It had been some time since Naruto had simply trained.

No spells, no complicated skills, no over-leveled Grimm and no world-ending stakes. Just him, his sword, and his newest victim of arboreal assassination, a nearby tree, old and toughened from years of taking beatings from the people who lived nearby. He was pretty sure that the fist marks that changed in size were indicative of Yang's years of training her hand-to-hand.

He needed to do something to keep his body active as his mind processed a lot of what had happened.

Namely, the topic of conversation over dinner.

"Where do I even begin? I'd had a whole thing prepared, but that kind of seems useless, now."

Tai paced back and forth by the table, before resting his hands on the counter behind him, leaning against it.

"Ruby, I know I've told you that you have the same eyes as your mother."

Ruby nodded, her focus completely on her father. "I figured you just meant that they were a rare color."

"It's a little more than that. The Silver Eyes, they're a legend, a myth. Something I remember Ozpin telling me once was that all myths, all legends, they're all based in truth at least somewhat."

Qrow snorted over the top of his flask. "One of the many pearls of wisdom he had."

Tai nodded. "Amongst other things, Ozpin kept his cards very close to his chest. So, when we were in our third year, he took Summer aside, and explained as much as he deemed necessary to her. Namely, what they did."

"Which is?" Ruby asked, starting to get a little impatient.

"Magic."

The reaction was not what Tai was expecting.

"Magic? Really? Cool. That doesn't really explain what they do though."

Tai frowned. "I kind of figured that might be a little bit more world-shattering."

Qrow laughed. "Nah, Uzumaki's got the System."

Tai's eyes widened as they shifted to Naruto, before shifting back to Qrow. "You didn't think to mention that to me?"

"Nah, I was waiting to see how long it'd take for you to figure it out."

Naruto ignored Qrow, as Tai glared at the drunkard. "I didn't really want to broadcast it to every person on Remnant. I'm still not entirely sure I want to be sharing it with everyone."

Tai nodded. "Good call. I assume Ozpin cleared him, right Qrow?"

Qrow shrugged. "As best I can tell. Seemed clean, though."

"What? Clean? What do you mean?" Naruto asked, head flicking between the two men.

Tai shook his head. "Let me finish before we start pelting me with questions, yeah?"

Naruto leaned back in his chair with a nod.

"Right. Where was I? Oh, yeah, magic."

There was a moment of silence as Tai collected his thoughts. "When Summer told me, I thought she was messing with me. When she turned a pack of Beowolves to stone the next week, I was a little more inclined to believe her."

Qrow let out another laugh. "Tai came bursting into the dorm, sweat dripping down his face, yammering on about how Summer was a witch. It was pretty funny."

Tai glared at Qrow again. "I didn't exactly take it the best in the beginning, I'll admit. Not like the rest of STRQ were all that much better."

Qrow shrugged. "Didn't really change all that much, to be honest. Summer was always the best fighter STRQ had. All it really did was make her more powerful, once she figured out how to use it."

"So, it works on Grimm? What about people? Like how I turned Naruto to stone?" Ruby asked.

Tai and Qrow shared a look. "That, well, it doesn't just work on Grimm. But, it doesn't work on your average fighter," Qrow answered, taking over. "It works on anyone with magic in their blood, too. If it's dormant, it'll slow 'em down a little. If it's active, though…"

Tai nodded. "If it's active magic, it'll work pretty well. Not as well as on Grimm, but still enough to petrify someone. The more magic they have, the more effective the Silver Eyes will be."

"Dormant?" Naruto asked, seeking clarification.

"Yeah, that… that's a whole other thing," Qrow said, taking a swig. "Tai, you remember the speech Oz gave?"

Tai shrugged. "I'll keep it short, unlike Oz. Magic once existed, was prolific. Then, for some reason, it was wiped out, and the only dormant magic was in incredibly rare individuals, for a variety of reasons. Most of those reasons were because of Ozpin, actually."

Naruto shared a glance with Ruby, before turning back. "So you're saying that magic is rare, and even then it's dormant. How does it become active?"

Tai let out a sigh. "More magic. This stuff isn't exactly a science, you know? I don't have a clue how it works."

