A/N: We're baaaaaack! Long wait equals a loooong chapter!

This chapter works with multiple perspectives; hopefully that isn't too off-putting.

That said, said chapter FOUGHT me and Slifer, tooth and nail. Really, he wrote the bulk of this bad boy, I just added stuff and tweaked it.

Frankly, I'm not sure I was able to fully edit a massive chapter like this, so please excuse any mistakes.

As stated in another story, I took some time off to reassess the direction for my RWBY stories.

Now that I have that in hand -along with three Cowriters helping out and fielding new idea for me-we can finally get back to our bread and butter

Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this story, and others. If folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular...it likely won't be continued!. I'm working two jobs -inflation is kicking my ass!- and Iarely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that.

Now for your questions, comments, and concerns.

Q: Update schedule?

A: Every day but Wednesday, usually. Updating daily is tough... T_T

Q: I know you said Glynda is a Maiden in this, but which one?

A: You'll see~!

Q: When will we see Naruto and Sasuke develop their more esoteric abilities? You hinted Naruto with his semblance would be like Gojo, while Sasuke would grow to mirror Sukuna's skillet.

A: In lieu of a long explanation, soon. You've already seen hints of it.

Q: Will Amber be in this story?

A: Alright, I can spoil that much. Yes, she will, though their dynamic will be a far cry from Remnants of A Shinobi -Ronin's working on that one- but in short?

Naruto's gonna drive her mad.

Alright, I've kept you long enough.

As ever, I own no quotes, references, themes, or memes.

They're merely tributes; homage to legends far greater than a mere writer like me.

And with that said...heeeeere we go! Hope this makes you smile.

Chapter title is a pun for best girl.

"Funny thing about being a kid again. Everyone always underestimate you.

Always, always, alwaaaays~! I never get tired of it.

You did the same. After all...

...you're weak."

~Naruto.

Choices of Two

When one has lived a multitude of lifetimes, one begins to loose touch with the novel thrill of surprise.

Ozpin had lived as many lifetimes as one could imagine. Once a wandering Hero, then a pretend god, the intervening millennia between had exposed him to the shocking breadth of existence and many a wondrous experience therein. From euphoric ecstasy, to gut wrenching tragedy, the silver haired immortal had seen it all; from the top of a king's ivory tower, to the inebriated stupor of a drunk in the gutter.

It was because of those very experiences that he had long since thought himself numb to surprise, haven taken everything life could throw at him in stride with little more than an adjustment of the glasses and a veiled smile.

But there were rare instances throughout the eons, times where he had found himself utterly knocked from his lethargy of lived experience and able to say "That's a first!" Such examples ranged from horrified reaction to his own grisly demise at being hung, drawn and quartered at the hands of Grimm, or the bemused self discovery from the one instance he had reincarnated into a woman some four hundred years prior.

So it was with some surprise in this, his latest and most modern attempt at life, that he found himself flabbergasted by a simple fact.

His son could fight!

Yes, came as something of a shock to Ozpin; moreso the fist in his gut, the clenched knuckles currently grinding against his ribs. He doubled over with a cough, spittle flying from his lips.

"Sorry about that!" a chipper voice chirped in his ear. "I just couldn't help myself~!"

Getting over his surprise as fast as he could, the many-times-reborn professor rolled with the punch, letting it carry him away from the precocious seven year old in a vain attempt to gain some distance. The boy didn't pursue. He simply stood there, fist still extended, wearing that small smile of his Skidding to a stop, the older of the pair felt his Aura spark around his solar plexus before tightening up, mentally affirming that despite the fact that the foe before him, both his son and a child, had one hell of a right hook!

Ozpin had discarded his scholarly fatigues for this exercise in favor of a loose pair of dark green jogging and a black t-shirt, displaying his lithe form that was usually hidden from view. It wouldn't do to get sweaty in a perfectly good burberry wool jacket; Glynda would kill him if he did so, ergo the change of clothes to something more appropriate.

Idly he cast a glance at his son who remained standing where he had punted Ozpin from, clad in loose fitting black pants and a turtleneck of the same color. He'd begun hitting a growth spurt recently but his tan face carried the appropriate level of baby fat for one his age, which made his colossal speed and strength all the more surprising to be on the receiving end of.

Even now seven year old beamed up at him, tugging up the blindfold he wore over his eyes, briefly exposing a single burning iris. "How's this? Is that better?" The youth's excited voice echoed across their family garden, a lone blue eye glittering with an inhuman light. "I think I'm getting the hang of it!"

"So it would seem...

Ozpin frowned thoughtfully, going between his son's eye and the simple black linen cloth worn around his head. Ah yes, much had changed in the last few years. There had been an inkling in the moment of his birth but Naruto had been touched by something quite special at his genesis. That something had only grown stronger still with the passing of time. Truly, this boy was going to be legend when he was older.

It had been approximately two years since he and Glynda unlocked the strangely advanced tyke's aura and sent their curiosity into a brand new strata. But for him to progress so quickly...

...you've been practicing with your mother again, haven't you?"

The boy clasped both hands behind his head. "Maaaaaaybe."

They clashed again, only for his son to sweep his legs.

Ozpin didn't remain idle this time; thrusting his hands out to the quickly approaching floor, he pushed off and sent a flurry of kicks at his son who soundly dodged or swatted them away, giving the father a chance to get back to his feet and lock into melee with his boy. None of his blows carried intent to harm, nor the speed to do little more than buffet the blonde's aura a fraction. This was a spar with a seven year old child after all; no need to do anything more than measure his son's progress.

Naruto sent a palm strike at his father's center line, causing the old huntsman to bring up his knee to block the adolescent assault, only to realize it for a feint. Straightening his fingers in line with his arm, Naruto delivered a chop to his father's kneecap with a sharp crack. Ozpin grunted softly, aura defusing most of the force but doing little for the pain. Enough force got through the metaphysical armor to send him skidding back on his other foot a few meters.

The blond capitalized just as he'd been taught, bounding into the air like a small rocket, right arm extended and braced by his left hand; a veritable lariat hooking right for Ozpin's neck.

'Points for constant movement, he's a prodigy at turning surprise into openings,' the head of Beacon allowed himself with a modicum of pride. Seeing the youth of this generation excel had become one of his persistent joys through the years, and to see his own progeny doing it?

Marvelous.

In a show of surprising flexibility, Ozpin kicked out his raised knee in a snap bicycle kick just as Naruto came within two feet of him. The sole of his foot planted itself into the child's aura-guarded form and sent him arcing harmlessly over Ozpin's head.

Looking up, the headmaster beheld a sunny grin on his son's face as inertia carried him through the air parallel to him; a grin that he met with a small smile of his own. No sooner had they both touched back to the floor than they sprang back into the fray, father and son lost in the crucible of sparring.

Twenty minutes later Ozpin finally called a break.

Naruto gave a disappointed pout but plopped down on the grass next to his father, painting only a little. His son slipped a finger under his blindfold to scratch at his nose, then tugged it down to grin at him.

"Still taking some time getting used to this thing," he commented in a chipper voice.

"Hmm." Ozpin quirked a brow, "You seemed to have fine enough awareness on the training field," he said, wondering if perhaps the cloth was too thick and obscured his son's vision.

Shaking his head, Naruto waved his hands in placation, "Yeah, I can see just fine, just kinda odd is all, having something soft pushed up against ya eyes all the time, feels odd ya know?"

"True," Ozpin hummed in assent, "I can't say I've ever had to fight blindfolded," Not in this life, at least. "though owing to the fact that you can see perfectly well I think the 'blind' is a bit of a misnomer, no?" he pushed his glasses up his nose, making them glint, a small smile tugging at his lips.

Naruto grumbled at the attempted pun but Ozpin remained focused on the blindfold, his thoughts on the eyes that lay beneath the strip of black cloth.

The boy was… special, beyond his capacity as a fighter. He had come into this world nurtured in a womb of magic and been coaxed to remain in it by what meager might remained at Ozpin's beck and call. There was a connection there to something beyond, something…

Limitless.

