A/N: So. The finale. That happened.

*inhales deeply*

Nope. Nuh-uh. Not happeing. I AIN'T HAVIN' THAT SHIT! I make no apologies. I'm pissed to all hell after the finale and this was too good an idea to throw in the plot bin.

People really, really, REALLY need to stop giving me good ideas when I'm riled up. That episode had me spitting nails.

As ever, we're falling the Embers rule, but with a caveat. I will delete this quickly if folks don't like it. That's right, I've tightened the restrictions, sorry about that.

Still here? Great~!

Fair warning, this is more...visceral than the stuff I usually right; as such I might be upgrading this to M later down the line.It also helps, because someone wanted a pure NarutoxNeo story when she's in her prime. She's not quite there in "Partners of Crime" Yet.

As ever I don't own any references, quotes, themes or mes. Not a wit or one.

Now then...I do believe its time for some good ol' fashioned payback!

"Listen to yourself, Cinder. Mine. Mine. Mine. Me. Me. Me. That's all you care about.

On and on and on you go, round and round, like a broken record. You think you're entitled to everything just because you've suffered. But what about what I want? What about Neo? What about all your victims? We've all suffered too. And unlike you...we've learned from our mistakes. You're not worthy. You're not smart.

You never grew up, Cinder. You never changed.

You're just a child masquerading as a grown woman.

And you know what they say. An eye for an eye. Tooth for a tooth. Evil for evil."

~?

Best Served Cold

A mute woman walks into a Mistralian bar and orders a drink.

Sounds like the beginning of a bad joke.

If only it was.

Honestly, this place was just the sort of dive any sane person would go out of their way to avoid; it stank of loss and cheap whiskey. The scenery proved itself about as middling as the smell. Hideous brown walls were plastered with an odd green material -and who knew what else?- while the wooden floor itself proved suspiciously damp. A cheap ceiling fan creaked ominously overhead, looking as if it might come crashing down at any given moment. One could only hope.

Only the reckless came here. Or the desperate. Unfortunately, she embodied both.

Beady eyes turned her way as she sauntered inside; mismatching orbs stared back until they yielded.

Silence achieved, Neopolitan made her way to the bar proper and plonked herself down atop one of the less rickety stools. Her fist thumped down twice to catch the barkeep's attention, one who soon proved to be a fat fop of a man with a stench to mach. He looked to have seen better days; as his bulging gut and receding hairline would no doubt attest. His clothes weren't much better, also brown and worn beneath a battered green apron emblazoned with some slogan she couldn't be bothered to remember. He looked up when she made a noise, only to realize that he had to look down just to meet her eyes.

"Ain'tcha a little young to be drinking?"

A tiny fist thundered down against the wooden counter, producing an ominous crack.

Aura sparked and the man jumped. "Alright, alright! What'll it be?"

Neo flicked two fingers and made a swirling motion with her thumb. Eventually, the man nodded in understanding. Water. She wouldn't drink anything else in a dump like this. After a moment's pause the girl fished a worn scroll from her pocket. Her fingers danced over and she held it up for him to see. Two words awaited him upon that luminescent screen. He read them aloud.

"Cinder Fall?" The barkeep squinted at the message. "Mighta seen her. Might not. She's a wanted woman in these parts."

Neo rolled her eyes and grit her teeth. Wanted? Fall would be be a lot less than wanted when she was through with her. She'd be dead! Still, the man proved recalcitrant. Money spoke louder than words these days. Lien flitted across the counter. The greasy man snatched at them and shoved the coins into his stained apron.

"Pleasure doin' business with ya." he grinned, revealing missing teeth. "Anythin' else ye want ta know?"

Neo sneered him into silence until he took the hint.

"Three tables down." a thumb jerked over his shoulder. "Blond bastard. He was askin' for her. Hasn't left yet; he might know something."

Hope sparked to life in her. At last! A lead!

