"Your night just got worse Crow." Deathstroke started shooting his firearms at Itachi as soon as he got out of the car he crashed. Itachi landed behind the row of parked cars behind him and ducked to avoid being hit. Deathstroke continued his assault by following Itachi down the row of cars while still trying to shoot him. Once they both made it to the last car it became a contest of who would turn the corner faster.

Itachi won and was able to slide across the hood of the last car and drive his elbow down hard on Deathstroke's arm to get him to release one of his guns. Deathstroke tried to counter by shooting with his other gun, but Itachi saw it coming thanks to his sharingan and countered it accordingly. Itachi parried Deathstroke's shot away from his body and used a two-on-one arm grip to dislodge the other gun from Deathstroke's hand. Deathstroke would try to counter by delivering an elbow aimed at Itachi's head but got kick across the street. Itachi used this moment to retreat before Deathstroke could regroup.

Itachi made it to an alleyway when he was grabbed from behind and thrown through the building next to him. Itachi landed on his feet and saw Deathstroke jump through the hole in the building to go after him. Itachi couldn't believe that not only was this assassin quick enough to catch up to him, but was also explosive enough to toss him without challenge. He quickly deduced that Deathstroke wasn't a normal human, 'There is no way he should be able to keep up with me. He took a head-on kick from me and got back up like nothing happened. He must be physically enhanced with something.'

Deathstroke charged at Itachi, who held his ground and stood ready to counter. Itachi leapt over Deathstroke and kicked him through the wall that was behind him. He felt he didn't have to hold back as much with someone like Deathstroke. While the bounty hunter was still on the ground recovering Itachi followed up with his attack by unleashing a jutsu on him, "Water Style! Water Bullet Jutsu!"

The water torrent blasted Deathstroke through three more walls until he was out of the building complex and into an open area. Itachi dashed ahead to finish the fight before more damage was done. Deathstroke leapt back to his feet and used a level change to deliver a hard cross to Itachi's chest that stunned him. Deathstroke would try follow up with more strikes to the body and head of Itachi while he was still stunned. Itachi recovered quickly though and started to get adjusted to Deathstroke's fighting style thanks to his sharingan. He was soon countering and blocking everyone one of Deathstroke's strikes, and Itachi began to deliver critical counters whenever he saw openings.

Deathstroke switched it up and delivered a kick to Itachi's body which was caught. Itachi kicked out Deathstroke's planted leg only to be reversed and rolled into an arm-bar submission. Deathstroke's fight IQ was way higher than Itachi expected and if he didn't act soon, Itachi would get his arm snapped. Itachi switched the position of his thumb from upwards to sideways to alleviate pressure and prevent any more damage. Once he did that he was able to gain a dominate position by getting to one of his knees and forcing Deathstroke onto his back. Deathstroke quickly saw this as his opening to draw his knife and attempt to stab Itachi in the face. Itachi caught the blade and they soon found themselves in a stalemate.

Itachi used his free hand to summon a shadow clone to attack with a kunai since Deathstroke was still on the ground. Deathstroke acted fast and drew a spare gun he had hidden in an ankle holster and shot the clone in the head. The clone blew up upon impact and allowed Itachi to create space from Deathstroke by leaping backwards. Deathstroke got up and started unloading his gun at Itachi, but was too slow to hit him. Itachi used his speed to overwhelm Deathstroke and kick his gun away from him. The two then began to engage in a fist fight and it was clear Itachi was the far superior fighter. If it wasn't for his physical enhancements, Deathstroke would have lost this fight from the very start. His physiology made him stronger, faster, smarter, and more durable which kept him in this fight, but the advantages Deathstroke really had over Itachi were his healing ability and his willingness to kill.

