A/N: WARNING! Please read this note first, would you kindly? Thank you!
Everything's still under the "Embers" Rule for good bloody reason; if folks don't like a story, poof! Away it goes.
First! Sorry for the delay, I had to back and edit this...FIVE...TIMES...before it felt acceptable...
Second! I wanted to try my hand a more laid back chapter. Give everyone a chance to relax without leaping from one conflict to another. Feels like I've been doing too much of that lately. Naruto and Blake deserved a chance to bond. By all means, tell me what you think!
Third! Somehow I've caught a stomach bug of some sort -food poisoning?- because I can't seem to keep anything down beyond water since yesterday.
Ergo, I haven't eaten anything. Not a bloody thing. For two days now. Thankfully, my dear sister was around to help me finish this update. Me? I'm headed to the hospital to see what the hell's wrong with me.
Needless to say I'm just a liiiiittle loopy at the moment.
*slumps against desk*
Now, then! lets answer your questions.
Q: When will the rest of Team RWBY meet Naruto and Sasuke?!
A: In this chapter, as promised. As to the rest of the cast...well. That would be telling. While we're on the topic, Ozpin is...I don't want to say blind, but he's not noticed Naruto nor Sasuke yet. Is he aware that something's amiss? Certainly. Does he know the true nature of what's going on? Certainly not! After all this is the man who failed to notice Salem's agents when they were right under his nose. I don't know if that's arrogance on his part or if they were simply that good.
*shrugs*
Ergo, a pair of shinobi who don't want to be found? Yeah, good luck tracking Naruto and Sasuke down.
Q: How would Ironwood react to this?!
A: Um...react to what? Naruto and Sasuke haven't done a thing to him.
Q: What! Are! The! Pairings?!
A: As stated, the main one is NarutoxBlake, but there are other pairings to be had in this story for, well, just about everyone. Some are more subtle in this story, while others...well. Some are pretty damn obvious. I've got plenty scattered about here and there.
Whoever can find or guess them all by the end of this story gets a prize~!
Q: What's the timeline here?
A: Canonically speaking, this events of the "Last" Naruto movie never happened. Naruto and Hinata. Did not happen in this story. Its a shame, but there we are. Furthermore, we haven't had the "Dance" in Beacon just yet, which offers some very...amusing opportunities. CCT hasn't been breached yet either.
Hmm, I wonder if it will...?
Q: Shinobi OP?
A: Very much so. Consider this. Should they ever figure out how the Book -Gate!- works properly, it would be a simple matter to disguise themselves. Transformation jutsu is absurdly overpowered, most of all when you don't know what to look for. Ozpin might be able to see through, maybe even Salem, but anyone else?
*grins*
Q: Anymore twists for us?
A: Oh, this old man has a few~!
Alright, I've kept you long enough.
Hope you're ready for to laugh; I know I certainly did.
Title is a pun, of course. As ever, I own no references, themes, or memes.
"The single most powerful emotion in this world...is love.
For while fear might compel us to do lash out, it is Love that truly emboldens us.
Love can be found in the strangest of places. On the battlefield, in the bedroom, even across far flung worlds.
Loves makes us do foolish things.
Foolish things indeed."
~!
Cuddles and Chakra
"C'mon, you can do it."
Blake scowled at her palm furiously.
Nothing happened. Nothing changed. Noting at all. Then again, she didn't expect it to. Her eyes narrowed and still nothing. It remained the same as it always was. As it had always been. No matter how much she glared at it, nor how hard she focused her will, she couldn't muster so much as a spark. If she could, she probably would've burned a hole in her palm by now. Squaring her shoulders, she reached around to grab her wrist and tried to focus anew. Her fingers clenched into a claw, trying to grasp something she couldn't quite see in her palm.
Only empty air awaited her there.
"Focus." Naruto's breath was warm in her ear. "Chakra isn't the same as aura. It comes from within, not without." his sleeveless arms came down around her, skin against skin. "You need to sense it; and make that sense work for you. Try closing your eyes."
Reluctantly, Blake did as she was bade. Golden orbs drifted shut. She willed her senses to shut down, every last one.
