Injustice Book 2: Darkness in the Light (Naruto + Young Justice Crossover)

Chapter XLV - Back Home

"Normal Speech."

'Normal Thought.'

"Demon Speech."

'Demon Thought.'

"Other Speech variants."

Location/Time.

-X- Line Break -X-

Thursday 23rd October, 18:30.

New Jersey,

Gotham City,

East End.

With a sigh, Naruto downed the last of his drink before slamming the empty glass frustratedly down on the raggedy wooden bar. He had arrived in Gotham around an hour ago, maybe more and had headed straight to a nearby bar in the East End. While the legal drinking age in America was twenty-one, much like always in Gotham, especially in the East End, they were more like guidelines.

In bars in this area, so long as you were a paying customer, it didn't matter how old you were.

Naruto had made his way here as soon as he arrived and had since been drinking. He didn't know why, maybe it was just a need to have a good drink or maybe to get drunk, Naruto didn't know.

All he did find out was that the serum stopped him from getting drunk.

He'd started with a few pints of beer and there had been nothing. No buzz like when he had previously drunk, no light flush or anything of the sort. So, then he had moved onto various spirits and again, nothing.

He had drunk enough that even the bartender and the various customers around the room were looking at him in shock. And Naruto kept calling for more and still, not even a flush. There was nothing and it was frustrating. The serum had given him strength, had made him strong and yet now, it rid him of the ability to get drunk.

The healing factor that came with his serum, targeted anything that was damaging to his body, not only injuries but poisons and while some could affect him, those were far and few between. And alcohol is a poison, a drug and therefore, a target of his healing factor and no matter how much or how quickly he drank, his body defeated it quicker than it could take hold.

Pulling out his wallet, Naruto placed fifty dollars down on the bar and leaned over, picking up the remainder of the whiskey bottle and then grabbing hold of his duffle bag. Pulling it over his shoulder, Naruto took a large swig from the bottle and made his way out of the pub.

"He's leaving." Not even pausing, Naruto looked out of the corner of his eyes, his hearing focusing upon the sound of footsteps following behind him.

'Gotham hasn't changed at all.' He thought, continuing to make his way down the street, his pursuers following behind him from a distance. It was a dog-eat-dog world in Gotham, if you were weak, attach yourself to the strong. And if you were strong, target the weak. It was the only way to survive in Gotham, especially in the East End. You had to make a name for yourself or you would become a target and the easiest way to make a name for yourself was to target the weak.

But in turn that put a target on your back. No one said Gotham was an easy place and that's why it attracted the worst kinds of people.

Spying an alleyway a little further ahead, Naruto turned down it, his pursuers following him. "What?! Where the fuck did he go?!" One cried out as they turned down the alley to find their target gone.

"He was right here!"

'Idiots.' Naruto scoffed as he looked down at them from the windowsill he was sitting upon. All the thugs had to do was look up and they'd see him, but as Naruto had learned, they rarely looked up. This was silly to him considering Batman was a fan of the high ground and using gravity to aid him in dealing a devastating strike that could even cause Killer Croc to stumble.