A/N: Still here, still updating.

With my fifteen year anniversary on this site finally here, I find myself reflecting on the little things in life. What was once a lazy pastime meant for me and a few friends really grew and evolved over time. There are days when I look back on the last fifteen years here and I wonder if anyone will remember me; if I made an impact, despite never making a single cent on any of these stories. Some days were happier than others, and some stories I enjoyed writing WAY too much; to the point where I'd stay up all night working on them.

And of course, there are times when I look to the future and wonder what will become of things when I'm gone.

Of course, I try not to dwell on the latter overmuch; I'm still alive and still writing. In an ideal world, I'd like to keep doing so for as long as I can. But old age is catching up to me and these days, the world is filled with so much madness and death. Feels like everyone's lost their minds sometimes. Even before that, so many friends and fellow writers I once knew are gone, now. Will I still be here in twenty years? Ten? Five? Its a chilling thought. But for now, I'm still here, still writing.

So here we go. The fate of this story depends on you, the reader. Your feedback determines the fate of this tale, and many others.

I'm just a humble author trying to make his way in this wild world, one word at a time.

Time and feedback will determine if this remains a story. Simple as that.

In other words...its up to YOU, the reader. Do let me know~!

No questions this time. Only story...

Alright, I think I've kept you long enough. Hopefully this chapter brings a smile to your face.

As ever, I own no references, quotes, themes or memes. Not a wit or a one! Really, they're just tributes...

And once more, a reminder. Anna = Adam's Mother. Alesia = Illia's Mother. Sienna and Kali are obvious. Now then, away we go!

Did you really think it would end with Ozpin's defeat? He just lost in front of Team STRO. I think we all know they're not going to take that lightly.

And do remember, as of the last chapter, the God of Light's given 'ol Ozpin a time limit; one he hasn't had a chance to share with anyone.

Fix the world in 50 years or it all ENDS.

Clock's ticking~!

"I just want to live a peaceful life here and help these people."

"You can't waste your potential on an island in the middle of nowhere!"

"Can. Am. Will. I'm sorry, but I can't be whatever it is you want me to be. I have a life here that I...actually like, for the most part. I have a family, an island that loves me, people who appreciate what I do and...well, I've grown to care for them. Maybe someday you'll understand. There's much more to life than being a hero."

~A reference.

A Mysterious Monster

Ozpin had...lost?

Summer couldn't bring herself to believe it, let alone wrap her mind around the horror that had just transpired in front of her. He couldn't have lost...right? This was Ozpin they were talking about. He didn't lose. The old man had been a pivotal part of her life from the moment she'd entered Beacon; he'd always seemed invincible, unable to be beaten by anyone or anything. No one could take him down. Not Hunters, not Grimm, nothing, at all. He couldn't lose. He just...couldn't. Not to someone like this.

Yet he had. There he lay, flat on his back, out cold as every faunus rejoiced.

He'd jump up any second now and laugh it off...

.

..

...but he didn't.

He'd been throwing out some pretty impressive spells by the end there, and still, it wasn't enough.

Naruto nudged his prone from now with a booted foot, idly rolling the headmaster onto his back. If nothing else, he wouldn't suffocate in the dirt. When he didn't rise, the people of Menagerie grew all the louder; then their leader pumped his fist into the air. Blond bastard didn't say a word. He didn't have too.

They went mad.

"Damn." Qrow grinned. "How the hell did he lose...?"

"Daaaaaamn." Raven echoed her brother with a long drawl, her voice nearly lost in the cheers that followed. "Never thought I'd see the day someone took the old man down a peg."

Taiyang shot her a dark glower. "You would say that...

"It just means he's weak, that's all."

Summer sank an elbow into her ribs. "Raven!"

"What?" Her teammate shrugged one shoulder, unfazed. "This "Naruto" guy is strong. No denying that. Strength is all that matters."

Qrow rolled his eyes. "Not the time, Rae...

"Whatever you say, birdbrain."

Summer narrowly resisted the urge to smack their heads together and throttle them both. Sometimes it was easy to forget about their upbringing. Maybe it really was too soon to expect empathy for anyone outside Team STRQ. She and Qrow had been raised in that god awful tribe. They weren't quite right in the head, no matter what anyone said. At least Qrow was trying to be normal. Trying being the operative word.

"Oi, Beacon team!" Someone called from the crowd. Summer wasn't sure who. "You've lost. Take your Headmaster and begone. Your kind aren't welcome here."

