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Beacon as Usual
In the midst of the quiet and tranquil Emerald Forest, a lone beowolf crawled through the thickets of grass, moving ever so slowly as it approached its new prey.
In a single swift moment, it uncovered itself from its hiding as it now stood before them, disregarding the danger that came from such an action.
It didn't immediately rush forward, but instead took its time as it slowly moved towards the target, preparing itself for the right angle to pounce at.
Suddenly, the beowolf was immediately on guard as a small orb of light was formed from its prey, the light illuminating the small section of the area.
The beowolf's instinct was telling it to flee, its fur standing from such a demonstration of power, yet… it did not simply turned tail and run, as it refused to flee from a human of all things.
As such, it jumped into the air as it lunged forward, its mouth opened and ready to bite the human.
"HAAAAA!"
Not even reaching close to its target, a white light suddenly engulfed the beowolf in its entirety, and before long, it was unable to see nor feel anything as it disintegrated into nothingness, leaving nothing behind from its quiet departure.
Velvet sweated visibly as she placed both her hands on her knees, exhausted from what she had just performed.
"Hehe, no matter how many times I see it, it's still amazing you know?" Goku said, his voice exuberating excitement from the way he talked.
She then looked towards to her side, where Goku was standing as she remembered the reason the two were in a forest infested by hordes of Grimm.
Of course, the two didn't simply come up here for a simple walk. Instead, Goku had brought her here for a change of scenery in comparison to their usual venue for training, and also to witness first hand at the surprise she had awaiting him.
Needless to say, he was more than thrill to find out that she was able to launch a Kamehameha, and had asked her to continue practice it as he merely observed.
Thus, this is how the last hour went by within the Emerald Forest, with Velvet firing Kamehameha waves left and right while Goku stared at her as he sat on the ground, concentrating fully at the scene before him.
Goku suddenly stood up as he clapped both his hands, grinning from ear to ear as he approached her.
"Alright, that looks like the limit to the amount of Kamehamehas you can fire off ."
"Limit?"
It was a curious thing. Ever since she learnt of this technique, the overall feeling of her aura had been...different so to speak. It wasn't as if her aura suddenly disappeared but it felt like it was changed in a manner, though she couldn't quite pinpoint what that change was.
There was a need to discuss this with Goku, not now at least. She wanted to get a feel of it a bit more before directing such a thing to her friend.
"Yeah, I mean...you probably won't need to fire off that many, but it's good to know how many you can use ya know?"
"Was it the same thing for you the first time around?"
"Oh yeah, definitely. I think I could fire off like two before I get tuckered out. Heh, I remember the times Grandpa Gohan yelling at me for being so reckless or something like that..." he said as his eyes turned to the sky.
"How many did I exactly fired off?"
Although the numbers weren't exactly many, she couldn't remember the exact figure either since she was too engrossed on the technique itself.
"Ten."
It sounded just about right to her. While the first one was the quickest to fire off as it only needed several seconds to charge, the ones after that were much harder to do. Not only did it required more time with each successful wave, it also made her take even longer breaks between each blast. Barring the last one, none of them were able to exhaust her entirely but it was nonetheless strenuous.
In conclusion, while she was able to fire off ten Kamehameha waves, in actual combat she surmised she would only be able to effectively fire off only one.
"Come on Velvet, let's take a break! I have something to talk to ya as well!" Goku requested as he sat on the ground, beckoning for her to do so as well.
Curious, Velvet joined her friend on the ground as she found a nice spot to sit on.
"What exactly do you want to discuss about Goku?"
"Well...I thought up a new training method, but I'm having trouble trying to make it work."
This came out as a surprise, but not entirely unexpected. After all, she had been seeing Goku a bit more absent minded than usual ever since he came back from the mission with her teammates.
Still...
"Could you first tell me what exactly are you planning?"
"Hmm, you know how I can absorb dust crystals right?"
She nodded. She had seen him utilise the technique several times during their time training together. While it held potential due to its destructive nature, Goku had admitted it himself that the opportunity to use it were rare during actual battle due to the time it needed for him to concentrate.
"So, I was thinking of absorbing one of those gravy..grass...ummm, those things that make everything heavy dust?"
"Gravity dust?"
"That! Using them, I might be able to make my entire body heavier."
Now this truly confounded her. What would the benefits of doing such an action bring, it seemed detrimental instead beneficial to getting stronger.
"Goku, how exactly does that help train one's body?"
"By getting used to the strong gravity. See, at first it would be hard, but once we get used to it, there's no way we wouldn't be stronger than before!"
It sounded stupid, even destructive. How could something like that actually make one become stronger? However, the glint in Goku's eyes told her that he didn't just simply thought of this idea out of whim, rather...he had indeed given some serious thoughts on the idea.
Now, he was turning to her for her thoughts on the matter. Usually, she would go along with whatever idea he had considering how experienced he was.
This time, she had to protest his idea, not only for her sake, but Goku's sake as well.
"Goku, if possible, I don't think you should pursue this training method any further."
"Eh, why not? I mean, I still haven't exactly gotten how to absorb the dust entirely onto my body, but once I've gotten better at it, I know — "
"Goku!"
The sudden loudness in her voice surprised him, as he now stared at Velvet, wide-eyed at what just happened.
"It isn't about how you can't get it to work, because I know sooner or later you will. I may have only known you for only several months, but during our time training together, the ideas you put out are effective, albeit a bit strange. Not only that, I've seen how much effort you put into your training, even if you never mention them."
Velvet then snapped her head towards Goku, looking him right in the eyes as she took a step forward.
"But that's also exactly why I want you to stop with this idea in particular. Gravity dusts are dangerous, and rare for a reason. Your absorption technique are explosive in most cases and if you were to attempt a training method like this, then you would need a perfect control of the output of the gravitational force just so that you wouldn't destroy yourself. The entire idea of coating yourself in strong gravity is not only harmful, but also destructive, with the best case scenario being your bones being broken! Maybe...maybe you'll get stronger from it if you are able to endure but at what cost?" she asked, almost pleading.
