Chapter 2: School Life
On the early morning of the weekend, Naruto was rummaging around a room in fox form. Unlike his kitsune form, he merely had a single tail.
The once organized room was in disarray. To make matters worse, this wasn't Team NROM's room. Digging through another pile of clothing, he found a brown beret. Taking a liking to it, he wore it upon his head and posed in front of the full body mirror.
Waggling his eyebrows, he made flirty noises towards his image. He couldn't possible resist, he was too handsome. As he tried out a number of poses, the door to the dorm opened.
The upperclassmen Team CFVY stared shocked at the scene of pure chaos. Coco, the leader, seemed the most affected. She held the doorknob as she bodily froze. At the sight of the familiar fox, her hands began twitching rapidly.
Her teammate Velvet, a rabbit Faunus, placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. In Velvet's other hand was a ball, "Remember the stress ball Coco. It's supposed to help you."
"Stress ball? Why would I need something like that? I'm calm and in control", Coco said very pleasantly. Slowly she removed her shades. "It's just a little frustrating when woodland creatures decide to play catch with your name brand designer clothing!" As her voiced rose, she shattered the shades in her palms.
When Naruto and Velvet made eye contact, he slowly and intentionally flashed his sharp teeth and licked his lips. A shiver ran down the girl's spine from the pure predatory look she was receiving. Taking no chances, she hid behind her team leader.
Her male teammate, ironically named Fox, spoked assuredly, "For the last time Velvet, the fox isn't going to eat you. Even if it tried, you're stronger and bigger."
From behind Coco, Velvet said, "I'm not too sure about that. He looks really hungry."
Even as they were speaking, Naruto found a spare set of shades and put them on. This pushed Coco over the edge. "That's it, I'm making a fur fox coat. Come here you pest", in a blur of motion, Coco flung her body towards the intruder.
Snickering, the fox ran towards her form and leapt atop of her head and then jumped away from her. He relished the sound of her crash behind him. Running in between the rest of the team's legs, Naruto dashed out of the room.
"Get him, now", the tone of her voice made it clear that Coco wouldn't accept any rebuttals. Reluctantly, the rest of team CFVY began to give chase. It was taxing. The orange furred fox was not only crafty, but quite durable. They never got too close. As a matter of fact, they began to realize that the fox allowed them to reach as close as they did.
All the while, Coco was getting angrier and angrier.
When they turned a corner after the fox, the sight before them made them freeze. In the jaws of the beast was a familiar briefcase. Coco's briefcase. A mischievous gleam entered the fox's eyes.
"Now hold a minute. All that stuff about fur coats? That was just kidding around. You know, some fun between friends?" Coco tried.
Naruto tapped the container and a machine gun took its place. The hallway was as silent as a grave. Huntsmen vs fox and the favor was stacked on the latter. With a twitch of the paw, the bullets went flying.
"Get down!" Yatsuhashi cried out. The walls, floor, and ceiling were riddled with bullets. Oddly enough, and he believed intentionally, the gun never pointed directly at them. When the smoke cleared, the fox was gone.
…
The office of Headmaster Ozpin was expansive and neat. A single desk near a window was visible. Laid neatly all over the hardwood desk were piles of paperwork. It was the typical workload for every new school year. Tirelessly, Ozpin continued to review and sign.
By his side, Glynda Goodwitch stood watch. Her task oriented personality made sure he finished his workload. Both looked up at the sound of the elevator in the room ringing off. From Ozpin's appearance, he was quite aware who was taking the elevator. When the doors opened, the whimsical fox he had come to known trotted from the inside.
As he made his way to the desk, Glynda stared disapprovingly at it. In return, the fox smiled cutely and innocently. All she could do at that face was sigh in resignation. Victory attained, the fox scurried unto Ozpin's lap and curled up.
"You'll find Glynda, that it's best not to unnecessary oppose a force of nature", he chuckled lightly. Mirth bubbled within him as the fox snickered in agreement with him. Beacon's headmaster decides to take a small break and feed some snacks to the uncommon woodland creature. After a few friendly scratches, the fox hopped off of him.
As the fox walked away, Ozpin saw him point his tail towards him dramatically. With that done, the fox trotted back to the elevator. Some way or another, the button was pressed and the lift went down.