Raven grinned. "Is that so?" Omen slid from its sheathe with a soft hiss. "I think I'd like to go a round or two with your High Leader first...

Men and women -and more than a few children!- shrank back from the sight of that bared, bloody red blade.

Summer sensed the mood-shift too late. What was once a harmless crowd was suddenly well on its way to becoming any angry mob.

"Piss off, huntress!"

"We don't need your kind here!"

"Yeah! Go back to the Vale, you lot!"

"Make me." Raven remained, as ever, unfazed by them. "Hey, whiskers! You up for another round?

"RAVEN!" Summer latched onto her arm. "No! Bad Raven! No flirting with enemy!"

Red eyes met hers. "Ain't flirting. Its foreplay."

"Same thing!"

"Hey, hey!" Naruto whirled on his people, presenting his back to them. Summer found herself tempted to attack him in the moment. What he said next cause that crazed desire to wither. "None of that talk! I won't have you picking a fight where there's none to be had!"

No matter how you sliced it, this was a victory for Menagerie. Damnit, Oz...

If they left now after a humiliating defeat like that, they'd be leaving in disgrace. More than a few Faunus had their Scrolls out; even if they tried to downplay Ozpin's involvement -his foolishness!- Menagerie's new CCT system would see this footage broadcast over the airwaves in hours. Her mind flailed and frantically she blurted the first thing that came to mind.

"What about us?"

Naruto lowered his fist, considering them with a weather eye. "What about you?"

In her peripherals, she saw Tai and Qrow frantically shake their heads.

She ignored him. "Don't we deserve a chance to avenge him?"

"You do realize he's not dead, huntress...

"Not the point!"

Raven grinned at her.

Qrow absolutely choked.

Taiyang slapped his forehead.

...yeah, definitely not her proudest moment. But what else could she do?!

The Monster of Menagerie pivoted in place, turning to face her. "Are you out of your mind? You'll lose."

Probably! Again, what else could she do? There was no way out of this mess but through. "If we win, you have to honor Ozpin's terms!"

"And what's in it for me when I win?" The Lord of Menagerie clasped both hands behind his back and tilted his head, regarding her Team as one might a pack of harmless kittens. She hated it. His words moreso. When, he'd said. Not if. As though it were a certainty...and it probably was. "Why should I even bother to entertain you? You have nothing I want."

Summer opened her mouth. Closed it, now. Checkmate. He had her. She had nothing to offer him and he knew it.

Raven saved her. "Then tell us what you want. Simple, no?"

He rolled his eyes. "I want to be left in peace."

"Bullshit." her grin grew. "I know your kind. You want problems, always."

"Do I?" He quirked a blond brow, neither amused nor angry. "And what makes you say that?"

"I know your kind. You? You're a warrior." she thrust a finger at him, pointing his way. "You weren't made for peace."

Summer expected a sputtering denial, a disagreement at the very least. She wasn't prepared for the rusty sigh that followed. "Be that as it may, I'll say it again; what could you possibly offer me?"

Raven got an odd look in her eye then, one Summer knew all too well. Rather than retort her partner sashayed forward, a visible swing in her hips. Naruto thrust out an arm to stop her halfway. It didn't prevent her from leaning up to whisper something into his ear. Summer didn't hear what was said between the two of them; but whatever it was got his attention. His eyes flashed. He whispered something back to her, and more than one Faunus in the crowd perked up. Blast their enhanced hearing. She wished she could hear them...!

Qrow must've thought the same; because he looked like he'd swallowed a lemon. "The hell're they talking about?"

Taiyang folded both arms before his broad chest and shrugged helplessly. "Your guess is as good as mine."

Summer had a sinking suspicion as to their topic, but she daren't say it aloud.

"Well?" Raven stepped back abruptly, smiling like the cat that caught the canary and slaughtered its entire race. She offered Naruto a her hand. "Do have a deal?"

Naruto reached out and all but crushed her palm in his grasp as he shook her arm. "You'll keep your word when you lose?"

"When, is it?" For crying out loud! What the hell had she promised him?! "You shouldn't underestimate us...

"Who said anything about underestimating? I promise I'll make your defeat a clean one."

Her partner's smile became a shit-eating grin. "Promises, promises...

Summer slapped her hindquarters. "Raven! Stop! FLIRTING!"

"Never~!

"You needn't sully your fists with them." A redheaded woman with horns stepped forth from the crowd, blue eyes blazing. "Let me fight them for you."

