It has been five years since Itachi fought and defeated Ayumi in a battle for the fate of all of the universes. Together with the help of The Team, The Justice League, and his brother Sasuke, he was able to save everyone, or so he thought. After the climax of the battle, Itachi learned that the woman that he is in love with, a young woman named Carson Collins, is a reincarnated child of his mortal enemy, Ayumi Uchiha….just like he is.
It was after that revelation that he received two prophecies from the Sage of Six Paths: one was that he would need to find three young children so that he could save them from despair and the other was that Carson would one day be despair. Itachi left after that and went on a mission where he eventually found one of the children, Cassandra Cain, and adopted her into his family.
Not only is she his daughter, but also his sidekick as he combats crime in Gotham. She fights crime as the violent warrior known as Orphan. As the years have gone by, she has only gotten more efficient in her fighting…but also more violent. She was prone to crippling and maiming criminals were as Itachi just struck enough fear in them to make them do whatever he wanted. Over the years they have taken on and defeated the likes of Killer Crock, Anarchy, Mr. Freeze, Prometheus, The Riddler, and Joker.
When he wasn't fighting crime in Gotham, Itachi was going on missions with his friends on the Team. Things had really changed in the last few years with the Team. Conner and M'gann broke up, Dick changed his name from Robin to Nightwing in a move of independence from Batman, Kaldur quit after finding out Black Manta was his father and losing the love of his life, some of the members had accepted positions as official Justice Leaguers, Artemis and Wally were in semi-retirement after deciding to just focusing on being normal, and Nightwing had assumed the role of Leader of the new Team.
There were also new members of The Team including Orphan, Wonder Girl, Batgirl, Beast Boy, a new Robin named Time Drake, Blue Beatle, and several others. Itachi was in charge of training the new members up and getting them ready to go on missions. They were all still raw and had a hard time working together. It was mostly Orphan who seemed to not want to work with anyone. If the order doesn't come from Itachi himself, she ignores it and goes her own way. Even if her hunches are usually right, it still sets a bad precedent.
Itachi told the other members to let him handle her. Nightwing didn't like the idea of letting Orphan do as she pleased, but he learned over the years to trust Itachi's judgement. He felt like if Batman and he had done that years ago regarding a certain incident, the tragedy that happened would had never have transpired.
Itachi had hope for her changing after going back to his world a year ago and meeting his niece, Sarada Uchiha. It's hard to believe that she is a daughter of Sasuke but is another testament of how much his brother had changed. She's nothing like how he or Sasuke were as children, which made him so happy. She truly knew what it meant to have a normal childhood. Itachi has faith that Cassandra will have a normal life too.
Speaking of normal lives, Itachi's had improved exponentially since his reunion with Carson. He and Carson moved in together as a couple at the Mask Shop. Together with Cassandra they have been living as a family. M'gann's mental therapy still has been working and Carson still hasn't shown any signs of change happening with her. They still have their ups and downs like how Itachi doesn't like how Carson tries to shelter Cassandra by encouraging her to stop being a vigilante. Itachi argues that she needs to be Orphan because it's how she can see that change can happen without death.
Carson would prefer if both of them stopped going out really. She argues that there are more than enough heroes in the world and even in Gotham so they shouldn't need to go out, but in truth, Itachi still needs this too. Being the Crow is the only way for him to find the Four-Eyed Raven child that is still out there. He wouldn't stop until he found the child. He knows she just wants what Artemis and Wally have but he can't give that to her, not while a life still hangs in the balance.
It was also hard for Itachi do that knowing that Ayumi Uchiha was still running around free. Itachi and even the rest of The Team have all gone out is search of her, pursuing even the most feint of rumors, but each time it all led to nothing but smoke and mirrors. Not even Doctor Fate and Zatanna could locate her using locater spells. It was like she disappeared off the face of the Earth. Itachi would not be fooled though. He knew she was still there and he knew that stopping her at all costs was still his goal.