Getting back to his work, Ozpin was pleasantly surprised to find all of his paperwork sorted and signed in his handwriting. "Thank you", he said simply as he smiled softly.
"What are you so thankful about?" His assistant questioned.
Folding his hands, he leaned back into his seat, "Remnant is such a grand place. It's nice to see wonders that aren't actively trying to devour you. Though, it doesn't mean it won't one day."
…
"Wake up. Wake up, Rikuo." The voice calling out to him was soft and tender. Slowly cracking open his eyes, he saw the smiling face of his partner Moka.
"It's the afternoon. I let you sleep in because you seemed so tired yesterday." Hearing this, he couldn't help but be grateful at how thoughtful she was. Things would've been far more hectic if someone, say Naruto, was his partner.
Speaking of Naruto, "Where's everyone?"
Moka pressed her finger against her lips and answered, "Naruto said he was going out to 'see the sights', whatever that meant. Oska woke up a couple hours later and ran to find him."
Rikuo had to chuckle at how persistent the little monster was in her feelings towards their blonde leader. Strangely enough, Naruto was so nonchalant about it. Well, Rikuo thought that was better than being some womanizer. After stretching a bit, Rikuo took a hot shower and got ready for the day.
He walked out of the bathroom wearing a green tracksuit and a towel around his head. Rikuo was still amazed at the size of the dimension. Kitsunes had quite a few abilities other monsters were jealous of. This had been his first time being welcomed into a kitsune's domain. If he had to be honest, it was a lot more comfortable than his house. If only because his grandfather wasn't there to make a spectacle of everything. When he opened the door back to Beacon, he caught sight of a traditional scroll.
A sense of dread hit him as he slowly picked up the scroll. Unrolling it, he read the contents.
Hey my cute grandson,
This is grandpa dearest. Recently, there's been a monster that been causing some trouble for Nura clan scouts. Then I realized that it was near Beacon and an idea hit me. Why don't I leave it all to you? I mean you're closest. Besides, your poor grandpa lets you follow your whims, like getting into a huntsmen academy of all things. Be a good grandson and be mindful of my requests.
Love,
Grandpappy Nura
The young Nura balled up the document in annoyance. Sometimes he wondered if his grandfather was actually becoming senile in his advanced age. Rikuo could just envision the old man falling out of his seat laughing at his grandson's misfortunate. Before he could continue that line of thought, he hissed in pain as he jumped aside.
Looking at his partner, he found her licking her lips. A bright blush could be seen in her face. "Excuse me. I just couldn't resist. Your neck was just so stretched out." Her face morphed from delight to distraught in a second, "I'm sorry. You aren't afraid, are you?"
He rubbed his rapidly healing neck and replied honestly, "No." Many of the monsters allied under his grandfather had weirder habits and weren't nearly as nice. "Just ask next time."
She smiled brightly and raced up to hug him. Her grip was tight, but affectionate. He didn't resist a bit. Releasing him from her grip, she said cheerfully, "I'll go with you. Two are better than one, right?"
He thanked her and the two were off.
…
Their return to Emerald forest was a quiet one. The Grimm weren't nearly as interested as they were during the initiation. A thick mist covered the area. The pair reached a cavern and slowly made their way through.
As they reached the base of the cavern, they were greeted by a pair of dark red eyes. A gruff and throaty voice rumbled, "Why are you here?" The monster was shrouded in darkness. Sniffing the air, it laughed at Rikuo. "What's a mixed blood doing here? You only have a quarter of monster blood in you."
Rikuo flushed before regaining himself. "I represent the Nura clan. I was sent to investigate your actions against several of our scouts."
The monster scoffed at the direct tone of the boy. "If they couldn't send a proper monster to talk to me, then this conversation is a waste of my time."
"That's uncalled for!" Rikuo bit out.
A shadowed claw slammed into him, tossing him to the wall.
"Rikuo!" Moka screamed out. Before she could reach him, another hidden claw grabbed her.
Rikuo ducked beneath another swipe of its claws and attempted to cut its hand. The sword was able to embed itself, but he wasn't able to perform a clean cut. Pulling out, he rolled away from another attack.
