I don't own Kamen Rider Gaim or RWBY. All rights go to good old Toei and Rooster Teeth. Please support the series offical release. So readers, what's your favorite Kamen Rider series? What's your favorite RWBY ep? Leave your thoughts on the review! Remember to JUST LIVE MORE!
Symbolic Joker: They're all so good! I can't decide which episode. If it's Trailers then I would say White Trailer. If it's characters then I would say it's a tie between Weiss and Blake. If it's a fight scene then Neo vs Yang because Neo's fighting style in that scene reminds me of the gameplay in the Batman: Arkham series.
Lock Eighth: Kurumi Arms! The Nut Cracker is Here!
*Lock Open!*
Kumon Kaito was not ashamed to say that the Team Baron uniform was one of his and Peko's proudest cocreations. In Peko's view it was stylish and convey the feel of Team Baron perfectly, while Kaito think it's easy to move round in and was quite warm to wear during chilly days. And now, in Remnant, it was even better. He had gotten his hands on some pretty durable cloth which made his outfit more tear resistant.
He was busy sewing the last copy of his outfit when he finally noticed that it was morning. He took a sip of the coffee the school had to offer, and his face immediately twisted into something similar to disgust.
How can Ozpin drink coffee that tastes so bad!? Kaito drank coffee before and he can say with full confidence that what he just drank wasn't coffee. He didn't think he could recreate the taste even if he tried. It was times like these that made him miss Peko. Not much of a brawler like Zack but at least he can brew good coffee.
And yes, Kaito could sew. Contrary to popular belief, he was not a complete meathead like most would assume. He may be an orphan but Kaito was a quick learner. He had observed how others did their work in the orphanage and often kept practicing the same thing over and over until he got it perfect. Knowledge was power to Kaito after all. If someone can put a 100% in there work then he should put 110%.
Dancing & Soccer? He took up dancing to remember the girl who help him get over the first big obstacle in his life after his parents were forced to give him up at the local orphanage. Soccer was majorly because he couldn't accept the fact there was a universe where Team Baron were actuallybelow the Durian idiot and his acorn sidekick in rankings.
Sewing? He majorly taken that up because Peko dragged him into it. None of the boys in Team Baron other then Kaito were good with their hands and when it came to uniform designs, Peko don't trust anyone with the creation of the uniform other then Kaito. When Kaito refused, Peko simply said that nobody would acknowledge Team Baron's power if they dressed like cloth store rejects.
... Safe to say that pushed a certain button within Kaito as he refused to have his team look like something from a music video parody! Since he was aiming for the top, he should at least dressed to look like he was at the top!
"It's time, for their Inves Combat Training." Kaito muttered to himself as he put away the other uniforms along with his worn and torn coat that he wore throughout all his time in Remnant. He quickly changed into Beacon's uniform for males (it was similar to his Team Baron uniform so he didn't complained all that much, though he hated the tie) before grabbing a duffle bag that was filled with textbooks and other materials needed for the day.
He picked up his Banana Lockseed and his Sengoku Driver on his way to the door before making way towards Teams RWBY and JNPR dorm rooms. 'Coincidentally', the two teams' dorm rooms were right in front of each other, so it wasn't that much of a bother for the two teams to meet up.
Yeah, 'coincidentally'. It was obvious Ozpin had the two teams stay right next to each other to save them some trouble. For what reason, Kaito didn't know and honestly he didn't really care.
The two teams had partied late last night, and apparently they had forgotten to close their dorm room doors before they went to bed. Kaito made note of scolding them for forgetting to put up some measure of defense in case some student thought they had gotten lucky and tried stealing something while they were asleep, but nonetheless he didn't mind too much since a door with a lock wasn't exactly all that good of a defense.
A person could easily kick it down, burnt down, lockpicked or go through a window... . Basically, Kaito found doors useless against someone that was determined to succeed in getting something they want in a room with one of the few means of defense being a locked door.
It didn't meant that he didn't lock his own door, though sometimes he didn't exactly bother himself to do so. If someone was actually stupid or confident enough to steal from him, then let them try. He could always catch them in the act or confront them another day.
Stepping into the dorm room of Team RWBY, as he felt that he should start training with this Team first as they had no Armored Riders unlike Team JNPR, Kaito mind wandered a bit as he close the door behind him. Ever since he saw the non-Riders in combat, he knew that mere Huntsman-in-Training could take a lot of punishment for people their age. So there was no need for any Elementary Inves.
No, he'll sick the Advanced State Inves at them. The skill they shown during the battle against the Nevermore and the Grimves were proof that they could handle it. He would not treat them like little girls.
They wanted to be warriors. They could fight like warriors. As such, he would treat them like warriors.
"It's time for your Inves Combat Training!"
Yang muttered something about beauty sleep as she grabbed her pillow and used it to cover her face.
Ruby was still dreaming about sweets, if her incoherent mumbling about cookies were any indication.
Weiss was awoken by Kaito's voice, stating just why would Kaito wake them up at this 'ungodly' hour.
Blake? To Kaito surpise she actually pack up and ready to go already. She look nonchalant as she finish putting a book call "Ninja of Love" into the book shelf.
"So, you'll be giving us a lesson on how to fight these Inves today, Kaito?" Blake had already heard Kaito halfway across the hall and had gotten all her things ready. She wasn't much of a heavy sleeper due to the fact that during her White Fang days; getting enough sleep was the least of your worries. She had once counted herself lucky if she could get even three hours of sleep back when she was training with Adam.
In some odd way, Kaito reminded her of the Adam she grew up with and not the Adam that turned into a monster. They both have that same look of someone who had been wronged in life and try their best to fight against the cruelty of the world.
But unlike Adam, Kaito's eyes still had a tiny spark of humanity. The last time she saw her mentor's eyes, it was filled with rage that wanted to destroy every single Human it set it's sights on. It pained her to leave someone who was her most trusted friend for so long but she just can't keep travelling with a monster anymore. If she kept working for the White Fang, she didn't know what will happen to her.