Qrow took over. "I've only really got a minimal understanding of it, because I have some active magic."

That had Ruby and Yang's attention. "What?!"

Qrow shrugged. "I can turn into a bird. Something to do with the Branwen blood."

Naruto's brow furrowed in thought. "So, magic is hereditary and dormant unless activated by more magic. Who unlocked yours?"

Qrow finished his flask, frowning as he tilted it and nothing exited the top. "Oz. Fourth year, he activated the 'latent magical potential' he called it. Both me and Rae."

Naruto could hear Yang's sharp intake of breath from where he was sitting.

"So she can turn into a bird too?" She asked. Qrow nodded.

"You said Branwen blood. Meaning I've got dormant magic running through me?" Yang was standing, now.

Qrow shrugged. "Maybe. Dunno. Unless the other blondie can figure out how to pour that much magical potential into you to awaken it, we won't know for sure."

"And if she doesn't?" Naruto asked.

"Why are you asking me? I don't know, you'll liquefy her insides?"

That was a mental image that Naruto pushed as far out of his mind as he could as quickly as possible.

"What about my eyes? How did they activate?" Ruby asked, as Ren placed a comforting hand on Yang's shoulder, gently pushing her back into her seat.

"As far as I'm aware, they've always been awake," Tai replied. "You've just never needed them until now."

Naruto shook his head. "That can't be right. I Observed Ruby a while ago, and she didn't have any Mana."

"You what?!" Tai thundered, before a sharp glare from Ruby had him back down. "Sorry. Old habits die hard."

Naruto clarified. "It's an information-gathering skill I have, one of the first ones I got, actually. It shows me HP, MP, SP and AP."

"Which are?"

"Health, Mana, Stamina and Aura. It shows them in numerical values, so I can see exactly how close someone is to running out of breath or Aura, or how close someone is to dying, if the situation came up."

"Is Mana the same as magic?" Tai asked.

Naruto went to answer, only to pause. "I… think? I don't really have anything to base it off."

"Hit me with it, kid. See if I've got any Mana. I should, I'm running hot," Qrow said, turning to face Naruto.

Naruto did as he was asked, Observing Qrow in full detail.

[Qrow Branwen]

[Bad Luck Charm; Level 72]

[HP: 490/490]

[SP: 490/490]

[MP: 540/540]

[AP: 980/980]

Naruto read it aloud, confusion gracing his face. "So Mana is magic, essentially. Why did Ruby show up as not having any if hers was active?"

Tai frowned. "Perhaps they were dormant, then. Neither Summer nor Ozpin ever activated them, but you were able to use them."

"Maybe they activated themselves due to stress?" Naruto offered. "It's plausible, at least. My magic activated itself. I think, at least, but I think I'd remember."

"Way to inspire confidence, kid."

"Naruto, observe me, tell me if I have Mana!" Ruby asked, taking his hand in hers.

Naruto was quick to oblige.

[Ruby Rose]

[Level 35]

[HP: 200/200]

[SP: 200/200]

[MP: 210/210]

[AP: 400/400]

"That raises about as many questions as it answers, to be honest," Naruto muttered, as Ruby cheered.

"C'mon, Rubes, we get it, you're as special as everyone else I stumble across."

Qrow's statement made Ruby pout at her uncle, but her enthusiasm refused to be dampened.

"So, how do I use my eyes?" She asked her father.

Tai let out another sigh. "No idea."

That was what dampened her enthusiasm. "What? You don't know?"

Tai sat back down in his seat from earlier. "As far as I know, the only person I ever heard of who had the Silver Eyes was Summer. Unfortunately, Summer went on that mission…"

The man trailed off as a saddening silence fell over the assembled group.

"So we just have to figure it out ourselves. Doesn't sound too difficult, you've already used them once before."

Naruto's words perked Ruby's head back up in his direction, a small smile on her face.

"Yeah. Did anyone teach Mom?" Ruby asked.

Tai shook his head. "Not that I know of. All I know is that Ozpin explained what they were to her. She figured them out on her own."

Ruby's prior enthusiasm was back in full force. "If Mom could do it alone, then I can definitely do it! She didn't have someone like Naruto helping her, and between the two of us, we can figure out all sorts of magic!"

