Hunting or Bust

by Master Attlon

The paths we find ourselves on. Are they predetermined by fate? Or do we really have the power to change our future? Will we stick to the paths we find ourselves on? Or if a chance presented itself, would you take it? This is a new path. A new chance at life. A...did that kid just spew chunks all over the deck? Yes. Yes he did.

91. Steps Forward

Hunting or Bust

Dust 86: Steps Forward

Big day! Big, big day!

((((((((Hunting))))))))

Things had been rather tense in the Belladonna household and Blake knew it was because of her.

She adored being back home. After all this time traveling alone it was a relief to be in one place, reunited with her parents, and even with a trusted companion like Sun. It should have been comforting being welcomed back to a home like this.

But it wasn't right.

Even though her parents accepted her back and greeted her kindly, they hadn't cleared the air yet. There was so much left for her to say and make up for. Until she did things were still unsettled, and for the life of her she couldn't understand why they could accept and be around her after what she had done.

And things with Sun were particularly tense.

Since they had arrived on Menagerie he had stuck by her side and promised to help her see things through. Whether that was meeting her parents again after all this time or figure out whatever it was the White Fang could be planning. They were both understandably wary of the Faunus organization on Menagerie, and them hiding information as well as employing a former extremist member and a Noble Guard put them on edge.

But now Blake was having doubts about her suspicions. How much of it was really founded and not just her fear and paranoia carrying over from Beacon? Was she only doubting herself now because Yagura spoke up and said something? Was that part of his plan or was he just warning her as a fellow Huntsman? Was it wrong for her to be cautious and wary after coming back from the destruction of a city?

As her mind raced, memories of the school falling, people crying, and Yang being dismembered in front of her eyes came back to mind. And when they did, she realized she had to stop and step away before she was overwhelmed by it again.

But Sun was adamant that they were doing the right thing. That they couldn't stop now. Which had led to some arguments and grievances between them. And now even holding a conversation together was a masterclass in glaring and silent looks.

Unfortunately her father had read this as Sun agitating her in some way and was putting up a united front against the blond boy.

Blake, Sun, and Ghira sat quietly around the table as the sound of the ticking clock broke the silence. The young cat Faunus looked over at her father nervously as he glared Sun down, the monkey boy frozen in place and not even daring to swallow under his scrutinizing gaze. He finally mustered the courage and coughed, "S-So hey, can I ask-"

"No."

"Okie-dookie." Sun clammed up immediately from Ghira's terse words and sat like a statue.

"Oh, are the uncomfortable games still going on? Have they crowned a winner? Or more appropriately a loser?" Kali pondered, walking in with a bag in hand as she chuckled at the tense atmosphere, "I'm going out for a bit of shopping. Would anyone care to join me?"

"Does that mean I can leave this spot?"

"Of course Sun."

"I'd like to come!"

Sun immediately jumped up and rushed through the hall, passing Kali and heading for the door in a rush. The older woman giggled at his goofy behavior and looked back in, "Blake, would you like to join us?"

"Um, I think I'm good actually so..." Blake looked up and saw her mother's disappointed expression. She floundered and buckled under that pining look before she finally folded, "Okay, I'll come."

"Wonderful!" Her mother cheered as she stood up and followed her out, "We'll be back soon, Ghira! Make sure your face doesn't stick like that okay?"

Blake, Kali, and Sun made their way down the marketplace together. Kali stood between her and Sun, both teenagers either looking ahead or aside but not towards each other.

Her mother was probably exasperated by their petulant attitude, but decided not to touch the subject as she asked, "So Sun, how are you liking Menagerie?"

"Oh it's cool. This place is so beautiful I can barely believe it. It's weird seeing so much life and green on an island like this. It's nothing like Vacuo, Vale, or Mistral." The young Huntsman excitedly answered before rubbing his stomach, "Although if we're being honest my stomach is having a hard time keeping up with the new diet. All the fruit, vegetables, and fish have kinda turned it into uh…well-"

"Sun!" Blake chided her friend before he could say anything inappropriate.

"A mudslide?"

"Mom!"

"What? We all do it." Blake shook her head as Kali chuckled, "Sorry you have to acclimate to the new pallet like that, but we don't have much other meat or variety on the island. The other animals we keep are used more for their milk and eggs, so since we have such a better opportunity to eat fish we do the most with it that we can."

"So do you guys never eat steak or pork or anything like that?"

"We do of course. Or, well, we did more often before the communications went down. When the CCT was still up we had to have supplies like that imported from Mistral. But now that it's down we have to send a team up to make the purchase, wait for the supply chain to find its way down, and make the trip over the sea here. It's a much slower process than before."

Blake looked at her mother, "Is there no schedule?"

"It's so nebulous now that we can only have a general estimate of when the shipment might come. There was supposed to be a shipment in sometime last week so - oh." Kali paused as they crested the hill and looked out, "Ask and you shall receive I guess."

Blake looked out and in the distance a new ship had docked into the port. Even from here she could see the crowd of people forming around it. Probably vendors and shop owners looking to get their hands on the first new supplies they could.

"Uh," Sun leaned in, "You can't use some of your leverage to score us a few treats off of the new supplies, could you?" He meant it partly as a joke and partly as a legitimate question, but when he saw the accusatory looks the Belladonna women gave him he stood up and nodded, "Right! Of course not! That would be immoral! J-Just testing you two!"

Blake rolled her eyes before they started making their way down to the port. As they got closer Blake could hear the overlapping voices of all the people trying to get the attention of the people on the boat. Asking questions about what was being brought over and in what quantity.

Most of the people moving the boxes off were keeping quiet and not answering them. But there was one who gave some kind of response-

"People! I'm sorry but I don't know what's in these things!" The woman clarified as she staked two crates together before leaning and popping her back, "I didn't even know why we're helping move this junk! We're supposed to be security, not labor!"

"It's just unloading inventory. Stop complaining." A man, a white-haired wolf Faunus, answered while walking down the ramp with another crate, "The faster we help unload this stuff the sooner we can move off to Vacuo."

