Hello all Storm here with a new chapter! Here we'll be seeing the aftermath of the Goblin's attack on the rally along with Venom's appearance and saving both Weiss and Natalia. So, without further ado.
I own nothing
Three days have passed since the attack at the rally by the White Goblin, as people were now calling him, with it only having been stopped thanks to the appearance of Venom. The latter of whom was now gaining more positive news, thanks to him having fought the White Goblin, along with having saved Weiss Schnee and Natalia Florence.
Though this still created many concerns for the people of Atlas and Mantle, with there now being two superpowered beings running around. Making everyone worried if more were to show up, while wondering what the Atlesian Military and Council were going to do about it. Leading to a meeting between the Atlas Council, made up of General Ironwood, Councilman Sleet, and Councilwoman Camilla. Along with several higherups in Atlas, including Nicholas Schnee, with Obadiah having accompanied him, and Azzurin Florence, as well as the heads of the Lejonets and Sirens, Topaz Lejonet and Rivers Siren.
The Lejonet Family and their jewelry company was one of the top earners in Atlas, while the Sirens had a monopoly on the eastern coast of Atlas with their fishing companies.
Currently, all of them were meeting to discuss recent events and what they were to do in regards to the White Goblin.
"General, how could this have happened?! Not only does this…this madman show up out of nowhere and kill who knows how many people at the rally; but was somehow able to hack into the Atlesian Knights!" Sleet said, not liking this breach in Atlas's security, especially since they had no idea who the White Goblin could be and where he is now.
"With all due respect councilman, I doubt any of us could have expected a lot of things that have happened recently." Stated Ironwood, given first it was Venom showing up and what he could do, then White Goblin appearing and attacking the rally.
If Ironwood didn't already know about a lot of impossible things after joining Ozpin's group, he'd be more surprised and at a loss for what's happening.
"While I can't say for certain who this White Goblin is, the suit and glider he used came from the SDC. Someone had broken in and stolen both items, just before I retook my position as CEO. So, whoever is in the suit has to have had some knowledge about what it was, and where the suit and glider were located." Said Nicholas, wanting to help make sure the White Goblin was stopped and captured, before anyone else could die.
"While useful, that doesn't help shorten the list of suspects, especially with how it seemed the Goblin was specifically targeting SDC board members. Meaning that whoever they are, has a grudge against the SDC; which only makes the list longer, given there's no shortage of people who have a grudge against the SDC." Azzurin added, also wanting to see the White Goblin taken down after they nearly killed his daughter, if it wasn't for Venom.
"Especially with recent events. How is it going through all of Jacques' dirty laundry Nicholas?" Rivers asked with a slight smirk, with the Schnee giving him an unamused look, but also knew he wasn't wrong.
It made Nicholas curse himself and Jacques for nearly destroying the company he built from the ground up. Knowing if news of the treatment of Faunus workers hadn't come to light, then he didn't doubt that Jacques's activities would have eventually lead to the fall of the SDC.
'How he convinced me to let him take over the company, I'll never understand.' Nicholas thought, knowing he only let Jacques takeover due to his health problems from his time in the Dust mines.
"And what happens if the White Goblin starts branching out into other companies? How do we know any of us are even safe?" Demanded Topaz while looking around, doubting the White Goblin won't stop at the just the SDC and may come after their companies as well, or even the council members.
"Enough! We won't get anything done, sitting here worrying and arguing with each other. Nick, what exactly was the purpose of the suit and the glider, and is there anyway of tracking them?" Ironwood asked, wanting as much information as they could about what the suit is capable of.
"From what I've learned about it, the suit and glider were designed to be used by soldiers, who didn't have their Aura unlocked. Both to protect them and help them move around much more quickly, while making them harder targets to hit, as opposed to flying an airship. As for tracking, as far as I can tell, they were made to be impossible to track." Replied Nicholas, making the general sigh since that didn't really help them.
"There was one other thing. The facility that the glider and suit were stored in, it was also used to research and recreate the serum used on Captain Arcadia." Obadiah added, making everyone aside from Nicholas, who'd already been informed of this, tense while their eyes widened.
"Do you mean to tell us, that not only does the White Goblin have this suit and glider, but potentially took a serum to have the same powers as Captain Arcadia?!" Demanded Sleet, not believing that this could get even worse, all of them knowing Captain Arcadia was one of the deciding factors during the Great War.
"It was an experimental serum, so while the White Goblin may have enhanced abilities similar to the Captain, he still wouldn't be anywhere near his capabilities. I've also already ensured that any remaining samples of the serum and how it was made have been locked away, where only I can find them." Nicholas said, something that did relieve them slightly, but they still tense at the idea of the White Goblin having the same power as Remnant's first superhero.
