Chapter 13 - No More Secrets
Vytal Festival
Despite the difficulties and sacrifices, Yang and Weiss had won the match against Team FNKI. Thus, allowing them to move onto the final round of the festival. Now was the perfect time for everyone to celebrate as another day ended in victory. Funny enough, Neon Katt wasn't even angry or disappointed by the loss.
Everyone feels happy in the after all. A little too happy.
As Winter waited to see her sister, she was met with a fierce glare… from Yang. Despite never once interacting with the girl or Yang even knowing about the insults Winter said about the team. Yang immediately shoved the girl to the side like she was an annoyance.
"What the? Such a brutish girl." Winter murmured.
Yang then proceeded to make her way out of the area and ran into Naruto. As the boy was about to congratulate her. Yang immediately hugged Naruto with a strong grip.
"Come on! Let's get some ramen before Ruby tackles us down." Yang said.
"You had me at ramen." Naruto said as he ignored everything else.
Meanwhile Winter awkwardly awaited for her younger sister who was covered in soot and ash. From having attempted to defeat Flynt Coal while Yang was distracted fighting Neon Katt who was too fast to keep up with her. Though it wasn't completely successful as Flynt still had some fight in him and it left Yang by herself to finish him off as well as Neon. Now Weiss was expecting more harsh criticism.
Honestly, it was something that Winter considered doing before remembering her talk the other day with Belmont.
"I can't say it wasn't creative." Winter said awkwardly.
"What?" Weiss asked with a confused look.
'This is going to be harder than I thought.' Winter thought as she is terrible at communication.
Outside of the stadium
As promised, Yang dragged Naruto to eat ramen with her. Luckily Ruby was distracted talking to Penny and likely saw the condition Weiss is in. Assuming Ruby didn't run into Winter, it's likely that the girl was too busy speaking with her friend to notice anything.
"You know, I was worried for Weiss there. Weiss cream is tough, but I felt like we could have done better." Yang said.
"Yang, sometimes you don't always sync with the other person. I don't know what Blake is like, but if she's anything like Squall. It's like talking to a wall with eyes that sometimes ignore you." Naruto replied.
Yang snorted, "Yeah, kitty is a bit hard to understand at first. Weiss can be cool, but…"
"No." Naruto interrupted.
"What?" Yang asked.
"You make a pun, then I make a pun then Ruby comes out of nowhere and accuses us of flirting." Naruto said with a sigh.
"I wasn't!" Yang said.
"You said Weiss is "cool" like the temperature." Naruto points out.
Yang smirked, "Ah hah! Now who's doing the jokes now?" she asked.
Naruto shook his head, "I've been hanging around you for way too long." he said.
"That's because I'm awesome. Besides, you long Yang-ing out with me." Yang said.
Naruto snorted, "You know, the other day when I used Nora as a science experiment. Ren told me something." he said getting Yang's attention. "He said that he sees me as "a slightly more smart version of Yang" of all things. Is that a good or a bad thing?" he asked.
"It's an amazing thing, obviously." Yang started to say. "Besides, if you're the smart one. Then I'm the extra fun one." She finished.
"Okay fine, I'll accept that." Naruto said.
"Anyways, what's wrong with hanging out with me?" Yang asked with a curious face.
"Eh, nothing." Naruto answered.
"Come on! Be honest with me! I won't get mad!" Yang insisted. Only to glare at him the next second, "Unless it's about my hair then… oh." She said remembering how short it was.
Naruto smiled at her, "It's fine, it's beautiful. Though I liked it when it was longer." he sad as he gently stroked the short locks. "It's like a lion's mane. It shows you're a mighty lioness." He said.
Yang blushed as she looked away, "Female lion don't have manes." she said.
With Ironwood
In Ozpin's office, the Atlas general presented his report to share with the group. At least then, he hoped Ozpin would try to be less hostile and open to his investigation. As James is still adamant about how important the presence of his military is in Vale. Especially now that the Vytal tournament is going on and has a large turnout within the crowd.
"And what did you find out Jim? What happened to the giantess?" Qrow asked.
"I don't know yet, but this isn't the first time something like this appeared." James said as he presented his tablet to Ozpin. "This isn't the first time something this big has been in Vale." he said as Ozpin read the reports.
"From the survivors of Mountain Glenn's explosion?" Ozpin asked.
"I can confirm that the city wasn't wiped out because of a sudden Grimm attack. The destruction was too big even for a horde that big and even with the Goliaths patrolling the atrea." James explained.
"So what made it?" Qrow asked.
Ozpin looked a bit concerned, "The Titan?" he asked.
