A/N: This chapter deals with magic and demons and other such occult subjects. Not my favorite part of the DC Universe, but I'll endeavor to do it justice.

Chapter 6

It was July 9th and Naruto was in Gotham City. He had come here seeking Jason Blood, an expert in demonology and the occult; the world's foremost, in fact. Naruto just hoped this meant he was the guy to ask about this problem. If he was going to find answers regarding Kurama's condition, he wouldn't find them alone, that was for sure.

After the Cadmus debacle, the younger heroes had all been adamant in forming their own team and branching out on their own in some way. The League had relented and the next day they had been brought to Mount Justice, where they were going to form a new team that could operate covertly where the Justice League could not. Of course this new responsibility came with limitations, but these were lessened somewhat by their introduction to a new recruit: M'gann M'orzz, the Martian Manhunter's niece. It was a nice development, all in all, but Naruto's main concern was not with this new status; he was more worried about Superman's lack of acceptance for Superboy.

Superboy had found loyal friends in his rescuers from Cadmus, but when it came to his genetic donor, he encountered nothing but awkward silences and cold rebuffs of his attempts to try to get closer to him. It was a bad situation and Naruto didn't want to get involved, but he knew he would likely end up giving Superman a thorough chewing out in the days to come.

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Shinobi was at a loss. He had found his way to Gotham City easily enough; an Atlas Map had told him what roads to follow from Metropolis, which resided on the west side of the Hudson, north of New York City, to Gotham, which was on the south end of New Jersey, resting on the shores of the Delaware Bay. He ran at a good clip of seventy to eighty miles per hour on the side of major roads, in an effort to make sure he didn't get lost, but still found himself missing his exits every once in awhile. The trip took a few hours and when he reached Gotham City, the Sun was almost on the horizon and he had no idea where to look for Jason Blood.

The man's address wasn't listed in a phone book, and he couldn't just walk around asking people on the street; they were likely just as ignorant as he was and he wanted to keep this visit quick and quiet. Batman would have many questions if he found out that Shinobi had left Metropolis and run all the way down to Gotham for some unknown reason.

Now, hours after his arrival, Naruto sat on the rooftop of a high-rise building, with his mask pulled down, while he busily slurped a cup of instant noodles that he'd had to Henge to buy. The Sun had set about an hour before, and Naruto was cursing his lack of research before heading to this city. He had brought his Atlas as well, but without a point of reference and a destination it was useless to him. Naruto was at the end of his rope and it would probably take a miracle to find Jason Blood in a city this size.

The miracle came in the form of an explosion a few streets away. It was perfect. Batman would respond quickly to trouble in his own city and he would likely bring Robin with him too. If Naruto could get to Robin without Batman knowing, he could certainly convince him to help locate Jason Blood.

He quickly discarded the cup of noodles and ripped the Gotham page out of his Atlas and folded it before he stored it in a pouch; he'd probably need it before the night was through. Naruto pulled up his facemask and with a running start leaped off the building in the direction of the explosion.

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Despite his proximity to the explosion, it seemed Batman and Robin managed to arrive at the same time as Shinobi. It seemed the explosion had taken place at the Gotham Museum of Antiquities. Shinobi stood on the rooftop of an adjacent building and watched Batman say a few words to Robin before entering the smoking building using one of the windows that had been blown out. There wasn't a large fire and most of the smoke seemed to be caused by the initial explosion.

Robin shot his grapple gun upwards and made his way to the museum rooftop. It seemed Shinobi wouldn't even have to try to separate them. At any rate, he wouldn't get a better chance than this.

Shinobi jumped across the wide street, bridging the gap to the shorter museum with ease. He landed silently behind Robin who was crouched in front of an open metal box with a cord leading into it from his glove. It didn't take Shinobi long to suss out that Robin was hacking into some system in the Museum for whatever reason. It didn't matter much to him, this was Batman's show, Shinobi just needed some information and he would be on his way. He tapped on Robin's shoulder and the reaction he received did not disappoint.

Robin gave a startled jump and turned around, explosive disk in his hand and ready to be thrown.

"Holy crap! Shinobi, what are you doing here!? How'd you sneak up on me?"

