Shinobi Justice Vol 1 Chapter 9: Fright Night, a Naruto + Young Justice Crossover fanfic

Hello. Well, this year has been full of surprises. Some…not so good ("cough" politics "cough). But others are quite pleasing…like WE'RE GETTING YOUNG JUSTICE SEASON 3 BABY! Between this and Samurai Jack, I hope many other TV series that were cancelled too soon get a revival and closure they deserve.

But in the meantime, there's always this chapter. Enjoy!

Happy Harbor, RI

Nov 5th

UTC 0:00

"What is everyone else going to be dressed up as?" Naruto asked the gang as they walked down the street toward Happy Harbor Highschool.

"Anything goes on Halloween." Wally answered. "Or costume parties, for that matter."

They finally came upon Happy Harbor High's Auditorium, the music echoing in their ears even from outside. "I think this is the part where Wally says 'Let's get this party started!'?" Artemis smirked as she mimicked a surfer dude accent that Wally once tried. Wally only eyed her.

"Well, Artemis, I wouldn't quite put it that way, but the party clearly has started." M'gann said. "Shall we go in?"

They opened the door, and their jaws dropped. "You have GOT to be kidding me." Connor muttered. EVERYONE was dressed up as a superhero from the league. Granted, they could understand why. But they were hoping to see some diversity in costumes. After all, they lived with superheroes!

"Megan!" Karen came up to M'gann, dressed up in a bee costume; cutesy, but a relief from the not Justice Leaguers that surrounded them. "So glad you could make it! And you brought friends!"

"How could I pass this up!?" M'gann agreed. "Though I figured the League would go out of style…"

"Hey, don't be hatn' on the League." Karen's boyfriend, Mal Duncan came up. His costume was…well, they didn't know what he was, just that he had his blue Superman t-shirt with a leather jacket and sunglasses. Taking them off, he eyed Connor. "Burn victim?" he asked.

He and Connor had something of a rivalry. While it was clear they didn't like each other, none could say they hated each other's guts as well. "Mummy." Connor answered. "And you?"

Mal smiled, placing his hands on his hips. "Superman. Done right." He said. The team just groaned.

"I don't know. I saw the real Superman, and he's a lot cooler than you!" Naruto argued.

"NARUTO!" Sakura yelled, slapping him across the head.

M'gann came behind them, pushing them forward. "Why don't we just enjoy the party? Before things get too weird." She told them.

MOUNT JUSTICE

"Seal the doors." Batman told the AI that managed the cave's security and other functions. He stood in the conference room. Robin, Aqualad, Red Arrow, and Red Tornado joined him inside. "Let us begin with our current predicament."

Batman went over the previous medical discoveries that Robin had shared with Team 7 earlier. "Interesting." Red Arrow sighed. "I don't think it's relevant to what's going on, or whatever our enemies were planning to do with their world. We have plenty of people here with powers, and technologically we're the superior ones."

"There is one more thing." Robin interrupted. "Something I didn't tell them." Bringing up their chakra coil scans, he highlighted Naruto's. "Now, this is the main thing that separates us from them. These 'chakra coils'. We have reason to believe we both have them, but those of Naruto's people have access to their energy due to the enlarged coils." He erased Sakura and Sasuke's models. "However, there seems to be one thing that separates Naruto from his two peers."

Zooming in on his body, he highlighted his energy flow. Around his stomach, something glowed very brightly. "What is that!?" Red Arrow asked.

"We're not sure." Batman answered. "But S.T.A.R. confirmed it seemed to produce an enormous amount of energy. If harvested, his body could possibly be used to fuel a weapon on par with an atomic bomb. How his body was not torn apart from housing this energy, we're still trying to determine that."

"Perhaps that may explain something I saw." Aqualad said. "Before you rescued us that morning, Sakura was about to be crushed by a rock. Somehow, Naruto threw off two grown men with the strength of Superboy. I could have sworn I saw the faint outline of an orange discharge about him." Aqualad gathered his thoughts. "Also, when he ran over to Sakura, he ran on all fours. Like an animal."

Batman held his chin in deep thought. "So, this energy…it induces bestial behavior?"

Robin rubbed his chin, and his eyes widened. "There is something else." Robin explained. "When they brought us to our village, they explained the history of one of their monuments. One of their leaders…Hokages, like Naruto never shuts up about…apparently died facing off against a giant nine-tailed fox." Everyone looked at him funny. "Hey, that's what they told me. I didn't say it made sense." He insisted.

"And it doesn't explain why Naruto would behave that way." Batman said. "Still, now that Robin has brought it up, there indeed could be a link."

Aqualad said. "What that link is, none can say. And if Naruto indeed possesses this power, he does not seem to be aware of it."

"Or he's hiding it." Red Arrow said. "Remember, if they're really ninja…very colorful, unintimidating ninja…they're keen on keeping secrets."

"Perhaps." Aqualad reluctantly agreed. "But Naruto. He's…not that type."

"Red Tornado, did your blood samples uncover anything?" Batman asked.

"Some things." The android answered. He brought up a hologram of what seemed to be a DNA sample. "Their DNA is almost identical to ours, as to be expected. However…" He then highlighted particular genes. "These stand out. I can't say what their function is, but according to the League's database, we have found several other anomalies among our own people."

Robin breathed deeply through his nostrils. "I knew it." He said. "KF tried to learn a few of their skills. It didn't go anywhere, and now I know why. Their coils and their DNA…it must produce some kind of mutation. I suspected as much from the beginning. Otherwise, any of us would be able to do the things they do." They all nodded.

"As interesting as this is, have you all found anything that could help them get home?" Red Arrow asked.

"S.T.A.R. had found trace radiation from their bodies. Sadly, unless we manage to breach dimensions, I do not foresee them going anywhere without some kind of miracle. That is all we have on them thus far." Batman answered.

"Well, as interesting as your new friends are, I think we should discuss more pressing matters." Red Arrow interrupted. "The mole." During a mission in Taipei, Sportsmaster told Aqualad he had an inside source from the team. This led to a bout of mistrust a while ago between Aqualad and the rest of the team. "Did you find any leads?" the archer asked.

"I am not convinced." Aqualad answered. "Sportsmaster cannot be trusted. And I have fought alongside the others. We've sacrificed, bonded and overcame great difficulties together. A mole would have had ample opportunity to destroy us within several times over."

"Maybe that opportunity isn't what you think, and it hasn't come up yet." Red Arrow interrupted. "Kaldur, we've known each other for years. The three of us plus Wally check out. But your other friends do not."

"What are you saying?" Aqualad said.

"First, there's Artemis. I dug into her history. Much as I could anyway. I couldn't find much, but I know this: Artemis is not Green Arrow's niece."

"What!?" Aqualad shouted.

"Yeah." Robin confirmed. Aqualad had to stop himself from rolling his eyes: of COURSE Robin would know! "She's actually-"

"Artemis is entitled to her secret identity, same as the rest of us." Batman interrupted, raising his hand.

"Anyway, there's also the matter of Superboy." Red Arrow continued. "There's no telling what Cadmus programmed into him. And Miss Martian! She claims to be Martian Manhunter's niece; but he has at least 50 of them! Never met any one of them! And she shows up only a few months before this team of yours formed!? That just reeks of suspicion!"

"Roy." Aqualad said, raising his hand. "I value your concern, but I can promise you, we don't have a traitor in our midst."

Red Arrow only narrowed his eyes underneath his mask. "Then we're done here. Open." With that, Red Arrow exited the room to retire for the night.

UTC 0:35

The dance was well underway now. While the Team managed to fit in no problem, Team 7 could only stand around in confusion. "Uh…this is dancing?" Naruto asked. Everyone just seemed to jumping up and down at random. Sakura looked around to see one girl not much older than her rub her butt against her boyfriend. She turned red, and turned away. She briefly thought about trying it on Sasuke, but even that was too much for her! "I…I guess we could just copy them." Naruto suggested.

"STICKS AND STONES MAY BREAK MY BONES, BUT WHIPS AND CHAINS EXCITE ME, YEAH!" the music went on.

Sakura's brow twitched. "Let's not…"

Meanwhile, Connor and M'gann were getting their grove on, so to speak. Connor, of course, raised his arms lazily. M'gann was doing her best to wave her arms like she just didn't care and tapped her feet erratically. "Come on, Connor! Dance!" M'gann told him telepathically.

"I…I don't know…" he frowned "…it just seems so…silly. Like we're a bunch of monkeys…"

"Let's not go there." M'gann shut him down. "It's just fun. Hey. Look at Marvin."

Connor turned around. Marvin was the class clown of the school. A scrawny kid with freckles and buck-teeth, he was surprisingly well-liked. Currently dressed as Batman, he was swaying his body back and forth and shuffling his feet, doing his best to imitate Michael Jackson's moonwalk. "Go Marvin! Go Marvin!" a bunch of onlookers cheered.

"See?" M'gann said. "No need to be embarrassed. Just have fun."

Connor slowly smiled, and began to move faster…

"'Scuse mwa, por favor." Wally said as he took some punch from the cafeteria table, snaking his arms between two girls dressed as grim-reaper type characters. "Time to show Miss M what the Wall-man is made of…" he thought smugly.

Meanwhile, Artemis danced around the boys, using her cape and hips to their full advantage. Her exotic look also helped attract their attention. "Good." She thought. Then getting HIM to notice shouldn't be a problem.

"Wow." Zatanna said, watching close by. "You're getting lots of looks."

"Just making sure I can win him over." She said as she finally walked off, much to her "fans" disappointment.

"Who?"