Ignore her stress. Ignore the birds chirping overhead. Ignore the gentle blades grass under her bare feet. Ignore the Grimm in the distance. Ignore the warm, toned body pressed up against hers, guiding her through strange movements she couldn't comprehend; the hard plane of his chest a sturdy wall against her back, his cheek brushing hers...oh dear. Easier said than done, that. No! Bad Blake! Focus! She felt his fingers thread upon hers, pushing her hands into a new alignment. She gave him free reign of her arms, allowed him to guide them into strange new shapes. A bead of sweat ran down
For a moment, she thought she felt something burn in her eyes...but surely that was her imagination.
A muscle jumped in Blake's jaw, twitching alongside her right eye. Her patience slipped its leash, and her control shattered.
"Blast it!" She turned a dark glower upon him. "This is madness."
"Nope." Naruto grinned and leaned forward to perch his chin atop her shoulder, "This IS-
Firm fingers sealed over his open mouth, muffling the words she knew he was going to bay. Befuddled blue eyes blinked back at her without fear. Mildly put out by her sudden display, he planted both fists on his hips and began to tap a foot. He could've torn her grasp away at any time. She knew he could. And yet he only frowned at her.
"Mmhrmph!" he grunted against her hand. "Mmmph?!"
"Finish that sentence and I will harm you." she glowered golden daggers at him. "I mean it." her gaze narrowed when he she felt those whiskered cheeks pluck in a smile against her fingers. "It is entirely too early for this and I am not in the mood for-ow!" she recoiled with a yelp as something sharp pricked her palm. "You bit me!"
Naruto leaned back with a smug smile, wagging a finger before her face. "And you asked for it, ya know."
Yellow eyes flashed as she cradled the red imprint he'd left upon her hand.
Turnabout is fair play!
CHOMP!
"Yeowch!" Now it was Naruto's turn to recoil with a yelp of of his own. "Sharp teeth! You drew blood!"
Blake looked down upon him with a smile just shy of smug. "You asked for it."
"I did no such thing!"
She elbowed him for that. Naruto nudged her back, eliciting a swat across the wrist in return. Together they shared a brief peal of laughter, one that echoed through the Emerald Forest. If any Grimm heard it, none dared challenge them. As well they shouldn't; a stern perimeter of shadow clones ensured that no such beast would come near.
Really, as far was hideaways went, there was no better place than the Emerald forest; in that it had everything they needed.
Here they could spirit away for a few hours on the weekend with none the wiser. Perhaps that was petty of her, keeping Naruto out of sight -and away from Yang- but she felt justified in it. Her partner would only poke and prod her after the latest incident, to say nothing of Ruby or Weiss. They'd badger the blond with questions, questions that would take Naruto away from her.
It did precious little for Blake's present predicament however.
Even if the physical aspect of her training was going well - she grew stronger and faster with each passing day!- there were other areas in which she was lacking. If she ever blundered into Adam outside of Beacon's sturdy walls, and may the Brothers forbid such a thing, she was confident in her ability to affect a fighting retreat if nothing else. Who knew? With enough training, she might even be able to stand on equal footing for him, if only for a short while. Try as she might, she didn't believe Naruto's ludicrous claims about chakra, however.
"Earth to Blake!" Naruto waved hand before her face, snapping her back to reality. "You there?"
"This really is pointless." she flung up her arms in aggravation and crashed back into the grass with a sigh. "Why are we even doing this? I don't have chakra."
"See, you keep saying that," Naruto sat down beside her, leaning his back against one the glen's many trees, "But I'm starting to think you do."
Blake pivoted to lay the back of her head head against his chest. "And I'm starting to think you're cracked."
A low rumble of laughter shook his chest. "Nothing wrong with a bit of madness."
The point of her elbow jabbed his ribs and he laughed all the more.
Blake smiled a bit as she settled in against him. Madness, indeed. This was her body, after all. Surely she'd notice if she started manifesting strange new abilities. Aura? That, she had in spades. She knew that. There could be no doubt of it. And yet Naruto had struck up with this strange argument this morning; insisting that he'd started to sense something in her. Something different. Something new. She knew his ability to sense someone was second to none, but this? This was beginning to border on the absurd. They'd already spoken long and at length of chakra, then aura alike.