Neopolitan slipped off the barstool, her grin just the wrong shade of vicious. She cut a shallow bow, and skipped away to her destiny. Some of her intent must've shown through in that smile; because the barkeep scowled at her retreating backside

"If its a fight you be wantin' take it outside!" he shouted. "Don't go wreckin' the bar, blast you!"

Fight? No. Not a fight. Revenge. Vengeance.

Neo wanted it, craved it, needed it like the very air swelling in her silent lungs. Eye for an eye, tooth for a tooth, evil for evil. She was owed a debt and she would see it paid in blood. Yes, she knew who was responsible for Roman's death and she would not rest until he was avenged. Her dumb-dumb had died badly. And so his killer would die slow. No! Slower!

Her eyes narrowed to hooded slits as she searched for her quarry.

Cinder Fall wasn't here. She knew that dark hair and golden eyes anywhere.

Everything had been fine before that brash bitch bulled her way in. Everything went sour because of her. Her, her, her! Now she'd tracked her to Mistral. One way or another, she'd put an end to this. Even if it meant she had to search the city from top to bottom.

Neo knew was close now. She felt it in her very bones.

By contrast, it wasn't hard to find the man described to her. Her stuck out like a sore thumb; one nursing a flagon of ale that looked long dry. Clothes were strange, too. A red coat overcoat thrown over tattered orange-black rags that looked...burnt. Curious. Had he bumbled into the fire bitch? There was a strange scroll of sorts propped up against his knee, and against it, a gnarled staff of what appeared to be black wood. Was that his weapon? She very much doubted it. Of what use could a staff possibly be?

Unable to get a good look at him from this anger, the little killer crept closer. She plonked down into the seat opposite him. If he was at all aware of her attention, the stranger did little to show it He didn't look up from his drink. She gave him a moment. Then another. Another still. Finally, her patience slipped its leash.

She thumped her fist on the table.

"I hear you." he looked up at last. "Did you need something...?"

Neo flinched at the sight of him. This man might've been handsome once upon a time. He still was, in a rough way. If you didn't mind the scars. Which she didn't. In truth she was rather fond of scars. There were just...a lot of them. Poor bastard looked like he'd gotten into a fight with a burning building and lost. Milky white eyes with the vaguest hint of sapphire regarded the world set, framed by whiskered cheeks and an unruly mane of blond hair. An impish part of her wanted to give it a tug, but she resisted.

On a whim, Neo waved a hand before his face. He didn't react and stared straight ahead.

For a moment, she felt something akin to pity. Being mute was bad enough in a world so cold, but blind? In a place like Remnant, that was a fat worse than death. At least she could see danger and beat it back. This poor bastard probably needed help just to walk. That wasn't life at all. That was a prison.

'Poor bastard.' she couldn't help but dwell on his ruined eyes. 'What happened to you...?'

A lopsided smile twitched at his lips at his neck craned towards her.

"Feeling sorry for me, are we? This from a mute?"

Neo jolted. Had he just...?

"Anyway, introductions!" The stranger clapped his hands. "If its names you're after, I go by Naruto. You're looking for Cinder Fall, right? Wouldn't be over here if you weren't." at her nod -and how was he aware of that?!- the whiskered warrior continued with that small, amicable smile of his. "That's grand. So am I. She took something from me, you see." a tan hand touched the lids of his damaged eyes. "I'm rather keen to get it back."

Neo tilted her head.

"Its my fault really, I let my guard down; tried to show her a better path. Heh." a hoarse chuckle escaped him, shoulders shaking at some grand cosmic joke she didn't understand. "Didn't work out so well. Lesson learned. Some people don't deserve a second chance." his staff clinked down, rings rattling against wood. "She took my eyes, so I'll take hers. Only seems fair."

Neo tapped two fingers in an unspoken inquiry.

"I don't know where she is now, but I know where she's been." Naruto leaned back in his seat, balancing his scroll and staff against his good knee. "She tried to attack Haven recently; failed, from what I heard. Heh." here at last, his smile gained an edge. "Not surprising. Cinder always was an arrogant little snit, even when we were younger. I'd bet good money she's licking her wounds here in the city."

