In the wake of Love's meddling in Raven's affairs, causing quite possibly the largest rift to form in her heart that would never be superseded anything, nor fully heal, the duo of Raven and Gecko, still sharing what they had for one another in the astral realm where Raven's emotions, especially Love, had little or no jurisdiction unless it was within her own mind, and even then they had little power. Again, the question of morality upon this issue is raised, but at the moment, Raven had little thought of it, and would continue to do so until the time of her reunification with the Titans, and most importantly of all, Garfield. Time changes people, and five long, brutal, agonizing years of separation is bound to have an effect on them, as it most certainly has on her. The thought of them not even recognizing her, let alone believing that she is really alive and before them often crosses her mind, as do many things, but Raven's only answer to these questions is one thing and one thing alone: Hope. That's all she has left now, and nothing's going to stop her from doing so. Yet, it was quite different from the usual since she has always relied on everything but hope. After five years, Raven's eyes have finally been opened to the concept. Time has changed her, and it always will. No longer a social outcast of society, often looked upon being different, she is now a person who has experienced the both the positive and the negative people, events, feelings…everything, no longer blinded by philosophy of "higher" standards that many of her criteria, many of the so-called "superhero" caste. Life dealt her a rather bad hand, and becoming resourceful, Raven managed to salvage the best possible outcome, and thus far, has proved to be so. So close to her goal, she wasn't about to give up now with the end in sight. Jump City may have been an ocean away, thousands of miles out of reach, but it felt so close, closer than ever before. Civilization managed to start appearing once more as the descent from the mountains led to more hospitable terrain, yet remained secluded from the urbanization that she knew all too well. Though it had been awhile, Raven was uncertain if she could readjust to living in the city after spending so long in the isolated mountains, as well as her various stays upon traveling. In any case, it didn't matter, one way or another, things would work out…or she only hoped so that is.
"David, something is still bothering me, well, kinda bothering me about you," Raven commented as they walked side by side down a dirt path shared by peasants and carts.
"Yes?" He replied, more than willing to comply.
"I know you've told me about your past and all, but how does a guy like you not manage to pick up some kind of…crush or something like that, I mean, you are a rather desirable individual, so it would only be natural."
David only laughed at her curiosity.
"Well, to tell you the truth, there was one, but I was never really interested in her, and she was obsessively…crazy in my opinion. Her ambitious nature proved to be too…overpowering for me and I tried to avoid her at all costs."
"You…hiding from a girl?" Raven questioned doubtingly, "That doesn't sound like you."
"This wasn't just any girl, Rae, trust me." David pointed out, "Her approaches proved rather…daunting to say the least. All I know is that nothing happened between us because I wanted to get as far away from her as I possibly could and as quickly as I could. Haven't heard from her in a long, long time, so I assume she's given up…I hope so anyways."
"Sounds like a real prize catch there, David," Raven jested with a laugh.
"Like I said, even I attract the most undesirable women," he boasted in a playful manner, "I just happen to know how to deal with them."
"By running away from them?"
"Exactly."
Raven was more than amused by his eccentric nature, but her interest was now peaked in this so called "psycho-crush" of David's past. Not that it was a problem, but more of a curious nature. She knew where his loyalties lay, so it was definitely nothing to worry about. At least, that's what she thought at first. Not long afterwards, the conversation still somewhat fresh in her mind, the path led through a less-dense area of forest, tall, limbless trees with a thick canopy overhead made for a sight to behold, yet, one that Raven was far from welcoming. The eerie silence that was often filled with the chatter of birds and other wildlife was absent, proving to test even the most iron of wills between them.
"Something's…weird about this place, David," Raven whispered, her eyes scanning all around, "I don't like this."
"You aren't the only one," he added, his training and persistent nature providing his need of remaining aware of his surroundings. "At risk of sounding overly cliché…it's quiet…too quiet."
"You're telling me," she replied, looking ever vigilant to her surroundings.
A branch snapped in the distance.
"You hear that?" Raven quickly asked of him, looking in what she thought was the direction, remaining calm.
"Hear what?" Gecko whispered back.
The rustling of treetops nearby sounded, much closer than the snapping of a twig.
"That," she informed, attempting to prevent herself from tensing up, despite it being a natural reaction.
Gecko turned to face her, but something caught his attention out of the corner of his eye. Apparently it was the cause of the disturbance, and it was moving fast. All he could see was the blur of bright green, led by what appeared to be a white mask, brightly decorated and ferocious looking with pointed teeth in a large, maniacal smile. David instantly knew who it was, and dreaded the meeting. Before he could warn Raven, whose back was to this figure, oblivious to what was behind her, her hands quickly found their way to Raven's shoulders, leaping over her head, but not before planting both of her feet squarely with amazing speed in the center of Raven's face. The force of the attack sent her rolling end over end before slamming to a stop against a large tree, rattling leaves loose as the fluttered to the ground. Before Gecko could retaliate, the figure had knocked him to the ground as well, but he lay on his back, the figure, obviously female, sat straddled upon his chest, face hidden behind her white mask. She ran a hand with outstretched fingers beneath his chin, the other on his chest in an approaching manner. David was far from enjoying it, worrying about Raven.
"Cheshire, I told you no!" He ordered, attempting to squirm away, refusing to put his hands on her. "How many times will it take to get it through your hea-"
Raven had quickly came up behind this assailant, not happy to say the least, reaching out, gaining a large handful of Cheshire's long, black hair.
"Mistake," Raven nearly growled, sharply yanking, "BIG mistake."
She slammed into the ground on her back, allowing Gecko to finally get to his feet and away from her. Raven had already tossed her backpack aside, ready to combat her.
"This is the other girl you were talking about earlier?!" Raven unbelievably questioned, watching her simply roll to her feet, ready to fight.
"I told you I've tried to avoid her," Gecko defended ready to come to her aid.
Cheshire brandished a pair of claws from her sleeves, sliding them over her hands in one quick, snapping motion, crossing her arms before her, the mask concealing whatever emotion she bore beneath it.
"You really now how to pick them, don't you?" Raven blankly asked of him, "why her?"
"I told you she's crazy, Rae, I don't even like her," he continued, standing at her side, only to feel her hand against his chest, outstretched in a stopping manner.
"Let me handle this," she assured, "you have a thing about laying a finger on a lady in a threatening manner, and I need to see if what I've been taught has really amounted to something, so everyone wins. Just sit back and watch, okay?"
"Rae, please, le-"
"I won't take "no" for an answer," Raven protested, stepping forward, "let's see what she's got."
Despite being against the very notion, David stood idle and respected Raven's decision, seeing it was indeed a battle he couldn't win. The only thing that really troubled him was the possibility she could get seriously hurt, but he did have faith in her abilities, so not all hope was lost.
Cheshire watched Raven approaching in a challenging manner, unfazed by her to say the least, but wasn't about to concede the upper hand to her opponent. In a split second, she leapt forth, outstretching both her arms, claws in hand, the razor-honed steel of the three blades upon each hand ready to render flesh in twain. Raven reacted, dodging the valiant attempt, hearing the metal talons whiz through the air, only a mere inch from her person. The swipe managed to split several swaying locks of hair upon Raven, her violet strands fluttering to the ground. Once more over, another attack narrowly missed its target, Raven concentrating rather proficiently to just focus on her opponent, but Cheshire's sheer speed and agility was something of a marvel, even to Raven.
