Shadow of War Chapter 4: Formation, a Naruto + RWBY Crossover fanfic

Shadow of War

Chapter IV: Formation

My god, it took several months but here it is. Sorry about it being late, testing and projects, and all the usual shit. But now, it's summer, and I can post some good stuff. So, enjoy.

[Emerald Forest]

Golden light shone down from the midday sun, piercing the veil of trees far below. It illuminated the otherwise shadowy forest, providing a somewhat artistic vista of the Emerald Forest, something appreciated not only by the many painters of Vale, but worldwide. However, appearances could easily be deceiving…

Beneath the sun-lit treetops, many flashes of light - coupled with claps of thunder - made them known throughout much of the forest, not only disturbing the sleep of the peaceful fauna, but also rousing many of its Grimm from idleness. Many soon to-be-huntsmen fought for their lives within these forests - yet more than three-fifths of the initiates would either come out horribly scarred or not at all. Swords and axes slashed through bony-armor and Grimm flesh alike, and the crack of firearms and their dust ammunition brought a variety of colored lights to the natural battlefield. And at the same time, claws carved flesh, jaws snapped limbs from their torsos, and what pockets of Grimm that were successful with their battles were savoring the spoils of victory.

Despite all of this, a young man with ash-colored hair and garbed in grey clothing and light armor, moved as swiftly and inconspicuously as possible, avoiding any signs of other huntsmen-in-training or Grimm. Finding cover behind the thick trunks of oak, he rushed as quickly as he could from one to the other, slowing down if he heard movement or commotion nearby. His priorities here and now were short, and he was not looking to make friends or become partners with any of the children here, he only wanted to move through the forest, find his objective, and proceed with the job.

Should be a cakewalk, right?

Albeit the simplicity of this was costly, as it was a test of endurance. He chose not to think too much on it though, concentrating most of his effort in maintaining his stealth. However, his pace stopped suddenly when he planted his foot in something pulp-like, swelling with liquids and fleshy-materials like an unclean wound - which wasn't far off from the truth. Looking down, he saw quite possibly one of the most disgusting things in his life.

It was a body, but whether or not it was that of a human or Faunus was beyond his ability to recognize its features. What he ended up stepping in was the head, its entire facial cavity caving in with no effort, revealing blood-soaked grey and white matter, along with a lake of crimson ichor spilling out of any open orifice. Slowly removing his now drenched boot, Mercury took a moment to look at some of the more ghastly details of the body.

The corpse's light gear - what appeared to be an armored combat vest - was partially melted, its edges still hissing with some kind of acid. The exposed hands and neck of the body were in a far worse condition. The flesh, skin, and sinew were scalded into oblivion, pooling around the body like a red liquid butter. He began to look further though, beyond just the body. He noticed that there were thick claw marks through some of the nearby trees, and that just a little further ahead, the ground began to dip down, and swell with muggy water no more than a foot or two high, forming a marshlands within the Emerald Forest.

Even more disturbing though were the multiple bodies that lay in the water, some with dread and horror etched upon their dying breath, but the majority of them weren't even whole.

Mercury had seen plenty of death in his life, - he was an assassin after all - and committing eighty-five percent of those deaths had quickly desensitized him to the disgust, regret, and afterthoughts that soon followed. But this was simply gratuitous, morbid violence. Something only a soulless being could perform, be it Grimm or otherwise, he hoped not to find out. However, hope for Mercury would prove to be very unreliable.

Something in the distance was trudging through the marshes, its body gaunt and lanky, hunched over like a deformed man. From what Mercury could make out, it was a Grimm - likely the beast responsible for the death, and to add credence to that theory, something large was being forcibly dragged through the water by its end. After a few seconds, whatever it was carrying began to move, thrashing around violently and screaming at the top of its lungs. In return, the beast gave out a blood-curdling screech and swung the still living body in its hands - by what looked to be the head - into the nearby tree, ending the screaming.

It did this several times over until silence reigned over the swamp, and gave one last nightmarish scream at the body before resuming its slog. Only one thing became apparent in Mercury's thoughts:

"Fuck this."

Mercury started to back away slowly, hoping not to get noticed by the monster, but stopped, hearing the trees above him rustle. He remained still, edging closer to the trunk of the nearby tree, steeling himself for combat.

But nothing came, no sound save for the occasional gust of wind and no sight save for the occasional wind-tossed leaf. Still though, he remained unmoving, scanning around for any indicator of movement. A minute went by, and still nothing. If something was there, it wasn't anymore. He turned around, and proceeded to continue - with an added amount of caution - when he heard a light thud on the leaf-covered ground. Without any hesitation, he swung his left foot out wide, striking a beast that otherwise would have torn his throat out.

Like all Grimm, the beast's fur was an ebon black, accentuated by white stripes and sharp spines but was distinctly feline in nature. Its four eyes glowed a menacing red as it bared its needlelike fangs in a hungry "grin", mouth nearly stretching from one end of its semi-circle head to the other. The sharp quills on its back stood erect, intensely vibrating due to the excitement of its owner, while its bifurcated tail thrashed wildly from side to side. Its limbs had enough muscle to hold down most prey that could be found in the forest, and its claws looked sharp enough to burrow through the thickest bark. Perhaps even metal?

"A Ravager, huh?" Mercury said to himself, "Shouldn't be a problem so long as it's just you."

The creature growled in a semi-high pitched tone, its tongue slithering behind - and occasionally in between - its curved teeth, leaving behind a mess of drool that fell to the grass. It edged forward, one paw at a time, seeking to close the distance between it and its would-be prey. As it shifted to the right, Mercury opted to switch his stance to better counter the Grimm, placing his right foot forward and drawing his left a bit further back.

Suddenly, it gave a violent shriek, arching its back before leaping out towards Mercury like a bolt of lightning. Mercury fell to his back, curlings his knees in and catching the beast's midsection, quickly firing his boots' concussion rounds and propelling the Ravager away.

Landing on its paws much like a feline, the Grimm was disgruntled, but not willing to be deterred from its next meal. The Ravager stood out amongst other Grimm as not only a beast that was unnatural and unique in its design, but also one of dangerous cunning that goes beyond the brutish instincts of the Ursa or the raw savagery of the Beowolf. Such was displayed as it leapt back and began to scurry up the nearby tree, driving its talons through the bark and reaching the canopy of the treetops, seemingly blending in with the shadows they casted.

Now becoming a bit more worried than he had been before, Mercury watched with increasing suspense for any sign of movement in the canopy above. He slowly began to take several steps back, his eyes on the trees above, waiting for the beast to lunge forth. With no warning, it shot out of the trees behind him like a bullet, claws raking across his back and damaging his aura, as it immediately leapt to the next tree to continue its method of attack.

"I take back what I said, this is still a problem!" Mercury all but yelled out in indignation. Moments later, - albeit they felt more like eons - it struck again, leaping from the tree above him, but this time he was prepared, and slammed his metal foot into its skull, sending it flying back. The Ravager took little notice of the probable damage to its skull, and, tempered by its lust for blood, charged forward and knocked the boy down before he could completely recover.

The Ravager's bestial face was mere inches away from his own, using the vambraces on his forearms to try and keep the beast at bay. Its teeth were beginning to dig through the material, and if not for his aura, they would have sunk into his forearm.

Then, the crack of a rifle came from his right side, and blood gushed from the beast's head, as a projectile pierced its skull. Mercury shoved the body off of him, as it soon began to disintegrate into ash, carried by the breeze. He stood up, dusting himself off, spotting a rather peculiar individual.

A cat Faunus, with two small feline ears sticking out of her platinum blonde hair, cut in a short, albeit wild manner. She wore a dandelion-colored button-up uniform, coupled with a black tie and skirt, as well as a pair of ivory gloves. However, what caught his attention the most was the mischievous - and quite possibly sadistic - smile that graced her face. That and the still smoking rifle she had slung behind her shoulder. To compliment her bolt-action rifle, she wore two holsters on her hip, each carrying an identical pistol, looking to be an older, Atlesian model, first used during the Great War and likely improved upon by the Faunus girl.

Her cerise eyes glowed in amusement as she addressed her comrade, "Vell, zat vas a close call, no?"

"Yep."

"Right, so zhen. You know who ve have to find?"

"Yes…?" Mercury said with an unparalleled amount of doubt.

She deadpanned, "You don't you remember do you?"

"Probably not, could you remind me?"

She groaned, pinching the bridge of her nose in frustration. It seemed her new comrade would prove to be rather incompetent.

"Ugh, okay zhen, he's about five feet and four inches, slim-to-medium build, pale blond hair, any of zhis ringing a bell?"

Mercury rubbed his chin as he tried to recall ever seeing the man in question. "Uhhh…"

"By zhe gods man, he's zhe only vone who came vearing full-plate for zhe initiation!"

"Yeah, no."

"Okay. Forget it. Just follow me."

"Heh, heh. You got it, boss."

[Elsewhere in the Emerald Forest; 11:00]

Meanwhile, another duo was continuing their trek northwards to the objective point.

Much like the earlier pair, one was female and the other was male albeit, the woman stood well over a foot (perhaps even two) above the young man. While she was dressed in a mail hauberk along with some fur clothing, he was decked in a full suit of sterling silver armor with a gold trim, further complimented by an ornate plume upon his helm.

Considering there had been at least a couple dozen initiates (and at most two scores), Naruto was frankly surprised that he hadn't ended up with someone else, particularly Schrödinger or Hassan considering their abilities, hell, he would have expected to run into either pair of sisters before he found Boudicea. Nonetheless, he was pleased that it had been with someone who he had known since his time in Sanctum.

If fate and the Gods above had decided to pair him up with someone he not only knew, but operated well with, who was he to question their divine will?

"So, looking to take any jobs?" She asked, breaking the silence of their walk.

"Hmm? Perhaps. Junior had mentioned that he had a personal job for me but other than that, no. "

She quirked her eyebrows up, "That so? Well, when I got to Vale, I got a job from some big shot politician, and he practically handed me five-hundred grand just to gut a dozen people and keep quiet about it."

"Really? Well, I could use a high paying client for future jobs, do you think you could mention my name to him, or better yet, provide me with his information?" Naruto inquired, clearly intrigued with the idea of such a powerful client.

If the client had pockets that deep, it spoke volumes of how much influence and control over others he likely possessed.

"Sure, but I'll tell you more later. For now, all you need to know is that he goes by the "Boss". I'm sure Junior will have some information about him. Speaking of Junior, I heard your sister and her friend wrecked his little night club."

Naruto took a deep breath of air in through his nose as his features began to scrunch up in embarrassment.

"Yes," he breathed out as he spoke, feeling the need to clench the bridge of his nose in shame. "That would be them."

She let out a burst of haughty laughter, clearly relishing her comrade's chagrin. "Well, his little mission might just be for you to pay for the damage," A devilish smile was now plastered onto her face as she looked down at her friend. "We'll see though, huh?"

"Yes. We shall see." However, all embarrassment left his body as he froze up, and gave the signal to halt. Boudicea followed suit and took a knee, crouching low to the earth, and waiting for her partner to give further instruction.

The path ahead forked into two, and he noticed that to his left, a great ruckus of noise was going about, specifically a pair (or more) of girls yelling at one another. However, one could never be too sure, so he removed his helmet for but a moment to get a better idea of what it was.

Naruto quickly recognized one of the voices as his sister, undeniably Tsuki's, for of all the siblings, she no doubt spoke the loudest.

He took a step to his right on the second path where he saw that the land took a steep drop down into the marshes, and while not the dirtiest water he'd seen in his life, he did not want to risk getting bogged down.

Practicality dictated that Naruto take the left path, however practicality also dictated to stay away from those making the most noise; those who drew the most attention oft ended up food for the Beowolves.

Damn, this is a difficult choice. On the one hand, I have annoying sister, and on the other hand, filth ridden water. Hmm. Sister? Or filth? Sister, or filth? Hmm.

The noise coming from their periphery grew increasingly louder, a decision needed to be made now.

Screw it, I'll take the filthy water.

He fastened his helmet back to his head, and without a moment's hesitation, he leapt down into the water and gave Boudicea the signal to move.

Giving a quick sign of resignation, she made sure her belt was tightly fastened, before riding down the slope into the semi-translucent water. She winced and grit her teeth as she felt the cold water rush up to her calves, but said nothing. However, while she was jumping down into the water, something slithered just outside of Naruto's cone of vision, making almost no sound as it moved through the waters, but any trace of its existence went unnoticed by the pair.

