Three thousand Lien down, Naruto now possessed one hundred 12 gauge buckshot shotgun shells.
In and out of Vale in less than fifty minutes, Naruto had to consider that a new personal record.
He was back in the clearing now, inventory open, the folded form of Tranquility in hand.
Naruto flicked it quickly, unfolding the shotgun and grabbing the slide, racking it back.
He'd only ever seen people use these sorts of weapons in Spruce Willis movies, but it was enough to get started.
The first thing he did was check the safety, followed by him loading the first shell into the side.
It made one of the most satisfying sounds Naruto had ever heard as he racked it forward, and he began loading the seven remaining shells into the tube through the slot beneath.
He shouldered the stock, one hand on the grip and the other on the slide, and he aimed at a nearby tree, sighting down the irons atop the weapon.
His finger rested against the trigger, and he exhaled, squeezing down.
Tranquility kicked in his hands, a quiet thump echoing throughout the clearing as the tree splintered with a crack.
[Skill Created!]
[Weapon Proficiency: Firearms (Passive): Thanks to the System, you are now capable of wielding all firearms without difficulty! The higher the level of this skill, the more skilled you are with all firearms, and the more damage you are capable of dealing. Level 1; XP 1/12.]
[You've gained a new title!]
[Armsmaster Equipped: +25% Weapon Swap Speed, +5% Weapon Effectiveness. (2/5 Primary Weapons Owned.)]
Naruto pumped the shotgun and loaded another shell, before quickly folding Tranquility up, the new attachment plate he'd purchased magnetizing the folded weapon to the side of his belt, under his coat.
The size of the shotgun when it was folded meant that it was relatively concealed, but still within easy reach to be drawn when needed. It made Naruto wonder why he hadn't gotten a ranged weapon before today.
The new title was unexpected. He didn't quite know what an increased weapon swap speed would feel like, but it was still quite useful.
That was, if he equipped it. That was the whole thing with titles that he was still yet to figure out.
Speaking of which…
He'd made the mistake of not equipping his Designer title when he'd made Tranquility. That was a serious mistake, too.
Next time, he wouldn't make that error.
Now, Naruto had to prepare a training exercise for his team.
"Cadejo, Alcmena, Callisto, Electrus," Naruto said aloud, the four summons appearing as he spoke their names, the Bound Souls forming from his shadow, the Elemental instead seemingly shuddering to life, crystals forming from the very air, sparking quietly.
"We'll be training," Naruto began to explain. "Nothing lethal, stop when their Aura is at fifteen percent or lower."
His summons all acknowledged the order, and once they had, they began to blend with the scenery, pushing back into the Emerald Forest. Even Electrus managed to conceal himself, crystals dimming at will, sparks becoming almost silent.
Naruto had a brilliant idea that was entirely for dramatic effect, and not at all useful, but he really, really wanted to do it.
He raised a stone dais in the center of the clearing and brought out his scroll.
'Attack me.' Naruto typed, sending it.
It was somewhat cryptic, but Naruto was having fun with the whole dramatic tension thing.
Naruto sat atop the dais, and reached into his inventory with a smile.
"Any idea what Naruto wants now?"
Pyrrha looked over her shoulder to see Blake approaching. "His message said training, but then the second one came through. I think he just wants us to attack him as a part of training."
"Do you think we should play along, or should we try and figure out what's happening beforehand?" Blake asked, stopping next to her teammate. "If we play on his terms, we might lose."
Pyrrha nodded. "True. Then again, it is Naruto we're talking about. I'm sure he has a trick or six up his sleeve."
"Hopefully the dunce understands that he needs to be practicing his 'public' semblance. Otherwise there isn't all that much of a point."
Weiss had arrived, a somewhat frustrated expression on her face. "Besides, I've already been training today. If he expects that what he is planning is better than what I've been doing, he may be in for a shock."
Pyrrha hummed in noncommittal agreement, but Blake seemed distracted.
"Blake? Is something wrong?" Pyrrha asked, noticing her black-haired teammate peering over the edge of the cliff.
"I can hear… music?"
Quickly, the three began descending the stairs, and the clearing became more and more in view.
And, as the clearing became, well, clearer, so too did the blond-haired teen sat upon the stone dais in the middle, strumming a song on an acoustic guitar.