Goku had no response for her reasoning, because she wasn't wrong. He wanted to reassure her that it would be safe, or that it would be fine just like usual as long as he powered through it. Yet, he could not find it in himself to say any of that to her.
There was a moment of silence between the two, with both of them not knowing how to continue the conversation. That was, until Velvet spoke again.
"Was the one you fought that strong?"
Goku didn't need her to specify who it was for him to understand, as he simply closed his eyes, answering her question truthfully.
"Yeah, and I doubt it's just her either. There has to be tons of fighter just as strong, and I can't wait for me to try fighting them...but I also know it wouldn't be much of an exciting fight with the level I am right now."
In short, Goku wanted to get stronger just so that he would have a thrilling battle?
This line of reasoning would seem ludicrous to anyone who didn't know Goku personally, but if there was one thing she knew him best for it was…
Fighting.
Goku loved to fight, not so much to harm others but to test and surpass himself. In fact, his drive to improve himself was something she had never seen so prominent in anyone else.
But it was also this very drive of his that worried her.
He needed someone to anchor him back, and while she knew she wasn't the most qualified person for it, she was still the only one who had trained with him in the past recent months.
"Please promise me this Goku, under no circumstances are you to ever use such a dangerous method to make yourself stronger," she stated, her tone even as she spoke.
To say it was a surprise would be an understatement to what Goku was feeling at the moment.
"What? Come on Velvet, don't you think that's a bit much? I'm sure that if I get the hang of it..."
"Goku, I'm...being serious. You're my friend, and I never want to see you intentionally harming yourself to the point of no return. I know you love to train, and to fight but what point would there be if you get critically injured during the process?"
What she said made...sense to the young security guard. However, there was one thing he didn't exactly tell his training partner...and it was that he felt different after that particular fight with Raven.
More specifically, he felt lighter.
It was subtle, but he could definitely felt it; his body movement had become a bit faster than before.
He couldn't possibly know what the trigger was to create such a development, but his best guess was because the fight in question had drained him of every bit of his energy.
Nonetheless, he didn't focus too much on it, as he was more concerned with the fight itself. As such, he had been thinking of anything to get himself stronger.
In the end, this was what he considered to be the quickest way to get stronger.
Still, he came to Velvet for a reason, and that was her thought on the whole matter. If it was anyone else, he wouldn't really bother asking like this because none of them had exactly trained with him as much a Velvet had. Eventhough he was still close to Ruby and Yang, they didn't exactly get the whole picture of the training he underwent, unlike Velvet.
He was reluctant, very much so but...
"Okay, I won't do it, I promise."
The bunny faunus breathed a heavy sigh of relief. At least in some small way, she was able to prevent Goku from pursuing such a self-destructive path.
"Haaa...I was really looking forward to training like that too ya know?" Goku said dejectedly as he hung down both his shoulders in disappointment.
"I'm sorry Goku, but it's just how I feel."
At her words, Goku simply shook his head in disagreement.
"Nah, it's fine. I trust you, it's just kinda weird seeing you react like that, ya know Velvet?"
Honestly, this was the first time he had seen Velvet acting like this. It wasn't exactly bad per say, just unexpected, especially so as it came from her of all people.
Velvet didn't know how to respond to that, nor did she know how to continue on with this conversation.
Just then, she felt a vibration coming from her Scroll. Taking it out, she noticed that it was a message from the headmaster of all people.
Although the message was sent to her, but the content of the message made it clear that it was for Goku himself.
"Goku, it seems like Professor Ozpin is calling for you to his office."
"Really? Why couldn't he just tell me that himself?" Goku asked he now stood closer to her, his leaning a bit to get a closer look at the device that was held in her right hand.
"Perhaps it's because you don't have a Scroll?"
"Oh right, I forgot about those things...Anyway, guess we should stop training for today then. Get some good rest Velvet, because I know you're going to need it," Goku said all too happily as he grinned from ear to ear.
She was more than happy to get back as she planned to have a good rest in preparations for the classes ahead.
"EHH!? You want me to what?" Goku screamed in disbelief as he could hardly believe what he just heard.
"Very well, perhaps I shall repeat it again. What I request of you is to write a report. A handwritten report regarding the incident that occurred at the city of Vale just a day ago," Ozpin stated calmly as he took another sipped from his cup, along with Glynda by his side, who was simply observing the whole thing.
"But why me? Can't Oobleck or Port do it instead?" Goku questioned, trying to find any ways out of this predicament.
This time, it was Glynda who answered instead.
"Doctor Oobleck and Professor Port are currently collaborating on their findings regarding the Lycaon and will take some time until the process is finished. After all, it's not often a Grimm as elusive as the Lycaon is seen or fought."
Goku nodded, understanding the reasoning. Still, he couldn't quite figure out why Ozpin had called him of all people to write this? After all, he wasn't the smartest person around.
Noticing his reluctant behaviour, Ozpin decided to speak once more.
"Well, there is another alternative...but I highly suspect you would find any enjoyment out this particular one."
"Really, what's the other one then?" Goku asked, wanting to get out this situation with any alternatives available.
"You can teach in place of Port and Oobleck, I'm sure the two wouldn't mind...and if you could prepare the daily lesson plans, the required teaching aids and adhere to the needed protocol expected of a teacher then I'm sure that classes would be as thrilling as ever. Once one ponders about it, it does sound much more exhilarating than writing a simple report," Ozpin stated calmly, though a hint of a smirk could be seen coming from him.
There were many moments that Goku felt he had been either lost or didn't understand the conversation at hand, but this was the one time he believed he had absolutely no idea what was being talked about.
It was much too complex for his simple way of thinking.
"Oh my, judging from your expression, I take it you would rather go with the previous option?" Ozpin asked, having seen the befuddled expression that adorned Goku's face.
Goku nodded almost instantly. Eventhough he had no heads nor tails on how to write a report, the other option had left him no choice but to accept the hand he had been dealt with.
"Very well then, the deadline is until the end of this week. Are you certain that you'll be able to finish this by yourself Goku?" Ozpin asked quizzically, though his eyes had turned to Glynda, the teacher herself not realizing with the way her piercing gaze was staring at him.
