Wonder Woman emerged from the water first, hair loose and soaked her arm spotting burns, her armor scorched and battered. Shazam followed behind her, his suit stained with dark, singed spots from the blast

Without hesitation, Diana charged forward to aid Green Lantern. Her golden Lasso of Truth flashed through the air, wrapping around Darkseid’s arm just as he continued choking the unconscious Lantern.

With cold indifference, Darkseid grabbed the lasso with one hand—his other still clamped tightly around Lantern’s throat—and yanked it, pulling Wonder Woman toward him like a ragdoll.

She barely had time to react before his fist met her mid-air.

The impact was thunderous.

Diana was sent hurtling backward—fast.

Shazam bolted upward, catching her in his arms mid-flight, though the sheer force still pushed them both through the air before they skidded across the surface of the water.

Meanwhile, Green Lantern’s struggling ceased—he had finally lost consciousness.

Without care, Darkseid dropped him.

Lantern’s body plummeted toward the water—until a sleek, black Batwing swept down from the smoke-filled sky.

Its clawed landing gear snatched the falling hero by his collar just in time, swooping away from the battlefield. At the helm: Batman, stone-faced and focused, guiding the jet back toward Shazam and wonder woman.

At the docks Cyborg emerged from the ocean depths, dragging a groaning Flash in his arms.

“This isn’t working,” Shazam muttered, steadying Wonder Woman as she got to her feet again.

“We must keep fighting… to the bitter end,” Diana said, voice firm, though her body trembled.

Batman’s voice echoed from the Batwing’s external comms as he hovered above.

“We need to regroup. We won’t win like this.”

He peeled away, flying back toward the city perimeter to drop off Lantern with Cyborg.

On the ground, Wonder Woman’s eyes followed Darkseid, who now floated calmly above the ruined harbor, hands clasped behind his back, a silent god of war.

He made no move to chase them.

Instead, he turned away—toward the city.

Then he raised his eyes.

Twin beams of crimson Omega energy erupted from them, carving through the skyline like hot blades through butter.

Buildings crumbled.Explosions rippled outward as parademons clashed with Max’s clones.

The team regrouped at the shattered docks, battered and soaked.

Batman disembarked from the Batwing, carrying Green Lantern over his shoulders in a fireman’s carry. He approached Cyborg, who was kneeling beside the now-conscious Barry. Flash coughed violently, hacking up seawater as he woke.

“He’s too strong,” Cyborg said grimly. “We can’t win this—not without Superman. Our best chance is to send him back.”

Shazam, still scorched and panting, looked over. “Do you have a way?”

“Yes.” Cyborg raised his arm, revealing a glowing device partially embedded in his hand. “This—this is a Motherbox. I can use it to open a Boom Tube , a gateway that can take him back to his planet apocalypse. It won’t be easy, but if we time it right, it could work.”

“Then we need to find Superman first,” Barry said, rubbing his temples.

“Where’s the masked guy?” Shazam asked, glancing around.

Before Batman could answer, a voice cut in.

“I’m right here.”

Max stepped out of the shadows, peeling off the damaged remnants of his cracked samurai armor, revealing a black, form-fitting combat suit beneath. He no longer wore a mask—the last one had gotten filled with blood when Darkseid punched him, and he hadn’t bothered with a transformation jutsu. He knew he wouldn’t be able to maintain it now.

Max walked over to Batman and placed a hand on the unconscious Green Lantern. His palm glowed green. Moments later, Lantern groaned and stirred.

Batman let him down gently.

“What’d I miss?” Green Lantern mumbled, rubbing his neck.

“Pretty much nothing,” Batman said dryly.

“Great. So… where’s that stone-faced bastard? I’m ready for round two.”

“Don’t be impulsive, Lantern,” Batman warned. “You won’t survive alone. We need to attack as a unit—but first, we get Superman.”

“Then what?” Wonder Woman asked.

“Then we hit him with everything we’ve got—and send him home,” Batman replied.

“There’s still a problem,” Max said. “In all the skirmishes we’ve had with him… Darkseid hasn’t even tried. He’s shown us just enough to remind us we’re outclassed.”

“You’re saying… he’s been holding back?” Lantern asked, blinking.

“Yes. I just don’t know how much.”

“That… complicates things,” Batman admitted. “But we don’t have another option.”

“Who’s going after Superman?” Flash asked.

“I’ll go,” Batman said. “While I’m gone… hold darkeseid off as long as you can and prevent him from further destroying the city. If there’s a window to send him back, use it.”

“Then it’s settled,” Wonder Woman said, nodding. “We’ll buy you time.”

“Alright! Let’s clap it up!” Shazam said with forced enthusiasm, clapping his hands.

Everyone stared at him.

“…Seriously?” Lantern muttered.

A beat of silence.

Then Max finally spoke.

“I’ll hold him off.”

“What do you mean, you’ll hold him off?” Flash asked.

“Exactly what I said.”

“Why make this harder than it has to be?” Cyborg argued. “We can do this together.”

“You saw what he did to us. We couldn’t land a clean hit. He overwhelmed us.” Max paused. “I’m not trying to die. But if I can buy you time to form a proper strategy, to get Superman back… I’ll take that risk.”

“What makes you think you’ll do better alone?” Barry asked.

“Because I’ve been holding back,” Max said. “Every time I attacked, I had to avoid friendly fire. Had to limit my movements to protect the city.”

Batman narrowed his eyes. “If you go all-out… can you beat him?”