There had been a few incidents here and there of course, but while the source was unknown, its medium was through his eyes. Much like the Silver Eyed Warriors, so it followed obscuring them from view would keep the runaway quirk from doing something bad before they could work out just what it was.

That had been the purpose of this exercise. While Ozpin had been rather hands off with Huntsman training Naruto-Glynda having stepped in as a riding crop wielding task mistress-he was the more physically able of the pair. As Naruto forewent a weapon for now, it fell to him to refine the boy's skill at hand to hand in the absence of his mysterious ability.

His face turned dark for a moment, eyes looking off into the cloud spotted blue sky. 'Gods, what would Salem do if she found out about this? Pluck the eyes from his skull or twist him until he was a bitter dagger to be slipped between my ribs when I least expect it?' Ozpin sighed, shoulders slumping and showing his age. No, he would not let that happen. Naruto wasn't his first child, probably wouldn't be his last either, but he would not let him come to harm.

"OI! Remnant to Pops! You still with me?" Naruto waved his hand in front of his father to get his attention. The irony of a blindfolded youth doing so wasn't lost on his father, "Must be some pretty heavy thinking that's got'chu spacing out."

He had no idea.

Ozpin snorted at his son's comment and turned turning to face him, this little light he'd brought into the world.

"You have so much potential, my son, both in fields that I know and ones that I can't begin to comprehend," he said softly. A beat passed between them before the white haired man reached out to run his finger along the soft linen of Naruto's blindfold, "Is it so wrong of me to want moments like these to last a little longer instead of a future I cannot foresee?" he asked rhetorically, memories of so many miserable ends whispering that this time would be no different, that he'd eventually have to bury his loved ones as he had done so many times before.

Tilting his head, Naruto regarded his father with a neutral expression, one that seemed alien on his young face and strangely disquieting, like those hidden eyes were peaking out with an age they shouldn't possess. Then with no warning at all, he blew a loud raspberry and pulled the blindfold off. "You worry too much about the future, pops."

For a moment there, just a moment, it felt like he'd gazed upon a grown man, not a boy.

Brows knitting together in confusion, Ozpin rested his chin on atop his templed fingers. "Worrying about the future is perfectly normal, its best to see things coming so you can be safe when they do."

Naruto rolled his eyes before meeting his fathers gaze with a sage stare, "No point getting lost in a world of might be's. There is a saying. "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present.""

Ozpin blinked, taken aback. "Only seven years old and you're already lecturing me. If I didn't know better, I'd think you were all grown up."

Blue eyes twinkled. "You have no idea."

(.0.0.0.)

"You're back! Let's fight!"

Much to Naruto's chagrin, Yang exclaimed these words the very moment the door to Summer's Patch house cracked open; indeed, the little blonde girl thundered out onto the porch to meet him while Summer welcomed Glynda into the house with warmth, a surprisingly common occurrence as he had gotten older.

Nevermind that! Golden missile incoming!

"What is with you and fighting?!" Naruto squawked, backpedaling away from the lilac-eyed lass advancing on him; he didn't miss the way her hands twitched in excitement, spoiling to get into a scrap with him. "You a battle junkie or something?!"

Eager or not, she was still younger than him, and easily dodged-

His hopes of escape were dashed when he felt the soft but firm hand of his mother settle on his back. Rather than pull him aside, Glynda gently guided him into the waiting arms of the blonde missile He didn't even have time to yelp before the little berserker hauled him inside with all the suddenness of a viper.

Glynda and Summer shared an unspoken conversation as Naruto was dragged into the lion's den, the silver eyed woman slowly pulling a gold marked box of tea from the confines of her cloak and presenting them to Glynda. The statuesque huntress' eyes widened, recognizing the brand before smiling softly, drawing a squeak of triumph from Summer as the door was closed behind the Goodwitch.

For the past few years since they'd originally introduced her and Ozpin's son to the Rose/Xiao Long family, it had become something a routine for Glynda and Naruto to embark on a Bullhead once every few weeks and take a flight to Patch to have playdates with Yang and Ruby while Summer and occasionally Qrow entertained the Summer Maiden.

It had taken a long time but eventually Summer's borderline quixotic optimism had chipped away at the formal shell of Glynda to make her willing to socialist with the young mother. Of course, it helped that two years ago she'd returned to part time teaching at Beacon and had someone outside of the academic system to blow off steam with. It also provided Naruto with a friend near his age, which both parents thought he was surprisingly lacking in despite how social the child tended to be.

Sitting down at the table in the kitchen, Glynda let out a pleased sigh at the warm air and aromatic scent of tea wafting from the teapot Summer was fussing over. After a week of drinking coffee, you began to crave something a little softer.

A few minutes later and Summer pushed a steaming cup of jasmine tea into Glyinda's hands, drawing an appreciative coo from the older woman as she set about slaking her thirst. "Thank you, you have no idea how annoying school bureaucracy is."

Summer bobbed her head in acceptance of the comment while pouring her own cup, a freshly baked cookie waiting on the saucer. "You'd be surprised, Qrow managed to get a job as an instructor at Signal last week and the only thing he's done since getting in is complain about budget and health and safety regulations."

Glynda's nearly spilled her tea as she coughied in surprise, "He managed to pass the drugs test? I was sure his blood alcohol content would take all of Vacuo to dry out."

"Heh." Summer preened like her namesake. "What can I say, every time he so much looked at a bottle of hooch, I made sure to stamp on his foot. He even started wearing steel toe caps but perseverance has its peaks, he'll be a year dry this June." she said, pumping her fist in accomplishment, it was clear to Glynda that Summer was as happy in herself for Qrow's sobriety as she was in him.

"And just how strings did Tai Yang have to pull to get the board to let Qrow teach?" she asked with a raised eyebrow. "Hmm?"

Summer's sheepish smile confirmed her suspicion. It was a thought that rang sour in Glynda's mind, because as much as Qrow's surly nature grated on her, and his semblance was something that she wouldn't trust with a child near to hand, a lot of the flack he received was due to his surname. The name Branwen still ran synonymous with banditry for many organisations and seeing that Qrow hadn't been able to get a job on his own merit wasn't right for her. '

Qrow is a huntsman, and a damn good one. He's long since earned being judged without prejudice for the actions of his sister...'

No, no thinking of Raven. She'd turn her tea bitter.

Glynda sipped at to silence herself before continuing. "Our current woes are less practical and more political, something that should have no bearing on how a school is run."

"What," Summer scoffed, "Are they pushing to scale back Hunter training in favor of Ironwood's metal men?"

Her words drew a low laugh from Glynda. Summer always knew how to make her smile.

"No," she shook her head, "That would be a halfway sensible, if idiotic argument. This is about dust." her fingers drummed against the table. "Vale's Ruling Council is putting pressure on Ozpin to strengthen ties with Atlas, specifically the Schnee Dust Company.

"Huh. Neat."

...which is why we've been talked into attending dinner at Jaques Schnee's Vale holiday home in a few weeks time, a prospect that is about as appealing to me as suck starting a Bullhead."

"Pfft!" Summer tittered for a moment, blindsided by the usually austere woman's candid language...until she saw Glynda's glare. From there, her humor died an ugly death. "Yeah that doesn't seem like a fun affair if any of the rumors about his personality are true." she leaned in, one hand to her cheek in a stage whisper. "I hear he dyes his hair and mustache to fit in with the rest of the family, if you know what I mean."

She'd hit the Beowolf between the eyes with that one.

"It's true, alright." Smirking at the younger mother's words, Glynda leaned in towards her and rested her elbow on the cherrywood table, her voice low but full of a smoldering contempt. "I've only met him a handful of times but the bloody prat has a personality akin to ground glass. He's vain, self centered, a bigot and he drove one of the brightest young women of her generation to become a reclusive drunk." Her hands slowly tightened into fists until she caught her reflection in Summer's silver eyes, the nearest hint of green fire leaking from her own.