It wasn't so much of a song as it was a series of chords, but it was strangely soothing.
Pyrrha remembered the second scroll message, and she drew Milo and Akouo, stepping onto the grass.
Blake and Weiss followed suit, drawing their blades, slowly spreading out.
Naruto didn't look up at them, instead continuing to play.
The three shared a glance between themselves.
Well, Naruto had said to attack.
Blake lunged forwards, blade as sharp as ever, slashing at Naruto.
For a single moment the air was filled with the sound of a single chord strummed louder than the rest.
Cadejo leapt from the undergrowth, fangs meeting blade as the wolf forced Blake backwards.
Pyrrha and Weiss pushed forwards, and Naruto finally looked up.
Callisto lumbered forth from behind Naruto as the teen leaped backwards, over the top of the bear, and Weiss quickly created a glyph beneath her and Pyrrha, launching the two over Callisto as the bear swung.
Alcmena hit Weiss midair, knocking the white-haired girl off course, but Pyrrha was unswayed from her goal.
Naruto's shield met Pyrrha's xiphos, and the two engaged, Naruto just barely keeping up with his shield.
It was a stalemate, as of that moment, and Pyrrha decided against continuing it against someone who she knew had far more Aura, instead disengaging and throwing Akouo, the dipylon shield spinning through the air as Naruto effectively pushed it aside, quickly blocking the follow-up rifle rounds that left imperceptible divots in his shield.
Pyrrha's semblance took control of her shield, pulling it back to her as she continued her ranged onslaught, and Naruto stayed behind his shield, presenting a smaller target.
Callisto interrupted her barrage with a heavy swing that pushed the champion backwards as it hit against her shield, heels digging into the dirt.
Then Naruto was on her, sword slicing an Uzumaki that met her xiphos with the resounding sound of metal on metal and the typical sparks that accompanied such an act.
Pyrrha would win in a one-on-one fight against him, that much was painfully obvious. It would be tough, and he wouldn't go down without a fight, but it would still result in a loss at his current capabilities.
Which was why Naruto refused to fight fair.
Callisto raised both paws and Naruto grabbed Pyrrha by the shield, his strength proving to be more than enough to hold the champion in place as the paws came down, and Pyrrha was forced to abandon Akouo or be crushed, something she did not seem all that bothered by.
The moment the shield glowed black as she used her semblance to attempt to pull it back Naruto shook his head, handing it to one of Cadejo's clones that he'd ordered to approach, the others still keeping Blake and now Weiss busy.
Pyrrha frowned as the wolf-clone bounded off into the forest, shield securely in its jaws, and she gave up trying to pull it back to her, instead resolving herself to use her free hand with her semblance.
It meant that Naruto was going to have to be extra careful with Crocea Mors, but it was a significant advantage.
Pyrrha rushed him, flipping over his counter-swing and stabbing at his shoulder, where he brought his shield up to block, only to have it adjusted against his grip to miss, the tip of Milo meeting his shoulder blade and sending him stumbling forwards, Aura chipped somewhat.
Naruto shrugged as Pyrrha stared him down, and he shifted his shield's form, stowing it on his belt, giving his shoulder a roll to shake away the remaining feeling of the blow.
She would still be able to bend and adjust his blows from Crocea Mors, and also retain a minor amount of control of the sheath on his hip, but it was a margin better than having to deal with his shield not doing what he needed it to.
"I have to admit, Pyrrha, you're terrifying to face in battle," Naruto remarked, only to have his eyes widen somewhat as a panting Blake and Weiss stepped up next to her.
A quick glance over to Cadejo had Naruto notice that the wolf had backed down, his various clones laying on the ground, tired out. It appeared the summon had ceased combat when he'd reached a certain level of exhaustion, though as to what that level was Naruto didn't know. It was more of an instinctual understanding rather than a numerical display.
Naruto stretched his free arm out, and Alcmena soared down, landing on it with ease as Callisto lumbered up.
Down to three summons, though he was yet to reveal Electrus for fear that the Elemental would be unable to control the output of Stormbolt and he might accidentally vaporize one of his teammates. Not something he wanted to do.
Though Electrus could do other things, he supposed. He wasn't half-bad in a scrap through sheer blunt force trauma, and could discharge electricity to stun and damage those nearby, so he was an excellent trick that Naruto would keep up his sleeve for the time being.