Deathstroke drew his dual katanas and tried to decapitate his foe. Itachi wanted to end this fight now before possible reinforcements arrived. Itachi summoned a kunai and they both engaged in a battle of blades. Itachi dominated early in the dual thanks to his proficiency in kenjutsu, not allowing a single strike to land while connecting with any cut he aimed for. It didn't matter how flashy Deathstroke's moves were because Itachi's sharingan gave him the clear advantage. Itachi flipped backwards to avoid a swipe, land on his hands, and sprung forward to kick one of Deathstroke's katanas away. He then dropped his kunai, almost taunting Deathstroke to rush in. Deathstroke charged forward and began unleashing a flurry of sword strikes that would cut down most men. Itachi ducked, parried, and dodged every strike aimed at his direction. When he saw an opening thanks to an overextended strike, Itachi went for the finishing blow.

He kicked the katana out of Deathstroke's hand and into the air. Deathstroke tried to connect with a hook shot but Itachi ducked under it and countered with a flying knee that stunned him. Itachi used this moment to catch the still airborne katana, sweep kick Deathstroke to the ground, and drive the blade through both of the killer's hands at the same time. Itachi had successfully pinned Deathstroke to the ground. Deathstroke yelled in pain from having both of his hands stabbed through and glared at Itachi from his spot on the ground.

"It's not over Crow!" He yelled.

Itachi didn't pay him any mind seeing as he was defeated. He teleported away and left his opponent fuming. Deathstroke, not wanting to fail a contract, ripped his hands free from his katana. Both of his hands were ripped in half all the way down to his wrists, but that wouldn't stop him from continuing his pursuit since he knew he'd heal in a matter of moments. Deathstroke smiled through the immense pain that he was in, 'It's been a while since I've fought someone like you Crow. You remind me of Batman in a lot of ways, but that's where you'll fall. He has limits and so do you. I have none.'

He sped away once his hands healed. He came across a car approaching him, pulled out another gun from one of his many holsters, and shot the man and his passenger wife dead. He showed no remorse as he dumped their dead bodies on the pavement and drove away in pursuit of his prey.

"I'm not finished with you Crow!"

Itachi was travelling via rooftops after he finished with his fight with Deathstroke. He could admit that the assassin was far more skilled than he originally deduced. The man was about as skilled as a jonin back from his world. Itachi had no doubts that he could defeat him in an all-out one-on-one fight but that wasn't the issue. The issue was this killer's code of ethics, or lack thereof. He would do anything to fulfill a contract, even if that meant killing innocent people.

Itachi remembered reading how Deathstroke once set an entire village on fire just to kill one man. Any man capable of doing that was not someone to be trifled with.

As Itachi continued heading towards the nearest subway he noticed a disturbance occurring on the street below him. Down below was a car charging through like a raging bull. It was driving in and out of lanes, crossing over sidewalks, running lights, and hitting innocent bystanders. Itachi got a better look and saw that it was Deathstroke behind the wheel of the car. The assassin poked his head out of the driver's window and began shooting at Itachi.

'This maniac is out of control,' Itachi had to stop Deathstroke before he caused any more damage. Itachi quickly summoned some shuriken and launched them at the cars wheels causing it to stop. Deathstroke quickly got out and began to shoot at as many people as possible.

"If I can't keep chasing you, I'll just have to make you come to me then Crow!"

Deathstroke was confident that the vigilante would have no choice but to confront him if he wanted to save these people. To him the Crow was nothing but a poor copy of Batman. Sure, he could acknowledge that Crow had skill, but Deathstroke still had a few tricks up his sleeve. He knew that Crow was heading towards the subway to mask his trail, he knew because that's an escape route he'd take if the roles were reversed. That's why he has men stationed there just in case he failed in killing the vigilante.

Itachi leapt down to the street and charged at his foe. He quickly weaved through the respective hand signs and launched the Phoenix Flower Jutsu at Deathstroke. Deathstroke saw through it and held his ground. He knew Crow usually performed that technique as a diversion while using the opening to strike his opponent. The key to countering that strategy was staying focused and keeping visual contact on your enemy. He used his blade to deflect all of the fireballs that were close to coming into contact. He saw Crow use the cover of the fireballs to launch a sneak attack and prepared to counter. He threw down smoke bombs and timed his change of levels until Crow was right in front of him. Just as Deathstroke was about to strike him down with his blade, Itachi surprised him by leaping upward at the last moment.