Wary of the blade, the monster threw Moka at the boy. Putting away his sword, he prioritized his partner's safety. When he caught her, he was thrown aside into the wall again. He shielded her with his own body. The pain was intense, but he clutched her into his chest. Hands unsteady, he touched and pulled off her Rosary, to his surprise.
Power flooded her very being. Her hair faded from pink to silver, her eyes grew sharp and glowed red, a departure from the normally green luster. She chuckled as she left his protection, "Hold on, Rikuo. It would be such a shame to lose someone with such rich blood. " She kneed beside him and touched a trace of his blood on her finger. Licking the blood, she shivered in delight.
The monster looked alarmed. Moka was upon him in an instant and gave him a high kick. Said monster was sent reeling, his body spinning profusely. When his body hit the ground, there was a large crater that rocked the cavern.
She flicked her hair before she continued her march towards her foe. A mature hand stopped her.
"There's no need for that", Rikuo's voice was rich now. Power draped over him like a cloth, obscuring any defining features. His hair grew elongated, with the top being black and the bottom being white, and his tracksuit morphed into robes. Now his eyes too held a red gleam at it pierced into the darkness of the fogs surrounding them.
Moka looked delighted as she leaned in and licked the last bit of blood off his temple. "I can taste the Nura in you now. How curious."
The monster attacked again. But this time Rikuo shielded Moka with his blade, deflecting the attack. Immediately, he struck at the appendage and blood seeped through the wound. "Allow me to finish the rest, Moka. I was the one tasked to resolve this and my honor would allow nothing less."
"Be my guest."
Now injured, the mist had disappeared off the monster's body, but still its form stayed shadowed. A hairy face accompanied the bestial claws. "An Akashita, how fortunate of me."
The Akashita expression warped to concern for moment, before he grew joyous, "Yes. This is what I wanted. A true fight between monsters."
"Be careful what you wish for", Rikuo warned.
Their mutual power clashed around them, making the atmosphere thick. In a flash both were gone. Every swipe of the claw was met by the guard of the blade. Every slash was deflected with long claws. As the duel drew on, the Akashita grew delighted by Rikuo's strength.
Rikuo twisted his body and avoided being gored. Breaking into the monster's guard, Rikuo flashed his power and pierced directly to the enemy's forehead. The Akashita was laid low. A large concentration of power seeped through the wound. The escaping power was inhaled by Rikuo as he grew stronger.
"You, from this day forward, shall follow me."
"Haha. What might. Young Nura, I shall follow you. Allow me to see what path you take." The once foe swore his loyalty to the banner of Rikuo's leadership.
From the depths of his robes, he pulled out alcohol and two small cups, "Come let us share a drink. It is only then that we may call ourselves allies."
As they do as such, Moka watched on amused. Rikuo turned to her with a confidant grin, "What say you? Wish to share a drink with me?"
She laughed at his offer, "It's far too soon for you to think you can capture me."
His smirk only grew, "Don't worry partner, your loyalty and heart will be mine for the taking."
"We will see." She moved in and took hold of the Rosario he had been guarding. With one final movement, she returned it to its lock and her power was limited once more. In a flash of light, she had returned to her previous appearance.
…
Later that night, team NROM was having some team bonding. Thanks to the excess of water Rkuo's new subordinate had, they were able to make a mineral hot spring. Now they all were relaxing in the rejuvenating waters. Its herbal properties hid any features from view.
Floating in the water were trays of cupped dust nectar. A treat amongst monsters. Lifting up his own cup he rose it up in cheers, "To Rikuo's gaining a member for his very own parade of monsters."
The others rose their cups and cheered at his achievement.
"Thanks guys", the man of the hour said with a blush.
"I hope to see this sealed form of yours Moka. It sounds interesting", the blonde leader said easily.
Oska pouted in jealousy. As far as she was concerned, she was all the woman he needed. Her pout broke when she felt the ticklish sensation of one of Naruto's tails poking her.
"Now, now, there's no need to make that face. Seeing new things and making new friends is good. If I stuck to the same things all the time, I wouldn't have ever had the pleasure of meeting you."
She smiled brightly in return. Her anxieties gone for the moment.
Moka and Rikuo were relieved, they weren't exactly in the mood for any literal explosions.
They spent the rest of the night enjoying each other's company under the complete full moon of Naruto's realm.