Raven scoffed. "Hell no!"

"Anna, no." Naruto agreed. "You can't."

She glowered at him. "Are you calling me weak?"

Naruto quirked a blond brow. "In a four-on-one fight? Very much so. You're not ready."

The faunus woman glared sullenly at him. "I have aura."

"You're one of the few on this island who do. All the more reason not to risk you."

"I can handle this!"

"No, you can't. I'll be fine. They won't hurt me."

Summer thought that seemed to rile her all the more; now she looked fit to draw the sword at her side. "What makes you so sure?"

"If their headmaster couldn't beat me, what makes you think they can?"

She flung up her arms. "There's four of them for gods sake!"

He patted her arm. "Then its a fair fight."

...understood."

"Seven minutes." he rolled up his sleeves and ran a hand through his dirty hair. "Seven minutes is all I can spare to play with you."I'm going to be entirely honest here...your friend made me an offer I can't refuse." A peal of bitter laughter left him shaking his head. "Come at me." he crooked his hand at them, beckoning. "Your future hinges on this fight. Maybe you'll learn something."

Qrow drew his weapon with a tense smile. "Maybe you will."

"I very much doubt that, Branwen.

Then he was on them.

Qrow barely had timed to raise Harbinger before the blond crashed into him. Harbinger shattered like so much glass, leaving him clutching a ruined hilt. He was still balking at it when a hand closed around his startled face and smashed him down. Aura crackled and he slumped, out cold. He didn't rise again.

Summer squeaked out a breath. "Qrow?!"

Raven snapped into existence behind the blond and swung Omen at his neck...for all the good it did her. It shattered against his skin.

Credit where it was due; she didn't make the same mistake as Qrow. Even as her blade broke she kicked back off the ground, slammed Omen's hilt into her dust sheathe and leaped away. The very moment she retreated Summer rushed in to fill the gap. Naruto clicked his tongue and swept her legs, sending her tumbling to the ground. Sloppy. She cursed herself even as she sprained her ankle. She knew she'd been sloppy rushing in like that, but what other choice did she have? If she hadn't Raven would've joined Qrow on the ground.

A fist swung down after her, only for Taiyang to shoulder him aside at the last instant. A mild frown of annoyance marred those whiskered cheeks. The blond brawler latched onto his arm for dear life, trapping it against his ribs with one arm. The other reared back to deliver a devastating right hook to his face.

"You're not getting away this time!"

Every faunus in the crowd gasped as one.

Naruto took the punch on his right cheek and didn't budge. Didn't blink. His face barely even creased beneath Taiyang's fist. He turned the other cheek and smiled at Summer, grinning ear to ear.

No aura. No blood. Not a drop.

He didn't have aura. The realization chilled Summer.

How did Ozpin lose to someone without aura?! It just wasn't possible!

Taiyang slugged him again. Naruto didn't flinch. Blue eyes narrowed upon him. "Mediocre."

He ripped his arm free and quite suddenly, Taiyang found himself in the fight of his life. Raven rushed to aid him, and Summer with her.

Taiyang was a boxer through and through; he actually managed to trade blows with the Monster of Menagerie...for two seconds. It only took one mistake, one mistimed block on his part, and it was over. Clenched knuckles barreled into his face and then Tai was down, hurtling out the ring and into a building.

Raven reached him a second later and paid dearly for it; he caught her by the wrist, squeezed, and Omen tumbled from nerveless fingers. Its master soon followed as a vicious boot to the gut folded her in half. Down she went, dropping to her knees, retching.

All this in less than three seconds.

Summer struck at his exposed flank, hoping for a miracle.

The gods -destiny itself!- denied her with a harsh, resounding crunch.

Naruto caught her axe in an open palm. A finger wagged in her face. "Children should play with toys like these."

He reared back and headbutted her. Stars burst before her vision. While she reeled, stunned, he decked her with a one-two punch, swept her legs again, and finished what they'd started. Down she went into the mud face first. A harsh weight settled upon her spine and belatedly she realized he'd stomped down on he back to keep her from rising.

"Aaaand you're done."

Summer scowled into the muck.

Seven minutes?! That hadn't even felt like seven seconds!

Once more, the people of Menagerie rejoiced. Their jeers and catcalls left Summer red-faced, but none moreso than Naruto when his boot left her back. She struggled up onto her elbows and found Raven sprawled on her side. Her partner was smiling. Grinning, even. Why? They'd lost. She should be furious...right?