She was afraid she might change into something she would regret. Something no different from the beasts some Humans say they were.
"You okay, Blake? You kinda spaced out there... ." Before she even realized it, she was on the rooftop with her teammates. Ruby looked concerned at her distracted teammates as Kaito took out one of his Lockseeds, surprisingly being a copy of Jaune's Orange Lockseed.
"I'm fine Ruby. Just remembering something, that's all." Blake waved off Ruby's concerns, assuring her team leader that she was fine as Kaito unlocked his Orange Lockseed to release an Advanced Inves, and the girls recognized it as a Kamikiri Inves as Kaito called it from his explanation of different Inves he had encountered before. They could easily identify it due to Kaito's overly simple explanation of it being 'blue, black and have long antennae'.
The girls immediately leaped into action as soon as the Kamikiri Inves hissed at them. They quickly surrounded the Inves, which suddenly became unsure of which one of the girls it should target first. Yang immediately closed in onto the Kamikiri Inves, throwing a few punches which successfully hit their target (not surprising to Kaito since most Inves don't seem to know the concept of dodging or blocking). One mighty final blow threw the Kamikir Inves into the air.
Ripe for the picking.
Weiss quickly created glyphs for her to step on as Blake used her Semblance to create temporary clones of herself to give herself footing in midair. Both girls made their way towards the soaring Kamikiri Inves but unknown to them, Ruby was also making her way up.
As the three of them closed in on their target, they swung their weapons at the exact same time. And instead of making contact with the Kamikiri Inves, their weapons instead made contact with each other, interlocking before their wielders backed away from each other.
When they landed back onto the ground, Weiss face twisted into displeasure before she started going off on her team leader/partner Ruby, totally ignoring the Kamikiri Inves. This left her remaining teammates, Blake and Yang, to fend it off by themselves as she just about had it with her idiotic leader.
Unaware to Weiss though, Kaito's own face matched hers as he was sorely disappointed with the heiress for outright ignoring an enemy just to take the chance of making her displeasure of the situation known to the source of the feeling in the first place.
"You dolt!" Weiss started. "This is just like back in the forest all over again! Why are you being such an idiot by rushing ahead!? You have working eyes don't you!? How did you not saw that I was about to finish that Inves!?" Weiss screeched, while Kaito, Blake and Yang silently commented to themselves on whether or not Weiss herself noticed that Blake had taken initiative to finish off the Inves herself.
"Hey, I'm sorry okay!" Ruby quickly apologize, rather off put on how Weiss immediately ganged up on her for the slight mishap. "Why are you being so mean anyway!? It was just a simple mistake, that's all... !" In her defense, she was moved ahead by two years through personal skill instead of any exceptional education. If she made one or two mistakes that her peers would've easily wavered around she blamed it on skipping two years ahead of curriculum!
"Just a simple mistake!?" Weiss shrieked at her team leader/partner. "If this was a real life-or-death fight your simple mistake would've gotten us all killed!"
'That is if your skewed sense of priorities doesn't kill you first... .' Kaito thought to himself as he continued to watch the pitiful display of teamwork in front of him. Blake and Yang were doing fine, Yang knocking the breath out of the Kamikiri Inves while Blake quickly swept in to get some cuts in as it tried to regain it's breath. Weiss and Ruby however were still arguing like children.
Kaito was half-tempted to order the Kamikiri Inves just to remind the two that they was in the middle of training but he decided against it. Instead, he chose to file that the two girls would rather argue with each other than focus on the task at hand. Deadly for them, useful for him in the case that he had to fight the two at once.
Kaito could see why the Schnee Heiress was adamant in her irritation of Ruby being chosen as Team RWBY's leader over her. After all, what kind of leader was so easy going with little-to-nothing to back up her position? Truly, the heiress had some qualities that made her qualified to be Team RWBY's leader, but Ozpin had instead chosen Ruby Rose. The girl who so far had made so many justifiable rookie mistakes and was tasked in leading a group of individuals who had a bit more experience than her. Said individuals who also had to put their lives at the hands of their chosen leader.
Even Kaito would admit that he would not place his life in Ruby's hands... not yet anyway, he begrudgingly admitted to himself.
Eventually, Blake and Yang finished off the Kamikiri Inves, Blake using her Semblance to help her launch the Kamikiri Inves into the air with Yang finished it off by delivering a powerful punch right to it's face and leaving a small crater on the rooftop when they returned to solid land. In an afterthought, Kaito noted to himself that he definitely didn't owe Ozpin anything despite the fact the rooftop now had a decent-size crack on it.
Kaito also noted to himself that he was slightly pleased by the shocked and dawning look on Ruby's and Weiss's faces when they realized that they had left their teammates to fend for themselves against the Kamikiri Inves.
"Come on, give us a real challenge Kaito." Yang whined as she looked disappointed in every sense of the word before they heard the now familiar trumpet blowing standby music that sent shivers to Yang and her little sister's spine. Yang's of excitement at the chance of testing out the so far undefeated Armored Rider while Ruby's of fear of the man that would no doubt have little-to-no guilt at sending a girl like her to Beacon's medical wing.
COME ON!
BANANA ARMS: KNIGHT OF SPEAR!
"Hn. Is that so?" The now transformed Kaito noted to the members of Team RWBY. "In that case, why don't you test your strength against mine if you want a real challenge?" It should be noted that unlike the other times Kaito had transformed, this time his Banaspear was not extended to it's full length. As if to make his point further across, his Banaspear chose that moment to extend itself to it's full length.
Weiss almost immediately stepped up, pointing Myrtenaster towards Baron. More than likely she saw this as a chance to make it known to Baron that she wasn't much of a pushover as he still believes. The ladybug duo of Team RWBY, Ruby and Blake, already saw that without a doubt that challenging the Banana Knight to a fight where he most likely wouldn't hold back much will only end in tears.
Whether or not those tears will be shed was still entirely up to debate though.