"Okay. For now, the best we can do is increase security around Atlas and Mantle, while making sure we have everyone on the lookout for the White Goblin and report any sightings of him. The sooner we have this lunatic behind bars, the better." Said Ironwood, wanting to capture the Goblin as soon as possible before any more deaths could happen, even more so with this new news of what he could be capable of.
"And what about Venom?" Questioned Camilla, turning the conversation to the other problem they're dealing with.
"What would you expect us to do? If not for Venom's help, more people would have died; including my granddaughter and Azzurin's own daughter." Nicholas said in defense of the vigilante who saved Weiss and Natalia.
"Agreed. Besides, he was also the one who exposed the SDC workers' treatment of the Faunus. I'd say Venom is simply doing what's necessary." Stated Azzurin, not seeing any reason for Venom to be dealt with, when so far, he's helped exposed the corruption in the SDC, while having also saved his daughter and her friend.
"He's still a vigilante, something we can't let continue. If Venom keeps taking matters into his own hands, then people will begin losing faith in the Atlesian Military's ability to keep them safe. And then what will happen if he leaves and goes somewhere else? People will be afraid, no longer believing they're safe with him gone." Said Sleet, seeing how Venom's presence could affect things in the long run.
"Then they'll panic, which will soon draw in the Grimm. We'll keep an eye out for Venom as well, if only to ask for his cooperation and ensure he doesn't attack any innocent people, which will also show the people that Atlas is willing to work with Venom. Though this leads me to another topic for today, and I'll turn things over to Dr. Polendina." Said Ironwood, stepping aside as Pietro Polendina, one of Atlas's best scientists and brightest minds, moved forward in his chair.
Ironwood having been meeting with Pietro, ever since Venom first appeared. Wanting to ensure they had a countermeasures to use against the vigilante, in the event he ever started attacking the innocent.
"Thank you, General. Now then, I think it goes without saying that our world is changing, first with Venom and now the White Goblin. The same thing happened when Captain Arcadia was made and then vanished at the end of the War; everyone was trying to recreate what was done to him. Now another change has come, only this time, it seems likely that this will be much bigger than any of us could realize, as more superpowered beings appear. How much longer until more like them start showing up? What happens when even our own military isn't enough to counter beings who can either rip them apart, or hack them?" Pietro asked before pulling out his Scroll and putting it on the table, as it showed a hologram of something he and Ironwood had begun working on.
"So your idea is to create even more drones?" Questioned Rivers, thinking they were looking at a more advanced Atlesian Knight.
"No, not drones or robots. While I do believe that the Atlesian Knights help keep the human casualties to a minimum, if there's one thing I've learned, it's that certain situations will always require a human touch. This isn't a robot, it's armor, a shield to help defend Atlas and the rest of Remnant." Ironwood explained, with everyone looking at the hologram in renewed interest.
"How long would it take to outfit all our soldiers in this armor?" Camilla asked, only for Ironwood and Pietro to shake their heads.
"All the soldiers? Oh no, no, no. The general and I both agreed it'd be far too dangerous to allow all the soldiers to wear this armor; especially if it fell into the wrong hands, given what we planned for it to be. No, this armor will go to one person and only one person." Said Pietro since they intended to make the armor capable of turning a single person into a one-man army.
With them also keeping the designs and specifics of the armor in their heads, refusing to risk anyone getting their hands on the blueprints or hacking their Scrolls.
"And who's going to be the lucky pilot?" Topaz asked, wanting to know who they planned to turn into Remnant's new protector.
"We haven't decided yet. We intend to hold tryouts among the top soldiers and students in Atlas Academy, someone young, willing to learn, as well as having the physical and mental strength required to wear this." Ironwood said, preferring if they chose someone young as opposed to an older and experienced soldier, given they'd have more time to learn and be more prepared for when the armor was ready.
Though one thing he and Pietro agreed on, was that above all else, whoever they choose to wear armor didn't have to be the strongest, fastest, or smartest. What they needed the most, was the courage to give their all to help and protect Remnant.
*Schnee Manor*
Meanwhile, at the Schnee Manor, Weiss had been taken care of by her family since the rally and her near-death experience, with only Jacques being missing. Something that Weiss would have normally enjoyed; with Winter being home more often, while her mother's no longer drinking and is actually interacting with them again. But even she had limits on how much she could handle being coddled by her family, and not having any space.
"I'm fine, really! Nothing happened, and I barely even got a scratch, so you don't have to worry about me suddenly breaking!" Said Weiss to her mother and siblings.
"I'm sure you are Weiss, but you can't blame us for worrying. We nearly lost you and we just want to make sure you're safe." Willow said, having been terrified when she saw Weiss and Natalia fall, while they were helpless to do anything to save them.