People...people didn't just grow chakra coils overnight.
It wasn't done. You had to be born with them. Kakashi had said as much. And yet...
She couldn't deny that she felt different. Stronger. Ever since she'd returned to Beacon -to Remnant!- she felt...what was the word? Whole? Yes, that was it. As if she'd discovered a missing pierce of herself; one she had never known was missing in the first place. With each passing day she felt stronger
"Kurama doesn't lie." her companion held up a lone finger; as she looked on, the digit gleamed a warm shade of gold. "If he can sense chakra in you, its real." His hand rose, clasping the other just behind his head. "The two of us detect things better than anyone else. You've definitely got...something in there. Something that isn't aura."
She shifted a little against him. "How could that even happen?"
"Gotta thought or two on that." He shrugged and let her hip rest against his. "Might have something to do with us crossing into my world the way we did." when her brow furrowed, the jinchuuriki met her confusion with a another shrug. "You were there for awhile, after all...and ya almost died."
A flash of guilt stole over Blake.
In truth, she'd tried not to think of it - but not for the reasons one might expect. She'd seen things as she drifted between life and death. Strange things. Things she'd sworn never to speak of. Unbidden she recalled a brief candid glimpse of a child, a young girl who looked eerily alike her and-
"Spacing out again?" Naruto gave her a nudge.
"I remember." Blake felt her ears twitched atop her head as she found her voice. "You never really mentioned my recovery...just that it was touch and go for a bit. Was it really that bad?"
"Yeah." the blond uttered a jaw-popping yawn to hide his anxiety. "With all that blood you lost, I had to donate a fair bit of mine."
She wrinkled her nose at him. "And you think that might have done something?"
"Could be." he lifted his gaze to regard the setting sun. "Its potent stuff."
Now her ears drooped. "I'm sorry...
"For what? Getting hurt?" his hand came down on her shoulder. "Don't be. Things are better now. Whatever comes next, we'll figure it out."
Golden eyes flitted down to his palm.
Blake felt her heart skip another beat. Stupid heart. It was just a hand! There wasn't anything special about it beyond the innate strength of its owner. Well, they were already lying out here in the open and classes were out in preparation for that blasted dance...what was the saying she'd heard in Naruto's world? In for a penny, in for a pound? She didn't much know what a "Penny" had to do with anything, but she understood the spirit of the saying in theory.
Her hand reached down to thread itself within his. "Together...?"
"Hmm." Naruto closed his eyes and leaned back against the worn bark with a wistful sigh. "Together sounds nice. Sleep first."
A yawn escaped her. "After everything you've put me through today? That sounds nice...
They sat in companionable silence for some minutes more, simply resting and recovering their strength. Nothing happened. Nothing romantic. Nothing overt. Merely two warriors from two different worlds simply taking comfort on in one another's company. Nothing more. In time, Blake wondered something might come of this, but for now, nothing did. They simply...laid there.
Naruto broke the silence first. "No Yang today?"
"Not that I've seen." The ghost of a smile touched her lips. Something of a white lie, that, but she wasn't about to tell him. "Its a weekend. She's probably lurking around somewhere." And trying to hunt her down, given how long she'd been avoiding her. Still, it wasn't as if today was important or anything. A golden eye creaked open. "What about you? Haven't seen Sasuke for a bit...
"I'm sure he's fine." A grin curled at his sleeping face. "He's probably off being broody somewhere."
Her lips quirked. "He does like to brood...
"Heh." Naruto leaned back, still not opening his eyes. "Trust me, he's a lot better off now."
An ear twitched as she luxuriated in his warmth. "Don't tell me he was worse than this."
"Muuuuch worse. Tried to kill me a couple times, rule the world, that sorta thing."
Against her better judgement, Blake pushed herself upright. "Excuse me?!"
Low laughter rumbled in her ear. "Wanna hear the story?"
Her eyes drifted shut again. "I'd like that."
"You sure? Its a long one."
Rather than answer, she nestled against him again and laid one ear against his chest. Naruto took that for the acceptance it was and began to weave his tale.
