Chapter 9: Onwards, Destiny
Naruto was actually bored. After planning with Qrow and Taiyang all night, and learning what he could about team initiations, he realized it was nearly five in the morning, and far too late to sleep. Resigning himself to a long day (which would end with sleeping at Beacon, he hoped), he decided to make himself useful to himself and to Ruby, and make some new smoke bombs, poisonous smoke bombs, flash bombs, smoke flash bombs, Shinobi wire, paint bombs, and collect spare kunai and shuriken from Obito's armoury in the Kamui dimension. He also began designing his weapon. After all, according to Ruby no Huntsman was complete without a weapon.
He was really torn; on one hand he wanted to wield a sword like Sasuke, because he valued the reach and fast slices. He paused, thinking to himself before being honest: he just thought swords were cool.
"Naruto, whatever weapon you design shouldn't be chosen for reasons like that!" Son Goku scolded him, seeing where Naruto's mind was going. "You should choose a weapon that doesn't impede the style you have already. Something like that Yang girl has, gauntlets!"
Kurama scoffed, amusement filling his voice as he responded to Son Goku's complaint. "Humph, you're only saying that because that's how you fight, monkey. Naruto, you should use the same weapon that the brat who stole my Chakra used: three metal claws! Slash your enemies to pieces!" he growled, pleased with the mental image he'd conjured. Matatabi agreed with Kurama.
"That would be nice… simple, elegant, and it works well with your style." she mused.
Shukaku had a different idea. "Or, Naruto, you could do what Gaara did! Use sand from a gourd!" Naruto paused at this, enthused at the idea of using sand. However, he came to a conclusion after mere moments of thought.
"I'd rather not reveal something like that every time I fought… If I saved it for special battles, I'd have a better chance of winning. But good idea Shukaku, I'll make a special pouch for sand; using seals I should be able to increase the amount I can carry." The rest of the Tailed Beasts agreed with him, although Shukaku was sad that his preferred method of combat wouldn't be Naruto's primary method.
"Well, Naruto, what if we made a list of the most effective weapons used against you? After all, no one suspects that the best weapon to defeat someone with is the one they themselves use." suggested Kokuo after a few minutes of Naruto doodling axes, maces and sword along with other weapons. Naruto thought about what Kokuo said, before smiling and nodding brightly.
"Great idea Kokuo! Let's see…" he thought, starting to write down what he remembered. Every so often the Tailed Beasts would offer some input, telling him about weapons they'd seen that worked well, although most of those were scrapped just for being cumbersome (after all, most weapons that worked well on Tailed Beasts were too cumbersome for humans to just walk around with). But after nearly an hour of work, they'd come up with a list, despite the Tailed Beasts bemoaning Naruto's ability to name them.
1: Zabuza's big sword
2: Shark Face's sword
3: Sora's claws
4: Madara's weird guitar shaped thingy
5: Obito's staff with rings
6: Puppets
7: Haku's needles
8: That big exploding ball thingy Tenten used
9: Temari's fan
10: Toad's stone swords
11: Bee's sword technique
12: Lightning sword thing
Kurama sighed. "Can you really not remember, or do you enjoy giving weapons stupid names?" he asked.
"Welllll, I can remember them, I just don't remember what they were called." Naruto laughs mentally, scratching his head. The Tailed Beasts sighed. Naruto refocused on the list, his eyes dancing with mirth.
"OK. Honestly, Shark Face's sword was dangerous but I don't know how to make it, and it's really not my style. Hey Gyuki, what was Bee's style? All you said was that he used lots."
"Bee used seven sword at once, and moved like water so each blade was used for multiple purposes, and each could strike. He could throw them and recover them, and when he fought he was almost like a porcupine." Gyuki remembered, sadness filling his voice.
Naruto didn't pick up on it. "OK, that sounds cool! Besides, it'd be a way to honour him in this new life! But it doesn't really seem like my style…"
Kurama growled angrily. "As much as I loathe to say it… the weapon on that list which best fits you is Madara's Gunbai. That or the claws." Naruto was confused.
"What do you mean? All I saw from it was that weird reflection technique, but I can do the same thing with the Water Mirror. Why is it best for me?"