"Well, I suppose that we can use this as a means to see how we measure against each other, Kaito." Weiss noted before she gotten into her usual battle stance. "It's also a good way to evaluate you whether or not you're fit to mentor us... ." While the heiress said in a tone of voice that would make you think she said it as an afterthought, it was clear as day to Baron that it was the first thing on her mind when Weiss stepped up to face him.
"Hn." Baron grunted in a way that made it known to Team RWBY that he was smirking underneath his helmet. "If that's the case, then I suggest you all come at all at once. Maybe then you stand a chance to win against me!" He was boasting. He wasn't overconfident. He was merely stating a fact.
His strength far surpassed the Humans of Remnant and Earth. While the Humans of Remnant were somewhat naturally physically stronger than the Humans of Earth, (he supposed it was due to their history and culture that evolved their bodies to be so physically capable) the strength difference could easily be closed by the Humans of Earth with enough training or engenuity.
While there were some exceptions (Baron noted Kazuraba before his ascension and the mysterious coated man that Blake apparently knew), in the end; the warriors in front of him just did not have the training or the experience to give them a remote chance of defeating him alone. Perhaps one day they would be able to match his Overlord strength... .
But today was not that day. Neither was tomorrow for that matter.
To Port's credit, despite talking more about his past days of glory and annoying the all mighty hell out of Kaito, he did taught (at some point) his class about the weaknesses of the Grimm, be it their physical attributes or their behavior.
Kaito normally hated classes of any kind (for it took far too long to teach just one damn topic of a subject), but he nonetheless jotted down notes due to the knowledge it would give him should he ever forget it later down the line. Any kind of knowledge was power, especially knowledge in the form slaying monsters. 'The more you know, the better you can fight' was something Kaito thought up when he gained his Sengoku Driver and followed relentlessly in his quest for more power.
His situation mirrored Remnant's situation with Sagara and the Inves. The people have no idea about how to deal with Helheim Forest's fauna and especially it's flora. Kaito however, had no idea on the behavior of the Grimm. Thus, why he jotted down Port's words on his notebook.
Too bad sixty percent of his lecture was about a senile old man talking about his days of strength that was long past. If the man talked less and taught more Kaito might not have felt as irritated as he is right now. Port was no means a bad teacher, but his tendency to drift off topic reminded Kaito too much of his old history teachers from Earth.
"... ." Kaito couldn't help but raise one of his eyebrows when he saw the leader of Team RWBY goofing off in class instead of jotting down notes like a majority of the class. A small part of Kaito couldn't blame her either since Ruby was moved ahead by two years and thus most likely haven't matured like most of her classmates.
... Then again, considering how her older sister was snickering at her poor drawing of Port, Kaito had the feeling he would still be seeing the same scene right in front of him even if Ruby was two years older.
Since the entire members of Team RWBY was sitting right in front of his seat, Kaito could easily see that Weiss was getting even more agitated than Kaito himself and looked like she was going to experience a meltdown any second now. However, unlike Kaito who was agitated by Port's tendency to drift off topic, Weiss was getting agitated by how her team leader was allowing herself to goof off despite the fact she had many things to prove to the students of Beacon.
Was this not the girl who was move ahead by two years and admitted to Beacon by Headmaster Ozpin's recommendation? What did the headmaster see in this girl for him to allow her to enter Beacon early much too soon!?
Kaito could practically countdown the icy avalanche that would occur in front of him. Ruby and Weiss were very much like fire and ice (yes, he was fully aware of the meaning Weiss's family name and he could make snow/ice puns for days because of it). In fact, their relationship was almost similar to his relationship to Kazuraba.
Ruby was very much like Kazuraba. She was very childish (though she at least had the excuse of being in her mid-teens. Kazuraba was a full fledge adult), but Kaito could see that she had a familiar fire inside of her that can burn as hot and bright as Kazuraba's. The flames just need something to feed it for it reach Kazuraba's level.
Weiss however, was very much like him (though it would be a cold day in Hell before he would admit it to anyone). They were outwardly cold to anyone who tried to make conversation with them (though she was more haughty in her mannerisms while Kaito was more of a "I have no interest in being friends with you now get the Hell out of my way or else), they both share a "It's my way or the highway" mentality and they absolutely despised any eccentricities in their acquaintances behavior (Kaito did not appreciate Oren flirting with him. Nor did he appreciate the innuendos the durian Rider had the tendency to make early on during their Armored Rider careers).
However, the Schnee shared more similarities to Kureshima Mitsuzane. They both came from rich families that make a living from ruining poorer families lives (Zawame City's orphanages had an increase in it's population since many parents were forced to give up their children thanks to Yggdrasil. And Kaito had no doubt that the White Fang targeted the Schnee Dust Company for a very good reason). They both were manipulative (Kaito knew that Weiss was aiming for Pyrrha to be her partner during Initiation. Mitsuzane needed no explanation) Mitsuzane also had a "It's my way of the highway" mentality... though Kaito loathes to admit that he shared anything in common with the Kurehsima.
Huh... now that he thought about it Weiss Schnee seemed more like a blend between him and Mitsuzane... . Now that was a horrible thought.
"I DO!"
As Kaito was busy entertaining his line of thought, he missed that Professor Port had questioned the students of his class which one of them believed that they were the embodiment of the qualities of a Huntsman: Honorable, Dependable, Strategic, Well-Educated and Wise. And ironically, despite his messed up mindset; Kaito had all of these qualities.
Unfortunately, Kumon Kaito didn't have the chance to prove his worth to his classmates (not that he wanted to. Instead he would've use the chance to show his strength), with Weiss Schnee taking the opportunity. She quickly got out of her seat and went into the changing room, wearing her preferred white combat outfit.
Having been distracted with his own thoughts, Kaito didn't knew what was exactly going on but he could tell from the looks Weiss gave Ruby that it wasn't his problem. But one thing he was sure of was that Weiss was too emotional at the moment. He had no doubt that she would be too distracted with her own emotions to fight at 100% capacity.
