Chapter 8: The Beginnings Begin Again

Taiyang burst through his front door, rain dripping from his flattened hair. He looked around and saw a light in his living room, and after hanging his coat on the bannister, made his way into the room.

The first thing he saw was Yang speaking quietly with Qrow, who's eyes were wide open and alert. They glanced up when he came in, their faces cooling as their eyes turned frosty.

"Tai." Qrow greeted, his voice a low growl in the rain-made pitter patter. Tai turned away from Qrow, and looked at Yang.

"Yang…" he whispered, his hands twitching upwards. Yang's eyes narrowed, and she shouldered past him, glancing over her shoulder.

"Thanks for the help Uncle Qrow. Please, tell me when Ruby wakes up." she said coldly, glancing at Taiyang.

Taiyang froze, his mind whirling. 'Ruby?' Qrow nodded shortly at Yang, waving her away.

"Sure thing, Yang. Why don't you head to bed, Tai and I… need to talk some things over." he said, lowering himself into a chair, fingers interlocked as he rested his jaw on his hands. Taiyang sighed, and looked at Yang.

"Go sleep, Yang. You'll need your rest." he acquiesced, allowing her to sleep instead of answering his questions. 'Qrow can do that.' he decided. Yang ignored him, and left, slamming the door behind her. Taiyang sighed, shaking his head before sitting down.

He leaned towards Qrow, and allowed himself to ask the question he dreaded the answer to.

"Qrow… is Ruby alright? How badly was she hurt?" he demanded, eyes steely. Qrow glared back at him, eyes equally cold and lifeless.

"She wasn't hurt. She used her eyes." he said coldly, with a tinge of pride sneaking into his voice. "She defeated a Grimm in there Tai, a Grimm that I think is more than just the common Beowolf or Ursa. She fought when even Yang was overpowered, and she won."

Taiyang could detect the smugness in Qrow's statement. "If you think that I'm going to let her go to Beacon because you THINK she killed an 'all-powerful' Grimm, then you're crazy!" he yelled, immediately regretting it when Qrow sent him an unimpressed look.

"Tai, listen, she needs to learn to control these powers. Just one use tonight almost-"

"Almost what, Qrow?" Taiyang asked, his voice cold and hard as iron. "I thought you said she wasn't injured? Doesn't this just prove that she's not ready for Beacon?" Qrow slammed his fist on the coffee table, his eyes no longer cold and distant. Now they were a raging inferno, anger spilling from them in waves. And for the first time in a long time, Taiyang was afraid for his life. Or at the very least, his table which he glanced at discreetly.

"Taiyang Xiao Long. I've known you for nearly twenty years. And you just said the stupidest thing I've ever heard from you." Taiyang was about to interrupt, when Qrow glared at him, silencing him immediately. "Even stupider than the time you said Glynda probably wouldn't wear anything if you rifled her locker." Taiyang nearly smiled at the memory, before quashing the humour welling up in him, returning to the cold glacier that Qrow was quickly becoming familiar with.

"Well, Qrow, if there's one thing this night has taught me it's that Yang isn't ready to go to Beacon either." Silence filled the room, Qrow's eyes wide in shock. "I need to make them stronger. They need to be able to survive without me or you, and right now they can't!" he ended yelling, his eyes tearing up slightly. He fell forwards, his face covered with his hands.

"Qrow, I almost lost both my little angels tonight… and this happened here! On Patch!" Qrow was floored. He really wasn't expecting this. He hesitantly reached out, and patted Taiyang's shoulder as he sobbed.

"Ahhh, uhh, it'll… be OK, Tai. Don't worry." he tried to soothe, cringing inwardly at how hollow his words sounded. 'Huh, maybe I shouldn't have skipped the mandatory Huntsmen Therapy for the last ten years… I might be able to feign some of it.' he thought to himself, before waving the metaphorical red flag in front of the bull.

"But we still need to talk about Beacon." Taiyang slapped his arm away, looking up at Qrow with eyes wide and red rimmed.

"Qrow, if they're not safe here on Patch then they're not safe at Beacon! How can I protect them if they're-" Qrow intercedes, his voice overpowering Taiyang's protests.