Oh, dear.

Summer watched as she took a calming breath. She could see the question in her silver eyes, the burning need to pry...but she held herself back. She appreciated that.

"Is it just mister dye job walrus mustache attending?" Summer asked, refilling Glynda's teacup.

"No, he's bringing his eldest daughter with him, Winter, and we're expected to do the same," Glynda answered, a particularly potent venom on the word expected, "From what I here she's about four years older than Naruto with a good head on her shoulders, she's apparently also being fast tracked to Atlas Academy on James's recommendation; so maybe the apple fell several kilometres from the tree.

"Yeah, and hey, maybe she and Naruto will hit it off well, after all my nephew has always been a bit advanced compared to most kids his age." Summer suggested, giving Glynda a cheesy thumbs up, stars practically sparkling in her eyes.

(.0.0.0.)

"Achoo~!"

On the other side of the house, Naruto felt the sudden and inexplicable need to sneeze.

He suppressed it in favor of ducking under a long haired blonde making a grab for him and the blindfold he currently wore as a headband.

"C'mere!" the five year old girl squealed in joy, her wiry arms and pudgy fists locking around his neck in an attempted headlock. Having a few inches on her, Naruto stepped back then dropped to one knee, flipping the little girl over his shoulders in a hip toss that sent her crashing safely into a large beanbag with a muted 'poof'.

He didn't have much time to catch his breath as Yang practically exploded from her cushioned cage and practically tackled him to the floor, rolling around on the thick carpet. Initially giving a groan at the bubbly girl's behavior, soon enough Naruto found himself giggling along with her. Despite having lived a combined near forty years, he couldn't help but admit he enjoyed the moments of childish bliss, especially given he hadn't been able to experience it the first time around.

Half an hour of roughhousing later brought the pair of blonds came to a standstill, panting with smiles etched into their faces. Sitting up, Naruto tilted his head with a question on his mind; one that had been bothering him for the better part of a week now. He chose his word with measured care, knowing that he was speaking with a five year old girl.

"Hey, Yang?" he asked.

"Yeah, whiskers?"

"Why are you always wanting to fight me whenever I show up?" Naruto took a seat on the beanbag as he spoke, watching Yang's face.

Sure enough, her smile dimmed a little, the joy in her lilac eyes dulling. She giggled, "Don't you know? Patch is boring! Your visits are the only fun parts."

"Liar."

...I'm aware, Kurama. Don't need you to tell me."

"Then why are you always trying to fight me when I get here?" He kept his voice kind and his words sincere, seven years of being a child hadn't dulled his empathy. "I know you enjoy it, but something tells me you have a reason. Why don't you tell me? Might make you feel better?"

By the absolute flood

Slowly the five year old's smile grew brittle and her eyes dull, a fog of deep thought falling on them until only a melancholic light of sadness peered through the gloom.

"I… I don't want you to leave." Yang hesitated, as though half-expecting him to scoff at her. When he didn't she trudged onward. "I guess if I can beat you in a fight, then I'm strong and you won't run out on me like-" She stopped and hung her head, cutting off her words before she said something that would break the camel's back.

Naruto knew to whom she referred, the absentee bandit-bitch-of-a-mother that had abandoned her; the craven who fled back to a life of raiding and self centered indulgence, free from the responsibilities that had been laid upon her from being a mother and a wife.

The rational part of his brain understood that he didn't have all the answers, he didn't have her side of the story, but the childish side, nurtured by seven years of understanding just what it was to have a family in antipathy to growing up without one, could not stand the one that caused someone he cared about to feel sad.

Naruto pushed himself up from the beanbag he was sat in and padded across the room towards the despondent Yang. She didn't budge, too lost in her own thoughts. Or so she seemed, until he slowly brought her into a friendly hug. Yang's eyes widened and he he felt her body stiffen, a far cry from the usually bombastic hellion she projected.

"What are you doing?" she whispered as he began to rub circles into her back.

"Showing you that I'm not going anywhere, Yang." he said, his smile positively beaming and hoping that it would allay the worst of Yang's childish fears, for when a seed of doubt was planted young it could take an eternity to pluck like a weed. It turned out to be just what Yang needed to hear, she melted into the warm embrace and returned it, a contented smile on her face.

Naruto was about to pull away when he caught something on the edge of his senses; a twinge of derision mingling with the caustic tang of disgust, decidedly adult feelings that punctuated the otherwise serene moment like a brick through a plate glass window. He looked toward the window and scanned the vista before him with keen blue eyes, shadowed by his blindfold until finally they settled on a distant smudge of black, a coal black creature of carrion, its beady red eyes glinting in the sun. A...raven.

Summer and Glynda weren't anywhere near here. The bird was the only creature nearby.

Naruto hummed in thought and gave his friend an apologetic look.

"Can you go checkup on Ruby, Yang? I'll be riiiiight back…"

(.0.0.0.)

Such weakness.

Raven scoffed at it from her hiding place. Well, perhaps hiding place was subjective in this instance; technically she hid in plain view, but given she was currently wearing her avian form, she supposed the most accurate phrasing would be hiding in plain sight.

The banditry Branwen was perched high upon the branches of an oak, her form indistinguishable from the many hundreds of other birds that chose the forests of Patch as their roost. And yet many of them gave her a wide berth, aware on some instinctual level that she was not one of their own. It didn't bother her, they were content in their weakness while she was strong, something that she could not say about her daughter whom she had been observing since the sun rose.

She couldn't quite put her finger on why she had chosen to partake in these sparse visits to watch her daughter; there were a number of possibilities, none of which stood out to her as the core reason, nor did their gestalt motivate her to action, yet here she perched, watching the little girl fool around with Ozpin's spawn like there was nothing wrong in the world.

Though she lacked the proper face to scowl at the moment, she settled for any clack of her beak and hopped closer.

It was part of her nature as a tribal leader that despised weakness, but Yang was of her blood and therefore of the tribe. Thus it was her duty to keep watch should her child ever desire to throw off the shackles of this putrid civility for her birthright, to travel and take what she pleased.

And in that capacity…she was incredibly disappointed.

Sure, the five year old was strong for her age but she had been coddled -Tainted!- by Tai and Summer's notions of love and family. It made good for a sappy book or vid perhaps, but in reality it just made you vulnerable, so it galled her to see Yang take to it like fish to water.

It also begged the question of why she did not pluck the child away and spirit her away to the tribe for a proper upbringing. Again, several reasons presented themselves with the most prominent being the black and red haired mother currently enjoying tea with Ozpin's lady.

'As much as I hate to admit it… Summer is stronger than me, if I acted then she would come for Yang…'

Her idiot brother also came to mind and even her spineless wimp of a former lover. If push came to shove, they would find her and they would break her. To say nothing of Ozpin and Glynda herself.

Flapping her wings lightly, she returned her eyes to the garden, spotting Yang through the window...with Naruto nowhere to be seen.

Her avian brow furrowed in confusion.

Where had he-squawk?!

Raven had no warning, one moment she was perched on an oaken branch with eyes locked onto her daughter - one that disappointed her- in the next she felt a pressure locking around her like a vice, pinning her wings to her corvid form before she had a scant moment to transform. Blinking rapidly, she looked up and saw a shadow looming over her. It took her a moment before she could register features, her eyes eventually picking out spikey blonde hair and whiskered cheeks set in a mirthless smile.

"Caw?" she croaked, the call half-strangled under the cruising weight of firm hands locked around her little avian body. She was frozen in place both by the hold and the feeling of looming dread that rolled off the boy in waves, she was attuned to magic, enough to even now sense Glynda and the reason she chose to remain a bird, but this child…

'His eyes… by the brother gods what's wrong with his eyes!?' Raven mentally thundered, her own red orbs looking up into the endlessly cycling blue reflective fractals that swam in Naruto's irises. The longer she gazed upon them, the more she sensed that there was something much older and much BIGGER than her peering out at her through the eyes of this child. Stranger still, the brat's feet were stuck to the trunk of the tree at an impossible angle, which had allowed him to grab her in the first place.