"You forget, Naruto, that I knew Madara more than a hundred years before you were born. That war-fan could strike a gale even greater than that Sand woman's. And that was just from swinging it; it was nigh indestructible and could be used as a shield, blade and even a mace if it was called for. With your wind nature, you'd be able to use most of his techniques with it, which I don't doubt Obito has written down, or can teach you. However! I still think the claws would do fine, with your Wind nature you could slice anything with them."
However, Naruto was now thinking about the fan. 'I could use the Uchiha Reflection? I mean, it's better than the Water Mirror because it doesn't have any preparation… and being able to use a shield sounds nice since I don't have the deflecting abilities of Aura…'
Isobu thought aloud as well. "Hmmm. Good point, Kurama. I also recall Madara used a Kusarigama along with his Gunbai, which was attached using a chain. With both of them, he had long ranged attacks using only his weapons which he could recall to himself at will, and by channeling his Chakra through the chain it would act like a Chakra String, allowing him to control it's flight path."
Naruto was instantly sold. 'I could control it? Now that I remember, Obito channeled Chakra through it to make the chain rigid, and it stopped me and my Rasengan without leaving so much as a scratch, or moving the fan…'
Kurama sighed. "Fine. But you'll need to get Obito to get you one; I doubt they have the Chakra conductive lightweight wood here you need to make it."
Naruto started to giggle slightly. "What is it, brat?!"
"Sorry, it's just everyone else will probably have some super weapon like Crescent Rose, and all I'll have is a piece of wood!"
Chomei had one last suggestion. "Naruto, you should still learn how to use the other weapons. That way if you lose one you still have spares." Naruto found himself nodding in agreement. After all, the amount of times he ran out of kunai was bewildering to him and he felt that it was better to learn many ways of fighting rather than a single one. What if he fought an opponent who happened to be great at defending from that specific weapon? Granted his Ninjutsu would probably be fine, but it's the thought that counts! Don't give yourself a weakness thinking that it won't come into play! If there's one thing he learned from Itachi it was that: every jutsu has a weakness, and so does every Shinobi.
Qrow sighed as he walked up the stairs. It was time to tell Ruby she could go to Beacon, and he really didn't want to. Don't get him wrong, he was… not depressed, but he didn't want to deal with a hyperactive overjoyed ball of sunshine this early in the morning; especially after actually drinking nearly all night. He groaned to himself and opened Ruby's door. Walking in, he gave her a quick look over.
'Still not awake… maybe we should get Oz in on this. He'd know what to do.' Qrow thought as he slumped into a chair opposing Ruby's bed.
The door creaked quietly, and, glancing at the door, Qrow saw Yang walk in, still in her pajamas.
"Uncle Qrow? Is Ruby going to be alright?" she asked, her voice small and afraid. He sighed, slumping back further.
"I have no idea, firecracker. We can only hope." he said, while thinking to himself 'And I could leave.'
Yang growled, throwing herself on the floor with her legs crossed. "It's not fair! Right before she would've gone to Beacon, and this happens?!" she whispers angrily. Qrow groaned again, palming his face.
"I know kid, I know. Maybe…" he started to think, curious. 'Maybe blond two-point-oh could help. He was a kind of Huntsman, and we still don't know all the aspects of his Semblance. Maybe he could help…' Qrow surged to his feet, all signs of exhaustion falling off of him like a dirty cloak as he sped to the door in a flurry of feathers. Yang glanced up, eyes red rimmed.
"Huh. Where'd he go?"
Qrow sped down the stairs, and flitted back into his human form right as he came to the door. To the untrained observer, it would have looked like he just appeared there. Fortunately for Qrow, despite the Sharingan Naruto was still an untrained observer and wasn't even paying attention until he sensed Qrow right there. Leaping to his feet, Naruto spun around snapping his notebook shut with a flick of his wrist (and a Chakra String). Qrow noted this.
'He closed the book without touching it… intriguing.' Crossing his arms, Qrow slowed to a halt right in front of Naruto.
"Hey kid. Does your Semblance give you the ability to heal? You didn't explain much beyond it gives you 'power over nature'."
Naruto thinks for a bit. 'On one hand I can totally heal people, but would it be wise to reveal my Sun Mark to anyone this early on?' Thinking further, he comes to a decision.
"No, I'm afraid I don't have healing powers. While my control over nature does give me natural regeneration at a small level, it doesn't allow me to heal others." Qrow groaned, tucking his hands in his pockets.