"Yes and no, the witnesses are still shaken up to this day. Though they claim that the one they saw was a lot bigger and looked like it's flesh was exposed." James said as Ozpin saw the sketches of the creature. "Unlike the female who we estimate to be around 14 to 15 meters tall. This other one appears to be over three times as tall and much wider." he continued to explain.
"And did this one disappear in the same manner as the one from a few days ago?" Ozpin asked.
James nodded, "Unfortunately it did, I sent a team to seek out any signs of crystallization like with the female. Only nothing was recovered, but a secret lab." he answered.
"What sort of laboratory?" Glynda asked.
"I'm not entirely sure, but it belonged to Merlot. Along with some of his research." Jame said surprising Ozpin.
"Merlot is behind the creation of the Titans?" Ozpin asked as he quickly stood up.
"I am not sure as I said, I recommend more investigations. He did try to recreate Merlot Industries again, along with trying to experiment on the Grimm. Although, with the destruction, the team was lucky enough to find anything related to him at all." James explained.
Qrow sighed, "So the crazy old man is probably out there?" he asked.
"If he is, then he needs to be found right away." Ozpin said as he saw Merlot as another regrettable mistake.
Glynda also had her concerns, "James you are leaving out the behavior." she said.
"Pardon me?" James asked, sounding confused.
"The behavior James, the female Titan sealed up the destroyed road and disappeared. Does your information state anything about the behavior of the other Titan?" Glynda explained.
"Other than the fact it's capable of destruction just by moving. Then the answer is no and that's enough to know that these things are threat." James answered. "We can't tell how intelligent these creatures are, but they are dangerous. The Grimm are one thing, but we aren't sure how strong these creatures are." he said feeling paranoid about the Titans returning.
As with the information he provided with Ozpin. The Atlas scientist reports about the crystallization is mentioned as well. With details about how strong the material is and the various tests going through it. Leaving Ozpin understanding that the Titans are very large creatures with immense strength and possibly able to manipulate a crystal like element. Now the headmaster's concern is the same as Glynda's.
What is their behavior? Are they intelligent? Do they perceive friend from foe?
"We will have to worry about this afterwards. This is not a subject we can study for right now." Ozpin said.
"Then what do you want to talk about Oz?" Qrow asked.
"Amber and the new Fall maiden who will replace her." Ozpin answered.
Before Ozpin could begin this conversation. He reached into some files in his desk. However, before he could pull them out, he took a quick look at the name of the first file.
Ruby Rose
Ozpin quickly moved it to the side, the last thing he needed was more of Qrow's concerns. Besides, the girl was too young and only recently started recovering from the trauma Raven inflicted on her. Another one of his mistakes, now it's actually do more harming than good.
'It could be worse, at least she's not associating with Salem.' Ozpin thought.
While it does sound like a stupid concern that would never happen. No one can ever predict what goes on in the mind of Qrow's older twin.
Later that night
As the day ended and everyone fell asleep hoping to feel rested for tomorrow's next round of the Vytal Festival. Naruto was stirring around in his sleep. Sweat drenching down his body, his body moving erratically and from the look on his face. Naruto was not experiencing a good dream.
In Naruto's mind
Naruto was a child and he was by himself. While still within the vicinity of his home town. He came across a strange woman who was hiding her face behind a cloak as if she didn't want anyone to see her. Despite being a stranger, Naruto was optimistic that every person has some good in them. Thus when he came to the woman and saw her face, the woman looked at the young boy curiously.
"Are you not afraid of me little boy?" the woman asked as she lowered her cloak a bit.
Naruto could see that the woman did not look natural. She was clearly not human, not faunus either. Her skin and hair as white as milk, her eyes bright red and several black marks surrounding her face.
"I'm not scared miss, I don't think you're a bad person. We can be friends miss." Naruto said with a bright smile.
As his parents had taught him to treat others with respect regardless of appearance. Naruto didn't think it was right to mistreat this woman based on her appearance. Rather only judging her by character.
"If the circumstances were any different, I would be honored to be your friend, child, but unfortunately that won't be possible." said the woman with a hint of sadness in her voice.
The woman was briefly happy, the melancholic look on her faced by hearing the kindness in the boy's voice.
"But why? My father and mother always told me that everyone needs friends, even if we don't like someone, if we give that person a chance, we can create a bond, that's how I met Sayuri-chan and she's my best friend." said the confused boy.
"That is a very beautiful belief my child, but unfortunately life is never that simple, but as I like you I promise I will make it quick my little friend." the woman told him.
"Fast? What do you mean by that?" asked the curious boy.
"Your death." Answered the pale-skinned woman
End of dream
Naruto shot up from bed, "Damn witch." he murmured.
In his panicked state, Naruto lost all sense of exhaustion. He looked at the clock and noticed it was 3 am in the morning. It would be difficult to go back to bed at this point. Naruto was lucky that none of his teammates were awakened by his panic. If they did, they would have noticed his metamorphic change. His tan skinned turning white, his bright blond hair turning white as well and his blue eyes turning red.
Even Naruto didn't notice the change right away. Physical appearance isn't something that he wanted to share with everyone.
The next morning
Naruto sighed as he rubbed his face, he felt tired but not in the sense of needing sleep. Maybe the exhaustion was an emotional state he was feeling.
'Damn witch.' Naruto thought for the 20th time in a span of four hours.
Feeling that he couldn't sleep after an hour. Naruto got out of bed and changed unlike his reckless little sister. He left a note on his pillow to avoid any concerns from his teammates. Maybe Squall would be the only one feeling concerned. Naruto is still optimistic about the boy being his new friend.
'I guess that thought helps me feel a bit better.' Naruto thought before sensing someone in the vicinity.
"You look stressed." said a familiar voice.
Naruto looked up to find Cinder, "Oh hey Cinder, you woke up early too?" He asked.
"I felt a bit too energized or something, I can't explain it." Cinder said as she took a seat next to him. "What about you? Sleep troubles?" she asked.
"You could say that." Naruto said he rubbed his eyes. "It's probably this Vytal tournament stuff. I don't know why I feel worked up. I'm probably not even going to fight in the finals." he said.
"I'm not fighting today either and besides. I thought this meant to promote, not violence." Cinder said.
Naruto snorted, "Oh yeah, peace through violence without the need for war. Maybe that should be an exam, but it would be hard to avoid any deaths." he said.
"A competition where multiple foreign individuals battle and with little chance of survival. But for what? Prestige?" Cinder asked.
"I know it, that sounds stupid." Naruto said.
"I wouldn't call it that. You're smart, just… lacking in refinement." Cinder said as she moved closer.
However, before she could get closer to Naruto and learn more about him. Naruto started feeling some strange negative feelings. Firstly, he felt a mix of greed and envy followed by panic. However, the panic wasn't coming from Cinder herself. Instead, Naruto noticed that Team WBY had arrived looking frantic.
"Hey, is everything alright?" Naruto asked.
"It's Ruby, she's missing from her bed again." Weiss answered.
"She's not picking her scroll either." Blake added.
Naruto sighed as he stood up, "Okay, calm down. Ruby always does this. Have you checked anywhere?" he asked.
"We checked the gym, the cafeteria, the zen garden…" Weiss said before being interrupted.
"This place has a zen garden?" Naruto asked.
"That's beside the point, we even checked around the Emerald Forest and no Ruby." Weiss said.
"Okay, let me think. Ruby isn't too reckless." Naruto said as he started thinking. Though he couldn't do that as he sensed negative emotions from Yang, "Yang, if you want to say something say. You can talk to me. I can feel your thoughts all way over here." he said.
Blake and Weiss looked at Yang who's eyes flickered between violet and red. Even Cinder felt a bit unnerved by the fury leaking off of Yang.
"My little sister is missing and instead of getting worried. You're here talking to pretty girls like nothing is happening." Yang said as she tried to restrain her sudden anger.
Naruto briefly looked back at Cinder who smirked at him and Yang. Maybe it did look bad and in his own defense, Naruto has lost Ruby a couple of times in the past. At least then, he was able to find her in a couple of hours. At least now, Ruby is capable of defending herself and she's not reckless enough to leave campus without notice.
"It's not what it looks like! I swear!" Naruto said as he blushed.
"No, I think I do know what's going on. I guess, I shouldn't have had high hopes." Yang said as she looked away.
"Hey, this isn't anything!" Naruto tried to say.
"Oh, so you're one of those types of guys?" Yang asked with a critical eye.
"Yang!" Weiss snapped, making Yang drop her serious act. "Stop being jealous! We're looking for Ruby remember!?" she asked.
"Crap, that's right!" Yang exclaimed.
"Look, I'll get to work. Ruby is probably hiding somewhere on campus." Naruto said. "Sorry to cut our conversation short Cinder, but I gotta go find that sneaky little sister of mine." he said before creating several Shadow Clones and spreading out.
"No worries! We can catch up later!" Cinder yelled as Naruto left. "It was nice seeing you all." she said to WBY as she stood up and left.
All the while smirking at Yang. Despite how angry Yang looked, Cinder couldn't help but tease the girl. It was very obvious she had feelings for Ruby's surrogate brother and it gave the woman some satisfaction to give her the wrong idea.
"I hate that girl." Yang said.
"Yang, now is not a good time to be jealous." Weiss said.
"I'm not!" Yang said.
"Yang, he's literally a male version of you, but slightly more serious." Weiss said. "Don't think I didn't hear you ask him out right before our fight." she added.
