Snippet #2480160

He watched as the scene unfolded. Jackie's patience was being tried by the Russians, who were either scared that the Yakuza would kill them regardless if they spilled their guts or were just being defiant to the Asian man's request for information. It seemed like Jackson was getting nowhere.

That is, until he trained his sights on Nathan. He was a younger kid, too young to want to throw his life away involved in something like this. Seeing those gangsters that were barely men at all always tore at Bruce, but people made their own choices and he couldn't afford to have too much sympathy for criminals.

Probed for information, and having his options given to him Carte Blanche, Nathan folded under the pressure that came from having a gun aimed at him. Jackson wouldn't have hesitated to kill him otherwise,, but seeing as the kid spewed everything he knew, the Yakuza let him live to see tomorrow.

Names came up in the exchange: The Butcher, Van Lugen, Sharashka... It seemed this plot was a bit deeper than he'd realized. He'd heard of Van Lugen; it was a crime-infested city that rivaled even Gotham's seedy streets. However, this "Butcher" was an unfamiliar name to him. Apparently American, operating out of the City of Liars. That was all Nathan knew, all he said before running off with his tail between his legs.

Jackson trained his gun on the remaining Russians. It was unlikely they'd be as forthcoming as Nathan, and Batman feared the worst would come to them. Jumping down there in the middle of this engagement in the midst of obtaining the information he had would probably hinder a follow-up investigation in the future. As much as it hurt to say, Batman needed Jackson to help him along his way. Wherever Jackie went, he could follow. It would lighten up the workload considerably.

His gun to the other Russians, Batman sat back and waited. If gunshots erupted, he might not have a choice but to swoop in. He wasn't much of a godly man, but he prayed for Jackson's appeal to reason.