He seemingly took a moment to savor her avian confusion before speaking, "Strange, didn't know Raven's called Patch home...

Gulp.

...imagine my surprise when I found one squatting like it owned the place." he continued with a pleasant hum, his voice holding a perversely dark glint, abjectly adult despite his childish body. "Don't try to escape now, I know what you are, more importantly, I know who you are. Thankfully, I don't know why you did what you did; that's the only reason I'm not currently breaking your wings."

Raven remained silent, more than capable of voice her displeasure as a bird-yet wisely choosing to let the scary boy say his piece lest she find herself roasted over a spit.

"I'm only gonna tell you this once," Ozpin's spawn leaned in, eyes blazing like blue balefire, "My friend needs answers and you're gonna give em. Get your ass in there." She needn't ask to know what he meant. "Right now! This is your chance. Don't run away again. Don't hide." his fingers bit down on her ribs, drawing an agonized squawk from her as he threatened to crush her tiny form in his hands. "Yang needs you. She's terrified of losing people! Because of you! Because she knows you left her to fend for herself!"

Panic lanced through her and she slashed out with her beak, drawing blood from his hand.

Ozpin's brat reacted instantly; dropping her unceremoniously back onto the tree branch. She hopped twice before flapping her wings to get the feeling back into them. In an instant she regained her human form. Her hand flew to Omen's hilt, fingers wrapping round its grip.

"Who the hell do you think you aaaaaaack?!"

A hand locked around her throat and slammed her down, blasting the breath from her lungs.

Her fist swung up at him, only to find itself trapped in his fist. He squeezed.

"Did I stutter?!" Her neck creaked ominously as he squeezed, his menacing smile growing strangling. "Get your ass in there or so help me, I will THROW you through the window!"

Finally, her fight and flight reflex could take it no more. In that instant, he terrified her more than Salem ever had.

There was only one thing to do.

Raven whimpered and cut a portal beneath with her blade; it was the only thing she could think to do. The brat startled in surprise and lost his grip on her throat, unwilling to be pulled in after her. Chance! She shoved him in the chest and fell through. The moment her back hit the ground of her tent she kicked back, putting as much distance between her and Naruto as possible.

Naruto didn't come through the portal. Not physically.

"Coward." His words were another matter; they stabbed her as no blade could and cut deep. "Run away, run away, run away. Run from your husband. Run from your daughter. Run from me. That's all you can do, isn't it? I don't know why I expected more from you. But that's alright...

His head burst through without warning, eyes blinded no more.

Those eerie, luminescent orbs staring into her soul. He could have slipped in after her. He didn't. He chose not to. It was as much a power move as anything else. It shouldn't have rattled her the way it did. A hand pushed through that swirling red vortex. Pointed at her. She felt her damaged throat tighten.

...I've marked you. There's no escaping now."

Raven caught sight of herself in Omen's crimsons surface.

There was something on her throat. A tattoo? No. She didn't have one there...?

"One year."

Her head snapped up. "What?"

"Didn't you hear me?" he still wore that strange smile of his, but it didn't reach his eyes. "I'm giving you a reprieve. You have three-hundred-an'-sixty-five days to pluck up your courage and make amends with Yang. If you don't...well. That seal will finish what I started."

She scrubbed at her throat furiously, to no avail. The ink had already dried.

"Ah, ah!" he wagged a finger her way. "Bad birdie. Don't bother. That's a modified Hiraishin seal. It took me an' awful long time to figure it out how to apply them, but once I stick someone with 'em, they don't fade away. An' this one's special. For example," his hand curled into a claw, making a pinching motion, grasping something she couldn't see. "If I do this...

Raven's airway closed. She choked, eyes bulging, gasping for air that wouldn't come. "What are you?!"

"Someone who was given a second chance." His hand relaxed and she flopped to the floor. "Someone who doesn't take kindly to cowardly birds."

Raven cried out and flung Omen at him, sending the blade spinning at him end over end. It bounced off. Literally. As though there were some unseen barrier between them, a wall she couldn't surpass. Not aura. His hadn't sparked. This was something else. What was that...?!

She tried to use her semblance, tried to close the portal after him, cut him in half, but she couldn't. Bloody brat was holding it open somehow!

Naruto ducked back in.

"I'll see you around, birdie...

The portal slammed shut after him.

Something wet ran down Raven's face.

She touched a trembling hand to her cheek. Tears?

The damn broke and she bent double with an agonized sob.

"I'm not a coward!" She hiccuped softly to herself, scrubbing her eyes. "M'not a coward...

(.0.0.0.)

Red eyes regarded the cloudy sky above the tower with serene disinterest.

Their owner had grown, much like his word displaced brother into a youth of many mysterious gifts and a seemingly infinite potential. He wore a black tunic and pants bearing similar red geometric designs to those woven into his mother's robes. The irony wasn't lost on him. He'd been told by Watts once that they cost somewhere in the realm of ten thousand lien. It had produced a bemused feeling in Sasuke that vanity cost so much. He didn't care if he had to walk the world in rags or riches-what mattered was finding out about this world and hopefully fixing it, then he could find Naruto, though not necessarily in that order.

He sat down on a rough pedestal hewn from one of the many hundreds of crystalline stalagmites that poked from the Grimmlands surrounding the tower like bizarre flora, idly watching a flock of Nevermore circle overhead as a fresh spawn of Grimm crawled from their tawdry tar filled pits.

Initially he had thought this a desolate place, he still did in a sense, but he had lived here long enough to realize that it had a brutal charm to. Enough to make him appreciate the few times Tyrian or Watts took him to visit the metropolis of the various kingdoms.

"Educational visits", Watts had called them, twisting the tips of his mustache as he always did before giving a lecture. Sasuke had committed himself to be a good student, diving for information without revealing the extent of his knowledge lest Salem suspect something circumspect. When the good doctor had taught him the machinations of how to bring down a Kingdom, the young Master had pondered how one might rule it, a prospect hat had the well dressed teacher practically giddy.

"...Young Master," an uncomfortable female voice reached him from below, drawing his attention from the bleak vista, "Your mother has asked you to come see her in twenty minutes."

Sasuke craned his neck back. "Hmm."

Cinder looked… a bit more presentable. She was cleaner than the first time he had laid eyes on her, her raven black hair no longer in tangles, instead cut into a short black bob cut that left her gold eyes on full display. She had been given a sleeveless black tunic and pants over which she wore a short red skirt that stood out in the obsidian she stood on. None of this disguised her anxiety.

Not from him.

Sasuke pushed himself from the top of the stalagmite with a sigh, falling the twenty feet to the ground and landing in front of Cinder without a sound. He didn't miss the way the preteen girl flinched in his presence.

She tried to kneel again. He stopped her with a wave of he hand.

"You don't have to be afraid of me, and you certainly don't have to kneel. I know Tyrian and Watts can be a tad… overbearing. You needn't grovel nor act subservient, I'll never ask you to do something you're uncomfortable with." Red eyes meeting gold. They held the stare for half a minute in silence before Cinder closed her eyes and looked away causing him to sigh. "Come, I've got some practice to get in before seeing my mother."

Cinder made a confused noise. "Practice?"

Rather than answer, he turned on his heel and began to descend the stone steps towards one of the Grimm spawning pits. Cinder followed behind silently one step behind and to the left. She had grown used to the Grimm but it was clear to Sasuke that his "attendant" still feared them in part and the lands oppressive atmosphere still prayed on her nerves. Pah! Attendant. Sasuke didn't like the word, it felt like a polite way of saying servant and that was not something he wanted to see Cinder as.

Coming to rest in front of a freshly born Ursa, Sasuke opened and closed his left fist, still struck but the oddness of regaining an arm that he had lacked for the better part of thirteen years. "Cinder," he began, catching her attention, "speak plainly, what is your problem with me?"

"P-Problem?" Cinder balked, eyes gaining a fearful light, "What problem? I don't have a problem with you, young master, I'm doing my duty and giving you the respect you des-"

"Stop."