Deathstroke looked up to see his adversary perched up on a rooftop. He scowled behind his mask and drew his gun out again. He was about to shoot at Crow, but stopped when he saw him start to point at him. Deathstroke immediately tried to get out of his line of sight to avoid being put under a genjutsu. He knew that the Crow had two methods he could use to initiate that nightmare world of illusions he put criminals under; through eye contact or by pointing at his target.

Deathstroke prepared for whatever world of horrors he was about to endure, but after a few moments passed he became curious. Reports stated that the effects were immediate but he still didn't feel like he was being taken away from the real world. It was then that he realized a few things: he sensed the giant unoccupied truck that had halted behind him and he could smell the gas fumes escaping it. The truck looked like it would explode at any moment. He looked around and saw that he was the only one left near it; the rest of the people were a considerable distance away. It was then that he realized that he had been tricked.

'Bastard! Those fireballs were never aimed at me; he fired them at the truck behind me. That charge at me must have been a stalling tactic so that the rest of the bystanders could get away to a safe distance since he knew I'd keep my focus squarely on him and I fell for it. Now I'm about to take the full brunt of this explosion.' He thought bitterly.

The truck blew up and since he was so close to its proximity, Deathstroke had little time to avoid the blast. Itachi watched as the truck erupted into a fireball of smoke that enveloped Deathstroke completely. Itachi's plan worked just as it was supposed to. Ever since he was a small child he knew the first and most important rule of combat is to always know your battlefield. When Deathstroke initially reappeared he began to shoot at Itachi on the rooftops. It was while dodging the bullets when Itachi saw how focused Deathstroke was on him, which would ultimately be his undoing.

Itachi started to travel again, except now he was changing courses from the Gotham Subway Station to the abandoned Westward Bridge. Itachi knew that explosion wouldn't stop Deathstroke, even at pointblank range. His armor was too advanced for that and his healing ability would heal any damage suffered. Deathstroke would recover soon and continue his pursuit. Itachi had a general idea of how Deathstroke kept finding him and planned on using that to his advantage.

The good thing about Westward Bridge was that there were no civilians allowed to occupy it; something about a string of bomb threats that recently occurred there that caused the police to shut it down. People literally got out of their cars and ran to safety. It would be a barren battlefield without any civilians that could get caught in their cross-hairs. It would be a dual between Deathstroke and Crow; Itachi was done holding back and was determined to make this their last dual.

Deathstroke didn't take long to recover from the head-on truck explosion. He was lucky that he could jump and shift his body so that the thickest parts of his Promethium armor could take the brunt of the explosion. He wasn't worried about anything too fatal happening since his armor protected him from a punch from Superman once. He wound up being sent flying into the nearby convenient store where he would lay on the ground reeling from the pain. The injuries weren't nearly as bad as they could have been; only suffering a few broken bones and a mild concussion. When Deathstroke healed from his injuries he exited the store and went back on the hunt for Crow.

He looked down and did a weapons check. He was out of ammunition in all of his guns which left him with only his Promethium Sword. It was made solely out of Promethium; the hardest metal on Earth. It could cut through anything. Deathstroke looked down at his wrist gauntlets to see just where the vigilante's location was. Unbeknownst to Crow, Deathstroke had a tracer placed on him. It was how he was able to keep up with the vigilante after all of this time. This has become more than just a contract with him; it's now a point of professional pride. He has gone up against the likes of Ra's al Ghul, Green Arrow, Deadshot, Superman, and Batman himself.

'I will not be bested by some no-named punk!' Deathstroke sprinted as fast as he could which was about 60 mph. According to the tracer, Crow was at the abandoned Westward Bridge.