"So, that's your plan?"

Qrow's words left his lips and brought forth a surprised glance from both nieces.

"That woman is still out there. Other blondie's teammates are out there. I'm headed to Mistral soon. You all need to figure out what your next step is."

The man stood from his seat and stepped out of the room, leaving it as he'd found it.

In surprised silence.

Crocea Mors dug into the wood, sending splinters and sawdust off into the grass.

Qrow had been right. He needed to figure out his next steps.

Pyrrha was somewhere in Mistral, presumably still comatose. Weiss was in Atlas, probably under her father's thumb like she had been before he'd met her, which didn't bode well either.

And Blake, well, Naruto didn't even know where Blake was. He had a few guesses, but he didn't exactly have the wherewithal to simply go on a wild cat chase across Remnant on a hunch.

That wasn't even including what Ren, Nora, Yang and Ruby wanted to do. Yang was down an arm, Ruby had a whole new power to try and figure out with his help, and Naruto wasn't even sure how Ren and Nora were feeling about all this, he hadn't had the time to chat with them, he'd been a little busy.

It was all so much. He missed the simplicity of Beacon already. Class, train, class, train, repeat ad infinitum until he graduated. That would have been so much simpler.

Cinder had put a stop to that. Her reasons were somewhat unknown, but Naruto had a feeling that Qrow knew more than he was letting on.

What to do, what to do, what to do! He was going to be wrestling with this question for hours at the least.

What he would give to not have to make decisions like these. Decisions where the potential fate of the world was decided were not exactly his forte. His forte was more in coming up with effective-yet-flawed plans in the heat of battle that barely worked.

"Hey, Naruto."

He recognized Ruby's voice within an instant, sheathing Crocea Mors and turning to face her.

It was difficult to meet her eyes, now, because she refused to meet his. "What's wrong, Ruby?"

"I…" She began, pausing to shuffle her feet in the grass, the evening breeze bringing a chill to her skin. "We were talking as a team. We've kind of come to a decision."

Naruto had never been more thankful to have a decision taken from him. "What'd you guys decide?"

"Yang's still injured. She says she's fine, but we all know she can't fight at full strength, even when she's fully recovered. She's staying here, for now."

Naruto nodded. "And the rest of you?"

"I'm going with Ren and Nora to Mistral, with Uncle Qrow."

Naruto noticed a significant lack of himself in that statement. "Are you asking me if I want to come?"

Ruby took a deep breath before shaking her head. "No."

Naruto quirked his head to the side.

"I don't mean it as an insult, or anything, it's just-"

Naruto interrupted her by taking her hands, urging her eyes to meet his. "Ruby, just tell me. I promise I won't be angry."

Ruby swallowed, straightening her back. "As a fellow team leader, I think your team needs you."

It was where his mind had been wandering, too, if he was being honest. Leaving his team to the mercy of Remnant while he went off with RRYN seemed almost distasteful, and he was glad to see Ruby agreed.

"You know, if you hadn't told me now I'd still be wrestling with the decision for a long while."

Ruby nodded, wrapping her arms around his chest in a tight hug, head tilted up at him. "Go find Blake, rescue Weiss, and come meet us in Mistral. By the time you make it to us we'll have found Pyrrha, and if she isn't already awake you can use some of that fancy magic to make her better."

The mention of magic brought another issue to the forefront of his mind. "Who's going to help you with your eyes?"

Ruby shrugged, releasing Naruto. "If Mom could do it on her own, I can too. Besides, Uncle Qrow has magic. Maybe that's all I need."

Naruto smiled. "I have complete faith that you'll be able to turn me to stone at will when I get to Mistral, don't worry."

Ruby punched him in the chest, barely fazing him. "Meanie. You know that was an accident."

Naruto laughed. "It's fine, Ruby, I got better."

Ruby's smile turned slightly sadder. "Maybe, while you're in Atlas, you can give Penny's Soul to her father."

Naruto took a seat on the grass, leaning back against the tree, and he urged Ruby to do the same, wrapping his arms around her as she sat in front of him. "You can't feel guilty about that, Ruby. You did what you had to, what was necessary. It was the only option, and you saved my life. You saved a lot of lives. I promise, I'll do what I can to bring Penny back."