"I can't keep this up forever," Raven thought to herself, watching slash after slash inch ever so close to her body, the latest one of the series actually cutting the sleeve of her outfit to shreds, but remained focused upon finding her actual person. "Sooner or later, I'm going to lose energy or make a wrong move, and I'm not going to like the result. I need a plan, fast."
Growing frustrated with Raven's nimble actions, Cheshire pressed forth with even more energy, preparing to attack with both claws simultaneously. Just as the weapons sped forth, aimed for Raven's torso, easily a target of vital organs in sight, Raven rolled away at the last second, allowing her to lose balance and cause the deadly blades to stick right into the ground, becoming lodged. Frantically attempting to remove them, she was completely blindsided by Raven's foot, sending her promptly to the ground, but her weapons free of the earth as well. As if nothing had happened, Cheshire was back on her feet in an instant, circling, preparing to strike once more. Raven on the other hand, was feeling the exhaustion of experiencing her speed, but managed to remain unscathed thus far.
"Little harder to land anything when I'm looking, isn't it?" Raven pressed, raising an eyebrow, "You're good, I'll give you that, but you have no idea on who you're messing with, and I'm going to show you why."
"Modest, much?" David thought, not that he frowned upon Raven's attitude, but she was indeed a little more…boastful than most, especially when it came to her abilities. Yet, unlike many others of a similar nature, Raven was actually able to back up what she said.
Her masked opponent merely dipped her head slightly, the same as she had done before from what Raven noticed, preparing to attack once more. Raven wasn't about to give her the upper hand again. Weapons or not, she wasn't the greatest opponent she had ever faced, and most certainly wouldn't be the last. Raven rushed in, closing the gap with a quick leap, avoiding a sharp lateral slice out of retaliation from Cheshire, giving Raven the opening she sought after. Nearly complete with her attack as she followed through, Cheshire narrowly avoided Raven's strike, bounding away in a backwards somersault, then leaping upon the lowliest tree branch, essentially perched. Not about to let her get away, Raven followed suit upon another branch nearby, then moving within attack distance to attempt to connect once more. Raven's attack barely missed, but it was enough to give Cheshire the opening she was looking for, bringing one of her claws back, high above her head. Raven knew it was coming, and cursed herself for making such a foolish mistake. The razors cut the air, quickly finding their way to Raven's flesh, making a trio of moderate slashes down the her side, beginning atop the shoulder, and ending about the center of her back on the right side, rendering her clothing useless upon that region as her blood began to flow through the tattered rips. She staggered, gritting her teeth, but remained standing. It was going to take more than that to sway her…a lot more.
"Raven!" David cried out, concerned, preparing to come to her aid, only to see her arm snap in his direction, her hand outstretched, protesting his intervention. He could tell she was determined, and once more, respected her decision. Her bravery and common sense walked a fine line, and Gecko feared she was attempting a balancing act upon them.
"I-is that all you got?" Raven taunted through her gritted teeth. Any normal person would feel excruciating pain and not continue, but Raven was far from normal, and for once in her life, it was a good thing in her opinion.
The masked Cheshire wasted not time continuing with her attack. One mistake had already made a mistake that could have been disastrous. A warrior of her caliber did not make mistakes, and she wasn't about to start now against such a skilled opponent as Raven. Another one is all it would take. With determination rivaled by no other, Raven leapt backwards, avoiding the slash with the long metallic claws, landing on the ground below. Her attack managed to slice ribbons with deep notches into the trunk of the tree, going noticeably deep. It was quite apparent that Cheshire was attempting to end this confrontation with one blow, so Raven had to remain focused upon her opponent, her life depended on it. Blood had already been drawn, so the next landed blow could spell the end for Raven. Not if she had anything to do with it. Cheshire followed suit, gracefully landing upon the ground once more, seeing Raven was starting to feel the exhaustion that she had managed to build up. Perspiring and bleeding profusely, she was in no condition to continue, but Raven knew she had to, it was necessary, both her life and David's depended on it. He had saved her at least twice, possibly more, now it was her turn to return the favor. Despite the rather hectic situation, Raven remained calm and serene, her mind absolutely clear of any and all distractions. Everything was going as planned for Raven, well, for the most part. Her original plans didn't involve her receiving such a grievous wound, but all she had to blame to that was herself and her carelessness. Raven planned on reprimanding herself for that mistake. Cheshire leapt back, then thrusted forward, aiming an outstretched arm, blades leading, straight for her heart. She was intent on finishing her off and having David all to herself by essentially cutting her heart out to take his. The razors grew closer and closer, Raven remaining idle, appearing to be accepting what was coming, just that, appearing. At what seemed like the last second, Raven quickly latched onto her wrist with ample force, sharply pulling Cheshire off balance as she thrusted forward. Unable to react, all she could do was brace for the impact about to be placed upon her. Using the inertia against her, Raven merely drew her hand back, and went forward with as much force as she could muster, outstretching her palm at the last second. Nearly doubling the energy upon impact that Raven attacked with, her palm collided with Cheshire's masked face, near perfect center. The force was devastating enough to cause her mask to crumple around her palm, the unknown material, as if it was a hybrid cross of both porcelain and metal began to crack and fissure as well, but held together, continuing to conceal her identity. Raven could care less who it was at the moment. Clearly in pain and disoriented from Raven's attack, Cheshire went rather limp on her feet, and refused to make any kind of sound like she had done thus far. Raven seized her moment of opportunity, taking Cheshire's bladed hand she held by the wrist, and thrusting the trio of razors through the trunk of a tree, the tips protruding several inches on the other side. Without hesitation, Raven promptly kicked the blades to a sharp angle against the tree, making their removal nearly impossible. Almost in a fluid manner as if she had planned it all out, Raven's other foot sharply rose and kicked the other set of claws from Cheshire's uncontested hand, sending it into the air. A quick sweep of her legs sent Cheshire to the ground, still unable to regain her bearings. After a moment that seemed to take an eternity, her orientation returned, just about the same time Raven had caught her own weapon in midair, and put the leading edge of the blades to Cheshire's throat, pressing with noticeable force. It was enough if Cheshire took a deep enough breath, the blades would have surely cut flesh like paper in a heartbeat.
"Not so tough now, are you?" Raven commented in her face, her primal rage almost within taking over her person. The insidious look in her eye clearly spoke for it.
"Raven," Gecko called to her, seeing how close she was to continuing through with the feat, "Take it easy. She's done, there's no need for that."
Raven kept her ever-vigilant stare focused upon Cheshire, lessening the pressure she had put forth upon the her throat, but kept the sharp edge barely touching her exposed skin of the throat. One move Raven didn't like, and she would lay her open in a heartbeat.
"You're lucky he's a little more merciful than me," Raven warned, "especially attacking me from behind. You should thank him, if he wasn't here, I would spill blood in a heartbeat."
