Ruby starred up into the early morning sky
She had woken up early, and she decided just to take some fresh air
She still couldn't believe that Sasuke had beaten Yang so easily!
It was totally awesome!
Ruby saw a small flock of white birds flying around in the sky
Then suddenly, Yang's upside down face appeared in view
"You're up early," Yang said
"Hey sis," Ruby said
Ruby sighed then sat up and Yang then asked, "What are you doing up?
"Couldn't fall back asleep," Ruby said as Yang sat down next to her
"Me neither," Yang said
"Well, fortunately, coffee exists," Weiss said as she came out from inside, holding a tray that held three mugs of steaming, warm coffee.
Yang took her cup, but when Weiss lowered the tray for Ruby, Ruby crossed her arm in front of her face and said, "No, please."
"Don't worry, I put in blasphemous amounts of cream and sugar for you," Weiss said as she started handing the mug to Ruby
"Oh, yeah. Nice Weiss strikes again," Ruby replied
Weiss then reels her arm back in, still holding the cup, and says, "I will pour this on you and it will burn."
Weiss then gives Ruby the cup, and Ruby just shrugs
Weiss then sits down with her own cup
"Can't believe that we're actually in Mistral," Yang said
"That's what you can't believe?" Ruby asked
"Well, yeah. And all the other magic and stuff, you know what I mean," Yang said
"But I wasn't sure if I would see any of you two again," Weiss said
"Well, here's to defying expectations," Yang said as the two clinked their cups
Ruby sipped her mug, then a sad expression went on her face
"I just wish that Blake could be with us," Ruby said
Yang leaned back and said, "Yeah, but well, she made her choice."
Weiss looked at Yang a bit shocked, then asked, "What's that supposed to mean?"
"I mean, she could've been here if she stuck around," Yang said, "But, it's no big deal though. We'll be fine."
"Don't you want her here?" Ruby asked
Yang looked at her sister, a slightly angry expression on her face, "And why would I want her here?"
"Are you still mad at her for leaving?" Ruby asked
"And what gave you that idea, Ruby? No, I'm fine, totally great." Yang replied
Weiss looked at Yang and said, "Because you're not acting like yourself right now. Did Sasuke hit you in the head too hard last night? Because it surely looks like it."
Yang glared at Weiss, her eyes red, "I am perfectly fine!"
"Whoa, Yang, calm down," Ruby said
Yang blinked, and her red eyes turned back to lilac, and she noticed that the hand holding her mug was shaking
She got up, and walked away, before saying, "Whatever."
Ruby looked at Weiss, concerned
Weiss returned the gaze back
/
"NARUTO!" Sasuke shouted, his hand completely engulfed in electricity, and he launched himself of the cliff that he had been uppercutted into
"SASUKE!" Naruto shouted, the blue sphere forming in his hand, and he leaped towards Sasuke
They both thrusted both of their Jutsu towards the other, and the two attacks collided, and Sasuke's world grew a bright white
Sasuke jolted awake from the dream, and sat up in his bed. Sasuke looked around, confused.
"Where am I?" Sasuke asked, before remembering his death, Hagoromo's request, the sparring match last night, everything.
Sasuke sighed, and got up and got dressed
He got into his usual attire, and put back on the black cloak
He walked outside, and was alone. Good. He needed to be alone for a moment.
Sasuke walked to the middle of the yard, sat down and started meditating.
"Good Morning," A voice suddenly said
Sasuke was up in a flash, his Kusanagi drawn. He heard the voice, but he didn't know who it was, or where it came from
"Oh, do put that away, I'm in your mind," the voice said once again
It sounded familiar
"Hagoromo?" Sasuke asked
"Indeed," The sage replied
Sasuke sat back down and sheathed his Kusangi, and said, "What do you want?"
"I have come to provide assistance, Sasuke, and I believe you may need it for the time being," Hagoromo replied
"What assistance?" Sasuke asked
"Well, I do recall you having barely enough chakra to incinerate a rather huge army of Grimm. And if my calculations are right, that was almost 10% of the entire Grimm population that you put ablaze!" Hagoromo said
"Your point?" Sasuke said
"Well, when it comes to your eyes, I can not help very much, but when it comes to gaining more than enough chakra to complete a feat like this and still have plenty left over, this is something that I can do," The sage said, "You see, it will be difficult, but I am here to teach you how to wield Senjutsu, and in time, gain your colleagues form, Sage Mode."
Sasuke raised his brow in suspicion, and asked, "You can do that? And what makes you think that I am in need of such a trivial form?"
"You are without your left eye, and you're Rinnegan, and one Mangekyou is still powerful, but you will never be able to make a stable Susano with only one. So I am giving you a chance to add something to your arsenal. Sage Mode," Hagoromo said
"Thank you, Hagoromo, but I do not think I will need that. That is more of Naruto's calibur," Sasuke replied
"So be it, Sasuke. However, you could be surprised. I will leave you be now," Hagoromo said
Sasuke sighed
Was this what it was like for Naruto? If it was, then Sasuke felt sorry for the guy. Having some voice just pops out of nowhere!
Sasuke got up. Did he really need to learn how to use Senjutsu? Sage mode was an impressive form, Sasuke had seen Naruto use it himself, and he even heard that Naruto had defeated Nagato with such a form, but did Sasuke need it?
No, he did not
Sasuke activates his Sharingan, and then deactivates it. He then activated his Mangekyou, and for an instant, a small, but sharp pain shot through his eye, but it quickly faded. He then deactivated it.
Sasuke knew why his Genjutsu never worked very well now. It was the Aura. Whenever someone activated their Aura shield, it had to be destroyed or very weakened before Sasuke's Genjutsu could take hold.
It made sense now
He had been using Genjutsu on the people on the lower levels of Mistral, and they probably had their Aura shield up, because when living in a rough and tough life, you were gonna need all the protection you could. The only people that were caught in his Genjutsu were either children, old men, or people who hadn't put up their aura shield, or just hadn't found their aura yet
Sasuke got up and leaned on the guard rail of the backyard, and looked down on the far drop below.
He could see a small chunk of Mistral from up here.
He walked to the center of the yard and closed his eyes, and focused. Then he opened them, and his Mangekyou flared
The pain was nothing now, and Sasuke barely noticed it
His world was suddenly enveloped in a violet flame, and a purple rib cage formed around Sasuke
Inspected the shield of purple bones that formed around him. It was flawless.
Sasuke then formed one skeletal arm. Still good. It was when he tried to make a half skeleton that things went wrong
The pain came back and gave Sasuke a fierce but short headache and his eye felt like it was smoldering. The skeleton looked disfigured, and its face looked slightly melted. But what was most unsettling was that it took more chakra than usual to maintain it and keep it going
Sasuke immediately deactivated his Mangekyou, and the purple skeleton dissolved and faded away.
He would make do with the first stage anyway, it wasn't like he would need the half skeleton right now. He'll open up this can of worms later.
Sasuke pulled out his Kusanagi, and using the reflection of the blade, he looked into his face, and pulled off his eyepatch
His left eye looked nothing like before. His Obsidian black pupil was no longer there, and it wasn't even an eye now. Just a white, blank, empty eyeball. Sasuke put his eyepatch back on, and was about to sheath his Kusanagi when he sensed something.
He wasn't the sensory type like Naruto, but he knew right now that someone was behind him
Sasuke turned around to see Ruby was in the doorway to inside the house
Sasuke frowned, and asked, "You know, it's rude to spy on people."
/
Oscar walked into Qrow's room, holding his cane, and Qrow was sitting on his bed with a liquor flask
"Hey Qrow," Oscar said
"Yeah kid?" Qrow replied
"Ozpin needs to talk to you," Oscar said
Qrow sighed, then followed Oscar out of his room and to the living room
They both got a cup of coffee and sat down.