As they began trudging through the marshes, he gave a small thumb up, signalling that they were free to talk.

"So what was back there? Grimm?"

"Not sure, could have been anything." While he spoke with a stoic voice, filled with nothing but complete seriousness, he felt more than just a little ashamed of his earlier mistake. "Better to be safe than sorry, no?"

Despite Naruto giving the all-clear signal, the two remained silent as they moved through the water, cautious of their surroundings.

Naruto's face cringed as he began to feel the moist water soak though his sabatons and the lower portion of his cuisses, slowly dampening his feet as the sides of his toes began to stick together, and when something managed to snake its way into his boots and woolen stockings, he restrained himself from letting out a yelp and simply bared his teeth in distress.

Unbeknownst to them, something began to slowly creep up behind them, its scaly hind legs wading silently through the water. It stopped no less than fifty feet away from them, and reared its head back, for the first time, making a discernible - and for that matter, audible - sound, as greenish-yellow bubbles hissed around its mouth and the accompanying drool began to ooze and trickle down its maw.

A few drops made the smallest of splashes as they collided with the swamp water, but the was ensuing noise: the whistle-like noise of rising steam, much like vapor escaping a teakettle. But the being was not as silent as it would have thought itself to be, for its quarry quickly took action.

Saying nothing, Boudicea grabbed the young knight's pauldrons and shoulders, pulling him closer to her - as though it were a loving embrace - before she activated her semblance. Whatever was behind them, finally released its payload, upchucking no less than a gallon of its fetid stomach content, leaving a trail of steam in its wake.

The impact came, and a cascade of steam shot up from the pair of huntsmen-in-training. As the smoke - or rather, the vapor - cleared from the area, it revealed Boudicea shielding the shorter man, her skin and even her clothing for that matter were like darkened granite, and although some traces of steam continued to rise from her back, she and her partner were unharmed. Letting go of him, Boudicea deactivated her semblance, and quickly drew her pair of broadswords as she turned to face her opponent, intent on rushing them before they could vomit again.

Upon turning around, even she, the Warrior Queen of Sanctum, felt a bit disgruntled at the sight before her and Naruto too caught sight of the beast.

It was ghastly and hideous in appearance, further accentuated by its tall, gaunt figure, enough to make any greenhorn huntsmen quiver in their boots and think twice about staying to fight. It was serpentine, no, draconic in nature regardless of just how unnatural it was, with heavy amounts of bone like armor jutting out of its scaly obsidian hide, drenched and covered with bits and pieces of moss and bark shielding its ruinous body.

Its arms were long, with two joints between its wrists and shoulders, extending down past the surface of the waters while its hands curled back like that of an ape, and at the end of each were long bony fingers, but they were not tipped with massive claws like that of an eagle, but rather with sharp bone-white nails, like that of an unkempt human. But they were wickedly sharp, and looked more akin to thin serrated spears than a bad manicure. Additionally, a pair of thin, vestigial wings were hooked into the middle of its arched back with thin spines sprouting out of its vertebra to separate the two, and it slowly lifted its digitigrade hind legs revealing four talons, that curved up and then slightly inwards like meat hooks.

But what made it so abominable was its head, like something pulled straight out of a huntsman's worst nightmare. Its long neck hung low enough that the head was just above the level of its prey. The face was somewhat bulbous, and very oddly rounded, with two antenna-like structures popping out behind its drooping jowls in lieu of ears. The beast's eyes were a glassy white, despite the fact that it was a Grimm - if the bony armor and black skin were anything to go off of - and for all intents and purposes, should have been a bloody crimson. Even without the cruel red eyes of its kind, it only served to unnerve the pair, as though they were staring into the eyes of a corpse. Worser still, its central and standard incisors were flattened like that of a human, but massively disproportionate to the rest of its teeth, all of which were shaped like horribly mangled swords, no doubt covered in some manner of noxious poison, or simply chunks of rotting and infected flesh caught between teeth during its feeding times.

Naruto had heard tale of this foul beast early on in his childhood, in a poem his grandfather used to tell him before he went to bed, a terrible dragon that roamed the forests and terrorized the locals of the countryside, till a man cut it down with an enchanted sword.

"Jabberwock…"

The Grimm gave a loud hiss as it began to lurch slowly forward, its head snaking from left to right in a sluggish, almost hypnotic fashion.

Naruto and Boudicea in response began to slowly walk to different flanks, Naruto taking the left, and Boudicea taking the right.

"Your fucking head is mine!" Boudicea roared furiously as she charged forward, quickly becoming a whirlwind of savage blades and wanton bloodlust.

The Jabberwock in turn stopped its rhythmic movements, pulling its head upwards and giving a blood-curdling howl, launching itself at the barbaric woman. Naruto on the other hand took the chance to switch out his gear while the beast was distracted, for neither his sword nor his warpick would do him any good here, and the crossbow lacked the raw power to do anything significant against something like this.

He once again cut a rift in the world, activating his own semblance to exchange his weapons and shield for something more useful. Throwing his sword, shield, and warpick into the void, he then reached in, and pulled out a much lengthier weapon.

Its shaft was made of ironwood, reinforced with steel, and wrapped in fine black and gold leather. On top lay a mighty poleaxe lined with gold on its edges and a golden imprintation of his personal symbol in the center, while running parallel was a sharp hook no longer than eight inches and no more than two inches thick, and going perpendicular to both of them was a four inch spike. On the opposite end of the pole was the small, silver flanged head of a war mace, meant for debilitating strikes against armor and bones alike.

Alter Ruhm, or Old Glory as Naruto called it, was among his best options for something with such size and mass, and he had no doubt that it would cut this beast down with ease.

Boudicea continued to distract the Grimm, diving inwards when it lunged at her with its clawed hands or distorted mouth, and slashing at its stomach and legs, slowly chipping down its blackened scales, revealing its soft squishy flesh. Soon enough though, its gaunt arms managed to reach her, and when they did, its malformed nails drove deep into her arm, splintering her hauberk and digging into her flesh.

Although they weren't claws meant for rending thick flesh like those of Beowolves, a Jabberwock's nails were fine and sharp enough to get through most material, and they sunk into Boudicea's flesh like filth covered steak knives, dripping and oozing a foul green substance - whether it be from the swamp or the corpses, Boudicea did not want to know. She bit her tongue, refusing to make a sound as she drew her free broadsword and repeatedly stabbed at the offending forearm, forcing it to let go. Once it reeled back from its own pain, Boudicea began to feel the full extent of her own, blood spilling out of her left shoulder, and the stinging pain was so agonizing, it was as though salt had already been thoroughly rubbed into the wounds.

Naruto began to march as quickly as he could in his full set of plate armor. With his right hand extending to the upper end of the shaft, he then flipped the poleaxe one hundred-eighty degrees, its hook now facing out towards the draconic Grimm. He drew his weapon back to his right, the hook gleaming in the sunlight as though it were blessed by the divine, before he gave a thunderous roar of his own, swinging it leftwards with enough force that it pierced straight through the Grimm's right hock, giving a sickening squelch as it did so.

The Jabberwock in turn brayed loudly, screaming in pain as the blade tore into its leg, before twisting itself and throwing its lanky arm at the boy in a hasty attempt to knock him back. Naruto twisted his polearm - the hook now forcefully 'restructuring' the bones in its leg - and swung the counterweight into the beast's pain-stricken attack, the flanged head smacking into its wrist.

With the creature stunned, and not being one to waste an opportunity, he ripped the poleaxe out of the Jabberwock with haste, taking a step back before shifting the whole of his weight into his left side, slamming forward into the beast's now exposed flank. With the drake now completely focused on him, he switched into a defensive stance, using the axe and mace ends to parry its attacks, and the spike to maintain distance.

It pulled its gangly arm back, preparing to throw another right hook at Naruto, and as usual the knight arced his poleaxe towards the dragon's incoming attack. Unlike before though, it did not withdraw when the axehead slid into its already cut apart forearm, and instead, latched onto it, grabbing the shaft of the polearm and heaving it upwards, attempting to wrench it free of Naruto's grip. Soon the two were locked in a vicious session of tug-of-war, the game's combatants violently doing whatever they could to gain the upper hand. Naruto began to strike wherever he could with his legs given the chance, kicking the beast's shins and feet while the Jabberwock launched its head forward snapping its grotesque jaws and swiping at him with its free hand.

Their "game" quickly ended as something thick coiled itself around Naruto's leg, forcing the young man off his balance and head first into the murky swamp. Though it wasn't deep, it was just a little shy of a foot of water, and he felt - for frankly the first time in a long time - an abject sense of panic as it all rushed in through his visor and into his face, blasting his pince-nez glasses off his nose.

He no longer thought of Alter Ruhm, now it was confusion that coursed through his mind as the lack of any vision or solid ground began to dominate his thoughts.

Above, the Jabberwock used its tail to drag the boy into the swamp, finally wrenching free the weapon and tossing it aside. With its targets now - or in the process of being - incapacitated, the Jabberwock, even if only filled with malice and a desire for death, began to lust and salivate at the mere thought of food. Eager to feast, it swung Naruto into the nearby tree, resulting in a purple, ethereal barrier surrounding the boy to shatter like a glass pane.

With his aura destroyed, the Jabberwock had a faint interest as to whether or not the man-thing's "shiny skin" would make a difference in flavor, and when the beast's gaping maw widened further to tear a chunk of this "polished skin" it met a bulwark resistance as bone clashed with thick steel plates.

Although it didn't bite down incredibly hard, its teeth were oft sharp enough to rip through any of the thick skin its prey came with. After a few more attempts, it gave up trying to bite through the knight's skin and instead opted for an alternative method. Like before, pestilent bubbles began to form around its lips, popping and hissing like grease on a hot iron skillet as they dripped into the water.

In an odd act of primitive excitement, the Jabberwock began to drag its talons through the muddy ground, as though it were stomping its feet, all the while snaking its head from side to side in a far more aggressive manner. It was almost as if it was celebrating.

The Grimm's jubilation however, was cut short when a blade found itself lodged into the lower side of its neck. Out of shock or perhaps pain, the Grimm preemptively released its scalding hot vomit, the embedded blade dragging its head anywhere but its intended target, slowly gnawing away at the thick bark of the nearby trees.

"Just die already you bleedin' son of a whore!" Boudicea seethed out, her left arm now held in a crude sling made from shredded cloth and fur, her other arm preoccupied with attempting to remove the beast's head. She had jumped on the Jabberwock's back, using the sprouting wings as something to put her feet on, as she managed to pull the Grimm back, saving her partner from a gruesome and no doubt disgusting fate.

But she wasn't the only one taking advantage of the Jabberwock's preoccupied state.

[Emerald Forest; 13:00]

"C'mon, move it Mercury, ve don't have all day."

"Fuck that. I'm not going through the water, not after what I saw was in there."

The two newly grouped partners had stopped just short of an abrupt rise in elevation, where the area seemed to just lift off around the water, with seemingly no way around besides through the waterlogged wetlands. Schrödinger, definitely the shorter of the two, sat upon a low-hanging branch, kicking her legs back and forth while she rested her hands behind her head. On the other hand Mercury, the taller and possibly older of the two, was standing up, his arms crossed in dissatisfaction much like a petulant child who was arguing with their parents.

"It is ze only vay ve can get through here and to ze relics, now do you want to get into Beacon or not?"

"I don't care, what I saw in there was enough to tell me that going into these Gods forsaken waters is a fucking death trap."

Schrödinger gave a small sigh, her feline ears flattening on her scalp as she did so. Perhaps if trying to convince him like this wasn't going to cut it, she would need to use a more, unscrupulous method of persuasion.

"Vell zhen, who's to say zat it doesn't go outside of the vater, hmm?" She spoke with a sly and rather melodramatic tone in her voice, trying her damndest to keep a giggle from slipping out. "Or vat if zhere are more unsightly creatures zhan your boogeyman out and about, just vaiting for us to get lost in these voods? Besides, I don't think zat ze boss lady would be very happy if ve failed to even get past ze entrance exams, ja?"

Now it was Mercury's turn to sigh in frustration as he pinched the bridge of his nose, "Fuck it. Fine, let's go. I'm not getting burned alive today."

"Yay!" Without warning Schrödinger threw her arms out in joy, a bright and cheery smile going from ear to ear gracing her face. She hopped off the branch and onto the ground, brushing her skirt and legs off upon landing.