"I'm not sure if I should be insulted or not," Pyrrha replied, a small smile gracing her face. "I'll go with not for now."
Naruto leveled Crocea Mors at the three, blade unwavering. Callisto reared up on her hind legs, and Alcmena spread her wings, bronze tips shining despite the cloudy sky.
A moment of silence spread across the clearing before Blake and Pyrrha shot forwards, propelled by a glowing white glyph beneath their legs, courtesy of Weiss.
Naruto deflected Blake's initial strike with Crocea Mors and Alcmena took off, scattering sharpened feathers at Pyrrha, causing the redhead to have to abandon her attack to deflect the projectiles, and Naruto slashed, only to have his blade caught by Blake's secondary swing with her cleaver-sheath.
In retaliation, Naruto grabbed Blake by the arm and spun, throwing her at Callisto, who swung and broke Blake into fading nothingness as the black-haired Faunus dodged, but Naruto was already focusing on blocking Pyrrha's strike, her xiphos clanging against Crocea Mors once more.
Weiss was already charging in, Myrtenaster's tip pointed at him, and he side-stepped into Blake's ribbon, watching as it tied itself around his sword-arm.
Naruto decided to pull one of many tricks, calling Electrus out of the forest. The lumbering crystalline structure of the Elemental closed the distance with deceptive speed and smashed his arm against an unexpecting Weiss, and even Naruto winced as her Aura dropped below ten percent from the hit, sending her rolling in the dust.
Pyrrha slashed at his unprotected side even as it happened, and he had no choice but to take the hit, watching as his AP took a significant dip, but using the attack as an opportunity to wrap his arm around her blade and hold it securely against his side, twisting his grip on Crocea Mors and pulling it through, severing the ribbon-cable that held his arm, Blake stumbling forwards as the tension vanished, right into Callisto's awaiting arms, where the bear wrapped Blake tightly in what could only be called a bearhug.
Pyrrha struggled against his grip, putting one foot against his leg and pulling hard, but with his increased Strength and his now-free arm, he quickly attempted a downwards stab at her.
Pyrrha was fast enough to push the blade with her semblance, hard enough that it completely dislodged Crocea Mors from his grip, sending it spinning off, where it thudded into the trunk of a tree, blade embedded at least half a foot into the wood.
They paid it no mind, however, the two wrestling for control over Milo, before Naruto released his grip on her free arm, reaching behind his coat.
Pyrrha managed to shove him free when he released her, blade now back in her hand, only to find herself staring down the barrel of Tranquility.
He pulled the trigger, and the burst of buckshot that emerged from the end of the barrel was quick to impact against Pyrrha's Aura, his free hand coming up to rack the slide.
He wasn't as fast as he'd wished he could be, though, and Pyrrha took advantage of that, pushing the shotgun barrel aside as he wisely decided against pulling the trigger a second time, instead ducking under her slash and then rolling forwards to build some distance.
Alcmena kept Pyrrha pinned as he did so, preventing her from capitulating on his retreat with another burst of razor-sharp feathers.
He fired Tranquility again, and Pyrrha waved her hand as he pulled the trigger.
He'd expected his aim to fly off target a moment too late, and he found himself startled as the buckshot seemed to just drop out of the air, without momentum.
"Did you just deflect that?!" Naruto asked aloud, shocked.
Pyrrha seemed as shocked as he did. "That was a coincidence, I think…"
Naruto hoped so, for his sake, racking the slide once more.
Pyrrha regained her sense, shifting Milo from xiphos to rifle and opening fire on the defenseless Naruto, who decided that the match had gone on long enough.
He sprinted at the girl, her surprise evident on her face as the rounds splintered on his Aura, and soon he had breached her defense, rifle half-shifted to xiphos, the barrel of Tranquility leveled at her chest.
"Bang," Naruto said, not bothering to fire. At this distance, considering how much Aura Pyrrha had left, it would do actual damage to the fighter.
Pyrrha seemed to accept the sentiment as what it was, a smile on her face. "It has been some time since I've been so summarily beaten. Your Aura was barely touched."
Naruto held out a hand, which the girl gratefully took. "That's only 'cause I've got so much of it. Seriously. It's ridiculous now."