"Rae," David requested, apparently an attempt to get her to settle down. She had every right to be angry, but there wasn't any need for her hostility now, against a down and helpless opponent. "Now," he began, turning to face Cheshire, "as for you. Let me get something through to you. I do not like you, never have, never will. You are…how should I put it. You're crazy, not normal crazy, but crazy crazy. The kind of crazy that I can't have around me and don't want. Look, you seem like a…who am I kidding, just leave me alone, please. This is the last time I'm going to ask nicely, next time we run into one another, I'll let Raven finish you off for good."
Surprisingly, Cheshire's head bowed slightly, and it was quite clear why. Despite not speaking a single word, her body language said it all. She was hurt. The notion was solidified when the minute sound of whimpering came forth, as if she were holding tears back. Needless to say, the kind heart of David could not hold out against her onslaught of sorrow. Many, especially Raven, have said that he is too nice for his own good…and how exactly correct they are.
"Hey, look," he began, slightly uncomfortable with the situation. "I didn't mean…wow, this is…different, uh, I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, but this whole…thing has got to stop."
Her mood seemed to change somewhat for the better, almost optimistic, but her nature was rather deceiving. It was to be expected out of a ninja though. Cheshire had become a master at deception; both Gecko and Raven were oblivious to her intentions. All the while she stood there, her free hand was searching her belt, and apparently something of use in her current situation was discreetly tucked away. With a slight of hand, she held several small spheres in her hand, preparing to follow through with her plan. In the timeframe only rivaled by the blink of an eye, Cheshire snapped her arm upward, knocking away Raven's hand, causing her to lose a grip upon the bladed weapon, and releasing whatever tension she had upon her. In a fluid motion, almost linked together as one, her hand opened as she threw the spheres down at blinding speed. Before either of them could react, the spheres literally exploded into a thick, white powder that drifted through the air, making it impossible to see. By the time Raven and David managed to recover, she was gone, the lingering cloud dissipating, the claw Raven ran through the tree had managed to be removed as well. The two of them stood there, absolutely dumbfounded at what had just taken place before them.
"She…vanished, out of thin air," David commented, scratching his head, "I'm a ninja and all, but that's-"
"New to me," Raven said in unison with him, looking around, "so…like I said, you've got very interesting tastes."
"Don't rub it in," Gecko commented, not too proud of the thought, "hopefully she stays away this time. I kinda think she got the message anyways."
"Well, if she didn't," she added, smirking deviously, "you know who she has to deal with, and it isn't going to be you."
"I kinda figured that one," David chuckled, "well, I don't know about you, but now that this…madness is over with, let's hit the road. Sooner we get on the move, quicker we will get to Japan."
"Tokyo, Japan," she pointed out.
"Right, Tokyo," Gecko agreed, knowing that she was right. She had been correct thus far, so why should he start doubting her now?
Unlike the trek Raven had embarked on and taken months to come so close to completing, finding their way to Japan through the Chinese overgrowth of a jungle had taken a mere 3 weeks, including the somewhat of a stow-away upon a fishing boat to cross the scant oceanic strait of water. Yet, the only thing on their minds at the moment was absolute astonishment at what lay before them. Even on the crest of the gentle hill of suburban living, the cityscape only miles away seemed like a world away at how amazing it was to the eye. A definite pinnacle of civilized living, the city beckoned. The only thing between them and the sprawl of Tokyo was a bus, well, bus stop. The two of them stood there, waiting for the next one to come along and hopefully take them to the heart of the city to begin the search for the modern-day samurai and honorary Titan, Bushido.
"I can't believe we're here," Raven commented, looking across the city's expanse only mere miles away on the horizon, "I mean…I've waited…years for this."
"As have I," Gecko subjected, "you finally get to return to what family you have on this earth, and I get to live my dream as a Titan, or at least I hope to anyways."
Raven looked at him unbelievably in a playful manner.
"How can you doubt yourself, David?" She toyed, "you are by far one of the most skilled and honorable of anybody I know, including Robin and the others. Your heart is as pure as gold, and you fight tooth and nail to protect what you hold dear, and are willing to pay with your life if need be. That is the definition of a hero, plus more. If Robin decides you aren't Titan material, then there's something wrong with him."
Gecko only smiled at Raven's kind words.
"So," Raven began, checking her backpack, making sure it was secure, "are you prepared to find this proverbial needle in the haystack? Shouldn't be too difficult finding a single person out of a city of well over 30 million, should it?"
David just looked at her wide-eyed. Even for her, that was a bit of a stretch of being optimistic.
"That was sarcastic, by the way," she added, "seriously though; do you have any good ideas as to where we begin our search?"
"Well, I think we should do this," he began, placing a hand upon his chin in a concentrating manner, "make our way to a district that is known for its tourism, pick up a map or two of the area, and with a little local help, find the most obvious areas that Bushido would be found it."
"You mean ask someone to show us where the rough parts of town are, don't you?" Raven questioned, her brow cocked.
"If you want to look at it that way," he replied, "it sounds so negative. Trust me, it is the most probable thing we could do. I seriously doubt we have access to just contacting him, he is a superhero after all. Sooner or later, we are bound to run into him."
"Well," Raven added, pondering, "if you say so. From my last visit here, the Shinjuku district was supposed to be the roughest part of the city."
"You were here before?" David asked, surprised, "you never told me that you came to Tokyo before."
"I could have sworn I did," Raven reiterated, getting a shake of the head for an answer, "well, a few years…well, more than a few years now, but back then, my friends and I came here, tracking down a lead on this cyber ninja…thing, which in turn led us to Brushogun."
"Oh please," Gecko laughed, "Even I know that's just an urban legend. An artist made of living ink that uses his abilities for criminal activities?"
"Oh, it's true, very true," Raven assured, "but, he wasn't a villain. He was being forced to do the bidding of a Daizo Uehara to make himself look better as a law enforcement officer. Well, we broke up his little scandal and became national heroes, while we were hear anyways. I don't know if they remember us or not."
"So he was real?"
"As real as I am before you," Raven smiled, "but that was a long time ago, I was…17 I think then, and I'm almost 25 now, so yeah, about 8 years ago, man, time really flies."
"Wow," he added, "I was…training then."
It only made her feel slightly alienated, the fact that time really had gone by…six years of it. Who knows what could have happened in a span of a great distance of time such as that, but all she could do was hope for the best.
"You never did have much of a life, did you?" Raven smiled in a jokingly manner, an attempt at lightening her own mood.
"Can't say that I did really," he answered embarrassingly, though it be out of humor, despite what Raven was feeling, "but it was worth it…because I made quite possibly the best friend in my entire life."
"I'll agree with that," Raven said in light-hearted mood. "As much as I like being out here, I really can't wait for that bus to get here."
"Me neither," Gecko chuckled, "and not a second too soon, Tokyo is just so…alluring, and despite our mission, I cannot wait to immerse myself in it."
Raven couldn't agree more, not only to find Bushido…but to actually be in an urbanized environment once more and live in a civil manner.