"I mean, I'll try my best but writing and stuff was never something I was ever good at..." Goku admitted honestly, scratching the back of his head.
"If you can't do something by yourself, then you simply need a guidance or two to lead you to the right direction," Glynda explained reasonably, something Goku understood judging from his expression.
"Hey, you're right! I guess the best place would be the...lack..let...library, yeah! See ya guys later!"
With that, the monkey faunus left as he rushed off the door, leaving the two adults once more to their own devices.
Glynda couldn't help but let off a tired sigh as she saw the retreating figure of the security guard, exasperated that the young faunus had misunderstood her.
"You know, perhaps you shouldn't try subtlety when you are offering help to our young friend there," Ozpin stated calmly as he took another sip from his cup.
Glynda merely huffed as she looked to the side, unwilling to let Ozpin to have this one unlike usual.
Weiss Schnee felt tired, having dealt with the everyday grind that came with studying at Beacon. The rather loud and energetic way her teammates carried themselves didn't help alleviate the problem either. Still, it was the same as always despite what had recently occurred at the city of Vale, something of which she still had conflicted thoughts about.
Wanting to get rid of her current train of thought, Weiss had finally arrived at her destination, a place where she would head out almost every break period.
The library.
It was a small area when compared to the other facilities that Beacon Academy provided, and with the presence of Scrolls and access to almost unlimited information, not many students have reasons for visiting here in the first place.
It was because of that Weiss thought it was the perfect place for her.
A place of complete silence, a room of isolation, almost as if cut off from the rest of the world...
Of course, she wasn't there for playing around as she had a lot of study material to cover but basking in the quiet atmosphere wasn't something she didn't enjoy either.
Hmmm, perhaps she was more similar to Blake than the she first thought.
As she stepped onto the cold floor of the facility, the young heiress noticed something quite peculiar going on, or in this case, someone who obviously did not fit into the picture.
Goku.
The security guard was apparently sitting on one of the tables provided, his eyes staring intently at the book in front of him as he held it tightly. Not only that, stacks of books were also placed on both of his sides, something of which Weiss couldn't help but stare at.
Contrary to her usual perception of the monkey faunus, Weiss was much too curious to let this slide as she walked up to him, wanting to find out what was going on.
As she did, Goku did not turn and greet her in his usual manner, which obviously meant he was too engrossed on the material to notice her.
Too bad he was staring at the book upside down.
"Maybe you should hold the book in the proper position before reading it Goku."
Goku looked up from his seat, and was surprised that it was Weiss who was calling out to him.
Upon realizing what she just said, Goku squinted his eyes hard and notice the arrangement of the alphabets were indeed off.
Woops.
Hastily turning the book around, Goku let out a forced smile as he faced the heiress once more.
"Hey Weiss, you're here alone?"
"Considering Ruby and Yang are busy stuffing their faces, with Blake reading by the side...I decided this particular room is somewhere I would rather be."
"Oh."
"The more curious question is why are you here? I'm still trying not to judge others but considering it's you..."
It was perhaps a bit rude, but she knew that the faunus wouldn't mind with how easygoing he was. Now that she noticed it, Weiss realized she had not spoken with him much despite having known him for a while.
"Ahaha, you're not wrong Weiss. If this was any other day, I wouldn't come here at all when I could be using that time to train some more," Goku boasted, almost too happily.
Suddenly, Weiss could feel the glares coming from the other students that presided here. Eventhough they could be counted on one hand, even she could see the strong intensity that was radiating off them, not that Goku took any notice of any of them.
It was a fortunate thing this particular library had no librarian to speak of, considering the presence of an automated system taking care of the matter.
"Right...then could you perhaps tell me why you're here then?"
"Well, Ozpin wanted me to write one of those complicated report that you guys like to write."
She didn't exactly want to correct him. Heck, she could not count on how many of the times she had helped her leader with such a thing, and she somewhat enjoyed it, much to Ruby's disbelief.
So, to see Son Goku, a person who had proclaim once that studying and education were unnecessary for him was satisfying to see as he was currently struggling to do work that required such knowledge.
Weiss let out a noticeable smirk, having found enjoyment out of the faunus's current predicament.
"Hey, you don't have to look so happy about it Weiss," Goku whined, noticing her expression.
"Well, excuse me for finding this situation...hilarious in a way. Nonetheless, how far have you gotten exactly?"
Not even waiting for his answer, she quickly snatched the piece of paper on the table and read through it almost instantly.
The reason why she was able to finish with such speed was due to Goku's writing, or lack thereof.
It was blank, barring the letter of his name at the top left of the paper.
There was a short silence following Weiss's returning the paper back to Goku, with the faunus staring nervously. She then turned her gaze to the stacks of books, taking a glance at the titles.
[How to Write for Idiots]...[History of Beacon Academy]...[How to beat up Yourself!]...
…
Honestly, she was more surprised that one of the books he picked would actually help him out on this task, but even then the writer of the book was one she had no fondness for.
Almost immediately, Weiss quickly got into work as she moved to the bookshelves, taking one book at a time as she proceed from one place to another.
Goku didn't know exactly how to react upon seeing Weiss acting in such a way, for he was clueless on what exactly she was doing in the first place.
After a minute has passed by, Weiss finally came back to his table and place several books in front of him, before she let out a huff as she turned to the side.
"Here are the list of books that are relevant and actually helpful in writing a report, unlike the ones you found."
She still had no idea how those got through to Beacon's library in the first place...were people actually clamouring to read those?
She had no idea nor did she want to know, not now or ever.
"Wow, thanks Weiss! You're really smart huh?"
There was a slight pause in her movement, almost like she was thinking up a response to his praise.
"Of course, I am a Schnee after all. this type of behaviour is expected of me," she seemingly boasted as she turned to the side, whipping her hair into the air.
Internally however, her remembrance of her family had reminded her of one particular parental figure in her life, though she still had not talk much of it to anyone here at Beacon.
Rather, she never wanted to divulge of her personal dilemma at all, not even to her teammates.
Yes, it was hypocritical of her after what she had said last semester, but she didn't want the name of her family to be dragged down even further.
Thus, she would stay silent for the rest of her duration at Beacon Academy.
