In response to a guest review that mentioned the gorilla Grimm being done in volume 4, I'd like to point out that the volume 4 trailer was leaked after the chapter when the OC Grimm appeared. Either way, it should work itself out with what I thought up.
Disclaimer : I do not own One Piece or RWBY.
Rebirth of the Straw Hat
Chapter 21
The six stared at the Ursa Major that made a hostile entrance with wide eyes. They could only assume that their previous aggression must've attracted it towards them.
The innumerable spikes decorating it just shows how experienced it is, showing that it is not to be trifled with.
Team CRDL were cowering in fear of the huge beast. Relying on their fight-or-flight instincts, the entire team fled from the cliff and into the thicket of trees, leaving Jaune and Pyrrha who just stood back up from narrowly evading the first strike.
The Ursa scanned the two, but thought it would be troublesome to engage in combat with someone who would retaliate. So it opted for turning around to pursue the group of cowards.
"What?" Jaune wondered in confusion as the Grimm left the two alone. Pyrrha seems to understand why though.
"Jaune, it's going after the easy prey instead of prey that fights back!" Pyrrha informed her leader.
"Cardin and his team." Jaune figured out after a little thought, but noticed the shadow on the ground moving in the same direction as where the others took off.
This prompted him to look up and spot something flying. Pyrrha followed his sight and barely saw the small speck in the distance, unable to get a proper observation of the creature.
The only thing she could gather was that its size was smaller than the Ursa, that much she's sure of.
"Looks like something else is after them. Come on!" the blonde commanded, earning a nod from his partner.
"What do you think that thing in the sky was?" Pyrrha inquired as she was still perplexed by what she seen.
"I don't know, but I'm betting that it's another Grimm we haven't seen yet." Jaune theorized as he did not having a lot to go on either. A Nevermore would've been easy to notice, but it doesn't have that same threatening size. So he could only narrow it down to something unheard of so far, like the B.K in initiation.
They continued following the trail of disturbed debris caused by the chase until they found a clearing containing Cardin's team as well as the Ursa Major.
The two caught sight of Cardin tripping over a root, forcing him to fall. His team, however, never took note of this as they proceeded to leave him behind.
The fallen huntsman turned to face the creature as he pulled up his mace in a pathetic attempt to shield himself from a blow. The Major approached and swatted his weapon easily, making him completely defenseless. The only thing he could use to block the next strike was his own arms.
He did so, but the bear Grimm landed a wild swing that sent him flying across the field. Cardin skipped a few times before laying in a heap, groaning in pain as he is vulnerable to another attack. The Grimm capitalized upon the chance and proceeded to end his life... only to be stopped by someone else as its paw was about to make contact.
The bully managed to recover from the daze only to be left speechless as Jaune stood between him and the Ursa.
The very person that he caused so much torment to during their time in Beacon.
The boy was barely holding on as his knees buckled from the force when he used his shield to block the attack.
"Jaune!" Pyrrha called out as she was fixing to enter the fray with Milo and Akouo at the ready.
"Wait!" Jaune ordered as he finally pushed the Ursa off of him.
Pyrrha stopped in her tracks and was a bit befuddled at being told to hang back. She didn't have to wonder why for long, though.
"That flying Grimm is still around. You have a gun, but I don't. I need you to watch the skies for it while I kill this one." Jaune explained to his partner.
If they both ganged up on the Major, chances are that the airborne Grimm would pick them off with their backs turned.
Not to mention that Jaune has no way of engaging in long range combat.
With slight reluctance, the redhead nodded in acknowledgement. She couldn't come up with any arguments to counter that. Besides... she needs to have some faith in Jaune and believe he can do this.
Pyrrha holstered her shield as she switched her spear into its rifle form as she scanned the skies for the unknown Grimm. She spotted a figure in the air before it nosedived below the roof of tree leaves.
The redhead tensed as she heard the sounds of tree branches falling to the ground, forcing her to turn her attention to the source of the sounds.
Something swiftly passed through the edge of the clearing unhindered, making a beeline towards Pyrrha. Her eyes widened at the speed before she ducked to avoid what looked like a blade. Pyrrha turns around and lets loose some rounds, only for the attacker to land feet first onto a tree before it sprung to the side to evade the bullets.
The three humans now got a proper look at the entity when it perched on one of the branches, but were left in confusion of what it is.
"W-what the hell is that thing!?" Cardin voiced their thoughts in panic.
The newcomer was a cross between a human and a bird. It stood a foot taller than Pyrrha and looked humanoid with its slender frame aside from the bird-like features.