Well, it was only matter of time, about 20 minutes to be exact, but the bus finally came, and the driver was more than surprised by what was before him. It wasn't everyday that a bus driver picked up a ninja, well, technically ninjas, but Gecko looked the part more, and Raven was indeed different in her own regard. Yet, like any other passenger, he allowed them on without a word, and continued on his route. Needless to say, Raven was in a heaven of sorts, actually riding a bus for the first time in well over 5 years. It was her first true taste of technology in the time she had spent on Master Hui's mountain. Truly a spectacle all in its own for her, as the years had gone by, technology had left her in its wake as it advanced forward as she essentially found herself. It was clear, as the very bus she sat in was a hybrid vehicle, quieter and smoother than anything she had rode in the past. Across the aisle and a couple seats away, a young business man appeared to have some kind of apparatus on his ear with a small screen, a PDA in his hand. Yet, the PDA was more of what would be found in a full scale computer, and was electronically linked with the apparatus. Raven was literally eons behind in terms of acknowledging technology because of her willing separation from society to discipline herself not just as a martial artist, but as a person all together. Even being a superhero held no water compared to this.
"Has it really been that long?" Raven contemplated as she studied the impromptu business man, running her hand through her violet locks, "We have some of the most advanced technology at the Tower, yet, the common civilian possesses the equal. Cyborg had that kind of equipment built into his body. I suppose this is a bit of culture shock in the worst way possible."
David noticed Raven was deep in thought, almost troubled in her look upon her visage.
"You alright?" He nudged, breaking her from the trance.
"Yeah, I'm fine," she semi-lied, looking out the window, "just thinking, that's all."
Thinking is all she ever seemed to do, and thinking never seemed to get her anywhere. Actions spoke louder than words, and in Raven's case, it was no different. If she wished for the reunification with her friends, her…family, she must act, and finding Bushido was another step in the correct direction. He would be found, no matter how long it took, no matter the cost, it would indeed happen.
"This…place…is…" David began, slowly turning in place as he surveyed the absolutely magnificent buildings that reached for the heavens themselves around him, taking in the sight of the elevated bullet train that silently sped by at over 250 miles an hour, even to the tiny, numerous cars on the efficiently congested streets shared by pedestrians in the hundreds. Signs of various designs in neon and lights for products, clubs…anything lined the buildings, despite the morning sun. Jump City didn't even compare to what was before them. They had sought Tokyo, and Tokyo is exactly what they got.
"Amazing," Raven said in unison, a smile on her face as well, "I thought this place was awesome the last time I was here, just…look at it."
"Tell me about it," Gecko replied, looking like an adolescent child let loose in a candy store that was having a clearance sale. Yet, he managed to snap his daydreaming back to reality, looking at a map that they had managed to find at a local travel agency, dealing with especially foreign tourists. Upon it was every district of the city, mapped out with information any tourist would need, yet, what Raven sought was not on a map, all except the location. On the southern side of the city, close to the dockyards of international shipping, lay the noticeably-sized Shinjuku District, Tokyo's fabled jewel of the underworld, where every low walk of life was seeded in the city's underbelly, ranging from the common thug, all the way to the feared mafia organizations, such as the Yakuza and the Zaibatsu, both on a knife's edge of going to war with one another for territory and honor, but that was a whole other story that she was not interested in. If Raven wished to find an underappreciated hero against the crime of Tokyo…that seemed to be the best place to start and Gecko picked another across the city to the North. Not the most despised piece of real estate in the city, but splitting up allowed for the duo to cover more ground as a team. Though, neither of them liked the idea of being separated in the vast urban metropolis of Tokyo without a real clue as to where they were going, and no money at that, but one thing gave them the courage to follow through and that was they were able to keep a psychic bond of sorts, enabling them to project to one another, no matter the distance. The bond they shared would never be broken, and now was a time they relied heavily upon it. If all else fails, they are in luck it is early in the morning, so most of Tokyo's crime is still asleep, preparing for another night of treachery against the innocence of the city.
After the most bountiful sitting of a meal they had experienced in what seemed like ages, as well as a small outing to several shops in the commercial district, both Raven and Gecko managed to find various items of Japanese culture, including a new wardrobe for each. Luckily for Raven, the remaining money that she had managed to collect on her travels provided all of these wonderful things. Raven had her hair done up in a bun, held in place by the traditional sticks, much like her look in the kimono that Gecko had hand-made for her. She definitely didn't look anything like she usually did, donning a simple black T-shirt with what looked like a popular giant robot on the front of it, preparing to attack some unseen enemy. A pair of denim jeans that hugged her figure completed the ensemble of her outfit, but was cleverly accented by a pair of retro tennis shoes that looked like they were from the 60's, but were still in style somewhat. With a proud smirk on her face, Raven donned a pair of interesting sunglasses, a watch on one wrist, and a black wristband on the other. To the normal person, she looked like any other civilian in tastefully modern clothes that was supportive of the Japanese pop culture seen in a sort of way. Needless to say, she was gaining the attention of many young men about the streets, yet, David wasn't impressed by their attentive state to Raven's appearance. Meanwhile, Gecko was finally able to blend into society for once as well, not that his ninja garb wasn't welcomed, but a simple pullover hooded sweatshirt with Japanese characters symbolizing something beyond Raven's recognition, and a pair of jeans made him blend it with ease, but his ninja toed boots, which he insisted on wearing, stood out. Despite both of their swords being sheathed, Raven insisted on having their weapons being wrapped to hide them from wandering eyes, as well as the authorities, of which they were actually representing. No need to cause any extra alarm and difficulties on their part. Literally retrofitted for their quest to find Bushido, Raven and Gecko painfully separated to begin their search. While the day bore on, the two of them seemingly just walked the streets in a casual manner, hoping to cross the nearly legendary modern samurai, but that in itself was proving to be difficult, as to be expected no less. For Raven, and more than likely Gecko, it was indeed no surprise because within a city of so many, seeking out only a single person of such a reputation would be challenging, even though one would think that fame would appear to make him a more public figure, it was not a deciding factor. Raven only wished that was true at the moment, especially walking the streets of the Shinjuku District of Tokyo. Having the reputation of being the roughest part of the city, it was proving to live up to that title, as the streets themselves looked as if the had been taken directly from the suburban slum of Berlin she called home with Alexa so long ago. Even then it was tolerable, but every single thought of her psyche was telling her this was not a place to be, alone, and most definitely not in the early hours of dusk as nightfall was only minutes away. Just by the looks of things, maybe splitting up and deciding to search by herself wasn't such a good idea. One by one, out of the corner of her eye, it seemed that the seedy characters of the various blocks were coming out of the woodwork, almost rising for their time on the street as the sun went down, and many of them looked rather unsavory all together. They were not of her concern and didn't plan on making them either. Relying on nothing more than her wits and instinct, both of which had been acquired or honed on her travels, Raven remained ever-vigilant, scanning the building tops in search of the one known as Bushido. Time continued to drag on with nothing of interest happening to aid in her quest as she moved deep into the night, experiencing a plethora of subculture based on nocturnal living as it appeared.
"This is hopeless," she thought as she became frustrated, running a hand through her pulled back hair, "It's like looking for a needle in a haystack…a haystack of about 30 million people," Raven added with a huff, "I'll try again tomorrow I guess, there's nothing else left to do, besides, it's getting late anyways."