Yang started to run, "I'm coming Ruby!" She yells as to avoid the conversation.
"Yang sure is defensive." Blake commented before they continued the search.
With Ruby
In a less populated area with less eyes, Ruby was avoiding waves of sharp ice heading towards her. After avoiding nearly being impaled, Ruby used her semblance to avoid the next waves of ice coming right at her. While moving around in a wave petals, Ruby directed herself towards her opponent who tried to unleash a wave of icicles at her only to miss completely.
"Give me back my mask, crazy army lady!" Ruby shouted as she tried to attack her foe with her whip.
Esdeath laughed as she caught the end of the whip, "Do I need to repeat myself girl?" she asked as she pulled Ruby towards her. "It's my trophy now." She said, further infuriating the younger girl.
Ruby snarled as he generated a crystal sword and started swinging at Esdeath. Esdeath parried half of the strikes and found herself having to adjust her stance with the other half. Blocking was working when Ruby was fast and strong, as if she could somehow balance her styles during the fight. Esdeath merely grinned at Ruby during each strike before kicking the girl in the abdomen.
Ruby quickly recovered with a backflip before witnessing another wave of icicles flying at her. Ruby generated a second and started cutting through every shard of ice that came her way before running straight towards Esdeath.
After a brief clash of blades, Ruby threw both swords at Esdeath who barely avoided them. Right before Ruby tried landing a few punch with her crystalized fist. Only to be uppercutted by Esdeath who coated her own fist with ice. Upon hitting the ground, Ruby looked up to see Esdeath giving her a sadistic smirk as she slowly walked up to the girl. Further angering Ruby with the appearance of her fists being covered in ice, very similar to Ruby's own trademark technique.
"I must confess, this is not my style of fighting, but crystalizing by fists to strengthen my punches is a good idea." Esdeath said as she looked at her ice covered hands. "You have my thanks little girl." she said.
Ruby quickly stood up and prepared herself again.
"Let us see who can hit the hardest." Esdeath said as the two charged at each other.
Ruby missed her first punch allowing Esdeath to kick her in the stomach. After staggering the younger girl, Esdeath quickly aimed her fist for Ruby's head. Yet when the punch landed, Esdeath winced as she stumbled back as her fist ended up hitting Ruby's forehead. Which was crystalized at the last second, ruining the impact as a result.
Ruby returned the favor by head butting Esdeath, causing the woman to stumble back further and dropping her hat a result. Esdeath wanted to be mad, but she wasn't despite Ruby's survivalist style of fighting. Esdeath probably would have applauded enguiniety like that where Ruby was fighting skillfully with weapons and then fighting ferociously as if she lived in the worst neighborhoods in Vale. However, as Esdeath was about to continue her fun.
A giant barrier of ice came between her and Ruby. Though the Atlas officer could hear a loud crash and saw a few cracks building up in the back. No doubt Ruby was trying to hit Esdeath and the impact of her fist was still able to damage the barrier. Esdeath glared as she turned around to see the person behind the creation of the ice wall.
"Do you have anything better to do Schnee?" Esdeath said out of irritation as Winter revealed herself. "Instead of getting in my way, you should be doing your part like a puppy wagging your tail and doing whatever James says." ended Esdeath by mocking Weiss' older sister.
"Shouldn't you be leading a mission instead of picking battles with academy students?" Winter countered.
As the battle between the Ice Queen and the Ice Empress heated up. No one noticed a shadowy figure abducting Ruby in the background.
At the dorms, a few minutes later
Ruby was tied to a chair and screaming despite having a strip of duct tape over her mouth. She was begging and pleading with her captor and even went as far as to give them puppy eyes.
"Ruby, that's not working on me." Naruto said, revealing himself to be the captor. "What do you think you were doing there?" he asked.
Ruby whimpered as she lowered her head.
"You are going to explain to me what you were doing fighting an Atlas soldier. Otherwise, I'm going to punish you." Naruto said.
Ruby turned her head to the side as if to act silent. Kind of hoping that her adoptive brother would forget and move on. The last thing she wanted to do was explain her situation. At least until Naruto said something threatening.
"Ruby, I'm going to give you something much worse than salty cookies." Naruto said making Ruby raise her eyebrow. "You can come in now, Weiss." he said.
Suddenly the door opened and Ruby saw Weiss with a scary look on her face. Ruby immediately started begging and pleading as she stomped her feet on the floor.
"Ruby! Where were you!?" Weiss asked angrily.
Ruby was trying to reason with Weiss behind her muffled voice. However, despite her words being inaudible. Weiss knew that what her friend was only making up excuses and not telling the truth. Which made the Ice Princes have to use dangerous methods.
"It's going to be like that then?" Weiss asked as she stretched her fingers. "Very well, I hope you take this time to reflect, bestie." she said.