It had hind legs and talons for feet with bone armor coming just below its knees. The head had a mask of bone armor just like any other Grimm, but this one is formed in the shape of a hawk with black wispy feathers at the back. The chest area is clad in armor along with its arms which are coupled with claws. At its tailbone lays some black tail feathers.
The most striking feature was the pair of wings being twice as long as its forearms protruding from said forearms. There also seems to be a sharp blade on the edge of its wings.
Pyrrha just realized what its intentions were when it charged at her. The creature's wings were at the same level as her neck, which would imply it aimed to decapitate her before she could react.
Good thing she was getting adjusted to Luffy's speed in Second Gear.
"I think I'll just call it a Harpy, even though they're fabled to have the face of a woman." Pyrrha named the Grimm, now known as the Harpy.
"If you say so. That thing looks really fast and nimble. It would be worse if it could fling its feathers at you like the Nevermore." Jaune said, causing Pyrrha to widened her eyes in alertness.
Just like he said, the Harpy cawed before swinging its arms. The action created a small volley of feathers rained down on the Mistral fighter, to which she evaded by rolling to the side. Jaune chuckled sheepishly as Pyrrha scowled at him.
He just had to jinx it, didn't he.
Luckily, the spread isn't as wide ranged as the Nevermore's, but she'd do well to avoid taking one anyway.
Realizing that he took his attention of the Major, Jaune turns his head to see the beast attempt to pound him. The blonde was startled as he jumped back before he charged at it upon landing.
The Ursa Major jumped clear over Jaune, proving that it is far more mobile. The boy was caught off guard by this until he felt a slash on his back, sending him rolling across the ground.
Jaune righted himself mid-roll as he stood back up.
Great mobility and hits like a truck... yeah, perfect combo for something of that size.
The two stood still, waiting for other to make a move. Deciding that nothing will get done by just analyzing each other, Jaune lets out a war cry before rushing towards his opponent.
"Come on, Weiss! We already did what we're supposed to do. Can we please hunt some Grimm? Pretty please~." Ruby begged with her puppy dog eyes, earning no response in return.
The heiress' eye twitched in annoyance as Ruby continued to pester her like a little kid. She's been acting like this ever since they left the onyx haired duo, and it's starting to drive her up the wall.
"I don't see a problem. We did get the jars of sap, and Blake handed me hers before she found Luffy." Yang gave her approval on the matter.
They got what they needed, and there was still some time before the trip was over. It was only a matter of time until Weiss relents to Ruby's desire to hunt.
The white haired girl lets out a sigh in exasperation as it turned to a two on one.
"Fine... once those two come back, we'll comb through the forest once." Weiss surrendered while pinching the bridge of her nose.
Ruby cheered at the thought of finding some Grimm prowling around. Hopefully Glynda didn't slaughter all of them.
Yang clapped her hands together and offered a prayer.
"Oh gods. If you can hear me, please bring Luffy and Blake to us as soon as possible." the blonde prayed, earning a scoff from Weiss.
The trio returned to their starting point to find Ren and Nora just standing around. The two seem to have a worried expression, which is surprising to see from the hyperactive girl.
Even though she didn't believe it would come true, Weiss looked around to find no signs of Luffy or Blake.
"I'm sorry, Yang. But it seems like your prayers-" Weiss was cut off from finishing her sentence when Luffy cratered the ground upon landing in front of them.
"We're back, guys!" Luffy cheered as Blake slowly climbed off of him. She was a little shaken up by the sharp drop when Luffy told her they were going to land. The hidden faunus didn't realize that Luffy had no such plan for a softer descent.
The heiress blinked owlishly at them, knowing that Yang had a shit eating grin behind her.
"Hey Weiss, my prayers were answered." Yang noted smugly. Weiss glowered at her teammate for rubbing it in.
Ignoring the exchange, Ruby looked worriedly at Blake who was stiff from the scare.
"Uhh, Blake? Are you alright?" she asked.
"Y-yeah... just had to hold on to dear life as I felt my beating heart try to leap out of my throat." Blake assured her as she tried to calm her heartrate down. Ruby winced as she gave a silent apology for Luffy's recklessness.
Not a bright idea for first time flyers.
Luffy looked around the place as he placed his two jars of sap near the rest, but found no signs of Jaune or Pyrrha.
"Where's Jaune and Pyrrha?" the straw hat boy asked the other two members of team JNPR. The two debated on telling the one that was most likely being a target of Cardin's vengeance, but decided to tell him.
