The Last 5 Days: Batman Confronts Damian, and the Final Tests Begin
Tension thickened the air in the Batcave.
The Justice League had left.
The surveillance screens were silent.
And only two people remained beneath the glow of the computers:
Batman.
Damian.
Bruce stood with his arms folded, the cowl off—
the father side showing through the shadows of the vigilante.
Batman
"Damian.
What are you choosing?
And why only Aqualad and Superboy?"
Damian didn't flinch.
He had known this moment would come.
He closed the laptop he had been analyzing psychological profiles on and met Bruce's stare.
Damian's Carefully Constructed Half-Truth
Damian
"I'm not choosing a weapon.
I'm choosing someone who can carry a legacy."
Bruce's eyes narrowed.
Batman
"What kind of legacy?"
Damian paused.
He couldn't mention the system.
He couldn't mention reincarnation.
He couldn't mention the actual origin of the Gura Gura no Mi.
But he had prepared a believable explanation.
Damian
"…An artifact.
One strong enough to decide the outcome of planetary conflicts.
It's not magic.
It's not Kryptonian.
It's… older.
Something I found traces of while traveling."
Bruce's jaw tightened.
Batman
"And only Aqualad and Superboy qualify?"
Damian
"Yes.
Because the person who held this power before… was known as the world's strongest man."
Bruce froze.
Batman
"You're talking about something that dangerous?"
Damian nodded.
Damian
"This power belongs to a man who carried the strength to destroy the world…
but chose to protect it instead."
Bruce understood the message:
Damian wasn't choosing the strongest person.
He was choosing the most human person.
Someone who held power without being consumed.
Someone who mirrored the legacy of Edward Newgate—Whitebeard.
THE LAST 5 DAYS — THE FINAL TESTS BEGIN
Damian initiated the last and most brutal stage of evaluation.
Not physical strength.
Not combat efficiency.
Not elemental resistance.
But humanity.
The one thing no scanner or database could measure.
DAY 5 — Testing Aqualad
Kaldur was put through:
moral hypotheticals
loyalty dilemmas
pressure scenarios
simulations of impossible choices
exposure to overwhelming destructive force
And every single time…
He stayed calm.
He stayed compassionate.
He stayed grounded.
He carried the temperament of a king.
But something was missing.
Damian felt it.
Kaldur was noble.
Kaldur was responsible.
Kaldur was steady.
But he lacked the fierce, overwhelming presence Whitebeard embodied.
That unbreakable defiance.
That willingness to stand and roar at the world itself.
Kaldur would wield power with grace…
But not with the raw spirit needed to command the earth-shaking force of the fruit.
Still—
He impressed Damian deeply.
DAY 4 to DAY 2 — Testing Superboy
And then came Conner.
Damian pushed him harder.
Harder than anyone else.
He simulated:
Kryptonian-level threats
moments of hopeless defeat
situations where rage could take over
impossible decisions
emotional triggers
moral paradoxes
enemies stronger than him
allies in danger
And in every scenario…
Conner fought.
Even when outmatched.
Even when bloodied.
Even when the pressure crushed his bones.
He pushed forward.
But what Damian was searching for
was something only Whitebeard possessed:
The smile.
The one he had read about.
The smile of a man who faced death and destruction
with absolute resolve—
Not because he wanted chaos.
But because he refused to break.
Damian needed to see that smile.
DAY 1 — The Final Trial
The Watchtower simulation room was packed.
Everyone was watching:
The Justice League
The Titans
Young Justice
Batman
Superman
Wonder Woman
Aquaman
The Light's spies
Lex Luthor
Amanda Waller
The League of Assassins
Ra's al Ghul
Lady Shiva
Global governments
A crowd that would terrify any normal person.
But Superboy stood alone in the arena.
Damian triggered the final simulation:
A threat overwhelming enough to crush him.
A threat that forced him to fight at full power.
A threat that brought him to the brink.
Conner gritted his teeth, charging forward—
He took the hit.
He bled.
He staggered.
And then…
He smiled.
Not a heroic smile.
Not a friendly smile.
A smile filled with fire, defiance, challenge, and fearlessness—
The same kind of smile Whitebeard gave when he split the sky.
Conner roared and slammed back with everything he had.
And the world watching…
went silent.
A chill ran down every spine.
Superman froze.
Wonder Woman tensed.
Batman… narrowed his eyes, recognizing what Damian saw.
Aquaman staggered.
Lex Luthor held his breath.
Amanda Waller whispered:
"Oh god."
Ra's al Ghul smiled darkly.
Lady Shiva whispered:
"He has found the one."
The Light panicked.
Government leaders turned pale.
Even Darkseid, watching through unseen channels, whispered—
Darkseid
"…interesting."
Because that smile…
Was the smile of someone who could save the world
or break it in half.
Whitebeard's legacy was alive in him.
And in that moment—
Damian knew.
He had found the rightful successor.
And every powerful being watching felt the same chill: