1 Chapter 1 - A deal with the Bat

The loud noise made by a truck's horn was heard and a burly middle-aged man with his head out of the window shouted:

'Get your ass outta way faster, punk!'

But the one at whom he was shouting didn't bother to glance at him once. He simply ignored him, crossing the street at the same pace with his hands in his pockets. With a pair of orange headphones covering his ears, the teenager didn't even hear him in the first place.

Enraged at having been so blatantly ignored, the burly middle-aged aged man got down from the truck and headed purposely towards the boy to give him a piece of his mind. The young man truly was walking slowly so the burly truck driver reached him in no time. His large hand clamped hard on the young man's shoulder with the intention of shaking him up.

The slowly-walking person was a boy in his mid-teens. He was wearing a pair of baggy camo pants and a black sweatshirt with orange linings with a hoodie that covered his head.

Get up

When your body's screaming out

[...]

'Holy hell, it's almost like this song was written for me!' - was what the boy exclaimed in his mind. It was the first time he was hearing this song and he was awed at its powerful instrumental and lyrics.

Suddenly, a heavy hand clamped hard on his shoulder, startling him from his happy inner world.

'I told ya to beat it faster, you son of a- Aaaargh!' the burly middle-aged man had begun to say but his words transformed into s scream of pain when the boy abruptly turned around and grabbed his wrist, violently twisting it.

'You're gonna break my arm, let go you crazy bastard!' the massive truck-driver screamed in a voice which was a mixture of anger, fear and pain. The boy had twisted his wrist so hard that the middle-aged man was forced on his knees and he was panting harshly in exertion.

'Oh, my bad.' the boy said in a bored tone and a completely unrepentant manner.

He let go of the man wrist seemingly about to let him off but then all of a sudden his foot impacted the truck-driver's jaw knocking him out cold.

'That's for ruining my song, stupid fatass.'

He bent down to the unconscious man and after rummaging through the pockets of his clothes he took his wallet.

'$4000?! Damn, I hit the jackpot! This guy must have just gotten his salary.'

He was about to take them all but then his eyes fell on the small photo from the place where the cards should have been. It was a 7 maybe 8-year-old girl with blue eyes and a large toothy smile. Her brown hair was styled in two pigtails and her rosy face was stained with ice-cream.

A fierce internal battle was taking place in the boy's mind.

'Should I just take the money?' he asked himself but when he looked again at the innocent and adorable little girl he swallowed hard. He shook his head in frustration.

'I need money, lots of money... but not at this price.'

In the end, he only took a $100 bill, leaving the other 39 bills in the wallet. The boy placed the wallet back into the middle-aged man's pocket and started to walk away.

Just then, the lampposts on the streets were lighted up. The boy looked at the darkening sky and then glanced at the prone silhouette of the man that had tried to attack him a few moments before. Another frown marred his face and he sighed in frustration.

The city the boy lived in was chaotic and dangerous even during daytime, let alone at night. Furthermore, the man was laying unconscious in the middle of the street. And although he was massive enough for other drivers to not run him over with their cars, they would surely not pass the chance to rob him of everything he had, his truck included.

'He was a douche...but I'd be an even bigger douche if I were to let him lay there like that.' the boy muttered under his breath.

He turned back and with a low grunt he picked the massive man and put him on his shoulder. A stranger just passing by stared with his mouth gaping at the sight of a slender teenager picking up apparently effortlessly a man that easily weighted over 300 pounds.

The boy went to the truck's cabin and unceremoniously hurled the man inside. He got in as well and since the truck driver hadn't killed the engine when he had gotten down, it wasn't hard for him to drive the truck from the middle of the street to the side. Finishing doing that, the teen got out of the truck and after stopping the engine and slamming the door shut, he walked away.

'Argh! I'm too nice for my own good! Curse you, old man, this is only your fault!' the boy cursed, his frowning face becoming even more twisted at the memories playing at the front of his mind.

The old man whom he blamed his 'weakness' of being too nice for his own good was a man named Hiruzen Sarutobi. An over 90-year-old man who had just died a few weeks before. It was the boy's grandfather and besides his older sister, the only other member of his family that he had ever had the chance to know. Sarutobi Hiruzen was the one that had raised the boy - Naruto Uzumaki - and his older sister.

