Enjoy.

xXx

( Gotham City - Actors Guild HQ )

"I FUCKING HATE THIS!"

"Just shut up and keep running!"

"EASY FOR YOU TO SAY" yelled Heatwave as he runs just barely behind his partner, Captain Cold as they run from their 'supposed' target.

Said target is chasing them through the thirty-first floor of the building, plowing through everything that gets in his way. It's a bit difficult to get in the way of a wave of clay that intends to kill the two thieves.

"I'll kill you both!" roared Clayface, his melted face appearing in the wave of liquid for a brief second before melting back into the tidal wave of clay.

Mick, finding that as a challenge, turns for a moment and shoots a stream of fire at the incoming clay. While most attacks would be ineffective against Clayface's body, Naruto chose the pair of thieves to handle Clayface for a reason and that reason is their elemental weaponry.

Basil Karlo/Clayface roars in pain as the flames from Mick's Heat Gun washes over his body of clay and hardens the substance, stopping the Villain in its tracks while it suffers.

Before Mick can gloat, Snart pulls him by his shoulder and into an open elevator. "Come on! That won't stop him for long" said Snart as he closes the elevator door with the last thing he sees being Clayface breaking apart the hardened pieces of its body and returning them back to normal.

The next minute is spent with the pair of thieves quietly listening to the elevator music as it travels down several floors. Mick even starts tapping his foot, lacking the patience for the quiet elevator ride.

"..."

"..."

"..."

"Got a mint?"

Snart checks the pockets of his blue winter coat and withdraws a half open pack of mints. He hands one over to Mick who mouths off a thanks as he eats away on the small sweet. "Cheers. Needed that."

Their quiet atmosphere so happens to be ruined when something heavy falls on top of the elevator, causing it to shake from the sudden excess weight. From the bit of clay dripping onto their coats and the floor, it's obvious to them on who's up there.

"Looks like this is our stop" told Snart as he presses the stop button and the button to open the doors. Mick spends his time shooting some flames over their heads and incinerating the few bits of clay which is leaking from the ceiling. The doors open, showing that the elevator has stopped halfway down a floor, leaving a tiny gap for the pair to crawl through.

Snart goes first with Mick following shortly and just in time as the moment the flames stopped burning, a heavy load of clay smashes through the ceiling, the force causing the elevator to lower itself and strain under the weight of Clayface.

Captain Cold and Heatwave take a few steps back as Clayface forms his body in the elevator, his melting face, smirking down at them with glee.

"Got a plan?" Mick asked, feeling sweat drip off his brow and it's not from the heat of his gun.

Snart bites his lips for a moment but stops when the elevator shakes and lowers slightly to reveal the connecting cables. "In fact, I do. Keep him in the elevator."

Mick does as he's told and fires upon Clayface as he takes a step out of the elevator. The walking body of clay screams as the fire hardens its chest, forcing him to take a step back into the elevator.

Captain Cold raises his Cold Gun but instead of shooting at Clayface, he shoots at the cable holding the elevator. The moment the blue energy hits its target, the wires instantly freeze and quickly break apart under Clayface's heavy weight. The elevator immediately collapses, taking the living body of clay with it as it travels down over twenty floors.

Captain Cold and Heatwave looks down the elevator shaft and flinch when they hear the elevator crashing at the bottom floor and the inhumanely, painful scream from Clayface. "You think that did it in?" Mick asked.

Snart takes a step back and hoists up his Cold Gun. "Only one way to find out." He flicks his head towards the direction of the stairs. "Stairs?"

"I was afraid you were going to say that."

The pair turn towards the direction of the staircase, only to freeze when they see what looks to be over two dozen employees staring at them. Awkward silence fills the room as the thieves and employees state at each other.

It's Mick who ruins the silence. "Evening." With that said, he heads towards the stairs with Snart following. Nobody did try to stop them, neither having the bravery nor stupidity to even try.

Over twenty floors later, Mick and Snart push through the crowd that has gathered around the elevator door which has bent from the force of the landing.

A security guard walks towards the pair of thieves with one hand up and the other on his pepper spray. "Stay where you a-" He doesn't get to finish since Mick swings his Heat Gun across the man's face, failing to knock him out but doing enough damage to break his nose.

Ignoring the guard's cries of agony, Mick lifts his gun to his face and raises a brow. "Odd. That usually works." The other security guard comes running at them with a baton on hand so Mick, casually hits him in the face with his gun, successfully knocking him out. "That's better."

The clear show of violence is enough to scare everyone to run away so they don't get caught in whatever crossfire which may happen. A few pick up their phones to call the police.

Leonard Snart walks over towards the elevator doors and grabs one side with both hands. "Get over here and help me."