The city had done well in rebuilding itself back up from the warzone that Wrath and Ayumi left it in. The schools were back running again, as were the businesses in both the main city and all of it's branched off subsections. A lot of that was due to the Justice League volunteering in the rebuilding efforts. But in all of the good of Gotham being rebuilt, so too was its criminal underworld.
About two years ago, an assault on Arkham Asylum by a new iteration of the Suicide Squad resulted in over sixty percent of its occupants being let out to wreak havoc in the streets. It made the crime rate in Gotham skyrocket. It also led to Joker being set free and ultimately a death in the family happened as a result of that. Waller swears that she did not okay their mission and that the Task Force X Project had been canned years ago. It was someone else that called the villains together. James, Carson's brother, confirmed that story of Waller.
The rest of the League dropped the issue save for Batman, Nightwing, and Itachi. It was personal for them. That, along with what Itachi saw when he got accidently sent into a world where Joker had murdered Superman's wife and child and caused him to turn into an evil dictator that murdered some of his friends and ruled the world with an iron fist, led to him doubting if he could trust the League anymore. It led to Itachi turning down every offer to join the League, opting to stay with his friends on The Team.
Interestingly enough, so did Nightwing. Together, the three of them put their differences aside, which stemmed from the death in the family, and created a catalog of how to defeat each member of the Justice League and The Team should any of them go bad. They even made one for each of themselves. This catalog was called The Agamemnon Contingency. They all hoped that they would never have to use it but after what Itachi revealed about the alternate world he visited, they couldn't leave anything to chance.
"Hurry up! If Orphan or Crow get here before we load everything up, they'll blow up our entire operation and cost us all millions. And if I lose millions, you will all lose your heads. Move now!" Two-Face yelled as his men quickly finished loading the cash from Gotham City Bank.
"Or how about you lose the money and just give up. Do that and I will take you back to Arkham without breaking you," They turned to see The Crow crouch on top of a stanchion. They all gulped upon seeing the vigilante and made sure not to look him in his eyes, "Or don't and get the other half of your face broken. Either way you wind up in Arkham. Now tell me-"
"Shoot him now!" They all opened fire on Crow as dropped down and hid in the dark area below. The goons kept firing until their guns ran out of bullets.
"You two go check it out. I didn't see him leave the area so he has to be there still. The rest of you fall back behind me. Keep your eyes peeled for any movement coming from the shadows. The Crow rarely fights alone now." Dent warned.
The two thugs slowly crept forward until they were just in front of the dark area. They then aimed theirs guns forward and searched for any signs of The Crow. After a few minutes passed the two men turned to signal that it was all clear. But that was when they got pulled into the darkness like how a shark pulls its prey into the deep end of the ocean. From there all anyone heard were two lone gun shots, each men screaming in pain, and the sounds of painful thuds and bones being broken. After that, a figure could be seen walking from the shadows.
Two-Face was the first to make it out as he cracked a smirk and brought out his lucky coin. He signaled for his men to train their weapons down so that they wouldn't waste the bullets, "If it isn't the little Orphan. Don't waste the bullets, boys! Her suit makes her virtually bulletproof. It's a tactic that the moronic duo likes to employ. We see him, waste all of our bullets on her, and then get taken out from behind by the birdbrain. But it won't happen to us, right?!"
"Right, but that's only because it already has." Harvey Dent turned to see that all of his men were already taken out. The Crow was in the middle of a pile of unconscious thugs. Two-Face was beside himself, "But how? When did this happen!"
"When I first dropped down. I move fast. So does she for that fact. So now you have a choice to make; get put to sleep by me, get hurt by her, or just lay down and give up so we have you taken back to Arkham so that you can get the help you need, Harvey." Itachi offered.
Harvey considered his option and was about to put his gun down, but his alter-ego took over and took out his lucky coin, "How about I let the coin decide. Heads, the Crow loses his head. Tails, and the Orphan get hung by hers."