"I'm a ninja. Remember?" Shinobi answered in a deadpan voice. "Anyway, that doesn't matter right now. I need to ask a favor, and I can't let Batman or the League find out." It was asking a lot for Robin to go behind his mentor, but the awkwardness that arose after Speedy's scene at the Hall of Justice had not faded yet and Shinobi was hoping that would be enough for Robin to help him.

Robin turned back to the holographic interface above his glove, smoothly returning the explosive disk to one of his many pouches. "Yeah, well, I'm a little busy right now. Don't know if you noticed. And going behind Batman's back? That's a pretty big favor."

"What's a favor or two between friends? C'mon, man. I'll owe you one!" Shinobi was getting desperate; if Robin couldn't help him, he would have to go to someone else, and in this city his options were pretty slim. He took out his folded map and presented it to Robin. "Look, I just need you to point out a location on this map. You can do that, can't you?"

Robin regarded him out of the corner of his eye for a second before sighing. "All right, but you're gonna owe me big time. Where do you need to go?"

"I need to find some guy called Jason Blood. He's some sort of expert on demons and he lives here in Gotham."

Robin looked away from his glove again and regarded Shinobi more closely. "What do you need a demonologist for? And why can't the League know?"

"It's personal, alright? I can't have them in my business all the time, you know. Besides I'm nineteen and I've been an adult since I was thirteen, those guys don't need to to know about everything I do." It was true, Shinobi had become an adult in the eyes of his village when he'd graduated the academy and become a part of Team Seven, and by the time he'd come to this reality he was already eighteen, the age for adulthood in this world. The Justice League couldn't expressly forbid him from going where he pleased and if it wasn't for his desire to avoid questions, Shinobi wouldn't have been nearly so careful in his efforts to find Jason Blood.

"Fair enough, I guess. Jason Blood doesn't actually live in Gotham. He's got a big house just outside the city limits." Robin pointed at an area on the very edge of the map and Shinobi made a note of it. "Remember, you owe me big for this. And I mean it. I'm going to collect some day."

"Sure thing, Robin, and thanks, man. I really mean it." Shinobi walked away and quickly found the museum as a point of reference on the map. "Whatever you need, Robin, you know you can count on me!"

With his thank-yous said and a direction to travel in, Shinobi set off, leaping onto an adjacent building and running up until he disappeared over the rooftop.

With no more distractions, Robin finished his hack of the museum security systems and a feed of the museum cameras appeared in his holographic interface. He rewound the feed until just before the museum explosion and found what he was looking for in the frame of one of the cameras. There was a teenager in a black suit and tie with black hair that had two spikes on the sides that resembled devil horns. Robin watched him walk around in an unconcerned manner for a few seconds before a cat with ginger fur and tiger stripes ran into frame, carry a long black stick in its mouth.

The teenager took the stick from the cat's mouth and examined it closely before seemingly deciding he had what he came for. A large amount of foreboding red energy gathered in the teenager's hand and he left it floating in the air where it pulsated in a very ominous manner. The boy then gathered up his pet and look at the camera with a smirk on his face. The boy and the cat both seemed to break down and blow away as ash on a nonexistent wind. This was followed by the red ball of energy exploding in quite a grand manner before the camera feed cut to static.

Robin rewound back to when the boy was smirking at the camera and cross referenced his face with Batman's database of major and minor criminals. A match was found very quickly.

"Klarion the Witch Boy?"

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Jason Blood lived in, as Robin said, a big house. Though perhaps 'big' wasn't a descriptive enough adjective. It was a large Victorian mansion painted in a mocha color with dark tiles on the roof. It was three stories tall at its highest point and was dotted with fancy looking windows, the lowest of which were protected by wrought iron grating, likely there to deter thieves.

The house was surrounded on all sides by a recently mown lawn, that gave way to a line of coniferous trees that marked the beginning of an undisturbed forest. There was no gate and no fence, only a lonely dirt road that terminated at the steps of the house and split some distance before to lead to a garage that was removed from the main house itself.

Shinobi walked up the dirt path, in plain view, approaching the house like he assumed any other visitor might. It made sense; he wasn't here to hurt the resident, and sneaking in would only make him look exponentially more suspicious. If Shinobi was going to get the answers he wanted, a direct and friendly approach was for the best.

