Outcasts and Outlaws
Volume 2, Chapter 7
Reunited
Been really busy the past couple of days, but now that I've got today and tomorrow off work I should be able to upload a few chapters. Anyway, let's get right to it.
Opening Music: http/youtu.be/W07UEQopVqw
[Naruto ED 32]
Music Starts
(Shows Connor in his white cloak) (Shows Kane in his black cloak)
(Shows Connor in front of a light)
(Shows Kane in front of dark clouds)
(Shows Kane and Connor in a training arena facing each other)
(They run at each other)
NANDO
(Kane dodges a punch from Connor)
TATAKITUKE
(Kane blocks hits from Connor easily)
RARETE
(Kane knocks down Connor with a punch)
MO
(Kane punches Connor in the face) (Connor falls down, Kane punches twice more and Connor falls down twice)
(Kane kicks Connor down to the ground)
AKIRAME
(Connor gets up quickly) rareru (Connor looks at Kane determinately)
WAKA NADO
(Connor readies to run at Kane again)
WANAKU GENTEN KAIKI
(Connor pulls out his katana) GENJITSU TO WA BAIBAI SHITE
(Shows Connor and Kane back to back, Connor facing forward) MUKASHI MITAI NI WAI WAI (Shows Kane's side)
SHITAIKERODO
(Shows Connor and Kane exchanging blows)
SO MO IKANAINARA
(Shows Connor and Kane punching and dodging)
KIRIHIRAITE MIRI YA I
(Shows Connor firing shotgun shells out of his gauntlets and Kane blocking with his scythes)
NOKORI
(Shows Connor flip over Kane using black clouds on his scythes)
RI WAKUZA
(Shows Connor and Kane exchanging blows with their scythes and katana)
NO SHOKI TORIMODISHITE
(Connor and Kane both block their weapons against each other and push)
ME NO MAE
(Kane pumps dark clouds into his scythes)
TOBIRA
(Connor pushes hard enough to break Kane's scythe)
KOJIAKETE MISERU
(Connor tackles Kane)
ITSU DEMO SONA NDA
(Connor slowly tries to get up) WASURA
(Connor and Kane start to get up) GACHINA
(Connor looks at Kane)
KOTO GA (
Connor grins at Kane)
NANIYORI MO
(Kane gets up)
TAISETUNA
(Connor gets up and stands next to Kane)
KOTO DATTE
(random people jump into the arena)
(Connor and Kane run towards them)
NANI GA (Connor pushes away lots of the people)
MACHIUKETE
(Connor jumps to the side)
IYOU TO
(Kane pushes people away and then jumps to the other side)
KAMAWANAI
(Connor and Kane stand back to back)
AMENIMOMAMAKEZU
(Connor takes out some people with his katana)
YAMI NO TERASU
(Kane takes out some people with his scythes)
KONO BASHO
(Connor and Kane stand back to back again)
NA KOKORO
(Jim jumps down swinging his boomerangs)
GA AREBA
(Jim lands and smiles)
KONO TOKI
(Jim fights off some people)
KONO BASHO
(Jim smashes two peoples heads against each other)
NI TSUDOI
(Ruby jumps into the arena smiling) NAKATMACHI
(Ruby hits the ground with her scythe and knocks some people away)
MAWARI
(Connor's hand glows with light) TSUDZUKERU
(Kane's hand is surrounded by dark clouds)
SEKAI
(Connor and Kane pull back their arms, running next to each other) NANBITOTAIRITOMO TOMERU KOTO WA DEKINAI YO!
Flying over the city of signal in a zeppelin like air ship sent by Ozpin, Ruby looked down at the street where the battle had taken place not too long ago, perplexed by the lack of any remains. She knew Kane was powerful, but she hadn't expected him to be able to leave no trace of any corpse. Ruby turned her head when she felt a presence and saw that Jim had walked up to her and was now standing beside her.
As soon as the airship arrived, the medics on board had immediately seen to everybody's wounds, but they concentrated more so on Jim. He had been cut in many places and the doctors spend a considerable amount of time bandaging him up and cleaning him of blood, as well as checking for any infections in the claw marks. Now he was covered in bandages all over, but the way he stood tall and proud made it seem like he'd only been in a minor scuffle.
"It's amazing from up here isn't it?" Jim commented, looking down on the city of Signal as the sun set and the night lights began to turn on. "You live there right?" Jim said, pointing to a house in the outskirts of the city.
"Yeah." Ruby replied, not saying anything else. She'd been an inch away from death so many times in the battle that she felt like she'd never have the courage to fight like that ever again, like all her fighting gall had been used up in one conflict.
"You're a little scarred by it all, huh?" Jim casually said, causing Ruby to look at in confusion. It was like he'd read her mind. Jim simply gave a sincere smile and, his voice croaking a little, replied, "It happens to the best of us, after something like that." He then turned and looked at where Connor and Kane stood on the other side of the airship, looking out of the opposite window. Connor's shoulder had been bandaged just like Jim's whole body and was hanging uselessly at his side. "I bet even he's affected by it, even if he tries not to show it." Jim then commented, looking at his friend with concern.
On the other side of the airship, Connor stood next to Kane trying to think of what to say. He had been so shocked to see Kane again that he had no idea what to ask first, and ended up standing beside him in a long silence until Kane spoke up.
"How've you been?"
Connor didn't expect that from Kane, and looked up to face him, just as Kane was now also doing. Connor thought for a minute and then replied, "All was good until today. What about you? What've you been doing for two months?"
Kane thought for a minute also, as if not sure how to put it, and then responded with, "I've just been roaming around, getting used to having a body again." He then took a deep breath in and exhaled, and next asked, "What's going on with you and Ruby?"