"Lucky you…" Weiss groaned from somewhere to their left, the clump of somewhat-dirty white moaning in pain. "I can only wish that was my problem."
"Callisto, please let go…" Blake let out, her voice muffled by the furry arm that covered half of her torso and face.
Callisto did so, releasing Blake, before summarily dropping onto her hindquarters, forelegs coming to rest on her hind-legs.
Blake spat out a mouthful of fur before immediately turning pink, glaring at Naruto. "If you, Yang, or anyone else makes a hairball joke in the next six months I will personally gut you and hang you from Ozpin's office."
Naruto paled. "Nope. Mouth is shut. Not making any jokes. Thought never crossed my mind."
That was, in fact, a complete lie, but it seemed to make Blake feel somewhat better. Deceitful Speech leveled up, too, so it worked out in the end.
"That was a good fight, Naruto. You are rather capable with just your blade and your summons, though I must ask about the shotgun," Pyrrha said, once she'd helped Weiss to her feet.
Naruto gave Tranquility a spin in his hand, marvelling at the feel. "This is Tranquility. It was a PACK that I got from the Malignant Beowolf. Ruby helped me make it a couple hours ago."
He quickly loaded two more shells into it, before folding it up and stowing it on his belt.
"So, we've got three more days after today until the start of the Vytal Tournament. Our application is in, thanks Weiss, so I think we should take the next few afternoons to work on a few things, whatever we think we need to improve. Sound like a plan?"
It appeared that the rest of AWBN were in agreement. It was going to be a productive three days.
"Oh, Naruto, next time you try and be all dramatic, at least learn a real song to play on guitar."
Naruto shrugged at Weiss's statement. "I'll have you know I got the Instrumentation skill from that, and it's already at level 33."
Weiss rolled her eyes. "I stand by my point."
"Welcome to the Vytal Festival Tournament!"
Port's booming voice was a perfect fit for commentator, Naruto had to admit.
As long as he didn't go on a tangent and tell another of his tales, like that time with the Ursa, the six-fingered man and the bucket of lukewarm porridge.
Naruto shuddered. He didn't know why these things remained in his memory. Perhaps it was a curse of his increased INT.
"We're broadcasting live from the Amity Colosseum here today, and what a beautiful day it is, yes! It reminds me of a time a few years ago, where-"
Naruto had never been more thankful to hear Doctor Oobleck's voice. "Yes, quite, Peter! We'll be getting into our first match very soon, but first, we have to pick our competitors!"
Port, suitably chastised, regained control. "Let's spin the wheel, and see who we'll end up with!"
The crowds, of which were plentiful, all looked up to see the holographic projections as the wheel spun.
"Team NDGO, of Vacuo's Shade Academy!" Port announced.
"Versus Team RRYN, of our own Beacon Academy!" Oobleck finished.
"Comprised of the leader Nebula Violette, Dew Gayl, Gwen Darcy and Octavia Ember, Team NDGO have been a top-team within Shade! Let's see if it can stand up to the might of…" Port spoke aloud, and Oobleck quickly continued.
"Team RRYN, the up-and-coming first-year team led by Ruby Rose, with Lie Ren, Yang Xiao Long and Nora Valkyrie! RRYN are a strong contender this year!"
"The match will begin in only five minutes! Stay tuned, folks!"
Naruto turned to his friends. "Looks like you're up, RRYN. Good thing, too. Hate to go up against you guys too early."
Ruby rolled her eyes as she placed the folded form of Crescent Rose on her back. "Pfft. You just have to have faith, Naruto! We'll see each other in the final match, if you make it that far."
Yang nudged her sister. "I mean, out of all of us I think AWBN have the advantage. They're pretty much Beacon's powerhouse."
Pyrrha shook her head at that. "I doubt that. I'd say we're equal. You, Nora and Naruto are the heavy hitters, whereas the rest of us are more agile fighters. I will be interested to see what happens in the final match, though, if we all do make it."
"I can't wait to break some legs!" Nora exclaimed, hefting Magnhild over her head. "Why can't it start already!?"
"We don't know anything about NDGO," Weiss said from her spot by a locker. "You'd best be on your guard."
"Well, we can't be on our guard if you guys don't let us leave! C'mon, forward march!" Ruby cried out, pointing towards the door.