She took a dramatic pose and pointed forward into the marshland, her cheshire smile somehow growing wider, "Let's go zhen! C'mon Private Mercury, march!" as she proceeded to march into the waters in a mock-lockstep, seemingly unaffected by her damp surroundings.

He shook his head, his shoulders hung low in defeat as he began his trek through arguably the most dangerous area in the Emerald Forest. "I fucking hate my job sometimes."

After about half an hour of slogging through the bog, they came upon an elevated island, its ground covered in bits of bark and dirt - that finally wasn't soaked - and decided to take a short rest before they continued their journey to the relics. The moment Mercury stepped upon dry land, he propped himself up against a nearby tree, took off his boots and drained all of the excess water, hoping that having his feet soaked in it wouldn't short circuit any of his internal wiring.

Quite the opposite, Schrödinger took point, climbing onto one of the higher branches of the same tree and scouting out the area, her second set of ears now fully erect and at attention.

"This really fucking sucks," Mercury began to mumble to himself, "I gotta get all this fucking water out of my boots and then I gotta go back into the swamps. Fantastic. I can't wait to do it another ten times."

The cat Faunus' ears began to twitch in irritation as her ability to pick up noise was being interfered with by her less than enthusiastic teammate. "Vill you be quiet, I am trying to listen for the Grimm zat you vouldn't shut up about earlier." Mercury said nothing, only frowning as he started to pick out the leaves and twigs that had managed their way into his boots.

"Your fucking head is mine!"

It was barely there, but someone - not too terribly far either - had just shouted, and if Schrödinger could put a face to that tone and octave, it'd have to be Boudicea. She dropped down, catching herself on the branch before letting go and fell to the ground with nary a sound.

"Mercury, ve're leaving."

"What, already?"

"Ja, now let's move. Ve haven't got all day." She harried, sliding the rifle off her shoulder and pulling the lever back to reveal its ammunition: her standard 8x57mm spitzer rounds, meant to scythe through unarmored or lightly armored combatants. She took brief note of how many bullets she had left in the cartridge before pulling the bolt handle down and forward, rewarding her with a loud yet satisfying click, and ran eastwards.

Hastily putting his boots back on, Mercury rushed to keep up with his fleet-footed companion, one of his boots tied in a barely presentable knot. But it was good enough for the time being.

They continued along the island, and after another five minutes of hiking, found what they were looking for.

Although they did not find the berserker woman, they found a knightly figure - no doubt Naruto - gallantly holding his own against a hulking monster whose very presence caused the two observers to actively keep their last meal from coming back up. The very smell it gave off was horrendous, like a thousand rotting, maggot-infested corpses left outside on a blazing summer afternoon.

Mercury gulped down a ball of spit as he felt the same dread wash over him as before; it was a Grimm, however far more demonic and gut wrenching than any he had ever encountered in his seventeen years as an assassin.

Contrarily, Schrödinger did not linger on the image of the beast and instead, quickly ejected her partially full magazine and replaced it with a new cartridge filled with a far more weighty set of bullets, marked by their red circular groove caps. (1)

Taking a knee, she lined up her rifle with the beast's head, but its constant movements would make any chance of piercing its skull nigh impossible to do in a single shot. Especially if it decided she was a far more worthy target than Naruto.

She felt a slight tinge of guilt rise in her gut as she watched Naruto get dragged into the shallow depths of the fens. When it yanked Naruto's halberd from his hands, it threw it without a care, yet it did so with such force that the axe head buried itself deep into the ground, and not too far either. But it was when it decided to play with its food that Schrödinger took her chances.

She placed the buttplate to her shoulder, took off the rifle's safety, and as she aimed down the rifle's iron sights, she inhaled slowly as she prepared to pull the trigger and end the beast's life here and now. Until her efforts were met with a futile and rather anticlimactic click.

It was jammed.

The cat Faunus once again pulled back the bolt handle revealing that some debris had gotten caught in the cartridge. She drew a thin metal pick, frantically trying to remove the bits of surprisingly thick pieces of dirt that had jammed up the rifle's firing mechanism. When Schrödinger looked up, she was greeted with the sight of Naruto being chewed on like some kind of toy by a rabid hound, and promptly doubled her efforts.

Meanwhile, Mercury stood waiting, drawing his left foot back and lowering his body as he prepared to charge and take the beast by surprise. Seeing this kid manage to fend off the beast had brought back some degree of courage into Mercury, who eventually came to the conclusion that a combined effort from the three of them could kill it.

That three soon became a four, as the aforementioned berserker jumped onto the Grimm's back and began repeatedly stabbing its neck.

Now it was the time to strike.

[Emerald Forest; 14:00]

Darkness.

All Naruto could see in the scant few seconds upon his awakening were darkness, and as he came to senses, he began to piece together what was happening.

His helm was filled to the brim with water - which tasted quite horrible as well - and he could feel the volume of water slowly lowering as it leaked from the slit of his visor and the bottom of his bevor, and he couldn't seem to feel his glasses on his nose where it should have been either, although he did feel something solid rubbing up against his chin. Perhaps there was still hope that he could see over long distances after all.

There was some kind of commotion going on beyond the safety and comfort of his metal carapace, but Naruto could hardly hear anything besides the calming deafness of the water in his ears, much less be expected to care.

However, something managed to pierce through the rumbling silence. Something loud. He could barely make it out through the murkiness of the water, but he saw it. Flashes of light and fire followed by booming claps of thunder. He fell to the ground while some horrific manner of creature screeched in pain, as something far larger than the light and thunder slammed into it before rebounding and running towards him.

He was being dragged once more, but this time it was not beneath the water. Naruto could make out little else out besides the bright beams of light that fell from the sky past what seemed to be trees, until his savior propped him up against a nearby tree and headed back to into the fight. The water had now almost completely drained from his helmet, save but a few ounces still left in the cracks and crevices, yet he could still hardly breathe. Soon though, his helmet was forcefully taken off, and something hard landed in his stomach.

All the water and air that clogged his throat was forced out, and he could finally breathe once again. He felt soft hands slapping his face, as though trying to wake him up from a nightmare, and he could see a pair of lively carnelian eyes staring back at his own.

"I zhought ve had lost you zhere for a minute. Glad to see zat you're still in von piece." The central Atlesian accent quickly identifying whom his new savior was.

"Yes, I did as well till you saved me. By the way, I wasn't aware you were so spry on your feet to kick something like that." He stated with more than a hint of surprise as he pointed out the foul beast that had nearly taken his life, just noticing the other figure fighting it. "Or it was someone else…"

"Vell, no time to dawdle, ja? Just rest easy until ve get done." She said, handing him a clean handkerchief and his pince-nez before grabbing her rifle and running off to the fight to take aim once more.

Naruto paused for a moment as he watched one of the few people he considered an acquaintance run off to finish the mess he started, idly cleaning his pair of glasses, and checking for spots.

Am I really going to let them do all the work while I just sit here and twiddle my thumbs?

What Naruto was not expecting however, was that he'd get a whisper in return.

No… you're not.

It was dark and almost malignant, yet it was filled with such conviction that it couldn't have belonged to any other but himself. His expression hardened like stone as he began to glare down at his reflection in the lenses.

No, I shall not sit idly by like a helpless child while my comrades fight on. As a proud heir of the Uzumaki and Namikaze lines, I will not dishonor my ancestors by allowing my allies to clean up my mess. It is high time I lived up to my name.

Sliding his glasses back onto his nose, he hurriedly used the piece of fabric to clean out the interior of his helmet, before placing it on and locking it into place. He slowly rose to his feet, his confidence returning to him as he felt a new weight upon his shoulders. Yet it was not a weight that burdened him, rather, it was one that inspired him to commit grander acts of valor and strength: the eyes of his ancestors were upon him.

And he would rather die than disgrace his lineage, lest they haunt him in the realms beyond for his shoddy work as a knight and huntsman.

Now on his feet, he propelled himself forward with such fervor that it very easily may have put Ruby's sugar-fueled antics to shame. His eyes scanned through his visor for his mighty weapon, and upon finding it he rushed forth, pulling it from the ground without so much as a second to stop.

As his run now became a barreling charge, his speed did not falter even as he moved through the water, be it through his aura or perhaps a combination of sheer willpower and adrenaline. Regardless, his body seemed to glow with an ethereal if not divine light that thrummed with energy.

Meanwhile, his target was taking shots from the trees while simultaneously attempting to deal with two competent huntsmen-in-training, which was not where a Grimm wanted to be, even if said Grimm in question was an Alpha Jabberwock.

It became cautious as the angry female and fast male began to encircle it and strike at its sides whenever the shooter fired. Of course, the Jabberwock had enough sense in it to use its wings as a shield, but they were being chipped apart with each volley of fire that came, shredding them like wet paper. Regardless, it still had a full arsenal of weapons at its disposal, ready to melt, rend, choke, beat and stamp out any resistance that stood in its way.

But even as an Alpha, with years if not decades of experience of hunting man-things and animal-things - and everything in between - in the forest and marshlands, it was not prepared for what was to come.

"I am the Unwavering Sword of my Kingdom," The knight roared as he smashed into the Jabberwock's back like a train colliding into some poor sod, sending it tumbling to its knees with a cry of pain.

"The Everlasting Shield of my People," With the Grimm's attention now solely focused on him like before, he did not flinch when it tried to strike at him, only to be repelled by his intensified aura. He took a step back before slamming the flanged counterweight of his poleaxe into its gut, causing it to cough up a ball of acidic saliva that bubbled in the water.

Even his companions, who found themselves more than a little surprised at his attack, felt empowered by his words, as though their aura and vigor were returned to them tenfold their original strength. Boudicea rushed forward, slashing at the back of the Jabberwock's knees, while Mercury leapt up onto its back before firing a concussive blast from his legs, sending it toppling over. More bullets flew from the treeline, piercing flesh and bone with ease, as the beast could no longer use its wings as a shield.

"The Instrument of the Divine," Its death imminent, the draconic monster coiled its head inwards, before aggressively launching it out in an attempt to catch the knight unawares, only to be met with the very same hook that had earlier crippled its right leg, piercing into the side of its jaw.

The Grimm gave an awful bray as Naruto pulled his polearm back, cleaving a section of its jaw in twain. Barely clinging to whatever unholy traces of life it possessed, the beast convulsed as though it were trying to regain its bearings but was physically incapable of doing so, reaching out with its disfigured hands to grab a hold of something, anything to use as a crutch upon which to stand.

Naruto flipped his poleaxe; the auric and ebony metals still shining through its new coat of muck and grime, before holding it high above his head, the axe gleaming in the light.

"And the Righteous Hammer of my Liege and Lady!" He finished his chant, bringing the axehead down with all the force he could muster, rewarded with a sickeningly sweet squelch as the blade sundered the dragon's skull. Its twitching and convulsions stopped, and soon enough, its hands and legs began to disintegrate, blown eastwards by the gentle winds. The energy that had rushed through the group was dying down as Naruto's ethereal glow began to fade.

All four of the teenagers stood for a second, staring at the remains of the Jabberwock disappear before their eyes. Their idleness was interrupted when Boudicea suddenly marched over to the front of the dragon's head, and began to saw away at its neck like a surgeon sawing through bone. Using the antenna as a grip, she pulled with all her strength until the head was torn clean off.

"I fucking told you I was going to take your head, now didn't I? Fucking bleedin' bastard." She mocked the still dissipating remains of her foe before tossing it aside.

"Well," Mercury stated to break the silence that Boudicea had further created with her actions, "That was fun."

"Depends on what you define as fun." Naruto stated calmly as he panted throughout each sentence, "If by fun you mean slaying an Alpha Jabberwock and then cutting its head off to laugh at its death, then yes. I'd agree."

"Well, we probably should get going. No use just waiting around here for more Grimm to show up. Come on, we should continue together northwards to the relic site."

Nodding, the new pair quickly stretched their muscles as Schrödinger hopped down from her sniper's perch and into the water.

The four proceeded to walk onward, leaving the borders of the swamp and finally reaching dry land.

"So Naruto, right?" Mercury started, attempting to break the silence once more, "What were you saying when you went in and beat the hell out of that Grimm?"

"Oh that? It was the motto for the old kingdom of Vale's military. Before the huntsmen became established after the Great War."

"And you know that, why?" The older boy asked, a bit confused as to why someone so young cared so much about something so old.

"It's cause he's a nerd." Schrödinger whispered, lightly elbowing Mercury in the process.