"Man, when we get there I'm gonna sunbathe and relax and make the most of it."

"Spoken like someone who has never been to Vacuo."

Blake felt a tinge of nostalgia hearing two Hunters bicker and snipe at each other like that. It reminded her of Beacon in a way that didn't immediately make her regret thinking about it again. The woman was probably just trying to strike up conversation out of boredom while the man-

Wait...

She'd seen him before. A faint sense of déjà vu rushed over the young Faunus as she watched the wolf with spiky white hair and half-masked face walk back up the ramp. Wasn't he-

"That's enough you two." A man called down to them from the boat, "We're not getting this done any faster if you stand around talking."

"Yes sir."

"Aww, come on!"

Blake froze when she heard that voice. She spotted a head of golden hair retreat back behind the railing of the boat. She immediately pushed her way through the crowd, startling her mother as she forced her way forward until she reached the point closest to the boat-

"Mr. Minato?"

Her call hung in the air of the port for a moment in silence. But then she heard footsteps and saw a familiar blond walk up to the railing. He looked over and stared down at her with wide eyes, "Ms. Belladonna?"

She was shocked. The last she had seen of him months ago was a half-dead man being wheeled away under critical condition, "What are-"

"Blake?"

Another familiar voice called out. She heard footsteps and saw someone run up to the edge of the boat. She looked unfamiliar but after a moment Blake looked through her change in appearance and recognized her friend, "Tenten?"

"Blake!" The brunette ran down the ramp and made it halfway before jumping off the side. She ran into her and lifted Blake up in a tight hug as she cheered, "Oh my god you're okay! What are you doing here?"

"I-I was going to ask you the same thing." Blake muttered before Tenten put her back down. The smile on the ponytailed girl's face could brighten a room, "Why are you-"

"Tenten?!"

"Sun?!" She ran off to meet Sun as he made his way forward and laughed, "You're here too?!" The brunette and blond hugged and laughed, before separating and clapping hands, "I can't believe it!"

"This is awesome! Hey, I like the new look!"

"Thanks! Oh man, this is crazy! Oh, hold on."

Tenten frowned and punched Sun in the arm, "Ow! Why?!"

"Where the hell have you been?! Do you have any idea how much Neptune has been worrying about you?!"

"I said I'd be back later."

"That was months ago!"

Blake was shocked beyond belief. She looked between her friends arguing, the Huntsman she had briefly met months earlier, and her friend's father who watched from above with a similar look of disbelief.

Tenten finally stopped berating Sun and just smiled warmly. She grinned and looked between him and Blake with relief, "I'm so glad you two are okay."

((((((((Hunting))))))))

He stared down at his reflection in the blade with apprehension. Now that he was expected to fight with it the blade seemed so much heavier in his grasp.

"I would prefer if you got more practice in with fencing and a blade of longer length, but beggars can't be choosers."

Oscar gulped at the words Ozpin said before he looked up at Naruto, "Uh, don't you think we're jumping a few steps here? Feels like I should work my way up to fighting a Grimm."

"You won't be fighting one, you'll be killing one." Naruto answered with his brow furrowed and eyes closed, "Before I start training you I want you to understand just what it is you'll be facing against. If you can stare down a Grimm and still finish it off, I'll know you can handle it."

Oscar gulped, looking down and realizing the machete was shaking in his hand. He took a sharp breath, "B-But how are we gonna find a Grimm? I mean we aren't lucky enough to just cross one-

"Grrrrrrrrr."

Oscar froze and shuddered as he heard the low growl of a monster in the forest around them. He looked around in shock and disbelief. There was no way one of them would just appear like that just when he-

"GRAH!"

Oscar froze as the Beowolf lunged out of the shadow of the trees and straight towards them. Even with a weapon in hand he couldn't move in time to fight or defend himself.

Thankfully an orange blur dashed between them, tackling the Beowolf out of the air and into the ground.

Naruto stretched the Aura around his arm, his Semblance twisting and coiling around the wolf's entire body before his hand landed on its head and pulled it back. Even with the monster's greater weight and frame, the blond Faunus easily pinned it down by wrapping it up entirely with his Manipulation. Naruto grunted with effort, "Oscar, do it while it's down!"

"I-I-"

"Hurry!"

Oscar flinched and leveled the machete up by his sternum as he hesitantly took a step forward. Even with the monster bound and tied like this, the young man's nerves got the better of him and caused him to freeze. The beast's snarling maw struggled and fought back, its piercing red eyes landing solely on him. Oscar's breath hitch as it reacted to his negativity-

The machete lunged forward through its neck and up into its head.

Naruto looked at the young man as the monster faded away in his grasp. His orange Aura suddenly dissipated and dropped what remained of the Grimm. He stepped over its fading corpse and looked at Oscar, "You okay?"

"Y-Yeah," Oscar gave a shaky nod before looking down at the machete, "Did I...did I do it?"

"Yeah, like it was easy. You looked terrified and I thought you were going to tell me you couldn't do it, but then your eyes just calmed. Did it in an instant." He held out his hand and Oscar returned his weapon, "I was worried you wouldn't be able to do it but I was wrong. Looks like you can kill a Grimm pretty easily. Next time we'll see if you can do it without me holding it down."

Naruto walked past him and Oscar just stared ahead. Did he...really do that? Or did-

"I'm sorry. I felt your hesitation and gave you a helping hand. I just wanted to help."

So it was Ozpin that moved his body at the end? That was useful. If he was faced with some great evil or foe then he could trust the Huntsman in his mind to help him stand up to it.

That was reassuring...

And disappointing.

"We'll be doing some training and exercises along the way to help condition you." Naruto said as he slipped his bag over his shoulder and carried Oscar's over for him, "Muscle training. Combat and unarmed training. And we'll see how quickly you can focus your Aura. Got it?" He held out the younger boy's bag but Oscar was too deep in thought to notice, "Oscar?"

"H-Huh?" The young freckled farmhand looked up at his blond friend, "Sorry, what did you say?"