Mick Rory grunts but follows the command as he holsters his gun and grabs the other end of the elevator doors. Grunting, the pair pull apart the weakened elevator doors and quickly pull out their own weapons, in case of any surprises. What they see is a destroyed elevator with a flattened Clayface who is groaning in pain as he slithers out of the door.

Mick looks up at Snart. "Want it?"

Snart shrugs, taking a step forward to the twitching pile of clay. "Why not. I feel like I've earned this today" he said, stopping just a foot away from Clayface. Without a single thought or any hesitation, he fires down on Clayface, ignoring the former actor's screams of pain as the Cold Gun does its job and freezes the Villain. After a few seconds, Snart pulls back the gun and looks down at the frozen remains of Clayface.

"This is the police! Come out with your hands up!"

Leonard smirks as he looks out of the windows to see a few police cruisers outside with police. "A bit late to the party, don't you think?"

Mick stomps onto Clayface's remains, smashing through the ice and permanently ending the Villain's life once and for all. "What you expect? They're pigs."

Snart chuckles and shrugs his shoulders. "I guess. Best head back and report in" he said before clicking his ring and vanishing. Mick grunts but copies him and vanishes from sight as well, just in time as the police soon come running in.

( Naruto's Dimension )

Loki has been called many things throughout his long life as a God. He has been called weak, a menace, a fool and when Fandral is feeling creative, a maiden. All of the insults connected by a thick trail of venom.

Weak has always been the main characteristic for Loki, no matter how much it aggravated him to no end to be called such. When one lives in Asgard, one must be strong and be able to wield a weapon. Loki does neither, lacking the strength and interest to fight like any other Asgardian. Compared to other races, he will always be stronger but as an Asgardian, he is more frail than others, especially compared to his bro-, Thor.

For those reasons, he has always earned himself the ire to the populace of Asgard, none too caring that he is a Prince of the realm. A day didn't go by unless he at least hears one insult thrown into his face, most likely coming from Frandral.

Quite hard for him to improve his reputation when he lacks the skills of a warrior to impress others. To solve that problem, he mastered the art of using knives, in order to gain some form of recognition for his skills. All he got was the disdain of others, finding his choice of weaponry laughable at best. Apparently, Asgardian should use swords, maces or warhammers, not tiny little knives.

Seeing how he will never match up to the other warriors of Asgard, he decided to prove his strength a different way.

After a bit of pleading, he learned the art of Sorcery from his mother, finding a lot of interest in the art. The ability to teleport anywhere he wants to forming illusions with his mind was too much for him to give up, even if the Magical Arts are nothing but a women's pastime in Asgard. Therefore, he was scoffed at even more by the populace for learning woman's art. Even the guards within the palace walls hold little to no respect for him, title as Prince of Asgard doing nothing to entice them.

For all the disdain, the cruel names and lack of respect he gains from others, he blames Thor. Thor might not even realise why but Loki simply can't stand the God of Thunder. Not when everyone seems to always point out his faults when they compare him to Asgard's Golden Boy.

Thor is everything an Asgardian hopes to be. Strong, brave, handsome and charming.

Loki can't see why he is never thought of or praised in the same manner as Thor. He has fought in plenty of wars alongside Thor so why isn't he classed as brave? He has killed and survived in countless battles so why does nobody call him strong? While he doesn't possess Thor's muscles or blonde locks, he has made women swoon over him before but yet, nobody will ever admit that he is handsome. Loki will happily admit that he possesses the qualities which makes one charming but none will do so to his face so why?

Why is he treated like a hindrance than a Prince of Asgard?

It came to Loki one night. He had thought hard and long about the reasons and only one conclusion came to mind.

Thor.

As the firstborn of Odin, Thor was guaranteed the spot as King of Asgard when Odin drops the title. That fact brought the lies of Odin to his feet. The King once spoke to them as children, admitting that they will both be kings.

With only one throne?

With Thor being Odin's favourite son, his spot as King of Asgard was guaranteed. Loki didn't want that. He wanted to become King, to be recognized for his accomplishments and treated like a true king!

Only to find out that he isn't even Asgardian.

After Thor was sent to Midgard, Loki found out the truth of his true heritage. He admits that he finds it amusing that he, the God of Lies and Mischief was lied to his entire life and he never once saw through it.

Odin is not his father.

Frigga is not his mother.

Thor is not his brother.

So, he got angry. Angry enough to try and kill Thor and take the throne of Asgard, in the name of his adoptive father, Odin. It all failed with him and Thor clashing on the Bifrost Bridge and Thor destroying it. Both were gonna fall into the endless abyss until Odin caught them both.

Loki was overjoyed at first, thinking that he has finally proven his place in the eyes of his father. Until he said that one word that haunts him in his mind.

"No."

Slowly opening his eyes, Loki blinks in surprise when his foggy vision clears up to reveal a ceiling of rock with a source of light and water escaping through a hole in the ceiling.