“I don’t know,” Max admitted. “But it’s better than taking turns getting our asses kicked.”

“Dude. He’ll kill you,” Shazam said.

“I’m with him,” Lantern added. “This is suicide.”

“I need all of you at full strength for the final push,” Max said firmly. “When I draw him back here, that’ll be your shot.”

He turned and began walking away.

“Wait up!”Green Lantern called. “We can still do this together!”

“Let him go,” Batman said, stopping him. “He might know more about Darkseid than any of us. If he says he stands a better chance alone… we trust him.”

“You’re really letting him go?” Lantern snapped. “Letting him get himself killed?”

“He said it himself: we’ve seen what Darkseid can do. If Tobi is right about him holding back… we have even less of a chance if we go in as a group. Unless you’ve got a hidden trump card up your sleeve, you’re welcome to take his place or join him.”

That silenced Green Lantern.

Max stopped a few steps away. He turned his head just enough to glance back at them.

“…Thanks, Batman.”

Then he looked at all of them.

“I’ll be back soon.”

And with a flicker of chakra and a burst of wind—

Max vanished.

“So… what now?” Green Lantern muttered, arms crossed. “We just sit here and wait for him to either get his ass kicked—or bring Darkseid right to us?”

“Stay here,” Batman said, climbing back into the cockpit of the Batwing. “And be ready.”

The engines roared to life, kicking up wind and debris.

Without another word, the Batwing lifted into the air and streaked toward the black fortress floating in the distance—where Superman was being held.

As the jet disappeared into the clouds, a heavy silence fell over the group.

Wonder Woman tightened her burned arm with a makeshift wrap. Shazam sat on a broken piece of the dock, lightning still sparking faintly across his shoulders. Flash paced restlessly. Cyborg kept an eye on the scanner.

And Green Lantern just sighed.

“…He’s really gonna try it alone, huh?”

“Looks that way,”Flash said, staring out over the battlefield.

—————————–

Darkseid hovered mid-air, his eyes glowing crimson as he continued his ruthless assault on the city, unleashing destruction with every step.

Then—

A thud echoed atop a nearby skyscraper.

Max stood there, facing him.

His eyes shifted, morphing into the Rinnegan. He raised one hand, calm and deliberate.

“Shinra Tensei.”

A wave of invisible force exploded outward.

The shockwave crushed buildings behind Darkseid, leveling them like matchsticks. The tyrant staggered mid-air from the impact—but surged forward through the pressure, preparing to retaliate.

Only—

Max was gone.

Boom!

Darkseid crashed into the spot Max had just vacated, cratering the rooftop in an instant—only to be blasted away a second later as Limbo clones struck from all sides. The impact hurled him through three skyscrapers.

He skidded to a stop, hovering as he looked up—only to see a massive wooden dragon roaring down toward him.

With a twitch of his neck, Darkseid’s eyes lit up.

Twin Omega Beams sliced upward, cleaving the dragon cleanly in two. Its halves slammed into the ground beside him, throwing up clouds of smoke and debris.

Whistling—

His eyes narrowed.

Twenty missiles dropped from above like rain.

BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM!

The sky and street vanished behind layers of fire and metal as buildings crumbled under the pressure.

On a distant rooftop, Max stood tall, steam rising from his forearms as the launchers retracted back into his arms.

But then—

Darkseid burst through the smoke.

“Shit,” Max cursed, activating his ribcage Susanoo just as the tyrant punched.

CRACK!

The ethereal ribs shattered like glass.

Darkseid’s fist drove into Max’s chest like a battering ram, sending him flying into the sky, blood trailing from his mouth.

But Max bit down the pain.

With a burst of smoke, a massive summoned bird appeared beneath him mid-air. He landed atop it, using the moment to regroup as it carried him away from the city.

Two red streaks lit up the sky.

Omega Beams.

Max leapt off just in time.

The beams struck the bird, which vanished in a puff of smoke as Max twisted in mid-air and summoned Perfect Susanoo.

A colossal warrior of chakra formed around him and reared back a punch.

Darkseid flew toward him like a missile.

Their fists collided in the air.

BOOOOOOOM!

A massive shockwave exploded outward, flattening clouds and rupturing the sky. The Susanoo’s arm shattered, fragments scattering like glass in a hurricane.

Darkseid’s eyes glowed again.

Max didn’t hesitate.

He raised the Gunbai, chakra surging through him as the Omega Beams struck his Susanoo.

The sussano held—barely—but then cracked as the beams penetrated. Max raised the Gunbai just in time, deflecting the deadly energy but getting blasted out of the Susanoo, sent spiraling.

He crashed into a distant mountainside, carving a trench through solid rock.

Coughing blood, Max struggled to his feet and clapped his hands.

“Wood Style: Nativity of a World of Trees!”

The ground rumbled.

Massive vines erupted everywhere, wrapping around rocks, stretching skyward like titans. Giant buds bloomed and spewed clouds of golden pollen, blanketing the sky in a hypnotic haze.

Darkseid roared, punching and incinerating the vines with Omega Beams—but they kept coming. The onslaught was relentless.

Snarling, he unleashed his beams in a 360-degree blast, carving a burning ring around himself.

Then he charged forward again.

One punch—straight into Max’s chest.

THWACK!

His hand went clean through—only for Max to turn into wood and collapse.

A clone.

Darkseid barely turned before a voice echoed above.

“Planetary Devastation!”

End of chapter

What’s up guys I’m thinking of rewriting this fanfic since it has a lot of mistakes so this may very well be the last chapter.

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep