Greetings and Salutations! A little bit late on Valentine's Day, but let no one tell you Kamorge0 does not deliver! Today I present to you the V-Day oneshot of An Old Fox's New Trick. To those who have clicked on this story just to see what it is, I would advise you suffer through the poor writing of the first few chapters of OFNT to get to the relatively less poor writing that comes after it. There are many things that you will not understand in this if you go in an read it blind.
"Write a fic for V-Day Kam, it'll be fun Kam, how hard can it be to write 12k words in a day Kam?" Damnit Arty. The man who suggested this didn't say most of that, but I swear he implied it. I just needed to vent after sitting at my keyboard for the past eternity cranking this out.
With that being said I wanted to announce that I will be picking one more oneshot to write from the vote my pa+reons did. Runners up were Ruby and Velvet, so my pa+reon pledgers will be getting a story on one of those two in the upcoming weeks. I have now normalized Sunday as the release date for OFNT, so you can expect that any oneshots will not interfere with that release. With that being said thank you all my patrons for you support, you help me out more than I could possibly say. Now let's get into the meat of it!
OFNT Oneshot
Spotlight
"A training camp?" Pyrrha asked a bit taken aback.
"Apparently." Naruto shrugged, clearly no more in the know than she was. "Called me in to say that we were all excused from classes for the next two days to train at our discretion. I guess Ozpin really wants a Beacon victory at the Vytal Festival Tournament."
"And to help us prepare for that he intends to have us skip class?" Ren questioned dubiously. Pyrrha had to admit there was some wisdom in that, but…
"After seeing how quickly I whipped CRDL into shape I guess he figures we'll be better off with my training. Specifically he told me to make sure that you all actually did something in the fight." Naruto pouted. "Like I'm going to keep all the fun to myself. What a world!"
Pyrrha giggled at her partner's indignation. It was true that they weren't the most coordinated team in Beacon, but they thrived on the strength of their individual members. She imagined that this opportunity for team building exercises was an attempt on Ozpin's part to keep Naruto's profile low. Shortly after the incident at the docks the Beacon staff had been surprisingly hands off with their leader, at least compared to previously.
"So when do we start? Should we get changed!?" Nora asked, brimming with excitement. Naruto didn't answer her, instead opting to rummage around in the area underneath his bed. Nora's query was soon answered in the form of a carry-on bag being thrown at her face.
"Nope," Their leader beamed at them, "We need to get packed."
"Well this is… unexpected." Ren needed to take some time to search for the right word. The fact that Nora was nodding mutely next to him was indication enough that said time was completely justified.
The building they stood in front of was less hotel and more resort. Stairs that looked as if they were chiseled out of a singular massive slab of marble led towards the entrance littered of like materialed pillars. Bell hops and other staff littered the entrance looking more prim and proper than any film could hope to portray them as. Overall the place itself was so lavishly decadent it hurt Naruto's eyes just to look at it. His fox had chosen to stay at the dorm, but it was missing out.
"Kami… what the hell?" Naruto was similarly abashed.
"We're training… that's why we're here, right?" Nora attempted to verify.
"It's been awhile since I've been here!" Pyrrha remarked cheerily. Her three teammates turned rigidly towards her with stony eyes. "What?"
"Rich girl alert!" Nora teased, Ren nodding alongside her.
"We traveled frequently throughout the years. Even dreams of staying at a place like this were out of our price range."
"I slept on the ground so long I forgot what a bed was like… and you're telling me this is normal to you!?" Naruto fumed.
Pyrrha flushed, deeply embarrassed by her wealth. Unlike someone like Weiss she'd always had a stigma about her fame and wealth. It was hard to argue with the lifestyle it afforded at a glance, but people often failed to consider the strings that came with it. Before she could find the words to say anything her leader's hand clapped her on the shoulder.
"Well I guess that means you get to show us around, Moneybags." Naruto grinned teasingly at her. A furtive glance to the right showed her other two teammates with similarly playful expressions. Pyrrha couldn't help but deflate in relief.
This was her team. They weren't the most organized, nor were they the most tightly knit as of yet, but never had any of them looked at her and seen anything other than Pyrrha the normal girl. When she was with them Pyrrha Nikos the Mistralian prize fighter felt like a distant echo from a past long since forgotten. The past still had its grip on her, but she didn't need to let it… not with them.
"I suppose I must. It is the duty of the well-to-do to help those less fortunate." Pyrrha flipped her hair ostentatiously.
"Why Weiss, you've grown so tall and red-haired." Naruto deadpanned. Ren shivered beside him.
"I would request that we don't play out any scenario in which Naruto and Weiss are on the same team as myself. I don't believe I have done anything cruel enough to be worthy of such punishment."
Naruto's face contorted at the thought of such a world, inspiring giggles from the two females. Joking and teasing back and forth they made their way into the resort. As Pyrrha knew, and the others would now find out, there wasn't going to be any need for her to lead them much of anywhere.
"Greetings sirs and madams. May I request your names and booking information?" One of the staffers asked.
"My name is Pyrrha Nikos. We're Team Nevermore from Beacon here for a three day two night stay."
The staffer didn't even look to check his scroll system for their reservation. "Ms. Nikos for the Beacon party? Please, right this way." The staffer ushered them inside.
To call the resort high-end would have been the understatement of the century. The foyer was built with height in mind, accommodating a large hanging crystal chandelier. Shape symmetry based painting filled the foyer across its entirety. Every granite countertop to every marble pillar to even the tiled floor looked as if they had been freshly polished that very morning.
"Well this place sure makes my cave seem like… well… maybe I made some poor life decisions." Naruto's grumbles were filled with regret. The staffer was a consummate professional and didn't react to that knowledge in any way.
"May we take your bags?" He asked, quickly clapping his hands twice. Two bellhops quickly made themselves available, ready to fulfill the request if they so chose. Nora excitedly presented her two dufflebags for them to be promptly taken by the bellhop on the left. Ren's single small carry on was taken by the bellhop on the right, as was Pyrrha's suitcase.
Naruto was the only one who declined. "I'd rather just take it myself." His simple explanation was all he offered.
If the staff was bothered by that, they didn't show it, not that she would have expected them to. Even with her experience attending multiple upscale venues this location remained one of the nicest ones to date. The staff here was professionally trained and professionally compensated. Whereas tipping your bellhop would be considered standard etiquette in most places, it was almost taboo at places such as this.
When they arrived at their room the staffer who had been their guide presented them with an ornate envelope filled with four keycards to their singular room. Two men and women sleeping in the same room was a unique request, but many resorts had a room or two specifically to accommodate huntsmen teams looking for R&R. The man then dismissed himself with a deep bow and presented Pyrrha with his card 'should they need anything'. By this point her team was a little starstruck with what small portion of the resort they had seen. She knew things were about to get a whole lot worse when she opened the door.
Lo and behold, they did. Their room looked to be less of a room and more a miniaturized house. There were two beds that each sized larger than king dorned with superfluously frilled comforters visible through the open doorway. Immediately past the entrance hallway there was a full kitchen with polished marble countertops stocked with utensils and cookery. A large flat screen television no smaller than seventy-two inches was directly to the right of the kitchen, a large leather couch directly facing it.