Naruto's head quickly pivoted towards her direction, "Quiet you, or I'll see to it that you're cleaning my armor and weapons for… actually, you know what? Never mind. Loec only knows what you would do to my magnificent armor." His ire suddenly shifting into dissatisfaction, as he huffed the last part and walked on. (2)

Schrödinger could barely stifle a giggle at her friend's childishness, holding her hands up to her mouth like a schoolgirl. Even Boudicea who was still clutching her arm in pain and Mercury cracked a smile, but said nothing more.

After a few more minutes of walking through the forest, the silence was broken again, but this time by their resident knight.

"But… thank you. For saving us that is." Naruto spoke in a hushed tone, unable to look anywhere else but forward for fear of embarrassment.

Although the rest of the group didn't hear it, Schrödinger's ears twitched with satisfaction, and she continued to maintain her jovial grin as they continued their march.

[Relic Site, Emerald Forest; 14:45]

When the group of four reached the temple, the first thing they noticed were the remnants of a battle. A rather large battle at that. While the rest of his party went to the rotunda to choose from the remaining relics, Naruto went astray, and took a close examination of the surrounding area.

As he walked over the grassfields to the nearby ruins that seemed to stretch over a foggy chasm and between where he was and the mountain, he nearly stumbled into a pothole. He noticed that there were thick holes dotting the grass, as though a great many spears had pierced the earth, along with scorch marks here and around the collapsed stone bridge, but the blast size and consistency of the marks indicated that they were from explosions and not a stream of flame. The nearby ruins as well seemed to be crumbling before their very eyes, bit by bit. A likely result of heavy damage to the structure, but the lack of the aforementioned scorch marks on the damaged areas likely meant that something else caused the destruction. Something quite large. Perhaps it had been a Nevermore?

"Hey Naruto!" Boudicea shouted out, holding her hands around her mouth to trumpet her voice. "C'mon, let's grab the relics and leave!"

"Yes, yes, coming."

Upon arriving at the stone temple, he noticed the dozens of pedestals holding up an identical number of chess pieces, half being an enchanting gold while the other half was as dark as charcoal. There we two of every piece for each color: two kings, two queens, two bishops, etc. A handful of them were missing, including the black bishops, the gold knight, and the gold rook pieces.

"So these are the relics then, hm?" Naruto stated, hands held behind his back as he inspected several of the massive chess pieces, each about as large as his forearm. He came over to the black side, finally resting his gaze upon the black knight pieces. "Yes, these will do just fine."

Mercury and Schrödinger followed suit, grabbing the other black knight relic and trailing behind their comrades.

[Beacon Academy; 16:30]

After they had retrieved their relics, the pairs of students were then transported back to Beacon Academy via Bullheads.

When Naruto and the rest of his group had finally arrived, the sun had already begin to set, giving off bright vermillion shades of light, piercing through every glass pane in the school facing westward. They were given a chance to shower off in the locker rooms and tidy up for dinner, and afterwards, they were all to head down to the auditorium for the ceremony.

Upon entering the locker rooms, Naruto had noticed that a few of the huntsmen-in-training who had made it back seemed shell shocked, their eyes like empty orbs of sorrow that just stared aimlessly into a wall or at their feet. They were trembling as well, some were muttering sweet nothings or mad ramblings to themselves, thinking that what they saw in forest hadn't been real, and was just some kind of illusion or a bad dream.

Bah. What did they expect? Nothing but riches and glory, that there would be no danger? How foolish could these children possibly be?

Naruto held neither compassion nor sympathy for those who were ill prepared for the dangerous road ahead. They joined Beacon under the presumption that their lives were essentially forfeit, hell they were even required to sign several waivers that indicated that the Academy would not be held responsible for the deaths of students off campus.

But such frustrations soon dissipated when Naruto was greeted with steaming hot water, cleansing him of the many impurities that had tainted his skin during the initiations. After showering, Naruto went back out to the locker rooms, only to find that the majority of those students who were out there - likely suffering from the early stages of some form of PTSD - had left. To where, Naruto could not say, but then again, he really didn't care. He did however, enjoy that he had the lockers to himself, the rest of his party no doubt finishing some time before him.

For the fourth time today, Naruto split the very fabrics of reality, allowing the tendrils that had constantly maintained his equipment to spill forth from the amethyst portal.

Hmmm. What should I wear for the ceremony? Nothing too dull or bulky, no. Ah! I know exactly what to wear.

Responding to his thoughts, the tendrils sunk back into the void before pulling out a new set of armor, similar to his earlier set, yet in many aspects, quite different.

It too was made of a sterling silver, yet it seemed more ornate. Thin plates of gold helped to separate and divide each piece of armor, particularly around his gauntlets where each finger was embossed to form beautiful geometric patterns. A linen surcoat was worn atop his cuirass, decorated with the heraldry of his two families: the Namikaze symbol of a mighty hurricane in the upper left corner, the Uzumaki symbol of a violent whirlpool in the bottom left, and his own coat of arms in the very center, all of which were embroidered in gold upon a dark azure field.

The plated armor beneath was nowhere near as thick as the armor he previously wielded, being far lighter, but it was still capable of providing him with ample protection. More elaborately made was his helm, another armet, however it was given a fine golden trim to the bevor, showing off the exceptional enameling in the form of small fleur-de-lis', and other fanciful designs that only accentuated the armor's - as well as its creator's - flamboyant nature. In addition, its plumage was removed in lieu of a laurel wreath that too was built of auric metal.

Quite frankly, this was one of Naruto's favorite sets, and despite the fact that Naruto was a pragmatist, he did occasionally feel the desire to show off a little of his more creative and extravagant side. Although he was never one to truly delve into the temptations of decadence, he did enjoy a quick taste of its salacious offerings every now and then.

He decided to keep his helmet off - no point in wearing a helmet to dinner - and had it attached to the front of his buckle, where he would normally keep his sword sheathed which, now that he thought about it, wasn't the most horrific idea. One never knew when an assassin or Grimm may attempt to barge into the school grounds.

Finally feeling as though he were presentable to the rest of society, Naruto marched out of the lockers with a spring in his step, and although he did not grin like Schrödinger or Ruby would have, there was a clear expression of pride in his face. Not arrogance or overconfidence, but pride at his accomplishments on this day - even if it had been with the help of allies.

Upon entering the cafeteria, he instantly spotted the massive, hulking form of Cardin Winchester who was going to sit down at one of the nearby tables. Surprisingly, he also noticed the petite form of Weiss Schnee who seemed to be holding a conversation with the giant. Across the way, he saw Ruby, Yang, the sulking girl he had met the other night, Pyrrha, and a few others that he did know.

He saw that Boudicea, his sisters, and Hassan weren't anywhere to be found. The former was likely being kept in the infirmary for a bit at the request of Glynda to get her wounds properly treated.

Quickly making up his mind, he went to the line, ordered his own food, and proceeded to sit down next to behemoth and what was likely his soon-to-be team. Naruto's very own team soon joined him, and their table promptly filled with tales of their journeys through the Emerald Forest, as well as a few family stories, and the occasional embarrassing story, as Schrödinger, Mercury, and two of Cardin's teammates - Dove and Russell he believed - became the life of the table, cracking jokes and spreading amusement to everyone else. They spoke and laughed together as though they were a well-acquainted war party having a grand feast.

When Naruto looked over to Cardin he noticed that the sadness and anger that had filled the teenager before was now gone, replaced by uproaring laughter and a jovial face. Even Naruto, who was usually rather quiet during meal times, spoke out on occasion, and found himself in frequent bouts of laughter.

"So when we came and found Boudicea and Naruto," Mercury had started off, practically standing on his seat as he began his story. "She was out of commission, and our big guy over here," he said pointing his thumb to Naruto, "Was a fucking chew toy for the Grimm, till we got in there, and saved his ass. We drag him outta there, and he looks like complete shit, but out of nowhere, he gets right the fuck back up, and just tackles it to the ground!"

Everyone roared in laughter, with Cardin giving a prideful slap to Naruto's shoulder. "Nice fucking job buddy."

"Oh posh, it was nothing more than adrenaline." Naruto stated, his much more shy nature coming out into the fold.

"Adrenaline? It was anything but adrenaline. He was glowing fucking purple! Dude looked like he was about to fuck some shit up!"

"Hey, you seem to be forgetting the part where I ran up from behind and stabbed the ever loving shit out of it." A new voice entered the scene as Boudicea, her left arm wrapped in thick bandaging and a tray full of food in the other. Everyone seemed ecstatic as she joined the table, raising their glasses in excitement much like mugs of ale at a toast.

Naruto scooted to the side a little bit, nudging Cardin leftwards to make some room for the barbarian girl. But, while the rest of the table continued listening to Mercury's storytelling, Naruto decided to lean in and talk privately with Boudicea. "How is your arm doing?"

"It stings like a bitch, but that's probably just the rubbing alcohol at this point." She responded quietly in turn, giving a gentle rub of the sore area. "But thank you for asking, I was starting to think that you had forgot about it."

"Me, forget about something!?" He spoke incredulously, raising an eyebrow for further emphasis. "It seems like you were the one who has forgotten my mental acuity."

Despite his armor, he was not prepared for her to wrap her bandaged arm around his neck, using the inside of her elbow to pull him in for an affectionate if not sibling-like hug. He squirmed in her grasp, as to whether she had intended for her vice grip to be as strong as it was, or if it was just a byproduct of her immense strength, Naruto did not know. And he certainly stopped caring as he slowly felt the life drain from his body. Likely the former as she seemed to grin with delight.

"You're just so fucking adorable whenever you get this cocky."

Upon that, she released him, and he grabbed a hold of the table gasping for air like a fish out of water, each breath greedily gulping down whatever oxygen he could get.

Previously unbeknownst to them, the Schnee heiress had been sitting parallel to them, and looked at them with not contempt, but perhaps dissatisfaction? "Ahem." She coughed to get their attention.

Before Naruto could respond, Boudicea's impulsive nature took over and she decided to answer the Schnee's cough. "Yes, princess?" The contempt was seething through her question, as she looked about ready to break the table in half, along with the heiress.

"Oh nothing, I just couldn't help but notice the way you seemed to enjoy crushing the life out this gentleman's body. Of course, what else would I expect from a Mistralian brute?" She spoke the latter part with condescension, crossing her legs under the table as she looked up with a smug smile and shook her head in mockery.

Boudicea began to slowly rise out of her seat, balling her hands into fists as veins seemed to hug the skin of her arms. Her teeth were clenched in frustration, and her deathly stare burrowed holes into the other girl.

"Oh for the love of the Gods," Naruto stated in irritation, having had enough of the two girls' quarreling. Pointing to the Schnee girl and then Boudicea, he spoke, "You, stop instigating, and you, sit down. There is no need for this violence in this hour of celebration." He chided.

"We have just gone through about ten hours worth of our first taste of life as huntsmen. We have survived the first real trial of our careers, and this is how you two behave? Get a hold of yourselves, and act like mature adults for Rhya's sake. You two can deal with your problems on a later date, when it is not the time for festivities, but for now, your problems with one another are irrelevant." (3)

Both girls felt rather dejected, and more than a little embarrassed as the rest of the table had been roused by Naruto's scolding and now had focused their full attention on the two. Whereas Weiss found herself flustered, looking down in embarrassment and trying to avoid eye contact with anyone, Boudicea had folded her arms and gave a huff of defeat.

"Yeah, my bad."

"My sincerest apologies, Naruto."

Naruto, his irritation now gone, nodded in acceptance. Conversations resumed, and the table went back to its former boisterous state. "Well then, Miss Schnee, you and Cardin seemed to know each other."

"The Huntsmen of the Winchester family have been frequently asked by the Schnee Dust Corporation to help protect some of our value dust assets, particularly some of the docks as thieves and ruffians seem to have made our shipments a prime target. I recognized the golden eagle crest on his armor, so I decided to say hello."

"Ah, I see. Moving on, do tell about your initiations."

"Gladly. I got paired up with Miss Rose over there," she said referring to the hyperactive girl sitting at the table behind her. "Long story short, we met up with Miss Nikos and her group, and our unformed teams worked together to take down an Alpha Nevermore and Alpha Deathstalker."

"Hmmm." He was trying his damndest to contain his laughter; the poor heiress had been paired up with Ruby? What a horrible day the Schnee must have been having, and honestly there was very little that could top that. "And pray tell, who else makes up Miss Niko's team?"

"Lie Ren and Nora Valkyrie, the couple over there that seem to either be dating or be siblings, we honestly can't tell. And a rather immature, clumsy, ignoramus named Jaune Arc. Gods, I find that last one so annoying and repulsive."