"Tai! Beacon is literally the safest place in the world! No Grimm can get within ten kilometers of it without Ozzy knowing about it!" he roared, standing up.

Taiyang looked at him forlornly. "But Ozpin… he'll send them on missions and they could…" Qrow growled, grabbing Taiyang's shirt and heaving him to his feet. "Tai, that's the life they want to lead! That's the life WE lead! How would you have felt if your parents had stopped you from going to Beacon?!" he demanded.

Taiyang's eyes were downcast as he mumbled his response. "I'd have gone anyways… either with faked transcripts or forged permission slips…"

"Exactly. Sorry to say, Tai, but your girls are the toughest kids I've seen. Even tougher than some of our classmates."

Taiyang quirked his eyebrow, the ghost of a smile on his face. "Even better than you?"

Qrow smiled inwardly. 'Great, he's loosening up.' "Nah, pfff, how could they be better than me? I was like a tiny god!" he grinned, leaning forward. Taiyang matched him, leaning further forward.

"Oh yeah? Which tiny god wore a skirt to Beacon on his first day?" he snarked.

"Hey!" Qrow shouted angrily, with the smile on his face betraying the happiness he felt. "We agreed to never speak of it, lest I mention your-" Taiyang slapped his hand over Qrow's grinning face, paling as he looked at the stairs.

"Quiet man! What if Yang hears?!" he whispers, fear etched onto his face. Qrow nodded, and Taiyang removed his face. Qrow took a breath, and:

"What, that you went into the girls' change room and stole every article of clothing you could find? I mean, you found the divine purpose of your Semblance!" he laughed, causing Taiyang to wilt.

"It wasn't like that, Qrow." he whimpered.

"Then you had the audacity to SELL the clothes in Beacon Square!" Qrow laughed, tears appearing in his eyes.

"OK, Qrow, I get the point." Taiyang sulked.

Qrow quickly sobered, leaning backwards as he looked at the ceiling. "See Tai, you have such fond memories of Beacon. Don't deprive your kids of that joy. Give them the opportunity to grow, learn about Hunting, and kick some serious ass."

Taiyang leaned back as well, his expression somber as he thought. Finally, he sighed.

"Qrow, I get it. They're… more than capable of going to Beacon. Both of them. I guess… I guess that I just wish they could stay with me longer." he ended sadly, slouched over. Qrow smiled, and looked out the window.

"Ya know, Tai? They're gonna be around after you and I are gone. If we don't prepare them, they'll die before we do." Taiyang became rigid at that, glancing out the window.

"You're right… what's that outside?" They both looked outside as a person in a large black cloak slid from the shadows of the trees, almost as if they just… appeared. Taiyang heard a ruffling, and glancing at Qrow revealed a crow sitting in the chair. Not standing, actually sitting with it's legs stuck out. Taiyang twitched.

His mouth widened.

And he burst out laughing as the bird tried to get up. Glaring at Taiyang, the crow flapped it's wings and flourished itself as it spun into the air, hiding up in the rafters. Taiyang reached into his fanny pack, and pulled out a grenade, with a small red crystal suspended inside. Hiding it behind his back, he gets up and goes to the door. Opening it, he pretends to close his eyes as he yawns, walking outside. However, his eyes are carefully watching the figure in black, who's still wreathed in shadows but less than a hundred meters away. Suddenly, he sees the glint of red eyes. Thinking fast, he hurls the grenade at the shadowy figure, wrenching out a rifle from his fanny pack, and firing at the grenade as it nears the figure. He sees the figure crouch, and, mid-flip backwards, kicks the grenade upwards. The eyes widen, and blur for a second as the red glow dims, and shadows converge even closer around them.

'Shadows? Is this some kind of stealth Grimm? No… those movements are those of a person. But who?!' Taiyang thought, eyes widening as the figure landed on their hands, twisting themselves one hundred and eighty degrees, before dashing at him with their arms cast backwards, closing the distance between them in a mere three seconds. Leaping into the air, the figure lunged outwards, their foot extended. Suddenly, a flash of silver appeared between them, stopping the Shadow's foot midair. Qrow, a small smirk on his face, flicks the Shadow backwards, before stabbing his sword into the ground and landing on it, perching like the bird he's named for. Right before the figure can lunge again, Qrow speaks up.

