Hey there everybody! We are back again with another updated commission story. This time we are coming back with another Golden Era Chapter from the commissioner Flashfox aka NeroFlashFox. He has his own account here on Fanfiction so give it a shot and check out his work. On top of that give them a round of applause and thanks for commissioning this work as these obviously wouldn't come about if not for their concepts and paying the piper so to speak.
Anyway lets respond to reviews:
Review by Kid Coheed: Actually pretty interesting, would also like to see how they develop their Chakra without training, it seems like they would be old enough to have it unlocked or atleast know about it and so it's a interesting idea.
Response: You are in luck, because this chapter is all about the growth and development of the twins. You are right that they know a bit about their chakra and it's going to be fun to show the different ways the two of them approach experimenting with their power to master it. After all both have absorbed no less than half of the Kyuubi's chakra themselves so their reserves are insanely large. As we saw in canon though that is a double edged sword as their control will be utterly shot. Though I imagine not as bad as with an actual consciousness inside their body trying to make things difficult for them.
Alright that is enough of that, now moving on to the usual blurb about joining a discord server. I want to invite you to come to try it out, it's pretty nice having a place to chat directly with people who are both readers and writers of fanfiction. Anything from spitballing concepts for stories, to talking about recent updates, or recommending good fics to read. There is even space to just sit around and chat about anything and everything. So come try it out.
The first server is one hosted by myself and two other writers on this site, Kiege, and Madlad aka TheChamp123. The Triumvirate can be found right here→ /auc4PQjVtz
The second is a large server with more than seven hundred members. Hosted by AizenTheGoat a link to the Goat server can be found right here→ /7x4YFstKcz
Last but not least, if you want to commission something like this or another concept you can direct message me here on fanfiction to get in touch. However i do not check the inbox here all that often so your best bet to get in contact with me about putting forward a commission would be to hit me up on discord preferably through a private message on the site. You don't have to join the servers to get a commission but doing so will make it easier to see my rates.
Anyway let's get on to the actual story and stop blabbering, shall we?
Chapter Two
New Family and First Steps
The Detective
Bruce had wasted no time in trying to get to the bottom of what had brought his newest ward to Gotham. Clearly she not only wasn't from the city, but not from the United States either. Where exactly she was from had still been quite a bit of a surprise for him.
Another dimension. He'd dealt with that sort of thing before, but the manner in which Kaede had managed to describe once they had gotten past the language barrier was an entirely new one to him. Even now, two years after he had taken the nine year old in, he was still coming to terms with everything surrounding her.
Not that he would change it for the world. That was no more clear than today. The day that Kaede U. Wayne entered the world as his daughter. She would be attending Gotham Academy after all and the legal paperwork to make her his adoptive daughter had been finished the week prior.
Kaede herself was less than enthusiastic about going to school. She was a smart kid already and had argued that she could learn everything from Bruce instead. The man had been adamant though and so Kaede would be meeting one of her extremely small handful of friends at the academy to be guided in.
The Batman never thought he would be actually thankful for Barbara Gordon having taken up the mantle of Batgirl before now. It was just humorous that it wasn't for something relating to fighting crime but more to be a friend and role model for his daughter.
His daughter. That was surprisingly nice to be able to say or think about. Sure he had Dick as a ward, but the boy had outright refused adoption. Jason had been the same. Any hope of adopting that boy was gone now thanks to Joker.
A knock at the door drew his attention back to the moment and he called out for Alfred to enter. The butler did as bid, with Kaede in tow. The eleven year old looked a bit ruffled at having to go to school but Bruce had to say she did look adorable in her school uniform. Hair done up into two long pigtails that reached nearly past her waist.
"Master Bruce, Miss Kaede will be leaving for school shortly and we both hoped you would join us for breakfast." Alfred said crisply, though the twinkle of humor in his eye as Kaede pouted at having to attend school was clear to Bruce all the way across the expansive study.
"Sounds good to me. Let's eat." Bruce said cheerily as he stood to join them. When not working as Batman it was like a completely different person lived in his form and Kaede had informed him it was freaky.
He could live with that, the other kids he had taken under his wing had been similar to that as well.
"I don't see why I can't just learn from you two anyway? Not like I'm going to use that stuff at school. All my time will be for fighting crime, not geometry or English composition." Kaede complained in a thickly accented voice.