Ruby screamed behind her tape gag as she tried to break free of the chair's bindings. Weiss removed the tape then grabbed onto Ruby's cheeks.
"Weiss no! Please! We're friends! Friends don't torture each other for information!" Ruby cried.
"Then tell the truth dolt!" Weiss commanded as she started pinching Ruby's cheeks.
"OUCH! Big brother, this is cruel and unusual punishment!" Ruby yelled.
"This is just a girl looking out for her friend. I see nothing wrong." Naruto responded.
Weiss smirked as she kept pinching Ruby. With Ruby yelling out that she's been betrayed by her family.
By the time it was over, Ruby was fighting back the tears as her cheeks were bright red from Weiss' pinching her. Ruby also struggled to fight back the tears as she felt abused. Though there was no other choice than for the girl to tell the truth.
Naruto sighed as he bent a knee to look at the girl, "Ruby, I don't like it when I have to let Weiss hurt you. I know you don't like it either." he said.
Ruby whimpered as her cheeks started to swell, "Promise not to be mad at me?" she asked.
"I promise only Weiss will be mad. Maybe Yang too, but you don't care about her opinion." Naruto said as Ruby couldn't argue with that logic.
"And what about Blake?" Weiss asked.
"Weiss, nobody cares about Blake's opinion by this point. Just look at Squall." Naruto answered.
Weiss gave Naruto a blank stare, "If that's how we're doing things. Then just forget I ever said anything." she said.
Naruto turned back to Ruby, "Now, why were you fighting Commander… Lizbeth was it?" he asked. "Was that her name? Lizbeth? Dispith? Is-deaf?" he asked.
Weiss groaned, "Esdeath, she's the most psychotic and dangerous officer in Atlas." she said.
"Oh good, care to share some wisdom Weiss?" Naruto asked, hoping for Weiss to give them details.
Weiss sighed, "Literally the worst person Ruby could gain the attention of. That woman may be crazy, but she's not incompetent. Though she is very unconventional." she said.
Being an Atlas native, Weiss is fully aware of the exploits of Esdeath who was a major before her arrival at Vale. As Weiss just said, the woman is less than stable and anything but a traditional Atlas soldier. Naruto and Ruby already met Winter and she clearly fits the norms of being an officer ranked soldier in the military. Then there's Esdeath who does uphold the code, but to a certain extent.
"Much to my disbelief, Esdeath is a fairly decent commander. They say she's only lusting for battle but prefers engaging with people over Grimm. At the very least she's mindful of civilians and her own men." Weiss explained, though she sounds like she's not a fan.
"Okay, at least it's someone with a shred of humanity in them." Naruto said.
"Be that as that may, despite the gap of authority between her and General Ironwood. Ruby has screwed up and got the wrong attention again." Weiss said.
Naruto narrowed his eyes at Ruby, "What did you do?" he asked.
"Nothing! That crazy lady is obsessed with me! I don't even know how she found me when she attacked me earlier!" Ruby argued.
Naruto sighed, he can't help but wonder if the world hates him. From what Naruto just remembered, that's the same Atlas officer that Ruby fought. Clearly covering Ruby's face with her mask wasn't enough. Actually, besides her red hood, Ruby's defining trait was her mask. It was likely that stupid viral video of Ruby fighting Pyrrha.
"I'm going to destroy the wifi signal on campus." Naruto said as he brandished his sword.
"Hey! Untie me first!" Ruby yelled as her brother left. "Weiss?" she asked.
"No cookies for you! Consider yourself grounded!" Weiss exclaimed.
Ruby got teary eyed in response making Weiss groan.
"Only one cookie tonight, just one!" Weiss said, but Ruby still felt depressed. "Ruby, we care about you. Except you make it worse when you're not telling us about the trouble you get into." she said.
"Some secrets are best kept silence Weiss." Ruby responded, referring to her Titan transformations.
"I know Ruby, "that" is an exception. Except when it comes to a crazy military woman, you have to speak up. Okay?" Weiss asked.
"Okay." Ruby answered.
"Anyways, you should explain everything when Yang and Blake get back." Weiss said. "So that leaves me with plenty of time to adjust your makeup. Hopefully no one noticed your eye marks." she said.
"No! I don't wanna look like a clown!" Ruby yelled as she tried kicking Weiss away,
Only to find her feet frozen in ice, "No arguments Ruby. Besides, it's a good thing we picked Yang to fight in the finals tonight." Weiss said as Ruby's further participation would have gotten more attention had she fought in round 2 and 3.
"Big brother help! Weiss is turning me into a clown!" Ruby shouted.
