know?!" He asked.
Morgana seemed about to speak up when he looked at a purple rag covering a painting. He looked underneath and gasped. "Hey Lady Ann." Morgana said, getting the attention of everyone. "This one seems different." He then pulled off the cloak covering the painting, despite Madarame trying to stop them.
The Sayuri was revealed behind it, but this one seemed more real, more genuine than the other fakes in the room.
Yusuke gasped as he was the first to realize. "Sayuri! This… This is the real Sayuri!" He then turned toward his teacher in suspicion. "You just said a moment ago that it was stolen?"
"That's a replica!" Madarame tried to argue.
But Yusuke wouldn't be fooled. "No, it's nothing of the sort!" He declared, his sharp eyes able to see through Madarame's claim. "This painting kept me going… it's the reason I've made it this far…" He stopped for a moment as a terrible realization formed in his mind. "Sensi… Don't tell me…"
"It's fake… a counterfeit!" Madarame tried to save himself. "I heard news that a counterfeit was going around, so I bought it!" He said, hoping it would be a believable enough lie.
But Ann wasn't convinced as she turned back to face him. "So you're telling us that the original painter bought a counterfeit? That's a stretch."
"Yeah, even Ryuji wouldn't have believed that!" Morgana chimed in.
"You're lying Sensi." Yusuke said as his eyes narrowed, as if he was beginning to see the truth behind the mask Madarame made. "Please just tell us the truth…" He begged, wanting nothing more than to know what his teacher was hiding.
"You too…?" Madarame muttered, feeling betrayed. "Well I guess I have no choice but to get rid of you three then."
That statement both shocked Yusuke and Ann, but Morgana didn't seem afraid as he had a cocky smile on his face. "Hah! I like to see that! What do you have that makes you think you can take us down! Some sort of fancy private security!?"
"Yes." Madarame said with an evil smirk as he closed his eyes. He suddenly began to scream in pain, causing Yusuke to almost run toward him if Ann hadn't held him back. Suddenly Madarame's whole body was enveloped in black ink, and his skin seemed to become like paper. Black ink tentacles sprang from his back. His transformation was complete with white eyes and an evil smile, much to the trio's horror.
"You just had to open your mouth Morgana?" Ann said as she began to back away, making sure Yusuke was behind her.
"How was I supposed to know he could do that?!" Morgana cried.
The monster that Madarame became smiled before he placed both his ink hands on the floor and dragged them back, forming lines of blue and pink. When he finished, shapes and humanoid forms began to materialize from the ink. Eventually they took the forms of a blue and pink cat girls, much to the trio's shock.
"Kill them!" Madarame ordered as the cat girls struck.
Batman flipped backward to avoid several thrown objects from Saico-Tek as he came back to back with Red Hood, who was firing off Batarangs to keep Timoko away.
"You got any ideas on how to get out of here Batman?" Red Hood asked, annoyed at the yellow robot giving him trouble.
"They must have some sort of weakness!" Batman said as he threw a pair of explosive Batarangs toward Saico-Tek, who was sent flying but quickly recovered. "Let's think for a moment. Saico-Tek is made out of ink, and if this Timoko is with him, then he too must be made of ink."
"How exactly does that help us besides letting us know we can play ruff?" Red Hood asked as he took a moment to let his guns cool down.
"Well, what's a good way to get rid of ink?" Batman asked himself.
Both their eyes widened as they glanced at each other over the shoulder. "WATER!" Both of them shouted.
"Great! Now use your water gun setting against these ink blooded dregs!" Batman ordered.
"Water gun setting? What makes you think I have a water gun setting?!" Red Hood asked in disbelief.
Batman then turned to look at his partner in surprise. "Wait, you don't!?" At Red Hood's nod, Batman's jaw dropped. "I thought those guns had every kind of variation possible. And you're saying it doesn't have a water setting?!"
"Why would I need a water gun?!" Red Hood asked as he turned to face Batman. "Who would have thought we'd be fighting dudes made out of ink!? And why doesn't your belt that littersally has one of everything not have a water gun?!"
Before Batman could answer, he looked behind Red Hood and then threw an explosive Batarang to the approaching Timoko. Red Hood did the same as he shot at an approaching Saico-Tek with Batarangs.
"Well, it's not exactly a water balloon," Batman said as he reached into his belt and pulled out a hand sized device that had cold mist coming from it. "But these freeze grenades should do the job."
He then threw one of them at the approaching Timoko. The grenade exploded as it made contact with one of his scissor whips, covering the entire arm in ice. Soon, the ice broke along with the arm, and unlike before it didn't regenerate back.