Moving to another train of thought, she realized something about this whole situation with Goku...
"Maybe it's presumptuous of me to say, but I would have thought you would run off at the first chance at a task like this."
While they indeed had not talk much, she was quite sure she had a good grasp of the faunus's character, and it just seemed a bit uncharacteristic of him to take responsibility, so much so he was willing to go to the library of all places.
"Well, you're not wrong there. If it was anyone else that asked me this, I'm pretty sure I would just ignore it. I mean, I'm not very smart ya know?"
She did not know what to think hearing Goku's gleeful proclamation of his lack of intelligence, but she could not dwell on it as he continued on.
"That's why I'm doing it for old Ozpin more than anything else."
Now this was a surprise to hear. She would have thought that out of the teaching staff in Beacon, the headmaster would be the most distant with him.
So, to see the faunus to treat him almost akin to friend, was an eye-opener to say the least.
It also told her that eventhough he was immature and carefree a lot of the time…okay, all the time. He still would help out the people he considered important even if the task itself was far too much out of his scope.
In a way, she admired that quality of his.
"You hold a good deal of respect for Professor Ozpin, don't you?"
"Yeah, I mean...he's helped me a lot more than I can count!" he replied back happily, his tail wagging in place.
She had no idea why, but she became even more curious upon hearing his words. Thus, she asked openly to satiate her sudden desire to know more.
"Do you...mind if you tell me one of those instances?"
Goku thought about it for a bit, folding both his arms across his chest.
"Sure," he said simply, having thought about it for a bit.
"Hmmm...I guess I can talk about that fight I had with Ozpin..."
Weiss blinked, almost at disbelief at what she heard as she quickly interrupted him.
"Wait a minute, you and Professor Ozpin have fought against one another?"
Unaware of Weiss's expression, Goku merely responded back sincerely.
"Yup. I'm pretty sure it was the during first day I got back to Beacon, and well...because of some things, I had to fight Ozpin of all people."
There was a bit more to the fight than that, but he really couldn't be bothered to explain all the details behind it.
"Well?"
"Well what?"
"The fight, you oaf!"
"Oh yeah, so I lost."
"Just like that?"
Goku nodded, confirming her question.
"Then what exactly did you gain from that fight? It seemed to me that you were utterly trounced by a superior in battle."
Not that she couldn't understand, as she too had fought such a battle, and it was against her older sister, Winter.
It took some encouragement from her sister for her to bounce back from that loss in confidence, though the way her older sister had gone about it was certainly...harsh.
"Easy. I got reminded that I still got a long way to go, and that means there's a whole lot of people stronger out there, even after I went around the world."
Turned out, it was more than true if his recent skirmish had proven otherwise.
"Well, that's just one outta the dozen times he helped out. So, yeah...I owe Ozpin a lot. Since he need my help with this stupid writing stuff, then I'll just try my best to help out, even if I didn't want to at first."
And that was what he honestly thought. Throughout the years he had come across and learn from many of individuals. Despite that, he still felt Ozpin was the one he would consider closest to being a teacher.
The old man had never taught him any sorts of techniques, but instead imparted to him something entirely different.
Life.
For as long as Goku could remember, each and every one of Ozpin's advice were of the way to live.
He may have not been the most attentive, nor did he pretended to understand, but Goku knew one thing for certain, he was grateful for them.
Too bad he was too academically inept to help much in this case, which merely frustrated him to no ends.
Somehow, Weiss could somewhat relate to him...and reflecting upon it, had one thing in her mind.
Goku was stirred out from his current thoughts as Weiss took a seat next to him, grabbing the book from his as she opened it.
"Since I have a bit of time until classes starts, let's see what I can help with."
"Really? Thanks— "
Goku could not say any more as Weiss placed her right finger upon his lips, effectively shutting him up as he followed her line of sight, now focusing on the line of text in front of them.
Lie Ren was a boy that never liked to talk a lot… but that was fine, because he had a close friend that had enough energy to talk for the two of them.
It was a mentality that he held for a long time, and even until now, it didn't seem to be stopping.
"Hey Ren, do you think they keep Grimm meat in the cafeteria?" Nora asked excitedly, bouncing from one place to another despite the two just merely walking to the cafeteria.
Yup, definitely the norm.
"Grimm fade away after death, it would be quite hard to make a meal out of nothing," he answered back seriously, treating her question as an everyday occurrence.
"Oh yeah! But think about it, maybe Beacon has like a secret lab or something that experiments on Grimm...Oh, I get it, it's probably why Professor Port can prepare Grimm for us to take on sometimes during his class!"
It was an outrageous thing to say, but to Ren this was merely the type of conversation they had almost all the time.
In this case, it was best not to respond as Nora would be much more interested on what was happened.
The two then walked into the kitchen, but upon doing so were more than surprised at what they found.
Right in the middle of the table, there sat Goku, who by the looks of it, seemed to be contemplating on something.
This in itself was not a strange thing to see, however, what really caught the two off guard was the absurd amount of food that was in front of the faunus, merely sitting out there, the heat slowly dissipating into the air as Goku was clearly too preoccupied to eat it.
Upon seeing this strange scene, Nora could only think of one thing to rectify this problem.
Eating it all for herself!
Thus, Nora took it upon herself as she immediately dashed off towards the table, intent on gobbling everything on sight.
But just as she started, she felt a stern hand grabbing her by the collar, causing her to fell flatly on the kitchen floor.
"Owh, what was that for Ren!?" she whined as she rubbed the bits of food from her face.
"Goku, are you perhaps bothered about something?"
Finally taking notice of the two, Goku simply turned his head as he gave Ren and Nora a weak wave.
"Oh hey, you guys are here...it's nothing much, just thinking about something Ren."
It certainly gave the stoic teenager an insight to his friend's dilemma, but it was much too vague. if something had bothered Goku to the extent that even food—
"Don't mind me then, I'm just going to be sitting right beside you, eating all the food you left out...I mean, so they don't get wasted am I right?" Nora asked as she slowly slide herself nearer to the dishes on the table.
"Nora, no."
"Nora, YES!"