Only a short time ago, Blake wouldn't have even dreamed of doing something like this. Strange as it might sound, she was oddly...comfortable around him. Dare she say content? When she was with him alone, all her walls came down and she found herself comfortable in a way she wasn't around her team.
Delicate ears twitched just a moment before she heard the footsteps; a faint rustling noise against the grass that had crept right up to them when she wasn't listening.
Golden eyes burst open.
Oh gods, her team!
And then:
"AHA~!" Yang Xiao-Long crashed down before them with a snarl that would've put Cinder herself to shame...and left more than a few huntsmen cowering in fear. "There you are!" she noticed Naruto a heartbeat later, and her smirk took on nigh legendary levels of smugness. "Hey there, ghost boy." quick as a dragon she changed gears and flashed him a saucy wink. "Not gonna run away this time?"
"Nah." Naruto creaked a blue iris open. "Comfortable. Don't wanna move."
Blake quailed to tips of her toes. "This isn't what it looks like!"
"Well, it looks like you're cuddling...
"Oh." Naruto yawned. "So that's what this is. Huh. Neat."
Blake made angry Blake noises. "You're not helping!"
"Don't care, sleepy...
Gods he could be such an oaf sometimes...wait.
Only then did she notice something.
Yang wasn't wearing her traditional attire this evening; no, not traditional at all. In place of her casual outfit she'd done a rather revealing white dress, just the sort of thing one might never expected her to wear. It was so out of character that Blake couldn't help but take notice it. Something stirred in the back of her mind...why did she feel like she was forgetting something?
...why are you wearing a dress?"
"Oho?" A blond brow quirked. "Forgot about the dance, have you?"
Naruto shifted a little. "Dance-what-now?"
Oh.
Oh, no.
No, no, no.
Blake's heart quailed anew. Naruto went curiously still against her. She couldn't quite see his face from this angle, but she had the distinct suspicion he was regarding her most intently. She hadn't forgotten that, surely. It wasn't tonight. She would've remembered if it were. Surely she would have. In vain her mind cast about for an excuse.
...is that tomorrow?"
Yang grinned like the cat who caught the canary. "Tonight, actually."
Meep.
Naruto sat up. "Alright, I'm a little lost here-
"Yaaaaang!" A cloud of crimson petals heralded Ruby's arrival, in a little red dress with entirely too many frills. And conspicuously barefoot. "I'm not wearing those stupid shoes anymore! They're awful and I...
Silver eyes locked onto Naruto with all the intent of a heat-seeking sniper.
"Oooh!" an adorable smile spread across her face. "Is that the guy?"
"Yup." Yang planted a hand on her hip and winked. "Sure is, sis."
The little reaper frowned. "Why isn't he wearing a suit?"
"That seems to be the question of the evening.
Right on cue, Weiss descended on a road of glyphs, clad in a little white number all her own. Her scowl was nothing short of thunderous. With her arrival, the last of Blake's hopes shriveled into dust and blew away in the wind. Once is an accident, twice a coincidence and three times a pattern. Had she really lost that much track of time during her training?
Naruto leaned in. "Are we in trouble?"
Blake felt her ears droop atop her head. "I think we are...
"Well?" Weiss scowled. Blue eyes flitted up and down the length of her body, noting her distinct lack of a dress. "What do yo have to say for yourself?"
Nope!
Blake tried not to bolt. She really, truly did. Her instincts simply got the better of her. It wasn't her fault, alright?! Running away was a perfectly natural response to any problem! She surged upright, quite ready to swap herself with a clone and flee...until Naruto's arm locked around her waist, binding her in place. Her spine stiffened, but only for a moment. Then she scowled. Traitor! She thrashed in his grasp to no avail; his strength kept her pinned against him, even as she thrashed about like an angry cat.
"You must be Team RWBY." she all but felt him smile against her. "Nice ta finally meetcha."
Yang whistled. "Wow. Smooth operator, this one...
Before they could ask their questions, the air shifted and someone else appeared.
"Seems we're late after all...