Qrow then talked to Ozpin about how the Huntsman of Haven Academy have all disappeared on missions that they never returned from.
"Things aren't looking good, Oz," Qrow said before sipping from his mug
Ozpin-Oscar chuckled and said, "Ever the optimist."
Then he sipped from his cup and said, "While I would not say that our current predicaments is ideal, I think that we can both agree that the situation could be much worse. Humanity is a resilient force."
"Oz, pro huntsmen like that don't just bite all at once," Qrow said, "Salem's powerful, and seems like her reach is growing by the day. What does that say about humanity?"
"That there are indeed misguided few who have filled their hearts with malice. It doesn't take a great deal of people to cause harm. But I still believe there are far more people in this world that are willing to prevent it," Ozpin replied
Ruby suddenly walked in
"Uh, excuse me?" Ruby asked
"Ah, Miss Rose, please, join us," Ozpin said, "We were just about to gather everyone to discuss our next steps."
"Oh, great," Ruby said as she came in and took a seat
"Something on your mind, kiddo?" Qrow asked
"Well, if it's okay to ask," Ruby said shyly
"Yeah, sure thing," Qrow replied
"Well, we've been talking about the relic in Haven and the Spring Maiden, but what about the Fall Maiden?" Ruby asked
"Cinder?" Ozpin asked
Ruby nodded, then asked, "Does this mean that Salem has the Beacon Relic?"
Ozpin and Qrow then looked at each other, then Ozpin said, "Very astute, Miss Rose. I was wondering who would be the first to ask. And no, thankfully. She does not have the Beacon Relic. It's true that the relic at Haven is much at risk, and for now, that should remain our primary focus. Let's just say that I made finding the relic more challenging than the other schools."
"Oh, well, that's good to hear," Ruby replied
"It is, but let's not forget the challenges that still lie before us," Ozpin said
Ruby nodded
"Now, is there anything else we can help you with?' Ozpin asked
"Well, I did have one more question," Ruby said
However, it seemed as if Ozpin read Ruby's mind, because he said, "No, my cane is not a relic."
"Ok, I have no more questions," Ruby said
Ozpin laughed, "Yes, while the cane is indeed precious to me, and that is all it is, precious to me. While I admit that it still has a few more tricks up its sleeve, I can firmly say that being a relic isn't one of them. Now, why don't you run and get the other students?"
Suddenly Qrow's phone buzzed, and Qrow pulled out his scroll and picked up
"Yeah?...Okay…Yeah, we'll be there," Qrow said to whoever was on the other line
Qrow hung up and put his scroll on the table
"Who was it?" Ruby asked
Qrow sighed as he pulled out his liquor flask, "It's Leo. Sasy that he had a breakthrough with the council. Thinks that he might be able to get together a small raiding party for the bandits. He wants us to meet up at the school tomorrow night to walk us through it."
"Really!? Oh, that's great! I'll go get the others!" Ruby said estatically
She ran out, and Qrow took a drink from his flask
Ozpin however, said in a suspicious tone, "Hm, that sounds drastically different from your original conversation last time, does it not?"
"It does," Qrow said
"Interesting," Ozpin replied
"Things aren't looking good, Oz," Qrow said
"I know," Ozpin said
/
Ruby didn't mean to spy on Sasuke
She was on her way to go call the other
She was passing by the door to the backyard when she saw Sasuke out there
For some reason, she thought she saw a few wisps of purple flame-like aura around him, but before she could make sure that she wasn't hallucinating, they dissipated into thin air
Huh, guess she was hallucinating
Meh
Suddenly, she saw him draw out his sword
She could she the glint of the shiny blade from where she stood
She had seen him use that sword with flawless skill last night, and ever since then, she has been wanting to look at it
Suddenly, she felt the urge to just dash out there and coo over the sword and look at every detail, every imperfection. She wanted to see how much it weighed
Was it heavy? Or was it light? What was it made of? What could it cut through? Oh, all the questions that raced through her mind!