Connor was shocked again by Kane's interest in such a subject, and so didn't fully take it in at first. After a few seconds he replied, "Well, we got together." He then grinned at Kane boyishly and rubbed the back of his head with his hand. "You were right about her Kane, I did always like her."
Kane felt a tinge of happiness inside of him hearing that, and a sharp pull of his heartstrings. He didn't know why it made him so happy to hear that, or even what the feeling was. In all the time he had spent in Connor's head he had forgotten what happiness was, having been overtaken by anger. "Well then, you should get back to her."
Connor stopped grinning at looked at Kane for a second, thinking he looked different. He was still the same physically, but there was something new about him. "Yeah, ok!" He cheerfully responded, before heading over to see Ruby as Jim left her and walked towards the other side of the airship.
Kane payed close attention to the two as they passed each other. He watched their smiling faces, despite all they had just been through. He watched them raise their hands as they passed each other and high five as they walked, making Kane feel that tingling sensation in his heart again. "Is this what it's like to have emotions other than anger?" He thought to himself.
Kane snapped out of his thoughts when Jim reached his side and turned to face him. "G'day mate!" Jim greeted, holding out his fist in front of himself. "I'm Jim, Connor's new best bud!" Kane looked at Jim's fist for a few seconds, as the feeling in his chest died down, before Jim spoke again.
"Uhhh?" Jim said, still waiting for the fist bump. "You alright there mate?"
Kane stopped staring at the fist and looked at Jim's face, then blankly replied, "I'm not familiar with this kind of greeting."
"Oh!" Jim exclaimed, understanding Kane's pause now. He figured that being stuck in Connor's head for so long meant Kane had missed out on some things. "It's a fist bump, you know?! Fist Bump!" He explained, moving his fist forward as an example.
Kane stared at the fist again and then muttered, "Like this?" Before hitting his and Jim's fist together.
"There you go!" Jim praised. "Now we're friends too!"
"Friends?" Kane replied, unsure of what he had done to deserve such treatment from this new person. "Why?"
"If you're a friend of Connor's, you're a friend of mine as well!" Jim explained, grinning proudly, then calmed down and quietly said, "But if you wanna get more friends, you gotta do something about that emotionless tone of yours."
"Emotionless tone?" Kane said cluelessly, in the same emotionless tone.
"Yeah." Jim told him. "I heard from Ozpin that you were a bit of a cold one, but you've still managed to surprise me. If you wanna make more friends you've gotta, smile, laugh, even cry, just show some emotion."
Kane went silent for a few seconds then looked over to Connor and Ruby, who were in a tight hug, and replied, "I've only ever had Connor as a friend though, and to be honest, I think of him more like a brother, so it's difficult for me to be friendly."
"Hey! Would a good brother let you leave and roam around aimlessly for two months?!" Jim joked, trying to lighten the mood and was awarded with a small smile from Kane, who surprisingly likes the the joke. "There's that smile!" Jim exclaimed.
After that, a megaphone sounded across the whole airship, grabbing the attention of all four of the passengers. "Attention." The tannoy announced. "We will be arriving in Beacon in two hours."
"We're gonna need something to do until then." Jim commented, failing to hide his growing boredom. "I'm no good with long trips, I need entertainment."
"I agree with that." Connor said, walking hand in hand with Ruby. "We need something to keep us occupied."
Thinking hard about what they could do, Jim spotted a set of table and chairs in the back end of the airship, nailed to the ground. "We could see who's stronger in an arm wrestle!"
"I don't know about that." Ruby replied cautiously. "You two are still recovering."
Connor smirked smugly and walked towards the table, the other three following him. "I may be a little beat up, but I can still wrestle." Connor assured Ruby. "Bring it on, Jim!"
In a flash both Jim and Connor were sat at opposite ends of the table, hand in hand, ready to start the arm wrestle. "I'll bet my scythes you'll lose." Kane told Jim.
"So what do you want if you win that bet?" Jim asked, wondering what could possibly please Kane.
"Nothing." Kane replied. "I'm only putting my scythe on the line because I'm sure you'll lose."
"Oh, great." Jim sarcastically replied, and then the arm wrestle started. Both Jim and Connor pushed as hard as they could, sweating from the effort.
As a bead of sweat rolled down Connor's cheek, he said, "That's a pretty good arm you've got, Jim."
Jim looked Connor right in the eye, and started to push harder without very much more effort. "Yeah, and I'm not even going all out yet, mate."
Connor took that into account. He was almost at his limit, without Kane he wasn't really all that strong, and Jim looked like her had much more juice left in him. He supposed it was time to resort to other tactics. "Hey, look! It's the copilot of the airship." He exclaimed. "She's hot."
The reaction from Jim was almost comical. He snapped around expecting to see a attractive woman in a pilots uniform, but instead felt shame as his hand was pushed down into the table. "You cheated!" Jim cried at Connor.
"I just took advantage of your greatest weakness." Connor replied, breaking into laughter. He stopped laughing however, when Kane sat down in the chair which Jim had just vacated and held out his hand. "Bring it on!" Connor said, fired up from his previous win.
It was over in a second. The table was ripped out of the floor and flipped over, and Connor was on the ground clutching his throbbing hand. "Did I go a little overboard?" Kane innocently asked.
"That's a serious understatement." Ruby replied, then sighed and helped Connor up off the ground.
Back at Beacon, night had arrived, but that wasn't the only thing.
In the darkness in front of the grand entrance stood a figure in a dark cloak, his hands hidden beneath the cloth. The figure took a deep breath in through his nose, then exhaled and smiled, showing roughly sharpened teeth.
"I smell...revenge."
