A pattern has formed. I assist you in procuring "teachers," men and women who possess very dangerous skills that you hope to cultivate. You study under them for a period of time, expand your repertoire...and then half of them wind up dead. 
Red Hood: The Lost Days #4 is an issue of the series Red Hood: The Lost Days (Volume 1) with a cover date of November, 2010.
Synopsis for "Part Four, Higher Learning"
Jason, noticeably older than in the previous issue, arranges for a group of child soldiers in Somalia to ambush Steel Beam, a group of mercenaries he's been working with and learning from. Leaving Rip, Steel Beam's transport man, alive to spread the word of their demise, Jason heads off to London to study with the master bombmaker Shurik Ivanko.
Ivanko invites Jason to drink with a group of his friends, among whom is Russian mobster Yuri Karanov. Discussing Karanov with Talia afterward, she notes that he has been killing quite a number of his teachers and their associates after uncovering their nefarious activities, and suggests he may be returning to his vigilante roots. Talia then gives him photographs from her agents in Gotham, showing that Batman has taken on a new Robin. Jason insists to Talia that he's fine despite this revelation, but he pins the pictures to his wall and breaks down while staring at them in private.
Jason surveils the Ivgene Clan, Karanov's organization, but they've been under the scrutiny of the authorities for so long that their countersurveillance practices are extremely thorough. Karanov meets Ivanko at his sister's potato farm, which he's been visiting often enough that the people tailing him have lost interest in following him every time. Jason, however, planted a tracker on Ivanko. He learns that Karanov hired Ivanko to carry out a mass bombing which will look like the work of Arab terrorists, thereby diverting law enforcement resources from monitoring organized crime to counterterrorism and allowing the Ivgene Clan to operate more freely. Jason resolves to stop them.
Jason finds the staging area where Ivanko has been assembling the bombs and sabotages them, but he's discovered by Ivgene thugs. After carelessly losing his gun, he's forced to repair and detonate one of the bombs to make his escape. However, Karanov arrives with reinforcements while he's still dazed from the explosion. He orders his men to kill Jason.
Appearing in "Part Four, Higher Learning"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Shurik Ivanko (First appearance)
- Talia al Ghul
Antagonists:
- Ivgene Clan (First appearance)
- Yuri Karanov (First appearance)
- Steel Beam (Single appearance; dies)
Other Characters:
Locations:
Items:
Vehicles:
Notes
- This issue is reprinted in Red Hood: The Lost Days.
Trivia
- Jason wears a red, hooded sweatshirt throughout most of the issue (a visual reminder of his future identity as Red Hood).
See Also