Suddenly, she saw him pull off his eyepatch, and hold the sword to his face
He was looking at his reflection. He was probably looking at his eye. Ruby knew that his eyes were his Semblance, and were a big source of power for him, and that losing one eye could possibly not allow him to get to his peak ever again. Ruby felt bad for him.
Sasuke put his eyepatch back on, but then unexpectedly, he stiffened
Sasuke turned around, and before Ruby could hide, she was caught under his gaze
Ruby gave a embarrassed smile
She could see Sasuke from here frowning, and he said, "You know, it's rude to spy on people."
Ruby walked out and replied, "Sorry, just wondering what you were doing."
Ruby looked to his right hand, and she could see the shining blade in his hand
She had to fight back the urge to just snatch it from his hand and squeal in delight as she could-Kyaaaa! No! Bad Thoughts! Don't take it Ruby!
Sasuke however seemed to notice that she was looking at his blade, and he asked, "Do you want to see it?"
Ruby was a bit shocked that he would actually allow her to look at this glorious blade. It wasn't as awesome as her Crescent Rose though
Ruby nodded, and Sasuke handed her the sword
It felt…balanced in her palms
She looked at herself in the blade's reflective gaze, and she could see her silver eyes looking back at her.
She then grasped the handle, and with one hand, she held the sword up,
It was….light
It didn't weigh much, and it was easy for her to hold it up
"What is it called?" Ruby asked
Sasuke looked up to the sky, and he said, "It is called, The Sword of Kusanagi, but I simply call it, Kusanagi."
Ruby decided to allow herself one more question, "What can it do?"
/
Sasuke was a bit caught off guard by the last question
What could his sword do?
Well, without showing off his other abilities, it couldn't really do much but say that it was a regular sword, despite the fact that it could channel lighting style chakra and change it into a 10 meter long electric blade
Sasuke looked at Ruby, and for some reason, it looked like as if her silver eyes were glowing slightly for a second
Sasuke then replied, "That is yet to be seen."
Sasuke then held out his hand and said, "Do you mind if I have that back?"
Ruby looked at him, and then realized that she was still holding his sword, and she handed it back to him
Ruby then said, "Oh, I almost forgot, Ozpin wants everyone gathered into the living room, he's got some good news."
Sasuke nodded, and said, "Well, it's about time some good news came along."
Sasuke then walked inside, and Ruby went off to get everyone else.
The night tomorrow
Sasuke spied the hunters as they neared Haven Academy
They had gotten word that the Headmaster, Professor Lionheart, had gathered a raiding party to get the Spring Maiden, and they were to meet with him this very night.
However, Sasuke decided that he would stay behind from a group for a bit
Flashback
"Wait, why do you want to stay back?" Nora asked
"If Qrow and Ozpin are right, then this Lionheart has acted rather suspiciously, and so I will be staying back to see if anything funny is going on. A precautionary measure," Sasuke replied
"Yes, precautionary measures are necessary, and is a wise decision," Ozpin interjected
"We cannot be sure that Lionheart is fully trustworthy at the moment," Ren had said
Flashback ends
Sasuke saw them walk in, and using Chakra, he camouflaged himself
He then dashed after them and got in before the door closed, all without making a sound
He saw Lionheart on a Balcony, who greeted them, "Why, hello! Thank you for coming! There seems to be more of you than last time."
"Eh, you know what they say, the more the merrier," Qrow replied, "So what's going on with the council?"
Lionheart looked uncomfortable, and asked, "Why did you bring your weapons?"
Qrow looked at him confused and asked, "What? Leo, we're huntsmen. Are you okay?"
"Why, of course! Sorry, I just haven't had my evening coffee," Lionheart responded
Sasuke felt something
He activated his Sharingan, and looked around, and he was seeing multiple Auras around the room, not counting his comrades.
"It's an ambush!?" Sasuke realized
Sasuke unsheathed his Kusanagi