DC: My Name Is Not Billy Batson [New]

Batman chased after her without hesitation, his doubts growing deeper. He knew Selina, who typically stole jewelry, museum collections, or heirlooms from private collections. But cash? That wasn't her style—this cat only coveted shiny things.

"Do you like the view tonight, Bruce?"

During the chase, Catwoman even had time to glance back and speak to him.

"That's all you're getting tonight."

Batman, "Don't be so sure, Selena!"

His hand reached out to grab her, but his mind was filled with questions.

In recent days, Selina had been trying to walk a straighter path, towards the law, the good side. She hadn't stolen in a long time. Why would she strike tonight?

There had to be something off about this. But just as Batman's hand was about to catch her, a line streaked, cutting his ropes.

It was a sniper shot! Batman reacted, spreading his cloak to glide and land atop the gargoyle on the tallest building.

He scanned the area, trying to spot the shooter. But when he zoomed in, a sudden flash of smoke block his vision.

He had been shot. No matter how fast Batman reacted, he couldn't outrun a supersonic bullet. It struck his mask.

After taking a hit to the front, Batman's body was forced downward, crashing to the ground.

He landed in Crime Alley, right in the Yamada group's territory. The Yamada group's thugs seemed to have been waiting for him. As soon as they saw him fall, they rushed toward him.

Armed with knives and sticks, they avoided using guns—too risky. Gunshots would easily attract the police, and they feared drawing the attention of the Red Hood.

Lately, more gangsters had been killed by the Red Hood than in the past year.

The thugs thought Batman would be immobilized after falling from such a height.

But they were wrong. Ever since discovering that beings like Superman and Shazam existed, Bruce had stopped wearing his old suits.

He wasn't stubborn—if the new nanosuit was better, why would he stick to the old one? Thanks to the new suit, falling from a tall building hadn't injured him.

The reason he hadn't moved was that he was adjusting the suit's output. After fighting the Croc man, he didn't want to overexert himself against these thugs, especially when he feared he might accidentally kill them.

After taking a few blows, Batman decided to fight back. He grabbed a short steel rod from one of the thugs, broke another thug's nose with a quick strike, and took down another with a vicious blow that left the man's teeth scattered.

Then, with a sweeping motion, Batman disabled several more, breaking their arms and ribs.

As the thugs wailed and collapsed, Batman shielded himself with his cape, throwing a batarang that unfurled mid-air.

The sonic bomb exploded, knocking out the remaining thugs.

Batman moved forward, occasionally putting down those still conscious enough to fight. He made sure they would sleep peacefully.

He glanced up, both towards the source of the attack and in the direction where Selina had fled.

Who was targeting him? He thought for a moment before dialing Dane's number.

"Batman?" came the voice on the other end.

On the 3D display, Dane's face appeared. "Hurry up and tell me something. I'm a little busy."

Dane was smelting an artifact in the furnace. He explained that if he wanted to build a secret weapon with the power of death, it had to be done now.

"Has anyone else from the Justice League been in Gotham lately?"

"Wait, I'll check."

Batman waited as Dane quickly investigated.

"Just found out—Poison Ivy and Barbara returned to Gotham a month ago."

"They're said to be trying to form a squad of female heroes and are currently recruiting. By the way, Clark seems to be there as well."

Batman frowned. "What's he doing here?"

"I heard he made a friend in the police, a guy named Owens, and he's been visiting him recently."

Is he that popular? Batman thought, recalling Clark as a normal guy who helped rebuild the city.

He shook his head. Although still wary, Batman had to admit that no one could dislike Clark's character.

Clark was almost like the embodiment of all that was "good" in the world, despite his superhuman strength.

Bruce found it hard to imagine Clark ever doing anything wrong.

"Anything else? No? Then I'm hanging up."

Before Batman could respond, Dane ended the call.

his personality is still the same, Batman thought blankly. Batman planning to check the trajectory and search for more clues about the attacker.

But just as he was about to act, Alfred's voice came through unexpectedly.

"Master Bruce, something's happened to Master Grayson!"

Batman's heart tightened, and he immediately called for the Batmobile.

"Send me the location, damn it! Isn't Dick already back in Brughhaven?"

"He's been spending time with Miss Barbara lately; he hasn't been feeling comfortable."

"How's Barbara?" Batman's urgency increased.

"Miss Barbara is with her friends now; she's safe."

Batman remembered what Dane had said a few minutes earlier. It seemed Barbara had found a few new teammates.

The Batmobile raced through Gotham, reaching the location Alfred had sent in no time.

As soon as Bruce got out of the car, he heard several gunshots. He rushed toward the source of the sound.

There, he saw the Red Hood gunning down a group of armed gangster killers.

On the ground next to them lay a familiar figure. Batman rushed over to assess Nightwing's injuries. His skull had been almost shattered. Immediate surgery was needed.

"You're late again, Batman," Red Hood remarked, casually shooting the last gunman in the head.

A group of unarmed men lay trembling on the ground.

They were the "smart" ones, dropping their guns the moment the Red Hood arrived.

"Don't kill me! I've lost my gun! You can't kill us!" one of the men pleaded.

Red Hood seemed to take the comment seriously. He holstered his weapons but didn't let them off the hook. He walked over to the man who had spoken, grabbing his right hand.

"Is this your handy work?"

Under the red hood, the man nodded frantically. The Red Hood sneered, breaking the man's hand with a swift motion. He groaned in pain, and the Red Hood growled, "Of course, I'm not going to kill you. But you don't mind if I get some insurance, do you?"

The other gunmen, watching the scene unfold, immediately fled. But Red Hood wasn't done. He pursued them, and anyone who dared to pick up a weapon was mercilessly shot in the head.

"50 power stones for a bonus chapter."

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