"He hasn't moved from that area in a while. He must have figured that I would survive the blast and knew I'd continue the chase when I healed. That bridge was abandoned ages ago. I see…they'll be no interference there and we'll finally find out who the best is between us. I swear I won't stop until I drive my blade straight through your heart."

Itachi was currently on top of one of the bridge's suspension cables. He looked down and saw Deathstroke walking towards the center of the bridge.

'Him being here confirms it then,' Itachi leapt down from his spot and confronted the assassin. He landed in front of Deathstroke and examined him with his sharingan, 'His armor seems to have taken the brunt of that explosion. I see no evidence of internal damage to his bones or his organs; if there were, they must have healed by now. He seems just as fit as when we first crossed blows. And looking at it now, the sword in his hand is different from his dual katanas. This blade is made with a lot more of the material that is in his armor.'

"That was a cute trick back there, but this is it Crow. This is where I impale my blade through your heart." Deathstroke announced.

Itachi stayed silent. He had no interest in a petty war of words. Deathstroke saw this and chuckled, "Please stop trying to be Batman. You're nowhere near his level. I am superior to you just as I am superior to him."

"Who are you trying to convince; me or you?" Itachi countered.

"Why you arrogant-" He was interrupted when Itachi charged him faster than ever before and connected with a strong right cross to his abdomen that broke several of his ribs. Deathstroke was slow to get back up, holding his ribs wile in severe pain from the punch. He could tell that Crow was done holding back now.

Itachi continued with assault by rushing towards his downed foe. Itachi reached him and decided on going for an axe kick. Deathstroke quickly rolled out of the way just in time to see his foot create a hole in the floor. Deathstroke unsheathed his sword and began his counterattack. He started to swing his blade at Crow with every intention of decapitating him. He kept his movements tight since they were in a closed off battlefield. The abandoned cars really restricted movements so everything had to be perfect or he'd get countered by Crow for sure.

Itachi saw the swipes at him and used head and body movement to evade them; all while keeping control of the pacing of their fight. Once he felt they were in a comfortable spot on the bridge, Itachi landed a solid oblique kick that knock Deathstroke off balance and flipped backwards high into the air to create distance. Deathstroke could see Itachi weave hand signs and prepared to fight off the incoming volley of fireballs that were about to come his way. Just as he got into his defensive stance though he saw that the specific hand signs Itachi wove were different from before and grew worried.

Itachi finished with the signs and unleashed his clan's signature jutsu, "Fire Style! Fireball Jutsu!"

A massive orb of roaring fire left Itachi's mouth and headed right for Deathstroke. He knew he wasn't going to be able to deflect something that big and made a dive to get out of the way. A giant molten crater was left in the ground and most of the sidewalk area of the bridge had been blown off. Deathstroke looked on in shock, 'If I hadn't gotten out of the way I would have been done for. My armor won't be able to protect me if I get hit with that much fire.'

Before he could recover Itachi rushed him again. He had a kunai in his hand and went straight for the kill. Just as Deathstroke got up he had a kunai driven right through his chest, or so it seemed. His armor was too thick to be penetrated by something as weak as a kunai; it barely made a dent. Deathstroke saw this mistake and took advantage of it.

"I win!" He knocked Itachi back and drove his blade straight through Itachi's chest. Itachi stood there in shock as Deathstroke laughed. Moments later Itachi detonated into a pointblank explosion that sent Deathstroke airborne. Deathstroke looked to see what he assumed was the real Crow in the air with him. Itachi was heading directly for him with a kunai ready.

'The same thing will happen as before,' Deathstroke thought as he crossed his arms to block his chest. Itachi saw how the armor stopped his clone from penetration and decided to switch it up. Itachi saw Deathstroke move to protect his chest and at the last moment switched targets. He flipped the kunai to his opposite hand and aimed it directly at Deathstroke's eye. Itachi used his free hand to keep Deathstroke's arms in place so that they couldn't deflect the attack. He then successfully drove his kunai right through Deathstroke's eye, causing the man to cry out in pain.