Soon, the eight of them had fled the locker room, splitting at the intersection in the hallway, AWBN heading for the spectator stands and RRYN heading for the entrance to the field.
Ruby grabbed Naruto's arm before he could turn, and held him back until she knew Yang was out of earshot. "Wish me luck?"
Naruto, internally giddy, leaned over and gave Ruby a chaste kiss. "Good luck. Not like you need it."
Ruby, still unused to the kind of affection she was receiving, blushed hard, a dopey smile on her face. "See you soon."
And with that, she caught up to her team in a rush of rose petals.
Standing on the field was a very different experience that watching a fight from the stands.
Partly because that meant that you weren't actually taking part in the fight, so that was a whole other thing, but also because when you were a part of the audience, you didn't have quite literally thousands of people staring at you.
Sure, it was just like combat class, but combat class wasn't broadcast across all the kingdoms.
"Don't worry, Rubes. We've got this."
Her sister's words were comforting, but it didn't subtract from the absolute noise that was the audience, roaring cheers from all sides for the two teams that were about to face each other down.
"Heard a lot about you, RRYN. Looking forward to this fight."
The voice was from the leader of NDGO, a girl by the name of Nebula Violette, and from what Ruby could tell she appeared genuine. That was good.
Ruby mustered her courage, and stood up straight. "We're looking forward to it too. Good luck!"
Nebula shared a glance about her team. "You as well."
"And here we go! The first match of the 40th Vytal Tournament! Let's see what terrain our teams will be fighting on!"
Port's voice was as booming as ever, and carried across the audience with ease, mostly due to the volume all the speakers were adjusted to.
The two teams watched as the holographic projections spun, ground sliding back as the new field emerged.
Behind NDGO Ruby watched as one of the various terrains rose from where it was concealed, grey stone and warm water in equal amounts.
A quick glance behind her revealed a far more familiar terrain, green trees and grass blowing in the wind.
"Oh-ho-ho! It appears that Team RRYN will have the home-field advantage with this environment, with the Forest and the Geyser Fields!" Port continued. "What will NDGO do without an environment they've trained on?"
"I can't wait to find out, Peter. So, let us begin! Whenever the horn is sounded, the match shall begin!" Oobleck announced.
Ruby shared one final glance with her team, weapons at the ready.
The horn sounded.
Ruby didn't know what she'd expected.
Whatever she had expected it certainly wasn't this.
NDGO were pushovers. Two of them were already down.
Yang had taken out the spear-wielder with such blistering ferocity that the entirety of NDGO had almost seemed stunned, and that was before anyone else had gotten an attack off.
Ruby chalked that up to her training with Pyrrha. If anyone was going to be an expert at dealing with polearms it was going to be Yang.
Three punches, though? Her Aura had dipped beneath the regulated fifteen percent after three whole punches.
The one with the knives proved to be just as weak, and Ren had effectively ran her out of ammunition with ease, flowing like water, only to turn out to be serving as a distraction for Nora to deliver a punishing blow that knocked her clean out of the arena.
Ruby was using the trees as sniping positions, balanced carefully in the branches, occasionally firing a shot whenever someone was left out of position.
The leader of the team had retreated into the cover of the rocks in the Geyser Fields, alongside the one with the kris, the wavy dagger that sent waves of fire that reminded Ruby of Naruto's Mana Slashes.
None of RRYN had taken a hit yet, aside from Yang deliberately tanking that wave of fire in order to boost her semblance somewhat.
A crossbow bolt nearly found its way into her face, and Ruby realized that despite the significant advantage her team possessed, NDGO weren't going to back down without a fight.
She repositioned quickly, using the recoil of Crescent Rose to launch her to a different tree, firing a snapshot off while she was in the air, before landing with practiced ease.
The shot hadn't hit, but it had driven the two of them down behind the rock further, cutting off any line of sight they may have had on her, so her position was somewhat concealed again.
She wished that the trees were ones from the Forever Fall, because red didn't really blend in all that well with the regular green of these trees, but she was just being picky. It wasn't like Grimm really cared about camouflage anyway.
Were Grimm colorblind? That was an interesting question. Maybe she'd ask her uncle after the fight.
Oh, right. Fighting. She should probably get back to it.
