Batman and Iron Man's unexpected encounter turned straight into a fight.
Up above, Iron Man pointed both hands at Batman. Batman looked motionless, but he was already ready—he could throw his Batarang at top speed the second he moved.
Whoosh!
Iron Man attacked, a repulsor blast howling through the air. Batman's hands moved like lightning, grabbing his Batarangs and throwing them fast.
In a flash, both of them vanished from sight.
Kaitou Kid watched as two more holes appeared on the deck—one blasted by a repulsor, and another where Iron Man crashed down. Batman's Batarangs had hit both of the jets on Iron Man's boots, knocking out his propulsion.
Batman walked over to Bane, picked him up, and jumped over the rail. Kid saw a black speedboat tearing away from the yacht.
Batarangs fired from the power suit were faster than sniper bullets, and the materials were super tough—they'd managed to break Iron Man's jet nozzles, just as expected. Liu A'dou always knew Iron Man wasn't Batman's match. If Batman had worn just his normal suit, maybe he could lose. But this time, Batman was in powered armor, and even if it wasn't as versatile as Iron Man's, it was strong enough to win.
Looked like the fight was over. Kid kindly helped Iron Man up. "Ms. Potts and the others are in the ballroom. They're all safe," Liu A'dou said. "So let everyone know—the jewel was taken by Kaitou Kid. Goodbye."
Tony was mad. He couldn't believe he'd been beaten by Batman—seriously annoying. But when he remembered his girlfriend was still in the ballroom, he pulled himself together and went to meet everyone.
"Hello, everyone. There was just a hijacking, but it's all over now." Every step Iron Man took echoed with a metallic thump.
"Tony?" Pepper rushed over. "Kaitou Kid just disguised himself as you and stole the jewel." "What?"
"What's wrong?"
Pepper pointed to the note stuck to Iron Man's back: "Mr. Stark, returning Ms. Potts to her rightful owner."
"That damn thief." Stark really wasn't having a good day. First Batman beat him, then he got tricked by Kaitou Kid. So annoying.
"Tony, what happened to you? Did the hijackers have heavy weapons?" Pepper noticed Tony's suit was all scorched and blackened.
"Yeah." He didn't want to admit he lost.
The yacht turned back immediately. Everyone figured Bruce had gone into hiding—he still hadn't shown up.
The next day, Liu A'dou got a text from Batman inviting him to the hangar. 'He wants the jewel back?' he wondered, but he still went as promised.
Batman was wearing his usual suit. When he saw Kaitou Kid, he motioned for him to sit—it was obvious this was going to be a long talk.
At first, Kid thought it'd be about the jewel or the virus, but as they talked, he realized Batman seemed deeply uneasy about Iron Man and the Avengers. Like the Avengers could become the world's biggest threat.
Batman had always felt the Avengers couldn't control themselves and were just government puppets. After last night's encounter, he realized Iron Man had major issues—he relied too much on his armor and wasn't really a qualified hero.
And with the alien invasion, even though it hadn't hit Gotham City, Batman still felt a sense of crisis. If the invasion ever reached Gotham, how could he protect the city? So, he started thinking about building a whole new team of heroes—above the government, every member holding the highest moral standards, never controlled by politics or public opinion, dedicated to protecting humanity by their own will.
Batman cared most about Gotham, but he knew if one fell, all could fall. His sharp mind could see future dangers, and he knew there had to be an independent team to balance the Avengers.
"You make a good point. But why are you telling me all this?" Kid asked, puzzled.
"I want you to pick the new league's members," Batman said, seriously.
"You're kidding, right? You want a thief like me to go recruit heroes?" Liu A'dou honestly thought Batman had lost his mind.
But Batman didn't answer. Instead, he started typing on the keyboard, fast and sharp. Everything Kaitou Kid had ever done flashed up on the screen. "Kaitou, I've been watching you—even after you left Gotham City. I know you've pulled off a lot of heists, but your standards are higher than anyone's. You have real moral principles. When you see someone in trouble, you never run away. Stealing is just your way of showing off—it doesn't stop you from doing good."
Batman really had sharp insight. When he first met Catwoman, he'd seen right away that she was basically good. It was the same with Kaitou Kid—Batman recognized he was always ready to help others.
As for stealing, that didn't matter. Batman stole stuff all the time. Breaking and entering was a daily habit. Kid's biggest "fault" might be his habit of challenging the police, but even that wasn't really a problem.
"You make me sound so good, I almost believe I'm a champion of justice." Kaitou laughed. This was actually the first time anyone had called him a good guy.
But honestly, joining the Justice League sounded pretty good. He'd get to hang out with real superheroes and rub it in the faces of all those people online who insulted Kaitou Kid.
"Kaitou, what you've done isn't any less than any other masked hero." Batman said, "I've never seen myself as a hero either. We're all just people with some special skills."
"Since you've said all this, I'd be pretty heartless to refuse. So do I get to pick the members?"
"If you've got candidates in mind, let's hear them." Batman had his own list, but he wanted to know Kaitou's ideas.
"Green Arrow, the Flash, Green Lantern, Shazam, Wonder Woman, Superman."
Batman nodded. It was almost the same as what he'd planned. He hadn't put Green Lantern on his list, since he couldn't find the guy at all. "Matches my list. Do you really think you can recruit them?"
"Get the money ready to build a base," Liu A'dou said, full of confidence.
It's a funny world. Even a thief can become a hero.
"Sir, was that Kaitou?" Alfred walked in.
"Yes. Get ready to go back to Gotham City."
"You seem happy, sir?" The butler was confused by Bruce's smile.
"Sending Kaitou out on a job just feels good." Batman knew Kaitou would get the job done. He could just wait in Gotham City while Kaitou ran all over the world gathering heroes. It was a pretty good deal.
Batman really was used to being the boss—he came up with the plan, and others did the legwork. But Kid didn't mind. He was actually looking forward to meeting even more heroes.