"You were looking out pretty far for a second there."

"Yeah, just considering something." The shorter boy took his bag and secured it over his shoulders. He looked down at the spot the Beowolf had disappeared in before asking, "Hey Naruto, how did that Grimm get here so fast?"

"I brought it here."

He looked up at Naruto's unwavering expression and gawked, "How did you do that?"

"I just thought about something and drew it in." The blond answered nonchalantly as if it was the easiest thing in the world, "I heard one pass by and got it to come here."

"If it was close then that's one factor but for one person to be able to draw Grimm in so quickly...requires a very strong feeling of negativity."

Oscar gulped, "What were you thinking about?"

Naruto turned back to the younger man and stared at him quietly. He slowly approached him again before flicking him in the forehead, "Aura. Try to bring it up and hold it for as long as you can. I'll be knocking and bumping you to make sure you can channel and summon it whenever you want."

The freckled boy frowned and rubbed his head, "You know one of these days you're gonna have to answer me."

"Maybe. But for now...Aura!"

((((((((Hunting))))))))

Yang sat back in the chair and watched the broadcasts flash over the screen. It was more of the same she'd seen before. Reports that Vale was steadily recovering from the Grimm invasion. And that soon enough the city would recover and everything would return to normal.

But Yang had heard differently from sources that weren't concerned with keeping the populace less afraid.

Some parts of Vale were still completely overrun by Grimm. The sections of the city closest to those parts were almost completely lawless and governed by criminals. And Beacon was still a hive for the monsters to fester and roam through.

Even with all the progress and fighting they had done so far, the sheer amount of negativity concentrated in the city would keep it viable for Grimm for the foreseeable future.

There...there was just no fixing it.

No fixing any of it.

"Dinner's gonna be ready soon."

Zwei's head lifted off her lap and looked in Taiyang's direction before he jumped off the bed and rushed over. Yang looked back over the couch and saw her father drying his hands, "Got a big meal ready for tonight. You mind setting the table?"

Yang quietly nodded and stepped up to make her way over to the cabinet. Looking inside she saw a plethora of placemats, plates, silverware, and cups. She grabbed two placemats and set them over the table for her and Taiyang. She made her way back and held two plates under her armpit before she reached the table again. One for her and one for her dad.

...

This table could hold a lot more people.

Her sister. Her uncle. Once upon a time her mother.

But now it was just the two of them. Left behind. One because they couldn't even move...and the other because they wouldn't leave.

"Yang?" Taiyang's voice pierced her thoughts and she looked up to see his worried expression, "What's wrong?"

It took Yang a second to realize that her vision was blurry and warped. And after rubbing her eyes she realized there were tears in them. A second wave filled them and started to spill over before Yang lowered her head and sighed, "I'm sorry."

"What?"

"You shouldn't be here. You should be out there. Helping people. Helping Ruby. Finding her." Yang's hand tensed atop the table and a tear dropped down to splash against its back, "Not stuck here with me."

"Hey," Taiyang stepped over and rubbed her back softly as she sniffled, "I'm not stuck here with you. Don't say that."

"Yes you are. You should be out there looking for Ruby." With a little nudge from her father Yang sat down at the table with him taking the seat beside her, "I know you wanted to chase after her the first day she left, but you had to stick around because...because of me."

They sat together in silence for a moment as her statement hung in the air. A small whine from Zwei at their feet told them that the dog wasn't happy seeing them so sad. The few remaining members of the Xiao Long family just sat with the heavy tension of Yang's words resting on them.

Until Yang felt her father's hand rest on her head and gently rub it.

"Hey, look at me." Yang kept her head ducked and sobbed for a moment as her father patiently waited for her to raise her head. Finally forcing herself up she looked to see his steeled but kind expression, "Qrow isn't here, which means that he's probably somewhere close watching over Ruby. Which means even though I won't stop worrying, I don't need to fear that anything will happen to her. So I'm not being held back or burdened by you or anything." He smiled and gently rubbed her hair, "I'm right where I need to be."

"But-"

"Hey Sunshine," Taiyang gently lifted her chin and dried her eyes, "I made a promise the day I met you. I won't leave. I won't go. Until you're ready I will stay with you," Yang sobbed as she saw her dad smile, "For all our days."

She tried her best to stifle her sobs and clear her eyes. Despite her best efforts they still remained red and puffy. And even with her father's kind words easing the worst of her self-loathing, there was still...

"But Dad," She muttered as she reached up and grabbed the tied up sleeve of her right arm, "I don't think I'll ever be ready again."

Taiyang looked between her and her missing arm. His face pinched and twisted in a way that made it clear it hurt to see her in this state every time. He looked back into her pleading eyes and sighed, "Do you remember what I was like when Summer disappeared?" She hesitantly nodded, remembering the empty and broken man he'd become compared to the vibrant person he was before, "After your mom didn't come back I felt like...like nothing was right. Nothing would ever be the same. Even when both you and Ruby needed me to be a pillar of support, I couldn't do anything."

Once upon a time Yang had been disappointed that her father couldn't act more like her support when she needed him. But now after losing a piece of herself...she could see what he dealt with a little better.

"I got better. Not fixed or right - I'm sure you can tell that," He said around a laugh, "But I tried my best to come back to some semblance of normal. Because that's all you can do when things have changed like that. Like this," He squeezed her shoulder leading into the stub, "Just try to handle the change, and accept that the normal is different now."

Yang sniffled and rubbed her eyes before forcing out a chuckle, "But it really sucks."

"It does!" Taiyang agreed with her as his eyes slightly watered, "It really, really sucks. But we can't just sit around and let those changes be the things that break and beat us."

Yang took a deep breath, "But Dad, that's all I've been doing."

"Because you've earned your time to heal and mope about this. Gods know I needed my time too." He said supportively, "I've been here this whole time for you while you've been dealing with this. And when you're ready to get up and start making something of this normal - like I know you will be - then I'm gonna be there too."

Yang nodded with teary eyes, "I love you, Dad."

"I love you too, Sunshine."