"We've been over this. It's part of the deal you have to go to school and act like a normal girl and in exchange you get to put on the uniform and help with Gotham's problems. You step out of line and I will ground you like a little kid." Bruce said simply.
Kaede rolled her eyes though she did silently enjoy having Bruce act like a father toward her. Even when she got in trouble, having someone to be mad or worried about her was…refreshing.
She just wished one other person was there as well.
Bruce knew that even now, Kaede longed to find her twin brother. He too wanted to find the boy. Abilities like his were bound to catch the eye of someone and that was not a good thing. It never was.
The three of them sat down to a meal of eggs, pancakes, and bacon. Bruce finished quickly while Kaede clearly drug it out as long as she could. The man eyed her knowingly causing the girl to roll her eyes as she continued to pick at her breakfast.
"Here I was thinking you wanted to spend some time in the ring practicing today. I gue-" Bruce began only to watch Kaede pause before she rapidly picked up her pace. Alfred chuckled lightly while Bruce pulled out a newspaper and began catching up on the news.
"That's better. Make sure you put your all into class today. You know I will know if you don't." Her father said simply as he read through the financial articles.
"Yeah cause Tim is your little spy and you have Barbara or Dick always checking in on me." Kaede said as she washed her breakfast down with a cool glass of milk.
"I only asked Dick to keep an eye on you. Tim is a bit too invested in the idea of a Batfamily to be dissuaded from keeping an eye on you too." Bruce said.
"And Barbara?" Kaede asked.
"She doesn't tell me anything about you when you two are together. I think she keeps her own eye on you for her own benefit." He replied.
Kaede said nothing about that but the world's greatest detective easily caught the slightest twitch of the corners of her lips upward in a hidden smile. Kaede had gotten closer to Barbara than to any of the others, barring perhaps himself. It made sense. The Gordon girl was four years older than Kaede but the two acted like close friends more than mere acquaintances and their shared alter ego as vigilantes made it easier for them to find common ground than any other girls in their age range.
"Are you ready?" Bruce asked her.
"I need to brush my teeth then yeah. I still say that-" Kaede began.
"Miss Kaede I believe you are doing what they call beating a dead horse. Perhaps it's best to hurry along now and get ready for school. You can't put it off forever." Alfred interrupted.
The exceptionally mature girl stuck her tongue out at the man but did as she was told, heading off to her private bathroom to quickly brush her teeth and finish getting ready. The two men smiled faintly as she went, happy to have her actually doing as they said. Bruce silently dreaded the next few years when her rebellious teenage years really set in.
Alfred on the other hand was certain that the little blonde would be nowhere near as bad as Bruce had been in his teen years. Perhaps worse than Master Dick or Miss Barbara were currently but definitely not worse than the Scion of the Wayne family.
"I will go and bring the car around. Will you be joining us in heading to the academy today Master Bruce?" Alfred asked.
"I'm afraid not Alfred. I need to go and meet with Gordon. The string of murders I've been follwing is starting to look liek the handy work of Zsasz. I need to find some lead to his whereabouts before he strikes again. So far we've had no solid leads and the attacks have been almost completely random. Though the vast majority are young women." Bruce said, sliding into the far more serious demeanor of Batman and dropping the charming figure of Bruce Wayne to the wayside.
"Very well, Master Bruce. I plan on picking Miss Barbara up along the way, she has promised to show Miss Kaede around at Gotham Academy and make sure she makes it to her classes." Alfred informed him.
"Good, tell her that I appreciate it and see if she would like to come to the manor after school to have a training session with Kaede. I may run late if I manage to find anything for the case." Bruce said as he stood from the table and made his way back to the study to take the hidden entrance to the Batcave.
"As you wish. Though I fear Miss Kaede will be less than pleased by that. I suppose there is nothing that can be done. That monster Zsasz needs to be pulled off the street as soon as possible." Alfred admitted.
"Agreed." Bruce said as he stepped out of the door.
Almost at the same time that Bruce stepped out Kaede stepped in from a different path.
"Bruce isn't coming as well?" She asked the butler.
"I'm afraid not. Duty calls." Alfred said.
"OH, I'll go grab my uniform and we can both go get…whoever." Kaede said as she began to pivot in place.