Neo scoffed. She already knew that. Didn't he have anything new?

"But I do know someone who can find Cinder." his words rekindled her interest. "I certainly paid her well enough." a scarred hand dove into a worn pocket and flashed a worn-looking phone at her. "I was going to give her a call and meet up after I finished my drink, but...

Neo flicked a blank look at his empty mug. Naruto's smile said he'd noticed it. "Why, so it is!"

How?! Telepathy?! Echolocation?! Both?!

With but a flick of his wrist the blond cast the dry flagon over his shoulder toward the bar. Judging by the barkeep's grunt, he'd found his mark.

"Seems like you have a grudge against her yourself." he smacked his lips, drawing her attention back together. "Say, I've got an idea. Why don't we work together? Two heads are better than one, after all." The very moment she began to doubt him, he laughed again. "Don't worry about me." there it was again, that small, selfsame smile. "I'm not as helpless as I look."

Not bloody likely. He'd be a hindrance. She made to stand. Better to just snatch up his scroll and do it herself-

Naruto burned gold.

Quick as a flash a ringed staff swung out and snared Neo's ankle. Mismatching eyes bulged. Then it yanked her down. Caught unprepared by the sudden assault, Neo lost her balance and toppled to the floor in a tangle of arms and legs. The faint scent of rot reached her nose and she recoiled, pushing up and off the termite-ridden floor to tumble away from the follow through. No attack came.

"What's wrong?" her patron pushed his chair back and climbed to his feet, grinning from ear to ear. "Cat got your tongue?"

Now that he'd finally deigned to stand, Neo realized he wasn't quite as frail as she'd thought him to be. His arms were all corded muscle, his body sleek and fit. No helpless beggar was this. His hands reached down in an eerie, practiced movement to pull the strap of that strange scroll and draw it over his shoulders. Binding it to his back, he turned to face her and planted his staff.

"We don't have to be enemies, you know." he offered her his free hand with unerring accuracy. "C'mon. Lets be friends~!"

Friends? With this buffoon? No! Never!

Neo dove at him in a whirl of steel. Naruto parried her first strike, ducked the second, and brought a fist crashing down on her head. Neo yelped wordlessly as she bit her tongue. Clenched knuckles barreled into her nose at speed, hurling her into a wall. She twirled and caromed off it, using the rickety frame as a springboard to fling herself at him in her dauntless anger.

He wasn't there.

A shimmering fist closed her ankle in mid-flight, wrenching her short lived leap to an ignoble end. Blank eyes met hers. Neo twisted and stabbed at them, jabbing her weapon's hidden blade into his face. Too little, too late. Her body went soaring up...and came crashing down as he smashed her against the floor. Up again now. Down once more. Her visage kissed the floorboards for a second time now as he whipped her back and forth like a rag doll. One. Two. Three. Four. Five times now. Her aura cracked dully.

For an awful moment, Neo couldn't move. She lay there, wedged against the floor, eyes spinning in her head.

"You're a nimble little thing." warm lips caressed her ear. "Who taught you how to fight?"

It was the wrong thing to say.

An irritated puff of air parted Neo's lips. Anger sparked and she lashed out, plunging her weapon into his chest.

Naruto's smile vanished as her blade passed through smoke and ash. Neo stumbled half a step, startled by the display. What kind of semblance was that? She'd not seen-ack?! An uppercut caught her chin as her foe burst from the ground and struck her head on. Her tiny body sailed upward at speed to slam into the ceiling. She felt something pop in her back, but managed to wrench herself free and glided to the ground with the aid of her parasol. Somewhere below her, the bartender wailed.

"Stop blowin' holes in my bar! Take yer spat outside!"

Naruto grunted and ceased glowing, looking mildly put out himself. "Fair enough."

He turned his back and in that moment of weakness, Neo struck; tackling him through a window. The moment her feet hit the ground she was gone, wrapping her semblance around herself like a shroud. To the naked eye she seemed to do just that; shattering against the ground, vanishing into the evening mists like some specter come to call.