They leaned in and Yang gave her father the tightest hug she could ever remember giving him. He gasped and took the vice grip of her embrace with a chuckle.

Suddenly they heard a knock at the door as a boisterous laugh came from the other side, "Tai, you still in there? We finished earlier so Barty and I thought we'd stop over."

The father and daughter separated and looked to the door. And when they heard an alarm go off they turned to see a pillar of smoke coming off of the overcooked meal.

Tai sighed, "I guess I should get some takeout."

((((((((Hunting))))))))

Fū had spent her entire life among the harsh rays, brutal weather, and shifting sands. She had lived her life open and free in that terrain, which made her feel like she was tougher and more resilient than the average person. But that made her also realize that she wasn't used to being comfy and safe.

The young woman looked around the darkened cabin of the Airship they were taking to Atlas. It was going to be a long trip and the people around her were using this opportunity to sleep and nap before they arrived in the morning. But since this was her first time in a ship she couldn't hide her curiosity and excitement.

"First time?" She flinched and looked to Shisui at her side as the older man smiled at her, "I'm guessing you're not used to being confined in a ship to fly, are you?"

"Nope. I thought it'd be cooler and more exciting than this."

"Unfortunately, this is the only way the rest of us poor saps can even get into the air."

"All the people tensed up and got scared when we were taking off. That's the best part."

"I'll bet." The older Uchiha chuckled as his Faunus companion huffed and slumped down into her seat, "Hey, what's it like being able to fly?"

"Oh it's the best!" Fū's face lit up like the sun as she recounted her experiences in the skies above Vacuo, "I could see I giant sandstorm form in the horizon of one direction and the sun cresting the edge of Saunus in the other. Have you ever seen a flatback slider in person?" Shisui shook his head, "I think I might hold the record of standing atop the most sliders in the entire world. I've flown through so much of Vacuo that my wings were shredded apart by all the sand that blitzed past me."

"Sounds like you traveled a lot."

"I'm pretty sure I've seen almost every inch of Vacuo, but I could just be wrong." Fū said, "I got my Semblance from dad and he taught me how to fly and use my power. But then he got sick one day and couldn't handle the travel for our tribe. And then after a sandstorm that happened for the better part of a day he got buried and I just...didn't want to stay in one place anymore. I left my tribe and just flew. I traveled with other tribes I met along the way but I never stayed with anyone for too long and just visited settlements when I could. Now I'm going to Atlas...what a shock."

Shisui leaned in, "Hey, can I ask you a question?" The younger woman tilted her head in confusion but still nodded, "How did you get involved in all of this?" He looked back through the slit of the combined seats at the row behind them and saw a sleeping Sasuke and restless Kiba, "What made you take them up on their offer?"

Fū looked back as well and chuckled, "Well, a while back some White Fang members found me and tried to convince me to join their side. Said it was for the good of Faunus everywhere. That my abilities and heritage would be wasted otherwise. And when I said I wasn't interested they just kept persisting and tried to convince me otherwise. So instead I offered them a challenge; catch me and I'll join your team."

"They didn't know you could fly, did they?"

"I'm sure they heard stories but they weren't really ready to handle it." The green-haired Faunus said around her laugh, "And then after a while those two showed up. Offered me the same deal except they wanted my help try and stop the people behind the Fall of Beacon. I gave them the same challenge. They chased me as I flew and tried a lot harder than the other guys did but I was sure I'd still lose them." Fū shrugged, "But then I found out Sasuke could copy my Semblance, and he got me."

"Just like that?"

"Well I said I'd follow them for as long as I wanted. And now I follow them because I like them." She meekly admitted, "I mean I know what we're doing is supposed to be for the good of everyone but honestly I'm just doing it for the adventure. For a chance to explore the world and see what I've never seen before."

It was a personal and rather shallow reason, but Shisui honestly didn't expect something grand or altruistic from the girl. It took a special kind of person to offer up their help to strangers without an ulterior motive or personal stake. And in the end her reason was very similar to his; to go out and see if there was more for them in the world than the little corner they secluded themselves into.

"Why is it just us?" He followed up, "They said they had only been able to convince you and I, right? Why is that?"

"Because we suck as salesmen."

Fū flinched and Shisui looked up as Kiba leaned over the top of their chairs. The bearded fighter look irritated but that appeared to be more from the travel than there discussion, "We met so many people in our travels that we lost count. And for each Hunter, capable fighter, or interested party we found we asked them for help."

"And?"

"And they called us idiots. Suicidal fools. A few other colorful terms I'd rather not say." The tattooed man sighed tiredly and rubbed his eyes, "Some were too busy handling their own problems to try and fix the world, and others just didn't give a damn what Beacon's destruction might entail. Sasuke and I spent months searching before we found Fū, and again it took a while before we met you."

"Some people just aren't willing to try and save the world, huh?"

"Some people aren't willing to surrender what they have for a cause they think doesn't concern them." Kiba looked down at his side and watched Sasuke sleep against the window. He felt like he could count the number of times Sasuke fell asleep before him during their travels on one hand. The lacking results of their trial took a heavier toll on the Uchiha than it did anyone, "I'm not optimistic about our quantity by the end of this." He smirked and patted them both on the shoulder, "But I think we'll definitely have quality on our side."

"Aww." Fū cooed and Shisui nodded in agreement. The dark-skinned girl smiled, "Hey, don't give up yet. We still have Atlas to check through. We might strike gold there."

If Kiba was right...they were going to make at least one ally when they finally reached their destination.

((((((((Hunting))))))))

"I am Ghira Belladonna."

"And I am Kali Belladonna. It's nice to meet you all."

"I'm Kakashi Hatake. It's a pleasure."

"Nice to meetcha! I'm Anko Mitarashi!"

"I'm Tenten Tamura." She bowed her head respectfully to their hosts who smiled and bowed their heads in return. She looked to the man seated beside her who was looking around before she nudged his side.

"Huh? O-Oh, sorry." The blond man apologized, "And I'm Minato Namikaze. Thank you very much for inviting us into your home."