"Not so fast, Miss Kaede. You are going to school. Miss Barbara would be rather cross with you if you failed to arrive when she plans on giving you a tour of your new school. The Batman has also made it clear he intends to work this case alone." Alfred said, quickly stepping into her path and causing the blonde to pout adorably.
"All I ever get to help with are purse snatchers and vandals. When am I getting to do some real work?" She demanded but began walking toward the car as Alfred motioned her to do so. She didn't want to disappoint Bruce, Barbara, or Alfred after all.
"All in due time Miss Kaede. After all it's better that you have a greater handle on your abilities and the skills that Master Bruce has been training you in before you look for more notable adversaries. You are still helping the people of the city as it is. You need to remember that it is not your entire life though." Alfred said calmly.
"It's his whole life." Kaede said simply.
Alfred didn't reply. Not because he didn't want to, it was because he couldn't find himself disagreeing. She was completely right, that was why he hoped to make sure things ended up differently for the young blonde.
It made him worry about what would happen if they discovered whatever had happened to her twin brother Naruto. It had already been roughly two years since the two of them had come to this world and if he had the same abilities as Kaede, there was no chance that someone had not noticed him yet. For it to have been this long, that likely meant that someone had him already in their control or had dealt with him more permanently.
Either way, the day that Kaede's search truly ended would be a defining moment in what kind of life she would end up living, he had no doubt of that.
The Demon
Ra's stared down into the arena before him with a cold indifferent look on his face. Beside him Talia also stood watching the events unfolding below them. Her expression was less reserved than his own though. She had grown quite attached to their newest family member after all. As had he in a way he supposed.
Below them, Naruto brutally sparred with several members of the League of Shadows. He made short work of everything sent his way as he beat the multiple opponents back time and again as they tried to attack him. Weapons, or without, they could not break through his defense well enough to turn the tide of the fight into their favor.
He had come a very long way from the bruiser that Talia had found in the Hong Kong underground arena. His movements were fluid, he was cunning and aggressive with his retaliation against attacks, and not a single strike was wasted, every movement timed perfectly to flow into the next and the next and so on.
And this all after only a little over a full year under their tutelage. Under Ra's personal tutelage. The boy was becoming like a son to him. A possible successor in a couple of decades even. It made the Demon Head almost giddy with delight at the concept.
This of course was not even considering the immense power the boy possessed from that other world that he had originated from. Ra's just wished they had also recovered the sister. The pair of twins would have been an immense boost to the League of Shadows.
Still, his newest protégé was valuable enough on his own. Given a simple promise of helping him locate and reunite with his sister and train both of them to not only defend themselves but excel in this world, Naruto was now one of Ra's most loyal followers. Perhaps second only to the likes of Ra's own blood.
"He isn't using his chakra yet." Talia murmured.
"No consciously, no. However I have learned he instinctively powers his body with it in almost every strike and movement. It's a part of why he reacts so quickly and hits so hard." Ra's replied.
"Only a part?" She asked.
"Yes, the rest is his physical body alone. From our tests his race are less human than we first thought. The chakra made that clear but stronger yet lighter bones, more effective muscle tissue and a cardiovascular system that makes that of an average human look puny in comparison." He answered.
"Superiority by nature." She said.
"It would all have been worthless if he didn't torture himself with training so hard. I must say I am very pleased by the work ethic you have made sure to impress upon him." Ra's said, turning his head to look at her.
"That's more him and the reality of his situation and you know that father. He knows that he will only have access to our resources to find his sister if we have use of him as an assassin, so he is adamant in becoming our best assassin." Talia replied.
Ra's didn't respond. He simply turned back to watching Naruto finish rendering the last of his opponents unconscious with a scissor kick that sent them skidding out of the training ring.
"I believe it is nearly time for him to begin taking missions for the League. He will accompany you of course, but I want you to simply observe as he handles the task given to him. We have been forging our weapon, now it is time to sharpen it, no?" Ra's asked his daughter.
"As you wish father. If you believe it is time then it is time." Talia replied. She had no doubts that Naruto would perform as they intended. His people seemed to be bred for intensive violence and they had made certain to hone him to a deadly edge for their various targets and opponents.