Itachi then kicked the assassin down back towards the ground. Deathstroke landed in the roof of a car with so much force that the car was sent hurdling towards the hole in the bridge that Itachi created with his giant fireball. The car was just barely hanging on to the bridge. It was teetering back and forth where the slightest movement would cause it to go over and fall into the Gotham River. Before Deathstroke could get up, Itachi threw shuriken that had wire connected to it and trapped the assassin on the roof of the car.

Deathstroke could only watch with his one good eye as the wire wrapped around and trapped him. He looked up to see Crow catch his blade that was still in free-fall and land on top of the car he was trapped on.

'This idiot is going to make the car tip over,' he thought worriedly. He looked back up through his bloody vision to see his opponent raise his blade up slowly, 'He's going to cut me loose…just like Batman. The coward must have just done this to prove a point-'

He stopped his thoughts when he saw Crow drive his blade all the way through his chest, or specifically his heart.

Itachi bore down in his defeated opponent. He summoned his clone right after using the Fireball Jutsu to test out a theory. He wanted to see if his kunai could pierce his armor or not. Back when they first fought Itachi used one of Deathstroke's own blades to pin him down so he knew it could be pierced, but he needed to know by what. It seems that the only thing that can significantly pierce Deathstroke's armor is something that is made of the same material. Back when Itachi was examining him, he saw that Deathstroke's mask had no trace of the element in it. That meant it could be pierced easily if given the chance. The clone wasn't used purely for testing his theory; he also wanted it to get Deathstroke into position so that Itachi could finish him off. That meant taking that strike through the heart so that he could detonate the clone at the right time and send Deathstroke airborne.

Because of how the clone attacked him moment prior to being airborne, Deathstroke was already of the mindset that his chest area was the target. By the time he realized that Itachi was going for his eye, it was too late. Pinning him to this teetering car to immobilize him was the next step, which is why he used his defensive movement to subtly change which section of the bridge they were fighting on. The fireball knocked him off balance and got Deathstroke to take his eyes off of his opponent which ultimately led to his defeat. Once Itachi figured that his armor could only be pierced by something akin to it, he made a move for Deathstroke's sword and drove it through the aorta of Deathstroke's heart so should he attempt to free himself, it'll only cause him to quickly bleed to death.

Itachi leapt off of the car and left Deathstroke pinned on top of there. Between the kunai in his eye and the sword through his heart, Deathstroke knew that he had lost this fight. If he tried to make a move he'd tip the car over and drown. He glared at Crow through his lone eye, but eventually wound up smiling behind his mask.

"You…you're nothing like Batman. He would have never used such deadly tactics in a fight. If it wasn't for my healing ability I'd be dead for sure. But you already knew that didn't you. Blowing that truck up wasn't just to stop me; it was also your method of testing the extent of my healing abilities, wasn't it?" Deathstroke asked.

Itachi nodded. Deathstroke started laughing even louder, "You truly are something special Crow. Here I thought this was a fight on equal terms, but in reality you were always three steps ahead of me. You're nothing like Batman…or me for that matter. When I look at you, I feel fear for my life. The only other person who has been able to make me feel that way is the old man; Ra's al Ghul. I…I've read stories about how devastating the old man was back in his younger days, how calculating he was. Looking at you now is like I'm looking at the younger version of Ra's. That man believes in killing for the greater good of the planet, no matter how big the number is. He has killed millions and just like him, I can tell that you've killed before and not just once. You've killed enough to burn away for an eternity. Trust me I know, I'm a killer too."

Deathstroke then started to cough up a lot of blood but continue on, "The old man will be most pleased to find out about you Crow."

Itachi had enough of this madman's rhetoric. He got back on to the roof of the car and stared down at the assassin. He then drove his finger into the wound created by the sword still in Deathstroke's chest, causing the man to moan in pain.