"You're quite welcome." Ghira welcomed them graciously, "It's the least we can do for helping deliver our supplies all this way."

"And we couldn't turn down friends of our daughter now could we?" Blake shifted uncomfortably in her spot facing their visitors while Sun looked ecstatic to see familiar faces again, "Now Sun, I know you were trying to tell us earlier but you spoke a little too quickly and so high-pitched even I couldn't follow. So if you could repeat a little of it?"

"Totally." The sunny blond Faunus boy stepped up, "Mr and Mrs. B, this is Mr. Namikaze. He taught a seminar during the second semester at Beacon for all the students there on direct survival skills and techniques to use in case we're ever in danger. And this is Tenten, a classmate of ours from Beacon. She was on a team that was just as famous as Blake's and they even had a nickname-"

"Don't!" Tenten exclaimed at him with a sharp shake of her head, "You don't have to keep bringing it up."

"Why? It's cool!"

"You're the only one who ever thought it was cool!"

He waved off her complaints, "And these two are...I have no idea."

"Their co-workers." Anko continued, "We're all working on a job helping a supply chain from Mistral to Vacuo deliver their goods. We're the team sent by Skyggen."

"Skyggen?" Ghira repeated in surprise, "I didn't know you were affiliated with that company."

"You kidding?" Anko laughed, "This guy's the CEO."

"Really?"

"Hey Tenten, you wanna come get the tour?" Sun offered a mercy before the grownups could steer the conversation away, "This house is huge."

"Sounds like fun!"

Tenten slipped out of her seat and followed him out of the office, Blake catching up after them as they walked out. When they closed the door, Tenten let out a breath of relief and smiled, "My god, I can't believe I found you guys again."

"This is so cool!" Sun agreed with a grin, "We actually found each other! Isn't that awesome, Blake?"

While she didn't show the same outward giddiness, the black-haired Faunus did smile faintly and nod, "It's really good to see you're okay Tenten, but why are you here with Mr. Minato?"

"I'm actually working an internship with Skyggen." The brunette admitted, "I've been working with Kakashi and Anko helping around Mistral when I can."

"That is awesome."

"Yeah, it's good to keep working. Plus I get to help as much as I can." Tenten chuckled while fixing some hair out of her eye before looking between her friends, "What about you two? How did you get here? I-I mean I get why Blake is here because her parents run Menagerie - how did we not know that? But what about you Sun?"

"Oh," The monkey Faunus paused and laughed nervously as he scratched his head, "I-I followed Blake after Vale."

"Oh? You were traveling together?"

"No." Blake quickly answered and shook her head, "He followed me. Didn't even know he was there until we were on the boat."

Tenten turned to Sun as he looked away, embarrassed and ashamed, "Oh dude."

"Not my best moment alright. I was following her trail." He admitted, "But you know how skittish she gets. You think if I caught up to her in time she'd accept me with open arms? She'd hiss and dart away before I even knew what happened!"

"I'm standing right here."

"So is it just you two?" Tenten asked, "I mean did you come with anyone else? Are Ruby and Yang..." The instant she said their names Blake's body noticeably tensed and her ears dipped atop her head. The action reminded her of Naruto and how he acted when he felt guilty of something. Tenten decided to avoid bringing it up and instead looked around the house, "Then why are you here?"

"I wanted to see my family again." Blake confessed, "I hadn't seen them in years." Her fingers lingered down by the scar on her abdomen, "And after what happened I just wanted to see them and...and set some things right."

Tenten watched her friend close in and recede into herself. She wasn't here to look for comfort or relief. She was here to fix something. Face something she'd done wrong.

"But that doesn't mean something isn't wrong here."

"Ugh, Sun."

"What? What is it?"

"Tenten, get this." The blond Faunus stepped forward despite Blake's discomfort, "So when we got here we met these guys who were members of the White Fang."

"White Fang?" Tenten glared, "They're here?!"

"They're not the same White Fang as in Vale." Blake quickly added, "The White Fang on this island are more open and involved with the community. They're a mainstay of everyday life here."

"Helping people out. Keeping the culture. They don't even wear masks. But after what happened to Beacon I thought all the White Fang guys would be kicked out or ostriched or whatever." Blake rolled her eyes at his mistake as Sun continued, "But here's why; the guys in charge were keeping the White Fang's involvement in Beacon a secret."

Tenten's eyes widened dangerously, "They...they what?"

"And that's not all." Sun continued, "One of the guys here in charge of the guards is another Noble Guard. Body in Aura and everything! And I swear some of the White Fang members here are better trained than the guards."

"So are they doing something?" Tenten asked them, "Have you been able to find anything?"

Sun paused and shrugged uncertainly, "I-I mean not yet but-"

"It's just doubt. Doubt and conjecture a-and my stupid paranoia." Blake interjected, "There could be a hundred reasons why they don't want an island of Faunus to panic about the White Fang. And the Noble Guard is-" The black-haired girl sighed and shook her head, "I'm sorry. I need to go get some tea. Do either of you want something?"

They shook their heads and she made her way down the hall towards the kitchen. Once she was gone Tenten looked to Sun to see his complicated expression, "What's going on with her?"

"It's this whole thing. Dealing with the White Fang reminds her of what happened and it's just not helping her settle." Sun stepped back and leaned against the wall as he looked over where she'd walked away, "She can't get past what happened."

"W-Well yeah," Tenten nodded with a lilt in her voice, "It's not exactly something people can move past so easily."

"I guess." Sun shrugged, "It's just we were working towards something one moment and then she just starts doubting herself. Saying she isn't trustworthy and that she's wrong about this. But I don't think so. She's usually been pretty spot on about the White Fang when they're up to something." The Faunus shook his head, "But she just doesn't want a repeat of what happened there to happen here. You know there's no one more untrustworthy and undeserving of forgiveness in Blake's world than Blake herself."

Tenten stood there in silence as she mulled over what her friend said. Her gaze turned towards the direction her former classmate left in and turned solemn with pity.

And empathy.