Ruby closed her eyes, leaning back into Naruto's chest. "I just wish I could have done more."

Naruto nodded in agreement. "I do too."

The first snow of winter was beginning to fall, powdered white starting to cover the landscape of Patch in clumps of cold, wet slush.

It would never be cold enough to completely cover the island, of course, nor would it be cold enough to bother Naruto, thanks to his Bearskin perk, but it would be cold enough for many of the houses to have smoke belching out of the chimneys atop them, the small town at the center of Patch, located adjacent to Signal, almost bustling with people.

Year after year Patch underwent much the same weather without much change, and this had brought with it a series of habits that were upheld.

What that actually meant was that the well-trodden paths that swerved through the town were always kept clear of slush, locals making sure to keep it passable.

Naruto walked down one of these paths, his coat sitting in his inventory to prevent the coattails dragging across the somewhat moistened ground. He didn't mind his boots getting muddy, that was what they were for, but there was something to be said about dragging mud behind you on clothes that he just did not want to deal with.

The first time he'd come into town it had been snowing, and he'd gotten a few strange looks. He understood why, it wasn't often someone walked out in the snow with the only item of upper clothing being a black shirt with the sleeves rolled up to the elbow.

The next few times he'd gotten far less attention, though there had been one girl who continuously stared at him when she thought he wasn't aware. That had made him chuckle somewhat to himself.

Before the System he'd have never gotten that kind of attention.

It also turned out that the girl was a friend of Ruby's, and when she saw the red-cloaked girl approach him and wrap him in a tight hug, she immediately pouted, before grabbing Ruby's attention.

It was why he was walking alone at present. He still had a few things he had to pick up in Patch in preparation for his own trip, as did Ruby, which was why she was out here with him, but she had the luxury of having Ren and Nora to help her shop. Yang, too, despite the fact that Yang was still going to be staying with her father.

"Morning Hunter. What can I get you?"

The owner of the General Store in Patch was at the counter, a genial smile on his face. He was older than most of the town, easily in his sixties, and he'd made quite a living from being the only store on Patch. Not that anyone complained, Patch was already pretty small, it didn't have the luxury of competition.

"Depends on what you've got in stock, I guess. Don't want to accidentally deprive the town of something if I can help it," Naruto answered with a laugh. "Though you do look like you've got a good selection of drinks back there."

The owner let out a laugh of his own. "Normally I'd say you look a little young to be buying something like that, but you've stuck around to help out after the rest of your lot headed back to Vale. That, and you aren't one of the brats that normally wander in and try to convince me it was their birthday just the other day."

Naruto quirked an eyebrow. "This is a pretty small town. Would that even work?"

"Gods, no. Not that it'd occur to them that their parents probably tried the same thing on me when I first opened this place."

Naruto couldn't help but chuckle at that as he walked over to one of the shelves. "I'm mostly looking for travel supplies, to be honest. I've got some work to do abroad."

The man nodded at that. "Be a right shame to see you go, but everyone's got something they've gotta do. Rations are on the far left, I've got plenty of those. Not exactly ever run out of stock on those things, even with the recent incident. Careful, though, some of those might be from before you were born."

Naruto shrugged. "What doesn't kill you…"

"Gives you severe intestinal pains, don't worry, I'm all too familiar."

Naruto took roughly two weeks worth of rations, placing them on the counter. "These, and a couple bottles of your strongest stuff, if that's alright."

"Strongest stuff, huh? You gonna drink it, or poison someone with it?" The man asked, with a sly chuckle. "I'd be careful with this stuff, it's Vacuon Tequila. This stuff'll knock out an Ursa."

Naruto smirked. "I'll be sure to test that claim."

"That'll be 500 Lien total."

Naruto frowned. "I thought it was more."

The man shrugged. "What can I say, kid, I like you. You've got spunk. Take the deal."

Naruto did as he was instructed, handing the purple Lien card over and taking the stuff, carefully balancing the three bottles atop the rations. "Thanks for the help."

The man waved him out of the shop. "No worries, kid. Good luck out there."