Though what really bugs Kaito was how exactly in the name of Baron did Port managed to trap himself a Grimm? Last time Kaito was told about them; Grimm were nothing more than soulless beasts that were hellbent in exterminating Humanity.
"She's going to get herself killed if this was an actual life or death combat... ." Kaito heard Blake whisper softly, thanks to his enhanced hearing, causing Kaito to let out a soft grunt of agreement.
In an actual life or death fight, one should try their best not to get too emotional. Emotions may help empower yourself during times of need but there is a limit before those emotions cloud your judgement, making you do nothing more then spectacularly fail at trying to pulverize your opponent while giving them a chance to defeat you at best, and kill you at worst.
Kaito of all people understood the value of raw hatred, but keeping a cool head was also very much needed in combat, especially when one was outclassed by their opponents in the strength department.
'She's being rash in her movement, just waving around her blade and foolishly not using any of the Dust-related power she shown today when fighting me and the Kamikiri Inves.' Kaito thought, having seen and felt first-hand Weiss's skill with her weapon Myrtenaster when she added Dust to her attacks. Yet here, she chose to not use it, instead using fancy sword strikes against the Boarbatusk.
Against it's hard armor no less instead of the clear weak spot the Grimm had. Was the girl that pissed at her team leader to the point of ignoring common logic? She could've ended the fight just as soon as it started!
"Weiss! Go for it's belly! There's no armor underneath-"
"Stop telling me what to do!"
Apparently, she really was that pissed at Ruby. Despite the fact the sole 15 year old in the room had done nothing but cheer on her teammate throughout the mock battle and tried to give her helpful advice. Ruby looked hurt at Weiss's outburst, while Kaito couldn't help but sigh in disappointment at Weiss's prideful nature.
Then again, who was he to talk? He likely would've acted exactly like Weiss did had he been in her place and Kazuraba had been in Ruby's.
Not a moment too soon after her outburst, the Boarbatusk leaped into the air so it can curled itself into a ball and rolled towards Weiss after picking up some speed. Unfortunately for it, this gave the Schnee heiress the chance to counterattack. She raised one of her glyphs, this one being blue-white, which blocked the curled Boarbatusk, the impact being enough to knock it into the ground and revealing it's unarmored belly to the class.
Weiss quickly formed another glyph behind her, leaping onto it and using it as a spring to deliver a deadly stab right into the Boarbatusk's belly. The Grimm quickly fell silent, the force of the blow being enough to kill it in one shot.
"Bravo! Bra~vo!" Port quickly praised Weiss, noting to the class that it appears they were in the presence of a true Huntress-in-Training.
Kaito silently snorted at that, and suddenly no longer felt like meeting full-fledge Huntsman if people like Weiss was supposed to be a true Huntress-in-Training.
Port then suddenly took note of the time, and gave a few parting words to the class before dismissing them. Weiss took the time to glare at thin air as her thoughts raced, before choosing to hurriedly walk to the exit without so much as glancing at her teammates.
"Sheesh, what's with her?" Jaune Arc asked from his seat to no-one in particular, but his question was seemingly heard by the remaining members of Team RWBY who looked at each other with the same question in mind. Kaito however, chose to glare at the retreating form of Weiss Schnee, choosing to say nothing as he stood up and quickly made his way to the exit himself.
Team JNPR and the remaining members of Team RWBY took note of his retreating form, but was promptly ignored when they called out to him. "Geez, he's just as bad as Weiss... ." Yang muttered, with Ruby frowning at the mention of her partner. Quickly making up her mind, she quickly headed towards the exit herself. "Hey, Ruby!" Yang looked worried at seeing her little sister run past her, and was about to chase her, but Blake's hand stopped her.
Looking at her partner, the ebony haired beauty shook her head, which was enough to tell Yang it was better if the matter was left alone to solve itself. Unknown to them and Team JNPR, Ruby had run past Kaito, who took note of the girl as he watched her retreating form. This interaction between her and Weiss has helped expand Kaito's knowledge and opinion on their personalities.
Ruby Rose was too carefree in taking her job as team leader. Due to her young age, she didn't quite understood the burden of her position, nor did she knew how to go about it yet. In a way, she reminded him of Kazuraba before their second showdown. Thinking life was simple and just another fairy tale.
Well, that line of thinking wasn't exactly wrong... nor was it right for that matter.
Weiss Schnee however, seemed to have painted a false image of how strong people like leaders should act within her mind, and had put those expectations onto Ruby without the poor girl knowing it. When Ruby didn't live up to those expectations, Weiss had gotten angry. Again, the Schnee heiress had reminded Kaito of himself, this time of his more prideful side that had existed in the past.
Again, that line of thinking wasn't exactly wrong... nor was it right for that matter.
Their ideals both have their own flaws and good points, but if they ever want to survive as a team they have to learn to respect the ideals of their allies no matter how much they didn't agree with it. However, he will play no part in putting together their team bonding session they oh so needed, badly.
Kumon Kaito was, at best; a combat mentor, not the damn school counsler.
"Say Kaito, can you take me to this Helheim Forest thing that Professor Ozpin and you mentioned?"
Was what one Yang Xiao Long asked Kumon Kaito when she approached him in the middle of a hallway. Kaito was heading towards one of the many training grounds in Beacon Academy to get some extra hours in practicing some of the moves he had learned in Beacon until Yang stopped him. Kaito didn't know why she approached him. It was obvious that the two weren't really close, just like everybody else in Remnant that knew Kaito.
If Kaito had to guess the exact reason why she made this request, he would say she wanted to let out some steam so that she could take her mind off something.
Would he grant this request?
Sure, why the hell not? It wasn't like he was her father or anything. If she wanted to leap into the middle of danger then who was he to stop her?