…
The first day of Beacon education was, in Naruto's opinion, very anticlimactic. Human and Faunus knowledge of the Grimm hadn't improved much over the last few centuries. It was to be expected, when most of their resources were spent on weaponry and defense, information just wasn't high on the list. Still, he found very little worth paying attention to.
Currently, he was pretending to listen to Professor Port's lecture. Losing the will to care, Naruto instead plucked the memories from Port's mind. In the backdrop of the classroom, he produced vivid illusions of Port's adventures.
It was eye opening. As dry as his verbal recounting was, it was quite close to reality. The class was rapt at attention as they saw Port's struggle against a horde of powerful Beowolves. His moves were fast and measured. He and the beasts were just as ruthless and stubborn. While Naruto had seen better power plays, he found the inherent struggle to be enriching.
By the end of the class, every student had gotten up and cheered at Port's manliness. The professor had chuckled good-naturedly. It reminded Naruto why he found humans so thrilling in the first place.
In Goodwitch's combat class, he ended up actually nodding off. Not only were the students not that interesting to watch, but Naruto relearned that he didn't do well in a school setting. It was too structured and one size fits all.
Of course such behavior wasn't accepted by the teacher of the class. "Am I boring you, Mr. Uzumaki?"
Blinking away his sleep, he answered honestly, "A little bit. Sitting around just doesn't keep the blood flowing for me, you know?"
All members of the class were paying attention now. They already accepted that Professor Goodwitch didn't tolerate anything less than respect from her students.
"Is that so? Far be it for me to cause you to sleep. Why don't you get on stage and demonstrate the difficulties of battling outnumbered?" Her voice was sharp.
"Your opponents shall be… Team RWBY", she announced.
"All right, we get some action", Yang cried out in glee.
Naruto cracked his neck and smiled a toothy grin, "I'm fine with that." Getting up to the stage he stretched out his five tails and looked over the competition.
Ruby, the leader, was the smallest of the bunch. A little ball of sunshine that one. Her partner Weiss was the ice queen of the bunch, usually with some sad back story. Blake was in control, or liked to act like it. And Yang was the fun one, always pumped up to go.
"Good luck guys."
"You too", Ruby was the only one to answer back. The others just got ready for a brawl. Well it was good to be focused.
"Match start", the not so Goodwitch stated. Could she sound any less interested?
"Beat them down darling!" Oska yelled loudly as she stood on top of the desk. Rikuo and Moka were more subdued, but just as supportive.
Yang dashed forward with a shout. She quickly unleashed a trio of punches. He took all three shots head on and was only pushed back a few inches. Using one of his tails, he held her by the waist and threw her across the stadium.
"What the heck!" Yang cried out.
Ruby shifted her scythe into gun mode and began to fire down on him. Getting on one hand, he began to spin his body rapidly and was able to deflect the bullets with his tails.
Using the fire for cover, Blake jumped into the air and flung her sword towards his center. So he got off his hand and went straight to the ground, narrowly missing the sword. From the corner of his eyes, he saw Weiss twirl the dust compartment of her rapier.
Rolling on the ground, he moved out of way of Weiss' vertical fire wave. Flipping to his feet, he used his tails to fight off Weiss close combat style. Tail and sword gave off metallic clinks as he kept pace with her rapid thrusting.
Ruby broke into the fight with her super speed and twirled her scythe intricately.
"Whoa!" Naruto cried out as he shot back away from her swift movements. Despite her small frame, she covered her opening with her quick speed. Clicking his tongue, he put his foot down and caught the blade of her weapon by the side.
Before he could gloat, Yang came back and sucker punched him in the jaw, sending him spinning. The class cringed at the impact. "HA! Got you."
Above them, Naruto's Aura readings didn't move an inch.
As his body hit the floor, smoke erupted around half of the stadium. Team RWBY stood prepared for any sneak attacks.
The figure that came out of the smoke shocked all members of the class. With black with red highlights, a red caped male holding a scythe walked shakily. "Hey, that was a cheap shot." The male Ruby wore black high boots with red laces and bottoms. His pants reached his knees and had red straps on the sides. A rose belt hung haphazardly around his waist. The top was suit like with red and black straps closing it.
"Is that supposed to me!?" Both versions of Ruby yelled out at once.