It's not like they were supposed to keep it a secret, anyway.
"Jaune was under the assumption that Cardin was scheming something against you. So the two went to investigate." Ren informed him.
"But it's been so long since they left. It's taking every bit of my willpower to not eat any of the sap." Nora complained, only to lunge at one of the jars. Ren foreseen this and held the jar away from her while keeping the glutton at bay with his other hand.
A bellowing roar was heard in the distance by the group, putting them on guard. Some more than others...
"Finally, some stupid Grimm to kill! Lets go find it, Ruby." Luffy offered, to which she agreed wholeheartedly as she unfolded her scythe. The rest sweatdropped at their eagerness.
Before they could move, the members of Cardin's team darted out of the brush in panic.
"There's a huge Ursa!" Russel shouted as he ran, only for Yang to stop him.
"Where?" she asked in urgency, seeing as there are three missing students that aren't with them. Russel pointed back to where they came from with a shaky hand.
"Back there, and it's got Cardin!" he told them. Ren and Nora looked to each other, mentally thinking that their friends are caught up in this.
"You left Shardin with a big bear?" Luffy presumed calmly, causing the mohawk man to stiffen. He already took notice that their leader isn't with them, showing that their leader somehow fell behind.
Everyone turned to him as he leveled a glare on Russel.
Luffy grabbed him and pulled him down to make eye contact, his glare still present.
"W-what else were we supposed to do? We can't fight something like that." Russel argued, but yelped when Luffy's grip got tighter.
"That's no excuse to leave your own comrade behind!" Luffy shouted at the man before releasing him. Russel only continued his previous attempt to run to safety. The others were left stunned as he lectured the coward.
"As much as I would like to see Luffy tear them a new one, we need to hurry. There's something flying around, and I know it's not a Nevermore." Blake informed them.
The thought of two Grimm fighting together seems to fill them with dread.
"Ren and Nora. Get professor Goodwitch," Ruby ordered in Jaune's place.
"We'll go with them." Yang stated as she gestured to Blake and herself.
Ruby nodded before looking over Luffy.
"Lead the way since you can tell where they are. BUT..." she emphasized to make sure Luffy knew it was important. The others were curious as to what she wanted to tell him.
"I call dibs on the flying Grimm." Ruby claimed.
Her claim to kill the Grimm caused everyone except Luffy to facefault.
"Why does it matter who kills it!?" Weiss berated.
"Because I'm so freaking bored!" Ruby snapped at her partner, causing the heiress to flinch at the high volume invading her ears.
After a bit of thought, they realized just how little they fought Grimm. The young leader must've been feeling very anxious about using her Crescent Rose to slice Grimm in two.
All they have ever done was train and spar, but it doesn't allow Ruby to actually let loose.
"Alright, I'll let you have it." Luffy agreed without so much as an argument.
He already got to kill the gorilla Grimm in initiation, so he would let someone else have their fun.
His cousin beamed at the approval before Luffy sprinted through the woods, causing her to start tailing him with Weiss in tow. Everyone else took that as their cue to accomplish their tasks.
Ren and Nora were already ahead of the other two, seeing as it is a matter of getting help to their teammates as soon as possible.
"So, how was your trip through cloud nine?" Yang asked with a teasing grin as she wanted to make small talk. Blake rolled her eyes at the question.
It didn't take a genius to tell how they arrived.
"Scary, but the view made up for it." she simply answered. The view was incredible, but it was frightening when you could slip off and fall.
"Sweet." was all Yang could say.
Things fell back into silence as Yang contemplated on what to talk about before they find Glynda.
"Did you talk to him about anything?" Yang urged on.
"Not really. He just mentioned Mt. Corvo, that's all." Blake told her.
"Oh, that place. I honestly don't know why his grandpa thought it would be a good idea to have mountain bandits raise him." Yang muttered offhandedly, causing Blake to quirk a brow in confusion.
Luffy grew up with a group of mountain bandits even though he still had his grandpa.
...What?
"Like... if you want him to be a marine so badly, then why have him live with a bunch of criminals?" Yang ranted to herself in irritation, questioning the old man's logic.
"Why couldn't he just live with his grandpa?" Blake inquired as her curiosity perked up again.
"First off, he's a Vice Admiral of the marines. And secondly... Luffy is scared of his grandpa." Yang said plainly. Blake was stuck in disbelief at the statement.