It was easy enough to recognize Sasuke; if only because no one else -short of Neo!- could appear from thin air like that. Alas, it seemed even had fallen prey to tonight's madness; gone was his traditional attire; someone had crammed the surly shinobi into a striking blue tuxedo, complete with a black bow-tie. His left sleeve lay tied up, leaving his handicap on full display. He looked fit to snarl.
Naruto blinked owlishly. "Sasuke? What the hell?"
The Uchiha had the good grace to grimace. "Its a long story.
Not so his companion holding onto his arm. "Not at all, rather a short one, really. Its a pleasure to meet you all."
A beautiful woman clad in crimson stepped out beside him, her body temptation incarnate. Black heels clicked against the ground. Golden eyes regarded them, framed by dark hair and a pale complexion. They could've been sisters, but for the lack of Faunus features. She tilted her head to one side, dark tresses briefly concealing her left eye as she smiled at them. She didn't look at all put out, if anything, she appeared, mildly amused.
Blake didn't trust her. Not for one bloody moment.
"I'm sorry," Cinder smiled, "Is this a bad time?"
Yang sighed. "Here we go again...
Weiss and Ruby took one look at the unlikely duo; a pair that had sprung from quite literally nowhere.
Blake knew their reactions before they knew it themselves.
Naturally, they screamed. "Ghost!"
And the world spun on.
(.0.0.0.)
"Am...Am I being ignored...?"
Leagues away, a being of pure evil opened her eyes.
The wind whistling through her empty tower provided no answer.
Salem flounced back into her throne and regarded the silent Seer with an angry huff.
Still no word from Cinder. She planted her chin in one hand and sulked silently.
"No, surely not. I'm the antagonist. They wouldn't ignore me...!"
A/N: BEFORE ANYONE REACTS!
I have confirmed absolutely NO pairings beyond NarutoxBlake. Zilch. Zip. Nadda. There are plenty be found mind you, but I'll leave you all to guess at what my intent is. Wouldn't be any fun if I just spilled the beans now, would it? That said, I wanted to save an entire chapter for the dance...because its going to be a doozy.
As ever, this story is under the "Embers" Rule for good bloody reason; if folks don't like this story, poof! Away it goes. Now, then.
Blake's a mystery for now, but suffice it to say something's at work there...
Felt lovely to get back into this. Looking forward to reading your reviews!
As ever, said reviews keep this old man's engine alive; literally can't write without them. So speak up! Your opinion -and your voice!- matters!
Soooo in the Immortal Words of Atlas...
...Review...Would You Kindly?
And enjoy the Previews!
As ever:
SPOILERS! SPOILERS! SPOILERS!
PLOT DETAILS AHOY!
YE BE WARNED!
Read at your own risk!
(Previews!)
"Hot damn! You look good in a suit!"
Naruto grumbled angrily. "I look like a prissy ponce."
"Is that so? A hand touched his shoulder. "Then how do I look?"
Naruto pivoted on one heel, prepared to tell them just what he thought. Instead his jaw clicked open. "Wow."
Yang punched the air and hooted. "Ha! I win! Pay up!"
Weiss slapped a wad of lien into her hand.
"I'll be back. Just need to freshen up a bit."
Blake sashayed away, hips swinging.
Naruto tried not to follow with his eyes and failed miserably. That sway had to be deliberate.
...Kakashi."
"Yeeeesssss?"
"Why are you here?"
"Can't a teach check in on his adorable students?"
Sasuke resisted the urge to snarl at his mentor. "This. Is. A. Dance!"
"So what you're saying is I need to find myself a partner. Right, right. I'll get on that."
"LONG LIVE THE PRANK KING!"
Blake clapped a hand over her mouth to hide her smile.
"That dolt...but he's my dolt."
"Cinder cares about power. Power. Big, international, non-diplomatic projected power is something else. It lends you more might, but it doesn't have the utilities of strength. It lays eggs in you; becomes a parasite you have to feed, and feed, and FEED. Power does nothing but eat.
"Now, who do you know who was like that."
"You cannot be serious. You want to redeem her."
"Redeem isn't the word I'd use...why are you hugging me, Naruto?"
"Because you've come full circle! I'm so proud of you!
R&R~!