"Nora, try and drive them out of cover! Ren, take the left, keep them out of cover! Yang, when you see an opening, get close!" Ruby shouted, her voice thankfully carrying across the arena.
Yes, it meant that the enemy team heard her orders, but until she managed to steal- er, borrow some Lien from Naruto to buy some scroll-link communicators, this would have to do.
He had enough Lien, it was fine. They were dating, and Yang had always said that you treat each other in a relationship!
Granted, he'd basically gotten her a contract with the VJWM, and a whole expansive workshop, but still, the point remained.
The sound of one of Nora's grenades exploding snapped her attention back to the battlefield.
Nebula and Gwen had broken from the shattered, smoking remains of their cover, only to have the former picked off by one of her bullets, and Gwen suddenly found herself spinning through the air, unable to block the two-pronged attack that had a hammer and a fist hit her at the same time.
Even Ruby winced at that. She was going to have bruises for a day at least.
Ruby dropped from the tree, landing with deceptive ease, Aura flaring around her feet as she hit the dirt.
"And with that we conclude the first match of the 40th Vytal Tournament, with a victory from Beacon's Team RRYN! Congratulations!" Oobleck exclaimed.
Ruby shared a cheer with the rest of her team.
Victory. One step closer to the final match.
One step closer to her fight with her boyfriend and his team.
Or so she hoped.
"Get your drinks, get your snacks, and be back in ten minutes, but before you do, we'll announce our next match!" Port announced.
As RRYN left the arena, they watched the wheel spin, selecting the two teams that would be next to fight.
"Team COPR, of Atlas Academy, led by Ciel Soleil, with Olive Masato, Penny Polendina and Rayle Cabernet, one of many outstanding first-year teams from Atlas Academy this year!" Oobleck spoke.
"Versus Team SALT, from Shade Academy, led by Salis Mundus, with Alka Line, Chlora Lake and Tanner Lake, a spectacular team of second year students!" Port let loose a laugh. "We'll see you soon, folks!"
Ruby was excited to see Penny fight, she'd made quick friends with the girl when they'd met all that time ago, when they'd been searching for Blake.
"Gotta say, I didn't expect Penny to be a Huntress-in-training," Naruto muttered, half to himself.
"Wait, you know Penny?" Ruby asked, placing herself in the empty seat next to her fellow leader.
"Uh, not really? I just tripped over her once, and she helped me out when I was looking for Blake."
Ruby nodded. "Same. She's got that kind of magnetic personality, I guess."
Inwardly, Ruby hid a snigger, her inside joke flying over Naruto's head.
"Something like that, I guess. I didn't realize you knew her."
Ruby slumped in her seat. "I wanted to know her better, but she has a really strict home-life, so she doesn't get to go out much. We've only talked a few times, but you know how it is."
"Strangers are just friends you haven't met yet," Naruto said with a laugh. "Feels like it's been years."
Ruby leaned her head against Naruto's shoulder, allowing herself to relax. "Worried about your match?"
Naruto shook his head. "Nah. Considering how easy your match was, I don't know if I really have to worry. Pyrrha took all of CRDL down on her own, so if we get matched against them, I gotta say I look forward to it. There can't be all that many people that can stand up to her, and we've got Blake and Weiss to back her up."
Ruby let her hand smack against Naruto's leg. "You're selling yourself short again."
Naruto laughed. "Nah, I just figure if I get involved the audience might be a little spooked by the whole 'summoning Grimm' thing."
"Then save it, hide it. Just go at them with Crocea Mors, and only summon if you need to. Easy."
Naruto had to agree. "I know, I know, I just… it's super selfish, but I kind of want to show off, you know? I spent so much of my life before the System being looked down on as weak, but now…"
Ruby shrugged. "I mean, that's kind of what the tournament is about, isn't it? Showing that we have super-strong fighters training for the sake of the kingdoms. The stronger you appear, the better the world's emotional state, the less Grimm incursions."
Naruto opened his mouth, found nothing to refute her point, and realized that the tournament was exactly that. "Oh. That makes a lot of sense, actually."
"You'll be fine. If I can stand in front of all those people, I'm sure you can too."
"Ruby, you spent almost all of the match hiding in the trees."
Ruby's pout only made him laugh.