"I'm alive?" he thought, wondering how he survived after letting himself fall into the Endless Abyss, a product made after the destruction of the Bifrost Bridge. Not even Gods are suppose to survive such an experience since it would suck up all the Magic and life of whoever falls in. It should have literally torn him apart, everything from his clothing to body cells. A sense of pride fills the God of Lies and Mischief when he realizes that he is now the very first being, God or not, to have survived in the Endless Abyss.

"I said no, Harley."

"Pretty please~, it'll work."

"He's unconscious, not in a coma."

"That doesn't matter! Have you never seen sleeping beauty!?"

Hearing some voices he doesn't recognize, the God tries to spring up into action to defend himself against the unknown. That is, until he cries out in pain when he discovers that it feels like all of the bones in his body is broken. While he may have survived the Endless Abyss, Loki hasn't been left unscathed.

"This is even worst than the time Thor hit me with Mjölnir" thought Loki, remembering the dreaded experience a couple centuries ago when Thor first got his hammer and was playing around with it. It ended with the God of Thunder accidentally hitting Loki across the face with the hammer, leaving him in the palace infirmary for over a month.

"Looks like sleeping beauty is finally awake. Too bad you won't be getting your kiss" Loki heard another male voice speak up and it's different from the first.

"Aww~" pouted Harley, missing her chance on kissing the cutie.

Naruto pats the insane woman on the head like a parent would do to a child. "There, there. Maybe next time."

Loki groans, turning his head enough to see the other occupants of wherever he is. The first one he notices to be the sole female, dressed in a tight, red and black shirt and pants, similar to a Jester's attire that hugs her figure like a second skin. Her skin is almost perfect with the only threat to it being the unbelievably paleness to it, although it provides an almost exotic feel to her. Her hair is as odd as the rest of the woman, being in an odd style which he has never seen before. It's almost like a ponytail that has been split in half so it faces off towards the left and right sides of her face. Even odder, the ends of the small ponytails are coloured differently than the blonde locks she possesses with one being coloured light blue and the other being pink.

The second person he notices is obviously a man from the tight black shirt he wears which shows off hard muscles that would be classed as average in Asgard. He also adorns a brown leather jacket and black pants, as well as a belt that is holding odd and small looking metal boxes. His eyes trial up to his face, although he can't see it since it is covered by a red mask. "He's a warrior, through and through. I'll need to watch him."

He last person he notices is definitely the most powerful, Loki can promise himself that. Other than the strange white robes and possessing white hair, he looks to be nothing too special. Loki can see past that, his senses instantly taking in the power this one man possesses. For a brief second, he almost thought that he was looking at Odin.

"Who are you?"

Naruto raises a brow. "I could ask you the same thing." Naruto walks around and sits down beside Loki's body to it is easier for the God to see. "You're in a bit of a predicament, I hope you realize that."

Loki does the moment he figures out that he isn't healing. Being a God, his body regenerates even against life-threatening injuries, Mjölnir's incident being an example. Even now, his body should have healed enough so he can at least stand but so far, his body remains broken and injured.

"You probably noticed that you're not healing. I noticed your regenerative abilities after a while so I took... precautions" said Naruto, his eyes glancing towards the left.

Loki follows his gaze and sees what looks to be black lines of paint on the grass floor. He also sees how the lines are designed in a way where he is lying in the centre of it all. "Your drawings are containing my Magic? Impossible!" exclaimed Loki through broken gasps. Hard for him to be commanding when his body remains broken.

Naruto shakes his head. "I've learned that nothing is impossible. We've got men in tights flying over our heads and people who run faster than the speed of light. Nothing is impossible." The Sage of Six Paths notices Loki's bewildered expression. "I apologize. I forget that you're not from around here."

"Where am I?" Loki demanded.

"Right now? You're in my personal dimension. Never gave it a name and probably won't" Naruto answered with a shrug of his shoulders. "Now, answer my questions. How did you get here?"

Loki glares up at Naruto, showing clear distrust in his green eyes. "I hold no obligation to tell you anything."

Naruto shrugs again, clearly not caring. "You don't but until you do, I'm not releasing my restraints off you."

This got Loki to shut up and think. While he may be arrogant and a slight bit patronizing, he isn't stupid. In fact, he prides himself to be one of the smartest in Asgard, second only to Odin. Being in unknown territory with unknown people and his Magic subdued by another God, the God of Mischief and Lies can't think of a plan to get out of his current predicament. Usually, he would use his silver tongue to get his way out of trouble but the sharp and powerful eyes of the obvious God clearly states that it won't work on him.

With a reluctant sigh, Loki surrender, for now. "Have you heard of Asgard?"

( New York City - Financial District )

"I am so late!" Jennifer Walters can't believe that she actually slept in, and on such an important case as well!