The ninja climbed the front steps and rang the doorbell. Of course, he didn't take into account the late hour, or the fact that he had shown up, unannounced, at a house that might as well have been in the middle of nowhere. He stood there for a while, shifting restlessly from one foot to the other, until he heard rustling coming from behind the door. This rustling was followed by a crash and some muted cursing before the familiar sound of locks being undone greeted Shinobi's ears. The door opened and he finally got a look at Jason Blood.

He was a caucasian man, standing an inch or two taller than Shinobi's own not inconsiderable height of six feet, and built like a football player. It appeared he hadn't been sleeping either, despite the late hour, because he was wearing a pair of khaki slacks, a white oxford shirt with the sleeves rolled up, and a black leather belt to hold it all together. When he spoke, it was with an English accent.

"Shinobi, the self-proclaimed ninja from Metropolis. Does Superman know you're here?"

"No, and it's gotta stay that way. This is a personal visit."

"What could we possibly have to discuss? Personal or otherwise."

"Demons, Mr. Blood. I need to know why a demon, a really powerful one, would just stop. Like, I don't know, he just won't react to anything. Completely catatonic."

Jason let out a contemplative hum and said, "well, that could happen for any number of reasons. I would have to know the circumstances surrounding this mysterious catatonia to form a hypothesis. Could you take me to this demon?"

"If it's all the same to you, I'll describe what was going on before whatever happened to him happened, but I won't tell you his name and I can't let you see him. He's my partner, my friend. I can't just trust that you won't hurt him. Even if you look like an alright guy." There was no way Shinobi was going to put Kurama's safety in the hands of a stranger. Asking for information was one thing, letting this man have any power over the nine-tailed fox was quite another.

"Well, I suppose you should come in. I'll need to consult my books and you've a story to tell."

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"Hmm, that narrows the possibilities down quite a bit, I should think. " Blood stood and walked over to a bookshelf in his library.

The two of them had adjourned to his library a quarter of an hour ago and Shinobi had proceeded to tell him of his and Kurama's crossing between realities and the demon's resulting catatonic state. The library was a moderately large room with bookshelves lining all the walls, filled to the brim with leather bound tomes, loosely bound manuscripts (that were given a shelf all their own), and more conventional hardcover textbooks. There was a fireplace, currently unlit, situated in a wall perpendicular to the doorway, and there were two comfortable chairs sat in front of it, with a small table between them.

Jason perused the contents of one of the bookshelves and pulled one of the leather bound tomes and quickly flipped to the page he wanted. He turned back to Shinobi and quoted, "On the subject of dimensional travel: When travel between two or more universes is forced it is entirely possible for the demon's soul to become entrapped in the inbetween space."

"What's the inbetween space and how do I get him out of there?" This was it, after nearly a year he would finally receive answers, he would finally be able to help Kurama.

"Well, to put it simply, the inbetween space is a plane of existence that saturates through all realities that we humans call the multiverse. Sorcerers call it the astral plane, demons refer to it as limbo, the point is that when a being enters it by accident, it becomes nearly impossible to leave the inbetween space." When he saw the crestfallen look on Shinobi's face, Blood quickly continued, "though I did say nearly impossible. If you have access to his anchor in this reality, his body, it becomes altogether a much simpler manner to return him. All we have to do is-"

Jason Blood did not get to finish his statement because a very large ginger sabretoothed cat with tiger stripes had crashed through the outside wall, scattering books, wood, and dust everywhere. The sabretooth took a moment to assess the occupants of the room before settling on Jason and pouncing. It seemed it would hit its mark, that is until it was violently blindsided by a very angry Shinobi. He tackled the cat into the wall and broke through it, sending them both sprawling onto the lawn on the other side. Shinobi gathered himself first.

"HEY! We were havin' a conversation, asshole!" As soon as the sabretooth had righted itself, Shinobi disappeared. The beast didn't have time to register surprise before the ninja reappeared with a leg raised over his head, chambered in what was sure to be a devastating kick. "Well, you wanted to to play, kitty. So, let's play!"

His leg dropped and the sabretooth's world dissolved into a blur of blistering blows and pain. A whole lot of pain.

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Jason started walking over to the second hole that had been put in his wall within as many minutes. It was certainly a nuisance, but it wasn't like he didn't have the money to repair them. What he was really concerned about were his many and rare books; those were irreplaceable. He was going to look out to see what had become of his guest and the intruder before he heard a voice coming from behind him.