Artemis stopped, and smiled wickedly as she whispered in her ear. "Connor."

"Superboy?" Zatanna whispered back.

Artemis chuckled, slightly embarrassed. "He's fine. I…I never had a boyfriend. Figure why not?"

Both she and Wally headed towards where they last saw M'gann and Connor. And they both froze when they saw them dancing together. "Don't panic." Wally thought. "Friends dance!"

But when they bumped their hips together, it didn't look good. "It's the music." Artemis told herself. "They're just following the crowd; they don't know any better."

Suddenly, Connor grabbed her arms and pulled her in for a kiss. Though taken by surprise, M'gann wrapped her hands around his head, and reciprocated the kiss. Both could see, this wasn't their first time kissing. Wally's head hung low. "Man." Quickly, he downed the punch, and left the cups on the floor, much to the annoyance of some of the other dancers.

Artemis' lip quivered, and she stormed off. "Artemis!" Zatanna called out. "Wait!" she reached out to her.

"DON'T." Artemis growled. "I need some air."

"What are you doing?" Sasuke asked.

"Dancing?" Sakura said unconfidently. She was doing her best to imitate the dancers around her, though most of it seemed to be jumping up and down and waving arms. "Come on, Sasuke-kun. I'm embarrassed too. But we can still have fun." She said, smiling.

"That's the problem." Sasuke growled. "All we've been doing is having fun…if you can call it that."

Sakura finally stopped. "Sasuke-kun…It's okay. I'm scared too." She said, bringing her hands to her collar

"Scared?"

"I'm missing home to…" she said.

"I could care less about getting back to the village." Sasuke said, shocking Sakura. "Itachi is out there, and this…'Justice League'…has done nothing to help me get to him!"

Sakura noticed that others were starting to look their way, Sasuke's outburst attracting attention. "Sasuke-kun…" Sakura pleaded. "Now's not the time…"

"For you, maybe." Sasuke tore his mask off, dropped it on the floor and stormed out. Sakura tried to hold her tears back, but seeing that she was failing, she ran to where no one could see her.

Naruto, holding two cups of punch, saw the whole thing. He wanted to help, but didn't know how. "Looks like someone's not having fun."

Naruto turned to see Zatanna beside him. "Oh! Magic Girl!"

"I have a name!" Zatanna snapped.

"Sorry!" Naruto apologized quickly.

"Well, she's not the only one with a broken heart tonight." Zatanna said. She looked back behind her. "At least love is working out for some people."

Naruto turned to see Superboy and Miss Martian dancing, their arms joined together like they were in some hip-hop waltz. "They really-?" Naruto began to ask.

"Yup." Zatanna confirmed. Naruto sighed. "What's the matter?"

"I…I was going to ask…"

"Then do it!" Zatanna smiled.

"I…I don't know." Naruto sighed. "I'd rather ask her if she was happy…"

"Then let's try to make her happy." Zatanna said, pushing him her direction. "And don't worry about the dancing." Zatanna said. "We'll take care of that."

Naruto yelped in surprise. "Are you sure you're not psychic like M'gann?"

Artemis sighed as she slammed the door open, stepping into the building's rear exit. She looked to her side to see Wally slumped against the wall. "So…" he said, noticing her. "…come here to laugh?"

"If only." Artemis sighed, sitting down too. "Looks like you aren't having much fun either. M'gann rejected you?"

Wally sighed. "Well…I needed to have a chance to ask her out before it could be called 'a rejection'." Wally took off his mullet-wig as he stroked his real hair. "I suppose it's for the best though; don't want Connor of all people to stuff me in a locker."

"I know the feeling." Artemis sighed.

"Really?" Wally asked in disbelief. "Some dude turned you down? You don't even know-"

"Connor."

Wally stopped, as the two stared at each other. "Wow." He chuckled.

"What's so funny!?" Artemis snarled.

"It's just that both of our crushes happen to be a couple!" he answered as he began to laugh louder.

Artemis tried hard not to…but the laughs came, and she finally let it out, nearly falling over on her side. Soon, their laughter died down. "I can't believe it." Artemis wheezed, wiping away a tear. "I was going through another 'Life Sucks' phase. Now, suddenly, I'm feeling alright."

Wally's laughter was coming down too. "Me too." Once they were able to stop, the two just faced away as they sat in silence.

"Hey." Artemis said. "Remember Bialiya?"

"Surprised I do, considering what happened." Wally said. "Why?"

"Remember what you called me…" Artemis then started to look distressed. If Wally were any closer, he would have noticed the blush.

Wally's eyes widened in realization. The bout of amnesia that plagued the team back then caused Wally to call her something he wouldn't have at the time otherwise. He didn't want to admit it, but Artemis was…beautiful. He would have claimed that she was a total…no. She wasn't that either. Just got under his skin at times. Even then, she really wasn't that bad. "…I do." Wally finally answered.

Artemis was almost hoping he wouldn't answer as she stroked her ponytail. "Was…was that you just playing the hero…or did you mean it?"

Wally took a moment to answer. "I meant it." Their heart rates accelerated as Artemis scooted closer. The two finally got the courage to look each other in the eyes.

Before anymore could be done, they heard the door open sharply. Sasuke, without his mask, was storming off. "Hey Sasuke! What's wrong!?" Wally yelled. "Did Sakura dump you too!? Join the club!"

Artemis sighed. "Not likely…"

Sasuke said nothing as he began to sprint and disappeared. "Aw, shit!" Wally cursed, doing his best Will Smith impression. "Superboy got the tracker?" Artemis nodded. "Hold on." Wally walked, not ran, back inside. A moment later, he walked back out with what looked like a smartphone. "Okay." This time, he ran off at his true speed (or a fraction of it), Artemis' cape flapping in the wind from his departure.

UTC 01:10

In another part of the town, a red circle appeared, descending to the ground as it revealed Klarion and Harm. "Where are we?" Harm asked.

"Happy Harbor. It's in Rhode Island." The witch boy answered matter-of-factly.

Harm spat down on the road. "You want Harm here? In this pitiful town?"

"I've discovered humans tend to react stronger to tragedies in…smaller, populations." Klarion said as he stroked Tiko. "There's a party going down at the High School. A Halloween Party…"

"In November?"

"Yeah, doesn't make much sense to me either. Now, if you still want that 'opponent'…"

"Harm understands." Harm said, his sword crackling with energy. "This will be done quick." He sighed, as he headed in the general direction Klarion indicated.

Naruto sighed as he approached the door where he saw Sakura run into, showing a white silhouette of what seemed to be a woman in a skirt. "Uh…Sakura?" he knocked. "Sakura-chan?" Hearing nothing, he simply walked in. "Sakura-chan! I need to talk to you!" he demanded, seemingly oblivious what he was walking into.

He found Sakura, hunching over the sinks. She sharply turned to face him in surprise, her eyes red from crying. "NARUTO, YOU PERVERT!" she screamed as she balled up her fists.

"WHAT!? WHAT I'D DO THIS TIME!?" Naruto shouted as he anticipated the storm to come.

"THIS IS THE GIRLS' ROOM, YOU BAKA!" she yelled back.

"So what!?" Naruto shouted back. "You're not on the toilet! You're not changing!" he pointed back defensively.

Sakura growled as she punched him hard across the face, knocking him to the floor. "It's a matter of principle, baka!" she shouted. Naruto got up, rubbing his cheek, slightly chuckling. "What!?" she shouted, placing her fists on her hips.

"It's good to know you're feeling better!" Naruto smiled. Seeing he just confused her, he asked "You are, aren't you?"

Sakura looked away. "I don't like admitting it…but yeah, I do feel a little bit better. Sorry I keep using you as a punching bag. I…I'll try to find a better way to channel my aggression"

"Hey, what are friends for?" he asked chuckling. "I admit, I did kind of deserve that." Naruto then sighed. "Well, I can't say I understand WHY you were upset before…but would you like to genuinely have fun now?"

Sakura looked at him in surprise, bringing her hand to her mouth. "I…I guess…but I don't know…Sasuke-kun…"

"Whatever's bothering the teme, that's his business!" Naruto interrupted as he swiped his hand across the air. "Everyone here invited us to have fun, so let's be gracious hosts and do so!"

Sakura looked up at him, smiling slightly. "I can't believe I'm saying this…but you're right." She then looked at Naruto a bit quizzically. "But…what exactly are we going to do?"

Naruto seemed to be at a loss for words for a moment. "Well…the others are going to help us with that. Or so I was told…" he mumbled as he scratched his head.

"How?"

"Can we get out of here and find out?" Naruto pleaded.

Sakura slowly smiled. "Okay, Naruto. Lead the way.

"Okay." M'gann smiled as she heard Zatanna's plan. "I'm in."

"Great!" Zatanna clapped her hands. Looking into the crowd, she found Naruto and Sakura moving their way through the crowd. "Just in time."

M'gann concentrated. "Naruto? Sakura? Since this isn't coming easy for either of you, we're going to help you out!"

"You mean, to dance, right?" Naruto asked, being careful not to let any other thoughts slip out. "How?"

"Come the next song, I need you to completely relax your body, and don't fight whatever happens. I'll be in control."

"Uh…okay."

The stereos suddenly blew a whistle like sound with a very slick-sounding guitar sound. "Here we go!" M'gann smiled as she concentrated.