Later that night
Naruto sighed, he didn't destroy the wireless internet servers like he said he would. Though he still had to fight for his team since Josuke had more faith that Naruto could handle combatants that could disarm him or move fast Adam. As he walked up to the center of the stage alongside the other finalists, he briefly saw Yang give him a smile as well as a wink.
"We got this." Yang mouthed.
Naruto snorted as he stood at attention with everyone else.
"Good evening ladies and gentlemen and welcome to the finals! These lucky contestants have fought to the best of their ability and not only represent their respective academy, but their world in general!" Oobleck announced.
"I couldn't have said it any better Bart. For tonight, only one huntsmen will be left standing." Port said as everyone's names appeared on the screen.
With introductions and speeches having been given. The ceremonious part of the Vytal Festival's tournament was ready to begin. With everyone waiting for who would be fighting first to kick off the start of the tournament.
Naruto Belmont vs Artha Penn
Naruto snorted, "Might as well be done early." he muttered.
"Everyone but Naruto and Artha, please leave the arena." Port announced.
Naruto stretched his arms and legs as he saw his opponent getting ready too. Artha was a young man with a fair build with dark hair, a white jacket and blue pants. His weapon appeared to be a custom made retractable staff with unknown abilities.
"Hey pal, don't get mad if I win. You know, sportsmanship and stuff." Artha said a bit arrogantly.
"Then don't get mad, when I win." Naruto countered.
Artha snickered, "Sure, whatever." he responded as he swings his staff over his head. "Let's do this." he said.
"Round 1 of the finals may now begin!" Oobleck announced.
With that being said, Naruto rushed at Artha with a quick thrust with his sword. Artha hopped out of the way and avoided a couple more strikes before blocking one. Feeling confident, Artha parried the blow and tried to land a kick towards Naruto's face only to have his foot grabbed. Naruto ruined his foe's momentum and shoved Artha's foot away causing him to stumble.
Artha quickly caught himself as to avoid falling, but then found himself being staggered. As Naruto dealt a few more slashes at Artha who was barely able to block the strikes. Before falling onto his back after a clumsy attempt to parry one of the blows. Artha quickly rolled away as to avoid a slow slash from Naruto's sword. Naruto kept his guard up as he saw Artha trying to focus as he saw Naruto as a strong opponent. That's when Artha flipped a switch on his weapon and revealed an extension that released some electricity at the end.
Artha rushed at Naruto and tried to jab him with his weapon in quick succession. Only to miss every time before Naruto parried one of the jabs and made Artha lose control of his grip. Finding himself stumbling back again, this allowed Naruto to deal a heavy kick to Artha's chest, making the dark haired boy crash across the arena floor. Artha groaned as he slowly tried to stand up again.
As Artha attempted to reach out for his weapon, he found a chain wrapped around his arm that started pulling him towards Naruto. Like trying to reel in a fish, Naruto used the handle on his sword to drag Artha towards him with the boy trying his best to resist.
'This kid needs to refine his skills, he's good but not prepared for someone faster and physically stronger.' Naruto thought before watching Artha glow gold.
"Release The Dragon!" Artha yells as his aura glows brightly.
Naruto had to let go of Artha as he jumped away from his opponent. When the the bright colored aura calmed down, Naruto saw Artha riding around on an ethereal looking reptilian.
"That's one big lizard." Naruto said as he raised his sword.
"Not a lizard, a dragon!" Artha said as he charges straight towards Naruto.
Only missing him due to the Belmont bursting into petals to move over him.
In the stands
Josuke looked up at the aura meters with a raised brow, "This Artha guy has a lot of aura." he said.
Naruto Belmont: 96%
Artha Penn: 80%
"The dragon looks like pretty strong if it moves that quickly and ferociously." Josuke commented.
"It doesn't mean Artha is any more accurate." Adam added.
They watched their teammate as Artha kept trying to land quick strikes around him. Despite the greater speed and the good use of the staff being treated like a javelin. Artha still lacks that accuracy and often resorts to either wildly flailing or quick thrusts.
"You got this big brother!" Ruby yelled.
"Again, I feel like you just want everyone's attention." Weiss told her.
"Relax Weiss, what's wrong with giving some energy out there." Josuke said. "Besides, this tournament is supposed to be about peace and friendship right? So try to let up a little." he said.
Weiss scoffed as she looked away.
"Weiss doesn't know what fun is." Ruby said.
"I do know." Weiss countered.
"No you don't." Blake said.
"Go back to reading your porn." Weiss snapped.
The men gave Blake various looks ranging from concern to slight disgust. If Blake had not been wearing her bow, they could see her cat ears lowering out of embarrassment. At the same time, her cheeks turned red from the embarrassment of Weiss exposing her secret.
"I'm going to try and pretend that I didn't hear that." Josuke said.
*CRASH*
"What was that?" Josuke asked.