"Damnit Ozpin…" Naruto groaned miserably. "This is a bribe."
"Huh? What?" Nora asked dumbly, still mesmerized by their temporary living space.
"If it is a bribe it's quite a good one." Ren managed a more coherent response, though his facial expression was quite familiar to Nora's.
"What do you mean a bribe?" Pyrrha was the only one not thrown for a loop once more. It was one of the nicest rooms she had been in, but she'd seen its ilk before.
"I asked Ozpin if he knew any beaches we could train at. Workouts in the sand are really good for developing muscles we don't often use." Naruto preempted Pyrrha's question. "He told me that Beacon had a room at 'some old place' on permanent reservation near a beach that'd work. I figured it was just some cabin or something, not this!"
"Technically this place has been operated for almost a century. Calling it old isn't exactly wrong…" Pyrrha winced when she looked at her partner's eyes, currently occupied trying to drill holes through her own.
"We're taking the bribe." Nora decided with finality. "Whatever Ozpin makes our fearless leader do is a sacrifice well worth it."
"Gee, thanks." Naruto glowered at her. "Here I was getting all hung up about the fact that an old man who has taken a creepy interest in me will now have something to hold over my head."
"Come on! Even if that is true you can't tell me this isn't the best candy ever! So what if you have to get in Ozpin's van?!"
"Uncomfortable metaphors aside, if it is a bribe it's a good one." Ren repeated his previous words. Perhaps he was a little more shell shocked than Pyrrha initially thought. Naruto sighed, obviously torn over the issue.
"If you don't want to do this we can always leave and find some other way to train." Pyrrha offered sincerely. You'd think she'd just said she was going to kick a puppy from Nora's expression. Another of Naruto's famous sighs finally yielded way to a smile.
"Nah, I'm sure he won't ask anything too ridiculous. Even if he does I can always turn him down, even if it'll be awkward. No point in ruining our team outing."
"YES!" Nora screeched as she ran full tilt through the bedroom doorway and did a jumping belly-flop onto one of the beds.
"If it is a-ahem," Ren coughed, finally waking out of his stupor, "since there are only two beds we should do women on one and men on the other. Unless you'd prefer I sleep on the floor?"
"Nah. Splitting a bed sounds fine." Naruto agreed. Nora gasped, presumably for a reason that Pyrrha wanted nothing to do with. "Anyways, everyone unpack anything you need to and get settled in. You have twenty minutes to do that and get prepared for PT. No combat armor, I want excercise clothes. However do make sure to have your weapons prepped and ready. Any questions?"
As usual their team had none. When Naruto gave them orders they fell into order like a well oiled machine. In that respect their teamwork was flawless. Not one of them questioned the orders he gave and he gave orders worth following. The weak part of their teamwork was their lack of preplanned synergy. They'd listen if the order was given, but if not it was pretty much every huntsmen or huntress for themself.
Pyrrha left everything inside her suitcase except for a short black pair of gym shorts and an orange tank top. Any similarities to any other color scheme of her teammates was completely coincidental, she swore!
"Should we let the two of you change here? We can take the bathroom." Pyrrha suggested.
"Either, or." Naruto responded. Ready to take the initiative upon herself Pyrrha was about to ask Nora to join her, but the feistiest of Nevermore was already making her way towards the bathroom like a bolt of lightning. Pyrrha felt rather cheerful about the turn of events that brought them here as she made to catch up with Nora.
She was a little surprised when she found her teammate frozen in place, staring slack jawed into the washroom. When she caught up to Nora her confusion was instantly cleared up and replaced with understanding. It turned out the bath was even more ridiculous than the rest of the suite.
NNVR had just finished up what their leader called 'The CRDL Special'. Ren had pointed out that Cardin's team did the workout on solid ground, so it may be necessary to scale it accordingly. Naruto assured them that the menu he had for the day would be doable and beneficial for all of them. The results were less than flattering to say the least.
"No more… please no more." Ren whimpered, all remnants of his composure wiped out more than twenty minutes ago.
"You're a demon… That stupid raccoon is a demon... My boobs are sweaty… I hate everything." Even the stamina monster that was Nora lay limply on the ground.
"No wonder CRDL… has improved so much… that was an intense workout." Pyrrha herself was in a similar state to her two teammates, though slightly better.
"Workout? That was just PT. You're about a third of the way through Cardinal's menu right now." Naruto chirped pluckily, right as rain. "Ten minute break and then partner sparring!"
The cacophony of protests could be heard by everybody around, were there anybody to hear it that was. Apparently the headmaster had cleared a small section of beachfront for them to train on for the duration of their stay. Naruto had groaned when he realized that part of the resort's beachfront had literally been vacated for their use, citing it as yet another way the headmaster would try to put him into debt. Pyrrha had chuckled at the time, but now the shoe was on the other foot.
"Stop whining! Geez, you're lucky Lee isn't your leader. You'd all be dead if this much makes you give." Naruto complained, albeit more cheekily than sternly. Pyrrha didn't know who this Lee was, but the person must have been a monster.
"What could he... have possibly done… that was worse than this?" Ren wheezed.
"He did thirty mile jogs pretty regularly-"
"I'll take that over this." Ren interrupted. Naruto's smile turned feral.
"Sure thing. Small detail though, he did the whole jog on his hands." Naruto's three teammates stared at him incredulously. "No joke! Said something about how are legs must be so strong because we walk on them so much. So he decided to use his hands and legs as equally as he could for the task. Did it to his students too… maybe that isn't such a bad idea!"
"Somebody kill our leader... I'm too tired to do it." Nora begged, pointing an accusatory finger at Naruto before giving up and letting her arm fall back to the ground.
"Alright! Break time is over!" Naruto's unwelcome words sounded through their ears.
"It's been… three minutes… thirty-seven seconds." Ren corrected. Clearly he was still struggling to regain his breath.
"Your watch must be slow."
"YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE A WATCH!" The three of them bellowed. Ren looked like the effort of doing so was going to make him pass out.
"Less yapping more attacking. Nora and Ren I want you doing unarmed sparring. Pyrrha grab your weapon and come at me when you're ready."
Ren regained some of his vitality while Nora lost the rest of hers. The unarmed skills between the two were vastly different. Naruto had mentioned offhandedly that he wanted to try and address that with her. Apparently now was that time. While that pair may have been a bit listless, Pyrrha was fired up. She always loved sparring against her leader. Losing so consistently for the first time in so long had a frustrating novelty to it.
"Here I come." Pyrrha warned after gathering milo and akouo.
Naruto openly scoffed. "You're way too green for me to need a warning."
"I'm going to make you regret that." Pyrrha promised herself as she set upon him. Her first strike leveled horizontally to strike through his abdomen met nothing but the metal of his kunai. In that single strike all her fatigue was forgotten as the two locked themselves together in a dance of blades.
"I told you so." Pyrrha chided her partner. Naruto rolled his eyes at her, thoroughly unimpressed.