"The one person that we know that can stare down against creatures that want to end humanity without fear... is scared of his own family?" Blake stated in a dry tone. Yang chuckled sheepishly at the statement.
"Honestly, I'd be scared of him too if he nearly killed me on so many occasions. As a seven year old no less!" the blonde commented. At the very least, she does understand a little of how Luffy ended up with his endless will to live.
Yang looked over to her partner to see that she's simply dumbstruck.
"Insanity must run in the family." Blake muttered with Yang nodding in agreement. She'd rather leave the close death experiences out of her mind to save herself from the cruel imagery.
One things for certain... it's something that a little kid shouldn't be thrown into.
A sudden realization hit Blake as she thought about his family lineage. His grandpa is what she would assume to be a high ranking officer of the military in his world, and his father leads an anti-government faction.
'That is one hell of a lineage.' she thought to herself. Although it might be a bit of an understatement in her opinion.
Things have been going back and forth for Jaune and Pyrrha.
The boy was barely managing to evade the heavy swings from the Major, but not lucky enough to land some hits of his own.
The same thing could be said about Pyrrha's fight since the Harpy keeps using swift hit-and-run tactics to make sure she couldn't counterattack. Every time it passed through, Pyrrha is forced to evade with barely any time to attack back as the Harpy enters the foliage and out of sight.
Cardin was busy hiding behind a tree as he lost his nerve.
The Major Ursa did a low sweep with its paws to try and trip Jaune. He jumped over the swing easily, but had to raise his shield as he received a heavy hit while he was stuck in the air. Jaune flew across the field until he slammed into a tree, splintering it.
The boy stood back up, although his legs were feeling weak. Given that the Grimm never show signs of fatigue, he wasn't going to last much longer.
The Ursa didn't make a move, almost as if it was taunting him.
Jaune risked a glance over to his teammate to find out that she's having a hard time herself. But Pyrrha is starting to react faster as the battle drags on.
The very moment that she heard a rustling sound, the Mistral fighter turned to the source to find the Harpy making another pass with its wing blade. Pyrrha takes a few shots, but the Harpy barreled around them without losing speed.
The redhead leapt over the creature before she took her shield and threw it like a frisbee, making contact with its lower back. The Harpy cawed in pain before it started tumbling across the ground. It got back up on all fours as it contemplated its next move, its stare filled with rage.
It swung its arms to launch another volley of small feathers. Pyrrha deftly deflected some of them with her spear, but some of the strays carved into the tree Cardin was hiding behind.
The bully could do nothing but scream like a girl as the projectiles buffeted his hiding spot, causing the two to sweatdrop at the not so manly reaction.
After the volley was over, Pyrrha was left unprepared for the sudden charge from the Harpy. Its clawed hand was stopped by her spear as it tried to clamp it around her throat.
'It figured out a bypass through Aura!?' she thought as she struggled to keep the appendage at bay.
Even if it protects you from physical blows, Aura can't protect you from suffocation.
The Harpy's hand was slowly pushing ever closer to her neck so it could squeeze the life out of her. For a Grimm with a slender body, it sure has some surprising strength.
"Pyrrha!" Jaune called out in panic. His mind was racing with any feasible way to bail her out. He failed to realize that he left himself wide open for the Major Ursa to attack.
Just as the bulky arm descended upon the blonde, a wall of ice sprung up between the two. The defensive wall held as it took the brunt of the blow.
"Wha-?" Jaune looked baffled by the sudden appearance. A gunshot was heard before the Harpy cawed in pain, the bullet nailing into the holding arm's bicep.
The struggle faltered, giving Pyrrha the chance to push it aside and stab at the Harpy. The creature tilted its body to dodge the pointy weapon and hopped away from her.
The humanoid bird Grimm turned angrily at the intruders to find Ruby, Weiss, and Luffy. Ruby immediately rushed at it with her semblance while her scythe was prepped for a swing, forcing the Harpy to back away and fly up to a branch.
"Are you two alright?" Ruby asked as she kept her gaze on the Harpy. Pyrrha and Jaune nodded their heads while the redhead recovered from the power struggle.
"We heard Jaune scream earlier, we thought you guys were in trouble." Luffy stated, causing Jaune to quirk a brow in confusion. The straw hat boy would know that kind of scream anywhere.
It reminded him of all the times that Jaune desperately tried to avoid his punches during their training.
"I did?" Jaune asked as he racked his brain to recall ever doing that.
The only scream that he could remember was... Cardin's. Jaune widened his eyes as he realized their mistake. He was about to speak up, but Weiss spoke first.