Red Hood then switched a setting from his gun and fired off several bullets at Saico-Tek that exploded and quickly formed icicles on the ground before one bullet hit him in the leg. When it broke, his leg fell off, but quickly regenerated, but the action had cost him part of his face.
"These freeze bullets aren't as effective as a water gun, but they should get the job done." Red Hood said as he turned back to Batman, who could tell he was just smirking in excitement under that red helmet of his.
"Then let's do this!" Batman said as he pulled out more freeze grenades and charged at Timoko while Red Hood moved to engage Saico-Tek.
Back in the shack, Morgana did his best to avoid and counter the strikes from the blue cat girl that had just come out from the floor, somehow managing to overlook that fact for a moment, enough not to get distracted in the fight.
But he also didn't really try to fight back. Despite the fact that the catgirl probably wasn't even real, and that she was attacking him, he couldn't bring himself to hurt her. After all, he was a gentleman, and a gentleman never hits a woman, regardless of how rude and terrible she is.
"Morgana!" He then turned to the side to see Ann engaged with the pink catgirl, showing no sort of hesitation in fighting back. "Snap out of your gawking and take that ink catgirl down!" She said as she delivered a kick to her own opponent.
'Well, if lady Ann says it's okay…' Morgana thought before he got serious and began to fight back with full effort, forcing the catgirl back.
All the while, Yusuke watched the fight with disbelief. While he would normally capitalize on this moment to try and find some inspiration for his next painting, he was too overcome with shock to do so.
Madarame. His teacher, the man who raised him when his parents died… turned out to be some sort of monster who abuses others and commits forgery, mocking the very profession he claims he is a master at. And not only that, he turned out to be an actual monster who created some sort of catgirls after transforming into some ink demon, like that one alien from those superhero shows back in the day.
Not only that, Takamaki and that noisy boy, Morgana, were currently fighting those same creations to protect him. They didn't even seem all that fazed by it all and stood up to protect him with no hesitation.
And right now, it seemed like they were losing. These catgirls were able to move their body in such an inhuman way that these two were powerless to fight against. And soon enough, they were both knocked to the ground.
Yusuke gasped. He had to do something! He couldn't just stand by and let others suffer when he could do something about it, not again! He looked for anything that could be used as a weapon before he turned and noticed a pair of sticks on the ground. A smile soon formed on his face.
"Ugh!" Ann muttered in disgust as she tried to stand up. She couldn't believe that she, the new Catwoman, was getting her butt handed to her by some fake catgirl. These narrow hallways made it difficult for her to perform some of her more acrobatic moves, and the catgirls flexibility gave them a clear advantage. Not to mention that Morgana holding back certainly wasn't helping.
Ann covered her eyes as the catgirl was about to slash at her with her claws, but something came bouncing from the walls and hit the cat girl in the face, knocking her back. Ann looked in surprise before she saw the object come ricocheting back to the thrower, which to her great surprise was Yusuke. He then took a stance, bending his knees slightly as he held the wooden baton he just threw behind his back with his right hand and one out in front with his left.
The catgirl growled as she then charged at Yusuke, swiping viciously at him with her claws. However, Yusuke was able to counter and deflect all of her hits using his batons, forcing her back. He even began a beatdown on her with his batons, before performing a front flip in the narrow hallway, bringing his foot down on her to slam her into the ground, incapacitating her.
Morgana was currently on the ground, trying to throw the crazy cat girl off of him. But suddenly two wooden batons came bouncing off the walls and forced the catgirl off Morgana. He looked up to see Yusuke, who caught said batons in his hands attacking the cat girl.
After striking her a few times, Yusuke, to the shock of Ann and Morgana, stabbed one of his batons straight through the catgirls temples, coming out the other side of her head. The two looked in horror as Yusuke removed the baton from the catgirls head, causing her to fall to the ground.
"Yu-Yusuke…" Ann asked, as she stood up nervously with Morgana behind her, holding the same facial expression. "Are… Are you okay?"
"Yes, why wouldn't I be?" Yusuke asked, confused at their tone. If anything he should be asking them that.
"I mean… you just… killed someone…" Morgana voiced. Though he and Ann knew that these catgirls weren't actual people, he figured that Yusuke would probably be too shocked to believe them otherwise.
Yusuke's eyes narrowed as he pointed one of his batons at them. "How dare you make such accusations, especially after I've saved your life! I've killed no one!"
"But… those two girls…" Ann said as he pointed at the catgirl who he stabbed through the head.
"Who? These poorly drawn creatures?" Yusuke said as he looked toward the 'dead' cat girls before turning back to the duo. "These 'girls' were clearly made out of ink. Did you not know that?"