Two-Face flipped the coin, ready to act based upon what side the coin landed on. He caught the coin and smirked as he got ready to set the hammer of his gun, but suddenly Harvey Dent took over again and stopped himself. He gave Crow a sorrowful look and was about to ask for help, but it was already too late. In the eyes of Orphan, his first reaction was his choice.
Harvey turned to see that Orphan rushed over to him and now had a strong grip on his left hand which held coin in it. He tried to use his revolver to knock her away, but Orphan blocked the attempt before unleashing a series of right crosses and backfists. She then used the hand that still had a grip on his left arm and used it to dislocate his elbow and shoulder, also making him drop his coin. Knowing that his defenses were completely down now that he only had one good arm, Orphan went for the kill by repeatedly punching Harvey in the face until he was knocked to the ground. He was already unconscious but that did not deter her. She then picked his dropped revolver up and used it to pistol-whip him until the good side of his face looked as messed up as the burned side. Blood spurted everywhere as the blows kept coming.
She stopped once Itachi took a hold of her arm just as another blow was about to land, "That's enough. He's out cold and is now in need of medical attention. That was not necessary. He was going to surrender."
She wrenched her arm free from her foster-father's grip before turning away from Dent, "I am necessary. Men such him no surrender. They lie. Joker taught me."
"But what about what I taught you? Every person deserves a chance. Always. The moment we take their choice away from them we become no better than them. I struggle with this fight every time I put the mask on so I know what you are going through. I see what you see and I feel what you feel. Don't become what you're trying to fight. I want you to be better than me." Itachi advised her.
"I try. I just angry, all time. Since…since then. I miss him. And I hate him. Does this go ever?" She asked.
Itachi pulled her into a hug. He knew exactly what and who she was referring to, "No, but with time…you will grow stronger than the pain you've suffered."
"Thank you, father." Orphan said. The police sirens could be heard approaching the bank which signaled to the pair that it was time to leave. Both of them escaped through the spot in the ceiling that they came in through and looked on as they saw Two-Face and his goons get medical attention before heading back to Arkham. Itachi always felt bad for the man because he was just another victim of The Joker, 'And Cassandra is too. She still hasn't gotten over that day.'
Itachi pulled out his cellphone and saw that he had two missed voicemails. Cassandra always laughed whenever he pulled the phone out because of the battle Carson and Artemis had to fight to finally convince him to get a phone. Itachi eventually got one just so that they would shut up about it. One of the voicemails was from Dick telling Itachi that Cassandra had a mission tomorrow. The other message was from Artemis and it was her asking if she could take Cassandra out for a girl's day out. She always asked about his adopted daughter and for that he was forever grateful. He made a note to ask Cassandra about it after her mission tomorrow.
Tonight he wanted to swing by the store to get Carson some of her favorite ice-cream and some medicine. She hasn't been feeling well for the past few weeks. She was showing symptoms of the flu but they wouldn't know for sure until he got back and she tells him her results from her visit to the doctor's office. He just hoped that everything was alright.
"Let's go home." Itachi told his daughter as they left the bank.
It took about thirty minutes, but Itachi and Cassandra finally made it back home. They switched out of their vigilante clothes and stopped by the store to pick up items for Carson. Itachi also informed the girl to get as much rest as possible as she had a mission with The Team to go on tomorrow. His daughter shook him off and responded by saying she never needed rest before a mission as she always got anxious like I was her first one. She then quickly turned her thoughts to Carson. Cassandra hoped that it was nothing serious because over the years she had really grown to like Carson and appreciate just how nice of a person she was. When the pair opened the door they were greeted by the sight of Carson shedding tears after finishing up a conversation on the phone.
Itachi didn't know what to make of it right away, but he quickly assumed that she just got bad news since that was how things usually went in his life. He stepped inside and put the items he had just purchased onto the counter while Cassandra went over to Carson.
"What's wrong?" Cassandra asked of her. Carson pulled the young girl into a tight hug without saying a word. That really alerted Itachi that something must've been seriously wrong. He walked up to her and was about to speak until Carson reached out and grabbed both of his hand.
