The Many Loves of Batman

A Soul's Loving Embrace (Tatsu Yamashiro, aka Katana)

Batman stared directly into his opponent's eyes, the white lenses of his cowl unmoving and unfazed. He easily dodged the strike that had been sent by his opponent, who he could easily see was exerting way more power than what he needed to use. He would not show it, but Bane, the one he was fighting against, had become his most predictable enemy. Even if he was far stronger than most, he had been very obvious as of late. Though he had a mission today, he needed to find Ra's al Ghul and Bruce Wayne, the identity behind Batman, needed to finish this as quickly as possible.

"Hold still, Batman!" He ignored the words shouted by Bane, evading each and every hit he could while parrying the one he couldn't. He was really getting slightly frustrated, trying to find a way to make Bane make even one mistake. It was all he needed for his plan to work. He just needed Bane to make one single mistake, so he could start interrogating the villain across from him. "This will end quickly!"

"My thoughts exactly" Batman was already prepared to exploit the single mistake made by Bane. Ra's al Ghul needed to be found before anything else happened. Though he didn't even have to move a muscle because before his eyes, the cable that had the Venom injected into Bane was swiftly cut. The effect was almost instantly, watching just as Bane began to be weaker and weaker. That in just one punch, Batman was able to defeat the villain with the wrestler motif. "I had this covered, you know..."

"Hai... I know" It was then that Batman saw Katana, a woman who had been a part of the Suicide Squad. She had been helping him with getting a hold of Ra's al Ghul. And while he had help from others as well, she had been the only one that remained in his self appointed quest to find the man behind the League of Assassins. She had been a huge help, especially when her Soultaker was able to easily knock out Black Spider by absorbing his soul momentaneously until they had a cell where they could interrogate the man. "I wanted to help you end it faster"

He stared at her, his eyes looking straight at her own. He knew that she was staring back at him, the expressionless face she was widely known for replaced with a soft expression that told many the hidden meaning behind her heart. He knew quite well what this mission had created between himself and the Japanese woman, since he already had weak moments before. He cared for her, and he knew quite well that she cared for him too. But they had a mission to finish, they couldn't distract themselves with their feelings.

"You still don't trust Shiva, do you?" Batman would have scoffed if he even cared to make a response. But he knew quite well that Katana already knew the answer to her statement, even if she worded it out as a question. He began to walk slowly towards Bane, his eyes cynically analyzing every nook in Bane's outfit. He felt Katana right behind him, not needing to have powers to know when he was being slightly followed.

"I don't" He answered simply, his words going directly to the answer that Tatsu is probably seeking. He knew that Katana had her reservation about working with the woman, and he did so as well. But he knew that they needed the help. They needed to find Ra's al Ghul and Shiva was the only one that would be able to help them accelerate the process. "But I do trust her hatred. And she had grown to hate Ra's al Ghul"

"And I will be there to make him suffer for all eternity" She said, Bruce noticing just how Tatsu glanced at her katana. He knew that Ra's was slightly responsible for what happened to Katana's dead husband. She wouldn't be as angry at the man if he wasn't involved even in the slightest. But her anger towards Ra's al Ghul could level Gotham if she ever wanted to do so. So, he knew that it would be beneficial to help her get her own kind of revenge. Even if he didn't quite strongly agree with it. He let it slide though, his weakness for her showing quite greatly right at that moment. His eyes moved towards Bane once more, looking over him again in case he missed anything. "Arigatō... For letting me do this"

He said nothing, sighing as he couldn't find anything on Bane. He turned around, immediately meeting face to face with Katana. He stared right at her, both of their eyes staring at each other intensely. He didn't react as quick as he would have hoped for, but being attacked by her lips on his own was quite the move. He did, however, react and started kissing her back. She snared her leg against his hip, and he would have swore that he felt her grind her own body against his own. But their moment of weakness wouldn't last, shortly separating themselves.

"Katana-"

"You don't have to say anything, Batman" She interrupted him, a first in all the moments they had together since starting this mission. She would always allow him to speak before even saying anything. He could see that she was allowing herself to love again. "Aishitemasu..." He completely understood her message, having learned various languages throughout his years of training to become the Dark Knight. He wanted to let even the smallest of smiles, but his expressionless face stayed still. He couldn't help it, he still had his cowl and it was like a defensive mechanism he constructed around himself. Batman and Bruce Wayne may be one and the same, but the two of them definitely did not act the same. "I will see through this mission of yours... And hopefully we can talk about it after we are finish"

He agreed, only nodding his head slightly to her words. He didn't notice it, but seeing the woman across from him give him a smile made his day. Just as he didn't even feel his mouth twitching upward, finally showing Katana the smile he wanted to show her. They would talk about it after the both of them are down with everything they have to do. He could, at least, promise her that.