"Little Jason Blood! I don't see what the big deal was all about. Vandal was so insistent you were some big shot demon, but all I see is a weak little ol' human." Jason turned and saw the Lord of Chaos known as Klarion the Witch Boy standing in his library. Before Jason could formulate a retort, Klarion gathered a small amount of red energy on the tip of his finger before using his thumb to mimic the hammer on a gun and firing the energy at him. Jason immediately dived to the side, landing behind one of the chairs.

"Ja-son! Come out, come out wherever you are! You're supposed to be strong, Jason! Show me some of that strength." Klarion called out, before his form flickered, becoming transparent for a moment. He had to hurry this up; Teekl, his familiar, was getting knocked around while he dealt with this dalliance. Vandal Savage had assured him that Jason Blood would surprise him, he just had to draw it out of him first. Well, if Klarion was asking for a surprise, he certainly got it.

"Gone! Gone! The form of man. Rise, the Demon, Etrigan!" There was a flash of hellfire and then a demonic roar. The chair Jason Blood had been hiding behind was smacked away like so much rubbish and in its place stood something different.

Jason Blood had turned into a demon. He had lost a whole foot in height and gained as much in width. The demon, Etrigan, was squat and extremely muscular, with burnt orange skin, red eyes, and ears that looked more like bat wings than anything else. He wore a skin tight red unitard with metal cuffs at the wrists and a black belt. Along with that, he also wore a blue cape and a fearsome snarl.

"Now this is more like it, Jason!" This was good! In a moment Klarion would have what he came for and he could go teach that jerk that was smacking Teekl around a lesson.

"The man is gone! I am Etrigan, and you are dead!" With his piece said, Etrigan covered the distance between him and Klarion with a powerful leap. The intent was clear: to rip Klarion to shreds. The only sign that something was wrong was the smirk that spread across the Witch Boy's face.

As soon as Etrigan had started to move, Klarion had snapped his fingers and in his hand materialized a long black brand, made of wrought iron and covered from handle to head in archaic runes that were glowing red with Klarion's magic. He held the brand out and let the demon do the rest of the work.

The brand was thrust into the middle of Etrigan's chest and immediately started to burn into his skin. He fell back to the ground in a heap and laid there for a few moments. On his chest there was now an angry black brand in the shape of a circle with a simple 'I' in the middle.

Klarion admired the brand and said, "the Imperium Brand. Works just as advertised! Stand, Etrigan! It's time to play."

The demon stood and, after a moment, kneeled in front of Klarion. "As you command, my master."

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Shinobi was currently taking his frustration out on this supernaturally durable sabretoothed beast. He was so close to the solution to his problems he could almost taste it, and this thing had tried to take it from him. It was unfair, really. The beast could hardly defend itself, and it was only still alive by virtue of its durability.

With a final grunt of frustration he kicked the sabretooth a distance away where it fell and didn't stand up again. Shinobi prepared to return to the library. It had targeted Jason, so he could probably explain what it was, and the ninja had to get his own answers as well.

"Teekl!"

Shinobi turned back towards the best to see that a teenager wearing black clothing with a dumb hairstyle had appeared and was consoling the whimpering beast.

"And just who the hell are you, huh!?" It was enough that this monster had tried to kill Jason, but now its apparent master was here as well. "You want an ass kicking too?"

The boy looked up with hate in his eyes and said, "I don't think it's me you should be worrying about. Etrigan!"

Before Shinobi could suss out what he meant and why he had yelled out that weird word, he was tackled from the side by a red and orange figure. From his position on the ground, he groaned and looked up at his orange and red attacker who was straddling his chest and raising both fists in preparation to smear his brains all over the lawn like so much jam on toast. Well, he wasn't just going to let that happen.

With a small grunt of effort, Shinobi's legs shot up from behind Etrigan and he interlocked his ankles around the demon's neck and slammed him back down to the ground. It was a textbook execution of the technique, but he didn't expect Etrigan to be down for long. Shinobi regained his feet and backed away a small distance, where he started to flash through hand seals. Before he could finish, he had to jump away. A blast of red energy had impacted where he'd been standing.