"I don't think Pyrrha would have such a feminine scream like that, so it had to be you." Weiss narrowed down the possibilities. Pyrrha widened her eyes at the misunderstanding and decided to speak in her leader's defense.
"You got it wrong. That was Cardin that screamed, not Jaune." Pyrrha corrected them.
Unfortunately, it failed to convince the two.
"It's alright, Pyrrha. You don't have to try so hard to protect him from embarrassment." Weiss comforted her, except it had the opposite effect.
Pyrrha winced when she saw Jaune hang his head in depression, as if he just gave up on the argument. Only the three of them know the truth, although Cardin would deny the claim.
The sounds of the ice wall cracking brought them back to their main problems.
Right, they still had two Grimm to deal with.
Luffy and Ruby finally focused their attention on the appearance of the new type of Grimm perched on the tree branch.
"Awesome! That thing kind of looks like that snow bird lady!" Luffy noted with starry eyes as he recalled Monet. The only differences were the face and the clawed hands in which the snow woman didn't have.
Ruby turned to Pyrrha with starry eyes, as if begging to take the fight off her hands.
"Can I kill this one?" she asked cheerfully, earning a sweatdrop from Pyrrha for her enthusiasm.
"Uhh... sure, I guess. From what I gathered, it's like fighting a small Nevermore that doesn't shy away from close combat. It also has some experience fighting people with Aura, seeing that it tried to strangle me instead of tearing down my Aura." Pyrrha informed her fellow redhead.
It discovered an efficient method of killing someone that has a protective Aura at their disposal, and it will possibly try to use that knowledge again.
Ruby nods her head in acknowledgement before she approached the Harpy.
"So that just leaves us with that?" Weiss wondered, gesturing to the Major Ursa getting close to breaking through their defensive barrier.
"I'm still its opponent." Jaune declared, not willing to back down from his one on one duel. Weiss was about to rebuke the idea until Luffy stepped in.
"That's fine. You don't have to worry about Pyrrha now. Just worry about the enemy in front of you." Luffy advised as he agreed to letting him fight on his own along with Pyrrha, to which Jaune smiled back in gratitude.
In all honesty, Jaune was very worried about the battle. Not only did they have a strong Ursa, they also had to deal with a Grimm with an unknown behavior. It was Pyrrha's first time fighting a Harpy as well as his if he fought it, so they wouldn't really know what to expect from it.
All this caused him to lose focus on his own fight and nearly died.
A new feeling of adrenaline sparked in Jaune as the Ursa shattered the ice wall keeping them apart.
He rushed towards the huge bear, feeling a bit faster than normal. The Major slammed both of its paws down, but Jaune managed to jump on top of one of the appendages before landing a few cuts.
The Ursa swung its arm to rid itself of the pesky blonde, to which Jaune righted himself before landing as the beast charged at him.
Instead of a frontal assault, the Ursa jumped over him and clung to the tree behind him. Its heavy weight knocked over the tree, but not before it leapt off of it.
"Figured you would try to do that again." the knight muttered as he dive rolled to avoid the crushing body slam. Before the bulky Grimm could get up, Jaune plunged his sword into its elbow, causing the Ursa to roar.
With all of his strength, he tightly grabbed the pommel before he twisted his sword while its still buried in its limb. This resulted in a sickening squelch and an agonizing wail from the creature.
Pyrrha and Weiss felt a shiver go up their spine while Luffy just stared on passively.
"Wow, he broke its arm with his sword. He's stronger than he looks." Luffy pointed out the obvious, making the two feel nauseous.
Even if it's a Grimm, it didn't save them from the imagery of having your joint wrecked like that.
Jaune pulled out his weapon, unfazed that he caused a disturbing wound.
The Ursa attempted to swat him with its only working arm, only for Jaune to jump back. It spun around and backhanded the boy with its limp appendage, sending him skidding across the ground.
Jaune panted heavily as he stood back up, holding a staring contest with the Major Ursa. The bear's broken arm dangles limply like a noodle.
The sight is forcing Pyrrha to use every ounce of willpower to hold herself back from assisting him. Luffy seems to take notice of her anxiety.
"Don't worry, Pyrrha." the said redhead turned to him.
"He's not going to lose. He won't let himself stumble here." Luffy reassured her, causing Pyrrha to smile at the amount of faith he has towards the blonde.
"Aren't you concerned about Ruby?" Weiss inquired.
Speaking of which, it seems as though Ruby took her battle within the forest judging by the sounds of gunfire, possibly using the trees to her advantage.
