Chapter 82: Because I'm Batman!
"Hmph." The Hulk grunted, speaking in a muffled voice. "You better have a solution."
"Trust me, Hulk."
Batman's mind remained tightly focused, not relaxing for even a moment despite trapping both the Lizard Professor and the Hulk.
He'd initially wanted to address him as Dr. Banner, but remembering the Hulk's extreme fury when "Banner" was mentioned on the rooftop, Batman chose to call him "Hulk."
Nearby, the Lizard Professor—pressed beneath layers of collapsed concrete floor slabs and walls—let out a muffled groan. The gray-green scales on his body lost their luster.
Then, like an ordinary person with dry, flaking skin, the scales on the lizard's body lifted piece by piece, weathering. With the slightest movement they naturally fell off, completely merging with the dust inside the tower.
His muscles throughout his body contracted as though deflating. Bones made teeth-aching crunching sounds. His height continuously decreased.
Then his head and hands separately transformed back toward human appearance. Only when he completely reverted to human form did his long-amputated right arm become empty again. His arm hadn't grown back.
The regenerative serum had completely and thoroughly failed.
"Sigh—"
Professor Connors let out a heavy sigh.
Just then—CREAK!
A faint sound. Then the sound of snapping rebar suddenly rang out!
Originally when he maintained the Lizard Professor's form, the rubble pressing solidly on his body now lacked support underneath. Several tons of concrete were rapidly triggering secondary collapse, pressing toward Professor Connors who'd completely lost resistance capability!
"ROAR!"
The Hulk—temporarily trapped in place by Batman's solidifying gel—anxiously roared once, all four limbs simultaneously exerting force outward.
The incredibly solid solidifying gel that could firmly trap the power-suited Spider-Slayer didn't last even two seconds under the Hulk's conscious breaking free. It shattered across the ground with a crash.
The Hulk gritted his teeth. Just as he was about to rush forward to block the secondary collapsing concrete with his body, a figure far less robust than him stepped in front first.
Batman raised both hands upward, supporting the several-ton concrete. Only after Professor Connors crawled out from underneath did he release it. Another boom as the concrete crashed onto the floor, the stirred-up dust making all three instinctively cough several times.
The Hulk breathed a sigh of relief. His body also rapidly shriveled like a deflating balloon, transforming from a state where one arm was several sizes thicker than an adult's thigh back into the frail Dr. Banner.
Unlike the Lizard Professor—who was completely naked after reverting from his nearly four-meter form back to Professor Connors—Dr. Banner at least still had tattered pants.
But even so, both of them looked disheveled and extremely bedraggled.
"Do you have somewhere to go?"
Batman looked at these two scientists who together could only muster one pair of pants.
Dr. Banner shook his head.
Professor Connors instinctively started to nod, but ultimately sighed: "I also don't know when I'll transform into that appearance again—I can't go home."
'If you go home, I'll activate another plan—'
Batman didn't speak his thoughts aloud. Instead, he proposed: "I do have a place to stay."
"No, I need to go upstairs. General Ross is still there." Dr. Banner shook his head, looking up at the tattered ceiling.
General Ross had been knocked unconscious by Batman and was currently still on the rooftop.
Dr. Banner had continuously injected himself with inhibitors for three years specifically to get close to General Ross. He had no intention of following Batman's arrangement.
"Leave it to me, Dr. Banner." Batman's voice was extremely deep. "He'll pay the price for all the evil he's done. I swear it."
Dr. Banner looked at Batman suspiciously: "This is only our first meeting, right? How can I trust you?"
Batman didn't explain. He manually dismantled the armor on his forearm's exterior, ejecting the miniature portable computer inside, only to discover it was broken.
Under Dr. Banner's increasingly suspicious gaze and Professor Connors's worried expression, Batman remained expressionless, raising his hand to pull off one of his sharply upright ears.
After some tinkering, the wireless receiver integrated into the helmet finally restored function and was adjusted by Batman to the news channel.
"—According to authoritative internal documentation, General Ross caused at least 238 civilian deaths and over 600 injuries during his pursuit of the Hulk—"
"—The recently controversial 'second basement level human experimentation' that caused Oscorp stock prices to plummet dramatically has been proven by insider evidence to have direct connection to General Ross—"
"—Third basement level massacre—personally created the 'Hulk'—now occupying Oscorp under the pretext of military supervision—attempting to mass-produce monsters—warmonger—"
The exposé information Batman had sent to Daily Bugle reporter Eddie Brock before entering Oscorp earlier in the day was being broadcast one by one over the radio.
Though this was midnight news that might not attract attention, tomorrow morning's Daily Bugle and television news would completely expose all of General Ross's evil deeds!
"Where did you get this information?"
Dr. Banner looked at Batman somewhat dazedly. He was just a scientist, didn't possess Batman's powerful hacking capabilities. Though he knew this intelligence intimately, he'd suffered from being unable to find evidence to prove it to the media.
Yet Batman—who'd only met him once, and from that first meeting had fought until now—seemed to possess prophetic knowledge, placing these things before him.
Dr. Banner couldn't quite understand.
"Because I'm Batman," Batman said.
The full moon hung high.
Batman used his hacking skills to fabricate identity information for both Professor Connors and Dr. Banner, even directly hacking into a hotel to input the information.
After settling them both, Batman—wearing shattered armor—walked with steady steps to a deserted corner and entered the sewers.
WHOOSH!
Letting out a long breath, Batman's previously steady steps became limping, yet still maintained relatively quick speed heading toward City Hall subway station.
He'd just heard Harry Osborn's voice downstairs at Oscorp. Batman needed to change clothes before seeing him.
Fortunately, City Hall subway station—as Batman's confirmed Batcave site—had backup clothes stored.
"Left side 4th and 5th ribs fractured, sharp stabbing pain when breathing. Right side 6th-8th ribs severely contused."
"Right shoulder joint anterior dislocation, possible glenoid labrum tear, unable to raise arm."
"Bilateral trapezius, biceps, quadriceps multiple microscopic tears. Multiple leg muscle strains. Body feels deep fatigue and soreness. Force output unstable."
"Spleen and liver regions have dull pain, possible delayed internal bleeding."
Though the combat process was relatively brief, Batman still sustained considerable injuries due to Peter Parker's body—though trained—still having insufficient resistance to blows.
Fortunately, injuries covered his whole body but none were fatal. Condition extremely poor, but still mobile.
Looking down at this scarred body, Batman silently apologized to Peter in his heart.
This body's healing ability had been tested by Batman. These injuries wouldn't pose too great a threat to him. One or two days would allow complete recovery.
Batman endured severe pain, using his left hand—which wasn't seriously injured—to skillfully perform emergency reduction and bandaging for himself. Throughout the entire process he uttered not a sound, only a few drops of cold sweat slightly seeping from his forehead.
Though Dr. Banner and Professor Connors were temporarily stabilized, Batman still had much to do.
Harry at Oscorp Tower, patients waiting for stabilizer at Metropolitan Hospital, General Ross on the rooftop needed handling.
The completely shattered armor and utterly destroyed Batmobile needed redesign and reconstruction.
Arrangements for Professor Connors, Dr. Banner, and Dr. Octavius—currently in post-surgical recovery at Metropolitan Hospital—
Batman never stops.