((((((((Hunting))))))))

They stared into the flickering flames of their campfire in silence. Ruby and Nora were still finishing their dinner while Ren and Jaune surveyed their map one more time.

"Sho," Nora spoke around a mouthful of food as she looked over at the boys, "Doe whe 'ave a deshination?"

"Nora, chew then swallow."

The hammer-wielder rolled her eyes and swallowed the lump of food like it was nothing before repeating, "So do we have a destination or what?"

"Uh, not sure." Jaune dragged his finger over the map, "If we keep heading straight like this we'll hit a big mountain range that splits the landscape. After that we'll have to make our way around it - which could take a while. But after that we'll be in Mistral! Probably!"

"Probably?"

"It's difficult to surmise just from eyeballing the map." Ren said, which caused a wave of disappointed groaning from the girls in response, "Without any more listed settlements or towns along the way we can't make an accurate guess of how much longer this journey will take. It could be within the week or…even more than that."

Nora moaned and dropped back on the ground in frustration, kicking her feet out petulantly as she summed up all their annoyance at not being able to properly determine their arrival. Ruby felt it too. She would admit that she had been a little naïve guessing that they'd reach Mistral by foot in just a couple of weeks, but now it just felt excessive that they still hadn't reached their destination.

The silver-eyed girl huffed, but then took a deep breath and smiled, "Well hey, we're stilling making our way east so we're bound to hit Mistral eventually, right?" She started saying it optimistically but then petered out towards the end as she looked at Ren, "I mean we're still heading east, right?"

"That I can most assuredly say...probably?"

That deflated all remaining sense of enthusiasm Ruby had. She plopped down on the ground and sagged over in defeat. She craned her head up to look over at her friends, "Hey, can I sit here and mope for a sec? If any Grimm start charging over can you handle them until I pick myself up?"

"I think you should be okay." Jaune said while looking around, "We've hit this snag a few times before but no Grimm swarm us. Maybe that lucky streak of ours is still going?"

"Caw!"

Ruby shrugged but relented that he was probably right. They had been unsure of their way forward and complained about it before but were never beset by the Creatures of Grimm. The birds around here must be guardian animals or good luck to be keeping them safe like that his all the time.

"Hey, Ruby," The young red-clad girl turned to Nora as her ginger friend sat back up on her butt, "Why do we keep seeing you glare at the Grimm when we face them? You just stare them down and make laser noises like you're expecting something to happen?"

"You saw that?!"

The other members of RNJR nodded and sounded off, siting moments they had seen her glare at Grimm or stare off in the distance as if she was expecting something to happen when she looked at it. Hearing them list all the incidents was so embarrassing that Ruby wanted to crawl into her sleeping bag and scream.

Instead, with a hefty sigh, she ran her hands down her face and struggled to figure out how she could explain her reasoning. She shifted in place, "Do you guys remember that story I told you about what my uncle told me?"

Jaune blinked, "The thing about your eyes? About how people with silver eyes are great warriors?"

"Oh, is that why you've been eyeing all the Grimm we meet? You've been trying to blast them with your eye beams again!" Ruby felt Nora grab her shoulders and shake her, "That! Is! Amazing! If I could blow up all the Grimm I see in my line of sight I'd be the greatest Huntress in the world! And I would not use my powers for good!"

"I'm still trying to understand how it is possible that your eyes could be some kind of weapon." Ren approached the topic with an analytical response, "I'd say it was impossible except that we did see a bright light from atop Beacon tower that caused the Grimm to panic the closer they were to it. But how does it work? Is it connected to your Aura? Some kind of second Semblance? Is it a genetic factor like the Uchiha's red eyes or the Schnee's hereditary Semblance?"

"I-I don't know. That's what I've been trying to figure out." Ruby admitted with a hint of anxiousness, "I mean I looked up everything and anything I could on silver eyes while I recuperated at home and while we've been moving. But it's always just the same fairy tale about a warrior in the forest with silver eyes. Nothing else!"

"But your uncle was the first to tell you, right? Didn't he give you anything else?"

"No!" Ruby exclaimed, frustrated and annoyed, "He dropped it in my lap but barely gave me anything else! He said my mom asked the same questions and was just as confused about what silver eyes were! And he told me that the best person to explain them were other silver-eyed people - who I don't know!"

Nora scoffed, "Your uncle sounds like a tease."

"Caw!"

"See even the bird agrees with me."

"Caw!"

"Ruby," Ren spoke softly to get his friend's attention as she turned to him, "If you don't understand this power, and you haven't been able to use it since that night, then you shouldn't force it. You should continue trying to find out more about it and only then start utilizing it. Otherwise you only leave yourself open and frustrated in the middle of battle."

It was true that every time she tried to use her eyes to ward off the Grimm it left her vulnerable until she abandoned that course and resorted back to fighting with her weapon. It made sense...but still...

"Why do you want to use them so badly?"

Nora question lingered over her like a net. The reason that constantly drove her but one she knew would cause them to worry. Even still they looked at her expectantly and waited for an answer. The young hooded girl drew her legs up to her chest and stared at the fire.

"If I could have used these eyes back then, maybe it wouldn't have been so bad." She spoke in a low voice but it was still enough for them to hear her. Taking a deep breath, she continued, "I could have handled more of the Grimm faster. I could have handled the Wyvern better. And if the Grimm weren't in my way then I could have gotten up there faster. And maybe..."

She did her best not to let her eyes water enough to cloud her vision.

But it was getting harder and harder each time she had that thought.

She felt a pair of arms close around her shoulders and squeeze her, not in a painful energetic hug like she was used to but a firm, comforting one. Nora knelt by her side and looked at her with a somber expression, "I keep thinking about it too. Whether I could have spared a grenade. If I could have cleared more of them out with an extra swing or two. What I could have done against Jūgo so Kiba wouldn't have gotten hurt. How I wish I did better."