As the boy Naruto walked away, he took out his phone and played again the song from where he left off. But as he turned right towards a smaller side-alley to shorten the time it took to get to his destination a silhouette suddenly appeared in front of him. In the darkness of the alley, costumed in his dark suit, covered by a black cloak and with his face obscured by a black mask with pointed ears the silhouette appeared like the embodiment of night: it was none other than the infamous vigilante that had made himself known to the public as the Protector and Enforcer of Justice in Gotham - Batman. It wasn't that long since he has started his activity but thanks to him the criminality rate was at an all-time low in Gotham, especially after just having arrested the psychopath serial-killer 'The Joker' a few months before.

'I saw what you did back there.' came the distorted deep voice from the superhero.

'So what now?' Naruto asked rather tense although he gave no outer sign betraying that.

'I also know where are you heading to right now.' Batman said again in his deep voice.

Naruto visibly tensed this time and his baggy clothes became strained as his muscles suddenly bulged, prepared to spring into action in the split of a second if necessary.

'I won't take you to the police for that money you stole just now. But I want you to cooperate with me in exchange for that.'

'What do you want me to do?' Naruto asked, not lowering his guard in the least.

In the same deep, emotionless voice that would send chills down a normal person's spine, Batman said:

'Naruto Uzumaki, 16 years old, blood type B, 5'4' tall, 112 pounds. A sophomore student attending Gotham County High School. Average grades: C. Has a sister Misaki Uzumaki, 18 years old, attending the same school but her grades are A-straight-'

'Get to the point.' Naruto cut in rudely. After having gone through all the shit he has had his entire life amongst all the gangsters and criminals of Gotham, he was not easily intimidated by someone wearing a bat-themed costume.

'I was getting to it.' Batman said and his eyes narrowed into his patented 'bat-glare'. He continued:

'Naruto Uzumaki... Has become an illegal underground fighter after his grandfather's death 5 weeks and 3 days ago. 21 Wins - 0 loses. Originally considered a 'Dark Horse', the subject has become known as the Dark Fox due to the fox mask he wears in the ring and for his swift and brutal way of finishing off his opponents.'

By the time Batman stopped talking Naruto had already taken out from his pocket a knife and grasped it in a reverse grip.

'Trust me, you don't want to do that.' Batman growled with his eyes narrowed dangerously.

Naruto licked his lips nervously. But he wasn't going to let himself get caught that easily.

'You know, while you play the 'Hero' game and squander millions of dollars on fancy weapons and cars, others struggle to even get something to eat. Right now, fighting is the fastest way for me to get-'

'-get enough money for your big sister to have the chance to enrol into a prestigious college.' Batman cut Naruto off, continuing his words.

'How did you-' the boy tried to ask only for Batman to cut him off once again.

'I have my ways.'

Naruto was starting to get seriously pissed. But then he remembered the words his grandfather would often tell him every time he lost focus or got mad at being beaten down in their sparring sessions in their dojo.

Flashback

A very old man dressed in a simple black jumpsuit was standing in a Kung Fu stance. He was very short and skinny and his face was so wrinkled that his eyes were barely visible. He looked so old that those who didn't know him would think that he would barely be able to go by himself to the bathroom and back to bed. However, the gasping for air teenager that was half-kneeling in front of him was painfully aware of just how far was that from the truth. At the age of over 92, Sarutobi Hiruzen was still moving like a martial arts deity. This seemingly feeble old man was, in fact, a living legend of the Martial Arts world, someone who after surpassing his master Hashirama Senju, had never lost a fight in his entire life.

'Keep your head clear, Naruto! You're too hot-headed. Giving in to your anger will only make you play into your opponent's palm.'

'But I always KO everyone within a minute from starting to fight!' Naruto retorted. 'No-one lasts against me long enough to take advantage of me not being 'clear-head' and whatnot.'

Sarutobi Hiruzen suddenly let out a shout and stomped harshly on the wooden floor. A sense of dread enveloped Naruto and he felt like a mountain was pressing against the back of his neck.

'You think you're already a hot shot just because you beat a few punks on the streets?'

'Hmph! How laughable!'

'What if you are one day going to face someone like me? What if you're going to face someone even more powerful?'

'But there's no-one as powerful as you!' Naruto said categorically. And it wasn't that he was trying to 'lick the boots' of the old man. To Naruto, his grandfather had always been the strongest! Even after those so-called metahumans began popping-up, Naruto's opinion of his grandfather still remained the same...after all, he had seen it with his own eyes how by using only a single punch his grandpa had knocked unconscious an 8 feet tall metahuman that could easily bend steel with his hands. Even the infamous and ruthless criminals of Gotham avoided the 'Monkey King's Dojo' like the plague.

'Listen to me, Naruto! The time when martial artists were seen as the strongest hand-to-hand combatants has passed decades ago. Nowadays a serum could offer someone more strength than what an ordinary person couldn't possibly get even after a lifetime of arduous training.'