Male Ruby looked over his female counterpart up and down critically.
"What?" Female Ruby asked self-consciously.
Tears ran down the male's face as he cried out, "You're even shorter than me."
She blushed and yelled back, "I drink milk."
He snorted and pulled out a jug of milk and chugged it down. "Obviously, not enough", he said judgmentally.
"Enough of this foolishness", Weiss cried out as she attacked. Spinning the middle of her rapier, she sped herself towards him. Jumping over her, he struck her with the tip of his scythe and disappeared before into a bundle of rose petals before the rest of Team RWBY could open fire.
From there, the girls had a hard time even firing accurately at him, since he would simply use his semblance to move all over the stadium. Ruby was able to keep track of him and used her semblance to catch up with him. As she made a try at her male copy, a male blocked her scythe with a thick sheathe connected to a black wire.
"Need help, Garnet?" The male was obviously the duplicate of Blake. Male Blake wore white pants with black bottoms that turned purple as they reached his black shoes. His top was white from the neck to the chest and shifted black until it reached his black belt. He wore black arm guards that went to the knuckles. On top of his head was a black beanie.
"Hey, Noire. Yeah, I kind of could use it", Garnet chuckled nervously.
Noire sighed before he looked at the opponents. Blankly, he looked at his leader, "I hope you have an explanation for this."
"They're female versions of our team."
"I can see that, Garnet."
"Haha, right. I knew that."
"Wow, their Ruby is just as awkward as ours", Yang pointed out.
"Am not!" Garnet and Ruby called out. Seeing that they spoke at the same time, they pouted at the other.
Noire wasted no time and launched his blade at Weiss with precision. Weiss just barely raised her rapier in defense. Using his own clones, he avoided her barrage of thrusts. "Not good enough Schnee." At point blank range he fire multiple shots. She flew back from the force.
Yang raised her fist and ran at Garnet. With a flick of his wrist, Noire threw his blade around Yang's waist and flung her across the stadium.
"Not again!" Yang yelled out angrily.
"Stand still you doppelganger", Weiss commanded as she stabbed her blade into the ground and shot a column of ice at Noire. Jumping above it, he used a clone to kick pushed him towards Weiss.
Pulling out his katana, he locked blades with Weiss, before pushing her back with his superior strength. "As expected of an arrogant Schnee, all bark, no bite."
"Excuse you!" Weiss snapped at his tone.
"You heard me, at least my team's Schnee has the power to back up his annoying arrogance."
Ruby and Blake turned towards Noire and pushed him back. Using the clones, he avoided a few of Ruby's attacks, but Blake was able to decipher his fighting pattern. Blake sweeps him off his feet, as Ruby drops down for a finishing blow.
But her strike was prevented by a glyph, it pushes both Blake and Ruby away from the fallen Noire. "That is quite enough." The voice is filled with nobility and ice. A white haired male appeared from a glyph. The male Weiss wore an opened light blue dress jacket. Underneath, he wore a black sleeves shirt. His pants were the same pale light blue. Around his waist he wore a belt with dust pellet. A rapier was held firmly in hand.
Coldly, he eyes ran over Team RWBY before he sneered. Catching sight of female Weiss, he snorted, "Are you supposed to be some inferior copy of me?"
"Inferior!? Copy!?" Weiss locked downright murderous.
"Yes inferior. Are you deaf as well? If proper Schnee would've already done a significantly more amount of damage to a duo of fighters, especially if said fighters are outnumbered two to one. Pathetic. I'm shocked that you're allowed into an academy with that sad level of skill."
"That's not nice Eis. I'm sure she'll make a great huntress", Garnet tried to add helpfully.
Eis dismissed his partner and pulled up his rapier. Using a glyph, he nearly teleported to Weiss's side. His speed, power, and technique were superior to Weiss'. She struggled to even hold her footing. "Being pushed back already? What an utter disappointment. I'm insulted that you're my double. For the sake of Schnee pride, I'll finish this battle quickly."
A glyph appeared just behind her. Her eyes widened in shock when a giant Knight came through the glyph. "How?" She nearly choked on the words.
"How? I'm a proper Schnee, that's how." The knight swung its blade at the shocked Weiss and knocked her to the ground. Above, the Aura readings showed her nearly depleted.