"After experiencing something like Beacon, you can't help but look back on how you acted and contemplate what should have been done instead." They looked over as Ren spoke up, his eyes lingering over the flames as he thought deeply on something, "You imagine how you should have acted with the benefit of hindsight. You dream about what you could have done with better skills, weapons, or abilities you didn't have before. Everything and anything you can do thinking maybe there was something more we could have done."

Ruby felt Nora's arms stiffen around her shoulders. There must have been something behind that they didn't talk about.

"At least your mistakes were beyond your control." They looked towards Jaune as their blond friend continued to survey the map, "You did everything you could to try and help."

"N-No, Jaune, it's not-"

"You three would have been able to help. You did help. But me?" He shook his head, "I shouldn't have even been there."

"Jaune, you can't say-"

"No, I-I'm not ragging on myself or being self-deprecating." He interrupted them before they could try and lift his spirits. Her blue-eyed friend sighed and rubbed his hair before he looked around at them, "Do you remember how bad I was during the first semester? How I could barely fight and was slower than everyone else?"

Ruby didn't want to bring him down any further than he already was but she did nod. She adored her friend and cherished the relationship they had, and she knew she wasn't the only one. But when they started at Beacon his abilities were seriously lacking. He made up for it with brilliant thinking and being resilient plus getting better as the year went on but his initial lack of skill was hard not to notice.

"Well there's a reason for that. The reason I didn't seem like I should even be in Beacon...was because I shouldn't have been there. I cheated my way into school. Faked my transcripts to get in." He confessed, "I told Pyrrha the truth. And when she found out, she offered to train me. Give me lessons so I could get better and earn the right to be here. To be a leader. To achieve my dream."

Ruby stared at her friend in shock. Hearing him say that...made quite a few things finally click into place. She felt Nora shift and sit up as the older girl finally spoke, "Pyrrha...told us that when the time came, you'd have something important to tell us." She hesitated, "I guess this would be it."

"Yeah. I was getting myself ready to fight and really help people. And I thought I did helping with the White Fang and the Breach. But then it all went down and I'm still here." He sounded disappointed, "While people like Penny and Naruto and Pyrrha fought for their lives and didn't make it out...I did. Didn't do anything to help. And even she realized it in the end."

She did it to save him. It was as fact she and everyone else that heard what happen could immediately recognize. Pyrrha knew what she was risking by going to fight Cinder after she killed Ozpin, and so she decided to face her alone instead of risking Jaune's life. She had to believe that on some level that Jaune understood that was the truth.

But in that moment...it must have felt like he was failing to be any help to her. And now with her gone that feeling had burrowed into his heart.

Ruby wanted to say something. She tried to say something that could quell his anguish and shame.

Only for someone to beat her to it.

Ren grabbed Jaune's shoulder and squeezed. The blond boy turned to his taciturn friend who nodded his head. They sat together for a moment before he finally spoke, "You say you shouldn't be here, and yet here you are. You're out here, fighting alongside us, trying to make the world a better place and to make sure what happened in Vale doesn't happen anywhere else. If you had told us the truth back in Beacon, then honestly I may have hesitated to follow your orders as closely as I did. But now there is no one in the world I'd rather have watching my back then you, Jaune."

Jaune stared at Ren silently as his teammate held his shoulder in comfort. Blue eyes started to water and Jaune sniffled before wiping his face, "But they-"

"Don't think that Pyrrha or Naruto would ever resent you for being here fighting with us."

"Yeah, plus do you think any of us were stellar, star students that got to brag about how we got accepted?" Nora joked, "I literally destroyed the interview room when I applied for Beacon. And I say that with pride."

"You're here with us, Jaune." Ruby smiled, "That's all that matters to us."

Jaune shakily nodded his head as he furiously rubbed his eyes, hoping the dry them up before any of them spotted his tears.

"We're all here together." Nora said as she hugged Ruby from the side and grinned, "We'll do better this time around. That's a promise."

One none of them were willing to break.

As RNJR calmed down and huddled around the fire, the bird perched above them took off from the branch and flew into the night sky.

((((((((Hunting))))))))

She glared down at the item that had mocked her for weeks. Made her flinch and turn away in fear because she was too scared to accept it.

The Atlas prosthetic sat comfortably on her dresser top for so long that it would probably gather dust soon. She kept shying away from it and avoiding even talking about it because she was still not ready to admit that she needed it. She couldn't accept that she had to adapt to this new normal now.

But she did. And maybe a normal person would keep wasting time with fear, but if Yang wanted to make the most of her new normal then she had to get back to who she was.

The brute that bulldozed her way through the problems ahead.

She roughly grabbed the limp new arm and held it to her side. As its joint hovered just inches away from her stub she paused. The shaking returned and started to make the prosthetic click in response.

She could put it back. Take more time. It didn't have to be right now.

No! It did! She wanted to start making things right again!

Fire and fear and a Grimm mask before darkness. It all came rushing back to her. It made her freeze and consider stepping away-

Red. White. And black.

A scene she'd never see again.

"AHH!"

Yang screamed and took the plunge, jerking her torso forward as her lower body tried to fall back on her bed. But she slipped and landed straight on her ass instead. The ponytailed blonde hissed and rubbed her butt before she realized...

She felt two hands rubbing.

Looking down she saw it there. Attached like it was naturally supposed to be there. It fit perfectly. Matched the length of her real arm too. Did someone measure her to get it this right?

It just...didn't feel the same. It felt like her arm was there and it moved with her movement, but she still didn't feel it. That would take some time getting used to.

"Yang?!" Her dad rushed up the stairs, "I heard something! Are you okay?! What-"

He stopped in the doorway and stared down at her in surprise. After a moment of contemplation and realization he leaned against the doorframe in relief and sighed, "Y-You know, I thought it'd take a little more time before you were ready."

"Y-Yeah," Yang muttered as she watched her new arm respond, "But I thought I probably shouldn't drag my feet anymore."

"I see that. And how's it feel?"

"Weird. But good." She answered, "But I'm not sure what it can do yet."

"I think there's a manual in the box."