"You won't be able to track me anymore with that device. That was smart putting it on me all the way back at the party, but did you really thought I wouldn't have eventually figured out how you kept up with me for all this time. You showing up wherever I went confirmed to me what that devices true functions were. Stay out of Gotham. And as for this Ra's al Ghul, give him a message from me the next time you see him."

Itachi got back off of the car. Deathstroke felt that since he had been bested that he could honor the vigilante's request, "What's the message?"

Itachi then kicked the car off of the ledge and caused it to fall into the Gotham River. Deathstroke was quickly sinking deeper and deeper into the river. He had to act fast or he'd drown. Luckily, he had contingencies for situations like this. He activated the retractable metal blades in his gauntlets to cut the wires that were constricting him. He would have done so earlier, but with Crow right there he knew he had to wait for his moment. Now that Crow removed his tracer, there was no way of keeping track of him so he had to concede this fight to him; the was far from over though.

Once he was free from the wire, Deathstroke knew the hard part was about to begin. He had to dislodge himself from the car without moving the blade or he'd risk bleeding out because of his aorta, but if he was too rough he might cause the wound to get worse. So Deathstroke swiftly surged forward so the sword would stay in place. He'd just remove it later when he was able to find a doctor since his healing abilities wouldn't cover his heart being sliced open.

After what seemed like an eternity, Deathstroke was finally able to free himself from the car. He was currently floating underwater with a kunai in his eye and his sword through his chest. He'd lost a lot of blood and was exhausted from his fight with Crow so he'd use the cover of the water to escape. Just as he was about to escape he noticed something sparking and lighting up the interior of the car. When Deathstroke inspected it he saw that the car was filled with paper bombs that were seconds away from detonating. Deathstroke figured he must have set them off when he removed the blade from the car and he doesn't have enough time to escape the blast range of that many bombs. He smirked in resignation, 'I think I figured out the message he wanted me to deliver.'

All of the bombs went off and engulfed Deathstroke. Above land, Itachi noticed that the bombs had gone off by the geyser that had erupted behind him. Itachi planned this entire fight out from the very beginning. The whole time his endgame was to get Deathstroke on that specific car because it was filled with paper-bombs. These bombs were different from the ones back at the catacombs because unlike the catacombs, these bombs were at maximum charge. The way he had it set up, should Deathstroke attempt to free himself from the car and use the water as a means to escape he'd set the bombs off because the sword acted as the detonator based on how it was placed. The sheer force it would take to remove the blade without it moving from its spot in his heart would cause enough friction to create a spark that would set every bomb off. Itachi left no stone unturned.

Itachi gave one last look back towards where Deathstroke was beaten and sighed. He didn't want to resort to blowing him up, but he wasn't much choice given how skilled and determined the assassin was. If his healing ability was as potent as Itachi hypothesized it was, then Deathstroke should still be alive, but he will be out of commission for a long time.

Itachi sensed that the fight was finally over. He took out his arrow and sent a message to Artemis, "I'm heading over to the Cave. Whoever your current superior is, inform them to summon Batman and the rest of the Justice League."

He then teleported away and started heading to the zeta-tube in Gotham to deliver the information he gathered to the League.

Back at the Cave, Itachi was in a meeting with the founding members of the Justice League. Artemis had to rush back to the Cave so that she could inform their supervisors of the week; Captain Marvel and Zatara. When Itachi arrived he went straight into the conference room with the Leaguers and hasn't come out for hours.

Aqualad and Robin got tired of waiting and were in the middle of a training section while she and the others were left guessing what was being discussed in the room. Conner couldn't hear a word for some reason so all they could do was wait. And this was supposed to be her off-day. The only reason she is even here is because of all of the chaos that transpired in Gotham, which of course she found out was Itachi.

Just one look at how tethered his clothes were gave it away. She and Robin wanted to investigate it last night but were given strict orders not to. Batman said that it was a League issue, whatever that meant. But seeing Itachi showed them that he must have stumbled upon something big that was happening, especially if it caused all of the founding Justice League members to convene here.