"I feel like this is one of those times where being right and not being wrong are pretty obviously different things." He said, hefting the weight he was carrying in his arms. Said weight responded by sticking out her tongue in defiance.
Pyrrha had insisted that they continue sparring long after he told Ren and Nora they could tuck in for the evening. Nora had tried to drag Ren to the pool while her partner wanted nothing more than to drag himself to bed despite it being only seven in the evening at the time. Pyrrha had kept Naruto out until half-past nine in continuous sparring. Even when her aura gave out she still insisted on continuing in a pugilistic manner. It wasn't until her legs gave out from beneath her that she finally decided to call it quits.
Her reward for her tenacity was to be princess carried back to her room. Naruto had offered to throw her onto his back, but she may have fibbed and said that her arms weren't working as well. It wasn't even a lie, her arms weren't working as well! As well as they normally did at least. Part of her chastised herself for being childish, but she was scared. Their leader had been like an aloof cat for so long that rocking the boat with her feelings wasn't exactly the easiest thing to convince herself to do. Even more childish was that in moments like these she couldn't manage to hold herself back! With the way his arms felt warm tucked underneath her legs and behind her shoulders she wasn't sure holding back was what she wanted...
"Lien for your thoughts?" Naruto asked her as he continued to walk through the sand towards the resort. The section of the beach they'd gotten reserved was a few miles away, so this was by no means a short jaunt. Somehow Naruto still looked completely fresh despite the grueling training they'd gone through.
"Uhhmmm…" Pyrrha desperately searched for anything that wasn't her actual thoughts at present. Ultimately she grabbed the first thing that popped into her mind. "Do you like our team?"
You're afraid of pushing him away, so you're going to ask him a question like that?! I mean I do want to know, but really?! Stupid traitorous brain!
"I like it. Just not used to being on a team anymore." Naruto shrugged, moving Pyrrha's face tighter to his chest as he did. "I was on the road a lot for quite awhile. Got used to waking up alone, spending my days alone and sleeping alone. Sorry if it came across any other way."
The silence that ensued couldn't be described as anything but awkward if she tried. Pyrrha worried the sound of Naruto's feet scraping up sand and the lapping of the ocean waves wouldn't be enough to cover up how fast her heart was beating.
"You know, I was actually pretty glad to get you as my partner." Naruto said.
"Bwuh?" Pyrrha's mounting panic had blocked her ability to find words, leading to her less than articulate response.
Naruto chuckled mirthfully. "I mean who could ask for a better conversation partner?" Pyrrha smacked her fist into his chest as an act of revenge. She assured herself that letting her hand linger on his chest was for the same reason… of course it was.
"Anyways, out of everyone I could have gotten at Beacon you're probably the best of the lot."
"If anyone else said that I'd say it would be because of my strength-"
"But that doesn't matter to me." Naruto nodded. "I mean you didn't exactly have the stiffest competition. Yang would have been a handful, Blake would probably make my hair gray, Weiss would just… ugh."
"Weiss would probably try and condition you to be an Atlesian in all but title, and who would want to come between Ren and Nora?"
"Among other reasons." Naruto added, yet ultimately agreed. "I think Ruby would spend all her time trying to make sure I was happy. I just imagine the whole partnership being suffocating."
"So I win by possessing the least negative qualities. What a letdown…" Pyrrha sighed, to which Naruto bonked her head. Seeing as how both his hands were busy the only way he could do so was by lifting her closer to his face and tapping his forehead against her own. To do so he drew so close she could practically taste his breath.
"Gimme a break." His face was inches away from her own even after separating. "Thanks for putting up with me… it helps more than you know."
Pyrrha found herself being lowered to the ground and out of Naruto's arms. Her brain was a bit frazzled and by no means operating at full capacity, so it took her five seconds to realize they were outside the resort entrance again.
No no no! We just started walking! How are we here already?! Pyrrha managed to cage her id and smile at Naruto, giving a short and respectful bow.
"No, thank you for being my partner. There is no one I'd rather it be." That was the most honest of truths Pyrrha could speak. She had been serious, disciplined, and altogether wasn't sure how she would act around any friends she might make at Beacon. She'd been worried the whole flight to Beacon Academy that everyone would know who she was. If they did, then everyone would treat her differently for it.
None of her friends did. No one on RWBY and not on her team, even CRDL acted normally around her at this point. She appreciated all of them for that, she really did, but there was something different about Naruto. Her fame born of combat prowess wasn't just unknown to him, it was irrelevant as well. For all the experience she thought she had Naruto had at least a pound per her ounce more. It wasn't to say that she needed her friends to be stronger than her, it wasn't anything like that. There was just something… different about her relationship with Naruto.
For example she had frequently been the person carrying her opponent to the bench or locker room after an intense spar, but she'd never had the same done for her. Pyrrha had a duality of emotions towards her current predicament; on one hand she wanted to train even harder, that competitive spirit burning ever hotter ever since Naruto had entered her life. On the other hand her penalty for losing hadn't been much of one at all. Though her warrior's spirit groaned, part of her liked being second best for once.
She had always wanted to do everything herself, arrogant or not there was no one she trusted to do better. However, she felt that if she left everything to Naruto then things would turn out alright. Not that Pyrrha would ever be that much of a wallflower, but the thought was comforting in its own way. So as the two made their way back to their room Pyrrha couldn't help but have a good feeling about their training camp.
"I want everyone in clothes for PT as soon as we finish breakfast." Naruto said one of the only things that could put a damper on such a beautiful breakfast spread.
"There is no god." Nora complained weakly. Pyrrha was still in awe that her usually energetic teammate had been so thoroughly spent. Naruto's racoon thing had deemed to put a substantially larger amount of sand on her, so it wasn't exactly unforeseeable. By comparison Pyrrha's had been fairly light…
"I once heard it said that we all had our personal demons waging war inside of us." Ren was resting his head in his arms on the table, too tired to eat. "Clearly our leader's demons won and have now assumed direct control of his faculties. No human would subject a friend to these tortures."
"Kami, you're so melodramatic Ren. Where's your spirit? Your pride? Where are your guts?!"
"Make me run again and I don't think that last question will necessitate an answer."
"Naruto," Pyrrha interceded, "I know that conditioning is important, but should we really be focusing on that? Two days of exercise won't increase our physicality by a measurable amount no matter how hard we try."
"Hmmmmm…" Naruto hummed, the light of hope daring to return to Ren's face. "You have a point there-"
"Oh sweet and merciful spirits." Ren cheered quietly.
"We should really just save this for when we're back at Beacon. I can probably work it in at least every other day."
"You suck, Pyrrha." Nora grumbled. Pyrrha gave an apologetic glance to her friend before Naruto started speaking again.
"I'm pretty sure Ren and Nora have some combination attacks down, so for now we'll split up men and women. Focus on learning each other's fighting styles and potential ways to follow up or cover each other's attacks. Meet back here around noon." Pyrrha checked her scroll, it was presently a quarter until nine. Three hours of training at their own pace was pretty tame by yesterday's standards. Ren and Nora obviously agreed, it would have been difficult for them to make their relief more apparent.