Naruto immediately felt like strings were moving his limbs. "Just shoot for the stars. If it feels right, and aim for my heart…"Naruto felt his hand cup the back of his head, as he suddenly felt his body lean forward and back rapidly. Sakura's perplexed look suddenly looked amused. Naruto felt himself straighten out, as his arms stretched out, moving like waves. Sakura was laughing now; not at his expense, but she was having a genuinely good time watching him. Naruto felt his legs move like he was walking normally, yet he was going backwards. In all honesty, he was having a good time himself, as Sakura awkwardly tried to follow his movements. "Take me by the tongue and I'll know you!" the chorus began. Naruto suddenly felt his face come dangerously close to Sakura's. Sakura herself nearly jumped. "Kiss me 'till you're drunk, and I'll show you…!" Realizing it was all part of the dance, she relaxed and went with it. Naruto then started spinning. "I've got the moves like Jager! I've got the moves, like Jager! I've got the Mo-ooo-oves, like Jager!"

This went on for a while. "Wow. Not bad." Connor said as he observed. Leaning to M'gann's ear "Though Sakura can't dance to save her life." He whispered.

"Oh, I've got an idea on what to do; Christina Aguilera's part is coming up." M'gann assured him. "Okay, Sakura? It's your turn!"

Sakura turned red at the thought of the more racy dances. "Uh…whatever you do, don't make me rub my butt against Naruto!"

"Sakura-chan, I can hear you!" Naruto warned her, his face turning red at the thought.

Sakura then felt her own body undulating like a wave. "You wanna know? How to make me smile? Take control, own me for the night…" Sakura felt her hips move, Naruto only staring helplessly. "Cause if I share my secret, you're gonna have to keep! Nobody else can see this!" Shefelt herself twirl around as she arched her back.

Suddenly Sakura began smiling big time. "M'gann? I think I've got it!"

"Okay then!" M'gann released her, and indeed Sakura continued naturally. Naruto, realizing what was going on, smiled and joined her as he got on the small on his back and spun around as they finished up the final chorus by themselves.

UTC 01:25

Sasuke sat by a tree, sulking. He didn't want to be in that auditorium, with everyone moving happily like they were in a seizure, but he didn't feel like going back to the cave either. Then, he felt a gust of blow over him. "There you are!" Wally said, smoothing out his wig. "What's goin' on!?"

"Go away."

Wally sighed. "Look. I don't care what your beef is. But you really need to stay with the group."

"I don't have time for your pointless dances." Sasuke shot back.

"Until we can send you home, actually, you do." Wally said. "Just come back, you can sulk in the bleachers for all I care." Sasuke said nothing. Wally mumbled something incomprehensible under his breath. "Look. You're either going back, or I'm taking you back to the cave." He warned him.

Before anymore could be said, someone walked down the road. Both noticed that he was carrying a sword. A real one. "Another one coming to the party?" Sasuke asked, his instincts forcing him to stand up.

"Seems that way." Wally agreed. "But I have a feeling he's a guest we don't want."

"This the way to the local high school?" the teen smiled evilly, holding up his sword. "Harm has a party to crash."

"Who's asking again?" Wally blinked.

"Harm."

"Yeah…that's a name that will get you into clubs no problem." Figuring it wouldn't matter as he did not give out his own name and was technically in costume, Wally rushed him, intending to knock the living daylights out of him.

Though Harm was taken by surprise at his speed, his reflexes were good enough to sidestep him, only feeling a graze across his cheek. "Interesting. Are you fast enough to escape the power of Harm?" He pointed his sword at him, electricity flying out. Not even Wally was fast enough to dodge it in time, the electricity hitting him and sending him flying down the street. He rolled, and just lay there like a sack of potatoes. "Guess not." Harm sighed in disappointment.

Suddenly, out of nowhere, a kick landed square in his face. Harm stumbled as he held his bleeding nose. Sasuke stood in a guard stance, his face betraying no emotion…although if asked, he would have to admit he was glad this guy came. To him, this was good chance to blow some steam. "Interesting." Harm said, irritated but smiling too. "Seems you can give Harm a run for his money." He twirled his sword, the electricity firing up as he pointed it in a guard stance. "Killing you will be a pleasure." Sasuke's sharingan activated and he charged. This time, however, Harm was ready, stepping out of the range of Sasuke's strikes. "Good technique. But just like the other, your emotions betray you." Sasuke threw a punch, which Harm caught. "I sense you have very strong inner demons. Demons you struggle to control." He kicked him down. "Harm does not reject his demons. Harm embraces them. And now Harm is pure…"

"I get it, your name is Harm!" Sasuke yelled. He reached for his shuriken…coming up empty. "Shit!" He and the others were ordered to turn in their weapons during their stay. He complied, figuring they would get home soon. Sasuke snapped back to reality when Harm jumped up trying to decapitate him. Sasuke rolled, leaving the Beowulf sword to smash the concrete in his place.

Harm sliced a couple more times, Sasuke managing to dodge. "Where's your bravado now?"

"Still with me…and now I see your moves!" Indeed, though he had trouble at first, Sasuke began to understand Harm's technique. As Harm made a stabbing motion which Sasuke ducked under, losing only a few strands of hair. Quickly, he grabbed his elbow and landed his own elbow into his attacker's stomach.

"Ugh!" Harm heaved.

Sasuke wasted no time, quickly kicking him up into the air, following after him. Making a somersault in mid-air, he landed his heel into his stomach. "Lion Combo!" Harm hit the concrete hard enough to crack it. "Ugh!" Sasuke tried to smash his head in, but Harm rolled away.

Sasuke opted for a spin kick, but Harm stepped outside his range just long enough to avoid it, and lunged forward. "HAH!" Harm brought his sword down, drawing blood.

"Nnh!" Sasuke groaned as he fell to one knee. The cut wasn't deep, but the pain was very intense. It felt like he came in contact with a Raiton technique….

"You are good." Harm said, smiling. "It's a shame Harm has to come to you." Harm charged again.

Sasuke acted quickly, forming the necessary seals and expanded his cheeks. "Katon! Goukakyu no Jutsu!" The fire exploded from his mouth, and Harm's eyes could only widen in surprise. Sasuke grinned as he admired his handy work, the fireball large enough to envelope him. However, as the fire dissipated, he saw the flames spinning. Harm was spinning the sword fast enough in front of him to blow the flames away. Before Sasuke could react, Harm pointed his sword, the lightning shooting out and hitting Sasuke with enough force to blow him into someone's picket fence.

Harm sneered. "He's good…Harm better finish him!" Before anymore could be done, something really fast suddenly tackled him. Harm could still make out his surroundings; catching a glimpse of the school, Harm pressed his hand against Wally's head, forcing him to change direction and sending them tumbling at super speed…

Naruto and Sakura sat on the bleachers, panting and smiling, having danced to another song with more energy than the last on their own. "Wow. That…that was fun." Sakura said, genuinely surprised.

"Yeah. It was amazing how you got that dancing down after just a few seconds." Naruto chuckled, complimenting her.

"It was nothing. Just recognized the pattern after a little bit, that's all there was to it." Sakura then looked into the crowd, seeing Connor and M'gann dancing the night away, never taking their eyes off each other. "Wow. They really are a couple."

"Really!?" Naruto looked, then his eyes widened in realization. "Wow…guess you're right."

"It…it looks nice." Sakura sighed.

"Yeah." Naruto sighed. "It does." Naruto wondered what it would be like if they were a couple. As of now, though, that didn't seem likely. Their attention was then drawn to a deathly pale girl in a white cloak and white hair staring at them. "Oh. Hi." Naruto said nervously. Something about this girl gave him the creeps. "Who are you?"

"Secret." She whispered.

"Uh…okay." Naruto said, taken by surprise at her answer. "You a super hero or something?"

"Secret." The two just looked at her in confusion.

"Is there anything about you that's not a secret?" Sakura asked.

"Secret." They hung their heads low in defeat.

Before they could move, something very fast crashed through the auditorium door. "WHAT THE-!?" Naruto shouted.

The entire party came to a stop as two figures tumbled across the floor. "Get off Harm!" Harm grabbed Wally by the throat, and threw him into the DJ's table, hard enough to break the records and sending the debris flying. Everyone backed off upon seeing his electric sword.

"Connor, what's going on!?" M'gann asked.

"I don't know. But it's trouble!"

"That sword." Zatanna whispered to them. "It's magic. I sense it."

"Shit." Artemis cursed, having came back in earlier. "This evening just keeps getting better, doesn't it?"

"They're all very lucky." Harm growled, observing everyone around him. "Harm is in the house!" he shouted. Without warning, he turned and sliced one teenager, causing him to scream in pain. Everyone else screamed; though they outnumbered Harm, his sword kept them away. Numbers didn't mean much when everyone was afraid of being cut down.

"M'gann, look out for the others." Connor whispered.

"Connor-"

"Don't worry. It's a dude with a sword. How bad could it be?" he whispered back

Superboy ran forward, and grabbed Harm from behind in a bear hug. "Ugh!" Harm was caught completely unaware, the strength of this person absolutely crushing.

"That's enough!" Superboy shouted, lifting him up off the floor.

"Oh, it's only…ugh... just begun!" Harm grunted. He stabbed backwards…and pierced Superboy's side. Superboy stopped as he released him, both in pain and shock, and Harm pulled his sword out, the tip covered in blood.

Naruto and Sakura stood up on their seats in disbelief. "Impossible!" Naruto shouted. After seeing what their friend could endure, they doubted anything could truly hurt him.

"Ha ha ha!" Harm cackled, twirling his sword. "Anyone else?"

"Teah pu that drows!"

Harm felt his sword getting hot. Though smoke hissed from his palm, he acted as if nothing was wrong. "Someone here knows magic." Harm pointed his sword into the crowd. "You!"