Checking her watch, she sighs, irritably when she reads that it's 11: 45, leaving her fifteen minutes to go down three blocks, head into the courtroom and talk to her client before the case starts. She bites back a curse when she misses her chance to cross the road, now having to wait until the traffic subsides. With it having rained last night, her day only gets worse when a car drives through a puddle beside the pavement and drenches the lawyer's blue skirt in muddy water.

Jennifer palms her face and holds back the want to cry.

"How can my day get anymore worse than this?" she inwardly cried, having lost the necessary energy to run, preferring to slowly drag herself across the street when the green light turns on.

As if the universe is against her, an explosion blows up in the S.T.A.R. Labs building that is down the road to her left, leaving a massive hole in the front of the building. The first sign of the explosion is the start of a mass panic, pedestrians running for their lives while a few drivers get out of their cars to run alongside them. Some for the more stupider drivers step on the throttle, driving down the roads to get away from whatever caused the explosion in the first place.

One of the drivers is unlucky since as they drive past the S.T.A.R. Labs building, a large figure jumps out of the hole and allows the car to crash into them. Like as if crashing into a brick wall, the car flattens upon impact, just barley staggering the man it just crashed into.

Having stopped in the middle of the road, Jennifer gasps when she recognizes the infamous Villain, Rhino as he lifts the destroyed car over his head. Without even looking, the Villain throws the vehicle away and it just so happen to roll towards herself. Failing to move her petrified body, Jennifer can only watch as the rolling pile of metal get closer and closer to herself, sealing her faith the closer it gets.

Imagine her surprise when the metal of death doesn't hit her but instead, hits the monster of a man who appears in front of her just in the nick of time. She blinks as she tilts her head up, just so she can see the giant of a man who just saved her.

Mammoth growls as he lifts the car and places it to the side, to further preserve what remains of the dead body inside it. He looks over his shoulder to see if the woman is alright and smiles when he sees that yes, she's safe.

"You better head off. I can't fight too well if there are bystanders around." He even pats the top of her head to knock some sense into her, nearly bringing the stunned lawyer to her knees from the strength used.

Nodding almost like an android, Jennifer finds the needed brain power to run away from the upcoming battle. She stops for a brief moment to look back at her hero. "Thank you." Mammoth clearly hears it and waves her off from over his shoulder, not even risking the chance to look away. However, he does smile over hearing the woman.

"I can almost see why Jinx joined the Titans" he thought, mournfully over his former friend and teammate before he clenches his muscles and glares at Rhino who seems to finally noticed him.

"Shit! Akatsuki!" cursed Rhino, turning tail and running, his feet making footprints in the tarmac as he does so.

Mammoth blinks, not having expected that reaction. Yes, Akatsuki have made some leeway among the public and criminal underground but he didn't think it was enough to actually scare a few Villains. Not yet, at least.

Still, feels pretty good.

His attention is brought forth to the large cylinder object that is tied to Rhino's back with chains. While Mammoth is definitely not the smartest of the bunch, he can do basic math. Seeing as Rhino has just run out of S.T.A.R. Labs with something that looks very expensive and important and is running away from him, he can figure out that something is definitely not right. So, with that in mind, he runs after the enhanced human.

Both giants appear as blurs as they run through the streets of New York, shaking the ground and lifting cars after each step. While Rhino may be fast, Mammoth is soon chasing up to him, hand out to grab onto the device attached to Rhino's back. Before he can touch it, a bolt of purple energy hits his hand, forcing him to pull it back and stop. He slams his feet into the tarmac to slow him down. Once he stops himself, the Metahuman jumps back to avoid another flurry of energy bolts.

Grabbing onto a nearby car as he runs down the road, he stops and spins with the car on hand. Noticing a shadow on a rooftop for a slight second, he stops his spin and throws the car towards it. The shadow moves and cuts through the car like as if it's made of butter and lands on top of another car, crushing it from their weight.

Now with Rhino gone and his new target in sight, Mammoth takes in her appearance to see if he can recognize her. He fails the recognize the young woman since he's pretty sure that he would remember someone who is dressed in a green, skin-tight bodysuit with pincers for hands and a giant scorpion tail. He isn't too sure if the scorpion's tail is real or not but he is sure he doesn't want to find out. "Gizmo, you getting this?"

"Of course I am! Who do you think I am, an amateur!?" yelled Gizmo from the communication device in Mammoth's ear. "Give me a second!" Literally a second later, Gizmo speaks up again. "Name's Elaine Coll but she goes by the name Scorpia. Dropped out of high school at sixteen, went on a killing spree, went on a robbing spree, yada, yada... mentally unstable. Well fuck!"

From the mad grin in the woman's eyes, Mammoth can agree on the mentally unstable part. Reminds him a lot of Harley, but that's not too surprising.