"This is delicious." Ren's weary face gave way to joy as he finally began to eat. A chef had been sent to their room to prepare their meals promptly at eight. The resulting feast of eggs, waffles, sausage, and most importantly (at least to one member in particular) the most incredible pancakes. It was sufficient to say it was a fantastic way to start off their day.
Now how exactly Pyrrha got to this point, she wasn't sure. She tried to run through the events of the day to find the logical path that had led her here, but it was proving challenging.
First they had breakfast, a delicious one at that. After that was finished Naruto took a begrudging Ren away to train. From there Nora asked her if she thought it was important to stretch before exercising, to which Pyrrha answered yes. Her teammate then followed up asking if it was because it relaxes the muscles, making it easier to move. There were some technical misconceptions with that, but Pyrrha agreed with the basic intent.
"Ohhh that's the stuff." Nora moaned into the facerest for the third time in as many minutes. Pyrrha would have protested, but any lecture she may have given mysteriously vanished as the masseur once again worked on her shoulders.
Nora's idea had been a massage. An idea that was originally meant to be preliminary to their training. However, after forty-five minutes Pyrrha couldn't honestly say she had any desire or intent to to stop the woman currently allowing her muscles to experience such bliss.
"You seemed pretty happy when you got back last night. Do you have a story to tell little ol' me?" Nora asked. Pyrrha couldn't see her face, but she imagined her teammate was wearing a smarmy grin.
"We had a respectable sparring session. Once it was concluded we made our way back."
"Fine, fine. Don't trust Nora not to blab your secrets, I see how it is." Pyrrha rolled her eyes, not that her teammate could see the gesture.
"He may have carried me back…"
"May?"
"He did."
"Eeeeep!" Nora squealed. Pyrrha giggled as her friend dove into what could only be considered girl talk, dragging her along for the ride. It was whacky, nonsensical, and fun, just like Nora and just like Pyrrha had always hoped her life would be. The conversation was the epitome of what a normal girl her age would be doing. Every day she spent with her team felt like another day closer to finally being the normal girl she'd started to dream of being.
"So, does that mean you're making your move tonight?" Nora asked as she stretched her arms above her head, their delightful massages having finally come to a close.
"Bwuh?" Pyrrha was beginning to make a habit out of being caught off guard.
"Your move?" Nora asked, quickly gaining steam when she realized Pyrrha both had no move planned nor any concept of how one would make it. "Come on! We're at a super fancy resort, no Yang or Velvet around to get in your way, no CRDL pestering him for training! What better time is there than now?!"
Pyrrha hadn't thought about that. Things seemed a bit too far off to be making any move of any kind. She couldn't deny that nora had a point — this was probably the best time to act she was ever going to get. That realization brought with it another; how did one talk to a guy like that? She had little enough experience with friends, let alone… well that!
"Is there any chance you'd…?" Pyrrha intoned hopefully Nora eyed her playfully.
"I'd…"
"Help?" Pyrrha implored. "Please?"
"Duh! We're friends, this is like part of the package!" Nora beamed as she grabbed Pyrrha and dragged her shoulder to shoulder, gesturing towards the sky. "Operation together-together is a go!"
Ren breathed deeply, holding his breath after his lungs could take no more air. Only after ten seconds did he exhale, allowing his shoulders to sag and his posture to droop.
"Not that I'm complaining," Ren started while continuing to look straight forward, the ocean filling the entirety of his view, "but didn't you say we would be practicing our teamwork?"
"Meditating is important to mental health. Through shared meditation we will both become more in tune with another." Naruto didn't bother opening his eyes.
"I have to admit, I did not believe meditation would interest you."
"Don't judge a book by its cover. I once meditated for two months straight, only taking breaks to drink and eat." He actually hadn't taken breaks to do either, but explaining how the whole purpose of said meditation was to try and substitute nature chakra for food would have been more than a little hard to explain.
"I suppose not." Ren acknowledged.
Time passed. There wasn't much more to say when you were successfully deep in meditation. It was a state of being that focused on nothing. Trying to explain to someone that if they were thinking about something, even just the sounds that were happening around them, they were doing it wrong was always a challenge. It was effective because you were both consciously awake but not very conscious of what was going on around you. If you were in deep meditation you often wouldn't even notice someone speaking to you.
"Do you find Pyrrha attractive?"
Naruto, who was sitting very close to the edge of the cliff overlooking the ocean, had to stop himself from falling in. "W-what the hell?! Where did that come from?!"
Ren's chuckle had more than just one vindictive note layering its melody, quite possibly because he was still bitter about yesterday's training. "Curiosity mainly. She's an attractive woman around your age, yet you've shown no sign of interest in her. I was beginning to wonder if someone like Nora was more your type… I was beginning to worry that I myself might be more to your-"
"Not on your life, pal." Naruto interrupted him sternly. "Not you, not anyone from CRDL… and not any other guy!" He added upon seeing Ren's quizzical expression. "As far as Nora…" He merely chuckled.
"Interesting." Ren stated simply, turning back to the ocean without another word. Naruto waited for him to elaborate, but his teammate seemed keen on his silence. Naruto couldn't help but let a smirk of satisfaction cross his face. He was more than thrice Ren's age and had spent a majority of the past twenty years in solitary travel. With only the tailed beasts as companions he would often go months without needing to speak. If Ren thought that he could just-
"What the hell is that supposed to mean?" Whoops.
"Really? You don't see it?" Ren asked, more than a bit smug. Naruto ground his teeth and shook his head. "When I asked you if Nora was your type you just laughed it off. When I asked if you found Pyrrha attractive however-"
"Different questions, different reactions. I'm sure if you asked me the same question-"
"Do you find Nora attractive?" Naruto's composure was broken by a small burst of laughter, causing him to swear loudly in self-admonishment. "You see as people we tend to associate the word 'attractive' with 'potential partner'. Even though Nora is by definition attractive you do not associate her with the connotation it carries, hence your laugh. You had no such reaction when I brought up Pyrrha, much the opposite. You were embarrassed, shocked, you stammered, all signs that you do find her attractive in exactly the way the connotation implies."
"Sorry to disappoint you and your newfound love of gossip, but she's a little young for me." And I'm downplaying that more heavily than you could imagine.
"She might be younger than the age group you consciously are attracted to, but clearly your subconscious says differently. It is quite possible that you are attracted to her, but haven't realized it because you refuse to allow your mind to go there."
As Naruto's brain began to do its natural process and unpack that statement he had to dig his metaphorical heels into the ground and kill that process immediately. No, nonono, nono no. I am not going there, I am not allowing myself to go there, there be naught but madness down that route. Naruto forced himself to breathe deeply through no small amount of effort. Calming himself down he made to resume his meditation.
"It's funny how we got here." Ren clearly had no intention of letting him return easily. "It may have been a trick, it may have just been one of the headmaster's ploys, but despite knowing that we're still here. Sometimes when you're taken down a path, even if it is by someone else's machinations, you find that there is no way off."