Zatanna just froze, along with M'gann. Artemis could do nothing, not feeling confident without a bow or any weapon against this person for that matter. Worse, they also couldn't openly use their powers. They were in a bind…

"What did you do to Super, Scar Face!?" Harm turned to see Naruto's boot in his face. Sakura also attacked, aiming for his mid-section with a well-placed kick.

Harm stumbled, then chuckled. "Hn. Not bad. Not as good as the other guy. But not bad."

Sakura's eyes widened. "You…you fought Sasuke-kun!?" Sakura gasped. "What did you do to him!?"

"Let Harm show you." His sword lit up, and pointed it at Sakura.

Just as it was about to fire, Mal tackled him from the side, the lightning taking out the lights above. "AAAH!" Mal cried as he body slammed Harm onto the table.

"MAL!" Karen screamed. "WHAT DO YOU THINK YOU'RE DOING!?"

"GET OUT OF HERE!" Mal screamed as he tried to wail on Harm, who easily caught his fist. "EVERYONE!"

"How noble." Despite the size difference, Harm easily kicked him off with enough force to knock the wind out of him. "Stupid, but noble." Harm said as inched dangerously close to him.

Sakura noticed one of the records pieces lying on the floor. "Naruto." She whispered. "Get him out of here."

"What are you going to do!?" Naruto whispered with concern.

"Turning the lights off." Grabbing it, she hurled a piece of debris towards the power cables, severing them.

The room went nearly pitch black, but Harm's sword lit the immediate area around him. "Clever. But it won't help you."

"It'll do plenty for me!" Naruto tackled Harm from the side, but the ghoul like teen picked him up and threw him like a ragdoll onto the floor.

"Enough! Harm will claim another victim! And Harm will start with you!"

"You talk weird." Naruto said, getting up. He attacked him with all manners of taijutsu, Harm easily dodging every one of them. He didn't notice another copy of him helping Mal to his feet.

While he was distracted, M'gann moved over to Connor. "Connor-?" she whispered, scared out of her mind. Superboy had been in danger before; but he was never on the verge of death like this!

"I'm okay." He grunted. Letting go of his side, he saw he was bleeding. "How-?"

"Let's get you to safety first." M'gann dragged him away with the other evacuees, none questioning how a girl like Megan could move someone of Connor's size with ease.

Meanwhile, Artemis ran over to grab Wally. "Wal! You alright!?"

"Oh…I got thrown into a table." Wally groaned. "What do you think!?"

"By our terms, your fine." She said sarcastically. Slinging his arm over her shoulder, she shouted "Come on!" and supported him towards the exit.

As the last of everyone made it through the doors, Zatanna and the real Naruto watched on. "Neat trick you got there." Zatanna noted.

"Thanks. But he's going to figure out it's a fake soon."

Indeed, Harm finally stabbed the Kage Bushin. Harm smiled in victory…then frowned in disbelief as his victim vanished in a puff of smoke. "More magic!? Harm did not sense it!" he growled. "Where is the blond one!?" he shouted.

"Nedoow roolf, tor yawa!"

Harm felt the floor beneath him soften, and finally his legs fell through a hole. "Of all the-!" As Harm hacked his way out, Naruto and Zatanna cleared the room.

UTC 01:45

Klarion floated from the sky, observing. He noticed Harm went in at an unusual speed, and from the sound of it, Harm seemed to be having a harder time than he anticipated. "Hm…seems we have some supers in the area…" Some of the teens ran out, hoping to get off of school grounds. "Well, we can't have that now, can we?" With a snap of his fingers, he erected a red force bubble over the school. Everyone felt like they hit a wall, and tried forcing their way out. Nothing could get them through. "Sorry." Klarion chuckled as he stroked Tiko, who purred. "No one leaves."

The young superheroes opened the doors to the cafeteria kitchen, M'gann using her telekinesis to get Connor in gently, and not focused on appearances, dropping her corpse bride form for her green one. "Ugh…" Wally moaned. "I think I'm fine now."

"Good." Artemis let him go, and though he was a bit wobbly, he straightened out and managed to stand.

"How he is he?" Sakura asked as she ran in, Naruto and Zatanna trailing behind her.

"He's bleeding like a normal person." M'gann answered. "And that's not a good thing!" She lifted his shirt up, inspecting his wound. It was really bad; she imagined a normal human would not have survived it.

"How could a sword pierce super here!?" Naruto yelled. "He's invincible...usually…"

"That sword was magic." Zatanna said. "Maybe magic can bypass Superboy's natural defenses."

"Well, that doesn't matter right now!" M'gann hissed. "What matters is saving him!" She pressed against his wound, but it looked like she was really struggling. "Shit!" she cursed. "Even wounded, his body feels like steel!"

Sakura thought for a second. "Anyone got fire?"

"I don't think even fire will faze him…" M'gann said.

"No! His SKIN might be invincible. But his blood is still plasma! Maybe we can cauterize it!" she said.

M'gann's eyes widened. "It's worth a shot, M'gann!" Artemis said.

Wally quickly looked around. "Hold on!" He zoomed out the door, and came back with a welder and propane tank. "Who says Liberal Arts are worthless?"

"Okay. Sakura, you know how to work that?" M'gann asked.

"I…I think so." She said, taking hold of it. Pressing the trigger, a small but concentrated flame shot out.

"I'm going to hold him down with my telekinesis." She said. "You apply the flame." Sakura leaned in. "Sorry, Connor. This may hurt. A LOT." She warned her boyfriend. After a moment's hesitation, she said "Truthfully, we're really not sure."

Sakura turned the burner on, and pressed it against Superboy's side. "AUGGH!" Superboy did scream in pain, but M'gann held him. It seemed his insides were not as invulnerable as his skin.

"You're doing great, Sakura!" M'gann said.

"I'm burning him!" Sakura cried.

"Better to have a burn scar than to bleed out! Keep going!"

"If he keeps screaming like that, Scar-face is going to come find us!" Naruto warned them.

As if on cue, the door opened. Those not involved in the operation turned, prepared to fight. Instead of Harm, Karen and Mal were there. "Megan! We-!" She stopped upon what she was seeing. The pink-haired girl seemed to be burning Connor, and Megan suddenly seemed to change to green in an entirely different costume. "What the hell is going on here!?" she screamed.

M'gann seemed to be at a loss for words. "It's…it's a bit complicated."

"Forget us!" Artemis yelled, grabbing Karen by the shoulders. "What the hell are you doing here!? You need to get out! NOW!"

"You don't think we tried!?" Mal shouted. "Everyone tried to get out! But some weird force field thing is keeping us in!"

Everyone's eyes widened. "Someone is trying to keep us in here! And I don't think it's Harm!" Wally said. "Not alone, at least!"

"Magic. It has to be." Zatanna said. When everyone looked at her, Zatanna said "What!? They see M'gann's a Martian! No point in hiding anything now!"

"WHAT!?" Karen said.

Screaming came down the hall, and they saw the shadows of students on the wall. As everyone ran down, Mal yelled "He's coming!"

Naruto's eyes widened, then narrowed in focus. "Sakura-chan, do whatever you need to do!" he said as he walked towards the cupboards, grabbing whatever sharp knives he could and sliding them into his belt.

"What are you doing, idiot!?" Sakura screamed.

"What I do." He put his hands together, making multiple copies of himself. "Buying us some time!" they all said in unison as Mal and Karen's jaws dropped.

"What the hell." Wally sighed as he ran down at his super speed.

"Zatanna!" M'gann called. "Do you think you can do anything about the force field outside?"

"I'll try."

"Go!" Zatanna ran down the other end of the hall.

As M'gann and Sakura continued, Artemis looked through the pantry. "What are you doing?" Sakura asked as she concentrated on Superboy.

"Making a bow." She replied as she put two pipes together.

Karen's eyes widened in realization. "You…you are all super heroes."

"Not me." Sakura said.

"Then what are you?" Mal asked.

"Ninja."

UTC 03:05

Aqualad sighed as he got out of the bath (still in his clothes, which were meant for water in the first place). He figured he would watch some TV and turn in later. He looked up at the clock, noticing it was after 10. "Odd." He thought. "I thought they would be back by now."

"Kaldur'ahm."

Aqualad turned to see Red Tornado land behind him. "Is anything the matter, Red Tornado?"

"I picked up an emergency frequency in the local area. It mentioned something involving the local high school."

"WHAT!?"

"Reports are coming in that a young man with a sword stepped onto the grounds and began to wreak havoc."

"Superboy should-"Aqualad began

"I do not understand what is happening. But the description of one of the injured victims involved a boy in a Superman T-shirt. It seems the aggressor may be superhuman if he is able to injure a kryptonian." Red Tornado's head tilted slightly. "I'm picking up another call on their frequency. Police are on the scene, but a 'red bubble' is covering up the school. Reports are saying people can enter…but none are able to get out. And somehow, the police are unable to stop the assailant."

Aqualad's eyes widened, and he quickly ran over to his room, eyeing the water-bearers on his desk.

UTC 03:20

The troopers who ventured inside the school fired their weapons. By all means, Harm should have fallen easily. But the swordsmen proved to be an agile foe, able to predict the bullets' path and knowing where he had to be. Quickly, he hid by the corner. As the troopers marched down, Harm jumped out and fired more lightning bolts, bringing them down. "Pathetic!" he snarled. "You sought to save these children from Harm, and yet I've seen them put up a better fight than you." Harm raised his sword, intending to impale each one.

However, a knife ran into the sword, throwing his aim off. "Hey, Scar Face!" Naruto shouted, prepared to throw more knives. "It must be awfully brave of you to attack those who are down."

Harm sneered. "So, the boy wants to go another round." Swiping his sword, it crackled. "Harm recalls he retreated the last round."

