AN: What a surprise, yet another new story! Here I am again, kiddies, with an idea that wouldn't leave me alone, and I have to say… this one might now be my second favorite to write, behind Foxes and Dust. This one's chock full of lore that will be explained over the course of the story, intrigue, romance, action and ramen! As always, no flames!
DISCLAIMER: I do NOT own Naruto or RWBY; all rights go to Masashi Kishimoto and RoosterTeeth respectively.
Chapter 1: Do They Exist?
The Four Kingdoms of Remnant: Mantle, Mistral, Vacuo and Vale. Each Kingdom exalted in its own right, each kingdom prestigious and shining against the darkness and corruption that was the horde of the Creatures of Grimm. Their rich and plentiful history outdid everything that came before or after them, sullied only by the Great War, when inter-kingdom relations were at an all-time low. On a lone island named Vytal is where the war had ended and the Huntsman Academies of the world were born.
Atlas Academy soon took over the defunct Kingdom of Mantle, placing the military in an unrivaled position of power while Mistral bore the Academy of Haven, Vacuo the Academy of Shade and Vale the most prestigious of them all: the Academy of Beacon. Most people look to the Hunters of the world as their staunch protectors against the Creatures of Grimm, their steadfast allies against the darkness waiting before them.
But what Remnant didn't know, and truly never knew, was that there was a secret hand that stretched out behind the scenes, endorsed by all four Kingdoms that existed even before the Hunter Academies… though for a certainly different capacity, their goals only being aligned when the Vytal Accords were signed that fateful day. The Huntsmen and Huntresses are the guard dogs of humanity… and all dogs must have a leash and a master to hold it.
The Kingdoms are the leash…
… And we are the masters.
Who are "we", you ask? Well, in simple terms, we are the secret police of the Kingdoms. We hold the leashes of the Hunters; we regulate them, we guide them and if need be, we punish them. We have existed for as long as the Kingdoms, we have always been their shadow, their blades in the dark that keep the unknown threats from tearing down our world.
Without us, the Kingdoms would have fallen long ago. Without us, humanity would have been a footnote in Remnant's long and bloody history. We are the protectors of humanity; we are the shadows upon the wall.
We are the Arbiters. We are the judge, jury and executioners. In our hands we hold the fate of nations. We are always watchful, always vigilant.
And you will never see us coming.
"AA-CHOOO!"
Blake's head snapped up from the book she was reading and swiveled around to where she left the Schnee Heiress and the redheaded girl to find a glaring fireball where the two used to be standing.
Grimacing with a light shudder, she promptly turned right back around and continued her walk to Beacon's amphitheater… nose once again buried into her book.
'The Arbiters of the Kingdoms: Fact or Myth?' She inwardly read the title to herself once again, lightly chuckling. 'No way can they exist. SOME kind of evidence to support their legitimacy would have been found by now, surely.'
(Vale City: From Dust Till Dawn: Same time)
"The investigation is still ongoing…" Explained one dutiful VCPD Detective to the shopkeeper of the humble Dust shop. "But with your testimony, that's just another rap to add to Torchwick's sheet."
"Surely you're close to catching him?" The shopkeeper inquired with a quirk of his wizened brow.
"He's a slippery son of a bitch." The Detective admitted. "But we'll find him eventually."
"Jason!" His partner called out to him.
After bidding the shopkeeper a good day, the now identified Jason turned and found himself also quirking an eyebrow at the person trailing his partner.
Said person looked no older than seventeen and stood at about 5'10', had a wild mess of short, spiky blonde hair, oceanic blue eyes that seemed to have an animalistic slit for pupils, three symmetrical whisker marks upon both his cheeks, a pair of fox ears that blended in very well with his hair and a single fang peeking out from his upper lip.
Whatever he was wearing was concealed by a black leather buttoned up double breasted greatcoat trimmed with orange here and there that had its collar turned up, though he could tell that the Faunus boy was wearing a pair of black cargo pants that had a bar of orange running down the length of both legs and a pair of black steel toed combat boots that were secured by a couple of straps. Upon his hands was a pair of black leather gloves and peeking out of the arms of the greatcoat he could faintly see the glint of metal, probably bracers of some sort. And finally around his neck sat a set of black and orange headphones.