"Well, then I'm not sure Ruby'll be awake for initiation. She's still asleep." Naruto twitched, his eyes wide. 'She's not awake?'
Naruto hurriedly asked more questions. "Is her Aura low? Is that why she's not awake?" Qrow shook his head in the negative.
"Her Aura's fine, but it's like she's just not waking up. I don't know why." Naruto frowned, before speaking again.
"Well, while I don't have healing powers I could see if there's anything wrong with her that I can sense…" Qrow nods in agreement.
"Better than nothing." Heading back inside, they walked into Ruby's room and Naruto frowned when he saw her face.
'It's almost like Chakra exhaustion… but from what I sensed earlier, they don't have Chakra, just that shell they call Aura. What's going on?' thinking quickly, Kurama lent him some help.
"Naruto, use the Sharingan." Naruto slapped his head in embarrassment, forgetting he had the Sharingan. With a quick application of Chakra, his eyes spun into the dreaded red and black patterns of a fully matured Sharingan. Gazing down at Ruby, his eyebrow cocked quickly.
'Her Aura is fine… but now I can see something beneath that solid red shell. It's been weakened, that's for sure. What's under you?' he thought. 'Maybe if I enter Sage Mode, the combined sensory abilities will reveal more.' he reached out for Nature Energy, and, feeling it, requested it to become one with him. Stilling entirely, the Chakra danced as it flew through him, filling his reserves. He sighed in contentment.
Opening his eyes, which had turned a burnished gold with the Sharingan still swirling, he looked again at Ruby. And this time, he was floored.
'Underneath… it's Chakra! But why couldn't I sense it before? And why's it so low?' he demanded from himself, his brow furrowing. Kokuo responded, his wise voice low and cautious.
"It may be because we've misinterpreted what we've heard. Aura might not BE the soul at all… rather, it appears to be a shell formed around the soul and body, to protect it from outside interference. And the soul itself? Is Chakra." Naruto scowled, angry with himself for not noticing this earlier.
'Why would there be a shell? Yang said Aura needs to be awakened by someone else, or you had to have great will to manifest it, so why would it even exist?'
"Well kid? You find anything?" he hears, suddenly noticing that Qrow was still standing behind him. Naruto sighed audibly, before turning.
"Yeah. Her Aura is a bit low, but not too low. What's concerning is that her Chakra is-" he cuts himself off, already mentally swearing at revealing Chakra. Qrow narrowed his eyes.
"Chakra?" he asked lowly, curious but not happy that something was wrong.
Naruto wracked his brain for an answer, too busy to notice that Qrow had noticed his eyes were gold. "Sorry, but could you remind me what Aura is? I need a more in depth version than it's 'my soul' to discover what's wrong. Then I'll explain about Chakra." Qrow sighed.
"Well, you're almost right. Aura isn't your soul however, it's the manifestation of it. Very different. You can transfer Aura to heal people, but you definitely can't transfer souls, unless you're Jimmy in which case you do whatever the hell you want." Naruto nodded slowly, before answering Qrow's first question.
"Well, I don't know how this happened since I'm sure no one else does this, but Ruby hasn't exhausted her Aura. She's literally used her soul, which my people called Chakra, since it fuelled Aura. Her soul has been depleted, and needs to regenerate more. This takes far more time than Aura, since she's literally regrowing parts of her soul." Qrow was instantly fearful.
'Does Oz know this? And if he did, he still had Summer use them and wants Ruby to use them?' he started to glare out the window, where he could just make out Beacon tower on the horizon, where he imagined Ozpin was standing. 'You want Ruby to use her soul to fight?' glancing at Naruto, he asked the important question.
"What happens if you completely deplete your… Chakra?" Naruto sighed, seeing where Qrow was going.
"You die. As it is, she has maybe two ninths of her Chakra right now, which is why her Aura is still there. It only needs a tiny amount to exist, since it's like a container for Chakra. However, if Ruby hasn't ever done this before then she'll need at least half her Chakra to stay awake. It takes training to keep going after losing that much Chakra." he mused, forgetting again to keep information to himself. Qrow sighed.
"And how do you know about this?" he asked, done with the mysteries. Naruto flinched, before revealing some more.
"Well, my village leader was a Healer named Tsunade. She studied Chakra, and discovered that you could utilize it to some degree. She also discovered that losing enough of it killed you, so we trained to use it properly." Qrow nodded, intrigued. Naruto however, was thinking rapidly.