"Hello~, big boy. Rhino can't play at the moment but I~~ can. Want to play with a professional?" Scorpia asked with a wide grin, clipping her pincers while she's at it.

Mammoth growls, not liking the woman already. Something is going on and it's all centred around that device Rhino just ran out with.

Mammoth slams his fist into his palm and smirks, cracking his fingers. "Let's play."

( Naruto's Dimension )

"Do Gods pray to another God? If you're a God, can you pray to yourself? Is there a Devil? Do more Devils exist? Are they really red? Do they have pointy horns? What's it like being older than my grandpa? You look good for your age. What's your secret?"

Red Hood chuckles as he watches Harley ask questions after questions about the 'supposed' God who has no time to answer and no way to escape from her. It's probably even more annoying that Harley is wearing his golden helmet and her annoying pet hyenas are chuckling away beside them. "You think his story checks out?" he asked, turning towards Sage.

Naruto takes a moment to answer, needing a bit to let the new information sink in. Personally, he has never been one to believe in Gods and still doesn't, no matter what this man says. However, it's too much of a coincidence that he claims to be named Loki, the God of Mischief and Lies. With the amount of power he holds, Naruto isn't to surprised that a few would claim him to be a God. Not only that but Loki explained that the King of Asgard, Odin, is said to be even more powerful, Loki explaining how his power is nowhere near to that of Odin.

Loki also explained to him about the Pantheons, meaning that there is even more versions of Gods with Loki and all of Asgard all belonging under the Norse Pantheon.

"So many with the power to wipe out the planet without a single thought" thought Naruto, turning to face Red Hood. "While I'm skeptical of these titles of Gods, he isn't lying."

"He's called the God of Lies for a reason" Red Hood, blankly pointed out.

Naruto ignores the former Robin and walks towards the injured God and Harley. "I hope you haven't been boring our guest with your questions, Harley."

Harley looks almost insulted. "Of course not! We're the best of buddies!"

"Kill... me..."

"He's just joking" laughed Harley, kicking Loki in the ribs, forcing the God to cough out the air in his lungs. "See!"

Naruto simply pats her head like one does to a child. "Good girl. I think Jason was asking for you."

"I know you're lying but ok!" sang Harley before running off towards Red Hold with her hyenas following close behind her.

When Harley gets out of listening distance, Naruto looks down at the injured God. "What do you think?"

Loki glares up at the Sage of Six Paths, clearly showing him what he thinks. "She's insane."

Naruto nods. "True."

Silence covers the pair for a few minutes until Naruto speaks up again. "I could kill you, you understand this, don't you?"

Loki hides his grimace under a stern but understanding expression, nodding to show he does. "I do."

"You endangered the lives of innocents, all for you petty jealousy over your brother. I have the obligation to end you."

Loki grips his knuckles, glaring up at Naruto. "Then do it. Kill me!"

Not giving him a thought, Naruto turns and walks away. "That isn't for me to decide."

"Then who's is it!?"

A portal opens nearby and the sound of an engine escapes through the dimensional doorway. Naruto tilts his head towards the portal. "It's his decision."

Loki turns his head to see what looks to be a moving skeleton, lifting its leg over a strange vehicle that is also on fire. Just like the other, he can sense some serious power within the moving skeleton. Whatever it is, it isn't anything he recognizes and he has read any and all books of creatures from the palace library. It glances towards Loki and starts stomping towards him, making the God of Mischief and Lies a tad nervous. With his body broken and his connection to his Magic sealed, he has no way to defend himself from the violent-looking skeleton.

Ghost Rider falls to its knees and holds itself over Loki, both arms spread beside the God's torso. It pushes its face close to Loki's, providing no comfort for the God as the heat warms his skin. If he wasn't a God, his skin would have burnt under the intense heat of Ghost Rider's flames.

However, the heat is nowhere near as uncomfortable as staring into the hollowed out eyes of the flaming skull, unseen eyes seemingly staring deep into his soul. For what feels like hours, Ghost Rider stares deep into Loki's soul, finding what darkness it can find within the God. After a while, it scoffs and shakes its head before standing up and walking away.

"Innocent."

Loki releases the breath he doesn't realise he's holding in and takes in a few deep breathes for himself. Whatever just happened, he knows that something was just stolen from him but isn't sure what.

"Well, that's surprising." If Loki's body isn't broken, he would have jumped after hearing Naruto's voice from beside him, remembering that he has walked off earlier. He didn't even hear him appear.

Naruto looks down at the broken God and smiles, slightly. "You surprise me. Not many tend to get through Ghost Rider's test, God or not. He must see something good in you" Naruto stated before waving his hand over Loki. The Seals beneath the God of Lies and Mischief glow a bright blue before shattering away like glass, releasing Loki from what restraints they hold over him.