"Brody!" Jason called back to his partner. "Who's the kid?"
"Just someone who's interested in this case, Detective." The boy reassured the aging Detective. "The Council has sent me in part because they wish to know the progress of the Torchwick case."
"Hnh…" Jason grumbled a bit as he fished around in his pockets for a cigarette and his lighter. "Never thought I'd see the day when the Council would finally get off of its ass and involve themselves with us plebs."
"The Council has a…" The boy stopped to find the right words. "Vested interest in the Torchwick case."
"And so they send a kid who looks like he should be attending Beacon right now?" Jason fired back while lighting the cigarette he finally found.
"If you have the raw skill, then age shouldn't matter." The boy smirked. "I can do my job well enough for the Council to overlook my age."
"No argument there." Jason returned the smirk. "So, what can I get for you, kid?"
"The recordings of the break in." The boy requested. "I want to see for myself what we're dealing with."
"Roman Torchwick is what we're dealing with." Jason explained as he pulled out his Scroll and tugged on it once so it was in its tablet form. "He's been going around robbing every Dust shop he's laid eyes on and we can't definitively nail down his motive." He paused to bring up the security camera footage from the night of the robbery.
"Black market?" The Faunus suggested.
"Possibly." Jason nodded. "And at this point, I'd be willing to bet my career on it. Here we go."
As the video playback began, Jason cut his eyes away from the recording – he had seen it enough times that he had the damn thing memorized – and critically eyed his young guest. Something was off about him; he was just too smooth of an operator for his young age. He knew full well that the Council and Hunter Academies valued skill above everything else, so it wasn't a stretch to assume he was a prodigy in some sense, hell he had seen his fair share during his own days as a Huntsman. Those years of fighting the Creatures of Grimm had instilled within him finely tuned senses… and every one of those senses were practically screaming at him when face to face with this young Faunus boy.
"You know…" Jason took a drag of his cigarette. "You never did tell me your name."
"My apologies." The boy glanced up from the recording just as Roman entered with his thugs. "Naruto Uzumaki, Council Security Service." He smiled and went back to studying the recording.
"Jason Cloud, VCPD Detective." Jason returned the small courtesy of introducing himself.
"Do we have an ID on this girl?" Naruto asked as he paused the recording, the pointed out a young redheaded girl wielding a scythe.
"Ruby Rose." Jason nodded. "Known blood relatives: Taiyang Xiao Long, Summer Rose and Yang Xiao Long. Her old man's a retired Huntsman and her half-sister is attending Beacon this year." He grimaced when his recitation brought him to the final member. "Summer Rose was a Huntress that graduated from Beacon but wound up going missing on a mission… she's presumed dead as a body was ever recovered."
"Is it possible to get into contact with this girl?" Naruto questioned as he stopped the recording and handed Jason back his Scroll.
"If you don't mind taking an airship ride up to Beacon." Jason shrugged with another drag of his cigarette. "We were gonna keep her around as a material witness, but Headmaster Ozpin himself showed up at our station and conscripted her into Beacon then and there."
"It seems age really isn't a factor." Naruto chuckled. "Well, thank you for your cooperation, Jason, but it seems like the road now leads me to Beacon."
"Good luck." Jason also chuckled. "Ozpin is the Council's golden boy; they won't let you near him."
"Then it is fortunate that he is not my reason for being there." Naruto then turned on his heel and tossed a wave over his shoulder. "Until next we meet, Detective!"
"Brody…" James flicked the cigarette out of his mouth and stomped it out as he turned to his partner. "Get me everything we have on this 'Naruto Uzumaki'."
"You're really gonna try to step on the Council's toes, Jay?" Brody frowned. "The kid seemed genuine enough to me."
"And that's what scares me." Jason started at the retreating form of Naruto and involuntarily shuddered.
(Beacon Academy: Some time later)
While still speculation, the existence of the Arbiters has been a hotly debated topic through the ages. Most people regard the group as a mere ghost story meant as a scare tactic to keep the many arms of the Kingdoms in check, including the Hunter Academies. Knowledge was their power and secrets were their blood, and they used them to great effect. It is said that each Arbiter carries with them knowledge that could rival any library and secrets that could bring a nation to its knees and scarier still… that they have done so before.