'Aura is like a shell, which stops things from coming in… and from coming out. If you have Aura, you can't use Chakra. That means I was wrong before about Grimm… they aren't just Yang Chakra, they're Yang Chakra surrounding Yin, and people are Yin shielded Yang. And if they're shielded, that means I can't sense what's inside unless a single aspect is weakened… bother. But they can't use their Chakra as a single entity, so they can't use Jutsu.' he pondered, concerned. 'Better try to obscure this… ironically, the Huntsmen have disabled themselves by separating their Aura from their Yang Chakra.'
Qrow kept speaking when Naruto was thinking. "OK… that makes some sense. I guess it makes sense her power comes from the soul." he reveals, checking if Naruto was listening. Which he was not. Qrow sighed, shaking his head. 'Well, I tried to reveal it. Kid's on his own now.' shrugging, he turned and left, leaving Naruto with Ruby.
'Hmmmmmmmm. I could jumpstart her Chakra regrowth… by infusing her with Sage Chakra…' Naruto considered, before discarding the thought. 'No… I could do it, by sensing her Chakra Capacity then matching it… interesting thought… giving Sage Powers…' The Tailed Beasts collectively scolded him:
"Naruto, one does not simply GIVE the greatest power of Chakra to other people! It must be EARNED!" they roared, frowns obvious from their tones. Naruto blanched, quickly waving them off.
'No, no no! You all misunderstand! I just want to help her! I'm only thinking of ideas!'
Kurama grunts. "Naruto, you have a tendency to act before thinking, or not thinking at all. While you've trimmed that bush under our guidance, you still think with your heart more than your brain." Matatabi sighed loudly, filling his mind.
"Kurama, it's that attitude that drew us to him in the first place. Asking him to abandon that ideology and methodology is asking him to stop being the person we all bonded to." The rest of the Tailed Beasts clamoured in agreement, their support throwing Kurama off balance. With a gruff dismissal, Kurama agreed.
"Fine. Do what you want, but if she goes rogue it'll be on YOUR head. You will need to stop her."
Naruto smiled brightly, appearing within his mindscape. "Don't worry, Kurama. I can sense negative emotions thanks to you, remember? She's not going to go rogue. She'll use any leftover power for good." Kurama sighed once more, leaning back on his haunches.
"I already agreed, brat. Do with her what you will." Smiling brighter than before, Naruto nodded before leaving his mindscape, the Tailed Beasts frowning.
"This feels too much like what father did before his death…" Son Goku rumbled, disturbed.
"Yeah. This time, we can't let another Indra loose on the world. No Uchihas. Agreed?" asked Gyuki, his face stern and determination staining his bull-like features. The rest of the Tailed Beasts agreed, save Kurama.
"Hmmm. While I don't like the Uchiha-" Shukaku interrupted:
"You hate them, you dumb fox!" Kurama sent him a withering glare, causing Shukaku to wilt.
"As I was saying." he growled, "I hate them. But without the Uchiha we never would have met Naruto. In fact, the chances are good he wouldn't have been born. We shouldn't interfere beyond what Naruto asks of us. Who knows, maybe a thousand years from now another will bring us together… one who we won't meet if we interfere." The rest of the Tailed Beasts looked at him in shock. He wanted to wait and see.
"That's… very unlike you, Kurama." said Kokuo, intrigued.
"I would endure a millenia of torture for Naruto. If another like him comes after his death, I would rather be there waiting for them than hunting down Uchiha wannabes." The rest of the Tailed Beasts laughed at that, before separating back to their various haunts around Naruto's mindscape.
Outside Naruto's Mindscape…
Naruto craned his neck, hearing a few pops. 'I really need to start lying down before going into my mindscape…' he thought to himself, hearing the knots in his neck settle themselves. After stretching, he looked down at Ruby and thought more about how to awaken her.
'I need to jumpstart her Chakra network, and get it growing… Maybe if I give her some food pill like substances?' he thought, before scratching his head. He wasn't the scientist, he had no idea what to do! 'Eh, just do something. Kurama said I understand Chakra inherently, so I'll just let my instincts guide me.'