Naruto sweated a little. Quickly, he made a few Kage Bushins. They rushed him, but Harm didn't feel intimidated in the least. As the real Naruto threw some of the knives, Harm easily deflected them with his own blade. As the clones closed in on him, he slashed sideways, taking out two of them. Another kicked his sword, but Harm held on, and knocked him away with the hilt. Naruto then engaged him with the knives, each parrying their strikes. "It thinks it can beat Harm at his own game!" Slicing his sword across, he took the blades clean off their handles, and Naruto suddenly felt a boot to his face, knocking him to the floor. "Cute."

Harm prepared to fry him with his sword, but Wally ran into him, sending him flying into a wall. "How many times does Harm have to beat you down!?" he shouted in frustration.

Quickly, Wally backed up and helped Naruto up. "So, you got a plan?"

"Keep him distracted."

"And then?"

Naruto was silent for a moment as Harm prepared to charge. "Honestly, I wasn't sure I'd make it this far."

Harm brought his sword down, but Wally got both of them out of the way. "Hold still!"

"What about that technique?" Wally asked Naruto. "The ball one?"

"It takes time!" he said. "And he can cut my clones like butter!"

Wally moved them to the right when a lightning hit the spot where they once were. However, Harm appeared right where they were. "Predictable." Catching Wally by the throat, he slammed him against the wall.

Naruto kicked Harm, and while it was solid, Harm was strong enough to ignore it and slice at Naruto with his sword hand. Naruto ducked, strands of his blond hair flying in the air. "Yikes!" Harm finally threw Wally across the wall to pursue Naruto. It seemed there was no escape, but Naruto quickly created a Bushin that caught the blade with his hands. Though mildly impressed, Harm simply charged his sword up, dispelling the clone.

Harm was taken off guard when Wally whacked him across the head with a broken locker door. "Hn!" Harm stumbled, but blocked the next strike.

Wally then spun all around him, whacking him in a million places. However, when Harm took the next hit, he grabbed hold of the door, slicing it in half with his sword, but Wally got behind him and got him in a full nelson. "Now, Naruto!"

Naruto ran forward, and punched Harm across the face. "Uh!"

Naruto continued pummeling him, but Harm worked through the pain. He slammed Wally back into the wall, releasing his hold and sliced at Naruto with his sword. "Agh!" He landed a solid cut across Naruto's arm, and the genin fell over, clutching the bleeding wound.

"Strong for a child. But not strong enough to beat Harm."

He brought his sword up, but then some object knocked it away. "Wally!" Artemis stood there, wielding a crude make-shift compound bow. "Get him out of here, now!"

She fired a pipe, but Harm caught it. "Cute." Suddenly, a bright flashing light shone, stunning Harm. "Agh!" He rubbed his eyes with his arm, stumbling back.

Wally shook the cobwebs out of his head, and grabbed hold of Naruto. Running to her side, he asked "Got another method of keeping him away?" Wally asked.

Indeed, Harm regained his sight, and charged at them. "Making one right now!" Artemis shook some beaker filled with a chemical, and taped it on the pipe. With no time to spare, she fired it at him. The beaker exploded, forming a green smoke screen. "Let's go!" They carried Naruto away, hoping he was okay.

Harm emerged from the smoke, covering his face, though his eyes watered slightly. "No one escapes Harm for long…"

UTC 03:30

"Raet a eloh!" Zatana shouted as she held her arms out in front of her. The red force field crackled, but no hole formed. "Raet a eloh!" she repeated, only to have the same effect. "RAET A GNIKCUF ELOH YDAERLA!" This time, the force field generated a large burst of energy that shot out at her, forcing her to jump back. "Yikes!" she yelped. "Guess cursing and spells don't go together well."

"Zatanna!" The young magician saw Aqualad in battle gear run towards her.

"Kaldur! Glad you're here!"

"Have you tried to break this field?" Aqualad said as he inspected it.

"Please don't ask me." She huffed.

"What's going on?"

"Some idiot called Harm burst in and started hacking away! He seems to have some kind of mystical sword! He was able to hurt Superboy! Badly!" she explained.

"So it's true." Aqualad growled. "Is the field related to the sword?"

"I don't think so." Zatanna answered. "I'm sensing something different. I don't know what, but I think Harm has help."

"Well, so do you now." Aqualad said as he unsheathed his water bearers in the form of swords. "I hear people can at least get in, correct?"

"News to me, but if it's true, be my guest."

"Good. Don't have to waste any more chakra." Aqualad turned to see Sasuke approach, rubbing his arm. "I don't know what's up with that sword of his. But I'm not going to let him get away with this!"

"Very well then." Red Tornado and Giovanni approached, descending from the sky. "We shall offer whatever aid we can as well."

"Dad!" Zatanna called.

"I'm glad you're alright!" Giovanni huffed. "Red Tornado informed me of the situation! I was able to trace the magical energy from my case earlier to here!"

"It certainly helps to have you two here." Aqualad said.

"Perhaps, but I may need Red Tornado here with me!" Giovanni said as he inspected the field. "This cage is strong. Very strong. I don't think I can break this on my own. Zatanna! I'm going to need you to cast the spell with me! It may not be enough to break it, but we should be able to make a fissure weak enough for Red Tornado to blast through!"

"Okay!" Zatanna nodded.

"Aqualad, Sasuke!" Tornado ordered. "While I help here, you two enter! Engage this Harm, but your orders are to hold him back until we can break through. Do not attempt to defeat him if it risks your life."

"Understood!" Aqualad agreed. He and Sasuke ran through the bubble, feeling nothing as they passed through.

"Alright, Zatanna! Are you ready!?" Giovanni asked of his daughter.

"Ready, Dad!" Zatanna said, her determination returning.

UTC 03:40

"NGGHH!"

"Hold on, Connor!" M'gann said as she held the struggling kryptonian down with both her mind and body. "She's almost done!"

Finally, Sakura reached the end of Connor's wound, an ugly burn mark replacing the gaping laceration. "There!" She shut off the torch. "That had to be the dumbest medical procedure in the history of ever!" she cried, worried she may have caused Superboy permanent damage.

"It got the job done…for now." M'gann reassured her. Soon, Wally and the others burst through the door. "Are you alright?" M'gann asked.

"A little worse for wear, but we're alive." Artemis answered as she and Wally helped Naruto steady himself back on his feet.

"So, what's the plan?" Naruto asked.

"M'gann!" they heard Zatanna's voice. "Can you hear me!?"

"We read you, Zatanna." M'gann said. "How's the field coming along?"

"A lot harder than I thought it would be. But my dad and Red Tornado are here. We're working to break the field."

"Great!" Wally exclaimed out loud.

"What's great!?" Karen cried, oblivious to their telepathic link.

"Also, Aqualad and Sasuke are here too! Looks like they're going to fight Harm!"

"Good, that should help even the odds." Artemis said.

"Excuse me?" Mal asked. "Have y'all gone crazy!?"

"Unfortunately, both things are going to take a while. As soon as you heal up Superboy, I'd recommend you help them out if you can!"

"If anyone can beat that jerk, it's Sasuke-kun!" Sakura exclaimed, pumping her arm while Mal and Karen were stunned silent at this point.

"Uh…" Wally began. "Actually, Harm knocked him out earlier right before I ran him into the school." Sakura's face fell at his announcement.

"Either way, it helps that he's here." Naruto assured everyone. "We're going to have to work together. He's strong, but not invincible." Everyone nodded to Naruto. Looking past the heroes and towards Mal and Karen, he asked "Hey, you think you two can look after Superboy?"

The two blinked at him. "That's his superhero name?" Mal asked.

"Uh-huh." Naruto grunted as he and Wally dragged him towards them.

"So, what now?" Sakura asked. "You might be right about us needing to team up against Harm, but I don't think numbers and dog-piling alone will do the trick!"

Naruto gulped nervously. "Well, uh…"

"Secret."

All turned to the doorway, seeing the girl in white from before. "What are you doing here!?" Naruto hissed.

"Secret."

"Is there anything about you that's NOT a secret!?" Naruto hissed again, doing his hardest not to raise his voice.

"Uh!" They heard Harm clash with others…presumably Sasuke and Aqualad.

"Secret." The girl waved them over as she ran down the hall.

"Should we follow her?" Artemis asked.

"I don't know…I couldn't read her mind!" M'gann said. That definitely wasn't good; either the girl had some sort of psychic powers of her own, or she wasn't human.

"Let's go." Wally said. "There's something strange about her, I'll give you that. But so was the Harm guy; I'd say we could use a little strange on our side." With that, everyone with experience in taking on the impossible ran out the door.

"NGH!" Aqualad engaged Harm, clashing with blades of water. The two seemed evenly matched; Aqualad's dual water bearers were a match for Harm's mystical sword. The Atlantean's strength heavily ruled in his favor. However, Harm was also skilled fighter, perhaps more so than Aqualad, and his bloodthrist pushed him to fight twice as viciously as the hero. The magic sword certainly helped too.

"Impressive." Harm noted as he parried another attack. "You would be a most worthy opponent." Harm's sword suddenly charged up, and he slashed. Aqualad attempted to block, but the sword smashed through his weapons, and sent him flying back into the lockers. "This would be a real fight if you were aiming to kill me from the beginning." Harm shot his mystical energy, but Aqualad quickly held up his own hand, channeling his electricity. He seemingly caught the lightning, much to Harm's surprise, and resisted. The two energies seemed to cancel each other out. However, Aqualad's hand was singed, and he fell over, holding it in pain. "Thanks." Harm said as he prepared to take his head, raising the sword behind his shoulder. "It's been fun."