A tired sigh escaped from Ren's breath as he was a moment too late to stop his partner. There was nothing he could do anymore as scraps of food spluttered into the air due to Nora eating with such vigour.
He had to admit, he had never seen Nora...hungered like this. Perhaps there was—
His line of thought ended just as Ren saw a splatter of the food flying at him. Acting quickly, he grabbed an empty plate from the table and successfully defended himself just in time.
Unlike Ren, Goku had no inclination of doing anything as he simply allowed his entire everything hit by the incoming bits of food, his clothes now dirtied from Nora's action.
Despite this, it didn't bother Goku one bit as he continued to stare at the table.
"Come on Goku, don't you want to eat all this stuff along with me?"
"...no thanks. I'm sure Dandang would be happy see all that being eaten, since she was the one who made it."
"Alright, that's it. I was try~ing to cheer you up, but looks like we gotta do it the old boring way. So, what's eating ya?"
Suddenly, her weirder than usual behaviour made sense to Ren, who should have known sooner.
Years of experience or not, Nora still found ways to surprise him sometimes.
He too, decided to chime into the conversation.
"Nora is right, could you perhaps divulge more about your situation? It's not like we're strangers after all," Ren stated with a small smile.
While they hadn't spent most of their time with him at Beacon due to a busy schedule, but they honestly had no need to considering they knew a lot regarding Goku already.
It might had been a few years, but he was certainly the same Son Goku they had travelled with before.
"Well..."
Thus, Goku explained to them what exactly was troubling him. In short, Professor had given him a task that was most certainly out of the faunus's field of expertise.
"I mean, Weiss helped me out a bit but then she got pretty mad when I didn't know a lot of things," Gokue explained somewhat reluctantly as he let out an awkward laugh.
Yeah, it didn't take more than a minute for Weiss to realize that Goku needed more than a 'little' help. He honestly couldn't tell if the heiress had simply gave up or just simply frustrated when break ended.
Several hours after that, he had found himself walking around the campus, until the head chef found him and upon seeing his troubled expression, decided to cook him up something despite complaining about it throughout the whole process.
After that, Dandang had something to do and left Goku to enjoy himself of the meal in front of him. It was immediately after she left the duo found Goku in the kitchen.
Hence, this particular conversation right now.
Ren pondered on his words, and so did Nora, though she still continued to eat the food regardless.
"Perhaps you could ask for more time from Professor Ozpin? I'm sure he would more than understand," Ren suggested.
However, Goku seemed to be somewhat indifferent to the idea.
"I mean, maybe...but I already promised Ozpin I could definitely do it. Geez, this writing thing is way too complicated, how do you guys even do it?" he asked as he ruffled his own hair repeatedly.
"Dedication. Hard work. Time. It's not too late for you as well Goku."
"Nah. I think I should keep myself to only fighting. After all, it's the only thing that gets me excited! Still, not knowing how to do this is really annoying!" he said in mocked anger, putting both his arms up.
"That's why everyone needs a Ren in their lives, right Ren?"
He simply gave her an impassive look, as he purposefully ignored her. Expecting this sort of reaction, Nora continued on.
"Anyway, why don't you ask someone to write it for you? I mean, it's not like Ozpin will ever notice..."
"Nora. That is not how the proper procedure works. When one writes a report, one must first..." Ren said sternly before continuing on the ethics of doing a good work.
Nora had no choice but to be subjected to his scolding, but took solace in the dishes she could still consume the dishes as she pretended to look somewhat remorseful at what she did.
Hey, Ren might have known how to deal with her but she knew how to deal with him too. It was a mutual relationship the two had for a long time.
Not a relationship like lovers though, they were just friends. Yup, that was all there was.
Meanwhile, Goku was only left even more perplexed at what he was supposed to do. The options that he could take had seemed to widen but it didn't help him much at all.
"Fine, fine I get it Ren," Nora said somewhat annoyed, having enough of Ren's scolding.
The stoic teen merely let out a silent gruff as Nora then turned towards the faunus.
"Why don't you just find a place to think of an answer then?"
"That...is an excellent idea Nora. I know that sometimes one just need to find a good place to think."
"Hey yeah! Thanks for the help, maybe I'll get a better idea on what to do after this," Goku said as he suddenly stood, ready to immediately head out.
Just as the faunus reached the door, Ren called back to him as he gave a suggestion to Goku.
"Might I suggest the roof of the dorms? After all, the imagery of the setting sun is perfect from that position, especially on troubled days."
Goku nodded in agreement, letting out a wide smile as he thanked the two before he left, which left Ren relieved and satisfied.
There was one more thing he needed to do now.
He turned, now facing Nora who still continued to stuff her face.
Just as he started to reprimand her once more, the two quickly felt a certain presence within the kitchen.
More specifically, the head chief, Dandang Milar.
"Alright, lassie. You got five seconds to clean this up before I clean you up," she warned as she cracked both her knuckles.
"You don't scare me! I survived the food wars! This is nothing you hear me, nothing!" Nora proclaimed loudly as she grabbed ahold of a turkey leg, as if preparing for a fight.
Momentarily after the exchange, Ren felt it best that he would do no more to scold Nora, as her scream was more than enough to affirm to him that she had enough for the day.
"AAAAAAAAAARGGGGGGGGHHHH!"
Jaune stood atop of the dorm roof, breathing calmly as he took it all in.
The serene calmness, the view of the setting sun, the feel of the wind coursing through his skin...
He then unsheathed his sword and in one swift motion, slashed at the air repeatedly, swinging each and every one of his hits heavily as he tried to hold his footing while doing so.
After repeating several of the same motion, he placed his sword back into its sheathe as he tried to regain his breathe, clearly exhausted from the short exercise just now.
He still had a long way to go, but he was definitely better than before he started studying at Beacon.
He really owed a lot to his teammates, Pyrrha especially.
Jaune then decided to find a small spot to seat on as he noticed the sun slowly setting down.
While he certainly trained with Pyrrha late in the night, he sometime came here just before the agreed time as he wanted to get in some extra training.
At first, it was pretty boring if he had to be honest. Whoever thought training alone was great had to be lying!