"Huh?! How did you know they were?!" Both of them shouted in shock.
"The smell." Yusuke said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. At their confusion, he explained. "As a painter, I've learned to be able to pick up the faint smell of paint or ink in a room, and these two 'girls' were covered in that smell, all the way down to their blood."
They then heard a clapping and turned to see Madarame, still in his monster form, moving towards them. "Very impressive Yusuke. Both in your fighting and in your deduction. But I shouldn't expect anything less from my most promising student."
"Sensi." Yusuke, who once always said this word with a high degree of respect, spat out the title as he glared at him. "For too long, I have allowed myself to fall victim to your lies and manipulations, turning a blind eye to all the injustice you've done to me and your other students." He then held his batons at the ready. "But that all ends today. I will no longer allow myself to be deceived by you! I will do all I can to stop your crimes from hurting anyone else!"
Madarame frowned as he looked at Yusuke. "So even my most loyal disciple has turned against me." He muttered with venom in his voice, which coupled with his demonic appearance made him all the more terrifying. "I had hoped to use you for a bit longer, but it seems like I'll have to throw you away much sooner than I intended."
He then slammed his hands on the ground again, dragging them back as different colored lines formed, creating more ink monsters, this time more than the three could handle.
Batman took to the skys to try and avoid Timoko, which failed due to the ink robot having flight capabilities of its own. However, this worked to his advantage.
"Hey! You yellow bellied tin can! I have a question for ya!" Batman called out as he pulled out a Freeze Grenade in each of his hands. "How'd you ever solve the icing problem?!"
He then began to throw grenade after grenade at the ink robot, reaching into his belt to pull out at many as he had. The robot managed to dodge many of them, but as soon as the first one hit, it was unable to move much and was soon completely encased with ice. The robot's thrusters then went out as gravity began to take its course.
SHATTER!
And with a loud crash and shattering noise, the frozen ink robot broke into pieces, its remains scattering all over the roof. Batman smirked as he looked down. "Guess he didn't."
Red Hood aimed his pistol and fired, only for Saico-Tek to once again bat away the gun and slash at him with his sias. This had been going on for a while. Despite knowing what weakness Saico-Tek had, hitting him was proving to be difficult.
Saico-Tek then delivered a kick to his chest that sent Red Hood flying into a water tower. He groaned as he shook his head to wake himself up. He then gasped as he saw Saico-Tek's sia about to pierce his head. He brought up his left gun to stop the sia from penetrating his skull, placing the barrel in between the blades. Though it succeeded, the blade did manage to get into his helmet and nearly stab him between the eyes.
However, he smiled.
"Gotcha." He said, which seemed to surprise Saico-Tek.
BANG!
Saico-Tek stumbled backward as the freeze bullet, which came from the gun in Red Hood's right hand, hit him point blank, causing ice to cover his whole chest. Before he could do anything about it, more freeze bullets rang out from Red Hood's guns, soon causing his whole body to be encased in ice.
Seeing that his enemy was now trapped, Red Hood walked up to him and smirked underneath his mask. "Not so tough now, are ya?" He asked mockingly as he brought his hand up and slammed down hard on Saico-Tek's frozen head. The impact caused him to shatter completely.
He then turned to Batman, who landed down and walked toward him. "Good work, now let's check in with Ann and Morgana." Batman said as he accessed his comms. The line ringed for several seconds before answering. "Hey guys, sorry we had to deal with some-"
"No time for that now we have to get out of here!" Morgana's panicked voice came through the other end.
"Why, what's happening?!" Batman asked. He didn't hear a reply as suddenly, a bright light flashed overhead. He and Red Hood both cover their eyes as they look up to see half a dozen or so flying police cars surrounding the duo.
"Freeze!" The captain of the gathered officers shouted through a megaphone from his patrol car. "Batman you are hereby underarrest for murder and evading the police! Stand down or we will open fire against you and your accomplice!"
Batman and Red Hood both gritted their teeth. They were surrounded. They then heard a crash from below and saw Morgana, Ann, and surprisingly Yusuke coming out from the shack into the street, looking ready for battle. Gritting his teeth, Batman tried to come up with a plan to get them all out of there. He then looked off into the distance and saw the Batmobile approaching.
He smirked as he looked back at the cops. "Not tonight." He told them as they prepared to open fire on him and Red Hood. But before they could pull the trigger, the Batmobile suddenly appeared as it then created a large smokescreen from its sides to cover up the whole area.
Down below, Ann and Morgana were relieved at sight of the Batmobile, while Yusuke was just confused as he and the three were enveloped by the smoke.