Rather than pursue her, Naruto only clicked his tongue in mild admonishment.

"Cinder took something from you too, didn't she? No." the blind man cocked his head and called out into the mist after her, regarding the space he'd last seen like a sad fox. "Someone. Your soul has an air of loss about it." he failed to notice the displaced air behind him "Its sad, really," he sniffed once, unaware of his impending doom. "Despair, I'd say. Who did you lose? A lover? A friend? A father? Or perhaps...

His fist snapped backward with lazy grace, catching her in the gut. Air rushed out of Neo's lungs as she folded around his outstretched limb.

...a partner."

Neo looked up and for a moment, just a moment, she saw the specter of her old partner in this stranger. She beheld it in his smile. It was there in the way he leaned against his staff, placing both hands atop it just so as she'd seen so many times before. Those matted bond tresses fell over a blind eye, emulating him just so. Neo's already fractured mind began to splinter further as she gripped onto his arm, falling apart piece by painful piece. His free hand came down. Not like this. She couldn't die here, not like this...!

"It hurts, doesn't it?' Bandaged fingers brushed her hair, stroking her scalp with surprising gentleness. "She destroyed your life."

And then he pushed her over the edge.

"I'm sorry for your loss. Whomever he was, he must've been important to you."

Neo's world went red. Not pity. Anything but that. Her soul shrieked.

"Roman!"

A soundless scream tore from her throat as she yanked down the blind man's arm and dove at him, teeth bared. Their weapons collided in a hail of sparks and all the world became a whirl of death. Time ceased to have any meaning for Neo. She fought like a hellcat, raging and twisting and writhing, desperate to silence that small, sad smile. But she couldn't. For all her speed and skill, her opponent endured. He was a rock, weathering everything she had to give and more.

"I'm not your enemy!" he shouted over the sound of whirling steel. "You're not the only one with a grudge against Cinder!"

When they collided yet again, Neo realized that his staff had a blade embedded against it. Naruto twisted that staff against her thin blade, forcing her back one step, then two, followed by three. She kicked out at his shin to try and weaken him, to no avail. He absorbed the blow with ease and kicked out, ripping Hush from her grasp. It skittered across the street and vanished into the mist.

Neo dove at him without it, near-mindless in her fury. It was the straw that broke the camel's back.

Naruto pointed his staff at her and snarled.

"ENOUGH!"

Golden light burst from him anew, brighter and angrier than ever; the sheer pressure of it forced Neo's head down and flung her into a wall.

A sudden presence rippled through the air, bringing with it the howl of a mighty beast.

Neo looked up and sorely wished she hadn't. Naruto was gone. In his place loomed a massive golden vulpine, bearing nine towering tails. Big. Too big. Her mind couldn't even begin to comprehend the sheer size of such a creature. What was this? Some kind of Golden Grimm? Was that a thing? Massive. Monstrous. Other words starting with "M" and it was looking at her now andohgodsIdontwannadie...

That great gilded beast leaned down, bringing her face to face with a glowing iris.

"We both want Cinder dead. So quit wasting your time fighting me," he cleared his throat, "And lets discuss how we kill her together."

She stumbled back with a tentative nod, eyes wide and mouth agape. Why did this braggart even need her help in the first place?! If he could transform into such a creature, Cinder wouldn't stand a chance. Was there a limit? Some hidden clause she wasn't aware of? Did his blindness prevent him from fighting at fully capacity? She didn't know. If knowing was half the battle, then she'd already lost this one.

To her relief, the beast grinned, exposing row upon row of vicious teeth. "Okay then. Lets talk."

Just like that, the burning light about Naruto began to dim; when it faded completely, he was a man once more.

"Sorry, Kurama," he wiped a bead of sweat from his brow, speaking to himself. "That really takes a lot out of me these days. What? No," his nose wrinkled. "We can't eat her!"