Still, wanted to or not, he tried his best to kept at it...and one of the things that motivated him to continue doing so was the imagery of the sunset.
Yeah, maybe it was kinda dumb since he never appreciated stuff like this...but it was somehow a good motivator for him to train harder than ever, with this image being the reward at the end.
Heh, he didn't exactly like to train by himself but he couldn't help but smile anyway.
Just then, Jaune was snapped out of his trance as something suddenly jumped from below.
Before his eyes could register what just occurred, he fell from his position as someone landed right beside him. Jaune then looked up, trying to get a better look at the individual that had just arrive at his and Pyrrha's usual training ground.
"Oh, you're here too Jaune?"
Jaune smiled wryly as he recognized who it was, and slowly stood up as he decided to greet his friend.
"Heya Goku, fancy meeting you here. Wait, why are you here anyway...not that I mind, I mean..." the blonde teen said awkwardly.
Instead of focusing on Jaune, Goku instead turned towards the sunset, and in doing so, the blonde leader followed along, his eyes now solely trained on the mesmerizing sight.
"This is great as ever huh?" Jaune commented as continued to gaze into the sunset.
"Definitely. Still, I don't think I got any new ideas out of it though..." Goku added in as he placed a finger upon his chin, a bit annoyed.
Hearing, Jaune decided to once again asked what was the problem the security guard had been facing.
"I mean, you mind telling me a bit about it? I might not be the best problem solver but considering how many times my sister came for me to help them out with their problems..."
And so the faunus did, just like he had done with Ren and Nora. After listening to his worries, Jaune could somewhat understand the faunus's dilemma. After all, as leader of team JNPR, he too was subjected to the horrors of doing actual paperwork, something he had never done prior to arriving at Beacon.
"Mmhm, I thought I might have some good ideas if I come up here but so far nothing's coming up," Goku said somewhat dejectedly.
After thinking it through, Jaune believed he might have an idea on how to help Goku out, though how effective it was...
Well, one never knows until they try right?
"Well...why don't you just ask for someone's help, it's never too late, just like when I— " Jaune stopped, having remembered that the particular incident was supposed to be kept under wraps.
Goku didn't take notice of his blunder, having known already. Rather, he thought deeply and reflected upon it as he repeated Jaune's words.
"Someone's help huh?"
"The point is, since you're not very good at this whole report thing. Then, why don't you just ask someone who's better at doing stuff like that?"
"Hey, that's a great idea! Maybe I should ask you then Jaune," Goku suggested, laughing as he now stared at the leader of team JNPR.
Almost instinctively, Jaune immediately put both his hands up, backing away as he shook his head in disagreement.
"Sorry Goku, I would love to help but I don't think I can handle any more work, especially this week," he explained hastily.
This was quite true, especially so since he was also given a task to summarize their recent mission. Still, even if he didn't, Jaune felt he wasn't quite capable of teaching Goku in writing reports since he was struggling with it himself.
"Aww..."
Seeing Goku's dejected expression, Jaune quickly thought of something to say as he tried to cheer his friend up.
"I mean, it's not like I'm the only one you can turn to. There's Pyrrha, Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Ren, maybe even the teaching staff."
There was a momentary pause as Jaune thought his words once over.
"Okay, maybe not the staff."
He didn't personally have anything against any of Beacon Academy's teaching staff, but each and every one of them have their own extreme quirks that Jaune didn't believe it would help Goku on his current problem.
Goku on the other hand, thought the exact opposite.
"That's it! And I think I know who exactly I should ask as well," Goku yelled out excitedly.
Judging by the ecstatic tone in the faunus's voice, Jaune had a giant suspicion that Goku was definitely going to ask one of the teaching staff.
Oh well, at least Goku was back to normal. This was definitely a good thing on his part right?
"Thanks a lot Jaune! Guess I should head out and find that person now."
The faunus turned around, ready to drop off from the rooftop, but just as he reached the ledge, he turned back towards Jaune, confusing the blond.
The suspicious grin Goku now adorned did not bode well with him at all.
"Hehe, I should probably thank you in some way huh? I know, how about we spar for a bit Jaune?" Goku asked excitedly, his fists tightening as he leaned forward.
Jaune, on the other hand, stepped back in hesitation at what he just heard.
Thinking it through, he realized that this was an opportunity like no other. While he had seen the faunus fight before, seeing it up close and personal was another thing altogether...or so he was led to be believed by his friends.
But on the flipside, there was a very good chance of Goku breaking him easily, and that's even with his aura unlocked.
Sure, he had been training but that was only recently. As far as he could tell, he was still a relative amateur compared to his peers.
Still a bit of a sour point if he was being honest.
"Thanks for the offer, but I don't think I can quite take your punches yet Goku," Jaune said, turning down Goku's suggestion as gently as he could.
Goku frowned, disappointed but he reluctantly understood. Still, the young faunus had ideas.
"Eh, that's kinda disappointing...how about this instead, try hitting me as hard as possible Jaune," Goku replied back, almost looking as if he was delighted at the prospect.
"What?" Jaune blurted out, taken aback.
"Oh come on Jaune, it's just one hit. Plus, I want to see how strong you are."
Jaune gulped nervously, but compared to the previous offer, he really couldn't find any reason to say no...even if he didn't understand why Goku was so persistent on the idea.
Thus, he agreed and the two slowly got into position, with Goku standing near the edge while Jaune readied his stance.
He waited...and waited, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Jaune felt unnerved, nervous even because Goku still hadn't changed his posture, the faunus still showing a relaxed expression as he simply observed him with eager anticipation.
Ah, screw it.
Jaune charged ahead as he let out a yell, his sword unsheathed while Goku remained still all the same, not flinching in the least.
Jaune then leapt as he swung his sword in a diagonal angle, knowing in this way, it wouldn't be so easy for Goku to simply dodge his attack.
What Goku did however, completely caught him off guard.
The faunus let out a small smile, something not noticed by Jaune as Goku moved his right arm towards the incoming strike.
Just right before it was about to connect, Jaune felt his entire body stopped in its track as Goku was able to grabbed ahold of the steel of his blade without much hassle.