"Cass…Itachi…something beautiful has just happened." Itachi and Carson looked at each other when Carson said that. Both of them were wondering what was making her so emotional like this if it wasn't bad news.
That's when Carson placed Itachi hands on two different areas of Carson's body. One hand went to her heart while the other went to her belly. This gesture went completely over Cassandra and Itachi's heads.
"You have stomach and chest issues?" Itachi asked. Carson shook her head at him. She was still too happy to respond to his sarcastic comment like how she normally would. Itachi and Cassandra were then pulled into a group hug by the emotional young woman, "We're going to be a family."
"We not already?" Cassandra asked as she tried to breathe through the hug of death that Carson was giving them, "We'll be even bigger one. Do you wanna know why?"
"Sure…why?" Cassandra asked with a confused look. Itachi quickly figured out what she meant by that and went blank. He had been deafly silent.
"Because I'm pregnant." Carson said with pure joy.
"Oh." Itachi and Cassandra both said though each then had different reactions. Cassandra hugged Carson with pure happiness for the situation but Itachi couldn't think back to the prophecy told to him all those years ago, 'Everything you think you have is already gone because it was never there to begin with.'
He wound up hugging the two girls as they talked about being excited. Itachi only looked up once Carson cupped his face with both of her hands, "We're having a baby. Isn't this wonderful? This is what peace feels like. Aren't you happy about this?"
Itachi then took note of how he felt n evil aura in the room now. He recognized that intent anywhere. It was the intent to kill indiscriminately. Itachi then put up a façade when he answered Carson's question, "This is wonderful news. And of course I am happy about this."
'But this is not what peace feels like.' Itachi sadly thought.
"Everything is in motion. All of the pieces are in play now. It took longer than we had expected, but our game can finally begin. Project New Beginning may have failed, but there was always a Plan B in place…Project Invasion. It's time to go to work." Vandal Savage said to his contemporaries.
"I'll teach that Nabu what fear really is." Klarion said as Teekl purred next to him. Lex Luthor put his phone away as he just finished up his part of the plan, "It's time we take away the one thing those heroes cherish the most; the faith of the people."
"Black Manta, I expect that your new asset will prove his worth to us." Savage inquired.
"Don't worry about him. He knows what must be done as he has seen the truth about his so called friends. What of the girl? Now that she is finally pregnant, what will become of her?" Black Manta asked.
Ayumi, aka The Masked Stranger, spoke up this time as her voice carried with it the weight of her rage, "You'll let me handle the girl. She's already been accounted for. Carson was born to be an insurance policy for me and now it is time to collect for I am owed."
"And what happens if Crow gets involved and stops you like last time? Or did you forget about the months I had to fix you up when we found you." Klarion said spitefully. If they were in the same room, Ayumi would have crushed his skull for that comment. Since they weren't she had to settle for just ignoring his tone.
"I took care of that issue five years ago. Even when I lose, I always win. You just do your parts and let me handle my son and daughter." She said in response.
"Very well. Let the games begin." Savage said as the room went dark and they left to start the plan.
'Itachi, I won't fail you again.' Ayumi thought as she left. She stood over Gotham City as the city lights illuminated the entire city, "It's time we talked again, my son."
That's it for the prologue. As promised, May I Live Once in Pease is getting a sequel which will be named The Conflict of Peace. We got an update on the state of things from where we last left off. Cassandra is going through some things which I will explore in future chapters as she is integrated with The Team, Carson is now pregnant with Itachi's child which plays a big factor into how this story will unravel, and The Light is ready to strike back at the heroes as Project Invasion will begin.
Also, in case some of you didn't pick it up in the beginning recap, I opened the door for several spin-offs based from the years in between stories. I opened the door for an A Death in the Family spin-off, a Justice League: Doom spin-off, and an Injustice League spin-off. I'll probable only be able to do one in conjunction with this so just let me know which one you guys like the best and I'll get started on drafting ideas for the spin-off. Show some support with a follow, favorite, review, or PM! Thanks again for the support as you guys give me the drive to write. Till next time, guys and gals.