After a few seconds, when the smoke finally cleared, the Gotham Knights, along with Yusuke, had vanished completely.
Later - The Batcave
"Wait. Madarame turned into what now?!" Ryuji asked in disbelief.
"An ink demon!" Morgana cried, annoyed that the blonde kept interrupting him as he and Ann told them what happened inside the shack.
"I wouldn't say demon." Ann corrected Morgana. "But what happened to him definitely wasn't normal."
"What is he?" Ren asked out loud.
"Brushogun." The Knights turned their heads towards Bruce when he said the name.
"Brushogun? Who's that? One of your old rouges?" Ryuji asked.
"No. I've never met him. But I've heard stories." Bruce explained. "He apparently appeared a few years after I hung up the cape and cowl. At first I thought he was just some boogeyman, but I did a little research just in case, hacking into police reports and eye witness accounts. According to the stories, Brushogun was once an artist who dreamed of bringing his paintings to life. He tried to accomplish it using Japanese dark magic. According to the rumors, it worked, but it came with a heavy price." He didn't need to explain to the Knights what that price was.
"Guess those rumors were true." Ren groaned in annoyance. A feeling that was shared by them all.
To make matters worse, their original plan to have Yusuke testify against Madarame went out the window. After they escaped, Madarame made an announcement that one of his star pupils, Yusuke, had tried to steal several of his works of art and pass them off as his own. So now with Yusuke being framed for plagiarism, there would be no way the courts would believe him.
Speaking of Yusuke…
"This is… beautiful!" He shouted, gathering the others' attention. They saw him standing below the dinosaur, forming a picture frame with his hands. "This creature… I can feel the pain, the tenacity within it as it struggled to live in its final moments! It's so breathtaking!"
Everybody sweatdropped at his words, even Bruce.
"Why is he here?" He asked.
"Well we couldn't exactly leave him with Madarame now could we?" Ren argued. "And you yourself said that we need him."
"To testify against Madarame." Bruce corrected. "But now that testifying against him is no longer an option, he's of no use to us."
Before Ren could argue further, Yusuke spoke up. "Mr. Wayne." He came up to stand in front of the former Batman. "I may not be able to do anything to help testify against him anymore, but I can help you take him down."
"And how is that?" Bruce asked, narrowing his eyes.
"Because I know him." Yusuke answered. "I've lived with Madarame for as long as I can remember, and while most of what he either said or showed me was a lie, I was able to catch glimpses into his true character. I can figure out how best to bring him down. And not only that," He then held a hand over his heart as he looked down in contemplation. "I feel it is my duty both as an artist and a former student to make sure this fraud who I've worshipped all my life be brought to justice! Please, let me achieve justice for all the wrong doings that Madarame's done while I've just stood by and watched as they happen!" Yusuke finished as he bowed
Bruce was silent as he stared at the boy. The other Knights watched with concern. They could tell how sincere Yusuke was in his desire to take down Madarame, and achieve some sort of redemption for himself for not doing anything earlier. But Bruce had the final call, this was his legacy after all.
"Fine." His answer shocked everyone.
Yusuke quickly smiled in joy as he bowed once more in gratitude. "Thank you! I will do whatever I can to help!" He declared earnestly.
Bruce merely nodded as he turned to Ren. "Remember what I said. Anyone you bring into this life is your responsibility from here on out. You understand?" Bruce warned Ren.
"Got it." Ren nodded in acknowledgement. Bruce then turned back to the computer and got back to work.
Ryuji then threw his arm around Yusuke's shoulders. "Welcome to the Gotham Knights man!" He yelled with a big smile on his face, as if all annoyance and anger he felt toward the artist boy vanished instantly.
"Glad to have you with us Yusuke." Ann said with a smile of her own.
"I would be honored to fight alongside another pure heart." Morgana said as he extended his hand. Yusuke took it and shook.
Ren then placed a hand on his shoulder. "Welcome to the fight." He said with a smile, which Yusuke shared. "Now that you're a part of the team, I have a few questions for you. First off, how are you so good at fighting?"
"Oh yeah!" Ann said as she flashbacked to the fight in the shack. "You were totally able to overpower those two cat girls with those sticks of yours. And you were able to ricochet them off the walls like a pro would."
"Yeah, where'd you learn to do that? I didn't think a painter would have it in them to learn how to fight." Morgana said.
"What do you mean? This is Nippon-Gotham." Yusuke said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "In this city, everyone who even wants to live to see their twenties needs to learn how to fight. Madarame thought so too, so he paid for me to have martial arts training under several instructors since I was young. I also practiced on my own from time to time."
