Title: Batman: Shadow of Sin Tzu
Creators: Mark Schultz and Rick Burchett
Run Dates: 2003-2004
Feature Protagonist: Batman (Bruce Wayne)
Supporting Characters: Commissioner James Gordon, Alfred Pennyworth, Catwoman (Selina Kyle), Batgirl (Cassandra Cain), Robin (Timothy Drake), Nightwing (Richard Grayson)
Antagonists: Mister Freeze, Bane, Joker, Two-Face, Scarecrow, Clayface, Mad Hatter, Sin Tzu, Sin Tzu's Lieutenant, Kuo Imperial Guard
Guest Appearances: Poison Ivy, Penguin, Oracle (Barbara Gordon), Huntress (Helena Bertinelli), Black Canary (Dinha Lance), Birds of Prey,
Other Characters: Nora Frieze, Judge Bean, Gotham City Police Department
Story:
Two-Face captures hostages and threatens to blow a bomb unless Batman arrives, uncharacteristically talking about honor and destiny. When Batman arrives and attempts to take Harvey down, Mr Freeze and the Joker arrive to assist Two-Face, also talking about destiny and honor and letting slip that the encounter was a test for the Batman. While managing to momentarily blink Joker and Freeze, Catwoman arrives to also confront Batman but at the last minute manages to enable his escape. Managing to get the bomb safely away from causing major damage, Batman takes Catwoman to the cave where she reveals that she was captured by an unknown man and hypnotized into confronting Batman alongside Freeze, Joker and Two-Face as a test.
As Batman learns from Catwoman what he can, Sin Tzu has Two-Face, Joker and Freeze retell some of their previous encounters with the Bat to better learn of his adversary.
Detecting Chinese clay and eastern spice on Catwoman's suit, Batman decides to investigate a new oriental imports business to see if they're involved. Entering the warehouse by first having both the Batmobile and Batcopter positioned at seperate entrances, Batman discovers ninja lying in wait for him and is confronted by Bane during the battle. Batgirl joins the battle to support Batman and assists when the ninja release a clay golem.
As Batman destroys the golem, resulting in the destruction of the warehouse, Bane is captured and held in Blackgate where he reveals that the location of the hypnotist's lair is at the House of Quan Xong social club in Gotham's Chinatown.
As Gordon conducts a raid on the abandoned club and discovers a secret entrance to an underground lair, Batman finds an alternate entrance from the roof and discover a suspect attempting to escape Gordon's raid only to find out that it was Clayface in disguise. Confronting a giant bat mutant while saving Gordon's men from a trap, Batman deduces that the mastermind's real headquarters was on Zhaxou Island where the clay, spice and bat all originate from.
Departing for Hong Kong as Bruce Wayne, Scarecrow hijacks the plane in an attempt to hold Wayne hostage to lure Batman. However, Nightwing, dressed as Batman, reveals himself already on the plane and incapacitates Scarecrow, allowing Bruce to jump the airplane and get onboard a Wayne Enterprises freighter headed for Hong Kong as a castaway. However, enroute to Hong Kong the freighter is boarded by pirates headed by the unknown mastermind and Bruce was forced to release the Batboat, which was held as hidden cargo within the freighter, to combat the pirates' submarine.
Using the Batboat to cover the rest of the journey to Zhaxou Island, Batman is caught in a storm that destroys the boat and washes him ashore to be captured by the mastermind's followers. Given a tour of the island, Batman escapes into the clay mine where he encounters a land of darkness inhabited by mutated creatures and chinese demons and ghosts. Finding and saving the lieutenant that had captured him and sent to retreive him from the mines, the lieutenant leads him to an exit but is captured again to face one final test against the Joker. Passing the test, Sin Tzu reveals himself and attempts to convince him to join his Kuo Imperial Guard as his field general; requesting his soul so that it can be placed in an immortal golem.
Rejecting the offer, Batman and Sin Tzu fight, with Sin Tzu resorting to sending Batman back into the underworld mine where his lieutenant perished attempting to get Batman out. However, as the seal preventing the demons from escaping was broken by the one who had created it, the demons escaped and consumed Sin Tzu.
With Sin Tzu's network defeated, Batman returned to Gotham to continue his work as the city's guardian as Sin Tzu's lieutenant reveals herself to be alive and well.