Due to the sudden halt in momentum, Jaune lost the grip on his sword as he was thrown overhead,
He could see nothing but the blue sky, before realizing he was now falling from the roof.
At such height as well!
Luckily for the blond leader, Goku was able to grab him by the hoodie just in time.
Quickly realizing that the piece of fabric might rip in mere seconds, Goku immediately toss Jaune back onto the roof, the leader's face planting right on the hard concrete.
"Whoops, sorry about that Jaune!"
Trying to shake off the sting, Jaune waved him off as he tried standing back up.
"No problem Goku. At least I didn't fall off, that would be way worse," Jaune replied as he smiled wryly, thinking of the implications of a fall from this height.
"Still, you've definitely gotten better. I can tell!" he praised.
"Wait, you're serious?" Jaune questioned, curious at the faunus's reasoning.
While he had heard similar comments from Pyrrha in their training sessions, Jaune had thought she was merely trying to cheer him up in order for him to stay motivated.
So to hear Goku, the guy who trains the most amongst them all, compliment him like that...
He just had to be sure his brain wasn't just making it up due to a concussion or something.
"Yup. Still, you should probably work on your aim. You weren't exactly in the best position to attack just now," Goku criticized, his eyes on the exact spot Jaune just launched himself at.
The blond leader simply let out an awkward laugh at Goku, who continued to give him a serious look, as if he was analyzing the exchange that occur just now.
"More than anything, you were way too shaken up by what I was doing. Next time, you either want to wait out to see what your opponent is doing, or make up your own plan to force your opponent to respond. You can't get too caught up on someone's attitude in a fight, or you'll be the one who's going to get pressured and get swept up in your opponent's pace."
Jaune gawked at Goku's explanation, almost not believing what he was hearing. Just from that one instant, the faunus was able to discern his problems and weaknesses so easily.
More than anything, this gave a Jaune a newfound respect for the faunus.
"So, you wanna have a battle then?" Goku asked, his cheery demeanour still present.
"You mean right now!?" Jaune yelled out, his voice cracking from his loud voice.
Goku shook his head in disagreement.
"Nah, I mean like when you get stronger. Honestly, you can still get way better at fighting Jaune," he stated simply.
Goku was definitely right on that front. Unlike before, Jaune was actually contemplating on this particular promise. Before, he was nervous and uncertain, but now...now he was sure what he needed to do.
"I'll take you up on that. It's a promise...between friends I guess?" he said hesitantly, not wanting to somehow offend the faunus in some way.
One can never be too sure right?
"Yeah! So you better train a lot of with Pyrrha, then next time we can have a good fight. For now though, see ya!"
Not even waiting for Jaune to question how Goku knew he was training with Pyrrha in secret, the security guard took off as he simply jumped off from the rooftop, leaving the blond leader all by himself.
After thinking about it for a bit, he assumed that Goku merely knew that he was training with Pyrrha because they were partners. With that train of logic in mind, he no longer worried too much about his secret being found out by someone other than Pyrrha.
After all, there was no way Goku knew he faked his papers to get into Beacon, though he had a funny feeling that he was wrong about his assumption somehow.
Disregarding it altogether, Jaune merely sat on the floor, his thoughts drifting back to the short exchange just now as he simply waited for Pyrrha's arrival.
Glynda Goodwitch let out a tired sigh as another day of lessons passed by at Beacon Academy. Normally, she wouldn't be so tired in dealing with children, even if they were training to become huntsmen and huntresses, but today was a strangely taxing one.
Perhaps it might be attributed to one particular staff member.
She could feel a headache coming from the thought of the young man. Truthfully, she had a somewhat small desire to teach him of his current task, yet...Goku simply believed that he could handle it on his own.
Oh, she knew the faunus's academic understanding was far below of what should be expected of a person from his age, having tested him herself during his stay at Beacon.
Though the martial artist never said it outloud, even she could tell that Goku respected Ozpin a great deal, and didn't want to let the headmaster down in any way possible.
It was both endearing, and incredibly foolish considering Ozpin had given him the assignment for a different reason.
Whatever Ozpin had planned; she didn't know despite the many years she had worked with the man.
As she continued to walk across the hall, she suddenly stopped as she noticed a figure...running right at her.
...
It must had been Ruby Rose again, only she could be travelling at such speed.
Eventhough there was an absence of students due to the fact that classes had ended for the day, Glynda still felt she needed to reprimand the young girl for ignoring the rules.
With a flick of her riding crop, the figure quickly came to a halt as her semblance held the individual in place.
Upon a closer look, it seemed she was wrong in her assumption, as the person floating in mid-air was none other than Son Goku, wiggling around as he let out an awkward laugh at his current predicament.
"Hey Glynda, do you mind putting me down?"
She eyed the young man sternly, scrutinizing him as Goku could not look her in the eye for some reason.
Agreeing to his request, she flicked the riding crop once more as it travelled downward.
The effect was instantaneous as Goku felt from one instance he was hanging in the air, and the next...he fell heavily on the ground, his face planting spectacularly on the solid floor as cracks visibly formed from the impact.
Glynda let out a small smirk. It was petty, but she could not help feeling a bit of pleasure from the small action she just pulled off.
"Owh...did you have to do that?" Goku whined as he stood up slowly, rubbing his redden cheeks.
"You have yet to learn the simple act of following the rules, so yes. It was indeed necessary," she said sternly, pushing her glasses up as she let out a glare.
The faunus somewhat flinch from the accusing stare she was giving him, until he finally remembered why he was running in the first place.
"Ahaha...Oh right, it's a good thing I found you then! I was beginning to think you might have gone home or something."
Glynda rose an eyebrow at his words, her interest peaked as the last thing Goku would ever do was to find her by his own violation.
"And what matter was so urgent you were running around the hallway in such a rushed manner?"
"So, ya remember that thing Ozpin told me to do?" Goku queried.
"Yes, I was there after all," she curtly stated.
"Then do you mind teaching me!?" Goku yelled out, leaning forward as he did so.
Glynda was surprised to hear those words coming from Goku of all people, but hid away her bewilderment as she continued to speak in a professional manner.
"I see. However, why did you find me specifically? Surely, the other professors are just as capable of helping you out in the matter."
