Chapter 48

Greeting Naruto outside the mansion was the Justice League. They had finally located him after a month. The area had been closed off by Green Lantern and Zatanna. Wonderwoman, Superman, Ultrawoman, Flash, Martian Manhunter, Hawkgirl, Red Tornado and Black Lightning had gathered to subdue him. While the other members were somewhere else and Swamp Thing didn't wish to fight Naruto since the Parliament of Green supported him.

However, Naruto wasn't worried and July walked outside into the garden casually.

"I expected you guys to figure out a way earlier but, you failed my expectations. I didn't think your teamwork was so atrocious, my little friends." Naruto created a wooden throne and sat down as he criticized their effectiveness.

Naruto knew it was almost impossible to locate him. But, it was possible. The Justice league could never locate him individually; they needed to focus the abilities together.

After a month of tinkering and analyzing Naruto's energy that was collected from Gordon by Batman, they found a solution. They mixed up Martian Manhunter, Superman and Zatanna's abilities to locate him. Superman contributed with his super vision, MM contributed with his mind reading and Zatanna with her energy senses. With all three abilities in one place, they were able to locate Naruto by comparing data from all abilities.

Otherwise, Superman couldn't see him and Zatanna couldn't cover the planet or separate him from the world. Even MM couldn't find his mind because of the magical barriers.

The plan came into being because of Batman's quick thinking, but Naruto wasn't wrong about their team work since the team had rarely combined their abilities in such a manner.

"It is a testament of your ability to hide, Emperor. We were starting to think that you were the Emperor of rats with how deep you hide." Zatanna dished out in a calm tone as she had been frustrated by the man and his words really struck a chord.

"Hahaha, Thank you for the kind words and I try to excel at everything so it was expected. Regardless, you could have waited patiently and I would have visited soon. What's the rush? Did you decide to join?" Naruto chuckled as he got up and started walking like he was talking to his subjects.

"Emperor, please surrender before this goes any further. We believe you are kind person, but you have already started walking a wrong path. It is extremely clear that you abhor every being that has committed a major crime. You don't consider them worthy of a life or a second chance. Your torture and rampant killing will only continue. You are leading humanity on a war path. We can never allow such a thing." Superman spoke up before any other members took out their frustration. He liked Naruto and didn't want him to walk such a dark path. It was inevitable that Naruto would someday lose his patience and kill when questioned. He had already promised to kill everyone without a second chance once he was the ruler. It wasn't hard to imagine how many people would die with that rule in place, as millions could disappear in a single event.

"I am disappointed in your cowardice. Why can you never think further than just a fist fight with the next enemy? Why are you people such simpletons? Why does it feel like that you care more for the criminal then the innocent citizens of the world? Your belief that I might step out of line just shows that you have no confidence in your abilities to keep me in check. The fact that you think anyone would need a second chance after the conquest is extremely disrespectful to this Emperor. Do you think anyone would dare take the wrong path with me on the throne? The proof is around you that even now people are dropping the selfish mindset and I have yet to even ascend.

And the final point, you have really shown your short term thinking. I expected more from you people, but you are blinded by the death of some worthless maggots. I am not taking the world on a war path, as we are already on that path. Your defensive strategy has only one end, destruction." Naruto spoke to them in a cold tone for the first time and it really hit them hard. His aura was messing with them, making them want to submit.

Naruto walked as he spoke and showed them the results that were not focusing on. He even showed them data on threats that were coming and how the planet only had some years to survive, the survival chance from those events was miniscule.

"You can't decide for the world..."

"Stop, I can decide for the world. Zatanna, MM, tell your friends what does the world think. I can tell you that ninety percent of the world is ready for my Ascension to the throne and they are happy with my decisions. My little friends, I won't ascend until I have the majority votes. I will have the world vote to decide whether I rule or I do not. And, you can count the votes when it happens. Or, will you continue insisting that my path is dangerous and destructive? Don't be so paranoid like our Bat friend, he has issues."

Green Lantern decided to participate in the battle of words, "I don't really have an issue with your executions, just the torture. However, that's not the main issue. I want to know what you plan for the Green Lantern corps. You do realize that you will initiate a war with them, if you start conquering the universe. I like your goal and charisma, but going against the Green Lanterns is extremely dangerous."

"What are we doing now, think about that for a moment."

"You mean to negotiate with the Lanterns." Superman answered as he understood what Naruto was saying. He had always been diplomatic with everyone first, so he wasn't going to just attack people willy-nilly.

"Yes, I will talk to them and I believe we can come to an easy understanding. They wish to have a semblance of order in this chaotic universe and I wish to rule it in a proper manner. Our goals align and none of them have an issue with my type of rule.... Tell me what kind of assurance do you require to avoid this pointless conflict?" Naruto stopped near the small pond with the fishes and sat down to put his hand inside the water.

With his words and sincerity, most of the members were willing to listen to him. Only the kill count kept raring its ugly head.

"Will you allow me to confirm everything with my lasso of truth?" Wonderwoman stepped forward to present an answer to their dilemma. She had seen things happen over the month and unlike the others, she was impressed by the progress. Naruto had done the right thing and he was walking the best path. Though, she couldn't deny her friends' misgivings about letting such a powerful being rule over them.

"Use it, and confirm my words." Naruto didn't deny her request and took hold of the lasso. The team once again asked the questions and confirmed the truth with him.

It assured them of his current state. However, the future was still a problem. According to what they understood, Naruto was getting too powerful and was already beyond them. If he changed after a decade or two, none of them would survive against him. So, stopping him then was a pipe dream.

It was an extremely difficult decision and the JL decided to postpone their judgment. The team was divided in their opinions, so they needed to discuss in greater detail since they agreed that the current version wasn't a problem. The only problem had been the killing, so Naruto convinced them to look at it in a different manner. Naruto wasn't judging people as a vigilante, but as a ruler of the world. He was the Emperor chosen by the people.

That statement wouldn't have worked one month before the conversation, but now it worked as they all saw the results and how the people reacted. Naruto's rise was desired by the people.

"When once a republic is corrupted, there is no possibility of remedying any of the growing evils but by removing the corruption and restoring its lost principles, every other correction is either useless or a new evil.

Whatever you do to deal with one of man's flaws, it creates another problem. But, you try to get the best tradeoff you can get and that's the best you can hope for." Naruto left them with those words and disappeared while the barrier was cancelled with his abilities.

Flash also realized that Naruto had the speed force and was using it on a higher scale. That fact further solidified his position as superior and made them fear the time when he might lose control.

Nonetheless, the meeting had concluded on a positive note and the team felt that Naruto was worthy of their trust. They just intended to check the future with the help of the time machine.

While the JL discussed on the topic, Naruto continued his recruitment process after his real body finished playing around with Konan. He decided to make a visit the Island of Themyscira to recruit the Amazons and Hercules. He expected resistance because of the targets nature and the strength possessed by Hercules which could rival his own.

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A.N Hope you enjoyed.