"Sorry kid. We thought you were someone else." Taiyang glances at him incredulously. This person just moved faster than he could, nearly as fast as Qrow! What made him think it was a kid?!

'And how does Qrow know them anyways?' he thought. The figure stopped a short distance away, and Qrow glanced at Taiyang.

"Tai, get a flashlight out." Taiyang complied instantly, reaching into his fanny pack and taking out a large flashlight. Clicking the button on it and sliding in an Electricity Dust Crystal into a now open slot, the flashlight bloomed to life, illuminating the yard. The first thing Taiyang noticed was the distinctive cloak.

"Shit! Naruto?" he asked, relief filling his voice. Naruto nodded, still on the alert.

"Why the HELL did you attack me?" he growled, still ready for combat, his eyes unconsciously glowing a crimson red. Taiyang sighed, putting his rifle back into his fanny pack.

"We saw a black figure moving out of the trees, then glowing red eyes. Sorry, we thought you were a Grimm." he said, contriteness obvious from his tone.

"Huh? Red eyes?" Naruto asked, confused.

Qrow interjected. "Yeah, your eyes are red, kid. Mind talking 'bout it?"

Naruto frowned, before his eyes widened. Swiftly, the Sharingan faded away, replaced with coal black orbs. He smiled sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

"Ohhh, those!" he started, his mind racing for an excuse. "Uhhh, I guess you could call them a gift?" he finished, his tone leaving it clear that he was unsure.

Qrow nodded slowly, eyes sharp and glinting. "Are they your Semblance?" he asked, curious. Naruto however, shook his head.

"Oh no. They're not my Semblance. I guess the closest answer would be that they're a friend's Semblance that he gifted to me." Naruto froze after answering, his eyes wide with nervousness. 'Shit, can people even give away Semblances on Remnant?!'

Taiyang's eyes widened. "You mean that your friend gave you his Semblance? How?"

"Well, I know that Jimmy's been researching how to transfer Aura from person to person… do you come from Atlas?" Qrow mused before asking.

Naruto frowned. "Isn't Aura your soul? How can you take that from one person and give it to another?" he demanded, the thought of people taking souls reminding him too much of the Rinnegan to lend comfort.

Qrow growled lowly. "It's… complicated." he said shortly.

Naruto quirked an eyebrow. "Well, I didn't take his soul to get this. He GAVE me his eyes."

Taiyang nodded slowly to himself and glanced at Qrow, both of them thinking the same thing. 'It's not a Semblance… it's closer to Summer's and Ruby's Silver Eyes. Only these are Red Eyes…'

Qrow took these thoughts one step further, his time in the field contributing to his darker thoughts. 'Silver Eyes are special, and destroy the Grimm… who have red eyes. Could these Red Eyes be something like the opposite of the Silver?'

Naruto waved at both of them, his face confused. "Hey, you guys still there?"

Taiyang and Qrow both shook themselves and nodded, a bit embarrassed. Naruto smiled at them both. "Good, then could we go inside? It looks like rain." Qrow shrugs, putting away his sword.

"Sure. Then you can tell us about your eyes, and what they do." Naruto shrugged.

"Eh, I can't tell you a lot since I only received them recently, but I can tell you what I do know." he said as they walked towards the house. Glancing at Taiyang (who was putting his rifle back into his fanny pack), Naruto asked a question which had been weighing on him.

"How are you fitting that big gun in that tiny pouch?!" he yelled, eyes comically wide. Qrow starts, before laughing loudly as Taiyang sighed, before answering.

"It's my Semblance. I can… create extra space within a confined area so that it has more volume on the inside." Qrow laughed even harder, causing Naruto to look at him quizzically.

"What's so funny?"

Qrow stopped laughing, wiping a tear from his eye. "The first time Taiyang explained it, and the way he explained it to everyone we met, was that his Semblance allowed him to shove massive 'things' into tiny things… needless to say, everyone thought he was a douche for YEARS!" he started to laugh again, with Naruto joining in when he saw Taiyang slump over sadly, and beginning to pray.