They were getting worried because reports started swarming in about gigantic plants attacking cities around the world not too long ago. These plants are causing widespread damage and needed to be stopped but for some reason nobody was telling them anything.

Conner and M'gann had left to get snacks for the wait. When they returned Robin and Aqualad noticed how close they were walking together and smiling at each other. It didn't take long to put the pieces together.

"You know they're a couple right?" Robin asked.

"I believe I knew before they did." Kaldur answered.

They then turned and saw Artemis and Wally. The two clearly didn't know about the relationship based on the fact the Wally was complaining about it. Robin asked whether or not they should tell the two, but Aqualad decided against it. He figured it should be up to Conner and M'gann to decide who knows and who doesn't.

Just then, Batman and Itachi emerged from the conference room. The team gathered around and Batman pointed to the news feed. They asked where the rest of the League was and Batman informed them that they went ahead to start fighting the plants. Robin asked if they were going out there to help fight the plants. Batman answered no.

"The League will soon have the situation under control. That's not why we're here. According to your intel, Sportsmaster supplied Cadmus' blockbuster formula to Cobra." Batman started.

"He combined it with Bane's venom to create cobra-venom." Wally finished.

"The Brain used it to create his animal army," Robin added.

"And also upgraded Wolf with it." Conner said while petting his furry companion.

"The Brain also used inhibitor collars like the ones at Belle Reve Penitentiary."

"Batman is it possible that the plants are also on cobra-venom too?" Artemis asked.

"Yes, I had Green Lantern run a spot analysis. The plant's cellulose does contain trace amounts of a cobra-venom variant." He answered.

"These cannot be coincidences. Unrelated criminals are cooperating with one another worldwide." Aqualad surmised.

"Yes. Last night I had Crow go on a covert mission. He infiltrated and was able to spy on this group of villains that consist of Wotan, Poison Ivy, Black Adam, Atomic Skull, Ultra-Humanite, Count Vertigo, and Joker. According to Itachi their plan is to divide and conquer us. We are going to spring that plan."

"Wait what? Why are we going with their plan again?" Wally asked.

"Because it's the only one they have. All we have to do is spring it and beat them. That depends on you all though." Itachi answered.

"He's right. That's why your mission will be to confront and defeat the Injustice League. The other Leaguers and I will fight of the plant attacks until you all are able to shut them down."

"What about Itachi? Will he be joining us in confronting the Injustice will or will he assist the League in combatting the plants?" Aqualad asked.

"I'll neutralize the plant threat in Gotham City. The other Leaguers will focus on the other locations of the plants. Once that's done I'll join you in fighting the Injustice League but not a moment before. I have something important to attend to first." Itachi answered. He and the League decided this was the best course of action. This way, should the Team fail there will be backup in Itachi since the Injustice League still don't know that he is cooperating with them.

"But we need you Itachi. If what you say is true, then the best course of action should be us fighting together. That way we can defeat them faster and protect Gotham as a team. Plus, there are more of them than there are of us." Robin rebutted.

"No, I have faith that you all can last long enough for me to finish up in Gotham. The people in that city need me more than you do." Itachi said definitively.

"But you don't even know if you're going to be able to handle those things on your own. At least take one of our supervisors with you." M'gann said worriedly.

"I'll be fine. This isn't up for debate. It's already been decided so get ready and go. The sooner this happens the more likely you'll succeed. The enemy is operating under the guise of you all being on their time of attack, but now you know what to expect and who to expect it from. Pretty soon they'll make a broadcast where they'll state their demands, but by the time that happens you'll already be there."

"I think I get it. If we speed up their timetable by even a little bit, they'll fall apart and give us an opening for success. That means us leaving now is the correct choice of action." Aqualad realized.

"Exactly. Get suited and head out." Batman said before zeta-tubing to go help his teammates.

"Where is their base of operations," Wally asked. Zatara stepped up and used a locator to find Wotan's mystical energy, "Etocal retnecipe fo yrecros! There. That it is where you'll find the Injustice League's central control system."