"Good. I wish for the two of you to join the family for dinner tonight. We will discuss the missions there." He commanded.
Talia paused at that.
"Is that wise father? When Damian learns that Naruto is receiving a mission before he is, he won't be pleased." Talia commented.
"You have been far too lenient on your son. He is in danger of becoming too self entitled, daughter. This will be an excellent opportunity to begin curving some of his less than appealing personality traits. Like his desire to compete with young Naruto. Or his need to be given only the best opportunities and have everything handed to him. We are assassins, I did not raise you as a dainty princess so I would be disappointed if you were to raise my grandson as one." Ra's replied sharply before turning and leaving.
Talia narrowed her eyes but didn't open her mouth to reply. She knew better than to argue with the Demon Head. Father or not, he did not accept someone questioning him and he would make her punishment painful and humiliating to drive that point home if he needed to.
"We will be there, father, just as you requested." Talia replied.
"I know." His voice called back to her.
Ra's left Talia to speak with Naruto and wrap things up in the training arena then. He had to make preparations not only for a meal but also for the mission he would be using to quench Naruto with. The boy was shaping up to be quite the blade, he just hoped that he remained a useful one.
He made his way through the stronghold to what had come to be called the war room. It was nothing so dramatic. More of an office filled with many cubicles where the less martial oriented members of the League of Shadows worked tirelessly to always remain a step ahead of every other organization and individual in the world when it came to intelligence and information gathering.
The room was mostly empty at the moment. While they were not as efficient in combat as the members of their organization that were focused on combat, even those that focused on softer aspects of their operations were required to maintain a baseline of skill and ability. It only made sense. After all, why would they want anyone in their organization of assassins that was not capable of at least defending themselves from an opponent.
Currently the majority of the stronghold was busy with training. It was a normal early morning routine for everyone that lived here. No matter the job and no matter the person. Cooks, janitors, pencil pushers, and warriors, everyone in the League of Shadows was a fighter.
"Master, how may we serve you?" A young woman asked. She and the small collection of other analysts and technicians in the room stood at attention when they noticed that he had entered the room.
"You may all return to your work. I need only one of you to pull up the information I require." Ra's said simply.
The various servants did as they were told and returned to their tasks at hand. The young woman that had spoken however immediately walked over to their esteemed leader and awaited the orders he would give them. She was one of those that had been born into their group. Ra's could recognize the looks she had as the appearance of a man and woman he had recruited during the nineteen-twenties. A lifetime ago. Their granddaughter was doing them proud.
"I require you to bring up information on a former associate of ours. We recently performed a task with him and his small collection of followers." Ra's commanded.
"Of course, master. Allow me a moment to retrieve the information that we have on him." She replied quickly before returning to her station.
Ra's slowly followed after her. His eyes scanned over the others, watching as they worked. The analyst he had spoken with worked fast, the deal with Firefly and his little gang was brought up easily enough as they had just recently worked together. Somehow the pyromaniac had gotten a hold of a large stock of stolen pure silver bars and in exchange for a good chunk of them the League of Shadows had helped him in acquiring an experimental fuel type known as promethium.
The substance had the viscosity of napalm but the chemical compounds that allowed it to burn produced their own oxygen as a by product allowing the compound to burn until it burned itself out even in a vacuum or underwater. There was not much available to steal for the firebug, but even the small portions he had gotten could be devastating.
The issue was that now that Firefly had his promethium fuel, he had become a bit too bold. All too happy to flaunt his new power and forget his dues to the League of Shadows. Examples now had to be made.
"Here it is, master. Everything we have on Firefly, also known as Garfield Lynns. According to our latest information he is still at the warehouse in Istanbul that he was using to prepare his new promethium bombs. He's picked up a small force of mercenaries to do the heavy lifting for him as well. A bit unusual for him but he seems intent on really doing some damage in Gotham this time. Even plans to kill the Wayne family." She explained.
"He hopes to destroy the detective? How typical. If we didn't need to send a message I would be tempted to leave Lynns to be crushed by Batman. However no one slights the Shadows and walks away unscathed. Have copies of this information made and sent to myself, Talia, and Naruto. Make sure to keep any mention of the Wayne family from the report." Ra's commanded before turning and leaving the room. The image of Firefly's little operation still present in his mind as he contemplated the exact parameters to give his weapon in dealing with the little fire bug.