"Not at all. I believe she can do it. Ozzy brought her here early, so he must think that she's strong enough to take on that new Grimm." Luffy reasoned with a toothy grin.
The two sweatdropped at his logic. Sure, early attendance to Beacon may speak volumes of her skills, but it might be too much to assume that she can take down an unknown Grimm on the first try.
The Ursa took its chances and charged toward the blonde in what seems like a final attempt to kill him.
"I won't let you stop me here. Not when I'm just at the beginning of my reformed ambition." Jaune declared as he glared at his foe. His will was subconsciously projected outward in the form of a familiar, yet sporadic wave that was felt by everyone present.
Luffy's eyes widened in shock of the sensation while Pyrrha and Weiss were left in confusion. Cardin passed out on the spot. The Grimm slowed to a halt as it stared at the boy curiously.
Luffy is very certain of what it is since he felt it time and time again with every clash.
Haoshoku Haki (Color of the Conqueror King)
His gaping face morphed into a face-splitting grin at the shocking revelation. Granted it's not incredibly powerful, but it proved enough to be noticed by the Major Ursa.
The distraction gave Jaune the ample time to rush in and slide between its legs. He quickly turned around and jumped on the creature's back, using the spike protrusions to hold on.
The Ursa started to flail around in order to throw him off, but to no avail as Jaune held strong.
'Come on. All it takes is one good idea, and you're as good as dead.' he thought to himself hopefully. It was only a matter of time until the Grimm decided to do a very obvious maneuver, given its size.
The large beast jumped and tilted its body with the intention of crushing the blonde knight between it and the ground.
This proved to be the lucky break Jaune needed as he scaled its backside until he reached its shoulders. He sprung off the shoulders and pointed his sword down towards the Major Ursa.
Now the positions have been switched with Jaune looming over the bear Grimm instead of the other way around.
Just as the Ursa crashed onto the dirt, Crocea Mors pierced into its throat. It lets out a death cry before it went limp.
The corpse evaporated shortly after, leaving an exhausted Jaune standing.
"Shishishi, that was awesome Jaune!" Luffy encouraged, breaking the silence. Weiss stood stunned at how the he actually managed to pull it off. Pyrrha gave a soft smile at his triumphant victory.
They rushed to his side as his adrenaline subsided, sudden fatigue washing over him. Pyrrha caught her partner before he collapsed.
"I... feel... so tired." Jaune panted. Wanting to get answers about the recent events, Weiss began to inquire the boy.
"Where in the world did you get that kind of strength? What was that you just did to make it stop in its tracks?" Were some of her questions, although the blonde seems to be too tired to answer them.
"Look, Weiss. Let him at least rest up before we ask him anything." Pyrrha requested for his sake. He just finished fighting for his very life and was in no condition to talk at the moment.
The heiress sighed as she accepted this, only for one of the questions to be answered by someone else.
"Conqueror Haki." the raven haired boy said, garnering the two girl's attention.
"Jaune unlocked Conqueror Haki. That's how he stopped that bear. He just didn't realize that he did." Luffy informed them, shocking the three.
"That would explain the pressure I felt earlier." Pyrrha recalled the experience. The boy's body went limp from exhaustion, forcing the redhead to lay him down with his head resting on her lap.
"We'll check up on Ruby, okay? The others should be here soon." Luffy told her, earning a nod. Luffy and Weiss left the clearing in search of the young leader who is possibly still in combat.
Pyrrha watched them vacate the area for a bit before looking down on her sleeping leader. She brushed some stray hair with a tender hand.
'I really need to step it up. I've been too easygoing as of late. If those three hadn't shown up...' Pyrrha thought grimly with a frown.
Her confrontation with the Harpy proved that much to her. She was overconfident in her abilities, and that almost got her killed. If she wants to be the best that she can be, then she needs to start putting in a 110% into improving herself.
After all, she also desires to defeat Zoro someday. Her defeats in the tournament only made her want to become as strong as him.
'Even if you don't see me as a rival, you're still the milestone that I wish to surpass.' she thought with renewed determination.
End of Chapter
I've decided to have the Ruby vs. Harpy fight get its own chapter, sorry for those that wanted to see that. For those that are curious about the OC Grimm's appearance, it closely resembles the harpies in WoW.
I think after chapter 25 is uploaded, I'll close the story poll that's been going on since chapter 15. Which ever order it ends up as is the order I'm sticking with.
Please leave votes and reviews for feedback.