Naruto world: The Rise Of The Sand Village

While Hardy in the Demon Slayer world was just getting on track, Hardy in the Naruto world was strengthening his foundation with Kazekage Chiran, and Hardy in the DC world was collecting protection money with his men.

With Carmine dead and Harvey Dent being relentlessly hunted by Hardy, Hardy had stepped over both of them to become Gotham's newest top crime boss.

Hogg Syndicate was riding high, and Hardy took the opportunity to recruit many new members.

Meanwhile, Gotham was busy with its mayoral election.

To the politicians, the mob was ultimately just a minor skin disease—the real business was electing a new mayor. For now, the government paid little attention to the chaos in the underworld following the recent upheaval.

The Falcone family lost a huge amount of territory. Though Carmine's son, Alberto Falcone, stepped up and ruthlessly cleaned house to stabilize the situation for now, it couldn't stop the family's decline.

The Two-Face Gang was faring a bit better than the Falcones, but it was still a shadow of its former self.

At first, Harvey Dent tried to make amends with Hardy by offering territory and money.

For those who'd been in Gotham's underworld a long time, betrayal and manipulation were commonplace.

Harvey Dent had used Hardy as a pawn, but since he hadn't directly attacked him, by Gotham's standards, it didn't really count as betrayal.

Still, Hardy, dissatisfied, relentlessly pursued Harvey Dent. Knowing he was no match, Harvey decisively abandoned most of the Two-Face Gang's visible assets and went underground with his men.

The biggest winner was naturally the Hogg Syndicate, but the Iceberg Lounge was not far behind.

Hogg Syndicate's foundation was still shallow; it couldn't swallow everything at once. The Iceberg Lounge, on the other hand, as the only major power to come out of the recent events unscathed, was able to gorge itself freely.

Thus, the balance of power in Gotham's underworld was reshuffled, leaving only two at the very top:

The Iceberg Lounge and the Hogg Syndicate.

…

…

Gotham's chaos didn't reach Central City.

This was arguably one of the most livable cities in the DC universe.

It was sunny year-round, filled with skyscrapers and lush greenery, situated by the sea, and brimming with art and culture.

The cities with the lowest crime rates in America were Metropolis and Central City—because Superman and the Flash handled crime faster than anyone else.

But now, something unexpected had happened.

"So, guys, what do we do now?"

Barry Allen sat on the steps of S.T.A.R. Labs, clutching his head in frustration as he looked at his companions.

There was Vibe—Cisco Ramon, a physicist and engineering genius with the ability to control vibrations and shockwaves.

And Caitlin Snow, with dual doctorates in biomedical science and physics, and the power of cryokinesis—known as Killer Frost.

They used to have Dr. Harrison Wells as their mentor, but he'd turned out to be Eobard Thawne, the Reverse-Flash, who died last year.

"I don't know. Without a speedster on our side, how are we supposed to defeat another speedster—especially one who's absorbed the Speed Force of more than one other speedster?" Cisco shrugged, sipping his coffee.

"Then why can't we just make another speedster?" Caitlin tilted her head.

Barry Allen, who had lost his Speed Force to their opponent, looked up, eyes shining. "Yes! We could rebuild the particle accelerator, recreate the conditions from the night I got my powers, and have me struck by lightning again. Maybe that would restore my speed!"

"Okay, but let's not forget—you might get your speed back, or you might just get fried. And how exactly are we supposed to build another particle accelerator?" Cisco spread his hands.

"Didn't you guys help Harrison Wells build the first one?" Barry asked.

"No, Barry, building a particle accelerator takes money—"

Moreover, the particle accelerator that Harrison Wells built was different from conventional ones—it was technology he brought from the future. I think you're well aware of just how different a particle accelerator capable of channeling dark matter is from any other accelerator. We only know a fraction of it; Wells never taught anyone the real core technology!"

Now it was Cisco's turn to scratch his head in frustration.

"It's okay, Cisco. I once saw a prototype particle accelerator at a physics lab exhibition at Central City University. Although it wasn't perfect and its power was very low, I witnessed Wells' live simulation demonstration at the exhibition. That's how he managed to attract so much corporate investment back then. If we can get our hands on it and modify it a bit, we can connect it directly to the arc-shaped magnetic field tunnel below!"

"But how are we supposed to get that particle accelerator? Even if we have the skills to modify it, just powering up a particle accelerator once would cost tens of millions of dollars. Even if we sold everything we own, we couldn't scrape together that much money."

Cisco poured cold water on the idea again.

"Ahem, boys, aren't you curious what I've found?" 

Caitlin smiled gently, turned her laptop around, and pushed it in front of the two of them.

Displayed on the screen was a collection of Central City University's 2008 master's graduate profiles. On the last page was a photo of Hardy after he'd transformed into the likeness of Keanu Reeves.

Fleisch Water, Department of Physical Engineering, Advisor: Harrison Wells.

"So you mean, this student of Wells can help us rebuild the particle accelerator? But we still don't have the money to power it up. Vacuum tubes, rare elements, enough electricity, particle aligners, and we'd have to rent a supercomputer for real-time calculations…"

Caitlin clicked open another webpage.

It was a business inquiry site, and the company being investigated was Hogg Auto.

"What? Registered capital… twenty million dollars registered just last month? Estimated net worth of $160 million? We never heard Wells mention he had such a wealthy student!"

This was the accountant helping Hardy with his affairs.

After all, you can only get so far by hustling in the underworld; growth will always be limited.

Having a legitimate business identity like Penguin, holding companies and assets openly, makes things much easier in many ways.

"But even if he's Wells' student, why would he help us? And can we really trust him? What if he's a villain? Can he even get the core components of the particle accelerator?"