Just as she turned to begin heading back, in hope of rendezvousing with Gecko back at their predetermined spot they decided upon earlier, a figure clad in black was running across a rooftop on the building across the street, leaping the gaps in between each, apparently in a hurry. It didn't take Raven a second to figure out that it wasn't Bushido, but quite possibly on the other end of the spectrum, and her inert duty as a hero sworn to protect and bring justice must be sought out…and she was bored to death. With a quick stride, dodging a car as it drove by, Raven crossed the street, sliding around one of the corners of the buildings that the mysterious figure had jumped upon, and sprinted down the alley to what looked like a fire escape ladder of sorts. Without hesitation, Raven dropped her backpack, discreetly behind several trash cans at that, and began climbing with vigor, attempting to catch up to this figure that was all too suspicious in his activities. Within seconds, she found herself at the top of the ladder, the black figure growing more distant across the varying rooftops, but that wasn't about to sway her. Just like in her training with the True Master, Raven refused to give up, and she wasn't about to start now. With speed only rivaled by Gecko himself, Raven gracefully an methodically spanned the rooftops without a hitch, finally catching up with the figure just as he leapt across a larger span, barely making it. Raven didn't even hesitate, and spanned the same gap with a small road beneath in a single bound, tucking and rolling to a stop atop the building across the ways. The figure appeared to have stopped for a moment, frustrated and messing with what appeared to be his buckle upon his belt.
"Stupid piece of junk tech," he said to himself, the filtered voice all too familiar to Raven, knowing exactly who it belonged to, "that goody two-shoes kid doesn't know how to make anything. Worked for years and now it craps out, definitely wasn't shooting for a long lifetime with this one."
As she approached, Raven knocked over a small ventilation pipe that was in dire need of repair, giving away her presence. The figure quickly turned to face her, the bone-white skull of a mask against an all black background with a crimson "x" upon the mask locked eyes with her, apparently frozen by what he saw.
"R-Red X? Is that you?" She questioned unbelievably at the coincidence of the situation. "Some things never change, do they?"
"Beat it, sister," he replied in his usual manner, unsure to who he was talking to at the moment, "I'm workin' here."
"I'm not just another person, X," Raven pressed, "You know me rather well, as do I you."
Raven stepped forth, the glow of a neon sigh illuminating her face as she took down her hair, allowing it to fall to its original state. Her pale skin seemed to be bright in the artificial light, allowing her amethyst eyes to penetrate the darkness. Despite the mask, it was easy to see that Red X was stunned beyond comprehension at what was before him.
"What's the matter, you look like you've seen a ghost or something," Raven toyed, "Mask or not, it's apparent."
"Whoa, hold on a minute," he managed from the shock, "you're dead…aren't you?"
"Do I look like it?" Raven replied matter-of-factly, "I'm as real as it gets, I'm just as surprised to see you here as you are to me?"
"I don't know about that, sister," he gestured, "I don't talk to ghosts everyday."
"One, don't call me sister," Raven warned, "two, I'm not a ghost, I didn't die, well technically, I did, but my point remains valid. I have questions for you."
"I'm in a hurry, I don't have time for this," Red X irritantly complied, preparing to take off again, only to have Raven latch onto his cape and refuse to let go.
"Make time," Raven forcibly stated, causing him to turn and face her. After seeing the acrobatics she pulled to chase him down, he knew that with his tech busted, he couldn't escape her. With moves like that, it was apparent that she had learned a new trick or two in the martial arts department as well, those that would make him look like a novice at that.
"Fine," Red X grumbled, straightening his tattered cape out once more, "what do you want to know that is so important that you gotta hold me up while I'm working?"
"The Titans, what of them?" She straightforwardly questioned, as with her, Raven never beat around the bush when it came to obtaining knowledge.
His hesitation, body posture, and all complete with a sigh wasn't signs of encouragement, let alone a positive answer. He sat on the building's edge, overlooking the sprawling metropolis.
"Your friends split a couple of years back," he informed with a hint of regret on his part.
"Why?" She unbelievably questioned, but quickly returned to her normal state, "and why should I believe you?"
"Maybe you shouldn't, doll, I'm just telling you what I heard, and I don't know anything else," Red X made abundantly clear, shrugging his shoulders.
"Enough with the pet names," Raven made known, "is this true or not?"
"Rumors, that's all they are, I haven't been in Jump City for a long time," X replied, actually facing her as he spoke. "I thought you were dead though."
Raven sat beside him, but kept ever-vigilant to his actions. Once a thief, always a thief was definitely true with him.
"Everyone did," Raven added, getting his attention, "it's a long story, but in short, I've been given a new lease on life and I am trying to use it to the best of my knowledge to fix all the mistakes I've made. I only want to go home and right everything that I did wrong, and hopefully find that I still have friends."
Red X noticed how emotional Raven had become just by the look upon her face, and that was one thing she was not known for. It wasn't Raven that sat beside him in his opinion, but an entirely different person, one that had seen the world through the eyes of a normal person. This could quite possibly be the explanation behind her superb agility and the fact that she hasn't attempted to apprehend him in any way. With a sigh, Red X continued.
"Look…Rae, don't take this heart, but this is what I heard, and I don't know if it's true, alright?" he began, getting a nod from her, "The Titans split in Jump City, but the reason behind that was that Robin, Nightwing, whatever he was calling himself at the time, but I heard that he took Blood down…hard."
"What do you mean?" Raven requested, almost confused.
"He killed him," X clarified, "don't know how or when, but it's been a long time since I've seen or heard of them at all. I haven't been in the city for awhile, you know? Hopping all around the world, doing my thing."
"You mean stealing?" she informed with an arched eyebrow.
"Well…yeah, it's what I'm good at, and a very productive lifestyle," Red X jested jokingly, "look, I'm not a psycho, and you know that, I'm looking out for only one person, me, in fact, last time I talked to your friends was when they formed that little expedition to save you."
"So you haven't seen them since?" She pressed.
"Can't say that I have," he regretfully replied, "so I guess Dr. Light isn't such a nutcase after all."
"What makes you say that?" Raven asked, almost amused.
"Awhile back, a few years, he was babbling on that he ran into a demonic manifestation that resembled you or something. No one believed him of course, especially not after what he said he met only months later. I couldn't even believe him."
"Well, I did have a little meeting with him, so that part is true, but who was the other manifestation?"
"He tried to say that he saw and spoke with Slade. There was no way possible, I mean, he was whacked in the worst way possible. I could partially believe because your body wasn't found."
"Well, Slade was dead too," Raven painfully admitted, hating to bring up his name, "he was a demonic being, but he was as real as I am here before you."
"Does anyone just die anymore, no offense?" Red X pursued, "I mean, Slade's been taken out once before, and then you killed him. You're alive, it's like you all are ignoring the laws of nature or something."
"We're…special cases," Raven smirked, "kinda like how you aren't evil, or good, you kinda float in between. I'll admit, you've saved us in a couple of instances, and you aren't going for global domination or anything, so yeah, you are a special case yourself residing in a gray area between law abiding and villainy."
"Was that a compliment?" Red X asked of her in an amused tone.
"Don't push it," she cautioned, "I know you're busy and everything, but you wouldn't happen to know where I could find Bushido at would you?"
"The samurai guy putting himself off as an honorary Titan around here?" Red X second questioned, "I've seen a glimpse of him a couple times, but he's not came my direction any as of yet. You looking for him for any particular reason?"