Another flinch.

"Sage save me from girls." Sauke exhaled in a long-suffering sigh, "I asked you to speak plainly," he turned to face her fully, "So tell me, Cinder Fall, do you have a problem with me?"

A frantic shake of her head was his reward. Finally! They were getting somewhere!

"No? Then why are you so distant?"

"I...!" Cinder mulled over his question, biting her lip in concentration at finding the right words to say. He gave her time. Watched her squirm. At last, she found her courage and met his gaze. "I want to be strong!"

A black brow quirked. "And distancing yourself from me helps you how, exactly...?"

Her eyes hardened. He saw the hunger in them. The pain. "I let anyone get close they're just going to hurt me again."

"Then let me help you." He replied glibly.

She stiffened. A bitter breeze blew between them, the wind rustling their hair.

"No." Cinder sniffled like the teenager she was yet to be. "I don't trust you."

The words echoed endlessly in Salem's tower.

Sasuke rolled his eyes.

Child, he wanted to say, I'm the only person you CAN trust in this crazy place.

"Trust is relative." he said instead. "You need a friend." a sly glint colored his ruby cut eyes, "or if it pleases you, become my right hand."

That got her attention. He saw the sudden way she stiffened, the interest in her gaze.

Sasuke turned back to face the Grimm. None reacted to him, of course. They wouldn't. They did, however, react to intent. If words wouldn't sway Cinder, then perhaps a demonstration would.

"Attack me."

The Ursa he'd singled out rose up on its haunches. Paused now, realizing something wasn't quite right.

Sasuke smiled at it. "Even a Grimm would miss their arm, right?"

It roared in surprise and stumbled back, balking as Sasuke clutched its limb in hand.

A spectral violet arm manifested around him to pick it up before it slammed it down, the arm wrenching free from its socket.

"That's it." a small smile touched his face as he reared back and stomped on the beast's masked visage. "Try harder. More. More!" he ground his heel in. "Put more force behind your attack when you hit me!"

In the background, Cinder's jaw dropped, she watched in morbid fascination as the heir to Salem slowly but surely rendered both the Grimm, and their section of the spawning pools down to nothing. Some he smashed to pieces with brute strength, others he caved in with his spectral giant that loosed arrows into the sky above but most terrible of all was the black fire that silently boiled away all it touched.

She watched him worked, gasped as he called lightning down from the very clouds themselves.

This, this was power, offered willingly with a side of friendship. And much as she was reluctant to trust again, she could not deny the prospect of being the right hand of a god in human form was appealing. So focused was she on the display before her that didn't notice the presence that had joined her to watch Sasuke work.

"Well, well, what have we here?"

Cinder stiffened, but the newcomer paid her no need. Salem pinched the bridge of her nose as she regarded the blasted plain before her. Only an hour ago it had hosted a great many spawning pools, each home to a host of Grimm. Now it was a charred wasteland, wholly useless to her.

"Practice," her son had said. "I'm working on a new spell," he'd said.

What manner of magic involves calling a beast of lightning down from the clouds to smite her pets?!

"Why do you do this to me, my son?" she addressed the seemingly sullen youth before her when he had eventually finished his merry demonstration. "Is it too much to ask for a little loyalty among family? You would do well to learn a thing or two from Tyrian."

Sometimes she wondered how she'd given birth to such a powerful boy, he was more powerful than her children with Ozma, this she knew without a shadow of a doubt but she couldn't fathom why. But she'd carried him in her womb nonetheless, and he looked...passably like his sire.

Sasuke smiled softly, that same secretive smile that always baffled her. "Sorry, mother."

He wasn't at all, the cheeky prat. Not in the least. No matter. Ozpin wouldn't stand a chance once he came of age.

How little she knew. Two old friends reborn into this world, two stubborn souls determined to make peace.

One way or another.

(.0.0.0.)

It turned out the prospect of playing nice with a foreign business tycoon-one who had all the tact of a shovel!-was something that left Glynda so agitated that Summer had felt obligated to provide an 'extended peptalk'. What this amounted to was Naruto's stay in the Rose/Xiao Long household being extended from a few days to a full week in the hopes of detoxing from stress and facing the upcoming decorum with a clear head. Qrow had therefore volunteered -been forced!- to entertaining the children of the household, a task to which the oftimes grumpy huntsman took to with surprising ease.

While he liked children, the more sensible Branwen was much more content to let the kids play by themselves and make their own fun while watching from a safe distance, it let him rest and the children could work out their seemingly limitless supply of childish energy.

Which led to this moment.

Naruto hopped over a fallen tree branch in pursuit of Ruby, the rambunctious three year old surprisingly spry on her feet for one so young but not enough to shake Naruto completely in this most well known of playground games, tag. Qrow had brought them to a rustic wooded park on the coast of Patch while their mothers enjoyed some well needed alone time while Tai had been drafted into 'bring your daughter to work day' at Signal.

'I'm not sure what's more funny, the fact that Yang was bouncing up and down to go or the fact Uncle Tai didn't realise it was a joke?' Naruto thought, leaping up into the branches of a tree to track the scampering silver eye from on high. "I'm gonna get you Ruby!" he called, bouncing from one tree to another while the little girl darted under a fallen log.

"Never!" she rallied in enthusiastic defiance, her little red dress fluttering in the wind like so many rose petals.

Nartuo laughed, enjoying the chase even though he could bring it to an end at any time, he caught the distant warning of Qrow to stay where he could see them, keeping the curse under his breath as to not draw scathing glares from the other parents, something that caused Naruto to smirk.

He may have taken a particular pleasure in messing with his pseudo-uncle but he was fond of him; anyone could see that he was a haunted man trying to do his best to keep what he still had safe, respectable, praiseworthy even. Naruto pirouetted through the air, Ruby leading him deeper into the wood, her giggles infectious.

She was another one he would protect, his little friend and thus why he could trust her to run like this.

He heard Qrow call out behind him; he paid the man no need and raced after her.

'I am here, there is no greater security.'

(.0.0.0.)

"You can't catch me!"

Bursting through a copse of closely growing Sycamore, Ruby found herself in a clearing with a single large tree trunk in its center. That was it, her three year old mind concluded, that was base, if she could get there before Naruto tagged her then she was safe. Her boots blurred beneath her, arms flailing for even a modicum more speed to outrun her friend's pursuit until the stump was within arms length. Reaching out, her small fingers splayed for the ringed surface of the tree stump, the raptourus call of triumph ready to be sung.

Her fingers were just about to brush its surface when a shadow fell over her.

"Wha...?"

The world slowed to a crawl as Ruby slowly turned her head up to face the shadow, surprised to see not her friend but rather someone much taller, a man fully grown with wild black hair and a full beard. In his hands she glimpsed an axe, a gleaming head of metal swinging down in a powerful and deadly arc, its wicked edge aimed for the crown of her head.

"Ruby!" a familiar voice yelled.

The world blurred, one moment she was mid sprint, contemplating the vastness of the bizarre situation she had been in as an axeman whipped his implement for her head. Something shifted, she blinked, and in the next she was on the other side of the clearing, a pair of strong hands on her shoulders.

Ruby blinked, her silver eyes taking a moment to register everything before them, looking up to see the blindfolded blonde friend looking down at her with concern. Then the woodsman came back into focus, the head of his axe buried a full foot into the tree stump that moments before had been the position of her small head.

"You okay?" Naruto asked, dusting her off as if she had just fallen, his voice empathetic yet unconcerned with the apparent attempted murder he had just prevented. Confusion bloomed in Ruby's mind like a malignant weed, tainting the rose garden of childish thought. Why? What was going on, who was that man and why did he just try to swing an axe at her? A pitiful sound wrenched itself from her throat, confused tears rolling from the corners of her silver eyes.

"There, there." he tousled her hair. "You're fine now...

"Oi." The woodsman spat on the floor, wrenching his axe from the tree stump with a crunch of wood. "Piss off, I'm here for her, not for you."