Once the restraints vanish, a golden light washes over Loki's body, starting the process of healing the God from all of his injuries. Broken bones mend into place and torn muscles fix themselves. Not a painless measure but it works nonetheless. Within the matter of minutes, Loki's body fully heals itself, allowing him to stand up onto his own two feet.

Closing his eyes, Loki takes in a deep breath, happy to move once again. Opening his emerald eyes, he looks into the Azure blue ones of the odd but powerful man in front of him. A thought to kill him does surface within his mind but he squashes that thought over a few seconds thinking about it. Whoever he is, his presence reminds Loki of Odin, a feat that not many can brag about. If one can remind himself of the Allfather, Loki admits that it isn't the smart thing to do by enforcing violence against someone he can't possibly win against.

"Am I allowed the courtesy of asking for a name?"

"Sage."

Loki raises a brow in interest. "Really?"

Naruto shrugs with a small grin. "It's what everyone else calls me. Nobody knows my name but myself, of course."

"That would indicate that you have something to hide. Your history perhaps?"

"Don't we all have something to hide?"

Loki chuckles, agreeing with the Sage's response. "True. Allow me to provide a small bit of advice. Hide it well. I know from experience that one's past mistakes will follow them, no matter how hard one tries to forget them. Hide them if you must but never forget. We learn from our mistakes so never forget them."

Naruto agrees that the man in front of him is much older than he looks. While he may look like he's in his early twenties, he holds the wisdom and experience of someone who has seen everything. "What are you going to do now? After all, Asgard will be searching for you after what you've done."

Loki laughs, although there's no humour in it. "I'll survive. When one goes through what I do, you tend to find a way."

"Then, how about joining me?"

Loki faces Sage, a serious expression on his face. "Come again?"

Naruto shrugs and waves his hand towards the strange flora in the cavern. "You have no plans to do anything with your life but you hold great power within you. Power that can be used to help others who lack it."

"You want me to provide charity, pity perhaps? Is that it?"

Naruto stares, sternly into Loki's eyes. "No, I want you to help yourself. To show all of Asgard that they are wrong about you. You told me your story, a prince unloved by the populace, shunned for his older brother. That doesn't have to be the end of your story. Merely a chapter in it so how about you make another?"

Loki glances around the cavern, purposely to avoid making eye contact with Sage."Show all of Asgard wrong?" He will admit that he likes the sound of that. To prove that their way isn't the only way to get strong, show them that he can be more than the Dark Prince or a Frost Giant. That he can be what Odin once told him he can be.

A King!

Before he can answer, Harley ruins the moment when making her own comment. "Is the cutie joining? He can bunk up with me!"

( New York City - Financial District )

Mammoth groans as he backhands Scorpia into a Fire Station, noticing how the Villain laughs off the pain or rather, gets off on it.

"Is that all you got, big boy?" asked Scorpia while she walks out of the Fire Station through the broken door. "Cause if that's it than I guess Bane was a bigger push over than I thought. Come on, show me what you showed Bane! Show me that power you have! Show me! Show Me! Show Me!" she ranted, madness dancing across her eyes.

"How about I show you this, bitch!"

Scorpia blinks over hearing a new voice but screams when she feels electricity wash over her body, numbing her nerves in the process. Collapsing to her knees, Scorpia looks over her shoulder and widens her eyes when she sees a round-shaped robot, floating harmlessly in the air behind her, a small gun under it is also sparking with electricity.

"Haha! Bet you didn't see that coming, did ya?" mocked Gizmo through the speakers in his Eyebot.

Scorpia snarls at the robot and tries to move her body but finds it too numb. "What did you do to me!"

"Oh, not much. Just a few volts of good ol' fashioned electricity. Not enough to kill ya but enough to keep you down. You can't answer our questions if you're dead."

Mammoth stomps towards the Villain and reaches out to restrain her but before he can, a beam of energy hits the side of his face, forcing the Metahuman to cry out in pain and step back while holding his face. Starting to lose his temper, Mammoth glares towards the direction of the attack, only to see what looks to be a suit of armour in the sky, painted in hot rod colours.

"Step away from the oddly sexy scorpion and put your hands in the air. You're under arrest. Wow, so this is what it feels like to be on the other side of the window."

"OH MY FUCKING GOD, IRON MAN!" cried out Gizmo from his Eyebot, commanding it to float up to Iron Man's level and actually get into the billionaire's face. "I'M YOUR BIGGEST FAN! CAN I HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH!?"

"Uuhh" muttered Tony Stark, flying back a few feet to be at some sort of distance from the robot. "Sure?"

Slots open up by the sides of the Eyebot, showing a set of robotic clamps that brandish a poster and a pen in the other. "Can you make it out to Gizmo?"

Tony grabs the offered items and signs his name on the poster which is of him from what looks to be last year's weapon rally. "Sure thing, kid. Always happy to meet a fan."