Shinobi glared at klarion and said, "two versus one, huh? Okay, I'll kick both your asses and I won't even break a sweat." Klarion looked ready to dismiss his claims before the ninja disappeared from his vision completely. The next Klarion knew he was flying up into the air and his chin was throbbing in pain.

Shinobi had hit him with a strong uppercut, but that wasn't the end of it. Klarion's flight path drastically changed and he looked down to his upper arms to see there were thin, almost imperceptible, wires attached there. He'd never seen Shinobi attach them and they weren't tied around his arms, but held there by some unknown force.

Shinobi pulled on the ninja wire he had in his hands and swung around in a full circle, bringing Karion around in full circle. The distance was just right, he was going to use the Witch Boy as a weapon to hit Etrigan, who had started running towards him as soon as he'd started the maneuver.

Etrigan braced himself for impact, but Klarion had exploded into black ashes as soon as he made contact with the demon. This didn't deter Shinobi however, with one target lost, he focused his might on the demon. With a blur of speed he closed the distance landed a devastating flying knee to Etrigan's face. The demon landed on his back and Shinobi was quick to press the advantage. He straddled the demon's chest and raised his interlocked hands and brought them down in three earth shaking hammer blows upon Etrigan's head before he was forced to dodge away from a large blast of red energy that had the added benefit of striking the enemy in his stead.

A quick hand seal created four clones and they all dashed away to Klarion's new position a short distance behind where he'd been laying the smackdown upon Etrigan. With the clones focusing on Klarion, Shinobi turned his attention back to the dazed Etrigan and wrapped both hands around one of his thick wrists.

Klarion had barely managed to dispel the four clones, before the original reappeared holding Etrigan by his wrist. Klarion's eyes widened when he realized the ninja's plan. Shinobi spun and swung the demon over his head and down onto Klarion. Etrigan impacted onto a hastily erected red bubble. The ninja would not be stopped however. He continued to swing Etrigan like a warhammer against the shield. Eventually the demon might regain his senses, but not while Shinobi was using him as a very effective weapon. Klarion's frustration mounted and with an angry snarl a circle of glowing runes appeared around his feet.

As Etrigan came down on final time the shield burst, but with the burst of the shield came a rapid buildup of energy under Shinobi's feet. His eyes widened before the energy erupted in a red pillar and shot him up into the air. He'd been forced to let go of his improvised weapon and when he landed he immediately prepared to go on the defensive. However, that didn't appear to be necessary. Klarion had taken Etrigan and regrouped with his beast.

"You think you're so tough!? I'll be back, and when I am, you won't be so lucky!" Klarion had had enough, and his petulant demeanor was starting to show.

"Luck!? I beat you guys up and down this field like you were my shitty step-children! If you think that's luck why don't you say it to my foot and see if he agrees!?" Shinobi once again blurred into motion. He covered the distance between him and his targets in less than a second, but it was already too late. When he reappeared with a spinning kick, his attack hit nothing but air. Klarion had used his disappearing trick and run away with the demon and the beast in tow.

Shinobi stood at the ready for a few moments, in case it was a trick to get him to drop his guard for a sneak attack, but when it became obvious that Klarion was gone, he let out a frustrated sigh.

"Figures that guy was all talk. What a pussy."

With a barely noticed hand seal, a retinue of ten clones appeared around him. "Go find Jason, and do it fast. Batman'll probably be here soon." The clones all saluted and set off to do their job. Shinobi would have joined them in a second were it not for the three presences he felt behind him.

"You have some explaining to do." Shinobi would recognize that voice anywhere. Batman. He muttered a curse under his breath before turning around. He was met with the sight of not only Batman, but Robin and Superman as well.

"I know this looks bad, but I beat the bad guys. Everything's good! When Jason gets out here, he'll tell you all about it!" At that moment his clones all dispersed and he received the knowledge that Jason Blood was not, in fact, in his house and he could not explain anything.

"Ah, shit."

A/N: This one took awhile to get out, and I have no excuses to offer you guys except for a feeling of general apathy that I felt towards doing pretty much anything once my classes were done for the semester. Actually, I was gonna finish this up yesterday, but Metro: Last Light came out. I had to play the hell out of it. Right? Anyway, I'm gonna try to get back on track and hopefully there won't be so long a wait between this and the next chapter. Hope you enjoy it.