"Naruto let his guard down!" Weiss exclaimed.
Ruby was about to say something when she looked around the corner of the stands to find a black feather fall. The girl growled as she gripped the handle of her seat. Causing to break apart with the amount of pressure she put into it.
A few seconds earlier, back in the arena
As Naruto avoided Artha's disorganized strikes, he felt a sudden increase of frustration but it wasn't coming from Artha. As Naruto kept avoiding Artha's attacks, he briefly noticed a black bird circling over the arena. It was easy to notice with how bright the arena was but with all of this energy and attention fixed on his fight. Naruto could see the red eyed avian moving around him.
Naruto glared at the bird and it resulted in him not focusing on Artha's next strike. Where the dragon rider had slammed his staff into the floor, creating a large shockwave that went straight for Naruto. Causing him to get hit and slide towards the edge of the arena.
"What the?" Naruto asked before avoiding Artha's dragon.
Naruto shook his head as he looked up and saw the bird was missing. He quickly raised up his sword to block Artha's next strike. After returning his focus back to Artha, Naruto quickly used Petal Burst to flying straight towards Artha.
After another failed attempt at trying to hit Naruto. Naruto quickly returned to normal and launched his chain at Artha and grabbed onto his arm. Artha fought back hanging onto his aura dragon and forcing it to move the other way. Resulting in Naruto being dragged along with the dragon as he kept trying to pull Artha off of his dragon.
"Don't you dare give up!" Yang shouted.
Naruto looked back to see Yang almost jumping out of the fighter's pit to say that. Artha on the other hand, looked distracted as he also noticed Yang.
"Wow, Vale does have hot chicks. I wonder if she's single." Artha said loudly enough for Naruto to hear.
Naruto's eyes literally flashed red as his body was surrounded by a lot of fire.
(RWBY OST - I Burn)
As Artha's aura dragon continued to run around the arena. Naruto quickly balanced himself and stomped his foot into the arena. He then found the strength to start pulling Artha back, but the boy was doing his best to stay on his dragon. Only finding himself finally being pulled off and having his aura dragon dissolved.
As Artha was pulled back in mid air by Naruto's chain. He found himself slamming into Naruto's outstretched arm and then being slammed into the floor.
"That hurt!" Artha grunted.
Artha tried reaching out for his weapon only to realize he dropped it when Naruto dragged him off of his aura dragon. Naruto quickly slashed at Artha's chest once his stood up. Causing him to skid across the arena once again.
Feeling desperate, Artha did his best to stand up quickly while avoiding Naruto's chain from hitting him again. Relying on the minimal hand to hand training he had, Artha tried dealing a couple of kicks and a punch towards the face. Only for each one to be blocked and with Naruto dealing a heavy blow to his adomen. Causing Artha to grunt as he staggered back as he finally noticed Naruto's look. Artha felt like this power was vageuly familiar before he heard Yang yelling in the distance.
Artha didn't entirely know what was going on, but did have one realization.
"That's your girlfriend isn't?" Artha asked.
Naruto sweeped his leg and made Artha hit the floor again.
"My bad bro!" Artha grunted before trying to land a quick kick from the floor.
Naruto blocked the kick with his sword as well as a second one. Artha found the strength to try a third kick only to find his leg being grabbed. Naruto then proceeded to use his strength to lift up Artha by the same leg.
"Is it too late surrender?" Artha asked.
Naruto gently put him down and let Artha stand up.
"And the winner is Belmont!" Oobleck announced as the crowd cheered.
Naruto quickly snapped out of his semblance and saw Artha's face, "Uh… sorry about that." he said.
Artha gave him a nervous chuckle, "No problem, sorry for hitting on your girlfriend." he said before stumbling towards his staff and leaving.
Naruto sighed as he rubbed his head, 'I really donked out, didn't I? Did I use Yang's Semblance?' he wondered as he left the arena. 'Then that bird. What was that? A crow? No, a raven.' he thought as he left.
With the fighters
Yang smiled and ran up to Naruto only to see a worried look on his face, "Hey, is something the matter?" she asked.
"Something is very wrong." Naruto said.
Yang looked a bit hurt, "Should I have stayed quiet?" she asked.
"It's not that, besides I think that motivated me." Naruto said, making Yang feel a bit happy. "The issue is this bird I saw. I know it's crazy, but I could feel it's emotions." He said.
Yang looked shocked, "A bird? What kind of bird?" she asked, sounding concerned.
"A black one and it was flying over the arena. I don't think anyone noticed it." Naruto said as Yang didn't see it either.
Even the little space where everyone was waiting for their matches. There were still some television screens with live footage of the fights. So with all of the angles, they could have noticed the bird. Yet even if that were true, no avian was smart enough to move around without being spotted. then again, a random bird showing up wouldn't have just moved over the fights like a vulture.