"Yeah, to get me home," she informed, "I technically don't exist anymore, and I'm needing some help acquiring transportation because of that, not having a passport or identification of any kind, that kind of thing."
"That's a little above my connections, otherwise I'd help you out."
"You serious?" Raven surprisingly commented, getting a nod from him.
"Come on, you just said that I dwelled in a gray area or something. I'm not heartless, Rae, I know you're wanting to get home to your friends and you haven't seen them for God knows how long. Yeah, I'd help you out if I could. Tell you this, if, a big if at that, but if I cross Bushido or he does unlikely bust me, I'll tell him and send him your way. You still carrying a communicator?"
"Actually," Raven informed, revealing it, showing the weathering and abuse it had taken over the years, despite it not functioning properly any more, "it quit working on me, otherwise I'd just call them and have them pick me up."
"Here, let me see it," he offered, allowing her to place it in his hand. His other hand produced a small pick out of one of his fingertips, popping the back off to reveal all of the now archaic technology that was once cutting edge. The pick retracted, allowing him to grab a small metallic disk with what looked like claws on it to attach to the existing hardware. With a push of a button on the disk, a small spark went through the entire circuitry, appearing to have jump started it in a way. He replaced the back of the communicator, handing it back to Raven, who only watched on in astonishment.
"Check it out and see if you get anything," Red X informed, "that little wonder pretty much fixes any hardware failures in electronics. Times have changed, Rae, you've been gone a long time, that communicator tech is available to the public, it's ancient."
"So does it work now?" Raven optimistically questioned, opening it and pressing the power button, finding it to come to life.
"Yes and no," X stated, "it works, but it has an extremely short range since the scanners in it were damaged beyond repair by the way things look. It's a hit or miss deal, but if Bushido is anywhere within I'd say a quarter of a mile of you, he'll pick up the signal. I suggest putting it on distress signal and power it down to preserve the battery. That I don't know how long will last, it's an older model."
"Thank…you," Raven managed, finding it awkward to thank a known thief and criminal, but he did indeed aid her. Surprisingly enough, she wrapped her arms around him, hugging him as a gesture of her gratitude, catching him completely off guard. Not to be a cold, heartless bastard, Red X accepting, gently patting her on the back. With her eyes welled up with tears of happiness at her small ray of hope, she retracted. Red X stood up, preparing to leave, as he had "business" matters to attend to.
"I guess this is goodbye…for now," Red X commented, "I'll be sure to stop in at Jump City when you get into town."
"You better behave yourself," Raven jested as she wiped her eyes, "don't think I won't hesitate to take you down."
"I'll try," X laughed, "no promises though. Until next time, kid, I'll catch you later, I got things to steal, people to see." He added with a wave, merely taking off, leaping from rooftop to rooftop once more, Raven only watching as he did so, only shaking her head as she did so. Indeed Red X was not a true villain, but he was far from a hero, yet, in that area in between allowed him to partake in both, and show that he really did have a heart unlike most of the scum that she had crossed paths with over the years. It was that uniqueness that set him out from the rest…and let him go free, this time. Raven's outlook on things had managed to change over the years, and the lofty views she had originally had of good and evil did not play effect, but what was truly right and wrong. Since Red X aided her so greatly without even being asked, it was only fair to let him go about his business and do his thing. Next time wouldn't be so…friendly.
"Some things never change," Raven commented as he finally disappeared from sight, noting X's solo nature that was the epitome of him. "Still a mystery, yet I know so much about him. That itself is just so obliging. I look forward to running into him again in Jump city if he holds true to his word, could be…interesting."
The only thing left for her to do was to call it a night and attempt to find David, and that all in its own regard was going to prove a daunting task. Yet, with the aid of her regained telepathy, as it had something to do with Gecko's essence that flowed through her body when he tried so hard to keep her with him when Slade nearly completed his mission, rebuilding and unlocking her powers that have been bound for so long and inaccessible since that fateful day so long ago. Nowhere near full strength, but through meditation and practice, they are slowly returning, but to nothing worth noticing at the moment other than telepathy. Despite her current state, she was optimistic, as it was so much more than what she could do only months ago, and at her current rate, many more doors would eventually open up and allow for her untapped energy to be unbridled once more for her use. Powerless didn't mean that she didn't have them, but were just out of reach in her psyche. That was enough ambition to fuel Raven to continue. With what little money between the two of them retained, a hotel room was found to rest for a few hours until their search continued the following day, well, afternoon, as the early morning hours had crept up to daylight before either of them managed to get any actual rest, as during meditation and astral projection, the two of them found it to be…distracting of one another, but in a positive manner. In any case, it was well into the afternoon of yet another day, and with no money to their names whatsoever, something needed to be done to successfully continue their search of the modern samurai, Bushido. After scraping up what change they had for a small meal on a street-side café, contemplating their current situation. The exasperated sigh and hands through the hair on Raven's behalf announced the general feeling. She seemed a moment's notice away from banging her head off of the table out of frustration.
"We're broke," she commented, Gecko across from her, finishing his beverage of non-alcoholic sake. "Not just low on money, like nothing left, like…bums are better off than we are. This is Tokyo, and I'm not about to start living on the streets here."
"Rae," Gecko began, looking at her, taking her hand in a consoling manner, "calm down, everything will be okay, I promise. We have the hotel for a couple days, that gives us plenty of time to find some money."
"What if we don't tho-"
"No what if's," he interrupted playfully, "like I said, I have everything under control. Remember Rae, there is a solution to every problem. This is no different, yet some answers are more difficult to find than others. We will find the solution, as fate has it to be. Everything happens for a reason, Rae, and we are bound to have fortune happen to use sometime, I can feel it."
She only smiled contently at him. No matter how she felt, he always brightened the mood, even if their current situation was grim, he was so hopeful for the future and what it brought, despite the uncertainty of it.
"If the future is to bring us the good fortune you predict, David," Raven began, still somewhat doubtful to their predicament, "then when is it to come to our much needed aid?"
Across the street, down a backstreet alleyway, there seemed to be a congregation of people, the muffled sounds of ruckus and the sight of movement caught Gecko's wandering eye, despite the distance, he could easily see what was going on. Raven was already taking heed to what had captivated his attention so robustly.
"What are you looking at?" Raven requested, her impaired vision from the lacking ability of one eye affecting her judgment. Despite Gecko's essence healing her eye to the point of blurred vision, it was far from functioning properly, in turn, causing the focus of things still to be off, as well as distances for the most part. Over time, she has adjusted, and at the moment, even with the improvement in her inert eye, it was best to rely solely on the only working visual orb she retained.
"When opportunity knocks," he smirked, standing up, gathering his belongings, "always answer, Rae. This is definitely of cosmic coincidence, and I'm not about to pass it up."
"Well, you haven't steered us wrong yet, so follow I will," Raven smiled, seizing the opportunity as well.