And damn it, Ren would turn out to be right
Pyrrha would like to say it was wrong to describe her as waiting in ambush, but as she sat on the couch checking her scroll's clock every thirty seconds she couldn't quite dismiss the assessment as much as she would have liked. She had a plan, her battle strategy was laid out, now all that was left was to execute! Unfortunately that made waiting and watching the clock pure agony. Step one of Nora's plan was simple — first she-
"Hey Pyrrha, I'm back. Just me, though. Nora ambushed Ren and I and asked if they could have the rest of the day to sightsee." Naruto grumbled. "We've hardly even started training, what a joke."
She'd do that. Pyrrha fist pumped as the first part of their plan went off without a hitch. Nora's success was twofold; firstly it allowed her to be alone with Naruto without the risk of interruption. Secondly it afforded Pyrrha the perfect pretext.
"That's so much like her that I don't even have much to say." Naruto groaned his agreement as he fell down right next to her, his leg accidentally brushing against hers before swiftly retreating as he scooted a little further away. "Actually, that could be a blessing in disguise.
"Really?"
"Well I heard from one of the staff that they were holding a performance with courtside dining. I was thinking it might be worth attending, especially if we've finished training by then." Pyrrha watched his expression, looking for some kind of indication as to her partner's thoughts. It may have been nothing, but he looked more nervous around her for some reason.
"Dinner? Well…" Naruto trailed off, Pyrrha worried he would say no, "I wouldn't mind getting something to eat. Nora and Ren seem to be enjoying the place so I wouldn't want to make you miss out, why not?"
Pyrrha was instantly elated, a victory chorus threatening to break free from her body. "If you don't want to we don't have t-"
"No! I mean… it sounds like a blast." Naruto grinned at her. Pyrrha managed to contain the exhale of relief that had attempted to work its way past her lips.
"I'm glad." Really, what more could she say? "I'd understand if you couldn't go because don't have anything to wear."
No, stop! Why are you arguing against yourself?! Pyrrha lamented silently. I really don't have time for you right now, self-doubt!
"Don't worry about it." Naruto waved her off. "I packed my school uniform just in case something came up. It's formal enough, and I'm pretty sure people will understand that it's the best I could do as a student."
"That would be more than enough. I know you despise that necktie, especially after you lost the good fight because of it." Pyrrha giggled as Naruto's face contorted into one of mock outrage.
"I did not lose. I just suffered an unfortunate setback."
"Mmmm." Pyrrha hummed amusedly, a twinkle dancing through her eyes. Before Naruto could protest she moved on to the next phase of Nora's plan. "Well I'll need some time to get ready, so why don't I mark its location on your scroll and we can meet there around five-thirty."
"Uhhhh… that's in five hours?" Naruto's words formed more of a statement, but the question was pretty obviously implied. "You need five hours to get ready?" And then he went and boldly stated it, of course.
"Of course not, I just have a few other things I need to do before." Primarily run and find Nora so they could go over the plan a few hundred more times until her heart stopped racing at a couple hundred beats per minute.
Naruto chuckled wistfully. "I've learned not to question women and their rituals." He waved goodbye as he rose from the couch. "No need to mark it on my scroll. I'm sure a successful huntsmen such as myself can track down a dinner. Wouldn't bode well if half of 'Beacon's strongest pair' had location skills that poor."
That was a new moniker that'd been thrown around about them. Allegedly the title came from a video floating around the net, a montage of some of their best moments including Naruto's Beacon spars and Pyrrha's tournament fights. By the time she had chewed through the thought Naruto had already vanished behind the door.
With Naruto gone Pyrrha frantically dove her hand into her pocket, withdrawing her scroll faster than most could unsheathe their weapon. Her fingers quickly moved in order to redial her most recent call.
"Nora?" Pyrrha's voice couldn't decide between being deathly nervous or over the moon. "Help!"
Damn Ren, I'm going to run him into the ground tomorrow. Naruto promised. He had approached the host, informed the man that he wanted a table for two and provided his name. That was all well and good, but then the waiter informed him that his 'date' had already reserved a table. Just hearing the word had him spluttering corrections about how she was his partner with a fierce blush refusing to recede from his cheeks.
Act your age damnit! On second thought, I'm going to run him into the ground and then some. Naruto amended as he was led by through a sea of tables by the host. The whole event was structured with tables spread around an elevated circular stage. Presently there were dancers performing a gracefully, almost languidly. Their performance was so slow and relaxed that watching it was akin to a lullaby. Just by watching it he felt his heart rate slow as his mind relaxed.
It didn't take much for his heart rate to up its tempo to double-time swing. Wait, that wasn't right, it was a lot more than enough. It was just… she just…
"Pyrrha, you look beautiful." Naruto's brain autopiloted his mouth when no other active thoughts were formed. The word 'beautiful' didn't do her justice, she looked incredible! That wasn't even sufficient, but Naruto had no idea what words possibly would.
She wore a slim fitting crimson dress that ended a little more than halfway up her toned thighs. Her hair that was normally put up fell well past her shoulders as it shined with red radiance. The transformation was so different than what he was used to that he may have failed to recognize her if not for the familiars tiara…
And those captivating emerald orbs.
"Thank you." She nodded as he took a seat, delight tugging at her lips as she struggled to keep a straight face.
"I feel a bit underdressed." Naruto chuckled awkwardly. Kami, she was just breathtakingly stunning. "Why'd you even have a dress packed? Did Ozpin tell everyone but me where we were going?"
Pyrrha shook her head. "I had no idea we'd be coming here. I actually went out and bought this just a few hours ago. I apparently wanted to make sure I looked my best…" she sounded a bit embarrassed, but the way she said it made it sound like it wasn't exactly her idea. Not that Naruto was attentive enough to notice a detail like that at this point. The man was still attempting to mentally reboot after the shock of seeing his partner — his seventeenyear old partner as he was repeatedly reminding himself.
"I've been taught not to question the decisions women make about things like this." Naruto admitted with a wry smile. "My teammate, Sakura, made sure of it."
The conversation from that point on wasn't exactly awkward, but it wasn't as smooth as it usually was. He could hardly go fifteen seconds without Ren's words popping up to disrupt any sense of calm he'd built. He wasn't a kid, he knew that, but ever since the conversation with Ren he couldn't help but notice her in ways he really shouldn't have.
Kami, she looked like a goddess.
"Have you ever thought about what you'll do after Beacon?" Pyrrha asked as their meals arrived. Naruto shook himself out of his present stupor and tried to act normal.
"Haven't put too much thought into it. I might go back to what I used to do." He said offhandedly. "Roaming around, taking missions, helping people. Part of me wonders whether or not I'm cut out for this team stuff anymore."
"What do you mean?" Pyrrha asked. A more cognizant Naruto would have seen the warning signs of a bad conversation topic. Sadly this Naruto was not that Naruto. This Naruto was currently distracted by his thoughts, thoughts he wished would go away.
"I was never much of a leader, more of a doer. I picked up some leadership skills on the fly, but I was never much good at it."