Kaede
Going to school at the prestigious Gotham Academy was about what she had expected. The majority watched her with calculating eyes, until at least her name came up, and the students and faculty both went out of their way to get close to her. Thankfully Barbara, Dick, and Tim were all there to spend time with. It was better to be around them because she at least knew where she stood.
Alfred and Bruce had both told her that people would treat her differently as the adoptive daughter of Bruce Wayne. It was like being named royalty here in Gotham. It also painted all sorts of targets on her back.
She might not especially like Tim but he was friendly enough and was in the know being as Batman clearly intended to make Tim his next Robin. He had offered the role to Kaede but as much as she had come to love her new family, the batfamily as Tim and Dick insisted they call themselves, she wasn't about to try and follow after Jason. His unfortunate demise aside she wanted more than just to be Batman's sidekick.
"Kaede, you are thinking about something." Barbara said while gently prodding at the younger girl's side.
The blonde shot the older redhead a look. Shit worried her lip between her teeth as she thought on her choices before deciding coming clean and dragging the older girl along was the best option.
"What do you know about Victor Zsasz?" Kaede asked, causing her friend's eyes to widen considerably.
"More than I want. Why are you asking?" Barbara said as her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
"Well you know he is probably behind the recent murders. The batman is already looking into it personally alongside your dad." Kaede explained.
"Tch, why am I not surprised that neither of them told me anything about it…Bruce didn't tell you either though, did he?" Barbara asked with a flat look. She already knew the answer after all.
"He lets his guard down way too much at home." The blonde said with a small smile causing Barbara to grin as well.
"Where are you going with this, kiddo?" She asked.
"I figured you would have me all figured out by this point." Kaede teased. Barbara simply rolled her eyes. She had a pretty good idea after all, but she wasn't about to be the first to say it out loud when she knew that Batman would be interrogating them both when it was all over.
"Look, I'm ready. You know it, Tim and Dick know it. Even Alfred knows it. I think he does too. He just won't admit it till I shove it in his face somehow." Kaede pointed out.
"I don't know. I get that you want to get more involved but out of everyone, Zsasz? He's a real monster, Kaede." Barbara said.
"Just makes him the perfect debut for Archangel doesn't it?" Kaede asked before turning to head into the manor.
"And her trusty sidekick Batgirl." Kaede called over her shoulder.
Barbara scoffed. "In your dreams kiddo, the other way around maybe."
Still Barbara followed after her younger friend. She was going either way and it was better that she had backup. Barbara knew that from her own experience stepping into the world of fighting crime.
Three hours later and the sun had just settled at the edge of the horizon. Gotham was bathed in red and orange light while Archangel and Batgirl raced along rooftops. Literally actually.
Batgirl had the more experience doing this and the addition of a cape capable for glider flight and grappling gun that made it where she could practically fly over the buildings.
Archangel was a bit different. Her outfit was primarily a dark silver in color with highlights of purple and black in places. Rather than full cowl she wore a simple domino mask like Robin would while her bright blonde hair was left free. Her cloak, unlike the others that remained a single bat like shape, looked more feathered and split to appear as wings.
She was still diminutive at only eleven, but she would strike one impressive image once she was older.
While Batgirl used her gadgets and parkour to maneuver, Archangel had developed an ability with her chakra that allowed her an even more versatile method of travel. It hadn't been easy to develop, or rather reverse engineer, but slowly over the last two years Kaede had figured out how the Shinobi of her former home had been able to run along sheer surfaces with ease. Manipulating her chakra properly allowed her to turn every fight into a three dimensional one.
Even now she used her chakra to cling to a wall as she landed to keep from falling down to her death. It wasn't the only trick she had figured out but it was one of the most useful abilities she had learned with her chakra.
"Archangel, we'll split up here. If you want to catch Zsasz before Batman we need to make sure he can't escape. I'll come in through the service bay while you come in through the upper windows." Batgirl said.
"Sounds like a plan." Archangel replied as stoically as she could. It was far from being on par with Batman but it was still quite impressive for a child. It helped make her seem older, at least in her teens as well.
The two heroines split up. Archangel scaling the outer wall and gaining access to the wide rooftop. Now she just needed to get to the other side of the building without alerting Zsasz.