Harm then caught something moving in his sword's reflection. He quickly parried Sasuke's attack, who got a box cutter. However, Sasuke crouched down and swept his feet, causing the swordsman to fall over. Seeing him vulnerable, Sasuke brought the knife down; Harm moved just enough so that Sasuke nailed his shoulder instead of his heart. "UGH!" Harm brought his foot up to Sasuke's face, knocking him over. Pulling the knife out, Harm growled. "You'll pay for that cheap shot."

Suddenly, Aqualad tackled him, and sent him through the wall. Aqualad punched him across the face, leaving a nice splatter of blood on the floor. However, it wasn't enough; Harm brought up his sword to Aqualad's side. "AH!" Aqualad quickly grabbed hold of it, but the pain was incredible. "No wonder this thing could hurt Superboy!"

"You're a great warrior…" Harm rose up to face him "…and yet you show weakness!"

"Much like the way you let your guard down!" Sasuke ran forward and kicked him away. Aqualad fell over, clutching his wound.

"Enough of this!" Harm hit Sasuke with his pommel, and although he blocked, Sasuke felt his arm bruise and fell over. Harm was about to lunge for him, when something caught his eye. A figure in white, right behind Aqualad. "No!" Harm gasped, shaking. "It can't be!"

"Secret." It whispered.

"You're dead!" he hissed, pointing his sword. "How are you-?"

He didn't realize that right above him, Naruto and Sakura were planning an attack from the rails. "She knows him!" Naruto whispered as he observed the scene. "How..?"

"You want to ask right now?" Sakura hissed. "Just stick to the plan!"

Quickly, Sakura tossed down several pellets around Harm's area, all exploding into clouds of smoke. "Ngh!"

"Now!" Artemis pulled back her make-shift bow, firing another pipe-arrow. Despite being blinded by the smoke, Harm managed to catch it. Quickly, Naruto and Sakura jumped down, landing without a hitch. Sasuke, getting back into the routine of these things, joined them in the smoke. Artemis, realizing arrows wouldn't work, went in with them.

"Kaldur!" Miss Martian said as she used her telekinesis to lift him up. "Are you alright!?"

"I'll live." Aqualad groaned.

The smoke was dissipating, and Harm saw he was surrounded on all sides. Team 7 and Artemis attacked simultaneously; Artemis whacked him across the head with her bow, Naruto punched him in the side, Sasuke landed a kick on his leg, and Sakura managed to get an elbow across his head. He stumbled, but he didn't fall. They attacked in tandem again, but Harm was ready this time. He quickly spun, swinging his sword around. The ninjas were forced to duck; Artemis instinctively blocked with her bow, but it shattered upon impact. Harm quickly kicked her away, now giving him only 3 opponents to worry about. "I'LL KILL YOU ALL!"

"Try it!" Naruto created more clones, and attacked him. Harm sliced away at all of them, but in doing so, he took his concentration off the other two. Sasuke ran from the side and punched him across his broken nose. Harm retaliated with a slash across the boy's back; it wasn't deep, but the pain caused Sasuke to fall over on his front.

Sakura suddenly stabbed him in the leg with a knife. She tried aiming for his artery, but she missed and only stabbed muscle. "YOU-!" Harm suddenly back handed her, sending her flying across the hardwood floor.

"Sakura-chan!" Naruto cried, seeing her unconscious form. Seeing his guard down, Harm shot lightning at him. "AH!" Naruto rolled as his belly gave off smoke.

Aqualad acted quickly. Using his water bearers, he got the water in a nearby fire extinguisher acting up, exploding it. Harm was knocked away by the blast and felt the shrapnel embed in his leg. "Ugh!" Wally rushed him again, batting at his legs with a hard piece of metal. Though Harm was brought to his knees, he charged his lightning at ground level. The electricity exploded, knocking Wally to the floor. Harm rolled over and began to pummel him like a wild animal. Harm yelled as he waved his arms, bending back down to grab Wally by the throat and throw him into the wall.

"Let me add on top of that!" Miss Martian said. Her eyes glowed as she telekinetically lifted the many chairs and tables that were abandoned. "This is for ruining the party!" Harm suddenly felt himself knocked in the back with a chair. He reacted, slicing it. "This is for frightening innocent people!" Harm felt the glass bowl of punch slam on his head, knocking his face to the floor. Harm growled at the Martian, intent on skewering her in all sorts of ways. Those thoughts faded when he saw a shadow come over him. Looking up, he an entire set of auditorium bleachers above him! "AND THIS IS FOR HURTING CONNOR, YOU SON OF A BITCH!" With all her fury she dropped it on him hard enough to break the benches.

M'gann breathed deeply, the use of her psychic powers tiring her out and bringing her down to her knees. "You alright?" Kaldur asked as he supported her.

"Yeah. I'll be fine." M'gann assured him, smiling.

"Way cool." Naruto breathed. Suddenly, the rubble moved. "No way!"

Orange lightning exploded from within, and Harm leaped out. He was covered in bruises and cuts, but seemed very much in fighting condition still. He shouted something unintelligible, and pointed his sword at the two non-humans. M'gann was hit dead center, being blown into the hallway. While Aqualad resisted with his own magic, at the end of the blast he collapsed, smoldering. Harm breathed deeply, his sword limply hanging by his hand. "…pay…" he wheezed. "…you'll all pay…"

"It's time to end this!" Harm turned to see Sasuke run towards him, his Chidori carving a path in the floor. Harm intercepted him with a thrust, charged with lighting exploding from the blade. Naruto stared in awe as the two attacks clashed. Harm was starting to be pushed back. Seeing he was losing ground, he dug deep, and screamed. The Sword of Beowulf glowed so bright Naruto had to shield his eyes. Now Sasuke felt himself losing ground. He tried fighting back, but finally, Harm's orange lightning overwhelmed him, and the dark-haired boy was flung into the pile of debris, passing out.

Harm breathed deep as he relaxed again. After a few deep breaths, he begun to chuckle. Then, it broke out into full-blown laughter. Furious, Naruto yelled "What's so funny!?"

"Harm was promised a worthy opponent!" Harm shouted. "Not exactly what Harm was promised, but you and your friends have done well!" He pulled his sword out of the wood, slowly walking towards Naruto. "Now, it's time for you all to die. Thank you for the satisfaction."

Seeing him eye Sakura's prone form, Naruto growled. He picked up a splintered piece of wood as a club, and charged. "AHH!" Naruto charged…and Harm sliced the make-shift weapon in two. Before Naruto could react, he felt a boot to his stomach, and as he collapsed on his knees, Harm gripped his blonde hair tightly.

The swordsman tossed him to the side like a ragdoll. "Harm admires your spirit!" Harm said. "Just sit there and wait! Harm will come for you last!" Harm raised his sword over Sakura again…and suddenly felt something with the force of a truck run into him. Harm yelped as he rolled all the way across into the wall. "What-!?" Harm looked up to see Naruto hunched on all fours, growling like an animal. His blue eyes had turned red, his face whiskers were thick, and his canines had grown elongated and sharp as spears. "What's this!?" Harm then felt something. He didn't know what it was…but it frightened him.

Just as Naruto was about to charge again, someone placed a hand on him. Naruto instantly felt himself calm down, and the red chakra pouring out of him disappeared, along with his animal features. Secret appeared next to him. "You-!"

"Secret." She said.

"Of course." Naruto sighed in defeat.

"What's going on!?" Harm yelled as he backed up against the wall, pointing his sword at them.

"Secret." Secret suddenly appeared from behind the wall, right next to harm.

"It can't be!" Harm yelled. "You're dead!" He swung his sword, and Secret dissipated as if she were smoke. Harm began to hyperventilate, and eyed Naruto. "You!" he growled, pointing the sword at him. Naruto yelped and fell over on his butt. "You brought her here!" Harm raised the sword, and charged like a madman (as if he wasn't one already). Naruto, in that brief moment, was paralyzed with fear as Harm prepared to cleave him in two.

Suddenly, a white circle opened up underneath them, and they fell through before it disappeared. At that moment, the others were regaining conscious. "Is everyone alright?" Aqualad said, trying to stand straight but leaned heavily against the doorway.

"About as well you can expect." Wally groaned as he tried to pull himself up. "Still better than being dead."

As everyone came to, so did Sakura, nearly falling over. "Ohh…"

"Easy does it!" Artemis said as she slung her arm over her shoulder. "I've got you."

"Thanks." The pinkette moaned. "I think I'm okay now." As she steadied herself, she saw Sasuke limp into the clearing. "Sasuke-kun!" she cried as she ran over to him. Carefully, she hugged him. "Thank goodness you're safe!"

Sasuke said nothing; he didn't even seem to be aware Sakura was there. His mind was on the fight from before; he couldn't defeat Harm. While there was no shame in that, considering how powerful the swordsman was, if he couldn't beat him…could he ever hope to beat Itachi? His Chidori almost tilted the scales in his favor, but it wasn't enough. Sakura, slowly coming back down from cloud 9, backed away and looked at him. "Sasuke-kun? Where's Naruto?"

"I don't know." Sasuke said. "It seemed that light took him."

Sakura's eyes widened. Forgetting about him, she ran over to the team. "Quick! We have to find Naruto!"

UTC 04:00

"Stupid magicians…" Klarion huffed as he hovered in the sky, stretching his arms. His face was beginning to drip sweat, an extremely rare occurrence for the child-like Lord of Chaos.