"Oh great Brothers of Starlit Sky, please never let Yang hear about this. She'll never let me live it down. Thank you for listening to my prayer, O great Brothers Gold and Dark, White and Black, of Light and Shadow."

'Shadow and Light, huh…' Naruto thought, his mind trailing to Sasuke. 'I hope that he's doing better, in whatever world he came to.' Qrow, however, simply laughed harder.

"Should have done THAT prayer in private, Tai! Now I have infinite blackmail material!" Taiyang's head sank lower as he dragged himself up through his front door.


After some time…

"-and that's how Qrow ended up wearing a skirt to initiation!" Taiyang finished retelling his greatest prank in history, for probably the thousandth time. Naruto, of course, was laughing his head off as Qrow steamed in his seat. Naruto glanced at Qrow, and decided to take pity on him.

"Well, that's nothing compared to MY greatest prank!" he boasted, hands tucked behind his head as he smiled. Taiyang looked at him earnestly.

"Oh? Do tell!" he grinned.

"Well, in my village where I grew up we had a mountain where we'd carve the faces of our village leaders." Qrow interrupted, curious.

"How big we talkin'? House sized faces or bear sized faces?"

Naruto leaned forward, smiling proudly. "You know the police station in Vale?" Qrow nodded, his mind already struggling to imagine a head the size of that building.

"Imagine them about double that size." Qrow's jaw dropped, and as he leaned backwards his chair fell over. Cursing, he managed to land on his feet (though his knees buckled), before he righted his chair and sat back down unsteadily. Taiyang simply whistled in awe.

"Anyways, on my last day before graduating the Academy I decided to do one last prank. So I made a bunch of paint using my special paint recipe, and left early in the morning. Using my great and amazing stealth skills, I snuck to the top of the mountain."

Naruto placed both his hands on the table, pushing himself backwards so only the back legs of the chair were on the ground. "Then I climbed down on the face, and you should know that by this point it was dawn, so the sun was streaking over the faces and bathing them in gold and orange light. Anyways, I was wearing a bright orange jumpsuit, which helped disguise me in the light." Qrow laughed.

"Hear that Tai? He used bright orange as camouflage! Bright orange! Heheheh!" Taiyang glanced at Qrow.

'Seriously? He's drunk already? He's only had a few drinks!'

Naruto continued, oblivious to Taiyang's inner thoughts. "-so then I slid down onto the Third Hokage's face-" Taiyang interrupted this time.

"Hokage? Is that the title of your leader?" Naruto nodded quickly.

"Oh yeah. The Hokage is the leader of the village, and usually is the strongest Shinobi in the village." before anyone can ask, he explains further. "A Shinobi is a soldier in the village's defenses, I guess you could say. They're hired out to do odd jobs, like escorting, painting, bodyguarding and cleaning. At least at the beginning. Later, they might fight against other Shinobi. Oh, and they fight the Grimm." he adds on.

Taiyang nods again. "So they behave like Huntsmen, only they answer to a leader. Kinda like the military of Atlas." Qrow agrees.

"Yeah… except it seems like these Shinobi, from what I've gathered, aren't just grunts like most Atlas junkies. They seem to be more skilled if the Hokage is one of them. After all, Huntsmen are Huntsmen first, and soldiers second."

Naruto nods. "Yeah, every Shinobi goes through rigorous learning before leaving the Academy. I mean, they still suck and are the lowest ranked Shinobi, but they still aren't common grunts or samurai. Anyways, nce you do, you're set on a team with two of your classmates, which are usually sorted to best fit with your skillset. Then you're assigned to learn under a Jounin, which is one of the highest ranked Shinobi. They teach you until they think you're ready to take the Chunin Exam, which is super hard! Uhhh, I never passed the Exam, so I don't know exactly what happens after, but if you do well enough they promote you, and you then can teach at the Academy, or go on C-B Ranked missions without a supervisor." Taiyang and Qrow both nodded. Seemed simple enough; it was just a different version of what they had.

"So when did you graduate?" Qrow asked, taking a swig from his flask.

"Oh, about four years ago now. I was twelve when I did, and-" Taiyang interrupts, scandalized.

"You mean you were going on Huntsman Missions when you were twelve?!" he cried out, shock and horror overcoming his features.