Besides, he had the habit of taking trips to Helheim to get his mind out of certain subjects from time to time. Plus, maybe if he was lucky could stumble upon another White Fang group. If that happen, Yang could take care of the mooks while he dealt with the New White Armored Rider, Zangetsu.
But still, he supposed for that plan to work he had to make sure Yang doesn't accidentally turn into an Inves in the middle of a fight. If that ever happen, Kaito was pretty sure he would get into some pretty deep shit with Ruby.
"Fine, I'll take you to Helheim." Kaito agreed to Yang's request, though it was obvious that there was a 'But... ,' coming in. "But... ," And there it was. "... do you have a Sengoku Driver? Any idiot who goes into Helheim without one usually doesn't last long. There were exceptions, yes, but only because they knew of the fruits' effect on a living being or because there someone to stop them from taking that crucial bite.
A key example was the White Fang mooks he encountered, and they had Zangetsu to babysit all of them. But Kumon Kaito was no babysitter (even though he had to babysit a few brats during his poorer days). He refused to take the time to watch over Yang to keep her from eating a Helheim Fruit.
To Kaito's surprise (as he really didn't expect it coming), Yang gave him a firm nod and pulled out a Sengoku Driver from her back pocket and put it on. Though, unlike the boys' Sengoku Drivers, Yang's featured a silver strap as opposed to yellow. It gave Kaito a pretty good idea which Armored Rider Yang was going to transform into.
Yang would admit it; she'd been wanting to have some nice little armor like the boys in their little group ever since she saw them fighting with one. Her only problem was that, unlike the boys, she didn't have any of those 'Lockseed' toys they had. She could always borrow one (from Jaune and Ren obviously, she was pretty sure Kaito would rather be dead than give one of his), sure, but the weapons that they came with didn't really suit to be her go-to-Lockseed.
"Say Kaito? Mind giving a girl a cool Lockseed so she can transform into something badass?" Yang teased as Kaito gave no indication he heard her. Instead, he reached one of his many pockets on his person to take out a Lockseed that was a lot bulkier than the standard ones. Another indication that this Lockseed was different from the others was that it was based of a rose and had a gold shackle as well as having the code 'L.V - 02' painted in white as opposed to the typical black.
And then to Yang's surprise, Kaito unlocked it and tossed it into the air; with the Lockseed reassembling itself and growing larger in size! When it finished reassembling and growing, Yang could clearly see that it transformed into a rose-themed motorcycle, which landed onto the ground with a firm and loud 'THUD!'
Yang let out an appreciative whistle at the site. How could she not? A portable motorcycle you can keep in your pocket and use almost at all times? How she wished that her own personal motorcycle, Bumblebee, had that capability. Last time she saw her little beauty was near the airship docks where she parked it at.
Kaito's motorcycle looked nice, but Bumblebee was definitely cooler-looking. Plus, it seemed something Ruby would use should she ever get her own motorcycle.
... .
Well, now she knew what she's going to get her little sister for her next birthday.
"Get on." Kaito ordered, getting onto the motorcycle himself before putting on red and black gloves with a matching helmet that seemingly came with the fully transformed Lockseed. His order though caused Yang to raise one of her eyebrows.
Was Kumon Kaito, the Banana Knight who could scare her little sister just by staring her long enough, hitting on her?
Kaito supposedly understood what her raised eyebrow meant, and appropriately scowled at her. "There are two ways to get into Helheim: Either through a random Crack generated by the forest itself or through a Lockvehicle." Kaito explained with his scowl still plastered on his face, causing Yang letting an 'Oh' in understanding. "Since we could potentially waste hours of time searching for a random Crack, we're using the one of the only two Lockvehicles we have." Of course, Kaito himself could open a Crack thanks to his Overlord powers, but Kaito didn't feel the need to share that particular piece of info yet.
"Of course." Yang smirked, which annoyed the Banana Knight but nonetheless the blonde got on the motorcycle, making sure to wrap her arms around Kaito's waist and press herself against his back. Seemingly knowing what she was trying to do, Kaito gave Yang a glare which caused her to give him a cheeky grin. Growling, but not saying anything, Kaito immediately sped the Rose Attacker inside the halls of Beacon.
Was he going to get a scolding by a certain strict instructor for doing so? Yes.
Did he particularly care that he was going get a scolding by a certain strict instructor for doing so? Not really.
Once the Rose Attacker reached a certain speed, a red aura began forming around them which constantly released rose petals everywhere. The Rose Attack lifted itself from the ground, hovering as it began spinning in preparation for it's riders entrance to Helheim. An understandably surprised Yang began yelling out questions on whether or not the Rider Machine was supposed to do this, but was ignored by Kaito who instead remained focus.
The Rose Attacker released a beam that formed into a flower-shaped Crack, which it and it's riders flew into. The Crack quickly close as the Rose Attacker's aura disappeared, the Rider Machine landing onto Helheim's grounds with a loud *THUMP!* with Kaito quickly stopping the bike in it's tracks.
"Okay, that was a bit intense... ." Yang admitted as she got off the Rider Machine, stumbling a bit as she tried to regain her bearings. Kaito merely continued to stay silent, the Rose Attacker transforming back into it's Lockseed mode. Kaito grabbed it in mid-air, and promptly pocketed it as he turned to address Yang.
"Welcome to Helheim Forest." Was all he said, with Yang observing the forest. And no matter how much this place looked like an average forest, she couldn't shake the feeling that she had landed on some alien place that was out of her world. Technically speaking; she did, and instead of feeling in awe and wanting to take in the scenery, she instead felt like there was something utterly wrong with this forest and it creeped her out in more ways then one.
But did her tour guide felt the same way when he first entered this forest?
"Hey Kaito? You've been here before, right? How was it like coming here the first time?" Yang voiced out her question, with Kaito taking time to ponder on it.