"Get off of her", Yang cried as she jumped with her fist clinched. Her eyes burned red.
"Not so fast, sweet thing", a blonde male slammed his fist against hers and shockwave erupted. The two were flung back. This time it was a male Yang. He wore a brown closed coat with an orange scarf. His pants were black and tucked into high brown boots. He wore fingerless gloves and had the same gauntlet. Unlike Yang, he had short blonde hair. "As hot as you are, I can't have you banging up my buddies, see?"
Garnet rolled his eyes, "Gross bro. You're practically flirting with yourself."
"Only Yin could be so narcissistic", Eis muttered.
"Well if that isn't calling the kettle black", Yin replied lightly. "Besides there's nothing wrong with admiring yourself."
"You're not too bad yourself. It's a shame I'm going to have to break that face", Yang declared.
Like that both shot at each other. It was a utter brutal slugfest. Neither gave any inch to the other. Every blow they received, the more the hair caught on fire and their eyes burned. In a matter of 60 seconds, they were an inferno.
"You're going down!" Yin roared. He pulled his fist back.
"Stay still!" Yang roared. She pulled her fist back.
Garnet and Ruby looked nervously to their respective siblings and cried to their teams, "Get down!"
When both of their fists collided, the stage got bathe in white as it exploded. Each of the brawlers were flung to opposite sides of the stadium. Neither were able to move due to being deeply embedded into the stone walls.
Ruby was flat on her back dazed. Blake had been thrown out of the stadium. Weiss had lost consciousness. Garnet was on top of Ruby, dizzy. Noire was hanging by his own wires. Eis was protected by the knight, though it was shattering.
"The winner is Naruto Uzumaki", the Ms. Goodwitch announced. Above the Aura bars of Team RWBY were in the red, while Naruto's was still green, with only a few centimeters taken off.
With that announcement, smoke covered all the male forms and they disappeared. Naruto casually grinned at his team as they cheered for his victory.
…
Lunch was turning out to be nice. Naruto had been able to get a bowl of supreme ramen. His team was properly introduced to teams.
"That was so cool, Naruto. How did you do that?" Ruby complimented. She was far more receptive than her partner Weiss, who simply glared at him every few minutes before going back to her meal.
Taking the time to swallow, he made the laziest most unsatisfying answer he could, "It's my semblance."
They nodded. Team NROM had to stop themselves from rolling their eyes. Modern day people were willing to accept a lot as long as he pointed to a semblance, dust, or a combination of the two. As a certified trickster, Naruto almost felt offended that his answer had been taken so easily.
The teams continued chatting as Naruto focused on his meal.
The peace didn't persist. Team CRDL was marching their way towards them. All of them wore smug looks with condescending eyes. When they reached the eating teams, Cardin demanded attention, "Hey freak!"
Naruto ignored them as he continued slurping his ramen.
"I'm talking to you freak with the animal tails", Cardin sneered.
Naruto didn't seemed at all fazed. His friends however seemed ready to explode. Seeing that he was being ignored in favor of ramen, Cardin slapped the bowl out of the kitsune's hands, spilling all the contents on the floor.
For a brief moment, faster than any of the non-monsters could see, Naruto had an expressions of unadulterated fury. Calming down he sighed, "That was a bowl of supreme ramen with premium topping and just the right amount of broth. And you've ruined it. You have my attention, what do you want?"
"My buddies and I felt like you had to be put in your place. You were getting pretty big headed about combat class." Cardin reached up and grabbed Naruto's collar.
Oska had seen enough, she took the offending hand and twisted it… hard.
Cardin hissed, "Let go you crazy midget." The pressure got even worse.
"I think you should let him go, before you get in trouble", Moka warned, though her expression looked very put off by team CRDL.
At last Oska released him. Cardin rubbed his wrist as he and his team quickly made their leave, "You'll pay for this you freaks."
Pyrrha glared at the boys, "Those are the worst kind of people."
"Are you going to be okay?" Ruby asked in concern.
Naruto smiled far too calmly as he said, "Karma has a way of getting those types back."
Author's Note:
Welcome to another chapter of Monsters Assembled. This was a chapter mostly to lay foundations down. I'm pretty sure I know where I want to go with this story.
Please give me feedback through reviews. That always encourages me. Until next time.