With it also making the woman start reflecting on how she's been treating her children lately, thinking of all the lost time between her and her children, while she was busy drowning in her sorrows and self-pity. Having been so close to losing one of them made her realize how much time she's already lost and didn't want to lose anymore.
Though Willow knew it's going to be difficult, given how long it's been since she barely even had a full conversation with any of her children. Simply hoping she'd eventually be able to make it up to them.
"Mother's right. If it wasn't for Venom, then both you and Natalia would be dead right now, along with who knows how many more people if he didn't stop the White Goblin." Said Winter, having hated how helpless she was to save her sister and her friend, along with it being a vigilante that saved them.
"I'm surprised they didn't work together." Whitley muttered, hating Venom for being the reason their father was barely around anymore, if at all.
"There's no way Venom would work with the Goblin! He's the coolest hero there is, with how he went to save grandpa while knocking the Goblin off his glider! And then when he went to save Weiss and Natalia by jumping after them!" Said Wendy, looking at her brother with narrowed eyes, not believing he'd even think that Venom would work with the White Goblin.
The young girl seeing Venom as a hero for saving their grandfather along with their sister; making her then look at Weiss with an eager grin.
"What is he like up close, like that?! Was he really strong, what did you think when he caught you?! Oooh, was he really gentle when he held you in his arms?!" Wendy asked eagerly, wanting to know more about Venom, not seeing Weiss freeze while her face started turning red.
"Wh-what?!" Said Weiss, not believing what her little sister just insinuated.
"Was Venom gentle when you were with him?! Come on I wanna know, though was it hard to tell since you and Natalia were both with him?" Questioned Wendy, with Weiss's face now a bright red color.
"WHAT?!" Weiss said, even more embarrassed by Wendy's words.
"I said-" Wendy said, only for Weiss to quickly cover her mouth, not wanting to be further embarrassed, while Willow and Winter were amused at Weiss's usual composure falling apart at her sister's words.
"Hmph, well…I suppose you could do worse, but you could definitely do better." Stated Whitley, making Weiss glare at him in annoyance.
Though unknown to the family, they were watched a hidden Jacques, the former CEO scoffing at the sight before turning away to contemplate his loss at against that freak Venom.
'It seems the bug will be a bigger problem than I anticipated. I'll need to find ways to gain more power from the serum to ensure the next time we meet; I'll crush Venom beneath my foot for interfering in my plans.' Thought Jacques, before contemplating how to gain more power aside from the Super Soldier Serum, knowing that won't be enough to deal with Venom.
Before he remembered one of his more secret projects he'd been working on, making the man gain a dark smirk as a new plan began forming in his mind. With Jacques then going off to call in a debt that was owed to him.
*Later*
*With Naruto*
Naruto walked through the streets of Mantle, now wearing regular clothes consisting of a black, hooded jacket that he kept unzipped, with short sleeves, gold buttons, and a checkered pattern at the hem. Underneath, he wore a burnt orange long-sleeved shirt with a V-neck. As well as a pair of dark blue cropped trousers, that are hemmed with the same checkered pattern as the jacket, black fingerless gloves on each hand, and black high-top boots.
At the moment, the amnesiac Uzumaki was conversing with both his tenants on the events at the rally.
'So, now we have a flying madman to deal with, along with the corrupt officials; isn't that fantastic. What about you two, any thoughts about this and how we can deal with the White Goblin?' Thought Naruto, wondering if they had any ideas on how they can deal with the White Goblin.
"We don't have any ideas at the moment. Though before we arrived, it seemed as if this White Goblin was targeting members of the SDC. Meaning this person likely has a similar goal to our own." Venom replied as they saw how the White Goblin targeted the SDC board members, before going after Nicholas.
"Or they're another corrupt member, that's simply trying to cover their tracks by taking out anyone who could rat them out, while also taking any attention off them by killing Nicholas. Allowing them to make an escape with everyone panicking over his death and when the next attack would be." Said Kurama as that made more sense, given how the Goblin didn't seem concerned in regards to who died during the attack.
'That would make sense. So either way, if I follow Goblin, then I'll find other corrupt members to put down or expose. Though it seemed like he was also targeting the rest of the Schnee Family as well; so it may be good if I kept an eye on them, just in case he does attack them.' Naruto said mentally.
"Yes, I'm sure you'd like keeping an eye on them, given how tightly you held onto those two girls. Not to mention, I'm sure the other Schnee women would want to thank you for saving the girl." Said Kurama with a smirk, while Naruto raised a brow.
'Yeah, I held onto them tightly so they wouldn't end up falling, and they already did thank me for saving her.' Thought Naruto, confused as the fox's words.