Naruto was quick to stow his newly acquired goods in his inventory, after making sure that no one was glaring at him, and he turned, headed further towards the center of town.

Ruby and her friend had rushed ahead, planning on grabbing something to eat and catching up, and they'd left Naruto to shop, and whilst he had his new items, he still wasn't finished. He had a few things planned, and he wasn't anywhere near skilled enough to make what he had in mind.

He'd done some asking around, and it was Tai who'd informed him that Signal had a tiny laboratory for experimentation in their forge, and whilst, according to Ruby, it wasn't anything special, it would do for what he had to do.

That wasn't what he wasn't skilled enough for, though. No, that had the honor of being second on his newly updated to-do-list.

First was visiting Patch's blacksmith.

The building was a little bit squatter than the rest, made of stronger, more dense bricks and toughened logs supporting a shingled roof, multiple chimneys sprouting from the top, and the smell of metal and smoke wafted from the front door. He could hear the clanging of a hammer from the front, and he pushed the door open, stepping into the warm interior.

Outside it was cold, that was for sure, and despite his resistance to all but the most extreme cold, it didn't mean it was entirely comfortable. It just meant it didn't bother him.

Stepping inside was like stepping into a sauna after a dip in an ice bath. It was satisfying and yet almost uncomfortably warm, and Naruto found himself adjusting his collar, loosening it.

"Aye, can I help ye?" The voice was loud, loud enough to carry over the sound of machinery, and Naruto couldn't help but let out a slight smile as the man that stepped through the door from the workshop matched every single stereotype Naruto could think of.

"Ye gonna stand there and look daft or ye gonna tell me what ye want?"

"Do you know anything about leatherworking?" Naruto asked.

The blacksmith shrugged. "Sure. I'm better with metal, o'course, but I can do leather if it needs doin'. Why?"

"I need a saddle made."

The man quirked a bushy black eyebrow, wiping sweat and soot off of his face. "What do ye need a saddle for? Ain't any horses on Patch."

Naruto shook his head. "It's a Semblance thing. Did you watch the Vytal Tournament?"

The man let out a hearty guffaw, placing his hammer down on the counter. "I knew I recognized ye from somewhere. Ye got all those beasties under yer control, right?"

Naruto nodded. "Yeah. A few of them can fly, but it's pretty hard to ride them without something like a saddle."

The blacksmith nearly made Naruto laugh aloud as he nodded, pulling out a set of half-moon spectacles and balancing them precariously on his large nose that looked as if it had been broken at least twenty times, peering down at a ledger on the counter. "I've got some supplies, sure. I'd have to measure 'em, though."

"Shouldn't be a problem. They're tame, so they won't attack or anything. Can the measuring wait until this afternoon?"

The blacksmith shrugged, putting the glasses away. "Sure. Come get me whenever ye ready, boy."

Naruto quickly thanked him and stepped back out into the cold, still somewhat unnerved by the fact that he could feel the cold, but he wasn't feeling cold. It was just like wearing a blanket of chill air.

Number two on his checklist could wait, though. He'd just spotted Ruby.

Classes were still on in Signal, and Naruto couldn't help but laugh as Ruby lead him through the corridors, dodging a horde of small first-year students that barely came up to his chest. Even Ruby was taller than them, which she seemed to relish.

"It's weird, you know? I never went to a Combat School, so seeing this place… I doubt I'd have ever made it through a place like this."

Ruby looked back to Naruto. "You'd have done fine, Naruto, don't be so hard on yourself."

Naruto shook his head. "I only made it into Beacon cause of the System. Without it, I'd probably have died in Initiation."

Ruby tried to counter his point, but he interrupted before she could speak. "It doesn't matter either way. I'm here, everything's already happened. Can't change the past."

That, Ruby accepted. He wasn't feeling self-pity, it was more like he just realized how outclassed he'd been. His decision to try and get into Beacon before he'd gotten the System just seemed like even more of a stupid idea as every day passed him by. He'd been foolish.

Now, though, he could try to fix his mistakes.

"It was nice to catch up with Astra, though," Ruby said. "Though she kept staring at you. Kinda weird."

Naruto quirked an eyebrow at his girlfriend. "Pretty sure she was checking me out, Ruby."

