Seeing Barry's reaction, Su Ming knew this wasn't brought by him, but for now, he couldn't spare attention for it. Under Barry's worried gaze, he put the small flashlight away again. The previous conversation between the two, rather than being Barry being fooled, was more like Su Ming giving him an excuse, a way out.
Barry saw the way out and didn't delve deeper; after all, he's taken the way out many times before.
He knew the world was facing a crisis, and fighting together like the Justice League was a necessity. He originally joined the Justice League just to make friends.
.............
Su Ming decided to arrange those Owls clearly, maybe not able to eradicate them completely, but this would certainly hurt them deeply, forcing them underground, turning them into the Groundhog Court.
As for the other personnel, not to mention them, but the 'Owl' Priests must be completely eliminated, as they are the communicators with Barbatos.
He already had a plan and knew where they were.
After that, he and Barry didn't chat idly; the important matters were mostly discussed, and there really wasn't much for the two informed persons to say. Cindy and Briss kept talking, seemingly arguing over some meaningless topics.
For example, Cindy mocked Briss for her previous failures in their encounters, while Briss insisted it was actually a draw, since Cindy was injured too. Then Cindy said that anyway, the mission was completed, and Briss failing to protect the assassination target meant she failed.
After listening for a few sentences, Su Ming knew it was about time.
"Ahem, ladies, shouldn't we get down to business?"
"Hmmph!" X2
Briss and Cindy both stood up, knowing it was not the time for idle chatter, but their positions were completely different.
"I know, Falcone is mine. I'll send him and his daughter to prison." Batwoman tugged her cape, obscuring her face, looking at the two unconscious people on the ground, deciding to send them directly to Black Gate Prison.
"Why not kill them? I can give you a discount." Cindy sneered provocatively; she hated the Bat's hypocritical demeanor the most.
"We can't decide others' life and death." Briss immediately warned harshly, her Bat Gloves clenched tightly.
Su Ming interjected between the two, raising his hands across his chest in a cross: "Stop, both of you stop. The victims here are actually Gordon and the police department. The people go to Gordon, but payment is necessary, and if Falcone escapes, then catching them again will cost more."
Cindy took a deep breath and calmed down; she nudged Sofia on the ground with her foot.
"Alright, you heard what Su said, you'd better hurry up with the payment."
Strictly speaking, this father and daughter were caught by Barry, but even if The Flash hadn't come, the two Deathstrokes catching them was only a matter of time. Besides, those henchmen before also required payment; that was all hard work, after all.
"There must be something bad below here; we guessed while passing the upper levels, this place needs to be sealed, and all weapons inside destroyed." Briss didn't pay her any mind, essentially agreeing to the arrangement, as she turned her gaze to the secret passage leading downward.
Barry extended a finger, signaling to wait, and then a red flash darted into the secret passage, returning shortly:
"There's a type of magic venom below; it's meant to target all of humanity. They seem to plan to launch the venom into rain clouds using rocket shells, wiping out all of Gotham's citizens."
"Hmm... it's better to send them to Arkham, that seems more fitting." Bruce, upon hearing such a mad plan, couldn't help but shake his head. Even Falcone had succumbed to this; what was wrong with the world...
"Gordon and his daughter can return to their home or the police station. The next tasks aren't something the police can handle." Su Ming also remarked, confronting the remaining enemies truly wasn't something a city's police director could manage.
"And the reporters can be sent away too. I can't understand why you acted with reporters along." Briss addressed Su Ming, looking at him with a scrutinizing gaze.
Su Ming raised an eyebrow, putting his black and yellow helmet back on, the cold metal enveloping his mind again, the headache making him frown slightly:
"We needed to leave evidence you could trace. Cindy and I are professional mercenaries; if we left clues, it would seem too deliberate, arousing your suspicion, so we chose to act with a few ordinary people openly. Your curiosity indeed led you to follow us."
Briss furrowed her brow: "My system traces and the television news had the same intent, always looking for me, you seem to understand me well."