He never really thought much about how he felt when he first entered the forest. Understandable as it was during his Beat Rider days and he was in the middle of competing with Kazuraba. Both Armored Riders had accidentally entered Helheim due to being unsuspecting guinea pigs for Yggdrasi, their respective Lockvehicles activating their ability to enter Helheim during their race. Then he had to deal with some Elementary Inves who didn't appreciate the two Armored Riders trespassing in their territory, giving Kaito the chance to try out his new powers in battle.
But now that he actually had the time to think back on it... .
"Excitement. Like a child getting his hands on a new toy for the first time." Was Kaito's answer, with Yang giving him a "Oh really?" look at his response.
Helheim may be a world-consuming forest that forces change to a World that didn't desire it, but without Helheim; Kaito would've never gotten anywhere. He would've never gotten that taste of power that had managed to get him to finally take that first step to becoming someone strong. Helheim was a place full of dangerous enemies and new potential powers for him back when he was Human. It was different from that peaceful life he was stuck with.
Here, one can actually take control of their fate through their own power.
He had the chance of not staying weak here. He had the chance of getting the power he always wanted here. Both chances he had successfully taken with his own hands and now here he stood, with power that change the world (even if it wasn't exactly in his image).
How could he possibly feel no joy when he knew this fact?
Before they could continue their conversation, Kaito detected hostile presences homing onto their location. He can tell some of them were Elementary Inves, most likely they going after Yang as the Inves had long accepted Kaito be a natural presence in their habitat no matter how rare his appearances in the forest may be. However, the other presences he felt had that feeling of wrongness he had associated with the Grimm and Grimves.
Tch. It would seem some Grimm were just plain too curious for their own good. It would seem that the presence of the Inves didn't disturb them, as they seem to come from the same direction as the Inves yet the Grimm seemed more intent on the sole Human of the forest.
Some part of Kaito wondered that his former status as a Human was also the reason the Grimm were heading towards them. However, that question was to be answered another day, as it was time to focus on battle. This battle should provide some good experience for the blonde, there were a good amount of enemies heading their way that clearly outnumbered them but not enough for them to be in actual danger as far as Kaito was concerned.
"Enemies are here." Kaito warned Yang as he took out his Sengoku Driver and placed it on his waist. "Are you prepared?" Kaito asked as he took out his Banana Lockseed next. Seeing Yang nod, Kaito held up his Banana Lockseed and unlocked it.
"Henshin"
BANANA!
LOCK ON!
COME ON!
BANANA ARMS: KNIGHT OF SPEAR!
Unlike every other time Kaito transformed, there was no Crack opening up in the sky for his armor to drop from Helheim. Seeing as the Armored Rider was already in Helheim, one can see how the mechanical fruit was formed. Bursts of yellow energy were released the local flora which formed the banana-shaped armor, which quickly dropped down onto Kaito's head. It formed his European Knight-themed red base suit, the banana disassembling into Kaito's signature golden armor with asymmetrical shoulder pads.
Just as soon as he finished transforming, the approaching Inves and Grimm appeared from the bushes and trees of Helheim. As far as Baron and Yang could see, the only Grimm that had stumbled upon Helheim were Beowolves, baring their teeth at them as they snarled. The Inves were the general Elementary Inves, though some had mutated to the point of growing wings.
But they were no threat. None of them were. Both Baron and Yang had dealt with opponents that were much stronger than the cannon fodder they were facing now. The only problem was their numbers, but even that won't be enough to defeat the Armored Rider and Huntress-in-Training.
They quickly engaged the closest opponents to them, a Beowolf for Baron and an red Elementary Inves for Yang. To Yang's surprise, the Elementary Inves seemed to be able a bit more punishment compared to the Kamikiri Inves Kaito had sick on them earlier today. However, it was much slower, and Yang only needed to throw two-three more punches than she originally expected to finish of the Elementary Inves.
Baron faired better then Yang, using his ability to create banana-shaped projectiles and shooting them towards any Grimm and Inves within his site. He didn't even need activate a finisher to finish them off. They were that weak compared to him. Yang started to become a bit annoyed, as her prey were all getting killed off by Baron. For every Inves or Grimm she killed, Kaito already finished 5 or 6 more.
Eventually, they had wiped out all of their enemies. Baron had mostly did all of the work, much to Yang's dismay. However, Baron didn't allow himself to relax like Yang did. Another enemy was coming. One that was more powerful than the cannon fodder they just fought. It shared the Grimm's inherit wrongness too. Yet he could sense that it also had Inves qualities in it. Which meant only one thing... .
"Another hybrid... ." Baron muttered to himself, before snapping at Yang. "Don't let your guard down yet! Another enemy is coming!"
Yang quickly tensed, and prepared herself by reloading Ember Celica before their newest challenger arrived. Bursting out of some bushes was a familiar shape to Baron. The Grimves before him highly resembled the Seiryu Inves in shape and size. However, it was now a shiny black with white armor covering a majority of it along with it's tail. It's claws now resembled a Beowolf's, much longer and sharper than a normal Seiryu Inves. The armor on it's head had been design so that it would a visor, yet it did nothing to cover it's glowing red eyes.
A small part of Baron noted that it would make a good Rider design. A black dragon-themed Rider with glowing red eyes within the darkness... . No, wait. Horrible idea. Such a design would only be suitable for Kureshima Mitsuzane and Baron would be damned if he ever thought up of something for that slimeball.
Yang quickly rushed towards the Grimves, eager to take down a much more powerful opponent that she was sure Baron couldn't kill in one shot. The Dragon Grimves made use of it's elongated claws and tried to swipe at Yang as she rushed towards it. Luckily, Yang had managed to stop herself in time and backflipped away from the Grimves.
"Ha! What's wrong? Don't you know size isn't everything?" Yang mocked the Dragon Grimves for it's long claws, before she realize that said long claws was long enough to cut a few strands of her equally long hair. Immediately, the fringes of Yang's hair covered her hair before she exploded in a fury of flames.