...what was a Kurama? Ah, but he was looking at her again.

Neo wasn't sure she'd ever be able to look at him the same way again. Her mind gibbered anew. What kind of power was that? It couldn't be a Semblance. He didn't even have Aura. What few hits he'd taken had just gone right through. This wasn't a huntsman. This wasn't a Grimm. This...she didn't know what it was.

The thought excited and terrified her in equal measure.

"Well? Whaddya say?" Naruto offered her his palm. "Partners? We both want the same thing, after all."

Neo regarded his outstretched palm like a poisonous asp. Partners? Did she dare? Her last partner died. Roman was gone. She couldn't handle the death of someone like him. Still, if this one was even half of what Roman was -and he looked to be much more than that- he should pull his weight. He'd be a useful distraction if nothing else.

"C'mon, shake my hand." His grin grew. "Won't you shake a poor sinner's hand?"

...screw it. If she was going to commit to this suicidal endeavor she could do with an ally. At least then she'd make certain the bitch burned. Two against one was better odds for her anyway. And so Neo reached out to grasp his hand. Strong fingers clamped down on hers. For a moment, she thought she felt a spark shoot through her palm. Probably her imagination.

"Yesss~!" Naruto all but drawled the word, grinning down at her. "That's the spirit. Don't suppose you've got a name. You haven't said a word...?"

She tapped a finger to the side of her mouth with a frown. His ears twitched at the sound.

Naruto offered a sheepish laugh. It was a surprisingly boyish smile.

"Right. Forgot about that. So? What do I call you?"

Neo stepped in and languidly traced her right hand against his exposed forearm for good measure. Naruto's brow furrowed in realization, focusing on the imaginary letters she'd scrawled there. And if her hand lingered just a little longer than it should have...well. Her new ally didn't say anything. He merely quirked a brow. His hand came down again, ruffling her hair. She jerked away with a scowl, but couldn't escape his laughter.

Her heart fluttered a little. She stamped it into silence.

"Neo, eh?" her new ally chortled softly. "I think we're going to be the best of friends. C'mon, lets go meet that broker I told you about...

Neopolitan skipped after him, a small smile plucking at her the corner of her mouth. Friends, was it? Alright. She rather liked that assessment. It felt like an invisible weight had been lifted from her shoulders; as if she had been spared a terrible fate. She could make this work; no, it would work. She wore it. Cinder's days were numbered. As of this moment, Fall was living on borrowed time. She just didn't realize it yet. They would hunt her down, they would find her, and they would end her. So she swore.

Revenge was a dish Best Served Cold, after all.

And theirs would prove cold indeed.

The coldest of all.

A/N: Run, Cinder. That is all. Just run. Run far away. Right now.

Remember, Embers rule. I'll delete this quite soon if folks don't like it. So by all means. Make yourselves heard.

Pretty much a single pairing here, rare as that is. Never really wrote a Blind!Naruto before. Its pretty fun, even if this particular iteration is a bit like Daredevil. That said, this...is going to be a short story. Probably five-ten chapters at most. And I'm not pulling the same shit the finale did. Really! What even was that?!

So in the Immortal Words of Atlas...

...Review, Would You Kindly?

And enjoy the previews.

(Previews)

"I'm not without my tricks." Naruto bit his thumb and slammed it down upon the soil. Ink spread from his fingers. "Summoning jutsu."


"Would you like your voice back, Neo?"

She nearly missed a step. Naruto heard it and chortled softly.

"Ironic, isn't it?" he laughed. "The man who can heal others can't heal himself when it matters most. But my offer stands."

She touched a hand to her throat. Did she dare...?


Neo patted his face.

Unseeing eyes turned towards her.

Creepy. She shivered a little bit. How could he see her? He was blind!

"Sorry. Didn't mean to scare you. If it helps, you can think of this of it as a blend of telepathy and echolocation."


"Hello, Cinder! Remember me! You took my eyes."

"You're about to lose a lot more."

"Say hello, Neo."

R&R~!