"Ignore the fleshbags! We should be focus on putting the Goblin in the ground, not potential food!" Venom growled, refusing to have its hosts attention on the Schnee women or Florence Heiress.
At the mention of food Naruto's stomach growled, much to his embarrassment, given he hadn't eaten in a while. Only to tense slightly at hearing an amused chuckle nearby, before he looked to see where it came from and saw four women.
The first is a young woman with tanned skin and violet eyes. Her light-blond hair is tied in a ponytail. She has a beauty mark under her right eye and another one on the left side under her mouth. Her attire consisted of a black sleeveless coat with gray accents over a red double-breasted sleeveless vest, a brown high neck shirt, and a light gray short-sleeved shirt with one right short sleeve that has a black cuff whilst the other sleeve is longer. She also wears a brown belted waist clincher with matching brown pants tucked into black knee-high boots with dark brown cuffs. Around her neck she wears an olive green scarf with tattered looking tails hanging behind her. She also wears a pair of black archery styled gloves with the index finger missing on both of them. With her weapon being a small crossbow strapped to her left arm.
The second is a Faunus with short and messy swept styled white hair and olive eyes. She has sheep ears as her Faunus trait with a small hoop earring on her left ear and a small bell earring on her right ear. She was wearing an olive green sleeveless coat with dark brown lapels with a bird brooch on the left lapel. She sports a green long-sleeved shirt with a white orange trimmed breastplate over it. She wears an orange belt, which holds her coat tightly around her waist. She also wears dark brown pants tucked into gray under the knee boots with the tops folded over revealing the white lining. The soles and toes of the boots are a darker gray. She also wears dark fingerless gloves accompanied by white and gray forearm armored pads with the left arm covering up to her upper arm whilst the right only partially covers her forearm.
The third is a fair-skinned woman with medium blue hair, a long ponytail wrapped in white bandage-like fabric, and yellow eyes. She was wearing a dusty brown coat with a small split in the rear, dark brown lapels with a bird brooch emblem on the right lapel over a gray waistcoat and dark brown top. She also wears dark brown shorts alongside matching forearm length gloves. She also wore gray armor padding over her forearms and the backs of her hands. Alongside a pair of gray thigh socks and dark brown thigh-high boots and an orange scarf.
And the fourth is a tall, tan skinned woman with masculine features and short dark green partially spiked hair, beige eyes and tattoos on her nose and forehead. She wears a cocoa brown coat with dark brown lapels and white trim and hem detail over a light beige long-sleeved top. She wears artichoke green and white armored pads with emerald, green straps on her arms alongside brown gloves. She sports a pair of brown trousers tucked into black boots with emerald, green cuffs. She also wears a light gray and pale green breastplate that sports the bird brooch emblem that the other women were wearing in the center.
"Can I…help you four?" Naruto asked warily, seeing they were looking at him.
"Sorry for staring, but given how loud your friend there is, I'm guessing you haven't eaten in a while." Said the first woman with an amused smirk on her face, making Naruto blush lightly in embarrassment.
"U-uh, no, I've just been…busy and didn't have the time." Naruto replied, not wanting to draw attention to himself.
"It's fine, a lot of people here in Mantle have trouble trying to get by sometimes, especially now. By the way, I'm Robyn Hill and these are Fiona Thyme, May Marigold, and Joanna Greenleaf. We're the Happy Huntresses." Robyn introduced, thinking that he was homeless, which wasn't far from the truth.
"Nice to meet you." Said Fiona while smiling at Naruto.
"Hey." May said with a short nod.
"Greetings." Said Joanna with a nod as well.
"Uh, nice to meet you, I'm Naruto Uzumaki. And what do mean by…Happy…Huntresses?" Questioned Naruto, confused at the name
"It's something the people of Mantle have been calling us. We were all once members of Atlas Academy and the top of our classes, but we decided to leave after graduating and help Mantle. Given that no one else has been trying to." Robyn replied, with the other Huntresses nodding in agreement, given they wanted to help Mantle since the people of Atlas haven't made the effort to do anything.
"Oh, well that's pretty cool and I'm sure Mantle is happy to have you helping. But I should get going, it was nice to meet you." Said Naruto, now wanting to get away from the four of them, since if they're well-known in Mantle, and potentially Atlas, he'd prefer not being seen with them, wanting to keep a low cover.
"You don't have to worry; Robyn doesn't discriminate against Faunus and neither do May or Joanna." Fiona said, smiling reassuringly at Naruto, seeing his whisker marks, and thinking he was a Faunus that wasn't trustful to humans.
"Fiona's right. If you want, we even know of a place that we can take you to, that you can stay at for a while. There will be plenty of other Faunus there as well." Said Robyn, making Naruto look at them, unsure if he should accept the offer.