Many point to the fall of the Kingdom of Mantle as an act of the Arbiters while others say it was a rebellion against their oppression. None are alive that can validate either claim and yet still some theorize that the Arbiters silenced those who witnessed their revolution down to the last child… while, again, others point the finger at wild stories, baseless speculation and manic paranoia over a fate that Mantle had seen coming yet could do nothing to stop.
Regardless, speculation is abound about the repercussions of an Arbiter showing up. A hypothetical scenario: Shade Academy is coming up short on their mission quotas and student performance is at an all-time low. The Headmaster is unresponsive to Council questioning and official inquiries have been met with silence. Rather than attribute this silence to a busy schedule on the Headmaster's part, the Council opts for a more direct approach… and they send an Arbiter.
That Arbiter, upon arrival at Shade, now has a blank check to do with as they please. They would have at their disposal the unlimited power of the Kingdoms to do with as they saw fit. There's a number of things the Arbiter could do to get to the bottom of this hypothetical investigation, but by far the absolute last resort to the Arbiter would be…
Blake sighed as she closed the book, having had enough of conspiracy theories for the day. Stretching out on her sleeping bag, she placed the book on the ground next to her and grabbed another one, this one about a man with two souls.
'The more I read about the Arbiters, the less convinced I am that they exist.' She silently scoffed as she opened her new book back to the page where she left off. 'Giving someone near unlimited power with no accountability? The Kingdoms aren't THAT stupid.'
"Hellooooo~!" A cheery, sing-song voice broke her musings and her reading time.
Suppressing a groan, Blake glanced up to find a rather voluptuous blonde girl dragging "Crater Face" behind her.
Unbeknownst to the cat Faunus, a living myth was casually strolling through the courtyard with nary a care in the world, his headphones secured over his ears and plugged into his Scroll which was playing a heavy metal song of some description. As he passed a couple of patrolling Hunters, he inclined his head in a polite nod, which they hesitantly returned before deciding to follow him as he made his way through the courtyard and into Beacon Tower.
"Headmaster's not receiving anyone at such a late hour." The female of the pair called out to him, knowing his fox ears would be able to pick up on her voice even if his regular ears were covered.
"Oh, but for me, he'll make an exception." Naruto spoke as he turned and removed his headphones from his ears and hung them from his neck again. "If he doesn't already know I'm here, I'd be sorely disappointed in him."
"He's a very busy man." The male clutched the pistol at his side. "Now, please leave. You aren't welcome here."
"I think you'll find I'm quite at home here, actually." He fired back with a smirk. "It's been a few years, but Beacon is still as grand as I remember."
"Sir!" The Huntsman drew his pistol, but didn't point it at the blonde Faunus. "Leave!"
"I'd put that away if I were you…" Naruto warned as he turned and pressed the call button for the elevator.
Between the moment that he pressed the button and the moment the Huntsman raised his pistol was a blur for his partner. One second the Faunus was standing there and the next they were both on the ground. As she groaned and stared up at the Faunus, he had expertly dismantled her partner's pistol into three pieces and was casually walking back to the now open elevator. As he entered it, Naruto threw them both a two finger salute with his right hand and flashed a smirk that, despite herself, brought a blush to her cheeks.
Now alone within the confines of the elevator, Naruto had time to evaluate himself on what he did, effectively scoring himself. The exchange was over within a matter of seconds, which he graded himself excellent on in terms of speed. He had gotten within the man's guard and quickly disarmed him while also sweeping his legs out from under him while he delivered a straight palm thrust to the woman's chest that didn't even register as a hit against her Aura, but just enough to take her down non-lethally. Two targets, three moves.
"Meh." He shrugged. "Not like it was a real fight, after all."
As the elevator lurched to a stop and the doors opened, Naruto found himself assaulted by the chorus of ticks and tocks that was famously associated with Ozpin's clock tower office. As a faint smile crept across his face, he entered the office, his footfalls echoing and intermingling with the clock noises.