"Not really, but at least I understand Batman from another world."
Su Ming took a bottle of liquor from the table; it was good stuff he planned to drink on the road. Cindy took a box of tea; she seemed fascinated by tea leaves with curry aromas.
Outside the door, Su Ming saw Gordon's desolate expression, mirrored by Vico's incessant questions, wanting him to recount stories from decades ago.
Seeing this, Su Ming shook his head and motioned for the camera to pause; he had a few words for Gordon.
"Director Gordon."
"Deathstroke..."
After saying this, both Cindy's and Su Ming's red solitary eyes on their black and yellow masks fixed on him.
Su Ming signaled Cindy to take a few people out, while he shook hands with Director Gordon: "You can call me Slade, even though we won't have much interaction in the future, I'm handing Falcone and his daughter over to you. You decide how to handle them."
"Even though you did the right thing this time, I'll still come after you if you commit crimes in Gotham again."
Gordon said with a serious expression, though still shaking Su Ming's hand firmly, fully aware that they saved Barbara and found him in time.
Su Ming wasn't bothered by his bold words; Gordon wanting to catch Cindy was purely about showing resolve and making statements. Gotham's police department had always been lackluster, especially after this significant reduction in numbers.
"It's more a misunderstanding on your part; we mercenaries are businessmen. If the city government is willing to pay, we can occasionally help the government, as long as the price is right." Su Ming shook his head with a smile, patting Gordon on the arm: "You might discuss with Briss about establishing a protection fee fund or something; mercenaries have no enemies, only business."
"I don't know what you're talking about." Gordon maintained a calm facade, feigning ignorance, but internally felt a jolt.
"We all know Briss's identity, no need for such timidity. Is the Bat making you fearful too?" Su Ming whispered near his ear, lightly nodding before leaving.
What remained was a dazed Gordon, lost in thought.
Catching up with Cindy, and with the two reporters and Barbara back in the car, Su Ming returned to the junkyard, only returning after a while, covered in rain and mud, with something bloodstained in hand.
It was the hood from before worn by the Sharp Claw assassin.
It was somewhat tattered from the explosion, with black blood stains that couldn't be hidden, but a bit of dirt didn't matter; Su Ming needed it to disguise himself as a Clawed Assassin. As Slade's memories continued to recover, his thoughts became significantly broadened, and to refine his backup plan, he needed this.
The side door of the broadcast van could open, and he and Cindy sat there shoulder to shoulder, staring at the rainy junkyard, still the same as when they arrived.
He washed the blood stains from the hood in the rain; just a few hours earlier, he couldn't have imagined he'd become an expert at destroying evidence.
"Can that guy in red really be dealt with as you said?" Cindy asked in a low voice, her gaze fixed on the dark shadows of the junkyard.
"Not necessarily, dealing with a Speedster isn't simply about explosions; it also requires massive calculations, speed, path, his psychology." He examined the hood; the headpiece remained largely intact, though the round glasses were somewhat cracked, a place to fix it was needed: "Once, another world's Deathstroke defeated Barry's nephew using this tactic. I was just bluffing with him, but he didn't know... We should avoid combat with a Speedster as much as possible, and if unavoidable, seek out psychological weaknesses rather than brute force."
"I get it, tactics are still necessary." Cindy nodded, looking at the flowing sewage on the ground: "But you seem to get along with him."
Su Ming bundled up the Owl's hood, stuffing it into his bag: "Maybe, because he's someone who always harbors benevolence."
"But you lied to him earlier." Cindy removed her helmet, rubbing her hair as she gazed at the distant rain curtain: "I've noticed what's different between you and me."
"Yes, though I don't know why, my eyes can see a faint shadow, logic says we shouldn't see a Speedster moving." Su Ming answered blandly, without a trace of guilt: "But he doesn't need to know this, I'll keep it as a trump card."
The heavy rain fell, veiling their expressions in darkness.