Chapter 6

Initiation time, yay :D.

Yasuo couldn't help but marvel at the architecture of the school as he was pushed down a crowded path by the many students behind him. At every turn he was met with grand archways, lush fields of grass. The fountain at the centre of the courtyard shot water high into the air, shimmering droplets splashing into the crystalline pool. That, however, did nothing to quell his annoyance at the realization that he was, in fact, weaker than most likely every single student here.

It hadn't been obvious at first. Yasuo had thought he would easily triumph over anyone he had to face of in combat, but upon being dragged to his feet and towards the shower room by Ruby, powerless to resist, he had noticed the sheer physical strength that these people seemed to posses. It only did more to confuse him, acting only to validate Ozpin's claims more. He comforted himself in the knowledge that he had been recognized for his incredible talent in swordsmanship by the best of masters in Ionia.

None of that stopped the unreasonable bubbling of nervousness in his stomach.

Today was the day of Beacon's initiation, where candidates were to be determined to be worthy or not of the academy. Granted being stuck here wasn't a wish Yasuo had, but if he failed… He wasn't sure whether Ozpin would take that as a sign to carry on with what he might as well have threatened?

It wasn't a risk Yasuo wanted to take, and by extension, he couldn't fail whatever task would be set for him. His hand settled on his blade, fingers curling around the handle. A determined look was set on his face. There was no reason to worry. He would succeed.

It was at that moment his eyes caught a red blur to his left, but before he could react in any other way than tense is muscles, a small body slammed into him. An undignified 'OOMPH' left his lips and his hands scrabbled at whatever was now crushing his waist.

"Hi Yasuo! Yang said you were supposed to hug friends so I hope you're doing well today!"

How the the two points of the sentence had any relation to each other escaped Yasuo eliciting a sigh.

…

Ruby left a couple of minutes later, apparently having spotted the golden hair of her older sister. And in all honesty, by that time to amount of cheerful yattering that she had shot at him was enough to make him feel his teeth were rotting.

By this time he was standing on the edge of Beacon's cliff. He had to admit that the view was quite marvellous, the ledge overlooking a beautiful red-and-gold forest hundreds of meters below. Him and the other participants were currently stationed on metal plates of a metallic silver colour. No one seemed to have an idea as to what their purpose was but everyone had decided to take one each, since there were more than enough for each person to occupy.

He himself was stationed between two strangers. Taking a cursory glance to his left, there was a black-haired girl with a peculiar weapon at her side. Like many students at Beacon, she was also dressed in an almost nonsensically colour-coded outfit of black-and-white. Well, at least it wouldn't limit any movement in combat. To her right was another girl with flowing red locks. Her gold red ensemble of armour was more practical, but from what he could see still covered a shockingly less amount of flesh. She noticed his gaze, smiling politely and waving, to which he responded with a nod.

A coughing drew his attention, and Yasuo turned around to see the duo of teachers standing immediately behind him. It alarmed him, how soundlessly they could move, without disturbing the air in any detectable way. That was also something he needed to investigate. Not being able to have any forewarning of enemies wasn't going to work out well for him.

"Welcome, students." It was Ozpin's assistant. Glynda, if he wasn't mistaken. She was dressed in the same clothes he had met her in that day in Ozpin's office, and still had that stern expression of hers on. Evidently she didn't seem to have taken a liking to Yasuo, but she seemed professional enough to not cause him to worry about any trouble from her.

"If I may have your attention, the headmaster will now brief you on the initiation." She continued, pushing her glasses up and narrowing her eyes. What chattering there was left quickly died out.

Ozpin's cane tapped on the ground as he spoke. "For years, you have trained to become warriors, and today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest."

Hushed whispers broke out, and Yasuo swore he caught the excited squealing of Ruby somewhere further to his left. Again the muttering was quickly put out as Glynda continued on. "Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of "teams." Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates... today."

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well." This time it was the headmaster to speak. The two teachers had evidently practiced this, or at least have gone through it many times. What was impressive was that their sentences melded together seamlessly, as if spoken by the same person.

"That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years…"

Well… That was unexpected, to say the least. How was this method to put together teams to work? He knew that each individual relied on their teammates heavily, especially in combat, when having someone to watch your back was vital. Pairing people together with a system this random didn't seem like it'd do well in putting the teams together with the best synergy. And judging from the shocked gasps that erupted throughout the students, most agreed with him.

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path... or you will die." That wasn't something to worry about. Maybe it was meant to cow the weaker of people, perhaps give some a chance to quit right now. Not like Yasuo had that option anyways. At this point he wouldn't have backed down no matter what. Cowardice was not something he had been brought up to respect.

"You will be monitored and graded through the duration of your initiation, but our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one and return to the top of the cliff. You will guard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately. Are there any questions?"

Ozpin's words were followed by a series of head shakes and muffled 'no's. Yasuo caught varying expressions of fear, excitement, or just nervousness. His own hesitation, however, was gone, replaced by the quite serenity of oncoming combat.

"Yeah, um… Sir?" One student, however, had raised his right arm. He looked to be one of the latter type of students, left fidgeting nervously at his side.

The headmaster nodded. "Question?"

"I've got, um... a question. Yeah you just said that, sorry. So, this landing... strategy thing... Uh, wha-what is it? You're, like, dropping us off or something?" The teen hedged, eyes beginning to take a panicked edge as the white-clad girl he'd seen yesterday was shot into the air with a lout SPROINNNNGGG.

"No, you will be falling." The headmaster responded with an almost smug tone, and Yasuo swore he could see the boy's lanky frame begin to shake.

"S-so…" The student tried again, only to be cut off with a startled yelp as Yang and Ruby took of consecutively, the former being launched with a jovial "Wooh-hoooooo!"

More students took to the air, moving downwards the line towards Yasuo. He tugged on his blade, making sure it was secure, and forced his tense muscles to loosen in preparation for the likely great force about to be extorted upon them.

He resisted the urge to laugh contemptuously as the evidently cowardly student spoke out again. This time, there was a clear edge of panic rising in it. "So, what exactly is a landing strategYYY!…"

The poor blonde didn't get to finish his sentence. Hopefully he didn't die. He thought he heard the redheaded girl two to his right letting out a concerned gasp, though.

But that was none of Yasuo's business.

Short chapter. This'll be it until next chapter, in which I've decided to put him on a team of, hmmmm… OC's. Wink wink though, and props later on to whoever can guess who Yasuo's team actually is.

Oh, and as always, PLEASE tell me about any spelling/grammar errors you see. I hate having those in my stories...