"Oh?" Naruto inquired, although in the back of his mind, there was something about the latter person's name that sounded so familiar.

"Yes, he constantly tries to seduce me despite my rejections, and fails to perform anywhere near the acceptable basis of a student that's allowed into Beacon. He can barely even stand up straight, much less hold up a sword and shield." Her annoyance and anger beginning to boil outwards, and she genuinely seemed as though she were about to throw a fit.

"Hmmmm." It was becoming even harder to contain his laughter, but he hummed on in an attempt to not expel his satisfaction at the situation, until a sudden realization came upon him. "Wait a minute. You said his surname was, Arc?"

"Yes, that is what I said."

Naruto began to sit in silent contemplation, brooding over the name, Arc. It wasn't just a name though, no, it was a household. A rather powerful one in the Kingdom of Vale, and had been so since the time of the Great War.

"Something wrong?" Weiss asked, her eyebrows raised in intrigue.

"Quite. The House of Arc has been a hated enemy of both of my families, due to their hubris amongst the old, elite court of Vale for one and the profane violence they brought upon the other during the Great War. That very name is a curse towards my ancestors, and brings nothing but foul omens to my kin."

Though, speaking of kin, Naruto's ranting came to an end when he spotted a few familiar faces entering the cafeteria.

His twin, Tsuki was dressed in her under armor clothing, comprised of a pair of crimson hakama with a white obi sash, a red shitagi and a pair of white tabi socks. Shiro was dressed in her normal witchly attire, albeit forgoing the rather large hat in lieu of just letting her blonde hair hang out freely.

Hassan was there too, although he hadn't seemed to change his garb either, simply pulling down his hood and the mask he used to cover his mouth. There was another person with the group of three, who he did not know, but had seen the other day. She had mocha colored skin, emerald green hair that was cut in a very central Mistralian fashion, and was wearing some rather… exposing clothing. The two actually seemed to be hitting it off quite well, as though they've known each other for a long time.

Tsuki and Shiro saw Naruto as well, waving to him. When Tsuki tried to run over to Naruto though, Shiro grabbed a hold of the back of Tsuki's shitagi and began dragging her over to the table where Ruby and Yang had been sitting at, giving one final wave before doing so.

I am so glad that Shiro is my older sister. Otherwise I would be stuck dealing with Tsuki all by my lonesome, and frankly that sounds like hell.

More room was made for the table to accommodate for the two newcomers, as Naruto issued his own greeting to the new girl, extending a hand whilst he did so, "Hello there, and who might you be?"

"Name's Emerald, nice to meet you." She took his hand in a firm grip, nowhere near as firm as Boudicea, but firm nonetheless.

"The pleasure is all mine, however, I must ask. Whom did you get teamed up with?"

"Oh, I got partnered up with Tsuki, Nami-something. Can't remember the last name." She seemed to speak with the same face she had when meeting him, but there was something off. And had Naruto not been wearing his glasses there was no way he would have noticed it, but there was slight twinge in her eye when she said his sister's name. A twitch that lasted for barely a fifth of a second, and was hidden well by the rest of her attitude.

But he lit up like a holy beacon, ready to jump on the opportunity to have a good laugh at Emerald's expense.

"Ah, I see," his very own grin threatening to split his face, "You have been paired up with my sister then. Do know that I am extremely grateful of you for dealing with her antics for the next…" He pretended to look down at his forearm as though he were looking at a wristwatch. "Four years of your life. Have fun."

Her positive facade dropped completely, as did her head onto the table, as her exhaustion seemed to slam into her all at once. "Gods, I don't want to deal with her anymore."

Naruto burst out in laughter, using all of his mental restraint as to not begin pointing and laughing at the poor girl. In spite of the fun he and the rest of his table may have been having, it was soon interrupted as, for the fourth time today after Naruto's coming, another person came to the table. Speak of the devil, and he shall come.

"Uh, hey? Do you guys mind if I sit with you?" A male voice asked with little to no confidence, having originating from - what Naruto and quite a few other people had viewed as - a poor excuse for a huntsman. Even for one in training. "The name's Jaune, Jaune Arc."

The majority of the table to seemed to share a look with one another that silently screamed an almost completely unified response: absolutely not. Among them though, it was Naruto who was the first to vocalize such a thought.

A dark smile began to creep along his face, but it was much more reserved and malefic than before. "Oh I don't think so, Arc. You will find no sanctuary here, now skitter back to the rest of your blighted kinsmen." He said no more as he went back to finishing his meal, sipping his drink with mirth as he watched the rest of his table follow in his footsteps.

Cardin and Boudicea smirked in agreement, turning back to Jaune with a look that made him feel as though these two were about to take his lunch money. "I think what our friend here is saying is for you to get the fuck out of here. Now scram, loser." Cardin called out, pointing a chicken leg at Jaune, jokingly about to throw it at the boy, at least Naruto hoped so.

As the rest of the table began to jeer, Naruto stared at the rest of his table as they began to taunt and ward off the heir of the Arc family.

So that's the Arc boy then? I can see why Miss Schnee was so repulsed by him. He's quite pathetic. Scrawny, ill equipped, unconfident, and unchivalrous; he fails to even remotely live up to the legends that his grandfather left behind.

He grabbed his glass, and as he finished his water, he noticed through the clear glass that several sets of eyes from the table across from them were staring back. Most notable was the pair of emerald eyes that contrasted with the fiery red hair of its bearer. They stared not at him, but at the Arc boy, interestingly, with concern. She seemed to care about him and his well being, and looked about ready to stand up, and perhaps, defend him?

Fascinating.

And so she did. Some of the others at their table questioned her, but they did not move. They did not move along with her, nor try to stop her, simply watching on in similar intrigue as Naruto.

"Jaune, come sit over here with the rest of us." She placed a hand on his shoulder, urging him back to her table, but his eyes roamed with sadness among the occupants of Naruto's table, lastly coming upon Weiss before he withdrew, the slouch in his stance a clear sign of defeat.

Pyrrha turned back to the rest of the table, glaring mainly at Cardin, Boudicea, and finally Naruto. However, upon Naruto it became a look less of anger and more of disappointment. "I expected better from you, Naruto."

"Better, from me? I provide nothing but my best!" He proclaimed, slamming his hand down on the table as he rose out of his seat, his ire drawn by Pyrrha's comment. Few things could truly bother Naruto, but an insult to his pride or ability was certainly one of them.

"What more did you expect from me? That I treat the scion of that wretched house with compassion and respect? I think not." His voice became powerful, carrying such resolute conviction that he started to seem more like a zealot than any knight.

It became a silent battle of wills. Neither spoke, but instead, stood facing each other, and peered deep into the other's eyes, searching for even the barest sliver of a lack of conviction, that would spell victory for the other.

Before they could continue though, the voice of his beloved aunt, Glynda came up on the intercoms, "All initiates are to report to the Auditorium immediately."

While the rest of the students began cleaning up their food, and began to walk out, Pyrrha and Naruto lingered for but a moment longer.

"Naruto." Boudicea called out, nudging her head towards the direction of the doors.

Without saying a word, the two turned around, cleaning their messes off the table before heading to the doors.

[Beacon Academy, Auditorium; 18:30]

As Naruto passed through the massive interior doors of the auditorium, he noticed that there was a distinctly different look than the night before. Whereas before there had only been some sunlight pouring through the main lobby's doors, now the only light that shone were those produced by the glowing teal portions of the auditorium stage. Glynda was right next to the doors, likely to administer room numbers to each of the teams, while Ozpin stood upon the stage, currently facing Naruto's sisters, Emerald, and Hassan.

The rest was relatively dark, as other students sitting in the rows of seats surrounding the stage watched on, covered in shadow. Occasionally, the flashes of scroll cameras would light up areas, but otherwise, he saw few of the students beyond his fellow initiates.

"Tsuki Namikaze. Shiro Namikaze. Hassan mil Alzili. Emerald Sustrai. The four of you retrieved the white queen pieces, and from this day forward, you will be known as Team SETH, led by Shiro Namikaze." As he spoke, images of each of the four came up on the screen, displaying an initial of their name to form the acronym, SETH.

The audience clapped, and Shiro kept her usual humble smile. Tsuki on the other hand gave a small pout, crossing her arms and sticking her lower lip out. She stopped when she felt her big sister give her a pat on the shoulder, leading her off stage with the rest of their team. As they passed Naruto, Shiro let go of her younger sister and approached Naruto.

His mind was elsewhere, still staring blankly at the stage until Shiro pulled him into a strong hug from behind. He turned around and returned the hug, when Shiro leaned in and whispered something into his ear, "We need to talk about what happened at dinner."

He nodded in response, lightly furrowing his eyes in acknowledgement. He knew he was probably going to be scolded for what he did earlier. "Congratulations by the way, on being chosen for the leader of your team."

She glowed in response, appreciative of her younger brother's praise. "Thanks, Naru! I gotta go catch up with Tsuki, and don't forget about our conversation later tonight."

He sighed before nodding and looking back to the stage.

"Russel Thrush. Cardin Winchester. Dove Bronzewing. Sky Lark. The four of you retrieved the black bishop pieces. From this day forward, you will work together as Team CRDL (Cardinal), led by… Cardin Winchester."

Cardin gave a small bow of his head to Ozpin, as he and the rest of his team walked down the steps and into the aisles with the rest of the initiates. Naruto gave him a nod as well, and the two approached one another, before clasping each other's forearms, Naruto now the one to pat Cardin's shoulder. "Excellent work, my friend."

The larger of the two chuckled and was about to say something when Naruto was nudged by teammates to move onto the stage. Cardin simply gave a nod of understanding before following the rest of his team.

Unlatching his helm from his buckle, he strapped it into his gorget, locking it into place and allowing him to display his armor in all of its glory. The polished metal reflected the aquamarine line produced by the stage, and seem to give him an otherworldly glow, further drawing attention to him.

Before Ozpin spoke, he noticed someone in and amongst the crowd of older students in the seats above; Coco Adel, the second-year girl who had given him advice about the Initiation Exam smiled at him, giving him a thumb up. Then immediately snapped a picture of him with the rest of his team. Before he could wave back, Ozpin began to speak, drawing his full attention.

"Naruto Namikaze. Mercury Black. Boudicea Ríoga. Erika Schrödinger. You four have retrieved the black knight pieces, and will now form Team NMBS (Nimbus), led by Naruto Namikaze."

Although his helmet shielded the front of his face, he wore a proud smile, grinning from cheek to cheek and barring his teeth. Naruto raised his shoulders slightly, keeping his hands folded behind his back, the confidence radiating from his form. Ozpin gave a quick smile and nod, which were soon returned by Naruto, when he once more looked up and saw Coco's smile had grown larger as she waved to the sterling knight.

But for a second, his was thrown off when he caught sight of something rather, odd, if not a tad bit disturbing. The light from a scroll flashed a little to Coco's left, and a dark silhouette revealed its true form.

It looked like a Faunus, but more far more animalistic. As though something had broken the observed rule of Faunus genetics. It looked to be a rat Faunus, but his face started to narrow like a snout, with two sharp buck teeth stuck out from his upper jaw, just barely slipping past his lips until he opened his mouth. Dark, shrewd, beady eyes stared right back at his heterochromatic ones, and he saw that it was covered nearly head to legs - another person cut off his view past the knees - in a short, black coat of fur. He wore a dark red tunic that seemed to nearly blend in with the rest of his fur, and from this distance, it seemed more like he was wearing a coat of dried blood on his fur than anything else.

Before he could further analyze the Faunus, the camera's light deactivated and he could see him no more. Resuming his intended path, he led his team down the steps and through the aisle of other students, receiving compliments and praise from Team CRDL. Deciding to wait no longer, he waved over to his team, gesturing for them to follow as he walked over to Glynda.

"Congratulations, Naruto. I'm interested in seeing how well you'll do as the leader of your team." Glynda said warmly, showing off her more motherly side.

"Thank you Aunt Glynda. I'll do my very best."

She nodded in response to his answer. "Your team's room number will be one hundred and twenty-one, and you'll be in the west wing of the school with the rest of your generation's initiates."

Nodding, the newly formed Team NMBS headed off to their new dormitory.

[Beacon Academy, West Dormitory Wing; 19:00]

"Oh Gods, finally!" After about twenty minutes of walking through the school, Naruto and the rest of his team had finally reached their rooms. Among them, Mercury had been complaining by far the most.

"Yes, yes, we're here. Now be quiet and get into the room." Naruto ordered, pointing a gauntleted finger at the white oaken door.