Naruto waved him off. "Yeah, but I was with Kakashi-Sensei until just two months ago. Oh, he was my Jounin teacher for years! Although since I got a Master to teach me, I guess Kakashi was more of a part time teacher and supervisor…" he trailed off, thinking.

"You were saying about the prank?" Taiyang prompted, unused to the sad look on Naruto's face, and recognizing it. He saw it every day in the mirror for years after Summer's death.

Naruto perked up, and continued his story. "Oh yeah! So the Hokage is the village leader, and usually the strongest Shinobi. To honour them we carve their face into the Hokage Monument after their coronation. So I went on each face, one by one, and covered them in graffiti. It was awesome! I even nearly got away with it, except my teacher at the Academy caught me." he bemoaned his nearly flawless prank. Taiyang whistled in appreciation.

"I gotta say I'm impressed. Painting something double the size of the Vale City Police Station is no small task."

Naruto stands up quickly. "No, you don't understand! Each head is that size! And I got them all!"

Qrow fell out of his seat laughing. "Maaaan, I wish Jimmy would make one of those, just so I could do that to it!" he rolled on the ground laughing. Naruto shrugged, and whispered to Taiyang:

"Who's Jimmy?"

Taiyang smiled and answered quickly. "That's what Qrow calls General Ironwood." Naruto nods, trying to remember who Ironwood was. After a brief few seconds of reflection, he recalled that Ironwood was the Headmaster of Atlas Academy. From what he learned, Ironwood was a severe man who believed in military might above all else. Kinda like the Hidden Cloud… they even had the same white outfits! Naruto snickered a bit at the thought.

"Anyways, Naruto, you said you'd explain your eyes." Qrow asked, propping himself up against a table leg. Naruto flushed.

"I didn't forget! I'm just not sure how to start…"

"How about what they do?" suggested Taiyang. Naruto agreed, and started.

"Well, the eyes are called the Sharingan, which means the Copy Pin-Wheel Orb. They, as the name suggests, allow me to copy any physical movement that I am physically capable of performing. They also allow me to see through illusions, and see… Aura." he began, already causing Taiyang to look at him in amazement. Qrow however, narrowed his eyes before asking a question.

"Do they have any… Grimm properties?"

"Hmmmm. Well, the people who have the Sharingan are usually driven insane. At least, most the people I've known who've had it. I guess that's grim." he thought aloud.

"What?!" Qrow shout-whispered, "Are you telling me you're going to go insane?!" Naruto quickly makes a no gesture with his arms.

"No no! You see, to awaken the Sharingan the bearer must experience great loss, emotional or otherwise. The previous wielder of these eyes…" he trailed off, unsure if he should continue. However, when Taiyang reached out and held his hand reassuringly, Naruto was emboldened to continue. Maybe Obito's story could live on in people not tainted by bias and hatred.

"The previous owner of these eyes was VERY misfortunate. First they watched their best friend lose an eye and nearly die in a battle, which awoke their Sharingan at what's basically level two. The Sharingan evolves with pain, so the fact that he awoke it beyond its base level means he felt immense pain, beyond nearly anything else his family ever endured.. Anyways, after that battle he was MIA, and was captured by an old man… who doesn't really matter right now. Anyways, he eventually got out from his imprisonment, and rushed back to his best friend, and the girl he loved who he entrusted to his best friend's protection. However, when he got to them he found the girl he loved, Rin, dead with his best friend's hand through her chest." Qrow and Taiyang were horrified.

"So… is that how it evolved?" Qrow asked, shock tinging his voice. Naruto simply nodded.

"Yeah. He was driven insane, and killed thousands before eventually recovering, and then using… a special technique he got from the old man to bring as many people back from the dead as he could." Taiyang and Qrow were floored now. Someone who could bring back the dead? Inconceivable!

"Wait wait wait, this guy could bring the dead back to LIFE?!" Qrow yelled, making Taiyang shush him.

"Yeah… he was a hero. Anyways!" Naruto steered away from Obito, "-the eyes allow me to perceive things slower than they're actually happening, and I can sometimes, although I haven't learnt how yet, put people into an illusion if I make eye contact with them." Qrow nodded absently, his mind still on the whole bringing people back from the dead. Shaking his head, Qrow decided to let go of that fantastical piece of knowledge. From what Naruto said, the guy was dead so it didn't matter what Godly abilities he'd had.