A pit opened in her stomach. "Rae...?"

"Hmm?" Raven's smile didn't fade. Not a bit.

What kind of deal did you make with him...?"

Raven struggled up with a groan. "The obvious one, of course. What else?"

.

..

...you're going to unlock his aura, aren't you?"

"Yup."

"That'll make him even more dangerous!"

"Yuuup."

"You can't be serious!"

"Yuuup." Raven smacked her lips loudly.

"...I really hate you sometimes, Rae."

"Love you too, Sum."

A/N: Time -and you, the readers- will tell if Raven stays.

Aaaand now we have a deadline.

Fifty years. Maybe less. Who can tell what's to come...?

You'll just have to read and see where this goes; I promise you won't be disappointed~!

As ever, the Embers rule still persists. If folks don't like this story? Well...it will remain, but I'll not continue it. I can't bear to write something no one likes. That's no joke. So by all means, speak up! Raise your voice! Make yourself heard! Your reviews matter! Really, they do! I'm literally working every day now, so I have less and less time to write. Updates might...speed up in the interim, but I know that would upset a lot of people.

So, in the Immortal words of Atlas...

...review, would you kindly?

References ahoy~!

Read all the way to the bottom, please~!

There's a surprise awaiting you~!

(Previews)

"Don't you see? No one this island knows how to properly unlock Aura. Not even Anna; she got hers through a near death experience. Raven just taught me how to unlock it naturally.

"Must be a side effect of this world."

Kali opened her mouth. Closed it, now. That absolute bitch. No wonder he'd agreed.

This would strengthen Menagerie for years to come.

"Meaning you can unlock all of ours."

Naruto grinned. "Sure can~!"

I'm going to be entirely honest with you...I hate you.

Wha-

He stepped in and drove the knife into their chest.

Do you have any idea how ANNOYING it was, putting up with you?" he dug the knife into them, drawing a pained gasp from his victim. "Pretending to tolerate you, allowing you to exist, waiting for you to lower your guard?

She smoothed out her gown and patted an empty space on the bed beside her. "Here. Rest a little."

Naruto eyed her warily. "I don't think that's a good idea right now, Kali."

"Relax. I don't bite...much."

He leaned back.

"Joking! I was only joking There's something I wanted to ask you."

"Ask, then.

She did.

"You want me to train you?!"

Kali clasped her hands. "Pleeeaaase? I'll be your best student!"

"Oi." he creaked an eye open. "What're you doing?""

She climbed atop him, the bed creaking beneath their shared weight. Her forehead touched his. "Something I should've done a long time ago...

He sniffed once. "You're drunk."

She hiccuped. "M'not!"

A dagger flicked his way in the dark. He caught it between two fingers.

Blue eyes slid to his right. He heard the crack of a sniper rifle.

The piercing round flattened against the back of his head.

Naruto blew out a short, sharp, angry breath.

...right, then. You asked for this."

"Didn't ask, don't need it, go f**k yourself!"

Anna Taurus grinned, or what passed for a grin with her. Really it was a small, taciturn smile. "We have an accord, then?"

The setting sun caught her hair and set it afire. Naruto felt his throat close. "Against my better judgement...

He reached out and hooked his hand in hers.

"Someone thrust a microphone in his face. "Are you planning another Faunus war?"

"Why're ya calling me a lord-and what?! No!' he batted the arm "When did I say that?!

It was implied. You've made a fool of Altas and Vale, destroyed a mountain in Mistral. Will the kingdom of Vacuo be next?"

Bloody journalists. He hated them.

"We have a visitor.

"I swear if that's Ozpin...

"No," Sienna shook her head, setting her hair swaying. "Its a woman." he didn't miss her pensive expression. "She's been detained down by the docks. Real strange one at that. She didn't resist. If anything she seemed almost...amused when we pulled her off that boat. Like she was humoring us.

The exact antithesis of Ozpin's entry. Why did that leave him feeling oddly concerned?

Naruto found himself tilting his head. "Did she say anything?"

"That she wanted to meet you. Nothing more."

"Dear boy, did you truly think it would be so easy? This world is against you; it will always be against you...and so you must fight to claim what is yours."

"There's someone you should meet. She's a bit strange, and she only ever comes out at night, but she's very wise! I'm sure she could help you."

"So, she's nocturnal or something? What's her name?"

"Midna."

EDIT: Surprise~!

R&R~!