As the rest of his team poured into their dorm, Naruto pulled up the visor of his helm, revealing his rather tired features, and took out his scroll from the inside of his heraldic surcoat. He opened Shiro's contact information, and sent her a message stating that he was at his room.

He heard some movement in the room parallel to his own, before the door opened revealing his sister in her pale yellow nightgown and a pair of slippers. "What took you so long? We got done about thirty minutes ago."

"Simply put, we got lost. Mercury's constant whining certainly did not help. Anyways, you wanted to talk about dinner?"

"Yeah," She closed the door behind her, careful not to slam it. "You can't be acting like the way you did to that kid tonight, Naruto. I understand that you can be a bit prideful, and don't like the ideas of being around the 'lesser peoples' as you put it, but you gotta learn to act with some decency."

"Decency? That boy is of the House of Arc." Naruto defended, feeling as though his pride was being threatened.

"So? That was two or three generations ago Naruto, it was in the past! " Shiro raised her hands in frustration, her voice slowly doing the same.

"It matters little. The crimes they committed upon our families are inexcusable, and in the eighty years since that war, the Arcs have done nothing to atone for their slights against us. I should have done more instead of telling that craven weakling off. I should have challenged him to a duel, and end this rivalry once and for all." He ended his statement darkly, crossing his arms in stalwart defiance. He once again was not ready to give up his position so easily.

"Naruto, you can't just go around challenging our family's enemies to duels, especially when they haven't done anything wrong."

"But-"

"But nothing. From the few minutes I talked to him, all I saw was that Jaune was a sweet, albeit timid boy."

"He is a failure, and a disgrace to the ideals of knighthood and chivalry. And not a single thing more."

Shiro rubbed her face with both of her hands, her index fingers pressing into the pressure points at the bridge of her nose. "Look Naruto, just don't start any trouble that you don't need to on the first week? Please? For your older sister's sake?"

He gave out a quiet sigh in response, "Alright, if it is for your sake, then very well."

Shiro flashed a small smile, and gave him a small hug. "Thank you, now get some sleep, Naruto. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Mhm. See you tomorrow." The two siblings gave each other a silent hug for the night, before turning around and heading to their respective rooms. Upon opening their doors, they found that they had been given very little privacy to their conversation.

Having been surprised by the sudden opening of the door, Tsuki had tripped on the sleeves of her hakama and fallen just in front of the entryway, while in Team NMBS' room Mercury and Schrödinger had been caught red-handed. Although Mercury stayed behind at the doorway, simply rubbing the back of his neck while giving an embarrassed laugh, Schrödinger had bolted away from the door, much like a disturbed cat would have.

Naruto's dreary face scrunched up into an angry visage, "It seems as though we're going to have to have a discussion about the rules of this team. Now move!" He marched into his room, slamming the door behind him.

Similarly, Shiro had to deal with her own problems regarding privacy. "Alright, Tsuki. Get inside, we're going to need to have a little chat." She pinched the back of Tsuki's neck tightly before she tapped the door closed with her foot.

"Ow, ow! Okay mom, just stop with the neck pinching already!"

It was going to be a long and painful night that was for sure.

[Beacon Academy, Team NMBS dormitory; 21:00]

After about an hour of laying out a new codex of rules for his team, they had finally come to agreement on Naruto's terms. Of course, their agreements to his terms were made under the threat of him using more… draconic methods of punishment should they fail to comply.

The only one who found no problems and signed up without needing to be threatened was surprisingly Boudicea. But even without the threat of - according to him - lashings and fiery brandings, the terms were fairly acceptable.

First, upon request, a member of Team NMBS may be granted temporary privacy within the room.

Second, all members of Team NMBS were expected to precisely follow a shower schedule in the morning, lasting no longer than ten minutes.

Third, if a member would like to bring another person to the room, a warning must be issued at least four hours prior to doing so.

Fourth, should anyone touch any property of Naruto Namikaze, they understand the risk of losing limbs and organs as a consequence.

Finally, all internal gripes and issues are to be dealt with immediately, and not left to fester and cause further problems.

Each rule had a decent amount of sense to it, and was certainly understandable in order to help create a fully functioning team as well as one that could operate smoothly in a school condition. Except the fourth one, but considering how much of a hard ass Naruto was, it was very likely that it wasn't a joke.

Currently the members of Team NMBS were going in and out of the bathroom, brushing their teeth and switching into their sleeping wear to head in for the night. Naruto was the last one to use it, taking a few extra minutes to go over everything that had culminated in the last twenty-four hours. During his musings, he suddenly realized that he had forgotten something.

Oh hell. I was supposed to meet Junior at his club tonight. Well, at least whatever is left of it. But how am I to get there without attracting attention? And do I even have the strength to carry out one of his jobs tonight?

Spitting out a glob of the soapy toothpaste, he rinsed his mouth out absentmindedly.

But then it came to him.

I could attempt to enter my semblance like I did earlier today. But even then, I barely even know how to control where I go. As far as I know, I very well could end up across the world, with no way of getting back. But attempting to leave via the Bullheads outside the Academy would be nigh impossible, if not downright suspicious.

After a few more minutes of silent rumination, Naruto had made up his mind. He would attempt the teleportation again.

Though he'd have to wait for his teammates to fall asleep, so as to not raise concern or questions about his whereabouts. So he waited, and waited in his bed while the rest of his teammates, one by one, fell into slumber.

He closed his eyes, and let his ears scan the room for signs of activity. He heard the light snoring of Mercury, the heavy snoring of Boudicea, and the purring of Schrödinger, but nothing more. If there was ever a time to leave, this was it.

Naruto didn't even bother to lift the covers off his body, instead opting to slide out of his bed like a serpent. He tiptoed into the bathroom, being sure to close the door without making a single sound. Then, the fabrics of reality were torn apart as Naruto opened up the gateway into a reality of unknown proportions and unknowable limitations. Violet light crawled out from underneath the bathroom door and reflected off the mirror, casting an ominous and mystical presence over the room. Even his teammates seemed to feel this, shivering under their covers.

He inhaled deeply, giving a soft prayer under his breath before he stepped into the darkness. Boundless shadow danced around him, with streaks of purple light flashing like lightning. Given that he wasn't under the same dire circumstances as the last time when he opened the literal rift in space and time, he took the opportunity to perform a few minor experiments.

He snapped his fingers and listened. There was indeed a sound that followed.

He breathed deeply in through his nose, and he felt air rush into his body like those of a hurricane. But there was something different about it than the air in Vale or Mistral. It was pure oxygen. There were no consequences to him not exhaling.

Lastly, he thought of his unique armor, the kind he wore just for his secretive jobs. And to his glee, tendrils just like before spawned at random holding the various pieces of his equipment. Though, when they stripped him of his nightwear he felt cold. Extremely cold in fact, as though his linen tunic had been a thick winter coat, and he was now left exposed in the freezing snow.

He was soon given a gambeson among the rest of his usual under armor, and on top of that were thick plates of blackened steel, with the most notable being the Bellows Sallet helmet he wore, completely covering every inch of his face save for his piercing eyes. The tendrils were even sure to make sure his hair was wrapped perfectly so that not a single strand stuck out of the helm. Furthermore, a thick cloak of black wool with individual strings of gold woven throughout its edges gave him a more menacing and mysterious appearance.

Two more tendrils sprang forth from the void, each holding a different item. To Naruto's right, it held a short Raven's beak war hammer, with the name, Purgatio neatly carved into the shaft. It was no longer than two and a half feet, with a polished ironwood shaft and steel top, equipped with a spike and hammer. Although simple in its design, it was wildly effective in breaking through any resistance and splitting skulls.

In the other hand was a heater shield made of a fading black steel, and did not hold any heraldic embroidery, instead only being decorated by the golden metal bolts that stood out against their onyx canvas. On the interior, instead of a single grip like a normal shield would have had, there were a number of leather straps and iron buckles meant to keep it locked into place on Naruto's wrist, allowing him an additional free hand.

After hanging the war hammer from his belt and attaching the heater shield to his left forearm, Naruto then thought of the Club, making sure to note every fine detail of the surrounding land, be it the street lights, the nearby buildings, the pavement and crosswalks, etc. And suddenly the world ahead of him began to shift, the purple bands of light twisting and contorting until it opened like a mouth, preparing to swallow Naruto inside.

His world brightened and then became dark as he found himself on the ground, the bevor of his helmet keeping his features from touching the ground. He heard thunder blast from afar, and as Naruto got up, he took note of the area. Everything he had thought of earlier was present, though Junior's club was across the street.

The black knight said nothing as he walked across the street, confident that no vehicles would be going across the perpendicular road. Naruto saw that one of the windows was broken not far above the doorway, and as he entered the club, he now knew why Junior had been so angry.

The number of guards that Junior usually employed had completely dwindled down to give or take a dozen men, some still possessing bruises on their faces, cuts on their lips, and painful black eyes. There were no disgusting profligates mindlessly dancing and drinking throughout the buildings, and much of the décor that had once been in the club was gone, likely destroyed in Yang and Shiro's rampage. There was no bear headed DJ playing terrible music above the dance floor, no vigorously flashing lights upon the ceiling. For all intents and purposes, this nightclub was closed for reconstruction, and the attack would result in a decline of popularity, further damaging his business.

Naruto spotted his contractor and occasional employer sitting at the corner of the bar, his back facing the doorway. His body was slumped over, his pride no doubt wounded from being beaten by two teenage girls. Junior seemed to be chugging down his drinks like a real drunkard, with no time to lavish the taste of the alcohol. No, this was the method of drinking of someone who wanted to forget about something.

On the adjacent corner were the twins, their red and white outfits seemed as pristine as ever, but they too had bruises and cuts on their bodies. They were just as crestfallen as their employer, and drank their own glasses of alcohol with sorrow. They had not looked as badly hurt the other day when they called each other. Perhaps they had used makeup to try and cover up their wounds? The knight was certainly not going to ask though, as he was not interested in getting attacked by a pair of girls that could likely outmaneuver him.

Nonetheless, none of them seemed to care as he walked towards them. Even as his sabatons crunched against the floor, they did not seem to notice his approach. It was only when he was directly to Junior's side, that the twins saw him, as Militia nudged Melanie's shoulder, jabbing one of the latter's bruises.

"Ow! What the hell… Militia." Her anger dissipated as she saw what her sister was trying to point to.

Naruto gently tapped on the information broker's shoulders, earning him some grumbling before he finally turned around. New on Junior's head was a thick layer of bandaging, with faint traces of red staining the very center of the covering.

"Hey Naruto." His voice was quite hoarse, as though he had a cold or infection. "Was starting to think you weren't going to show."

"Hei Xiong. I am glad to see that you haven't decided to burn down the club for insurance money. Though, that's not to say I still don't find this cesspool of degeneracy to be distasteful."

"Nope, already thought about it, but my insurance rate has dropped completely thanks to the number of fights and damage to property that occurs here. The other day was just the straw that broke the camel's back." Junior said sarcastically, his tone growing ever more anguished.

The teen sat down next to Junior, rotating on the circular chair to face his employer. "I see. So, you called me over here, what is it that you wanted?"

"Right to the point then, huh? Well you see, on top of all this shit," Junior said, gesturing to the ruined interior of his nightclub, "A gang in the area has set up shop, and decided to rob one of my warehouses. There was about four-hundred thousand lien worth of guns and dust there, and I no longer have the manpower to take it back." The older man slammed his empty glass into the bar, uncaring that there were shards of glass sticking out his hand, his face red with anger.

"Am I to assume you want me to enter their stronghold, eliminate them, and then retrieve your property?" Naruto inquired, leaning back in his seat as he clasped his hands together, tapping his index fingers and thumbs against one another.

Junior said nothing in turn, deciding to tap his nose, as though to say 'Thanks Captain Obvious'.

"Now, would it at all be possible to do this on another day?"

"Nope." Xiong's response was immediate. "I've lost too much money already, and now that these fucks have decided to rob me of my product, I'll lose even more. Naruto, I want you to teach these rats a lesson, and make an example of them."

"To be quite honest with you, I'm not entirely sure how much longer my body can function. I believe it would be best if I performed this mission tomorrow or the day after."

For a minute, Junior grumbled beneath his breath until he happened to recall some very crucial information.

"Listen Junior, I'd be glad to hunt down some vermin for you, but I don't think I have it in me today. I offer you my sincerest apologies." Naruto spoke solemnly, hopping off the stool and turning around to walk back to the front door.