Easy.
She silently crossed the roof and made it to the windows looking in to see where Zsasz had been set up. The scene made her stomach churn in anger and grief.
The two young women that Zsasz had most recently kidnapped were bound up into a pair of office chairs and were clearly dead. Their throats has been cut widely and most of their faces had been horrifically mutilated. She could only hope that they were dead before Zsasz had done that to them.
Unfortunately Zsasz himself was not present. Likely somewhere else in the large building. Hopefully not 'entertaining' other hostages he had picked up.
Slowly, carefully, and most importantly silently, Archangel eased the window out of place before crawling into the room and clinging to the ceiling. She pressed herself into the shadows and waited for any sort of sound or a signal from Batgirl.
Nothing came from the other Heroine, but a loud series of metal clanging suddenly could be heard inside the building. Deeper inside, toward the main operations floors.
Pressing her luck and pressing forward Kaede decided she needed to be bold if they were going to put an end to Zsasz's horrible killing spree. She eased out of the room, having descended back to the floor to make it easier on herself in moving through the doorways of the building.
She was still far above the main work floor when she spotted Zsasz. He had managed to get the upper hand on Batgirl and now he had her tightly held in his arms, using her body for cover as he called out into the dark, cavernous building.
"Batman, get out here!" He screamed and when nothing happened he began to grow irritated.
"If you don't want me to open her throat up, Batman, then I suggest you show yourself. I know this one and those other costumed brats you run around with don't go after someone like me alone, so come out here now!" Zsasz continued to shout.
Kaede knew better than to expose her position. If Zsasz had both of them he would have all the time in the world to abuse and torture them before he finally killed them.
Her best chance, and there by Barbara's best chance would be to stay unseen and try to get around behind him to knock him out. As she began to move into position though she paused as a towering dark figure seemed to melt out of the shadows directly in front of Zsasz and Batgirl.
"Here I am, now release the girl Victor." Batman said flatly. More like ordering the psychopath holding one of his proteges hostage.
"Ah, no. I don't think I will. See now is the part where you beg me to let her go and to not hurt her. You are going to get down on your knees and plead with me and make promises to me, the whole nine yards." Zsasz said as a sadistic smirk spread across Ed his face.
Archangel was still stunned by Batman's appearance and even more by the fact that he had given himself away. At least until his eyes flicked up and locked with her own. Then she realized what he was doing.
He was buying her time and giving her an opening to strike.
Archangel didn't plan on wasting such an opportunity.
She dropped down from her perch silently and crept up behind the murderer holding her friend hostage.
"Didn't you hear me? I said to get on your knees and beg me to-" Zsasz began to shout again only for Archangel to jump slightly to have perfect angle to land a fist against the back of Zsasz's head.
It didn't knock him out completely. Kaede held back with her chakra to keep from killing the man, but it was more than enough to stun him and let Batgirl tear herself free from his grip. She pulled free and rolled out of the way as Batman lunged forward and smashed an elbow into Zsasz's jaw. Another harsh blow and he was out like a light.
"Are you alright? Any injuries?" Batman asked, turning toward Batgirl.
"Nothing but a couple bruises. I should have had him, I-" She began.
"Zsasz is extremely athletic and has one of the highest pain tolerances I have encountered. Consider it a victory that you are alive." Batman said simply before quickly binding the killer on the floor up for the authorities.
"You two should not be here, we will be having a conversation when we return to the Batcave, but we need to find the hostages. Hopefully they are still alive." Batman said.
"They're not. I found them in the foreman's office upstairs. He tortured and killed them." Kaede said sadly.
Batman was silent for a moment. Not a twitch indicating his disappointment or sadness at that news. Just a brief silence that both proteges beside him knew to mean he was unhappy.
"Then all that remains is contacting Gordon. You two will return to the cave and wait for me there. We have a long discussion ahead of us." He said before turning his attention back to the unconscious Zsasz.
Kaede sighed quietly. She already knew this discussion that Batman wanted to have was going to be unpleasant.
Naruto
The dinner that Ra's had called for had been unpleasant. When all of Ra's 'family' was present it usually was. There were far too many raw egos sitting around the table at once for everyone to get along.