Beneath his helmet, Baron raised his eyebrow at seeing the blonde losing her temper so easily like that. If it was Ruby, he understood. Attacking family was usually a sure-fireway to enrage someone. But hair? Something that would grow back? Honestly, he never saw the appeal in having long hair when one was a fighter. Sure, it shows one's strength when they were able to keep their opponent from grabbing their long hair... . But when it was a pain in the ass to keep that hair in tip-top condition every single day? To make sure one didn't look like a slob for not taking care of it?
It was moments like these that Baron was reminded that no matter how strong one gets, it would never unravel the mystery of the female mind.
"YOU MONSTER!" She launched herself at the abomination, intent on pulverizing it into a bloody pulp. However, the Dragon Grimves defended itself by spewing white flames to defend itself. Had it been any normal flame, Yang would've continued her charge. Thanks to her Semblance, she had quite the high resistance to fire-based attacks, borderline immunity even! But the effects of the flame had caused her to back off.
The flames were freezing the flora it hit, not burning.
Her Semblance allowed her to use the damage inflicted on her to increase her power, but it did not negate the pain she felt when she was damaged. Had she gone through with her charge, she would've most likely given herself quite the frostbite. Not only that, but her precious hair would be even more damaged then it original was!
"Tch. Kaito! Give me a Lockseed right now! I'm going to beat this thing's face in!" Yang declared, holding out a hand towards the Banana Knight. 'Just as soon as I have some protection from getting frozen.' Yang silently added as an afterthought.
Baron merely grunted. "Just grab one of the fruits on the trees. Your Sengoku Driver will convert them into Lockseeds." It would be a cold day in Hell that he would willingly hand over on of his Lockseeds when there were others right in front of them for other people to pluck.
Yang quickly head over towards the nearest tree and grabbed a fruit. And like Baron said, the fruit quickly converted itself into a Lockseed. Nodding to herself, Yang quickly positioned herself to transform.
"How do you boys say it? Oh, right."
"Henshin!"
KURUMI!
Had Baron snapped his head towards Yang any faster, he would've possibly given himself whiplash. Yang, the brawler, had gotten the Kurumi Lockseed? The signature Lockseed of his best friend and former second-in-command, Zack?
... .
It was almost like fate was playing a joke on him right now.
... .
He didn't like it. He wasn't the universe's plaything!
LOCK ON!
KURUMI ARMS: MISTER KNUCKLEMAN!
Unlike the yellow-strapped Sengoku Drivers, Yang's silver-strapped one had produced a electric guitar riff when the Cutting Blade was pressed down. Once again, the flora of Helheim released similar yellow energy, though a different shade compared to Baron's Banana Arms, that gathered right above Yang to form another Arms, this one being based after a walnut.
The Kurumi Arms dropped onto Yang, forming a suit that was highly similar to Jaune's except that it was black and had silver accents as opposed to Jaune's navy blue and gold accents. Her impressive bosom can still be seen despite the suit, but was then covered by the chest armor when the Kurumi Arms disassembled itself into a much more symmetrical armor compared to Baron's Banana Arms.
But the biggest thing to note of the transformation was that unlike the other Armored Riders, Yang's gauntlets were halfway covered by her Arms Weapon, which could be pretty much summed up as giant boxing gloves with the same color scheme as the Kurumi Arms, with a red gem at the back of the palm.
"Oh? Boxing gloves huh?" The now armored Yang noted, admired her Arms Weapon that were called the Kurumi Bombers. Looks like she just found her go-to Lockseed! "Hey, wait a minute... . 'Mister Knuckleman'... ?" Yang took note of her Lockseed's chant.
"... I'm a girl dammit!" She was appropriately outraged.
"Does it really matter what the Lockseed says?" Baron decided to keep quiet of the fact that the reason the Lockseeds chanted in the first place was because of a madman's guilty pleasure, if only because to save himself from Yang's antics.
The Dragon Grimves seemed to lost patience, and tried to attack the two Armored Riders. However, Baron knocked it away with a banana projection covering his Banaspear, thus extending the range of his close-range weapon. "Just finish this thing off so we can go back already." Baron had his fill of training today, and it was better that he didn't bring anymore Lockseeds back to Remnant. Even he would admit that he might lose track of one or two if he owned too much.
"Heh. Just watch. The way I deliver this beatdown will make you speechless, Kaito!" The armored Yang declared as she bumped the Kurumi Bombers together, and charged towards the recovered Dragon Grimves. Said Grimves roared and released it's white freezing flame breath attack again. But Yang preserved, and went through the flames and socked the Dragon Grimves right in the face!
Bits and pieces of armor and suit were now frozen, but the temperature didn't effect Yang at all, thus not hindering her in any shape or form. As the Dragon Grimves stumbled, Yang continued her assault and began throwing powerful punches left and right.
*BAM!*
"That was for my hair!"
*BAM!*
"That's for targeting my World and my friends!"
*BAM!*
"That's for making life more difficult for my little sister!"
Yang had listed off some of the sources of her frustrations, Baron realized, as the female Armored Rider continued to bash the Dragon Grimves. The miserable creature couldn't even stand without losing it's footing, most likely due to the constant punches to the face had distorted it's sense of balance.
But Yang didn't care. Instead, she decided she had enough and pressed down the Cutting Blade of her Sengoku Driver not once, but twice.
KURUMI AU LAIT!
With a guitar riff, the next punch Yang threw covered the Kurumi Bombers in energy in the shape of a walnut was more than enough to destroy the Dragon Inves. Not only that, it had enough power to plow the thing into several trees before it finally exploded.
Panting, Yang dismissed her transformation just as Baron dismissed his. Kaito begrudgingly admitted to himself that he was impressed by what he just witnessed. He fought alongside Zack when he first became Armored Rider Knuckle and he can't help but admit that girl mastered the form much quicker than Zack did. Most likely because her fighting style had long centered on her fists, the Kurumi Bombers merely complimented her form.
He would admit it. Yang Xiao Long was stronger than he expected, meaning he didn't need to worry about another baggage to carry.
"Are you done?" Kaito grunted to Yang. Just because he respected the girl somewhat doesn't mean he had to be nice or polite.