Without a second contemplation, the duo set out down the alleyway after crossing the street. The ruckus was easily amplified as they entered the alleyway, and it didn't take any thought to figure out what this small group had gathered for. With the blatant cheering and use of rather colorful language, to the sounds of fighting, it appeared as if it was some form of vicious, and highly illegal, entertainment. Quite similar to Raven's short stint in the underground a few years ago in Berlin, but this was more public, yet still all the same. As it appeared, this was common in this district of the city, as no one else that passed by the alley's entrance seemed to give a care in the world to it. As they grew closer to the apparent action, the two of them squeezed into the group discreetly, finding their way to the front, just in time to watch the larger of the two combatants deliver a rather robust blow, sending his clearly smaller and weaker opponent to the ground, unconscious. The crowd reacted in various ways, from feigning the feeling of pain, to comments of various natures, even to several of the spectators throwing their money down out of frustration. Apparently this guy that had just won was big news around here, and they had come to attempt to make a fortune off of his defeat, but it appeared to be quite difficult, even impossible, to do so. After a couple of the defeated man's friends gathered his unconscious and battered person up, a short, stubby, and quite unsavory, character of a man in a cheap suit stepped forth into the impromptu circle, preparing to address the surrounding crowd, despite the unruly nature of it.
"That was pathetic," he began, looking over everyone, "is there not a man amongst you that can take on my man, Wu Fang, the undefeated master of the arts?"
"Master of the arts, please," Gecko commented to himself, but Raven heard him, huffing a laugh under her breath.
"Anyone? Will none of you step up to this challenge for a million yet?" he continued, apparently Wu Fang's manager, "if you can take him down, the money's yours, any takers?"
"I will," Gecko announced after hearing the prize money involved, raising his hand. Despite his courage, the crowd, even Wu Fang himself, who was a rather large man himself, heckled and laughed at his sheer stature. For his age, he wasn't the tallest individual present, but that didn't affect his decision any.
"Seriously, kid? Wu Fang eats punks like you for lunch, I wouldn't do this unless you got a deathwish or something," the short guy in the suit stated to him, but he was even shorter than Gecko himself. "I'm not going to put myself in a position to be responsible for someone's death, I'm not letting you get yourself killed here."
"You seem like a…honest businessman, sir," Gecko began, crossing his arms, "how about this? I take on your boy here, I win, I get the money. If I lose, I'll pay you a million yen. If he's so good and apparently I'm so small I can't make a difference, then you've got nothing to worry about. What do you say?"
"Now you're speaking my language, kid," brimmed the manager, "alright, I'll give you a shot at him, anything bad happens to you, I'm not responsible, got it?"
"That's perfectly understandable," he replied, unfolding his arms, allowing his backpack to slid free of his shoulders. "Anything else I need to know about?"
Raven quickly grabbed him by the collar, pulling his face to hers to whisper.
"David, are you nuts?!?" She kept in a hushed tone, "we don't have any money and i-"
"If I lose?" He calmly replied with a smirk, "nothing to worry about, Rae, it's in the bag. You trust me, don't you?"
"Of course I do," Raven stated uneasily, "look, just….just be careful, okay?"
"Gotcha," Gecko smiled with a thumbs up, "I'll be back in a sec, this shouldn't take long."
"I ain't got all day kid, I'm running a business here," the manager ushered, "you can make out with your girlfriend later. If you mean rules, no, anything goes, but I doubt anything's going to help you, kid."
"Are you serious, Yosh?" Wu Fang pointed to Gecko, who was clearly a foot and a few inches shorter than himself, "I'll kill this kid, literally."
"Take it easy on him," Yosh, the manager, informed nonchalantly, "have fun with him, but don't kill him, I don't need the cops breathing down my neck."
"I'll try not to," Fang chuckled as he looked down at Gecko, seeing that he was remaining fixated on him, and had a rather intimidating stare in his eyes. "Look who thinks he's a tough guy."
"Why don't you come down here and say that to my face, punk," Gecko challenged, getting an immediate reaction from the surrounding spectators. Raven only smirked at his behavior, as it was typical of him to prove that he wasn't scared of anyone, no matter what, and also knew when he was the more skilled. "While you're at it, you mind telling me how the weather is up there, eh, tough guy? Just lie down and let me win, save yourself a whole lot of pain and trouble, and give me my money, just a warning beforehand for your well-being."
"Let's see if you can back up that big mouth of yours, shrimp," Wu Fang growled, snapping into what ever he called a stance of his "art". Gecko merely yawned, placing a single hand behind his back, and didn't have a care in the world. With his hand still in view, he made a motion of his hand, telling Wu Fang to "bring it". The overly-aggressive brute charged forward, throwing a punch, which was aptly and expertly dodged by Gecko, whose feet remained planted. Punch after punch followed out of frustration at being made a mockery, all missing their target, and making Wu Fang look like a fool.
"Come on, hit him!" Yosh yelled, "He's just a punk! You're looking like a disgrace!"
"I'm trying!" Fang answered through his blows, becoming fatigued at his flailing efforts.
Gecko refused to give any ground, merely dodging every incoming attack with his feet planted, his eyes fixated as they always had been upon Fang's, and it was starting to get to him, especially with the display of prowess he had given thus far. Moments later, Wu Fang backed up to catch his breath and rest, heaving for air.
"You all tuckered out?" Gecko jested at him, "that's too bad; I'm just getting warmed up. Last chance to just forfeit before I hurt you, and don't think I'm bluffing."
Raven only watched on in somewhat of awe at a display of his abilities. The two of them were so equally matched in terms of skill that it was hard to tell how good either was, but now that she was actually watching instead of actually sparring with him, it was absolutely amazing. The crowd itself was also beginning to be won over to Gecko's side because of his sheer bravery and display thus far. What managed to obtain Raven's attention though was the overly active fandom of several girls watching only a couple of feet to her right, especially the number of comments referring to him and what they thought of him was making her somewhat…jealous. After several innuendoes and lucrative comments, Raven finally turned to them.
"Yeah, he's with me," she finally announced, getting their attention, "so you can knock it off with the little fanatics over him, okay?"
It was quite clear that she had struck the jealousy chord within each of them, and accomplished her somewhat of a mission. More than likely they were unable to even think of competing with Raven for him…or that is at least what she though unconceited on her part. She wasn't about to have the likes of them even contemplate about moving in on her turf, sort of speaking.
"Stop screwing around and fight me!" Fang demanded at him.
"The only one screwing around is you, man, I'm just studying you," Gecko informed, "finding weaknesses, that kind of thing, and boy, let me tell you, there are a lot of them with you."
"You little-" he gritted, rushing forward once more, bringing his foot up to deliver what was bound to be a crippling kick, but once more, Gecko aptly dodged, but leaped vertically, and landed on a nearby crate, squatted.
"Oooh, so close, try again," Gecko taunted, "you might get me next time."
Already angry at actually having to put effort into his attacks, but now being played like a fool in such a way only made his blood boil. With both hands interlocked, he swung his arms straight down, missing Gecko, and destroying the crate, sending it into nothing but splinters. His new destination as he landed was hanging by the last rung of a ladder on a fire escape.
"Come on, free shot, right here," he continued, "all you got to do is catch me."
The spectators were laughing at his mockery of Wu Fang, who apparently wasn't looking too tough anymore. Out of desperation more than anything, he picked up a broken piece of a lead pipe up, preparing to swing at Gecko. Raven held her breath, despite her trust in him.