Blue met yellow in a test of wills. Keeping his cool, Naruto continued his walk across the room with measured steps and an even gaze… though he could tell that Ozpin was waging an internal war with himself over a meeting of this magnitude.
"Professor." Naruto finally spoke as he stopped a couple paces shy of the desk.
"Mr. Uzumaki." Ozpin inclined his head in a nod. "What a surprise to see you here…"
"Me, Professor?" He questioned, a hint of an edge to his voice now. "Or my Order?"
"Both." Ozpin admitted. "To what do I owe this unexpected pleasure?"
"The Arbiters call on you, Ozpin." Naruto spoke, now standing up straighter and an authority to his voice. "We require your assistance."
"And it shall be given." Ozpin nodded again. "What does the Order require of me?"
"I'm investigating Roman Torchwick on behalf of the Kingdoms." He explained. "Or, more correctly, my Order is. I've just been assigned to Beacon."
"And I assume this will be a lengthy investigation?" The bespectacled Headmaster queried while leaning back into his seat.
"Possibly." Naruto nodded. "Depending on how far the Order wants to take this, I may be out of your hair within the week or I may be a more permanent addition to this Academy."
"Fair enough." Ozpin managed a smile. "So, where do we start? What is your immediate concern?"
"I require just two things." Naruto held up his right index finger. "First, I require a believable cover. Would it be possible to sign me on here as a staff member?"
"It should be possible, yes." The Headmaster made a temple with his hands under his chin, yellow eyes studying the young Arbiter carefully. "And the second request?"
"I need an audience with one Ruby Rose." Naruto folded his arms over his chest.
"Because she fought Torchwick's men and was there to witness the robbery." Ozpin nodded in understanding. "You shall have what you require."
"It pains me to have to come back here in such a capacity, Professor." Naruto admitted to the bespectacled man. "But my duty compels me and my Order has spoken."
"Say no more, Naruto." Ozpin held up a hand to silence him. "We all have a calling that we must heed and yours just happened to lead you down a very dark but very important road."
"Let's just think of this as an opportunity to build bridges between the Academies and my Order." He smiled.
"Indeed." Ozpin returned the smile. "Now, I'll arrange for you to receive private lodgings and I'll process you through our systems as a new professor that has just arrived at my last minute invitation."
"And my audience with Miss Rose?"
"Initiation is tomorrow." Ozpin explained. "After she goes through Initiation, then you may have your audience."
"Very well." Naruto nodded and extended a hand. "It's good being back here."
"It's good to have you back." Ozpin shook the offered hand.
As Naruto turned to leave, yellow eyes hardened once again, focused on the blonde Faunus's back. The Order of Arbiters, right hand of the Kingdoms, the secret police of Remnant. Beacon had garnered their attention, which was always a bad thing. Ozpin may respect Naruto as a person, but he'd be damned if he let such an upstart order jeopardize his goals and halt his plans. There were things going on that even the Order didn't know about and their meddling could cost him a victory years in the planning.
He'd keep an eye on the situation for now, but he'd step in if necessary. The only thing he had to fear from the Order was their trump card, something he was absolutely sure Naruto would not order unless he thought the situation called for it… and Naruto was always a sensible and agreeable man.
No, he wouldn't call for it… but the thought didn't leave him. The possibility was there, and Ozpin couldn't help but worry.
The fate of Beacon itself was now in Naruto's hands. All that remained was to see where his investigation led him, be it salvation or oblivion.
And for everyone's sake, Ozpin hoped that it was the former.
AN: DONE! What did you guys think? Personally, I love this idea and I've been wanting to write something like this for the longest time. Just think of the Order of Arbiters as something like the Inquisition from Warhammer 40k. For those of you wondering what Naruto's connection to this crossover is, that too will be explained in future chapters in better detail, never fear! There's always a method to my madness!
Now, onto the pairing issue. Obviously, there's something to be said about Ruby, as she's the current object of his interest, but as always, I want opinions from you guys! Just so you know, Naruto looks like he's seventeen, but he's actually around nineteen; whether or not that has any bearing on your opinions is up to you! Give me good, solid opinions for your choice and also note that this might not be a harem unless good arguments are made in favor of one!
This is ZeroDivisionRaijin, signing off!