The Team saw that it was the Louisiana Bayou and locked in the coordinates. They went to get changed and head out. Artemis stayed behind though just to get a read on Itachi's mindset presently. She had a feeling the real reason Itachi was starting off in Gotham was so that he could protect Carson. She was going to ask him to extend that courtesy to someone else too.

"Please look after my mom Itachi. She's all that I have left." She asked sincerely.

"You have my word that I'll protect her." Itachi liked Artemis' mother a lot. She showed him kindness when she didn't have to so protecting her was the least that he could do.

Artemis smiled and rushed to catch up with her teammates. Itachi headed off to the zeta-tubes to go to Gotham. Batman called out to him before he left out.

"I'd tell you good luck but you clearly don't need it. I'm glad Gotham has another person to protect it. Here, take this," Batman threw a communicator towards Itachi, "Use this when Gotham is secured and either myself or Superman will fly you to where the Team is." Batman then left with Zatara and Captain Marvel. Marvel was pouting about not being able to join the Team on their mission.

Itachi sighed and got ready for the chaos he was about to walk into. His plan was to get to Gotham, find Carson and Paula Crock, and get them to a safe haven. That way he could neutralize the plants without worry of collateral damage. Once he was done with that he'd inform the rest of the Justice League and join the others somehow.

'Gotham needs me…and Carson needs me. I won't fail either of them.' Itachi transported back to Gotham to end all of this destruction for good.

Two figures emerged on a shore far away from all of the ensuing chaos in Gotham. Both of them had re-breathers on suggesting that that had been underwater for a long time. One of the figures was dragging the mangled, abominable body of their cohort. The identities of the two figures were Cheshire Cat and Deathstroke.

To say that Deathstroke was in bad shape was an understatement. His right eye was as good as gone. The eyeball itself would heal, but the vision would never come back because of how much damage it sustained. He still had his sword impaled through his heart, specifically his aorta so if it was pulled out he'd bleed to death. That was just the tip of the iceberg. Because of how close he was to the explosion underwater, Deathstroke's suit melted onto his skin from the searing heat. It would take extensive surgery just to remove it from his body. And worst of all, he had his lower extremities blown off completely by the blast. Everything from the waist down was gone. If she hadn't have shown up when she did, he would definitely be dead by now.

Crow must have known she was near because she could have sworn she saw him look right at her direction before disappearing, 'I guess that's why he was so comfortable leaving Slade in such a vulnerable spot. He must not have wanted me to follow him and made sure my attention would be on securing Deathstroke.'

When Cheshire Cat went to retrieve Deathstroke before he drowned, she was shocked to see that he was literally half the man he was the last time she'd seen him. Swimming with him in this state was a challenge and after what seemed like eternity they finally made it to the shore. Once they got to solid ground, she dropped him and collapsed from exhaustion.

"Slade, you are useless. I told you not to underestimate Crow and now look at how pathetic you are. Crow made you look like an amateur. You're lucky that our leaders still need you or I would have left you back in that river. It looks like you're going to be out of action for a while because of the extent of your injuries, even with the Lazarus Pit. You have to start all over again when you're legs grow back, including learning how to walk and learning how to fight with one eye."

She then thought of her encounter with the Crow. While they danced she did what was asked of her and placed the tracer on him so that Deathstroke could find him, but Crow still wound up nearly killing the man who was supposed to be the world's greatest killer. She smirked and started to chuckle to herself.

"Crow you truly are unlike anything I've seen before. You're nothing like my sister and her band of losers at all. I know I said that our fun had to come to an end, but it looks like I've changed my mind. I want you…and I will have you." She declared.

It looks like Itachi is the winner…at least until Cheshire Cat gets her way with him. I hope you all enjoyed this chapter and the fight scene between Deathstroke and Itachi. It was fun to write. Next chapter will focus on Itachi's fight against the cobra-venom plants. If you have any thoughts on the chapter please leave a review. Until next time guys and gals!