Reaching out his hand, he allowed it to become coated in Orange Chakra, which he lowered to her heart. Allowing it to seep into her Aura, he was relieved to see it start infusing her with his energy. After a few minutes, he judged her Chakra capacity was around half full. Just about what she'd need to wake up, and by judging how quickly her Chakra regenerated on it's own, she'd be awake in less than an hour, well within the time limit to get to Beacon. He nodded to himself, pleased with his work, and removed his Chakra-less hand from what he just realized was her chest. Blushing, he fled the room, grabbing his cloak from the door where he'd left it on the way in.
Storming downstairs, Naruto nearly ran into Taiyang, who grabbed his shoulders.
"Whoa, where are you going?" he asked, bags under his eyes and the smell of coffee oozing from his breath. Naruto flinched back, his nose twitching.
"Just going outside. Gonna do a bit of training before catching the... Bullhead." he answered after remembering the name of the aircraft. He still wasn't used to seeing all the high tech tools they had in Remnant. Taiyang nodded, and, curious, asked if he could tag along.
"Sure. I'm only doing physical workouts anyways." Naruto answered, marching to the door with Taiyang following him. Once they were outside, Naruto flipped up to a tree and latched his legs over a branch. Breathing deeply, he started doing sit ups while Taiyang watched, bemused.
"Uhhhh, Naruto?" he called out, causing Naruto to stop and glance at him.
"Yeah?"
"Why are you exercising your legs and abdominal muscles? You're already plenty fast." he asked.
Naruto nodded. "I am, but that's only when I use my... Aura to enhance my speed and muscle power. When I run using only my physical power, I'm only about as fast as a Genin." he answered sheepishly, knowing that he was still behind everyone back home when it came to his physical skill. Using Chakra he was above nearly everyone, but without it he couldn't even outrun Kiba. How could he call himself ready to be the Hokage if he couldn't even beat a Chunin on his own power?
"Well, if you think you aren't physically ready how about I get you my training gear?" Taiyang offered. He hadn't used it in years, and Yang had no interest in it. Naruto however, was delighted. It was the first time since Jiraiya that someone had offered him training gear. Kakashi had helped him, but hadn't given him any equipment.
Nodding quickly, Naruto agreed. "That would be awesome! Thanks Mr. Xiao Long!"
Taiyang grumbled something about how he felt old as he walked back into his house, and Naruto decided to do some pushups while he waited.
'What? Like I have anything better to do!' he said to the vague feeling of disapproval emanating from his mindscape. The feeling abated, but didn't dissipate entirely after his admonition. Naruto sighed, and kept doing pushups while he waited for Taiyang.
After a while, Taiyang reemerged, with a small leather case. Giving it to Naruto, he delivered some advice.
"I've stuffed all my training gear in here. I'd tell ya to not take it out until you reach Beacon, so that you can use it there, but I'm sure you figured that out." Naruto hadn't, so with a small sheepish grin he nodded, accepting the case.
"Thanks Mr. Xiao Long! I'll use it loads at Beacon!" Taiyang grinned before answering.
"I've also included a training regime that I used at Beacon, and for a few years afterwards. Follow it, and you should do just fine!" he advised, nodding sagely. Naruto grinned brightly, agreeing.
"Thanks! I'll follow that too!" he said happily, before thinking to himself; 'I should get some weights like Lee did… that'll help tons.' The Tailed Beasts agreed, their faint voices growing louder as they addressed him. Taiyang noticed Naruto grip his head, a faint scowl on his face.
"You OK Naruto?" he asked. Naruto looked at him confusedly, unaware of his momentary wince.
"Yeah, why?"
Taiyang frowned, remembering their talk from the night before about madness, and was a little worried. "You just gripped your head, and flinched."
Naruto narrowed his eyes in consternation, before they widened in realization. With a quick mental apology, he closed the seal on the Tailed Beasts. He sighed in relief as a headache he hadn't even noticed faded with their dull clamour.
"Just a headache, Mr. Xiao Long. I think I had a migraine, but I feel fine now. Maybe I'll take it easy for the rest of the day." he proposed, not wanting to worry Taiyang when he didn't need to. Taiyang nodded quickly.
'It's completely normal for kids to have migraines right before doing something stressful, and HE'S trying to pull one over Ozpin. Of course he's stressed.' Sympathetic, he led Naruto back to the house, where he lay down on one of the benches on their porch, swiftly unsealing the Tailed Beasts and beginning to explain why he'd sealed them. Sighing, Taiyang went back into his house, guilt already weighing down his shoulders.