Yang stayed quiet for a moment, taking off the Kurumi Lockseed from her Sengoku Driver and staring it. Not quite the armor she imagined for herself but it will do. "Yeah." Yang nodded, making Kaito whip out his Rose Attacker for the two to ride back to Beacon.
During the ride back, Yang thoughts wandered to her new power. With it, she could definitely protect more people now. Hey, she may have wanted to become a Huntress mostly for the thrills and to go on all kinds of awesome adventures, but she was Ruby's big sister after all. The little squirt rubbed off on her somewhat.
And besides, it was her job as the big sister to make sure the fate of world didn't entirely fall on her little sister's shoulders... .
"So, this is where you hang out, hm?"
Blake Belladonna approached Kumon Kaito at the rooftops right after Kaito had finished his lessons with the boys and Yang for the night. Today, he had helped Arc try to master his Pine Arms by making Jaune face off against him in Mango Arms. The blonde young man had managed to land a couple of good hits in but Kaito still managed to wipe the floor with him in the end. But still, he was improving; which was the whole point of there being lessons in the first place.
As for Ren and Yang? He made them face each other, with Ren in Kiwi Arms while Yang was in Kurumi Arms. The best way to get used to using new weapons is to use them in a fight. It forces you to quickly use your new weapon is effectively as possible under a short amount of time lest you wish to die in the battlefield. It also forces you to experiment if the required fighting style of your new weapon isn't to your fancy, which is a plus.
Just look at Kaito and the Melon Arms! He forced himself to try it out. Sure, a shield wasn't exactly his go-to weapon, but he had learned to be pretty decent with it. He can defeat his opponents with the Melon Defender if he's ever stuck in a situation that forced him to use Melon Arms. Of course, the chances of that happening is pretty close to zero, but Kaito was the kind of person who preferred to be ready for anything. Better have it and not need it than need it and not have it, as they say.
"Shouldn't you be asleep? A proper warrior needs to keep himself in top condition at all times." Kaito inquired while crossing his arms and closing his eyes, as if he didn't appreciate the company. But Blake knew better, and ignored Kaito's rude posture. She didn't appease his curiosity either, instead choosing to sit down near the edge of the rooftop and stare at the moon.
"Say Kaito... ," Blake began. "... would your view of me change? If I suddenly told that I was a Faunus? I'm saying it as a 'if', that's all." Blake quickly 'explained' herself. Explained... right. More like lying to keep her cover hidden. She didn't know why she decided to give Kaito a hint of her true heritage, but she was immensely curious of what his view of the Faunus would be if he found out someone close to him had been lying to his face all this time.
She knew curiosity killed the cat (she was fully aware of the irony of that statement), but she couldn't help herself. Many times she cursed her heritage. This is one of those times.
Luckily for Blake, Kaito didn't seem to suspect a thing. He may have thought about her words (for the answer and the reason why she would ask such a question), but his judgement of her expression and the fact that she was a 'Faunus sympathizer' caused him to think that she was probably just having a bit of trouble with kids her age.
After all, people who sympathized with the weak are laughed at and oppressed as well.
Annoying brats who don't understand the true concept of power. Another reason Kaito quit high school as soon as he could.
But... he supposed it wasn't going to kill him to say something nice once in a while.
... Oh God, Kazuraba and Mai rubbed off on him, didn't they?
Despite his disturbed line of thought, Kaito smoothly answered the anxious Blake Belladonna. "You are Blake Belladonna, and being a Faunus or not will never change who you are." After all, he was living proof of that. He had been Human once, and now he was an Overlord Inves. However, he was still Kumon Kaito, something Kazuraba, Mai, Zack and Minato could vouch for.
"You shouldn't be ashamed of the path you took." Kaito continued his speech. "Even if others laugh at you for your beliefs, and even if you feel doubt from time to time; Never Surrender and keep going." Kaito advised Blake, who seemed to look at him in a different light now. "That is... the belief I held onto when I grew up alone."
Kaito's sincere response, along with his similar experience to the Faunus, caused Blake to form a smile on her face. A smile that was very familiar to Kaito.
After all, Minato Yoko gave him that exact same smile right before she died.
"You're... pretty awkward, you know that? Mr. Banana Knight... ." Blake uncharacteristically teased as Kaito sat next to her, the look on her face akin to a playful cat.
"It's Baron damn it." Kaito scoffed as the two enjoyed the sight and light of the moon.
Thus chapter 8 is finish. Your thought my readers? This should cover the Badge and Burden Episode.
Symbolic Joker: This is actually longer than evil Chapter 7!? Unbelievable!
Kurumi and Yang: It's kind of a no brainer eh? Like Blake being a Faunus and Penny being a robot. Not much of a surpise is there? It's not like I can find another weapon for the more fist-base Yang so yeah. Another Rider in.
Blake and Kaito: The reason she asked Kaito that question was because he's an outsider that she trusts not to judge her based on what he heard. Are they having a moment? Yes. Is it romantic? Eh... more like a brother and sister moment I think? My partner discussed with me about shipping before and I just don't know which flag Kaito should start.
Symbolic Joker: And we agreed to just continue writing the story and let any pairings flow naturally instead of being forced just because of us wanting meet criteria. Whether it seems romantic to you readers is honestly up to you. Everyone has different tastes after all.
The match and Weiss: Worry not. The conclusion of the event would be explain but just in a later date. Of course Weiss would be the one to challenge Kaito's duty as their mentor in combating the Inves first. After all, if she can't stand Ruby at first how can she stand Kaito in his jerkass glory?
Like always this is a partnership with Symbolic Joker and we're the two in one writer!... What? I just finish with a rerun on Kamen Rider W recently.
Symbolic Joker: And I just went through a Kamen Rider Drive marathon to catch up on what I missed. *Shrugs* Too bad I can't use any of the quotes considering the situation doesn't call for it. Oh well, I'm done thinking about it.