"Its because of you that I got into engineering in the first place."

Tony laughs from within his suit. "At least I did something right. Pepper won't believe me when I tell her this."

"Sir, let me remind you that you are speaking to a fugitive of the law and are required under the orders of S.H.I.E.L.D. to bring them in at all costs" spoke JARVIS, Tony's personal A.I. and his source of sound mind whenever Pepper isn't watching over him.

"And not let the kid meet his childhood hero? JARVIS, do you see me as a monster?"

"Of course not, sir."

"Sweet~, this is going on the wall" said Gizmo as the Eyebot floats away and disappears using its cloaking system.

"Cloaking? Why didn't I think of that? JARVIS, put that on my to do list, will ya?"

"Already done, sir."

"I don't know what I'd do without ya."

"Neither do I, sir."

Mammoth rubs the bridge of his nose, feeling the cuts and brusies all over his body start to add up. The last thing he needs is to fight Iron Man of all people. He isn't even sure if he can unless he wants to use the Sage's power and even then, that would just cause reckless destruction. Scorpia took a lot out of him and he needs her.

"Well, wanna do this the hard way or the easy way?" asked Tony, floating lower until his feet touches the ground.

"You know my answer" growled Mammoth.

"True. Gotta give ya a choice or human resources will be on my ass" shrugged Tony before firing a particle beam into Mammoth's chest.

The Metahuman grunts but is mostly unaffected by the beam. He runs towards Tony who realizes that his Repulsor Ray is doing nothing so he uses his second one and combines it with the first. The end result is an even more powerful beam that stops Mammoth and starts pushing him back a few inches before he sinks his feet into the ground, stopping him.

"Sir, Repulsor Rays are failing to harm him."

"Yes, JARVIS, I've noticed! Double the power!" The beams glow even brighter as they hit into Mammoth's chest, annoying the Metahuman over the increasing heat.

With a roar, Mammoth slams his palms together, creating a shockwave from the force, destroying the windows in every building for a two block radius, pushing back every vehicle into buildings or alleys and throwing back Iron Man who uses his repulsors to get back to his feet.

Unknown to the pair, Scorpia has gotten back up.

"Mammoth!"

As Tony flies into the air, a green bolt of enegy hits him in his back, surprising the billionaire and forcing him to fall back onto the floor on his stomach.

"Sir, we've been hit."

"JARVIS, remind be to update your software when we get home."

"Of course, sir. Putting it on your 'To do list'."

"Mammoth, where's Scorpia!" yelled Gizmo from another Eyebot.

Mammoth blinks and looks down to his left and sees that Scorpia isn't there anymore. "Uh oh."

"Damn right, uh oh! How are we suppose to get paid if you let the cunts get away!?"

Mammoth simply shrugs, having no other answer for the genius. Gizmo curses from wherever he's controlling his Eyebots. "Fine, just get out of there. No point getting caught again."

Tony quickly gets to his knee and aims his right arm at the Metahuman who reaches to press his ring. A small socket opens up on his forearm and fires a tiny chip into Mammoth's bodysuit. The chip latches on just in time as Mammoth vanishes from sight. The Eyebot cloaks itself and disappears from sight.

"And, that's how you do it" Tony praised himself as he gets back to his feet.

"Sir, director Fury is connecting."

"No, wait! Disconnect!"

"Hello, Tony" spoke Nick Fury as a picture of him appears in Tony's HUD.

"Ah~, director. What do I deserve the honour?"

Fury ignores Tony's blatant regard of sarcasm. "Did you capture the target?"

"The giant? Nope, ran off before I could really do anything. You know, priorities."

"God's sake, Stark! I would've thought that you of all people would've been able to handle Rhino!"

Tony opens his mouth to make a comeback but stops when he hears Fury's full remark. "Come again? Rhino?"

"Yes! Rhino, the big guy who just ran out of S.T.A.R. Labs with a Quantum Influx Device! A dangerous device if left in the wrong hands, if I might add but I'm sure you already knew of that."

Under the helmet, Tony sweats and he swears that he just heard JARVIS sigh. "If it makes you feel any better, I put a tracking chip on the big guy from Akatsuki."

"Do you have their location?" Tony isn't sure but Nick almost sounds like he doesn't believe him. Just because S.H.I.E.L.D. can't find him doesn't mean that he can't. He's Tony Stark! Billionaire genius philanthropist! He believe the nerve of some people!

"Of course I-"

"Sir, I can't find a reading on the tracker. It is either out of bounds or has been disabled." JARVIS helpfully told Tony.

"-don't" Tony sighed.

"Uh huh. Keep an eye out for Rhino." Fury disconnects the call, leaving Tony in an awkward state of... awkwardness.