Naruto didn't look his way, instead keeping his blindfolded gaze squarely on her. "Why the hell are you taking a swipe at a three year old? What's she done to you?"

The woodsman growled, shouldering the axe. "That's Taiyang Xiaolong's kid," he supplied gruffly.

Ruby whimpered. He knew who daddy was...?

"That still doesn't answer my question," Naruto pointed out. He turned his head to regard the woodsman in quarter profile, his voice gaining a steely edge while keeping its upbeat tone, "Mind explaining that one to me so it does makes sense...?"

"Taiyang Xiaolong's bandit bitch of an ex-wife, her tribe burned down my family's home five years ago." The woodsman's muddy brown eyes blazed with a unbridled wrath, burly arms tensing around his heavy bearded axe. "They killed the men and women, stole everything they had and left the kids for the Grimm to pick off."

"I'm sorry to hear that," Naruto remained silent, turning to half profile, his face strangely calm. "But ya still haven't answered my question, wood for brains."

The woodsman gnashed his teeth, "What matters is she's Tai's kid, I figure if she dies then he's miserable, and if he's miserable then the bandit bitch is miserable." He scoffed, giving the axe a few practice swings, "What's a kid supposed to understand? Just stand back and let me do what I came here to do, you faunus-faced runt."

"Ohhh, I see." Naruto thumbed his chin. "You're one of those."

Whatever mirth had been in his face evaporated like water in a desert, leaving only an ugly smirk that lacked any modicum of humor. Turning back to Ruby, he ruffled her hair lightly to get her to look at him which she did after a few minutes, cheeks red and nose running.

"Stay behind me, alright? I'll protect ya."

Ruby hiccuped softly, scrubbing at tear eyes with the back of her hands. "M'kay...

Evidently, his adversary disagreed. "You can't protect her and fight me at the same time, boy. You'll only slow yourself down."

A small, lazy smile plucked at his lips. "Can't protect her, eh...?"

He really could. She knew Naruto was strong. Yang did too. Really, really strong.

Even so, she didn't understand something. Why was he laughing? What was so funny about this?"

"Funny thing about being a kid." Naruto palmed his face. "Everyone always underestimates you. "Always, always, alwaaaays~! I never get tired of it. You're doing the same. Right now."

"Move aside, boy. I don't want your head."

"It'll be fine!" Naruto waved a tan hand, grinning from ear to ear. "After all...

a chuckle escaped him as he smiled, flashing pearly white teeth.

...you're weak."

Silence stretched between the three of them, long and ponderous. Ruby wondered how it must look; a mere child talking down to an adult more than twice his size. Said adult had gone still, no doubt realizing the utter insult he'd just received. Even she could see it. Naruto watched, waited, saw the comprehension dawn in his eyes.

And then…

The man absolutely exploded into incandescent rage.

"Don't underestimate me brat!" the ax swung forward, seeking his head. "I'm going to enjoy slashing that smug face of yours to a pulp!"

He raised a hand. Come.

What followed was a mad melee. Ruby squeaked, fearing it might be the end of him at any moment. She knew he was strong, but still! This was scary!

She clapped both hands over her eyes...and heard a grunt of pain.

It didn't belong to Naruto.

Ruby peeked through her fingers, watching in steadily growing amazement as none of the older man's wild swings landed. Naruto effortlessly stepped aside or out of the way of the assault before it had any chance to get close to him while the woodsman, physically strong but untrained in killing, panted and raged to no avail. It was just like one of the cartoons mommy let her watch. But seeing it up close...!

Her eyes began to shine. "So cool!"

The axeman disagreed, meanie that he was. "Hold...still...blast you...!"

It went that way for the better part of a minute until his attacker finally had enough of being mocked and delivered an overhead cleave that dug his axe into the floor. Naruto stepped forward and walked up onto the shaft of the axe, pausing to grind his heels into the woodsman's fingers fingers before delivering an open palm slap to the wildman's ear, sending him spinning backwards, disoriented.

"You. Can't. Hit me." Naruto landed on the ground, punctuating each word with a tap of the foot. "You can't even come close."

"Then what do you call the last minute?!"

"Pity. Here," Naruto smiled, "Hold out your hand. I'll show you why you couldn't get close...

Enraged, they sent a wild haymaker right for his raised hand. An inch from his palm, their hand hit a visible crimson barrier.

"What the devil?!"

"Fox, actually. Y'see, when I was reborn, I kinda got an upgrade, and I'm figurin' Sasuke did, too. You know what they say." he tugged up the blindfold, revealing his eyes. "What is dead may never die…" He said, his voice a whisper so only the woodsman could hear him. He didn't mind revealing this information, after all who would believe a wild axe murderer...

...providing he survived what happened next.

(.0.0.0.)

"Ooops...?"

Naruto slapped his forehead as he considered the frozen foe before him.

One good hard look without his blindfold, and his enemy just...froze up. Staring into space. Even now, they didn't seem to see him. He leaned past him, considering the bleached world he'd accidentally created behind him. Like a cold marble cut in time, so too had he annihilated a good portion of the forest. The look of utter despair on his opponent's visage was frozen there forevermore. As though they could see everything, had become one with everything, unable to move because of it.

...I think you broke him."

"Alright, I couldn't do this before." he mumbled to himself. "What the hell have I become...?"

Maybe Oz was right about the blindfold. Best he kept this thing on for the time being.

"Naruto~!"

He didn't have tie to consider it as the black and red missile that was Ruby bowled him over.

The adults found them like that, her head bead buried in his chest as she bawled.

(.0.0.0.)

From one life to the next, blending into a crowd came naturally to Sasuke.

...even in this diminutive, seven year old body.

While his mother lathered parental affection on him to the point of annoyance, her repeated attempts to comb his hair had resulted in the loss of the trademark -ahem- 'duck ass' hairstyle of his youth and resulted in something closer to the straight hair of his later life. What this meant was that with appropriately drab clothes-and politely asking Tyrian to not scare nearby children!-they could slip through just about anywhere without people questioning their presence.

However, there was a distinct flaw with this stratagem.

There were some issues that transcended life, sense or universe and in Sasuke's case, this was being spotted by the fairer sex.

'If Naruto ever heard me say that he would never let me live it down.' he thought in exasperation, slipping past the third mother who'd attempted to pinch his cheeks since they came to this city in outlying Mistral. After one of Watt's lessons about understanding a nation before you either made it rise or fall, Sasuke had been reminded of something.

"All nations, great and small, are built on the backs of the multitude, they form the foundation but that foundation is not uniform, it has cracks that people slip through and bring into the world those that society views with derision. Scum, criminals, vagabonds. There is strength in this worthlessness, for who knows how best to navigate the cracks of society than those born of them?"

It had been something Orochimaru taught him a lifetime ago and he wanted to see if he still had the eye for it. This did not come with the side of cheek pinching and girly coos that seemed to follow his boyishly handsome face when walking through the city centre and only faded when he reached the seedier areas where Tyrian slid from the shadows like a wraith to keep guard.

Sasuke pulled a face.

Girls fawning over him. Some things never changed.

At least Cinder was becoming a somewhat capable fither, unlike that lot…

He stopped, his trained ears picking up a distant noise. What on earth was that?

Tyrian paused behind him, tail quirking. "You master?"

Sasuke held up a hand. "Shh."

His senses strained, listening intently. He knew that noise now; the telltale whimpering of a girl in pain and the sound of raised voices. His legs betrayed him and sprang into action, sending him hurtling into the maze of backstreets before Tyrian had a chance to voice his surprise at his young master's sudden action.

He followed his senses, both old and new to find the one who was in pain.

He'd inherited a strange gift from Salem, something akin to the Grimm's attraction to negative emotions. It had struck him at the time that it was similar to the ability that Naruto possessed in life and felt a wave of sympathy for the quagmire of emotions that the blonde must have had to deal with every single day living in Konoha. He chalked it up to another thing the pair would discuss eventually when they found one another.