It was strange not being the densest person in any given room.

Ruby made an 'oh' sound, realizing what had happened. "So it was like super-awkward when she realized I was dating you?"

"Pretty sure that didn't stop her, to be honest," Naruto said with a laugh as Ruby opened one of the doors, ushering him through.

"Yang and Astra always did get along pretty well," Ruby admitted. "How am I still this oblivious?"

Naruto shrugged. "I mean, it took literal divine intervention to help me out. At least you're not as bad as I ever was."

Naruto made his way to the nearest lab setup, opening his inventory, as Ruby stepped next to him. "Divine intervention?"

"Has to be something like that, right? I mean, you don't get a semblance without Aura, except I did. So, it can't be normal. Plus it gives me magic, so we figured it was some kind of powerful magic."

Ruby nodded along with his words.

"I… when I was petrified, I had a kind of dream. It was weird, and difficult to explain."

Naruto placed one of the bottles of tequila on the table, much to Ruby's surprise. "No, Naruto, you don't need to drink to help you remember. Pretty sure that the opposite happens."

Naruto rolled his eyes, before continuing on. "I was in this room, except it wasn't really a room. It was like this endless expanse of white. A voice spoke to me, a few did. They told me they were the previous wielders of the System."

Ruby's eyes widened. "Did they tell you anything else?"

"Only that they all had different gifts given to them by the System, and that the System was the power of the Gods."

Ruby put a finger to her chin in thought. "Huh. I don't know what that means."

Naruto shrugged. "Neither, really. I've been thinking about it, but I don't really have a great way of checking if I'm right or not, so even if I was, I wouldn't know."

"Putting that aside, why do you have a bunch of alcohol?"

That was a question that Naruto did in fact have an answer to. "Alchemy."

Ruby's deadpan glare was enough to make him continue explaining. "All the alchemy I can do requires an item called Alchemic Reagent. I can make Alchemic Reagent with alcohol and Inert Dust."

"How much alcohol, exactly?" Ruby asked, eyeing the three bottles.

Naruto shrugged. "No idea. I've never made it before."

"So you're doing chemistry without knowing anything about what your mixing?"

Naruto shrugged a second time. "I know what it's going to make, if that makes any difference."

Ruby took a step backwards.

"Ruby, it isn't going to explode. I think."

"You aren't really inspiring confidence."

"Only one way to find out," Naruto retorted, taking a handful of Inert Dust out of his inventory and placing them next to the bottles of Vacuon tequila, as Ruby eyed them warily.

His brain went on automatic as his hands followed the mental instructions, first pouring roughly an eighth of one of the bottles into a beaker, followed up by sticking an Inert Dust crystal into it and placing the beaker above the burner, as Ruby took another step backwards.

It only took a few seconds before the liquid and the Inert Dust mixed together, and Naruto quickly took the beaker off its stand, pouring the powder out onto a piece of filter paper.

Ruby stepped back closer to look at the Alchemic Reagent as Naruto placed his hand over it, closing his eyes.

A single moment passed and a brief flash of light escaped from underneath his hand, and when he revealed it once more it was a single orb, sparkling in the light.

"That was strange."

Ruby's words snapped Naruto back to reality as he realised he was finished. "Yeah."

He peered at the orb, picking it up and rolling it between a finger and thumb, noting that it was completely spherical. "No imperfections…"

"What can you do with it?" Ruby asked, tilting her head slightly.

"Well, I can make a bunch of potions, and other alchemy thingies."

"Alchemy thingies doesn't exactly sound technical."

"Yeah, I know. The reason I made it was so I could try and make this…" Naruto turned, reaching into his inventory once more and pulling out five Beowolf Claws, dropping them into the beaker and once again placing it above the burner, dropping the Alchemic Reagent in with them.

Ruby hadn't backed away this time, and she watched alongside Naruto as the claws melted down into a blackened sludge, the orb disappearing into it.

The sludge bubbled under the heat, but Naruto could see it shrinking down, leaving only a trace as it slowly hardened around the Alchemic Reagent.

Then, after a few seconds, it was completely solid, leaving only a crystalline structure inside the beaker. Naruto quickly tipped it out into his hand and observed it.