He sent Harm here to test his abilities; he didn't count on having a bunch of heroes around. He created the force field so Harm could continue his slaughter unimpeded. Unfortunately, someone was keeping him from killing the entire student body, as evidenced by the large amount of teens crowding the outside fields. It got worse when two members of the Justice League showed up, one being Giovanni Zatara. Now Klarion could not enjoy his show, instead focusing his concentration on keeping up the bubble so no one could get away. "Rowr." His cat, also hovering, meowed.

"Are you kidding me, Tiko!?" His familiar was watching for him while he concentrated on maintaining his cage. "Damn!" he hissed.

"KAERB SIHT EGAC WON!" A large crack appeared in the bubble. Red Tornado quickly fired two twisters at it, the entire force field shattering like glass.

"Probably for the best." Klarion sighed, finally relaxing. "With those two, I probably couldn't keep it up for much longer without being spotted." He beckoned the cat into his arms, who obliged. "Better find out who else is trying to meddle in my fun." Klarion snapped his fingers, and he was gone.

Unknown Location

Naruto moaned as he felt the slight headache pounding away at him. "Ohh…my head." Naruto tried to settle himself into bed, until he felt not a mattress, but a hardwood floor. "What the heck is wrong with this bed!?" he hissed, reality not hitting yet.

"Secret."

"Great." Naruto groaned. "They won't even tell me…"

"SECRET!" Naruto suddenly felt a boot to his rear, as he suddenly spiraled upwards and hit the floor on his back.

"OW!" He cried, rubbing his sore butt. "What was that for!?"

"Secret." The white-haired girl hovered over his face.

Staring at her, the realization suddenly hit Naurto. "HOLEE-!" He jumped up. "It wasn't a dream!" He looked for his friends…but instead of the wrecked auditorium, he was in a dark house. "Where'd you take me!?" Naruto whispered. Secret was about to speak, but Naruto held up his hand. "You know what? Never mind." He got up, straightening his back. "Can you give me ANYTHING to go on, creepy?"

Secret walked out of the room, Naruto following after her. They went into another room, this time what appeared to be a typical teenage boy's room, but in decay. It hadn't been dusted for years, the posters were peeling off as was the paint. "Okay…this doesn't really tell me much…" Naruto sighed.

Naruto then noticed the portrait on the desk. He walked over to it, and his eyes widened. It was a picture of Harm! He looked quite a bit different though: his skin wasn't quite as pale, his scars were missing. And he seemed…happy. Not the homicidal maniac happy that he had been displaying. Genuine happiness. In the picture, he was embracing a young girl with pale blond hair. The face Naruto instantly recognized. Naruto turned to face Secret "You!" He gasped.

"You-!" Secret was gone…and in the doorway stood a confused and furious Harm. "What are you doing here!?"

"Don't ask me!" Naruto yelled. "Your sister brought me here!" Naruto's eyes widened as he remembered Harm's reactions to Secret's presence. "Wait…" Naruto began trembling. Not in fear of Harm, not directly. "You killed her?" he choked.

"Yes." Harm said, pointing his sword. "The Sword of Beowulf requires a pure heart to wield it!"

"Seems like someone screwed up on the description." Naruto growled sarcastically.

"A pure heart does not mean a good one." Harm said. "No one in this world is pure good. Not even you. Harm had no choice."

"So just 'cause you think there's no good in you, you killed her on a whim?!"

"No. Harm was always a bad kid, but her…she was the only thing Harm ever loved." The swordsman said. "Harm needed power, and to get it…she had to go."

Naruto's eyes widened in horror. His fist trembled and clenched. "YOU BASTARD!" He charged, but his predictable charge was countered when Harm uppercutted him back.

"Necessary evil." Harm said. Naruto grasped at the bed, forcing himself to rise. Then, he began to chuckle. "What's so funny?"

"You said you killed your sister just so you could play with that sword…to get a heart of pure evil…" He then gave him a smug look. "But if you did kill her just for that, I'd say you've always been rotten to the core!"

Harm growled and tried to slice him in half. Naruto rolled away, leaving the bed to the sword. "What?" Naruto said. "You claimed you had a heart of pure evil now. I thought you'd take that as a compliment."

Harm rushed forward, and stabbed Naruto through the heart. He sighed…and his eyes widened when in his place was an old desk. "NO!" Harm yelled as he pulled out the sword.

Naruto touched down on what seemed to be the front yard, in a state of decay similar to the house. "I gotta get out of here…"

"Secret."

Naruto turned to see Secret stare out into the street. Naruto quickly squatted next to her, looking out at a store with neon lights.

"What?" Secret sighed, and raised her hand to his head. Her hand seemingly phased into his skull, and Naruto saw the words change to kanji he could recognize: Secret. Naruto's eyes widened in realization. "This…" he looked around. "That was the last thing you saw!" Looking at the ground, he saw a wooden plank. It read Greta Hayes: Beloved Sister. "This is where you died…"

Harm suddenly landed behind him, looking enraged. "It is nice for you to care for Harm's sister." The grip on the hilt tightened as he pointed the sword at him. "Harm will allow you to join her."

"Come and try." Naruto growled, his foot digging into the earth. "I'm going to avenge her, here and now."

Harm charged, raising his sword. Naruto rolled out of the way, forming several clones. "Bah!" Harm called as he cut one down. "Mere shadows! Is this all you are good for!?"

"Not anymore." Naruto thought. He made sure his clones obscured Harm's view of his true self, as he held out his hand. Another clone stood by him, molding the energy he was pouring into his palm.

Soon, Harm blasted them all away with his electricity, eying the real Naruto. "Heh." He chuckled, seeing the blue ball of light in his palm. "You want to test THAT against Harm? After what happened to your friend?"

"This is better!" Naruto boasted. "Come and see." Harm charged with a thrust, as Naruto charged forward. "Rasengan!" The sphere and the blade collided. Naruto felt like his elbow was going to blow inwards, while Harm felt his sword vibrate hard enough to make his hand go numb. Excess energy flew from both, scratching and burning them. Finally, Harm's arm flew back, releasing the sword as he flew through the fence. Naruto also slammed into the fence from the blowback, but didn't go through it. After a moment, Naruto struggled up on his hands and knees, smiling smugly. "Told ya."

Harm hobbled through the hole he made; Naruto could see that his arm was dislocated. Harm grabbed hold of it, popping it back in, yelling in pain. "Ugh!" Naruto turned away.

"Good. Very good." Harm chuckled. "Harm presumes that was your best move." Naruto just stood there, looking determined but not sure how to proceed. Harm turned to the sword, grinning. Then, Secret suddenly appeared in front of him, phasing from underground. "Ah!" he gasped, falling on his back. Secret walked to him, her hand stretched out to him. "You don't scare me!" Harm yelled. "I'm not sorry I killed you! I'm not!" Secret opened her hand, revealing a light orb. She then shoved it right through Harm's chest, causing him to scream. Naruto thought she had mortally wounded him. Then, she disappeared. Harm took a few deep breathes, and slowly rose. "Harm's alive!?" Harm stumbled onto his feet, and grabbed the hilt of the sword. However, it wouldn't budge! "Nnhh!" Harm grabbed with his other hand, but not even both hands was enough to get it out. Naruto began to chuckle as he stood. "What's so funny!?" Harm yelled.

"I guess I have to take back what I said, Scar Face." Naruto sneered. "You did feel bad for what you did. You just threw it away; your sis gave it back."

"When I pull this sword-"

"Why don't you? It's not in that deep!" Harm hesitated before struggling some more. "What are you waiting for!? Do it!" Naruto taunted him.

Harm growled, and finally relinquished the sword. "Harm doesn't need a sword to end you!"

Harm charged, but Naruto blocked and hit him square in the nose. "You're distracted. You're thinking about her, aren't you?"

Harm yelled, swinging haymakers. Naruto was never an exceptional taijutsu fighter, but even he could see these strikes coming a mile away, blocking them as he put a push kick into Harm's stomach. Harm finally recovered and got him in a clench, kneeing him in the stomach. Though Naruto was hurting, he pulled the deviant's wrist in close and bit down hard. "AHHH!" Harm released him, and Naruto attacked with a side kick.

"Why you wanted the sword so bad!?" He asked as he punched him again. "You wanted to be a warrior. You could have joined that Justice Leagion or whatever they called it!" Naruto shouted, nailing him in the groin.

Though Harm did fall to his knees as he gripped his sweet spot, he willed himself to rush Naruto and pin him against the fence. "Harm is no hero! Harm was always meant for death!" he yelled as he began to choke Naruto. "The sword was so Harm could have his revenge on all those who wronged him! And no one will stand in Harm's way!"

Even though he was about to black out at any second, Naruto managed to chuckle. "Well, you're in trouble."

"Oh?"

"I'm going to be the Hokage one day! That means I have to be strong enough to protect my friends from Harm!" Suddenly, Naruto brought up his arms and slammed them onto Harm's, releasing him. Before he could react, Naruto rammed his head into Harm's, hard enough to cause him to bleed. As Harm's eyes rolled in the back of his head, he fell back like a tree, hitting the dirt with a thump. He was still breathing, but Naruto finally felt the exhaustion overcome him, as he fell over on his back. "Oh boy…" he breathed.

Suddenly, a light appeared in the yard. Zatara and Red Tornado stepped into view. "Ah! You're still alive! It took a while for my locator spell to find you!" the magician said.

"You could have just sent KF to come get me." Naruto sighed as he desperately tried to catch his breath.

"Impossible. You were transported to another state entirely. Without Zatara, we would have no way of knowing where to find you, and sending KF would not have guaranteed he would get here in time."