"Sir-"

"Please, JARVIS. Just... don't."

( Unknown Location )

"Let me out! I didn't do anything!"

A soldier hits the butt of his rifle against the cage, silencing the seventeen year old girl within it. "Shut up, Mutant!" he said in nothing but disgust.

"Let us out!"

"What's going on!?"

"I want mommy!"

From his office on the second floor, overlooking the steel cages full of Mutants of all ages, William Stryker grins, seeing all his work finally come to fruition. "Soon, I will have produced the perfect soldier. My work will bask in fruition."

Ignoring the cries of the Mutants, he turns and sits on his chair and starts updating his journal for the day.

"You're one cold bastard."

Stopping his typing, William glances over to the couch in the corner of his office where Sabretooth is idly lying on. "Don't you have more Mutants to catch?"

"I got you six today. I'm due a bit of time off" shrugged the Metahuman, uncaring over the glare Stryker is throwing his way.

"The less time you spend on getting me my Mutants, the slower my project progresses. Do I have to send Deathstrike to do your work?"

Sabretooth shows his lack of caring by shrugging. "You can but do you really want to risk the chance of getting your little toy caught?" he smirked, showing his sharp fangs that glint against the overhead light.

William glares at the Metahuman who chuckles in response. "At least she's professional."

Sabretooth chokes out a laugh. "You got me there at least. What I wouldn't give for a stick up my own ass. A man can dream" he sighed.

William rubs his eyes to calm the incoming headache that Sabretooth is giving him on purpose. While he gets the job done, he's highly immature and is proud of it. At least he's worth the money.

"Can you just... get out" sighed William in defeat.

Knowing he won their war of words, Sabretooth hops to his feet and heads out the door, waving his hand over his head. "Sure thing, boss."

The sarcasm isn't loss to the Colonel but he doesn't want any reason for the Mutant to come back in and annoy him so William simply leans into his seat as the door closes behind Sabretooth. He looks up at the ceiling, happy to be finally alone with his thoughts. "It'll be worth it in the end. I just know it."

( Unknown Location )

"Are you ready to fulfill your end of the deal, human?" spoke a cold and raspy voice from a figure hidden underneath a dark cloak.

Standing on the small, floating piece of land in the middle space he 'human' nods, chuckling slightly. "Do not fret. I'll get the job done and when I do, I expect you to provide your end of the bargain" he said, not towards the cloaked figure beside him but to the figure sitting on a floating throne.

"DO NOT SPE-"

The cloaked figure's hiss comes to a halt when the giant on the throne raises a large hand. It drops to the armrest as the figure leans back into their thrown and smirks, power radiating off him in droves. "Unlike others, I follow up with my deals. Get me the Cube and you shall have the measly planet for yourself."

The human drops down to his knees, showing his loyalty to the figure on the throne. "It shall be done, Lord Thanos."

Thanos smirks as he watches the human follow his most loyal follower to the entry point in which he will transport to earth. Thus begins the start of the hunt over the Infinity Stones.

( Manhattan - Unknown Location )

Rhino pants in exhaustion and drops the Quantum Influxer to the floor in the warehouse. "I... got what... you asked... for" he panted with his hands on his knees.

"Watch it you idiot! That is a delicate piece of machinery. Don't just drop it at your feet like it's a toy!"

"It's heavy" moaned Rhino.

A metallic limb shoots out and grabs onto the Quantum Influxer before another helps to carry the large machine. The limbs lift the object so the owner can get a better look at it.

"Yes. This will do nicely" chuckled Doctor Octavius as he uses his metallic limbs to carry himself and the Quantum Influxer to his workbench. "Where's your partner by the way? I didn't see her come in with you."

"Maybe cause I came in from the window."

Rhino and Doctor Octopus look over their heads to see Scorpia using her scorpion tail to swing off of a support beam on the ceiling. Octavius doesn't miss the bruises and blood all over her body. His genius mind quickly concludes that his partners had a run in with the Akatsuki, if Scorpia's injuries are anything to go by. There is the chance that it's the Justice League but he knows that they are laying low after the government pretty much gave them up like yesterday's garbage.

"Good. I was worried that you got arrested" said Octavius using his real and metallic limbs to play with his newest piece of machinery.

Scorpia scoffs. "Yea, right. You were just worried that I might rat you out to the feds."

The scientist looks up from his work and raises a brow from behind his sunglasses. "Wouldn't you?"

"That's not the point."

"Sure it isn't. Let's just hope that the others can finish their end. If everything goes according to plan, we'll have the world eating out of our hands by the end of this month" chuckled Doctor Octavius as he fidgets with his newest piece of equipment.

Akatsuki Members: Deadshot, Harley Quinn, Red Hood, Poison Ivy, Mammoth, Gizmo, Ghost Rider, Captain Cold, Heatwave, Loki.

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