[Nigredo]

[A black crystalline compound used in a variety of applications.]

Naruto knew of one application, that was for sure. One of his latest skills, Beastial Bound Evolution. The only thing was he didn't know if he wanted to use it on all his summons. He knew there was a quest that would get him Sentient Bound Evolution, and for some reason he knew that if he used one skill he wouldn't be able to use the other.

"Decisions, decisions. It's always tough decisions with me."

Ruby looked at Naruto as if he'd gone insane. "Naruto, you're muttering to yourself again. You kinda look like Weiss at the beginning of the year, actually."

Naruto quickly explained, and Ruby looked just as indecisive, but as opposed to the blond she at least had an idea. "Why not just pick one Summon that you're guaranteed to want to be Beastial, and go from there?"

That was something Naruto could do. "I'm going to make a few more of these things first, use up all the alcohol. Might as well."

It didn't take all that much time, and Naruto had twenty-three more Alchemic Reagents. Vacuon tequila was strong, apparently. He'd also gone from Crafting Level 10 to Level 11, which was nice.

There were unfortunately no new unlocked recipes that came with that level, but that was fine. He hadn't expected any.

"So, back home?" Ruby asked, as Naruto quickly finished cleaning up, placing the freshly rinsed beaker back on its stand and double-checking the burner was turned off.

"Sounds like a plan."

"No, Cadejo, down boy. No, Zwei! Get off the table!"

Naruto and Ruby shared a glance as Yang picked up the corgi in one hand and placed him on the ground, already having to push Cadejo back as he tried to get the food on the table.

"Having some trouble, Yang?" Naruto asked, an amused expression on his face.

"Oh thank the Gods, can you get Cadejo to stop trying to eat our lunch? I can handle Zwei but two is a bit much."

Naruto clicked his fingers and Cadejo quickly padded over, Ruby kneeling to scratch behind his ears.

"You weren't going to eat our lunch, were you Cadejo?" She asked, holding the wolf's head up to hers.

Cadejo panted.

"Ugh, dog breath."

Naruto laughed. "To be fair, you had that coming."

Naruto stepped aside and summoned Shirdal, watching as the griffon congealed into a solid form, letting out a low caw.

He reached into his inventory and withdrew the Nigredo, holding it in one hand as the other came to rest on Shirdal's head.

He could feel the latent power flowing through one arm and into the other, channelling through into Shirdal as Beastial Bound Evolution activated.

He could see Shirdal growing even bigger, the bone plates growing denser, the foreclaws becoming sharper.

Shirdal chirped, and it sent a reverberation down Naruto's spine as the Nigredo shattered and faded, becoming ashes in his hands.

He could tell both Ruby and Yang were looking in his direction, but it was Nora that surprised him the most.

"What is that?!" She shouted as Naruto released his connection, the newly improved Shirdal taking a step back and giving his wings a tentative stretch.

"That'd be my first Beastial Bound Soul," Naruto answered, as Nora admired Shirdal.

"I must say, it is quite impressive. And large."

Naruto could always rely on Ren to get his point across in the required amount of words.

"Large? It's the size of a building!" Yang exclaimed.

Naruto shrugged. "Large is relative anyway."

Nora whipped her head around. "Can I ride him?"

Nora had read his mind. "I'm actually going to get a saddle made. Patch's blacksmith is coming up to do some measurements this afternoon."

Naruto took a seat at the table that had been moved outside, grabbing some food. "Hopefully all goes to plan and Shirdal doesn't eat him."

Nora was too busy admiring Shirdal to join in on the three stares that were aimed his way.

"I'm kidding."

His rapidly raised placating hands seemed to dismiss their concerns, and Nora, at the sight of food, was quick to place herself in a seat, somehow already halfway through her plate of assorted foodstuffs.

He never ceased to be impressed by Nora's capabilities when it came to sustenance consumption.

They fell into conversation, as they often had times past, but Naruto still found himself looking over his shoulder occasionally, seeking a teammates input.

It was so easy to forget that they weren't there. That they were missing, they were injured, they were taken.

He felt his hand clench into a fist, and he suppressed a sigh.

At least he knew what he had to do.