Junior suddenly spoke, breaking the monotonous echo of Naruto's sabatons hitting the stone floor. "They're not just any gang."

Naruto stopped dead in his tracks, gently setting his lifted sabaton back to the ground. He spoke quietly with a hint of curiosity, "Is that so?"

"It's the White Fang."

Without so much as a moment's hesitation, Naruto marched right back to his seat, a deep smile laced with unbridled hatred hidden beneath the bevor of his helm. "Give me their location and I'll have them slaughtered like the animals they are before the witching hour. Free of charge. But you will need to send your employees to pick up the cargo, I do not think I have it in me to haul that much back."

"Glad we could work something out. Now then, let's get started."

[Vale, Dockside Warehouse; 21:49]

Thunder roared through the night as rain fell from the sky like the tears of a widowed mother. Naruto's heavy cloak and armor kept him warm, but he reveled in the sounds and feelings of a rainy night. The water clinking against the metal and the fresh air that rolled in alongside the storm made such weather satisfying to the black knight.

But even more delightful was his mission. He had before him, not only the opportunity to slay his most abhorred enemies - more so than even the Arcs - but also the chance to turn them into icons for the rest of their disgusting kind. To show them the consequences of their sins.

It was to be a jolly good time.

As he walked up to the warehouse's side door, Naruto slowly cracked his fingers, savoring each individual pop. He unclipped Purgatio from his belt, admiring the sleekness of the hammer and hook, his desire to wield it growing ever more irresistible. He took a practice swing, holding the bottom of its shaft and letting the weight carry the hammer in a downward arc.

Naruto, still smiling behind his helmet, knocked politely on the door. He heard some muffled speaking inside of the warehouse, and then the door opened. It was a man with short white hair, dressed in a longshoreman's uniform, complete with thick dirty, grey gloves, a bright yellow and orange jacket as well as a safety helmet. But it looked a tad bit too big for him, like it wasn't his own. "Can I help you?"

Kill him.

"Why, yes you can. I happen to be looking for some terrorists that have been spotted in the area, and was wondering if you had seen any suspicious activity around here?" Naruto's eyes scanned every detail of what little he could see of the warehouse interior. He noticed a few boxes and crates had been opened, and a couple of them hastily put back together with bits of packaging sticking out of its edges. But nothing too out of the ordinary.

"Nope, haven't seen anything here." He spoke in the most casual tone possible, with seemingly no fear or anxiety in his eyes or body. He was completely and utterly relaxed.

"Well, if that is the case, you wouldn't mind me entering your humble abode to have a look around?"

"Of course not." He stepped to the side, gesturing for him to come inside. His eyes lingered warily on Naruto's weapon, yet still no sign of discomfort.

"So tell me, how come you are working out at such an hour?"

Kill him now.

Naruto suddenly stopped, and before the worker could respond the knight jabbed his elbow into the other man's stomach, knocking all the wind from his body. He clenched his gut in response before stepping back and roaring like a beast. Using his teeth, the longshoreman pulled his thick gloves off revealing sharp claws like those of a honey badger.

When he lunged at the man-at-arms like a wild animal, Naruto stood his ground in staunch defiance of his attacker, bringing up his heater shield to knock away the attack before responding with a hammering counter strike, shattering his opponent's weak aura. Now on the ground, the honey badger Faunus struggled to move as Naruto stepped down on his back, shifting his weight to keep him pinned.

Naruto's blue and green eyes were filled with ever growing malice, and he began to heed the words of voice in the back of his head. Often he found it hard to deny the hunger for death and destruction that so frequently lingered in his mind.

Bring these curs to your heel and show them your wrath!

As much as Naruto claimed himself to be a righteous and chivalrous fellow, he was all the same a warrior, whose very career would be based around war and bloodshed. So who was he to deny an urge that coalesced with his duties as a huntsman? At the very least, Naruto knew when to and when not to act out, repressing those feelings until they could be properly sated, without bringing harm to those who do not yet deserve his fury.

Around him, Naruto could see more people, no… he saw more daemons shuffling around, seeping out of the woodworks like termites. Each of the beasts donned their usual porcelain white mask, showing off the lower half of their faces, but such accessories only became warped in Naruto's eyes, twisted and malformed into daemonic visages that revealed their true nature.

They completely surrounded him, pointing their firearms and raising their melee weapons in preparation for a fight.

Savage cowards. They would use their comrade as bait just to get a mere strike against me! But I will not be slain by mere dogs let loose of their imagined chains. No. I will give them neither quarter nor mercy, and as a newly minted knight-errant of this Kingdom, I will bring these fiends naught but reckoning!

"Give it up and let him go, or you die human!" One of the hellspawn threatened, holding a rifle to Naruto's back. But it quivered, and the knight could see that the rifle was shaking ever so slightly, as though this abomination was unsure of what to do.

Naruto responded by pushing his sabaton down ever harder, feeling a pleasant chill run up his spine as he heard the crunch of bones beneath his steel foot.

"I'm warning you!" Naruto's foe brought the gun right to the back of his helm, intending to fire a point-blank shot. Yet, his quivering had not ceased, if anything, it had become more prominent.

Another one of the beasts, attempting to impersonate the guise of a female with deer antlers called out, "Just fucking shoot him already!"

And so he did. The dust bullet rang out in the warehouse, as a complimentary golden light flashed with it. Instead of piercing the intruder's head, it was completely nullified against an orchid-colored barrier. The shooter stepped back in fear before Naruto could hear him attempting to reload.

"A huntsman?" One of them said aloud, the worry evident in his voice. "We can't fucking deal with this."

"Are you kidding? There's nine of us, and one of him. We can take him." Another spoke eagerly, sounding vaguely female if the tone of voice was anything to go by.

"No, no. This is too risky, our job was to steal the weapons and dust, not get into fights with huntsmen. We need to pull ou-"

The eldest among them was interrupted by laughter, a thundering cacophony of laughter coming from the dark huntsman that they stood around.

"You think to escape my judgment, baleful daemons? Come, and face me with the same unholy fervor that you possess when you murder, steal, and rape the innocent! Show me why your cabal of thugs and barbarians is so feared across the four kingdoms!" Naruto issued his challenge, goading some of the more fanatical members of the White Fang into attacking.

"Filthy human!" The female monster that had called for his death earlier - the one with the antlers - screamed out, brandishing a plain looking machete. "You have no idea of the kind of suffering our people have had to endure, you have no right to call us monsters!" She charged at him, pulling her arm to the opposite shoulder in order to swing her blade diagonally.

Naruto swung his hammer low, slamming into her calf and snapping her fibula like a twig. She screamed out, braying and crying for help as tears rolled out from under her mask. Some fired their pistols and rifles at the man-at-arms, but the shots were but like pebbles being thrown at a giant. Others grabbed their weapons and vaulted over their cover to swarm and rush the knight before he could continue his brutality.

"So, the beast attempts to impersonate emotion? But I thought you were the unbreakable revolutionaries, who knew neither fear nor defeat?" Naruto patronized the poor girl, speaking the latter sentence with such venom that it easily could have killed a fully-grown Goliath.

She did not respond, still crying whilst trying to mend her wounds. Her allies drew closer still, mere yards away, but it wouldn't be enough time. The black knight raised his war hammer, rotating it to reveal the wicked five-inch metal claw, but before he could end her young life, her badger ally tackled the knight, knocking him off of his balance – for the second time today.

"Diane, run! We'll hold him off, go get help!" The Faunus that had saved her life was struggling just to keep their attacker down, who merely chortled at the former's attempts. The aptly named, Diane pulled herself up off of the floor, using a nearby crate as a support. She stared back hesitantly and slowly began to limp out towards the door.

"Oh you are a bold one, but," Naruto taunted, slamming his foot into the Faunus' groin as he paused. "Boldness is nothing but a madman's justification for a quick death."

More White Fang piled on to Naruto, swinging and slashing at his armor but to no effect. His aura shrugged off each of their attacks, and he single-mindedly pressed forward to kill the daemon that had tried to pin him to the ground, disabling any who got in his way, and using any who had the audacity to cling to his body as living shields for the bullets that came his way.

"Perhaps if you had tightened your hold around me, you would have had a better chance at keeping me down. But alas, you failed, and in doing so you have granted me free reign to put you all to the sword." The condescension was palpable with each word he spoke, as Naruto swung the pointed end of his heater shield back, striking another attacker in the gut. Still there was no fear in the eyes of the Faunus.

In one final desperate attack, the badger Faunus lunged out, his mouth opened wide revealing sharp white teeth and his hands bearing sharp claws. "Just die already!"

Such desperation was what Naruto lived for, to see his enemies on their last limbs, throwing everything they had in one final risky attempt. It was so exhilarating to see them crushed before his eyes.

Naruto countered by thrusting Purgatio into the man's rib cage, knocking him back a few feet. "Have at you, beast!" There was some genuine sense of joy that filled his voice, as though he were treating their fight like a friendly duel.

A duel that was promptly ended when Naruto pierced the raven's beak through the spinal cord of his Faunus opponent, killing him instantly. His hammer stuck between the vertebras, Naruto pushed against the corpse with his foot until he tore weapon out, resulting in a fountain of blood splashing all over him.

An exceptional performance. Now silence the rest of them, with each death you bring honor to your kith, and glory to your name.

Encouraged by his inner musings, the knight, now draped in a shroud of crimson ichor, charged forth at his enemies with an immeasurable desire for slaughter, allowing his more bestial thoughts to prevail.

Naruto rammed head first - literally - into the nearest enemy, who had stood paralyzed in fear upon seeing his ally cut down without mercy. Now off balance, the huntsman grabbed the Faunus' throat, shielding the former from an oncoming volley while simultaneously slamming his hammer into the bullet sponge. After a single strike to the head, the Faunus' mask shattered revealing a pair of reptilian eyes filled with terror. After several more solid swings to the skull, the head completely collapsed like a crushed egg, blood and brain matter pouring out onto the ground.

The fresh corpse was tossed aside like a ragdoll, and Naruto continued his unstoppable march forward, bringing his heater shield up above his head. "Come and fight me! Or has it dawned upon you that your cause is simply a justification for mindless barbarity and savagery?"

That seemed to spur more of them into action, with the remaining six either taking up positions from which to fire from or to keep Naruto from moving out of the center of the warehouse.

Two of them, wielding a cudgel and a hammer, attacked Naruto at the same time, hoping for one to distract him while the other went in for the kill. Yet as Naruto struck one down without relent, swinging his hammer back and forth until all that remained was a bloody mess of face, a cudgel swung down onto his shoulder.

Upon impact, it promptly splintered into tiny fragments of wood, showering the three in piercing shrapnel. His assailant caught a few pieces of wood in his arms and face, but refused to flinch back in pain, gritting his teeth to keep from yelling out as blood dripped from his wounds. His comrade had no such luck luck, and if there was any ounce of life still in him, then it was now completely snuffed out, as a shard three inches long entered his eye and tore right on through to his brain.

One of the gun toting Faunus fired her entire magazine, and when she attempted to reload, she ended up dropping her clip. Struggling to pick it up, she fumbled as it nearly slipped out of her hands once more. Her comrade was in danger and she needed to help him before this monster killed him.

Naruto's cudgel-wielding assailant charged at him now with his long capra horns, the same way as a bull might charge at a matador in the rings of southern Mistral. Though Naruto was no longer content with playing around with his quarry, so he halted the capra's charge with his shield, and before his opponent could recover, the knight locked his war hammer into his goat horns, threatening to tear them from his skull.

"Gah! Let go of me you bastard!" Blood running from his head, he struggled to get free, but his mindless aggression only made it easier to keep him locked into place, as Naruto kneed and kicked his legs to bring him down. With his back to a wall, Naruto was relatively safe from taking fire, though it still came at him on occasion. As Naruto began to wrench his hammer counter-clockwise, he could hear the bone starting to crack against his motions.

"Shoot him! Kill me if you have to, just kill him already!" The goat Faunus bleated out shortly before one of his horns was painfully torn off, granting him agonizing freedom. The Faunus kicked behind him, striking Naruto in the gut as he skittered away, blood streaming down his forehead.

As they had seen before, small arms fire was relatively useless against the knightly huntsman, the bullets being completely nullified by either his shield or his aura. Yet, this did not stop them from trying, as they continued to harry Naruto with salvo after salvo of bullets and dust rounds.