Even the presence of Ra's only kept a veneer of civility in place as they ate. Even that faded when the real reason of their joint meal was revealed.
It was more of a briefing. The situation and location surrounding Firefly was explained in detail and those gathered soaked up the information provided by the Demon Head.
The moment he finished explaining the mission to them all most of the others made to prepare themselves for the task. Only for Ra's to stop them.
Only Talia and Naruto were to go. It was time for Naruto to prove he belonged within their organization and make an example of one that had crossed them. Naruto made sure to express how much of an honor it was to be given the opportunity.
The majority of others in the room couldn't argue any fault with the Demon Head's decision either. Naruto was already among the best of them despite being a young boy. His first mission had been only a matter of time, though they remained a bit surprised by the fact he was being sent at such a young age.
There were a few though, that had other issues with Naruto being sent. Chief among them was little Damian. The boy was only a little thing. Younger even than Naruto and his twin sister had been when they were sent tumbling through dimensions. Sadly, his attitude did not reflect his age or his heritage very well.
In Naruto's opinion, the boy was incredibly spoiled. To the point that he got nearly all that he wanted by simply speaking. What he wanted most of all though was to be not only the successor of Ra's but the greatest among the League of Shadows.
For some reason, despite the age gap, Damian had decided Naruto was his premier rival for both positions. Naruto had no interest in such things, still more concerned with finding his sister and becoming strong enough to never be separated again. Still he did his best to ignore Damian's attempts to push him. Besides being a child he was Talia's child after all.
Talia who was the one to draw him out of the pit he had fallen into after coming to this world. Who had saved him from the blood sport in Hong Kong as well as from himself as he had gradually slipped into a vicious and brutal survival mentality. The person he cared for almost as much as Kaede, wherever she was.
Of course Damian demanded to go. And when he was denied tried to belittle Naruto's abilities. Talia, not Ra's, had been the one to reprimand him and mete out a punishment. One that had shocked the boy as he was slapped across the face for his disrespect not only of a senior member of the League of Shadows but also herself as Naruto's trainer and the Demon Head himself at his decision to send Naruto. The boy's grandfather ignored him and the brat stood from the table and scurried away humiliated at the reprimand.
His final parting shot a mere reminder to Naruto to remember that Talia was Damian's mother and that Naruto remained an urchin. Naruto, who had remained silent throughout all of the boy's other words, finally replied.
Only asking if his rude nature was from his father, before scoffing and saying that he supposed Damian wouldn't actually know.
That had been the end of it. Thankfully.
Ra's finished briefing Naruto and Talia on their task and within the hour both were en route to Istanbul. It took little time at all to arrive in the city, even less to locate Firefly's warehouse.
The fact that they had such an easy time locating Firefly and knowing his entire operation inside and out made it clear just how expansive the information network and intelligence gathering system the League had in place was. It also made him wonder how exactly they had failed to find anything regarding Kaede. Surely she would have stuck like a sore thumb. The abilities Chakra produced were too obvious not to, and if she was anything like Naruto, which he knew that she was, she would have reverse engineered some of the jutsu they had seen in the past.
He didn't plan to bring that up in the mission however. His doubt in Ra's was strong enough for him to question if he was being honest with him, but he also wasn't foolish enough to openly go against the League of Shadows.
Not when they were his only real chance of finding her again.
"Naruto, pay attention." Talia gruffly bit out in the cool night air.
"I am. I might be thinking but I heard everything you said. The guards won't be a problem. I have an idea already for how to make an example of the Firefly that the Demon Head would be content with. Maybe even happy with." Naruto replied.
"Very well then. You can begin your operation whenever you are ready. However I will leave you with one more bit of information." Talia said, causing Naruto to turn his head back toward the beautiful woman that acted as much like his teacher as she did an older sister.
"What is it?" He asked.
"My place here is to observe and grade your performance, not to intervene or even help you in any way. If you fail and are defeated you will be cut out of the League of Shadows and left to die. If that is the case then try to die with some dignity down there." Talia said coldly.
"I understand." And truly Naruto did. Her saying that was her way of caring. Telling him beforehand that her hands were essentially tied when it came to helping him with the pyromaniac and his newest toys.
"I'll be in and out in no time flat, and I'll make a perfect example of him just like I said I would." Naruto said before he scaled the wall beside him and ran along the narrow concrete.