"It's the fact that magic transported you here that allowed me to follow you here." Zatara finished for Red. "It was just a matter of figuring out what type I had to focus on."

Naruto sighed. "Okay. Whatever."

Seeing the unconscious Harm, Zatara waved his wand. "Parw mih pu." Harm's clothes shredded and bound his limbs like rope. "We shall take him to jail immediately." Zatara said. "No doubt he will be tried as an adult. He will be going away for a long time at worst, assaulting so many innocent people."

"There's one more thing. One more crime that's long gone unpunished." Naruto said, eyeing the tomb. "Murder."

MOUNT JUSTICE
Nov 6th

UTC 11:15

Connor's eyes fluttered open, a bright light above nearly blinding him. Soon enough, his senses began to focus. "Connor! You're awake!"

Connor turned to the side, seeing M'gann in her green form standing over him. "M'gann…" he groaned. Remembering what happened, he shot up.

"Stop!" M'gann shouted, using her own strength to hold him down. "We beat Harm. Everyone's safe; no one died." Connor sighed, and lay back down. That was when he realized he was covered in a white suit, similar to what he wore when he was discovered at Cadmus, but without Superman's symbol. "The League made you a new solar suit; they had it in reserve since they discovered you." The Martian explained. "Harm's sword was magic, and we think that allowed it to bypass your normal Kryptonian defenses. We had to cauterize the wound…with a welding torch of all things. Thanks to the solar lights above, you're healing well. Your scar should be gone completely as soon as you feel one hundred percent."

Connor nodded. "I feel so useless." He groaned.

"Sometimes even Superman falls and needs help." M'gann said, sitting down to his level. "We couldn't have known; don't let the one time you weren't there for us get you down. What matters is you're safe…and we're still together." M'gann reached to squeeze his hand. Connor smiled, and squeezed back.

Outside the doorway, Wally and Artemis observed them. "All ends well that ends well." He sighed.

"Guess so." Artemis said back. "You gonna be okay?"

"Yeah. I think so." Wally said, relaxing his crossed arms. "She's happy with him. And he's good to her. That's all that matters."

"Yeah. It still hurts though." Artemis smiled sadly.

"The thing I learned about pain…" Wally began, rubbing his still sore shoulder. "…it's not permanent."

Artemis looked at him. "Thanks." She mumbled as she turned away.

Gently, Wally reached out to her shoulder. "Come on." Wally said. "Let's let the lovebirds be. They've got all they need." Artemis nodded, and followed him out.

"OWW!" Naruto winced as a cotton ball soaked in Iodine was dabbled against his face.

"Oh, shut up, you big baby!" Sakura sighed, having changed back into her normal clothes. "What did you think would happen, going after him like that!?"

"Would it help if I said I didn't mean to?" Naruto whined.

Sakura rolled her eyes. "Well, either way, if you didn't go, you'd have less scratches on you…"

"Then why do you have to keep putting that against my face!?"

"It's called Iodine, you baka!" Sakura shouted back. "I'm trying to kill any possible infections and help your wounds close quicker!" Naruto's face flushed when he felt Sakura's hand against his cheek. "See? I can see one of your scratches closing up now."

Sasuke could see it too, a scratch healing up. Thing was, it was healing much faster than it should. Sasuke thought back to the time of their first real mission together. Naruto got scratched by poison claws, and Kakashi was about to cancel the mission so Naruto could get an antidote. Naruto, ashamed for being the dead weight on the mission, stabbed his hand with his own kunai, both to bleed the poison out and to show his resolve. Of course, that was overkill; he should have bleed to death, but upon inspection, Kakashi said he was going to be fine. "Just what are you hiding, Naruto?" he wondered.

Everyone looked back to see Wally and Artemis approach them. "Hey." Wally said as he and the archer took seats across from them. "Feeling alright?"

"I'm feeling okay." Naruto groaned. "I had a fun time at the dance…minus the psycho with the sword ordeal."

"Yeah, we sometimes have a bad habit of attracting those." Artemis sighed. "I hear it's a common super-hero curse; even on your time off you can have bad things happen to you."

"So, I take it he's going to be executed, right?" Sasuke asked.

Wally and Artemis looked at one another, remembering their probable feudalistic upbringing. "Well, um…" Wally scratched his head nervously. "…it's a bit complicated."

"How?" Sakura asked as she screwed the bottle cap back on.

"He's going to be tried by a judge and jury." Artemis said. "Someone will prosecute, and he'll have someone represent him in his defense. The jury will decide if he's guilty, and if so, which is almost certain, the judge will sentence him accordingly."

"So, he's going to live?" Naruto asked.

"It varies from judge to judge." Wally said. "I'm not a lawyer or anything, but because of his age and mental instability, the judge probably won't give him the death penalty. Life in prison sounds about right, probably a little bit less depending on what they're able to charge him with."

There was a moment of silence between them. "That sounds dumb." Sasuke said. "Nothing will stop him from committing another crime if he gets out then."

"Don't let Batman hear you say that." Wally sighed. "If you're talking about breaking out, not likely. He's probably going to Belle Reeve; they know how to deal with super villains. And while I admit the system needs work, if the judge says so, we try to give them another chance at life as long as they serve their sentence and hope they've been rehabilitated afterwards."

"I retract my earlier statement then." Sasuke said. "It sounds like sheer idiocy."

"I like it." All turned to Naruto. "What? I heard Kakashi's stories about what the village does to its enemies. I'd like to think we'd give our own enemies a chance to see the error of their ways." He said defensively

"Of course you would, baka." Sasuke sighed in exasperation.

"Well, that only adds on to what I have to say to you." Everyone turned to see Aqualad, his upper torso covered in bandages, approach them. "I must admit, I'm impressed." The Atlantean said as he pulled over a chair to sit on. "You threw yourself into danger to save others you didn't even know without a moment's hesitation. By all means, you had no reason to, and yet you risked everything." Aqualad then smiled. "That makes you as great a hero as any of the ones in the League in my book."

Naruto's face lit up at Aqualad's declaration, giving him a wide smile.

UNKNOWN LOCATION

"Psh." Klarion said in distaste as he popped a kernel of popcorn in his mouth, watching Nightmare on Elmstreet on an HD TV. "This is what mortals pass off as horror?" He rubbed Tiko, who meowed in response.

"If the movie is not to your liking, I hope your little rendezvous in Happy Harbor was diverting at least."

Klarion looked back to see Vandal Savage giving him with a disapproving look. "Can't say it was. Nobody died. Only a few criticals." Klarion sighed, turning back to the TV.

"Perhaps it's just as well." Savage said, turning off the TV. "Did you not consider the consequences? A school massacre with supernatural elements? Did you not think the League would get involved?"

"What of it? Whatever we do, the League investigates anyway." Klarion sighed, as he sent Tiko to his horrifying scratch post of mouse skulls.

Savage's brows furrowed further, if that were possible. "Every action the Light takes is calculated, made sure that every step we take does not leave traces. Supposing you had succeeded in your fun and games? Zatara would have hunted you down, perhaps even donning the Helmet of Fate to do so." Savage growled.

"And what of it? I would have gotten away…" Klarion protested.

"He would have found out what you were trying to do, and your involvement of us, whether he captured you or not. Whatever issues you have with the supernatural is your business. But if you mess with the mortal world without our consent again, no amount of magic can keep you safe." Savage leaned over him, staring him dead in the eyes. Normally, Klarion would not be intimidated in the least. But Savage had been around even longer than he had; he knew things even he didn't! Including ways to imprison supernatural beings, or worse… "Are we clear?" Klarion gulped, nodding. Savage got up from him. "Forming our new alliance with the Akatsuki has set our initial plan back, but now, we are ready to get back on track."

"Sweet!" Klarion smiled as he levitated into the air, stretching. "Do you have it?"

Savage reached behind his coat, and produced a large, yellow crystal. "From what I understand, not even you will be enough to cast the spell…"

"I already got help." Klarion assured him, taking the crystal, smiling as he stared at it. "You got Wotan out of prison?"

"Getting prisoners out of Belle Reve has become quite easy, thanks to its new warden. We start tomorrow night."

Savage walked out, back into the hall. "I take it the witch boy is back under our control?" Savage looked back to see Luthor walk up to him, a vanilla folder in his arm.

"As much as a being of his nature can be." Savage replied. "I take it you found out where the remains of the Starro Beast are?"

"Indeed." Luthor said as he handed Savage the contents of the folder, which he looked over. "Under Aquaman's orders, Orin was unable to verify where the remains were sent. But a few very well placed bribes from my underground accounts can get you anything."

Savage nodded, handing the papers back to Luthor. "Sportsmaster should be free. He'll be the distraction."

"I finally got hold of Mr. Nigma." Luthor added. "He'll be able to get through the tech no problem. We still need someone to be the muscle on the inside with him."

Savage scratched his chin for a moment. "I think it's time we put our new alliance to the test."

"We'll need someone who does subtle very well." Luthor noted, smiling. "Fortunately, I believe the perfect candidate is in the training room."

"Thank you." Savage said.

Opening the door to a large but now empty training gym, Savage saw Itachi hard at work on a wooden dummy. His strikes where hard and precise; he truly was a prodigy. "It's good to know you are keeping in shape."

Itachi performed a spinning kick, knocking off one of the wooden limbs. "I presume you have a mission for me?"

"Indeed." Savage approached him, picking up the broken wood. "We have some street clothes ready for you as well. Get some rest."

"You want me to steal something." Itachi deduced.

"No." Savage smiled. "We just want you to protect our thief so he can steal something."

Hope you all enjoyed this. I bet you know what is coming next…and I'll give it to you when possible. See you until then.