A few bullets even ricocheted off his shield, flying back and piercing through some of the crates and metal beams that hung around the warehouse. When one of them bounced back near the girl who earlier had been having difficulties loading her rifle, she dropped her gun out of fear, causing it to fire as it landed on the ground. The shot happened to be an explosive dust round, and it hit one of the shelves holding up a number of crates to Naruto's right, collapsing it completely.

Backing up just in time, the falling shelf barely missed crushing Naruto, and the heap of crates full of weapons and dust seemed to only cloud the way forward. Undaunted by his surrounding obstacles, the man-at-arms leapt out of his position, giving his enemies no time to recover, grabbing the barrel of one's rifle, redirecting his fire to kill one of his comrades, before Naruto brought down Purgatio like a judge's gavel.

The goat Faunus, even without proper time to fully recover from his grievous and irreversible wounds, took the chance to attack Naruto again. But instead of waiting for him to be in range of a swing, Naruto threw his hammer at his opponent, incapacitating him instantly as it struck him right in the head, changing his charge into a slide. Unlatching his shield off his arm, the knight began to bash the goat's head in with the pointed bottom of his heater, a repetitive motion that continued for half a minute, much to the horror of his two remaining comrades.

The girl with the rifle held her hand to her mouth, about to vomit up her last meal out of a combination of fear for her life, and the brutality of her comrade's death. Her last remaining compatriot didn't seem to have as much restraint, puking all over some of their recently acquired merchandise. When the knight turned to face her, she grimaced. The entire front of his body was covered in red, and the black emptiness of his visor made her feel as though she were facing a wight of legend, or one of Atlas' ruthless machines.

But it was the distinct sense of euphoria that this man gave off every time he killed one of her fellow brothers and sisters in arms that made him different from the machines, the Grimm, and even the police or other huntsmen she had seen. Even if everything that he had said up to this point had been a taunt or something condescending, she could feel something else. It was the unquenchable blood greed that emanated from this blood knight, gnawing on her bones, grating her very soul, and despite the adrenaline that pumped through her veins, she could do nothing. She was completely helpless.

His form was already imposing, but the blood and the fact that he didn't seem to mind it only seemed to heighten his menacing appearance. As she fell to her knees, crawling back in abject dread, the knight walked slowly towards her, each step from his metal boots resonating a thousand times over in her mind.

"Stand and fight! Die with some dignity you unchivalrous mongrel." Naruto roared out in anger. His hunger for death and destruction made combat with living opponents feel like a constant rush of dopamine, with his conscience providing encouragement and compliments with each kill. But it was no fun if they did not fight back.

She was unable to move an inch, crippled by trepidation alone. The rest of her body refused to move, and all she could do was beg for her life. "Please, please don't kill me! I'll give you anything you want, just please don't kill me!"

He shook his head the same way a teacher would when a student gave the wrong answer, "Silly beast, you and your friends forfeited whatever rights and freedoms you possessed when you struck a pact with the fiends of the White Fang. You are naught but a daemon in the skin of a girl, unworthy of mercy or life and deserving only of an agonizing reckoning!"

To him, they were daemons, each a twisted amalgamation of what they once were, innocent men and women twisted by underlying envy and greed. The mere thought of such was perhaps even more horrifying than the Jabberwock he faced earlier today.

"Gods, no! Please, don't kill me!" She held her hands to her eyes as Naruto raised his hammer for a quick kill, but before he could bring it down like the righteous judgement of the Gods, he found himself ambushed.

A Faunus with a monkey's tail, her last remaining comrade who earlier, had been puking his stomach out, had grappled onto Naruto's back, attempting to distract him from delivering justice, and inadvertently causing the knight to drop Purgatio.

"Grab the gun and shoot him!" He yelled out, trying to call to his last remaining ally in the warehouse.

She stood there for a second, still unable to move as her life continued to flash before her eyes.

"Alexandria! Grab the fucking gun!" Finally she snapped from her stupor, instantly searching for the rifle. She had no idea how well it would have worked, but it was worth a shot. A handful of rounds still remained in the cartridge and Alexandria discharged each of them into the knight.

The first round rung out, neutralized by his aura.

The second round sang from her rifle, again neutralized by his aura.

The third and final round missed its target, though that's not to say it didn't hit anything.

Landing square in the shoulder of her monkey ally, he froze in shock, the pain was sharp at first, like he had been stung by a gigantic bee, and then the sudden realization that he had been shot kicked in. The moment his grip slackened, Naruto wasted no time, grabbing the Faunus' arm and swinging him into the ground, incapacitating him. As the blood knight walked over to his weapon, Alexandria pulled the trigger only to be met by a petrifying metallic click and no blast of steel and gunpowder.

The monkey Faunus rolled over, his head up in the air, but was unable to move. He tried to reach out with his arm as though to stop the knight any further, but it did little to prevent the inevitable. Naruto firmly held the grip of his raven's beak before swinging it in a clockwise motion, the hook drilling right through one ear and out the other.

Two left. Deal with them.

Yes, yes, they shall be dealt with. Wait, two? Oh right, the one that escaped.

Alexandria finally hoisted herself up, running to get out before she too met her doom. But, Naruto only smiled, removing Purgatio from the body of the monkey Faunus and throwing it horizontally. It landed square in center of her back, causing her to yell out in pain as she fell to the ground. Tears threatened to leak from mask as she began to crawl towards the doorway, a mere two yards away. She could hear the rain outside, the sound of thunder roaring like a lion in the heavens, the flash of lightning as it sundered the clouds, she could see freedom.

But then, darkness fell. And then there was no more rain, no more thunder, no more lightning, and no more freedom. Only pitch darkness as her life was swiftly ended.

"Now then, where has the doe gone off to?" The dread knight pondered to himself, searching the warehouse for clues to her whereabouts. Near the door where he first entered, he saw blood. Not a pool, but a trail, leading right out of the door. Even with the rain outside to cover her tracks, she couldn't have gotten far, and unless she had discarded her mask, the police would soon apprehend her.

[Vale, City Exterior; 22:05]

"Gods help me, please..." A woman whispered to herself, offering a quick prayer to whoever of the divine pantheon would grant her mercy. She had to get help, someone, anyone. Hell, even the police if it came down to it.

A bloodied and crippled Diane had somehow managed to limp her way to the outer rings of the city, a trail of blood following right behind. Rain or not, there was still a semi-clear path to her location, and anyone perceptive enough to notice the bloody hand prints she had accidentally left while trying to catch her breath would discover her position.

As she rounded a street corner, she saw a pair of Vale Police Officers, running a late night patrol. She may have been able to take them on before, but she was crippled, and could barely stand up as is. She needed to get to a hospital. Now.

But she froze. She heard the steady clap of metal on stone. Diane's heart began to beat faster and harder with each step, and when she looked behind her she saw a ghastly shadow loom over the street she had walked through.

She made a sudden life or death decision, and chose to ran to the police, hoping that they'd take her in as an escaped victim of this monster. She turned down the corner and limped as fast as she possibly could towards them, and began to scream out for help, "Please somebody help me!"

The two officers began to run to her position, their lights shining brightly through the night. But still that clap of metal and stone persisted, growing ever louder. When she turned around for a brief second, she saw him. Covered in viscera, he was a sight to behold, like a demon in hellish armor. Her pace increased tenfold as she ran to the police officers, waving one of her arms to further alert them.

"Grab her!" One of the officers ordered, she was confused for a second, but understood what he meant when the other jumped and tackled her to the ground, forcing her back onto the sidewalk, before twisting her around and pulling her arms behind her back to make the arrest.

"You're under arrest, criminal scum, you've violated the law. You have the right to remain silent, and anything you say may and will be used against you in a court of law."

Why would they arrest her and not him? Unless she had forgotten something.

"Dammit, the mask…" She whispered to herself.

The other went past her, and walking straight up to the knight. "Hold it right there, you're coming with us."

Briefly scanning over the officer's chevrons, the knight crossed his arms, "I think not, sergeant. I have been tracking this girl for the past half hour from her hideout, and as a huntsman I would like to retain full custody of her." He spoke in a tone with a certain air of authority that reminded her of Adam, but more stable. More, controlled and far less fanatical.

The sergeant raised an eyebrow as he looked over the blood that covered the black fur and metal of the knight's armor.

"And the blood?" He gestured to the blood that covered the entire front side of the huntsman.

"I was ambushed by fiends, and promptly defended myself." The older man nodded, and was about to return to their quarry when Naruto drew him away from the officer and terrorist.

She couldn't hear anymore as the two began to speak privately, turning their backs to Diane and the officer pinning her to the ground. The police sergeant nodded after the knight had said something, before walking back to his partner.

"Let her go. Give her to the big guy."

"But Sarge, we've finally caught one of these slimy bastards, now we can -"

He held his hand up, stopping the younger officer before he could continue. "Doesn't matter, he outranks us. Guy's a huntsman."

The officer on top of her slumped down dejectedly, but nodded in acceptance. He lifted her up off the ground, cuffs around her wrist, before walking her back to her pursuer. "Here ya go."

He shoved her into the knight's reach, who grabbed her by the hair. "Worry not gentlemen, the verminous scum will get the end it deserves. I am grateful for your assistance in apprehending it." He said politely, giving a courtesy bow as he dipped his body down, stretching one leg forward while placing his free left arm to his right shoulder.

They nodded in response, the sergeant tipping his hat in return. As the two continued their patrol, Naruto and Diane began to make their way back to the warehouse.

After five minutes of walking, Diane finally mustered the courage to speak."Why are you doing this? Why do you want to kill us so badly?"

"Business and personal reasons."

Her eyes quickly narrowed, "What? Don't like the Faunus? Is that it? You're a fucking racist aren't you?"

"Not at all. I simply despise the White Fang because they attempt to justify their abhorrent behavior behind a cause that doesn't truly exist. And even if it does, such racism has been curbed by the many efforts of the four kingdoms, leaving but small traces of prejudice."

"Really? Then how do you explain the brutality police show towards Faunus criminals?"

"A simple response to seeing a pattern with violent crimes. The White Fang have committed an insanely high number of crimes, and as such, the police are willing to meet such barbarity with force of their own. It is what is required of them."

"Yeah, and what about-"

"I know you're trying to stall for time, so I'll just keep this brief and concise. Your White Fang has done nothing but increase the divide and lower trust between Humans and Faunus, and as a result, creates further prejudice. Perhaps if you started acting like civilized beings and simply protested without butchering anyone who disagreed with you, there would be some kind of solid credence to your organization."

As Naruto shoved her forward, Diane remained silent as she processed his words. So enthralled was she, that she hardly noticed that they had returned to the warehouse. Upon entering, the uneasy silence that had been established was broken as she gazed at the remains of her group. Her body froze up, and she felt her legs plant themselves firmly into the ground as she saw the black knight's handiwork: cracked skulls let loose a torrent of brain matter onto the floor, and blood and gore draped each Fang member and the walls surrounding their carcasses.

She began to kick in his hold, waving her antlers around trying to hit the knight with them. "You monster! How could you do this! You're the one dividing Faunus and Humans, not us! You'r-"

She was cut off suddenly when Naruto swung his hammer into the back of her skull, killing her instantly as it ruptured her occipital bones.

"Ah..." He gave a long yet quiet sigh of relief as her body fell to the floor. "Peace."

Yes, it was a loud one, wasn't it?

"Yes, it was. Now then, how to go about making an example of them?" He asked himself aloud, stroking his bevor downwards like one would stroke a beard.

Why not show the worlds that these were criminals? Show the world that they were punished like in the days of yore? I see some nails over there in the corner, and there is plenty of wood around here...

"An excellent proposition, let's get to work."

God, it's so nice to be done with this. Please, leave your thoughts on the chapter, tell me what you think and all that. If you have any questions, send me a private message or leave it in the reviews, either or, I'll get back to it pretty soon.

I'd also like to give out my thanks to Millennial, Savage Theron, Alvor the Warhawk, and Orpheus Kidwell for the help with writing this chapter, and further developing the world of Shadow of War. And speaking of Savage Theron, I highly recommend you check out his story, the Arc Diestro, as it's a RWBY/Warhammer Fantasy crossover, and honestly I really appreciate a good WF story.

Anyways, Auf Wiedersehen.

Notes:

- (1) Referring to the Spitzgeschoß mit Kern or Spitzer with core, a type of 7.92x57mm Mauser armor piercing ammunition.

- (2) One of the Gods of the RWBY Pantheon of Gods and Goddesses, specifically, the trickster god.

- (3) Another one of the deities, Rhya is the Goddess of fertility and bounty.