"Then I should-"

Yang tensed her arm and her prosthetic flew into the wall and cracked it. Her and her father watched it drop to the ground before they looked at each other. They both scoffed and laughed at the absurdity of what they'd just seen.

"Well, not the most elegant first step." Tai said with a smile, "But still a first step."

((((((((Hunting))))))))

"If you're going to Vacuo and meet someone named Starr Sanzang, tell her Sun's still being awesome. She'll know what it means."

"Yeah because the message is so subtle." Tenten chuckled as she clapped Sun's hand on the ramp up to their boat. The sweet blond wished her luck on her journey and told her to stay safe.

Just a little further down the dock, Blake stood alongside her parents to see them off. She had said her goodbyes as well, but not as enthusiastically as Sun had. Although everyone did everything with only half as much energy compared to Sun.

Blake had been reserved and quiet. But there was an underlying sense that even though she hadn't said much, she was disappointed to have their reunion end so soon. After all this time after Beacon, it was a miracle that they had been able to find each other again. Even if they weren't the closest during their time at school they had still been friends. Tenten could understand that disappointment.

Which made this decision all the easier to make.

Tenten walked on the deck of the ship and spotted her comrades looking at the sights one last time before they were surrounded by water. Kakashi and Minato stood together as Anko turned to her, "Hey, we're gonna be heading off soon. You ready?"

"Almost. Just have to grab a few things."

"You should hurry then. The captain's got a short temper and won't hold off any longer than he wants to."

"Right." Tenten nodded solemnly, her glum dementor getting the attention of her coworkers. When she realized she had their attention she took the chance to speak, "I need to tell you guys something."

Deep breaths...

"I'm going to stay here for a while."

Minato looked back at her in shock, with Kakashi's eye widening, and Anko looking at her in disbelief, "What? Are - are you serious right now?"

"Yeah."

As Anko just silently stared at her, Kakashi stepped up to join their conversation, "What brought this on?"

"Finding Blake and Sun again." She admitted, "They need help and I want to be around to give it to them."

"Are you serious?" Anko asked incredulously, "You're gonna bail on the mission because you ran into a few of your friends?"

"I found them again after Beacon when they disappeared. Across all of Remnant and I run into them. That can't just be a coincidence-"

"It is!" Anko retorted, "It's exactly that! A coincidence! Nothing more! We have a job to do - you have a job to do kid!"

"You guys are the strongest, most capable Hunters I've ever seen. You could handle any mission yourselves, let alone missing an intern."

"It isn't about capability, it's about obligation." Anko argued, "Kakashi told me about your first mission back in Beacon. You skipped out halfway through because you were dealing with the Breach in Vale. That was the right choice to make for a good reason. But what about this?! Is there a problem here that you need to be here to fix?"

"Maybe? Maybe not? That isn't the point."

"Then what is?!"

"I came on this mission just to escape being stuck in Mistral. I thought traveling and working would help me deal with my issues from Beacon, but this is first time in weeks I feel like something has changed." She noticed Minato turn more towards their discussion when she brought up this topic, "I want to be here to help them this time."

Before Anko could voice her frustration Kakashi spoke up, "Tenten, this is the island nation of Faunus. I don't think they'll turn you away but people aren't going to be happy you're here. You're bound to face some opposition if you stay."

"I know." She resolutely nodded, "But that won't change my mind."

"Do you know what this will look like for your future? You're trying to be a Huntress, remember? How do you think the company will react hearing you quit along the way? No one is going to take you up for a job if you do this."

"I know." Tenten firmly nodded her head, eyes steeled and unwavering, "But as someone told me awhile back; those who abandon their job are scum, but those who abandon their friends are even worse than scum."

Anko looked perplexed and absolutely flummoxed before she noticed Kakashi's pinched expression. She grabbed his collar and yanked down, "What crap have you been sticking in her head?! What does any of that garbage even mean?! You're still scum no matter what!"

"Yep," They looked towards Tenten as she interrupted with a confident smile, "But I'd rather live as a failure of a Huntress than regret failing my friends again when they need me."

...

They all faced each other in silence for a moment. Until Kakashi unlaced Anko's fingers from his collar and stepped forward. The wolf Faunus offered his hand and she took it as he nodded, "Hopefully we'll see you back in Mistral when we finally finish this mission. If you're listening to your heart, then you're doing the right thing."

Tenten nodded and gave a silent thanks to the older man. She looked to Anko who was still peeved and annoyed by her decision but the Huntress stepped up and poked her in the chest, "If anything goes wrong then you head home, okay? Don't wait. Don't risk it. Just go home. They aren't gonna be happy with you but...just stay safe, okay?"

She nodded in return and Anko stepped aside with a frown on her face. Tenten looked over and saw Minato still staring out into the ocean, almost unfazed by her decision to stay. The brunette made her way into the ship, collected her stuff and weapon, and started walking off the boat.

Her descent was met with looks of surprise and confusion from Sun and Ghira. But Blake and Kali didn't look as shocked, probably picking up on their conversation with their superior hearing. The younger Belladonna was stunned to see her return to port as her mother smiled kindly as if appreciating her gesture.

It wasn't long before the boat pulled away and started its course to Vacuo. This was it. She had made her choice and now she had to stick with it.

"So," Tenten chuckled as she faced the Belladonnas, "Do you know if there's anywhere to rent a room?"

Ghira smiled and stepped forward, "Not necessary. We have plenty of space in our home. More than enough to accommodate another guest."

A sudden creak of the port behind her drew the eyes of everyone. They stared in shock and she turned around as well.

To find Minato having flashed over with his bag over his shoulder. The taciturn older blond settled as he landed and nodded his head.

"Or two." Ghira corrected.

((((((((Hunting))))))))

Done

See? Things get a lot easier to write when storylines start to converge.

So RNJR needs a pickup. Yang starts her journey to recovery. Oscar realizes it ain't easy on the road to be a Huntsman. Kiba hopes for the best when they land. And Tenten gets to crash at the Belladonnas!

It's all a strong step forward! I bet there is no way things could turn or get worse now!

ReadxReview

Thank You and Bye