Arriving in an old loading dock, Sasuke picked out four individuals ahead, the first three were in their late teens wearing dirty ragged overalls, two men and a woman. The fourth one was the one who caught his eye, curled up against the wall clutching a half loaf of stale bread to her chest. She was a tiny thing, perhaps only five with short green hair and mocha-colored skin, her red eyes swollen from crying. He didn't miss the large welt from where she had obviously been struck on the cheek.

"Stupid little gutter rat thinks she can steal our food!?" the leader of the three, the teenage girl said, kicking the girl in the chest and causing her to curl up into a pitiful ball. "Chaton, Kuro, teach this thief some manners before we finish up."

The two teenage boys nodded, each drawing a small, crude dirk from their belts and advancing on the weeping girl.

They were going to kill her.

Sasuke exhaled in a long suffering sigh.

...he was going to have to intervene, wasn't he?

Suppressing the mental sigh, Sasuke clapped his hands twice, causing the twitchy trio to spin on their heels and face him. They barely got out a confused yell before he made eye contact with all three and caught them in a simple but potent genjutsu.

"Sleep." he ordered.

By the time Tyrian caught up, jumping down into the loading dock, the deed was done. The trio of wood be murderers were splayed out like leaden sacks of potatoes, foam frothing from their mouths, their eyes catatonic.

Naruto would've strung them up by their toes and pranked them to high heaven besides.

Sasuke settled for breaking their legs instead.

Only seemed fitting.

"Well, well! You're getting better at that, Young Master! I'll really have to up my game and not miss the show next time." Tyrian clutched his chest as though the prospect of seeing Sasuke render people into terror induced unconsciousness was heartbreaking. His wide eyes zeroed in on the green haired young girl, who even now looked up at them with quiet awe, "But pray tell, what shall we do about the urchin? While a look of worship is appropriate, I believe you wanted to keep a low profile on this visit."

Sasuke frowned, meeting the little girl's gaze, internally cursing himself for acting on instinct and gut feelings. Saving someone made them a part of your life whether you liked it or not.

"Blast it all." he sighed. "The things we do to save the world...Tyrian!" he snapped his fingers. "Take the girl! She comes with us."

"Another one?" A gleeful giggle filled his ears. "Hee! But of course, far be it from me to question the young master…

(.0.0.0.)

Growing up again was hard.

Certainly when you had the mind of an adult in the body of a child.

But most of all, Naruto found, when he had to face a foe like this, an enemy unlike any other...

"Eat your vegetables, dear." Glynda's smile was soft, indulgent even. "Don't you want to grow up big and strong?"

Naruto sighed. "Right, I can do this. It's for the greater good…"

Kurama gagged in his head. "Blech! Foul greenery!"

At least he wasn't suffering alone.

"Hmph, your son is not one for long standing etiquette, is he?" came the refined voice of Jacques Schnee from his position at the end of the table, large mustache bristling while he looked between Naruto using the wrong fork for his green vegetables to the reserved face of Ozpin. "I had thought a child of yours would know better."

...that does it. I'm going to kill him."

Naruto sighed. 'Kurama, no.'

"KURAMA YES!

Ozpin smiled softly, "While my wife is well versed, we care more that our son has a good childhood than how he gets it, using the right implement can come later. As they say, it serves to set a good foundation before going into frivolity, no?"

The Schnee patriarch smiled thinly, Naruto internally guffawed at the obvious consternation in his eyes that Oz had got one over on him.

They'd arrived at the Schnee's Vale holiday home several hours ago to a cavalcade of maids and butlers waiting for their attendance -a show of force while holding up the front of civility!- hoping to on some subconscious level show both the prosperity that the SDC could bring to Vale and a standing challenge to try and upstage them.

The three person family unit had all reacted differently, clad as they were in clothes befitting a formal meeting, Ozpin had extended businesslike courtesy while Glynda masterfully obfuscated the deep loathing she had for Jacques, her purple lined formal cape fluttering in the wind while Naruto, clad in a child's dinner suit, had offered a pleasant bow with his blindfold in place.

There had been much talk and acute political maneuvering in the short interactions before dinner which the parents and Naruto was soon able to recognize. Naturally the blond boy kept that to himself, instead waving cutely at the eldest Schnee daughter sat opposite him looking at him with muted interest.

Winter was a pretty young girl of about eleven years with light blue eyes and long white hair tied into an elegant bun atop her head. She wore a white military style dress with faded grey pinstripes and the Schnee family symbol both across her back and on the back of the white linen gloves she wore. Strangely enough dress saber lay sheathed at her left hip. He could see its ceremonial blade wasn't suited for combat; must've been something her father insisted she bring to put up the image of a strong daughter.

Naruto tilted his head, his special eyes looking at Winter from behind their black linen shroud, considering her anew. Her face was quite pretty in a statuesque way, she was bound to grow into a beautiful woman when she was older. That wasn't his concern. No, there was something about her, a melancholy that radiated from her eyes despite her stoically pleased front she put up.

She noticed him looking her way and returned the look with a nod, she'd not spoken much during the meal aside from the brief introduction she'd given to him and his parents upon first meeting. Poor thing didn't seem to be enjoying herself. Contrary to what the dickhead at the end of the table thought, he had a perfect understanding of the delicate game of decorum from his near decade tenure as the Hokage. Sometimes it was more important to keep your mouth shut than what you said, but he couldn't deny he wanted to talk with the older girl and see what was wrong.

Two courses of high grade food and small-talk later and Ozpin finally took pity on him, "Jaques, I think we've bored the children for quite long enough. Perhaps Winter would be kind enough to give our son the tour of your home while we get down to brass tacks so to speak...?"

Jaques hummed in thought for a few moments before nodding, snapping his fingers to dismiss the dining staff, each of whom left with a bow. "An excellent idea. Winter, be a dear and show young Naruto the grounds, you're just the role model the young boy needs to really shine." the backhanded didn't fail to register with Naruto.

Never had he been happier for his blindfold than in that moment.

"Just one bite. A little off the top."

...don't tempt me.

"Of course, Father," Winter accepted in a crisp voice. Rising from the table, she looked to Naruto and swept a hand outward, indicating the large glass doors separating the dining room from the sotne walkway that surrounded the small manor. "Please, follow me.

He who rounded the table to fall into step with the older girl.

"Sure thing, snowball," Naruto jested, causing a wash of embarrassment to flush Winter's cheeks as she led him outside and began to give him the tour of the estate.

Not a soul noticed the disguised shadow clone he left behind.

The moment the pair's retreating footsteps were out of earshot, the adults in the room lost whatever feigned civility had permeated for the sake of the children and staff. Lips set into thin lines. Eyes narrowing to cold flints. Silence presided for a while punctuated only by the cackling from the ostentatiously gilded fireplace that Jaques now leaned against, a glass of whisky in one hand. Ire slowly began to build between Glynda and Jaques with neither wanting to be the first to speak, hoping the other would crumble.

Seeing the potential powder keg his wife would become if left too long, Ozpin decided to break the silence, pushing his glasses up his nose. "What are you playing at, Jaques?" he said, resting his cane against the armchair he now sat in.

"Playing at?" Jacques grinned, swirling the whisky in his glass and admiring its color. "You make it sound like this is some vile game and that I'm a cruel game master tweaking the rules for my own benefit. I can guarantee that your visit here today was nothing more than me wanting to be pleasant to Beacon's well respected headmaster and his family. There's nothing wrong with that, if anything its positively philanthropy."

Glynda scoffed, "Don't play coy, Schnee. The fact that Menagerie has officially barred SDC import after that tragic accident with Ghira might not be public knowledge but you asking to strengthen ties with Vale is about as obvious as it is tone deaf." The beautiful teacher clicked her teeth together, biting back the totality of her annoyance. "I have half a mind to-

Ozpin placed a hand on his wife's shoulder, "What my wife is trying to say is, you wanting to play nice with us instead of at least trying to make a token effort to apologize and help the Faunus is perhaps not in your best interests right now."