"You've always availed yourself splendidly." Pyrrha's voice had taken a stony edge.
"I can get a group from point A to point B, but I've never had the ability to teach that Bee or Ero-Sensei had. I've always just felt like I have all this knowledge but I'm just not good enough to impart it. It's pretty frustrating sometimes, I mean-"
"I've learned so much from you!" Pyrrha interrupted him, looking more frustrated than he'd ever seen her. "We've all learned so much from you! How can you not see that?!"
Naruto tried to calm her down, but his attempt was poor at best. "Come on, it's not that big of a deal. Some people are good at being a leader, some aren't. I haven't even done all that much for you guys. Honestly, I feel pretty bad about it."
It really would have been difficult for Naruto to pick something worse to say. Pyrrha looked more than just upset, she looked betrayed. She was indignant on his behalf, no one was allowed to spew such slanderous lies about the NVVR leader on her watch. Not even if that person was her leader.
"I was lost before I came to Beacon." She started slowly, but like a roiling storm began to slowly pick up force. "I didn't know if I could make friends, I didn't know if I could escape my fame, I didn't know if I could change my life… then you came in like a sudden monsoon and just blew everything away! My fame didn't matter, my combat skills were a joke, nothing about my life made me any different than anyone else around you. This team… you finally gave me a chance to just be normal. I finally got a chance to stop being Pyrrha Nikos the Invincible Girl when you just called me Pyr. That isn't nothing, I don't care what you think! That meant the world to me!"
When she finished it was loud enough that it had drawn the attention of the tables around them. Though the performers were mostly maintaining their routine it didn't stop their eyes from wandering to the two of them much more frequently than normal. He knew he'd messed up, but with his mindset as chaotic as it was he had no idea what to do. Luckily Naruto had age on his side, and with it came experience.
"I need to go to the washroom. I'll be back shortly." He bowed his head in apology as he rose. People often taught that there was no shame in retreat. Hell, he taught the Maelstrom shinobi that exact lesson… but right about now, red hot shame burning him from stem to stern, he'd be hard pressed to say he believed it.
As he made his way towards the washroom, more importantly away from his partner, Naruto forced himself to calm down. He might not have been at his best moments before, but if there was one thing he did well after all these years it was crisis management. So he shut off his brain and stopped thinking as Naruto. For the time being he was Pyrrha, he needed to think about this from her perspective. If he took the Naruto of it all out of the situation what just happened.
A person insulting your friend, your partner and calling them incompetent. Someone who, whether intentionally or not, changed your life. His godfather had been an idiot at times, but he would never have allowed someone to speak ill of him.
Damn, I screwed that up pretty bad. Naruto sighed, irritated at his own incompetence. He'd let Ren psych him- No, that wasn't right. He had psyched himself out. He'd psyched himself out by not knowing how to deal with the fact that he found Pyrrha attractive. He couldn't, he shouldn't, but he did. Despite having many decades of experience in combat, he'd had probably no more than two decades of knowledge concerning interpersonal relationships, most of which was piecemealed across months if not years of solitary life. Dealing with finding women attractive was even more sparse than that!
Still, he had created a problem and he had to fix it. He breathed slowly and found his center. He analyzed the problem, what caused it, and why it mattered as he looked for a solution. His brain kicked into overdrive as he did what Shikamaru had told him to; look for every path that could resolve your situation as quickly as you could thoroughly consider them. If you're on a time limit you'll just have to pick the best option you came up with and hope it's good enough.
He knew people were watching her right now. He knew how it looked like he abandoned her, but he needed to clear his head. He needed to find something that answered all the problems and left none of the regrets. Dealing with this kind of strategizing was why he didn't find himself to be the best leader. Pyrrha thought he was good enough though… and that meant he had to try.
"Hello, sir!" Naruto flagged one of the waitstaff who was passing by. The man walked up to him and introduced himself, asking how he could be of assistance. With that Naruto began to execute the best plan he could come up with. "I'm going to need a favor…"
She felt like an idiot. Actually, that was way too far of an undersell. She felt like a sad idiot who was trying not to cry. She saw people glancing at her, whispering to their partners. She knew what they were saying even if she couldn't hear them.
"Is that Pyrrha Nikos?"
"The Invincible Girl?"
"Did she just get dumped?"
"I wonder if there's a story there…"
No matter what she did she could never escape the eyes of the public. Her fame would shine a permanent spotlight on her from which she could never find shade. It was only under the protective wings of Team Nevermore that she'd been able to find peace, but now she didn't even know if she'd find it there.
I can't believe I acted like that! This was supposed to be our date! Pyrrha lamented as she tried to retain her composure. She really wished she had a friend here to help, she wished No-
"Man our fearless leader really blew it. What the heck did you do?" A familiar voice was barely audible in her periphere.
"I merely nudged him in the right direction. Clearly he was holding back much more than we thought. I did not believe my words would be the bomb that broke the dam." Another familiar voice spoke, even quieter than the first. That had been more than enough for Pyrrha to realize where they were coming from, though. Turning so fast you'd think she would get whiplash.
"What are you doing here!?" Pyrrha hissed. The two of them flinched as they tried to look anywhere but at Pyrrha. She was having none of that, rising from her own table and practically stomping over to theirs.
"O-oh Pyrrha. How nice to see you! You came here too?" Nora asked with a nervous giggle. Pyrrha fixed her with a stare that could raise the dead and send them back all in one look.
"You were the one who told me to come here." Pyrrha flatly reminded her. "I see you're in on this too, Ren."
"I had idea you'd be here?" Ren's tone practically asked if she'd buy that excuse, one look in her eyes answered that. "It was Nora's idea."
"You lying traitor!" Nora whispered angrily, having been so recently reminded by Pyrrha's actions that this was a public space.
"Why were you spying on us?" Pyrrha sighed. At the very least now she felt more exhausted than she did upset.
"We just wanted to make sure everything was going well."
"And be there as your friends if you had need of us." Ren added. "Is it safe to assume that you might have need of us?"
Pyrrha glowered at him. "Hmmmm… I don't know… it seems really up in the air doesn't it?" Ren had the good sense to wince.
"What happened anyways? It looked like it was going really well for the first bit-I mean…" Nora quickly stopped herself after a sudden rustling occurred under the table. Pyrrha couldn't confirm, but the fact that Nora was rubbing her shin was a fairly clear indication of what had happened.
"What Nora meant to say was that you looked fantastic this evening. It was hard to imagine anything but our leader being impressed. Not that we would know, because we certainly weren't watching."
"Really?" Pyrrha asked sardonically.
"Technically you have no way to prove otherwise, so you can't blame us." Ren reminded her. Once more exhaustion prevailed over all as she gave up. It just wasn't worth it.
"Really though, what happened?" Nora asked her again, her voice concerned. A small smile broke through Pyrrha's mood as her teammate- her friend tried to comfort her. Having this in her life was a wish from Mistral that had come true.