'Besides,' Qrow thought slowly, his Aura beginning to cleanse the drink from his mind, 'I have another fish to fry.'

"Sooo, Tai, we didn't finish our conversatiooooon!" Qrow slurs from the floor.

"Oh my Gods Qrow, what is it now?!" Taiyang whined, looking at Qrow's limp body.

"Are you gonna let Ruby go to Beacon?" Qrow said, the drunkenness sliding off of him like a snake shedding its scales. Taiyang sighed as Naruto leaned in, seriousness clouding his face.

"I'm… still not sure." Before Naruto could say anything, Taiyang raised his hand, gesturing for silence. After a pause, he resumed.

"I get it. It's a great opportunity, and one that all of us would have taken. I also understand that Beacon is as safe as here, if not safer." Qrow nodded enthusiastically, while Naruto pondered.

"But I also never expected this! Qrow, I thought I'd have Ruby here for two more years! It's… hard to let your child go, especially when you didn't think you'd need to." Naruto nodded sadly, before deciding to speak up.

"I don't know if this will help your decision, but my parents died when I was born." Taiyang started, and reached over to Naruto's shoulder and gave it a comforting squeeze. Naruto nodded in appreciation, before continuing.

"They died to save my life before I'd even said my first word. They believed in me, and entrusted to me the future of our village."

"Really? You were given such a great responsibility by your parents?" asked Taiyang, suspecting that there was more.

"My father was the Fourth Hokage, but I didn't learn that until a couple months ago. He believed in me, and now I think you should believe in Ruby." Naruto said quietly, unsure if his words stretched across the gulf between him and Taiyang.

'Honestly, this is the first time that I can't really connect to someone's problems… I have no idea what he's feeling.' Naruto thought, uneasy.

Taiyang sighed. "I think I know what you mean. Qrow said something similar; it's time to leave this to the next generation. If I keep Ruby here, I'm just ensuring that she'll die quickly later. Better for her to go to Beacon now, and get stronger so that she doesn't die later." he decides, his voice devoid of conviction, and filled with uncertainty.

Qrow reaches over to him, and pats his shoulder. "Tai, believe me. She'll be safe. Oz is the strongest Huntsman in the world; nothing will hurt her at Beacon aside from her own social ineptitude."

Taiyang smiles sadly. "She won't have any friends there… I know Yang tries to be protective of her, but she'll just leave Ruby alone when she feels like it. Ruby will be alone."

Naruto shakes his head. "No. She won't be. I'll be there too, and I'll be her friend."

Taiyang looks at Naruto carefully for any ulterior motives.

He finds none.

"I have one condition for Ruby going to Beacon." Taiyang said firmly, conviction boldly growing in his voice. Naruto stares straight at him.

"What is it?"

"Be her partner, Naruto. Be her friend." he says firmly. Naruto nods shortly, his face serious.

"I will." Qrow snorted.

"You're gonna need to find a way to do that first." he grunted.

"How would you recommend it?" Naruto asked slowly, not used to needing to plan out his moves.

"Well, first you need to ensure that you meet her first. Oz has a variety of random ways to assign team mates, and if I know him it'll be done in a way that makes it so the teams HE wants end up made." Naruto nodded slowly.

"But the fact is that you should be able to become her teammate if you are sent in the same direction she is when Oz catapults you into the forest."

Naruto nodded before: "Wait, CATAPULTS?!"

"Oh yeah, just fly in the same direction as her, don't get carried away, and you'll do fine. Besides, you're fast. You should be able to find her, especially if you agree beforehand on a signal that you'll use to meet up, like a flare." Qrow suggested. Naruto agreed, seeing the value in a plan. And so he, Qrow and Taiyang stayed up late into the night, planning on how Naruto would become Ruby's partner.

Author's Note:

Hopefully, Beacon in two chapters. I hope even a single person appreciates the GENIUS that went into Taiyang's Semblance. Cheers, please send me positive feedback, I'm going on vacation for the next 5 days.