While she could factually say she was the most experienced in dealing with paperwork barring Ozpin, she too knew that the other members of teaching staff were no slouches either. After all, this was Beacon Academy. Not only do they have students of the highest calibre, so too are the teachers here as well.
"Ehh, Port and Oobleck are busy so that wouldn't work. I don't know the other professors too well so it would be weird. So..."
To sum it up, she was his last option.
Disappointing to say the least, she would never say it outloud but she would have thought the young faunus would at least...
Nevermind. Perhaps he really never could lea—
"But I definitely would ask you first even if I found any of the other professors! I mean, you've always told me off like 'Stand up straight' or 'Chew your food thoroughly'. They're not really anything big, but you've always the one trying to lecture me about something, one way or the other..."
Her eyes visibly widened from his proclamation, as if it was something she would never hear him say.
"So, I don't think there's anyone else that's better at teaching me at writing this report, don't ya think?" he asked sincerely, grinning from ear to ear.
"Does this mean you have a desire to learn now?" she asked, curious of his answer seeing his current attitude.
"I don't like studying, and I don't think I ever will...but if there's someone helping me out, then I'll just try my best, kinda like training."
She nodded, accepting his answer. She could tell, compared to before, the faunus seemed to have reach an understanding of some sort.
In the past, she could have recalled not just hers, but also the various professors' attempts at trying teach him in the ways of academic. However, he had denied them every time.
To see that very same person accepting help and a willingness to learn, she was more than glad because to her, Son Goku was still the little boy that still needed guidance, in spite knowing him for seven years now.
Regardless, she still had an image to maintain. If she softened even for an instance, then he might not regard her as highly.
"Come along then, it would be much more beneficial for you to stay at my place. It certainly would save more time," she explained as she begun to walk, Goku following behind.
"Ehh? Are you sure about that?"
"Just try not to break anything, or you'll be receiving a new kind of punishment that I've been preparing for if it happens," she stated, though her tone changed somewhat at the last sentence.
Goku didn't catch that peculiarity and nodded vigorously at the threat. However, his expression quickly reverted back to normal as he placed both his arms behind his head.
"Still, thanks for the help Glynda!"
"...It's no problem. You can refer to me when if you have any other inquiries. However, I will merely teach, the rest is up to you."
"Got it, so let's do this!"
In his excitement, the martial artist accidentally let out a leap of joy. The problem was, his jump was so high he immediately crashed through the rooftop, causing pieces of debris to fall from the impact.
Glynda simply rubbed the temple of her forehead, sincerely hoping that the young faunus would not destroy her home due to his eccentricity.
Ozpin had a look of intrigue as he stared at the written report atop of his desk, flipping from one page to another as he took another sip of his favourite coffee.
To his right, Glynda merely stood in silence, regarding the headmaster's expression as he continued to read the report, one specifically written by Son Goku.
It was...an exhausting task, having to teach the young martial artist from the ground up. While she had known beforehand his knowledge on academics were lacking, but was more than shock to find out it was only to the extent of the level of a kindergartener.
Still, she took it upon herself to teach him as meticulously as she could, starting from the very basics. At the beginning, it was nigh impossible, seeing as nothing she tried worked on helping him understand the subject.
However, she was able to find a single method, one that was so effective it was actually able to convey the required information to Goku.
Fighting, of course.
Making analogies similar to battles and tactics as she taught was what did it in the end. While she couldn't possibly have crammed the knowledge he had lacked since younger years, she was able to teach him everything he needed to know of for writing a simple report.
Surprisingly, he had been able to absorb it quite easily, almost akin to a sponge absorbing water, but she wouldn't quite call him a genius of some sort.
No, he was still the same as ever, only a bit more knowledgeable, which more than satisfied her.
Hopefully, the faunus would continue on with this kind of attitude.
Glynda was stirred from her thoughts as Ozpin finished reading the last page, a satisfied look in his eyes.
"My, it seems our young friend was able to finish it just in time, and quite neatly if I do say so myself. Glynda, did you perhaps had a hand in this, because I believe I see a bit of similarity between his and your writing style," he asked, carrying a knowing smile.
Like a deer caught on headlights, Glynda looked to the side, not speaking a word. Although she tried to deny his suspicion, it was obviously failing in Ozpin's eyes as he could see the subtle changes in her movement.
He chuckled, having a good guess at what transpired between two. Still, even with help, he was quite impressed by Goku's work. However, there was just one glaring flaw in it, one he noticed almost right away.
"Although, it is quite amusing the names for the leaders of four teams involved in the incident were mixed up."
Glynda snapped her head towards the papers, and upon taking a closer look, realized that Ozpin was right. Somehow, the leader's names for team RWBY, JNPR, CFVY and CRDL were all swapped around, though there was little indication unless someone examine closer, as the handwriting was even and steady, something one would not imagine from the writer.
"I cannot believe that Son, to make a mistake a simple as this," she said in a tone of frustration.
To think, she was certain that he had gotten it right without much problem. Perhaps she should have supervised as he wrote it...
"Calm down Glynda, it's a mistake anyone could have done. Why, I do believe even you forget at rare times, but that's not what's important right now," Ozpin stated as he took another glance at the names of the three leaders.
"Then what, pray tell is more important?" she asked, an eyebrow raise at the sudden interest.
"Because what young Goku did has given me an idea for...an experiment of sorts."
Although Glynda Goodwitch did not understand the inner machinations of Ozpin from time to time, but she could tell more than a glance that whatever he was planning right now was going to be more trouble than it would be worth.
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Welp, a third of a year has passed by since my last updates. Honestly, I can only say that I was preoccupied by …let's say university work, that and my hard drive of my laptop crashing annoyed me for a few days since I had most of my notes for Remnant's Tail in there. Don't worry, I still have the general idea of what I'm going to write, just…ya know, a bit bothered but I'm over it… though I'm definitely sticking to google docs after that ordeal.
So hey, I hope I wasn't left behind because I still want to go through with whatever I'm setting up for this arc, hopefully I don't forget any details while I write.
…What? I just really don't want to rewrite all of the small little things I took notes for, okay?