"I'm not really sure. I don't do good with crowds." Said Naruto, only for his stomach to growl again, much to his embarrassment.
"You sure you still don't wanna come? Worse case, you can leave if you don't like the place or feel uncomfortable." May said with a shrug, with the Uzumaki letting out a sigh before nodding.
"Okay. What is this place, anyway?" Naruto asked, figuring it wouldn't hurt to go with them, since he could sense that their intentions were kind and he was getting hungry.
"It's a center that's recently opened up for Faunus, that don't have anywhere else to go; where they can eat, sleep, help, and get away from less kind citizens. They're also accepting volunteers for anyone, willing to help around." Replied Robyn, having been planning to have her Huntresses volunteer to better help the Faunus in Mantle, only waiting until they'd gotten more settled in and more trusting.
Nodding at this, having heard about a shelter being opened up for the Faunus, Naruto followed the Happy Huntresses through Mantle. Seeing some of the citizens smiling and waving at the Huntresses; showing they even had a following among the Mantle citizens.
'Guess they really do want to do everything they can to help Mantle.' Thought Naruto, seeing the Happy Huntresses were loved and admired by the people of Mantle.
It wasn't long before they arrived at a large shelter, with Naruto seeing a sign above the entrance with F.E.A.S.T. on it.
'Food, Emergency Aid, Shelter, Training.' Thought Naruto, seeing the words beneath F.E.A.S.T. before he and the Happy Huntresses went inside.
*With Blake*
"You both did good at the rally. Helping to save Nicholas Schnee and fighting off those Knights that the Goblin hacked; it'll go a long way in building up the White Fangs reputation here in Solitas. Something I'm sure Ghira will be happy to hear." Said Adam to Blake and Ilia, his eyes lacking the dark gaze his dark half has, showing his good half was in control at the moment.
Blake and Ilia both felt a mix of pride and embarrassment at being praised by Adam, along with the other Faunus and the few human workers/volunteers. The latter group having joined F.E.A.S.T. either due to genuinely wanting to help the Faunus or seeing more work opportunities.
"I-it was nothing, really. We didn't do much." Ilia said as she started turning pink.
"Y-yeah, we just took care of a few robots. Venom's the one who saved Mr. Schnee from the Goblin." Said Blake, doubting they would have been able to take on the Goblin, like Venom could.
"Still, you both made sure he got out of there alive and safe, along with knowing the Faunus are willing to help him." Adam stated, several other Faunus nodding in agreement, all of them knowing that Nicholas Schnee would be a much better CEO for the SDC than Jacques had been.
Everyone soon got back to work around the center, before taking notice of the Happy Huntresses and Naruto arriving; getting Adam's attention as he went over to them, along with Blake, Ilia, and some of the other White Fang members.
"Is there something you all needed?" Adam asked, looking at them suspiciously, ready to draw his sword if needed.
"Yes, we were hoping to volunteer and help around here. I'm Robyn Hill and these are Fiona Thyme, Joanna Greenleaf, and May Marigold. And this is Naruto Uzumaki, we found him and saw he needed a place to stay." Said Robyn, making Adam look at Naruto with a raised brow.
"What exactly kind of Faunus are you?" Said Adam, given he's seen plenty of different Faunus with whisker marks, but they also usually have more identifiable traits like ears or a tail.
"Fox Faunus." Naruto said with eyes briefly flashing red with slit pupils while his nails grew into claws, making a few Faunus look at him warily, along with the Happy Huntresses.
"He could be some kind of new…mutant or evolve Faunus. Being able to hide the more obvious traits. Not to mention the eyes." One of the White Fang guards said to Adam, who nodded slowly.
"I guess so. Though I'm able to always see better in the dark, no matter what color my eyes are and I can hear a lot of things too. Also I won't expect to say here for free, so I can help out around or go out and bring other Faunus here." Said Naruto, deciding to go with that, along with wanting to help around as well.
"…Okay. Trifa, Yuma, show these four around and then put them to work." Adam said to two of the White Fang's enforcers, knowing if the Happy Huntresses tried anything, they'll be able to deal with them, with Trifa and Yuma nodding.
Trifa is a young girl with blue eyes and medium length blue hair, covering her right eye. She has pale skin, pronounced grey veins on her chest and arms, and grey colored hands. She wears a black and dark gray uniform with gold buttons and zipper, with her front zipper is left open, revealing her upper chest.
Yuma is a tall male bat Faunus with spiky brown hair and a goatee. He wears a black and dark gray uniform with gold buttons and zipper like the rest of his enforcers. He has brown bat wings on his back.
"Let's go and try to keep up, we don't have time to waste." Trifa said, motioning the Happy Huntresses to follow her and Yuma, with Naruto doing a double take when she turned around showing a white spider symbol on the back of her uniform.