Like Kaede, though unknown to both twins, Naruto had done much the same as her and reverse engineered how to use chakra to stick to surfaces. Unlike Kaede, Naruto had the influence of Ra's and Talia al Ghul to push him to take it further.
As he dropped off of the wall onto the surface of the water below he quietly made his way to the warehouse that had roving patrols of mercenaries circling it. They were not all that impressive. Hired guns from the region that were more like triggermen for street gangs then true blue soldiers of fortune.
They weren't meant to keep our the likes of an assassin from the League of Shadows that was for sure. More like stop nosy port authority officials from snooping too far into Firefly's property.
Silently Naruto scaled back up the stone wall that separated the warehouse grounds from the sea below. He blended into the shadows well, covered head to toe in black with even his weapons made of a matte black material that didn't reflect light. Only his bright blue eyes were visible but none of the guards managed to see him before he was already launching his ambush.
Naruto cleared out the mercenaries one patrol at a time until only Firefly himself was left. The man was too engrossed in preparing a collection of his new promethium bombs to take notice that his guards had been slaughtered.
Naruto didn't go after him yet. Instead he saw the secondary prize and decided to secure it first.
The silver.
Much less than was promised to the League but enough to make any individual in the world insanely wealthy. Carefully Naruto moved what bars were left out onto a small boat at the warehouse's dock.
Doing so however allowed for enough time to pass that Firefly realized something was definitely amiss.
Just enough to lean to the side when Naruto began his attack. Rather than losing a head, the pyromaniac lost the remains of his left ear. Naruto's sword strike had carved a bloody line down his face making Firefly scream out in pain and fall back.
He fell into his go to plan of action and kicked on the flamethrower pack on his back. Hours of flame splashed toward Naruto but the boy was too fast and swept around the flames.
He tried to close in with Firefly again but the target made a show of his talent with the flamethrower. He formed a wall of red hot napalm between himself and Naruto before falling back toward his workbench.
"I dunno who the fuck you think you are, but I wish you had come just an hour later. I would have loved a live target for trying out my newest toy." The man said as more gouts of flame bathed the building in fire.
Naruto didn't reply. He didn't need to, the idiot before him had stepped back exactly where Naruto wanted him to. A pinpoint throw of a kunai and Firefly found himself splashed with the promethium he had yet to use.
"You little shit! Do you know what it takes to make this stuff?" He demanded.
Again Naruto was silent instead of answering he twisted his hands in an odd combination before creating the tiniest of sparks of electricity. His training under Ra's had eventually made it possible to alter the state of his chakra into various elements. He could only make the tiniest of nature transformations at the moment, but that tiny spark of electricity was all he needed.
The promethium ignited instantly and quickly engulfed Firefly entirely. The pyromaniac screamed in pain for a single moment before he collapsed. His thrashing continued a second more before his corpse simply burned.
With Firefly dead, Naruto didn't wait around to see anything more. Already the flames were quickly devouring the warehouse and inching closer and closer to the promethium bombs that Firefly had concocted.
As he leapt down into the boat and took it back across the water to Talia's position, the bombs detonated shattering the earth and stone that the building had rested on and dumping it into the water.
Even there the promethium burned boiling the seawater around it until the last of the fuel would be burned away.
Talia watched the spectacle with approving eyes. What better example could there be than killing a man with his own preferred weapon. The Demon Head would be receiving a glowing report on Naruto's mission. The first of many.
That is that. I hope you all enjoyed. Like I said we got to see just a bit of chakra use from the twins this chapter and we also have begun seeing the different ways that Naruto and Kaede are being raised as well as the fact Kaede is not just Bruce's ward she is his legal daughter now.
As for the decision to call Kaede Archangel, well I kind of have an eventual look in my head for her. Almost like a counterbalance to Batman. More hopeful and caring y'know like an angel.
Anyway yes Ra's is pretty sure that Bruce's adopted daughter is the Kaede that Naruto is searching for. However he is withholding that information for now. He needs to make sure Naruto won't bounce the moment the two are reunited.
On the other hand Naruto knows that Kaede's whereabouts are likely known by the League but he has no way to get that information himself so he has to remain where he is until they either let it slip or tell him.
Anyway
Till Next Time.