'We're asking so much of him. He could be expelled for trying to do this… Nah, Ozpin won't expel him. He'll just be… annoyed. Crap.' groaning, he wandered up his stairs, absent-mindedly glancing into Ruby's room before wandering over to Yang's to see if she was done packing her bags. Entering her room, he was pleased to see that she'd packed all her bags, and had them ready to go. However, she was treading around her room anxiously, and he was pretty sure what was wrong.
"Worried about your little sister, Yang?" he asked, his voice a mix of emotions impossible to divide and analyze. Yang turned with a start, bemused and annoyed.
"Yeah, actually I am! Uncle Qrow burst out of her room without saying anything, and you won't let her go to Beacon even if she does wake up! I need to go to Beacon, but Ruby's stuck in a coma!" she ended yelling, eyes glowing an ominous red. Taiyang slapped his forehead, groaning.
"Ohhh, that's right! We didn't tell you!" Yang glared at him with eyes befitting a devil, her brows furrowing in anger.
"What didn't you tell me, dad." she growled, fury oozing into her voice like muck down a steep hill.
"Last night your Uncle Qrow and I talked with Naruto, and came to a compromise. Ruby can go to Beacon, but Naruto's gonna be her partner. He's trained enough that I'm pretty sure he can protect her until she's strong enough to protect herself." Taiyang explained, causing Yang to simmer down, confused.
"But… didn't you think I could do that?" she asked, a tremor in her voice. Taiyang sighed, reaching out his hand to her and pulling her into a hug.
"Yang, you're so many things. Passionate, explosive and protective. You're also incredibly strong, but you have yet to face true hardship." Before Yang can erupt into a tirade, Taiyang continues.
"I know your mom left, and I know Summer died and it hurt. I know more than anyone how much it hurts. But that, that isn't the hardship you'll need to face. You experienced loss at a young age, so young. But it wasn't your fault. That's why you're not ready. You haven't failed to protect someone, haven't watched people get hurt because you weren't good enough."
Yang closed her eyes, rebukes dying on her lips leaving nought but a question. "But Naruto has?" she asked hesitantly, the tremor in her voice returned with vengeance.
Taiyang nodded, his head rubbing against her own. "I can see it in his eyes, the same feeling Qrow and I feel every time we remember the people we've lost. He's lost people before, and he blames himself for them. Maybe it was his fault, or maybe he just takes the blame on himself, but he feels like he failed." Pulling away from Yang, he gazed into her eyes, with an intensity she had never seen before. "And that's why he won't lose Ruby. He knows what accepting limits does, and he'll break himself before allowing something to happen to her."
Yang nodded sadly. "I'm just sad you didn't think I could do it." she whispered, tears sliding down her face. Taiyang sighed, his eyes downcast.
"I'm glad that you've never gone through this Yang. It leaves scars, scars that never fade. I should know…" he trailed off, before hearing a slight creak behind him. Turning, his eyes widened as he saw Ruby, looking at him sadly with tears in her eyes.
"Ruby, I-" she flew across the room, wrapping her arms around him and holding him tightly. Taiyang froze for a split second, before warmly embracing her, tears running like rivers down his cheeks. Yang flew in, slamming into them both with the biggest hug she could muster.
"You're awake… I'm so…" she said, before sniffling and just hugging Ruby tighter.
Their hug felt like it lasted an eternity, before they heard a slow clapping coming from the doorway. Looking up, Taiyang saw Qrow leaning against the doorframe, smiling brighter than he'd ever seen Qrow smile before.
"Tai, don't you have something to tell her?" he gestures with his flask at Ruby, causing her to look at Taiyang with questioning eyes.
"What is it dad?" she asked, her voice clear and firm with curiosity filling it to the brim, with no bitterness hidden within.
Taiyang smiled. "Well Ruby, it's around…" glancing for the clock he turned back, "Nine in the morning, and the Bullhead for Beacon leaves at noon. Are your bags packed?" Ruby blanched, before flushing, before starting to ask a question and then stopping, beginning to ask another and biting her tongue, then moving her mouth silently as she processed his words, and then eventually settling on bursting out of the room screaming.
"AHHHHH! I need to pack my things!" Zipping across to her room, she heard Qrow yell at her.
"Hey kid! Tai already did all that for you!" she skidded to a stop, turning with a pout on her face.