"Well if you got some seriously schway moves, why didn't you use them to beat the slag out of Madarame whenever he hit you?" Ryuji asked.
Yusuke looked down in shame. "I guess… the thought never occurred to me. After all, why would I attack and hurt the one who cared and raised me for as long as I can remember."
The Knights had looks of understanding on their faces. Despite being evil, Madarame still raised Yusuke, so it was probably impossible for him to fight back against him until today.
"Alright, second question." Ren spoke up, wanting to change the topic. "What about all those flips you were able to do in the hallway? The skills you have seem like one a professional or someone with a lot of passion for it would possess."
"Oh! You see, while my mother was an artist, my father was an acrobat!" Yusuke began explaining with a smile on his face. "I've never met the man, he died before I was born. But I do remember my mother telling me stories of him when I was young, most of them about how amazing an acrobat he was. At a young age, in addition to art and self-defense, I also took an interest in gymnastics. I felt that if I practiced and got good at it, it would be a way for me to be close to my father, like how my art makes me feel close to my mother."
The others smiled. It made sense why someone would want to practice the same hobbies as their parents as a way to feel close to them after they've died.
"Okay, last question." Ren said after a few moments of silence. "Who do you want to be?" Yusuke seemed confused at the question.
"Oh yeah! We got to give you your superhero code name and suit!" Ryuji said excitedly.
"Superhero code name? A suit?" Yusuke asked in confusion.
"Yeah. We all have suits and code names we call ourselves when we go out and fight crime." Ann said as she walked up to the display that held her suit. "I'm Catwoman."
"I go by Red Hood." Ryuji said from his suit's display.
"Call me Robin while out in the field!" Morgana said with a smirk in front of the Robin costume.
"And I'm Batman." Ren said in front of his suit's display. "Now you need to choose one for yourself, besides the ones that are already taken.
Yusuke's eyes shook in wonder and awe as he looked at each of them and pictured them all in their superhero costumes. That kind of scene would make for a wonderful masterpiece! Especially when he himself was with them.
He then observed all the different suits closely, trying to find one that would catch his eyes. He wondered over the many different suits worn by Batman's previous partners. After scanning over a lot of them, his eyes stopped over one suit in particular.
"This… this costume…" Yusuke muttered as he held out his hands in a picture frame to capture it in his mind. "I can see the level of talent and confidence the previous wearer expressed in this suit! And the craftsmanship and care that went into creating it is truly marvelous. I must dawn this suit!"
"That's Nightwing's." Bruce said as he typed away on his computer, able to see what was happening from a reflection on the massive screen. "He's retired now, so you won't need to worry about him getting mad.
"Then from this day forth…" Yusuke began as he placed his hand on the glass shielding before throwing his arms out in an over exaggerated fashion. "I shall be known as Nightwing!"
A/N: Happy Thanksgiving everybody, to those that celebrate it that is.
Hope you all enjoyed the chapter. So yes, I made Madarame into Brushogun from the animated film Teen Titans: Trouble in Tokyo. I just figured it made the most sense. I mean, Madarame is a painter himself, and this is set in a mix between Tokyo and Gotham, so it made sense.
As for Yusuke's father being an acrobat, I just figured since we know nothing of his father in canon Persona, I just figured I would make him one, give Yusuke a reason to be an expert at Gymnastics. And no, Dick Grayson is not Yusuke's father.
Also for the first half exploring Ren's depression after Saico-Tek's death. I just figured it would be important to show how taking a life would affect Ren's mental state (even though he found out later he didn't). Kind of like a wake up call for him to get control of himself so he doesn't let his anger control him. Because while we all know Bruce has anger problems, he's also had training to help him discipline that anger, training that Ren never had. He's just been bottling up these feelings for a long time, and when he's Batman, those feelings can explode out at times and make him lose control, mostly when he is frustrated, angry, or even scared. I hope this makes sense. He's gonna be working on controlling his anger, but this won't be the last time he loses control.
Also I'm a bit torn here concerning Yusuke as Nightwing. I don't really know what suit he should wear. I would like him to wear a more modern and advanced suit, since this is the future after all, but I feel like he would look so much better in the disco suit Nightwing wore in the eighties or nineties. I just feel that look would work so much better for Yusuke, even though personally I don't like the suit. Let me all know what you think in the reviews and PMs. What suit should Yusuke wear?
So anyway, here's a preview of next chapter:
The Fall of Brushogun:
With Yusuke now joining the team under the alias of Nightwing, the Gotham Knights move to take down Madarame, also known as Brushogun. However, Brushogun still has a few surprises in store for the Knights.