'This is why I'm telling you that at some point you will surely meet individuals even stronger than me. What will you do against someone more powerful than you? Do you think going berserk would help you any?'

'Keep your mind sharp! Don't give into your opponent's provocation!'

'Breathe in!'

'Feel the chakra coursing through your meridians.'

'Exhale!'

[...]

Flashback End

Naruto breathed in and felt that mysterious energy that bubbled within his dantian. When he exhaled the air from his lungs, his chakra began to rush through the meridians that he had managed to unlock with the help of his grandfather in the past. When the fiery hot chakra from his dantian invaded all of his meridians, a calm sense of confidence washed over him and he felt his muscles become as powerful as those of a tiger and his tendons as those of a dragon. He was brimming with strength.

'What do you want from me?' he asked.

Batman's hand went to his utility belt and he took out a small photo from it before throwing it towards the boy. Naruto caught the photo in surprise - it was needed for a considerable amount of skill to throw a malleable photograph as if it were a shuriken. That spoke enough about Batman's level of skill.

'Do you recognise him?'

Naruto glanced at the small photo in his right hand. It was the photo of a tall and seemingly powerful man with a muscular body. He was dressed in a yellow suit and a very realistic tiger mask covered his entire head giving off the impression that he was a half-man, half-tiger being.

'Bronze Tiger.' Naruto whispered.

'You have a bone to pick with this guy? Better go back to your villa rich-boy. No matter what fancy gadgets you may have, you're no match for him. No-one is.' finished Naruto shaking his head in a helpless fashion.

The curious thing for the boy, though, was that Batman didn't even try to refute his words. However, the boy didn't miss the brief moment when the costumed man in front of him clenched his fists. But that too ended in a heartbeat, seeing as Batman regained his composure immediately.

'I'm well aware of his background, and that, even more than you.' Batman said.

'Again, what do you want from me? My next match starts in 15 minutes.'

'You look rather unconcerned about me being in front of you.' Batman pointed out.

Although Naruto was a bit nervous, it wasn't to the point of being afraid.

'You're just an ordinary man with a shit-ton of money... and I'm no pushover either. If you think I'm going to be submissive to you just because you're dressed up in a Halloween suit, you're sorely mistaken.' Naruto said and as to enforce his words, with chakra madly rushing through his limbs, he stomped the asphalt hard, small spidery-cracks appearing below his foot. It took a considerable amount of his chakra to manage that feat but Naruto had wanted to get his point across - that he wasn't going down without a fight.

Batman didn't say anything for a few moments, this new display of power from the teenager in front of him creating an entirely new development. And he was certainly going to make use of it.

'How good are you at throwing projectiles?' Batman asked as if he already knew that Naruto had received this kind of training.

Naruto didn't try to ask how did he know of that anymore. He was resigned with the fact that 'the caped douchebag' in front of him probably knew even what colour his underwear had. Therefore, Naruto flipped the small knife from his hand into the air and then he grabbed it from the blade.

'Give me a target.' he said.

Batman simply picked up a trash can from the dirty side alley with his foot and threw it high up in the air. An instant later the sound of the knife cutting through the air was heard and the blade of the knife pierced through the can as though it were made of tofu.

'Not bad.' Batman praised. His hand went to his utility belt again and from there he took out 3 tiny darts which he handed over to the still cautious teenager.

'You have 3 days to find an opportunity to shot Bronze Tiger with one of these.'

'Poisoned darts? They're surprisingly heavy.' Naruto muttered under his breath but then he asked:

'Why would I do that? What's in it for me? You taking Bronze Tiger down would take down my source of income as well.'

And indeed, the illegal underground fighting tournament was organized by Bronze Tiger. So if Bronze Tiger was taken down, everyone involved would have something to lose. And Naruto was not one to care about whether something was legal or not as long as he wasn't pushed to cross his personal limits - and fighting for money in a cage against other criminals and streets rats was not something that stained his consciousness; especially given that he was doing all that with the purpose of raising enough money for his sister to attend a good college. In fact, Misaki Uzumaki was not even aware of the fact that her brother was risking his life in illegal fights in a cage.

Batman frowned at the teenager in front of him but that was obscured by his mask. He didn't like people not fearing what he represented... but Batman pushed down that tiny shred of vanity. Bronze Tiger was going to pay for what he had done...and if it took throwing a carrot to a starving donkey to make it happen, he had no qualms about that.

'You do your part and I'll pay your sister's tuition until she graduates the college.'