So she told them what happened from start to finish. Pyrrha made sure to emphasize the fact that Naruto had said he viewed himself as an incompetent leader. They listened, quiet for the most part as they did so. Occasionally Ren would groan in exasperation or Nora would smack her face with her hand. When the story was told in full it was Nora who spoke first.
"He really can be silly sometimes. Kind of hard to believe he's so good at everything huntsmen but so bad at this kind of stuff."
"I'm just surprised he believes himself to be a poor leader. He's basically touted as the paragon of leadership at Beacon. With the docks incident, both training and teaching CRDL, as well as being our own leader it is hard to imagine another first year who has distinguished themselves more. He must be comparing himself to an incredibly high bar." Ren mused quietly, rubbing his forehead as he attempted to make heads or tails of their leader's claim.
"I don't know…" Pyrrha groaned miserably. "Maybe this whole night was a mistake."
"Oh don't be a wuss!" Nora encouraged her with a slap on the back. "You look hot enough to turn a girl, believe me. Just because our fearless leader isn't living up to his title doesn't mean this was a mistake. I bet he just freaked out and panicked when he saw how hot you were." Pyrrha couldn't help but blush.
"I don't know…" Ren's eyes flicked to Pyrrha as if he had been looking somewhere else. "I believe Naruto is made of sterner stuff than this. We would be remiss to write off the leader of the strongest first years in Beacon so quickly."
"What makes you say that?" Nora demanded. Ren didn't have time to answer before Naruto arrived with a bag in his hand.
"Ren, Nora, Pyrrha." Naruto said her name softer than the rest, apologetically even. "I see you've all found each other."
"You knew they were here?" Pyrrha asked incredulously.
"Ha ha, yeah… they've been here since before I arrived. I figured it would do more harm than good if I chased em off." Naruto admitted as he rubbed the back of his head embarrassedly. Pyrrha rounded on Ren with the slow and calculated movement of a sniper lining up his shot.
"No way to prove otherwise?" Pyrrha asked Ren pointedly. The man was saved by their leader's cough as he drew the attention back to himself.
"Look, Pyrrha… I'm sorry. I've been a real jerk tonight, I don't know any better way to say it. It was a really nice event and I went and botched it. I hope you can forgive me." Naruto bowed his head in shame. Pyrrha, having thought she was the one who ruined the night, really had no idea how to respond to that.
"Yeah, you have been." Nora drolled as she glared at their leader. Naruto chuckled, nodding his head in agreement.
"I want to make it up to you… right now." He added before Pyrrha could voice any protest. He gestured one of them over, but it wasn't Pyrrha.
"Me?" Nora asked quizzically.
"Yeah. I don't deserve it but I could really use your help here." Nora didn't really understand but she got up and went over to their leader. He bent a little lower and whispered something into her ear so that any words he spoke remained private. If Nora's eyes were any indication they were apparently some pretty good words.
"You got it, Fearless Leader! Pyrrha, you're coming with me!" Nora grabbed the bag from Naruto and grabbed his partner as well, dragging her out of her chair and along with her.
"Hey, wait! What's going on?!" Pyrrha dared not shout after the scene she'd made previously. Quickly pulled away from Naruto and Ren she found herself dragged into the women's restroom by Nora. She was abruptly thrust into the bathroom stall, the bag Nora had taken being thrust into her hands before the stall door was shut. Once she was inside Pyrrha realized it was more like an entire washroom inside a single stall, upscale as the place was, but that wasn't important at present.
"Sorry, but you've gotta change out of that smokin hot dress. Our leader hath declared it." Nora informed her. Pyrrha had a billion and a half questions, but she had a feeling Nora wasn't going to answer them. Hoping that the bag would contain some for her she checked inside.
What she found didn't make sense to her, not in the slightest. A pair of Naruto's sweats was accompanied by one of his shirts with a familiar symbol adorning it. A pair of her shoes were found beneath Naruto's clothing with a pair of socks accompanying them. Only once she removed everything else did she see a solitary hair-tie tucked away at the bottom of the bag.
"Why am I changing into this? What's going on?" Pyrrha asked uncertainly.
Nora cackled mischievously. "Our leader said to. Have some faith, trust me!"
Pyrrha sighed as she opened the bathroom stall. "Fine, but I'll need your help. This dress is impossible to get out of alone." She turned her back to her teammate so that she could help unzip her.
"Hey! That could be your pickup line!" Nora exclaimed gleefully. Pyrrha's blush was closer to being crimson than pink as she berated her teammate while she got changed. They talked back and forth as Pyrrha tightened the string to the sweats and tied them off. The shirt was a little baggy, but she didn't mind. It smelled like her leader despite her knowing it was freshly washed. With her hair put up into its usual ponytail Pyrrha was ready. For what? She still had no idea.
"Ren says the markings on his shirts are probably his family seal or something." Nora said as she pointed at the center of the shirt's symbol, awkwardly lying right between her breasts. "Guess that means your part of the family now."
As Nora fled Pyrrha gave chase, now substantially more mobile than she had been in a dress and heels. The two of them slowed down as they re-entered the event, not wanting to cause any more of a ruckus than had already been caused. When Pyrrha and Nora returned to their table they found both Ren and Naruto sitting quietly, satisfied smiles on both of their faces.
"Do you know what's going on?" Pyrrha asked Ren.
"Yes." He admitted. "I assure you it's nothing bad, so you should enjoy the surprise."
As that was not the answer she was looking for she turned to her partner. "I worked really hard on getting ready for tonight, you know. Could you at least tell me why I've been forced to undo my efforts?"
"I know you did, you were beautiful." Naruto repeated his words from earlier, words that once again made Pyrrha's heart march to their tune. Naruto's face sunk a bit as he looked past her "Still are, of course!"
"Thank you very much!" Nora leaned back in her chair, satisfied with her work.
"It's just that this is the look we're going to need for the rest of the night. I figured you'd want to be at your best."
"What are you talking about?" Pyrrha felt so lost it wasn't even funny. "Why haven't you changed?"
A familiar roguish grin, a grin she missed seeing as often as she had when they first met, a grin she'd learned to love danced across her partner's face. "I figured you might need a handicap."
"What-"
"Can we please get a hand for the performers! They have put on a lovely show tonight." An electronic voice interrupted anything Pyrrha had to say. Everyone at the event began politely clapping as the dancers did their final bow before exiting down the stairs leading up to the circular stage.
"Tonight we have a special treat for you all. We always seek to provide our guests with quality, variety, and intensity. Our final act of the night promises to be the personification of all three! Let's give a warm welcome to Pyrrha Nikos, the Invincible Girl, as well as her partner Naruto Uzumaki. The two have gained a reputation as potentially the strongest pair in Beacon Academy's history, so we are lucky to be graced with a hand-to-hand exhibition from the two of them. Give it up for Pyrrha and Naruto!"
The clapping was louder this time, but not ridiculous. That was until you considered the wolf whistling Nora who was cheering up a storm. Her partner rose from his chair and took off like an arrow, weaving his way through the sea of tables until he reached the edge of the platform. Naruto completely ignored the stairs and instead vaulted straight onto the stage itself. With a flourish he loosened his necktie and pulled down a few buttons of his collared shirt, revealing the toned area around his collarbone. Pyrrha could swear she heard some girls shriek.