"Blake, Ilia, show Naruto around as well and help him get settled." Said Adam, the two girls nodding as they went up to Naruto.
"Come on, we'll show you where everything is. Also, if you do want to volunteer and help around, then you'll be staying in one of the upper floors." Blake said while motioning Naruto to follow her and Ilia.
"Just don't think about slacking off. We're all expected to pull our own weight." Said Ilia, looking at Naruto with narrowed eyes, with the Uzumaki nodding in response.
"I won't. Though um, the girl back there, Trifa, what was with the spider symbol on her uniform? Cause it looked kind of like the one on…" Naruto trailed off, wondering why she had his spider symbol on her unform.
"The one on Venom. Yeah, that's what it's supposed to be. Trifa's a spider Faunus, which gives her spinnerets in her hands to create spiderwebs. And after Venom's first appearance and how he helped expose some of the corruption in the Schnee Dust Company, she put the symbol on her uniform as a show of pride at another spider Faunus helping our kind. Though she'd also begun making Venom clothing for the younger Faunus here, who are starting to look up to him." Said Blake, surprising Naruto at hearing Trifa's a spider Faunus.
"She thinks Venom's a spider Faunus?" Naruto asked, making Ilia roll her eyes.
"What else could he be? There's no way a human would do what he did to help the Faunus, and he's able to stick to walls and shoot webs like a spider. So, it'd make sense he's a spider Faunus." Ilia said, with the Uzumaki nodding slowly, while not complaining if people thought Venom was a spider Faunus.
"I guess that makes sense. Also I'm Naruto Uzumaki, it's nice to meet you both." Naruto introduced, smiling at them and held out his hand, which Blake shook.
"Blake, Blake Belladonna. It's nice to meet you to Naruto." Replied Blake before looking at Ilia, who reluctantly shook his hand.
"Ilia Amitola." Said Ilia, with Blake giving Naruto an apologetic look.
Despite not showing it, Blake knew her friend had a hard time being back in Mantle and near Atlas. Given what happened to her parents, with how they died in mining accident while her former classmates and friends laughed about it. So she had a hard time trusting anyone from Mantle or Atlas, even other Faunus.
"Nice meeting you both. And if you don't mind me asking, what kind of Faunus are you both?" Questioned Naruto, only being able to tell that Blake had a pair of ears beneath the bow on her head, with how it twitched every now and then.
"It's fine, and I'm cat a Faunus. I just prefer keeping my ears hidden to better blend in and get around, without drawing attention to myself." Replied Blake, enjoying how easily she can fool people with a little black bow.
"That's cool, and it's a pretty smart way to hide in plain sight like that." Naruto said, smiling at Blake, which she returned.
"And are you like a…lizard Faunus?" Said Naruto, looking at Ilia curiously, the brunette looking at him with wide eyes.
"How did you know that?" Said Ilia, since it's impossible for anyone to even think she's a Faunus, unless she changes colors.
"The spots on all over your skin, they look kind of like the patterns on some types of lizards." Naruto said, making Ilia look at her spots, knowing that most people wouldn't be able to tell what they were, and would just think they were freckles.
"Well…yeah. I'm a chameleon Faunus." Ilia said, not seeing any reason to hide it.
"Really? Can you change color?" Questioned Naruto, with Ilia simply turning her hair white, her eyes red, and her skin pink in response
"That's awesome! You'd really be able to hide in plain sight with an ability like that, and even if someone sees you, you could lose them by changing your hair, eyes, and skin color to something else. You could even camouflage in places by matching the surrounding colors, especially at night if you wear all black, or blue if you're in an area that doesn't suffer from light pollution. You have a really awesome ability, Ilia." Naruto said smiling at the brunette, making her look at him in surprise before she quickly looked away.
"…Thanks. You have…cool abilities too, being able to hide most of your traits." Replied Ilia, not used to hearing anyone praise her Faunus trait, given how everyone else is so used to it, that it's not really surprising.
"Yeah, my dad's kind of like that too, having retractable claws as his trait. Though are your eyes another trait?" Blake asked, looking at Naruto's eyes, having never seen anyone with eyes like that.
"No, that actually happened when I first activated my Semblance; which lets me teleport anywhere I've been, or can see." Replied Naruto, with both girls nodding.
"My Semblance lets me make shadow-clones of myself to avoid attacks and push me in any direction I want. I can also use Dust to give them added effects." Blake said.
"…I can heal faster than normal and reattach anything that's cutoff, as long as I do it quick enough and have enough Aura to fully heal them." Said Ilia, making Naruto nod at their Semblances, seeing how useful and powerful they can be.