"Daaaad! Why would you scare me like that?" she whined, annoyed. Taiyang laughed loudly, explaining.
"I felt bad about saying you couldn't go, so I packed your bags for you. Naruto showed me your... Shinobi Pouches, I think he called them, so I packed all your things into a third that Naruto gave me." Ruby grinned, thanking him profusely before he waved her out.
"Go, go get your things. I didn't touch Crescent Rose, so you need to get it ready." Ruby nodded, bolting from her room. Yang laughed happily, flummoxed.
"I don't know how she woke up so quickly, but I'm not questioning it!" she glanced about her room, before snidely adding, "There are too many old guys in my room. Get gone." Taiyang and Qrow looked at each other, shocked, before laughing explosively. Qrow slouched into the doorframe, rubbing his back up against it.
"Ya know, I kinda like this door. Think I'll stay here a while." he said smoothly, fitting himself up against it with a daring smirk on his face. Yang glowered furiously.
"Get out of here!" she yelled, eyes tinting red. Taiyang blanched upon seeing this, and ran for the door.
"Running Tai?" Qrow mocked from the doorway as Taiyang sped past him.
"Qrow, I own this house! Yang'll break something and it'll be ME paying for it! Don't antagonise her!" he cried out as he zipped down the stairs. Qrow sighed, levering himself up from against the doorframe and slouching down the stairs, leaving Yang to stew in her room.
'Meh, she'll be fine.' he thought, absolving himself of all responsibility.
An Hour Later…
Ruby finally finished packing her baby, and had placed all her tools into her Shinobi Pouches. Weighing the third, she again marvelled at the uses of her dad's Semblance. With a happy skip in her step, she left the basement/workshop, and rose into the sunlight. Yang was waiting for her, motorcycle all prepped and ready for delivery to the Beacon garages. While a bit grumpy that she had loads of bags to carry and that Ruby only had a small pouch, Yang was ecstatic. With a grin and a thumbs up, they both went out the front door. Waiting for them was Taiyang, who ushered them out.
"Come on! You need to have boarded in two hours! Don't want to miss out because you ran late!" he cried, hurrying to his small beat up old car. Ruby slowed, looking around.
"Where's Naruto?" she asked, worry evident in her voice. Yang shrugged, and Taiyang groaned.
"Kid! Get over here we're leaving!" he yelled at the forest. After a few seconds of silence, they saw a figure in a black cloak speed out from the trees, arms lagging behind him. Slowing to a stop, Naruto (for they now saw that it was indeed Naruto) smiled brightly, and looked at Ruby.
"Great, you woke up! Ready to go?" he asked earnestly. Ruby smiled; his excitement was infectious.
"Yeah! Let's go!" she yelled, as Naruto back flipped into the open top of Taiyang's old car. Yang grunted getting in, a small smirk on her face.
"Show off." she gesticulated as she spoke, mimicking his over the top flip. Ruby laughed happily, and pounced in the car, snuggled between Naruto and Yang. Taiyang grinned from the front seat.
"Everyone ready to go?" he yelled over the dull roar of his Fire Dust powered car.
"Hurry up!" was the resounding response, with some being more polite than others but all of them with a smile on their face. Taiyang sighed, wiping away a fake tear.
"I'm so happy!" Then he punched his foot into the pedal, and blasted away full speed. "Next stop for you, Beacon Academy!"
AN:
Well, I'm not dead. Unfortunately, at this time I'm unsure if that'll remain the case; I've been in isolation for more than 3 weeks now, and am sorry to say I have NOT been writing this. But here ya go, this chapter is dedicated to all the nurses and doctors working hard during these horrible and trying times.
Thanks for all the nice reviews, but there's one I feel I should address. I'm not sure if I violated an unwritten rule by saying what my story wouldn't include in it's description, but saying that you'll report me for doing so seems a bit extreme. Call me whatever you want, but don't insult me by saying I need to include buzzwords to get people to read my story; I don't care if anyone does! I'm writing this for a SINGLE friend, and to satiate my own desires. If you don't like it because I'm not writing any pedophiles into my story, then guess what? I don't care. Go write your own version, do whatever you want. But don't say I included buzzwords to attract people who wanted those buzzwords.
And to the rational readers out there who have nice hearts, did I really violate some rule? Because if so I'll change it immediately. Thank you, and I wish you good health,
Pad