Pyrrha moved slower, more cautiously, still unsure of what was going on. She didn't approach the staired entrance to the stage, but instead towards her partner who was standing on its edge. When she made it there the grin he gave her had all the warmth of the first day they had met and more besides.
"Cmon Pyr," he laughed as he offered her a hand up, "We're the strongest pair in Beacon, so we'll probably always be in the spotlight. Might not be what we want, but it doesn't have to be a bad thing. Better to just focus on the things… the people that make everything worth it. You probably won't ever find a way out of the limelight, but if we split the eyes watching between the two of us I think it'll be easier."
Pyrrha blinked. Then for good measure she blinked again. All this time she had been worried about the press, the people, the attention that she had received for all of the accolades she had earned. She had worried that a life where you were always under watch meant a life where she would never know peace. She'd lived that life, she knew that's how it was!
But just like the first day she'd met him, Naruto came in and burst all of her expectations until there were none left to speak of. She wasn't Pyrrha the normal girl, and she wasn't Pyrrha Nikos the prize fighter, she was Pyrrha Nikos in all that it entailed. She rejected the fame that came with her fighting, but still sought greater challenges as a fighter should. There were aspects of her past career she didn't like, but did that matter? She couldn't reject her prize fighting mentality, nor could she suppress the more normal aspects of herself. All she had to do was accept them…
Accept them and jump into the spotlight.
She playfully slapped his hand away and did a full front flip onto the stage. Naruto's grin turned savage as he began to banter.
"Tsk tsk, my partner. You won't be so sassy once I finish wiping the floor with you."
"I've had my fair share of losing." She returned his grin with one of her own. "I think it's time to win."
Words weren't necessary any longer. Naruto dove at her with a ridiculous flying side kick. It was theatrical, absurd, and unreasonable just like he was. She easily sidestepped it while he was still midair, moving to counter with a rising knee. In a now typical show of acrobatics and core strength Naruto torqued his body to transform it into a spinning heel kick without even touching the ground. Pyrrha ducked below it before moving to retaliate herself.
The two punched and kicked, a flurry of motion and life that could not be captured or restrained by anyone. It didn't matter who watched, she didn't care. People could say what they would about her now, it didn't matter. Right now she was locked in an entirely different world than them. The world underneath the glow of lights and people's stares, a world she'd lived alone in for so long.
A world in which she now had company.
Naruto did not use his semblance and neither did she. The monstrous strength that he'd used to decimate her shield arm once upon a time was nowhere to be found. Some might have wondered why, but Pyrrha didn't. She knew exactly what he was doing, what he was saying.
I can beat you with technique alone.
No you can't!
She'd thought that tonight would play out like a date. They'd talk, they'd eat, he'd walk her back to their room and maybe she'd be brave enough to give him a kiss on the cheek. Instead she was locked in a dangerous dance, but she had no regrets. They were huntsmen, they were Beacon's strongest pair, this was the life they had chosen and Pyrrha didn't want it any other way.
Their spar was concluded with no clear victor, the previously tame applause stamped out by the enthusiastic whooping and cheering of the now enthusiastic audience. As Naruto took her hand so they could bow out Pyrrha couldn't even say she noticed that. The first thing she did was drag him away; not to their team, not to their room, but towards the beach where they had trained. She ran with his hand in hers for a mile until they reached an isolated section of the beach.
She didn't wait, she gave him a playful push and attacked into him once more. A normal girl might have done something more suggestive, but she wasn't normal. Their spar had not been decided, neither of their techniques had proved superior. So they fought, and fought, and then fought some more. They fought ignorant to the passage of time or anything else. At that moment they lived in their dangerous dance and nowhere else.
She fought with all she had, every trick and strategy in the book, but nothing was enough for her to claim victory. Similarly nothing Naruto did was able to lock her out, but he didn't seem upset about it. Naruto's face wore the expression of the most primal joy as their souls clashed together in the heat of combat. This was to be a fight that continued until a victor was declared, or the soul yielded.
So when Pyrrha's body couldn't take anymore, she wasn't upset. She wished she had as much aura as her partner, if only because she didn't want this to end. Yet as she collapsed in exhaustion, falling into his open embrace, she couldn't say it bothered her. She just wasn't good enough yet, so she'd try harder.
She still had a long ways to go, and that made her smile.
"She's still out?" Nora asked, a bit concerned. Pyrrha lay snoring on the bed, still wearing Naruto's clothes from the previous night. As of now they actually matched to boot.
Naruto chuckled. "She really gave it her all last night. Let's let her sleep, I'll carry her down."
Naruto lifted Pyrrha in the same way he had on their first day here as they started walking. "Ooooh Ren, would you do that for me?!"
"Of the two of us you most assuredly have the superior stamina. It would be more likely I'd need you to carry me."
"Carrying you in a princess carry? Actually… that doesn't sound bad." Nora salivated at the thought, causing Ren to shiver.
"If I ever am incapacitated please throw me over your shoulder like a sack. Consider that request formally lodged." Ren spoke seriously.
"Duly noted, and duly ignored!" Nora quipped. Naruto smiled as the three of them walked out of the resort, his two conscious teammates quibbling as they went. Ren could have been imagining it, but he felt like there was a fondness for the woman in his arms that hadn't been there the day they'd arrived.
"All of your belongings have been placed on the bus as requested. Will you be needing anything else?" The staffer that had originally greeted them asked. Naruto shook his head and wordlessly stepped on the mini-bus, not willing to speak and risk waking his partner.
"Thank you for all the hospitality you have shown us. We are greatly appreciative." Ren bowed before stepping onto the mini-bus himself.
"This places was totes awesome! We will totally be coming here again!" Nora patted the man on the shoulder as she skipped up the bus stairs, the door closing behind her. With that the bus pulled a U-turn and began the long drive back to Beacon. They hadn't gotten the training they might have expected, but their team did feel a lot closer. Two members in particular.
A few hours passed and Pyrrha hadn't managed to wake up, still blisffully in the land of dreams. Ren smirked at that, because he imagined the spartan would have been much happier to be awake right about now. In her sleep she'd managed to slip right in the chair they had buckled her to, so her head was currently resting on her partner's shoulder. Naruto hadn't moved to displace her, citing that he still didn't want to wake her, but Ren wasn't so sure that was the only reason anymore.
Still, sleeping people weren't exactly aware of their surroundings, so when she started to slip Ren prepared to vocalize a warning. It would have proven unnecessary as their leader's arm wrapped around her shoulder and secured her firmly. Even in her sleep Pyrrha was pleased, a dopey smile spreading lazily across her face. Ren began to suspect she may not be asleep as her arms moved to lightly embrace him, but what happened next quickly dismissed that theory.
"Mine…" she mumbled in her sleep. Naruto smiled warmly down at her while Ren couldn't help but chuckle. Naruto wasn't exactly hers yet, but who knew? Maybe if things kept going this way he could be.