"Out of curiosity, why did the White Fang set up a homeless shelter here in Mantle?" Questioned Naruto, finding it strange that the White Fang would be here.
"It's actually meant to be a temporary refuge for all the Faunus here, until they're able to properly leave elsewhere. Given everything that's happening here." Blake said, wanting to help get all the Faunus out of Mantle and Atlas.
"And deal with anyone that tries stopping us." Ilia muttered darkly, knowing anyone that does try stopping them would just want to use the Faunus for their own gain.
"That's really great, since they deserve a chance to settle down somewhere safer and away from all this; especially with the White Goblin running around now. And you two must be really brave and strong to come here and want to help." Replied Naruto as he smiled at them, which Blake returned, while Ilia had a small smile and nodded.
*Later*
After Blake and Ilia showed Naruto around the shelter, he began helping both girls with their responsibilities. Which mainly just consisted of moving supplies or helping any of the Faunus staying with any problems they had. With Naruto having also seen the Happy Huntresses occasionally helping around as well.
It wasn't long before they stopped to have lunch, with Naruto getting something called ramen, which he seemed to vaguely recall having before. The Uzumaki shrugging before he took a bite of the ramen, only for his eyes to widen at the taste.
"Is something wrong Naruto?" Blake asked, looking at him at seeing he was frozen.
Only for her and Ilia's eyes to widen in shock when suddenly, the whiskered boy devoured the entire bowl of ramen. Before seemingly teleporting and having a new one, which vanished just as quickly, and just as quickly was replaced again.
"Wh-where did you…get that?" Questioned Ilia warily and blinking slowly, only to be shocked when she saw that there were now suddenly five empty bowls rather than two.
"The kitchen." Naruto said while eating his sixth bowl of ramen, much to the girls' disbelief, which only grew with each bowl of ramen Naruto ate.
"I'm…guessing you like ramen." Blake stated, wondering how he could eat so much.
"Yeah, it's really great! I also saw this stuff, which looked really good." Replied Naruto, pulling out some chocolate bars he grabbed and ate one, surprised at the taste and how good it is.
"Give us more! More, more, more! More, or we will eat the fleshbags!" Venom said at tasting the chocolate as well and loving the taste of it, now wanting even more.
'Fucking perfect, I have to deal with two of them now.' Kurama thought, having specifically avoided telling Naruto about his obsession with ramen, simply to avoid the boy eating dozens of bowls of it again.
Now the Bijū had to deal with that again, along with now Venom obsessing over chocolate.
"So, what do you think of staying here, Naruto?" Ilia asked after taking the time to get over her shock at how much Naruto was eating, with Naruto pausing for a moment.
"I'm not sure since I don't want to impose. Especially since you need all the room you can, with all the Faunus here in Mantle." Replied Naruto, not sure about staying in the shelter.
"You wouldn't be imposing since you're a Faunus too. Besides, if you don't have anywhere else to go, then you'd be more then welcome to stay here. Plus, you already offered to help around and it'd be easier if you were here full-time than needing to travel here every day." Blake pointed out, making Naruto frown since he couldn't fault that logic.
Though he was still hesitant given he didn't want to risk anyone seeing Venom coming or going to the shelter if he needed to suit up, which could lead to it being targeted. But he also did want to try and do some good outside of his suit as well.
"I'll think about it." Naruto said, with both girls nodding as they resumed eating.
*Outside*
Though unknown to everyone in the shelter, the building was being watched by multiple soldiers wearing all-black uniforms with no distinguishing features, logos, or symbols. Along with wearing masks to cover their faces and night vision goggles over their eyes. With the soldiers either being on the rooftops around F.E.A.S.T., or in black vans in nearby alleyways.
"Sir, we're at the target location, there don't seem to be any guards outside. How should we proceed?" One of the soldiers said into a radio to their superior.
"Engage the subjects, neutralize and capture as many of them as you can, whether they're human or Faunus it doesn't matter. Fallback when you've captured enough, we don't need the military being alerted or giving them time to retaliate." Replied their superior.
"Understood." Said the soldier before signaling to the others to begin making their move.
*F.E.A.S.T.*
Back inside, Naruto, along with several other Faunus, all stiffened at feeling something suddenly change around them. With the Uzumaki feeling his Spider-sense tingling and warning him of danger.
Though before any of them could react, several objects were thrown into the windows, revealed to be flash grenades, smoke grenades, and sound grenades when they either released a bright flash of light, exploded into clouds of smoke, or began emitting a high-pitched sound.
The flashes causing several Faunus to cry out and cover their eyes, while the sounds brought more of them to their knees while covering their ears. Naruto included as Venom shrieked in pain at the high-pitched noises.