"Uh oh," Gecko uttered as he watched the lumbering oaf of Wu Fang's person charge him once more, drawn back to swing the piece of pipe at her hanging person. With brilliant timing and accuracy, Gecko swung his person upwards, releasing the ladder, and jumped over Wu Fang, but not before he made contact with the concrete wall behind Gecko with the pipe, jarring his senses, and Gecko's feet planted cleanly on his back, thrusting off of him and sending him into the wall with little force.
"Swing, batter, batter, swing, and I thought baseball was huge here," his confident nature pressured forth, "I don't know what everyone's all hyped up about you, I mean, you're not so tough, and sure as hell aren't all that scary. Are you sure I'm actually fighting the Wu Fang I was told I was going to fight? You seem like a chump to me."
"I'm going to break you in half over my knee, you little shit!" Wu Fang angrily exclaimed, closing the gap between them rather quickly. As if it had been rehearsed time and time again, Wu Fang attacked, and Gecko evaded, but he leapt upon Wu Fang's outstretched arm, and then onto a overhanging street lamp not too high up, kicking Wu Fang in the back of the head in the process out of defiance. Gecko only smiled as he hung upside down from the lamp, even waving at Wu Fang as soon as he figured out where he went.
"I think I'm out of your reach there, big guy," Gecko informed playfully, "I know you've heard me twice, but absolute last chance to call it quits before I get serious. You seem like a…intelligent person, so I suggest you start using it before play time's over."
"Get down here and fight me!" He ordered, clearly angry, "You're not going to make me look like a jackass; I'm going to beat the hell out of you!"
"You do that pretty well on your own, guy," he laughed, as did everyone watching, even Raven managed to join in with a slight chuckle at his antics.
"David, could you wrap this up, we got things to do today," Raven called to him.
"Sure thing, Rae," Gecko replied with a thumb up, well, down because he was upside down, "let me take care of tall, scary, and gruesome here and we'll be on our way."
With his free hand that he wasn't using for a grip, he pulled his mask down, and stunned everyone with his next action. Without hesitation, a long, reptilian forked tongue lashed forth, wrapping around Wu Fang's neck snugly, not strangling, and lifted him free of the ground, literally helpless to do anything in his current situation. Despite having a good time with this little "challenge" that it was dubbed, more like "payday", but that was beside the point, as his eyes looked over at Raven, mainly out of how quiet the spectators had gotten. She may have known of his demonic heritage, very similar to hers, but what she was seeing was quite…frightening, as he had never revealed it before. The closest thing was when he protected her from Slade's demonic blessing by Trigon, but she didn't expect this out of his human form as well. The sheer fear in her expression as she stood there, fixated upon him, distracted him, and was only the beginning of a series of events he'd rather not experience.
"Get…off of me…you freak," Wu Fang managed, his hands grasping his tongue, allowing him to release his neck, but he didn't let go. Instead, Fang tightened his grip, and brought his arms down as he fell to the ground, pulling Gecko along for the ride. As he landed, he drew him straight into the pavement, face first. He collided solidly with enough force to spider-web a small crater, and crumbled to a heap. Raven feared for the worse as he lay there, still.
"I told you not to kill him, idiot!" Yosh scolded, "I don't need anymore heat on me than I already get."
"The freak deserved it, Yosh, you saw what he was doing," Fang attempted to defend himself as he wiped his hands free of Gecko's saliva, "let's get out of here."
Just as he uttered that, Raven's eyes darted back to the downed form of David, as he was stirring, attempting to stand up, shaking his head in the process.
"Ouch, man, that smarted," he uttered, holding his head, "I'll give that one to you."
"What the hell are you?" Fang unbelievably questioned of him, knowing that no normal person would have survived that, let alone been able to do what he did with his tongue.
Gecko decided to play off of his fear and end this quickly before he caused himself to get seriously hurt.
"Your worst nightmare," he deviously grinned, standing erect in a devious manner as well. "I gave you chance to give up, not once, but twice, yet, you refused, well, guess what…it's playtime."
"Don't be such a baby!" Yosh yelled, "Finish this little shit off! He's making you look bad!"
"Don't say I didn't warn you," Gecko uttered, preparing to attack.
Before Wu Fang could even think of contemplating a reply, physical or verbally, Gecko rushed forth, sliding to a stop right in front of him, avoiding a punch in the process, and somersaulted backwards, cleanly planting a vicious kick squarely on Fang's chin in the process, and leveling the man in the process. Just as Gecko landed, Fang's unconscious body connected with the ground, out cold. It was quite evident everyone was stunned, even Yosh.
"Wu, get up, now!" He ordered, watching Gecko approach him without a care in the world. "Get your ass up, you bum!"
"Don't bother, he's out," Gecko informed, stepping over his outstretched arm, "now where's my money?"
"I didn't expect you to actually win, kid," Yosh commented uneasily.
"Yeah, I know, stop stalling, give me my money, I earned it fair and square."
"Yeah, about that…" he began, only to be lifted off of his feet, brought into Gecko's face.
"Listen to me, jerkoff," Gecko began, his eyes fading to a solid glowing hue of red, "make that check out to me or give me cash straight up right now or I'm going to get really angry, and trust me, you don't want to see me angry, got it?"
"Y-yeah, I'll write you a check," Yosh agreed, Gecko setting him down.
"It bounces; I'll be back, so you better not be bluffing me."
"Trust me, I'm not," he assured, pulling the checkbook from his pocket, clicking his pen.
"Good," Gecko added, taking the newly-made check, "pleasure doing business."
"P-p-pleasure's all mine, kid," he managed, partially stunned, as well as in fear of him. "Who the hell was that?"
Not long after cashing the check and acquiring an icepack for his black eye that lingered from his faceplant upon the ground, Raven and Gecko were strolling down the sidewalk as they awaited the fall of night once more, knowing that is when Bushido's hours of operation were most common.
"I'm…sorry, Rae," Gecko finally announced after what seemed like an eternity, "I should have told you."
"David, it's fine, trust me," Raven assured, "it was definitely…surprising, but not the weirdest thing I've ever seen."
"No, it's not, I didn't even contemplate on what you would have thought and I took it for granted, so I kinda deserved this. You probably think I'm a freak or something now."
"Stop it, seriously, David," Raven finally informed, stepping in front of him, "I've never thought that and never will. If anyone is the freak, it's me, okay? Your demonic heritage is nothing to be ashamed of, mine is. Yours is a blessing, mine is a curse. You were destined to do good from the beginning, while no matter what I did; I was destined to be evil. Besides, it isn't all that bad."
"What isn't all that bad?" He replied optimistically at her quick references.
"The tongue thing," she smirked as they continued walking, him shifting the ice pack to make it slightly more comfortable.
"Why not? It makes me…weird," Gecko pointed out.
"Let's just say that some girls like that kind of thing, David," Raven hinted, "I'm surprised your other half hasn't told you about this." She added, referring to his demonic side.
"Told me about what, I'm not following," Gecko innocently replied, feeling Raven's hand go up to his ear as she prepared to whisper something into it. His only reaction as she spoke to him was dropping the icepack out of sheer disbelief at what he has just heard, standing still as she continued walking with a smirk on her face. Finally breaking out of his stunned nature, he chased after her.
"Whoa, wait up a sec, Rae, are you serious?" He called to her, attempting to catch up.
She didn't need to reiterate the answer for him.