Jaques snorted, the shadows playing across his crisp white suit like cancerous lesions of darkness. He crossed the room until he came to a brass globe of remnant. A hand flitted out, spinning it slowly. "I'm acting according to the demands of the Kingdom's prosperity and my business. If the animals-" Glynda growled, "fine, if the Faunus don't want to buy my stock then that just means I can offload the surplus to the real kingdoms, a win win in my book."

Ozpin fixed the middle aged man with a heated stare, "Menagerie IS a Kingdom, Jacques, one in turmoil that needs settling, not adding fuel to the fire."

"And here I was hoping we could form a workable relationship with your blessing, Atlas and Vale, such is why I brought Winter with me." Jacques knocked back his liquor before pointing a perfectly manicured finger at Glynda. "What's going to happen at your son's Vytal festival in a decade or so? Is home grown dust and talent going to prevail or will it buckle under prime Schnee product and pitch perfect Atlas training hmm? Would be a shame if my Winter's sword rendered him an invalid because we couldn't play nice."

Glynda tilted her head just so. Green eyes burned with balefire. Maiden Fire. "Imply that any harm will come to my son, and I will harm you. Are we clear?"

It continued like this for the next few hour; neither side saying enough to be truly inflammatory while Ozpin played mediator; thankful the children were away but wishing that James was here to reign Jaques in.

Perhaps had they realized what their children were getting up to, they might've been more concerned...

(.0.0.0.)

...really? Your teacher is one of dad's old friends."

On the other side of the manor in the garden, Naruto and Winter walked under the light of the shattered moon making small talk about their various training before officially starting huntsman training. While initially Winter had been far too formal for his liking, and he a bit too coarse for hers, they'd since found common ground. He in his studies and she her particular passion for discussing her martial training.

In short, she felt she could make this...association work.

She wasn't rightly sure what Father stood to gain from this. Ozpin was a powerful ally of course, and as Headmaster of Beacon he commanded considerable sway in Vale. Was she meant to do here? Befriend him? Make an alliance? Or perhaps...something else? He was only a little younger than her after all...

Her face burned. No, no, no! Improper! Don't think that! Mustn't think that!

"Oi, you paying attention?"

Winter nodded halfheartedly, gloved hands clasped behind her back as she straightened her posture, "Yes, General Ironwood speaks very fondly of your father; that he is a peerless warrior, savvy politician and wise council. I was quite surprised to hear he had a son." She looked over him, taking his measure from the spiky blond hair to the dinner jacket he clearly didn't like wearing and compounded with the odd blindfold that seemed to do nothing to the blonde's vision. "I must say, your mother is also a well known Huntress, it must be a stimulating environment to grow up in."

"Sometimes." Naruto placed both hands in his pockets, posture relaxing, utterly at his ease. "She's thorough in training me, if nothing else."

The eldest Schnee daughter found herself puzzled at the oddly adult way he carried himself and spoke. There was an appropriate amount of childish inquisitiveness but underscored by an almost aged wisdom, as though he were trying his best not to laugh and some unspoken joke. Really, it was quite odd.

'Not that I'm one to talk.' the preteen thought, she'd been forced to grow up fast due to her own less than ideal home life. Perhaps it was the same for him too.

Coming to a fountain depicting the four founding monarchs, Naruto squatted down on the edge of the water feature. "So you enjoy training too, huh?"

Winter considered that for a moment, looking around to make sure her father nor any of the staff were watching or eavesdropping. Of course they weren't. Finding them to be alone, she answered the blond honestly. "It's the only time I really feel alive. As the eldest Schnee there is a lot on my shoulders, expectations, limits." stifling limits. Awful restrictions. Can't say this. Don't do that. "When I train ,I can ignore them, and really be me. Not Winter Schnee, eldest daughter of the dynasty and prodigy student of General Ironwood, just…Winter."

Naruto listened to her honestly speak before beginning to giggle to himself.

Winter's brows furrowed in annoyance. "I'm sorry, did I say somethign that you found funny" lightly smacking the blonde in the arm, "Hey, that's how I truly feel."

"No, no, I get that, trust me I really do, but I think you're looking at it from the long angle." Naruto sprang back to his feet and thumbed up his blindfold. "Limits?" those eerie sparkling eyes gleamed back at her, as though she were looking into infinity itself. "Those are all in your head. Imagine a future version of yourself who's freely surpassed your limits. Call it an ideal. A curse, whatever. The only thing holding you back...is you. Here, you can start right now. Lets be friends. Not as the son of Beacon Headmaster, or the Daughter to Jacques Schnee. Just Naruto and Winter. Whaddya say?

He extended his fist and waited expectantly for the young woman to digest his words.

Gingerly she extended her own fist to bump, a sheepish look on her face.

...I would like that."

Naruto bumped his knuckles against hers. "Now you're getting it!"

A/N: Aaaaand scene.

This chapter took A LOT out of me and Slifer. I apologize if it isn't edited to our usual standards.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go pass out. Been a long day, and I'm absolutely drained. So, what say you? Did you enjoy it? By all means, let me know~!

As ever, the Embers rule Remains; sad as that may sound, its the truth. If folks don't like this story...well, it won't be continued. Most likely, I'll delete it and consign it to the void it comes to that. I haven't the time to write something folks don't like. Two jobs keep me terribly busy as such that I have barely any time to write.

So...in the Immortal Words of Atlas...

...Review...Would You Kindly!

And as ever, Le warning!

SPOILER! SPOILER! SPOILER!

PLOT DETAILS AHOY!

YE BE WARNED!

Sasuke sighed.

"What's your name, girl?"

"Emerald." the little urchin whispered, trying to master her fear and failing utterly. "My name is Emerald...why did you help me?"

"Eat first." he gestured to the feast before her. "Then we can talk."

...its not poisoned?"

Sasuke quirked a black brow. Message received!

Emerald attacked her plate like a starving Beowolf. "Thank you!"

"Speak, blast you! You're not mute!"

His gaze zeroed in on her. No. Surely not.

He looked on aghast, as her father's hand rose and-

CRACK!

Naruto shot off like a bow loosed from an arrow.

"Oi! Stop hitting her, you bastard! I'll tear your arm off!"

Trivia Vanille. In another life, she would've been known as Neo.

He had no idea whom he'd just befriended...nor what he'd just gone and changed.

"You can come out, now."

"Why're ya crying? You lost or something?"

The girl sniffled, rubbing at her scabbed knee. Dark hair. Golden eyes. Were...were those cat ears?

Naruto sighed.

"C'mon, up ya go."

"What're you doing?!

"Givin' ya a piggyback ride, silly."

Ruby tugged at his arm. "He's my friend!"

"Nuh-uh! I saw him first!"

"First is the worst, second is the best!"

"Nonsense. Third is the one with the treasure chest."

Naruto sighed. "This is my life now…

"You're a failure of a daughter!"

Winter caught her father's wrist before he could strike her again.

"No." she rasped. "You're a terrible father."

A little girl's eyes should not shine with such hate. But hers? They burned with malice.

"The next time you lay hands on me...will be the last time you have hands."

Jacques yelped as his wrist splintered under her grip.

"I have to go on this mission. They need me."

"Ruby needs you more."

She whirled. "Wha-

Naruto's fist thundered into the back of Summer's head. She dropped like a sack of potatoes.

EDIT: Hey, you made it!

Once more, we're sticking with the "Embers" rule for this story, and others. If folks don't like this, it won't be continued. Meaning that if the story itself ain't popular? Well, it won't be continued. I'm working two jobs -might need a third soon!- so I barely have time to write; as such, I cannot afford to write something folks don't enjoy. So by all means, speak up! Your voice matters! Make yourself heard! As ever, reviews are the fuel that sustain me. Without them I cannot write a single word. Simple as that. Working nearly all hours of the day keep me absurdly busy, and I can't bring myself to write something folks don't like.

Looking forward to chatting with you all~! Have a great day~!