The White Fang and Happy Huntresses tried going for their weapons as masked soldiers broke into the shelter and began grabbing people, or shooting them with tranquilizers knocking them out. While a few of them managed to recover and take down some of the soldiers, but it wasn't long before they began being overwhelmed.
Growling at the sight of what's happening, Naruto prepared to teleport away to suit up as Venom and deal with whoever these guys were, along with finding out their purpose of being here. But before he could, Naruto grunted as one of the soldiers struck him in the back of the head, before the Uzumaki only saw darkness.
So, what did you think, good. Yep we see a meeting between the Atlas Council and higherups to discuss the attack at the rally, with many being worried at the Goblin's appearance and the powers he could have, before we see Ironwood and Pietro have begun preparing a new project to create a new hero to protect Atlas and Remnant, a certain armored hero. Then we see Naruto meeting the Happy Huntresses who take him to F.E.A.S.T. after seeing he had nowhere to go, leading to Naruto meeting Blake and Ilia. Only for things to quickly take a bad turn when the shelter is attacked by unknown assailants who kidnap several Faunus and humans, including Naruto. Now then we have another Omake, one that'll show where another hero will be coming from.
Omake: Law of the Jungle
Trekking through the desert of Menagerie was a team of five White Fang members, the team having been sent out by Ghira in order to locate something they've been trying to find for decades.
"Why did the Chief even send us out here to find? What even could be out here to find, that's so important?" Questioned the youngest member of the team; not understand why they'd been sent out into the deserts of Menagerie, when as far he knew, the only things out here were Grimm and dangerous wildlife.
"Don't ask stupid questions, we all know why we're here and what we're trying to find." Another member said, much to the annoyance of the first.
"It's not a stupid question! The only things out here are the Grimm and animals that want to rip us apart! Not to mention sand for miles around us!" Retorted the first member, making the other four look at him in surprise.
"…How long have you even been in the White Fang, or on Menagerie for that matter?" Questioned the leader of the team, knowing that everyone on Menagerie is aware of why they send teams out into the desert, and what they're trying to find.
"About five months ago and I arrived on Menagerie nearly two months now." The member replied, with the rest of the team now understanding why he wasn't aware.
"Then you don't know about the metal the Faunus first found here. Sorry, I thought you already heard about it." Said the second member.
"What metal?" Questioned the youngest member as they continued their trek.
"A one of kind metal that can't be found anywhere else. It was first discovered by the first Faunus that arrived on Menagerie after the Great War. Despite how they saw this so-called "reward" as a slap to the face and simply dumping us where they didn't have to see us anymore, they still tried making the best of their situation. Trying to set up settlements and villages, only to encounter the wildlife and Grimm, which nearly wiped out all the Faunus. That is until one day, they happened upon a unique metal that glowed blue and possessed even more unique qualities. The stuff was practically indestructible, but they managed to find a way to mine it and turn it into a more malleable metal that they could turn into weapons. Weapons they used to finally start creating a settlement, without worrying of being attacked. Not only that, but wherever this stuff is buried, it helps enrich the soil and plant life around it; making it easier to grow stuff. Unfortunately, the metal eventually ran out and we've been trying to find more ever since, but only managing to find bits and pieces, forcing us to go out further to locate larger deposits." Explained the leader, much to the younger members surprise.
"And this stuff can't be found anywhere else?" Asked the member, getting nods from the others.
"As far as we know, it's only been found on Menagerie, which is why we prefer keeping it a secret from the other Kingdoms. Given if they knew an indestructible metal existed here, they'd try locating and mining it themselves. Despite how we were given the entire island and everything on it." Replied the fifth member.
"Okay, but how do we even locate this stuff?" The first member said, with the leader holding up a small device in response.
"This is something Chief Ghira's been working on, a tracker to locate where the metal's buried. It's managed to find some smaller veins near Kuo Kuana before, now we're hoping it'll find a bigger one." Replied the leader, just as the tracker began beeping and pointing straight ahead, showing it's picked up traces of the metal.
Seeing this, the team quickly began running towards the signal, climbing up a mountain as they did so, until they arrived at the mouth of a giant cavern. Entering the cavern, the team soon landed a ledge and looked around the seemingly empty cavern. Only for the leader to pull out his sword and strike the wall, before to the amazement of the Faunus, a wave of blue light erupted from the point of impact. The light traveling all throughout the cavern; going much farther than they could see.
"What did you say this metal was called?" Questioned the first member in amazement, as the leader looked around with a smirk at how much of the metal there was.
"We call it, Vibranium."
Yep, we have Vibranium in Menagerie, which they've kept a secret from the rest of the Kingdoms and now have just discovered an entire mountain of the indestructible metal. So, review if you liked go away if you didn't.
Storm out