"I'm going to look for it. It wasn't an ordinary bird." Naruto said.
"Let me come with you." Yang said.
"Yang Xiao Long and Mercury Black!" Oobleck announced through the television.
"Crap." Yang said. "I'll just forfeit." she said, deep down having a good idea of what that bird is.
"No, stay here. I don't mind the help but I don't want to get too much attention on me." Naruto said.
"But…" Yang tried to argue.
"Just stay here, represent your team, please." Naruto said as he now sensed a lot of distress in Yang.
"If something happens to you…"
"I'll be fine." Naruto said as he gave her a confident smile. "Now go win. I want to face you in the finals." he said in an attempt to motivate her.
"Fine." Yang said as she walked up to the arena.
A few minutes later, outside of beacon
As Naruto went to locate the bird he sensed. A young girl was approaching Beacon with a fleet of bullhead airships while holding a small dog in her arms.
"We're almost there Kuro, we're gonna hurt Blake and her friends for being mean to you. Bad kitties shouldn't hurt you." the girl said as the dog whimpered. The dog suddenly growled as they came close, "Hold on, we just have to wait for that Cinder lady to do her dumb speech. When she's done, we can rip out her throat." she said.
As the bullheads discreetly arrived and every member of the White Fang took their positions. The girl with the dog saw one of the many television screens showing live footage of the current Vytal Tournament battle between Yang and Mercury. Just as Yang was declared victorious and prepared to leave. The girl with the dog saw Yang suddenly turn around and walk up to Mercury before punching his leg, causing a loud cracking sound to be heard with Mercury crying out in pain.
That's when the live feed showed Yang being surrounded by several Atlaslesian Knight drones. Yang looked genuinely confused by why the robots under Ironwood's command were surrounding her. As if Yang believed she had done nothing wrong and was being threatened for no reason right as Mercury was taken away by the medics.
"Wasn't that the same guy that teamed up with that Cinder person?" one of the White Fang asked.
"He is." the girl answered.
"Does this mean the plan is being changed if one of that woman's allies is down?" another White Fang member asked.
"Of course not, he's being a drama queen. That guy has metal legs, I know because Kuro ripped one of them out once." the girl answered.
"Then we'll await your orders, Seiryu." the same White Fang member said.
At the same time, someone else was standing on a rooftop. Watching as they saw Yang's unprovoked assault against Mercury looping a couple of times.
"You're finally acting like a Branwen Yang. Though it's too late for you, daughter." said a woman in red battle armor. "I want to see more of what Summer's daughter became." she said.
"You will never know." Naruto said as he appeared behind the woman.
The woman quickly turned and slashed at Naruto. Only to realize she hit nothing as petals were flying around the air.
"What the?" the woman asked before being kicked in the stomach.
After skidding towards the edge of the roof. The woman recovered, while mentally berating herself for getting caught and hit so easily.
"I remember the stories Ruby told me about a bird scaring her when she was little. A long with a woman who left her to die in the woods by herself." Naruto said.
But the woman smirked behind her mask, "I turned her the way she is. Unlike my real daughter, I helped Ruby grow strong. It's all because of me that she's worth anything now." she said.
Naruto gave the woman a dead stare, "If you want to take credit for someone else's accomplishments. That's just fine." he said before his sclera turned black and his eyes turned red. The woman stumbled as she felt afraid for some reason, "But if you're going to act like that makes you anything important. You're dead wrong." he said.
The woman gritted her teeth, "Then maybe I should show you what I can accomplish." she said as she drew her blade.
"Another thing, I remember my mom's journals always mentioning the mistakes my aunt Summer made." Naruto said.
The woman didn't respond as she quickly tried to strike at Naruto before he could move. Only she made the mistake of blinking too soon. The woman found herself being dragged by under her feet by golden chains.
'Damn it! Kushina's semblance!' the woman thought.
"I think this meeting is long overdue Raven. You're lucky I'm the one that found you, instead of Ruby." Naruto said before the fight started.
TO BE CONTINUED…
JASN Chibi! - Smoothies
Todd the smoothie guy walked up to the counter, "Order for Cindy!" he shouts.
"Cinder! My name is Cinder! I come here everyday Todd!" Cinder said angrily. "Damn millennials." she said.
Todd snorted, "Whatever, Cindy." he said.
Cinder did her best to control her rage as she almost ignited a fire from her hand.
Later
Cinder and Emerald sat in the car behind the smoothie shop as they waited for Mercury to finish up his assignment in the smoothie shop.
"What is taking him so long?" Cinder asked, losing her patience.
"Cinder, you do realize that Mercury is an assassin and not a bomb expert right?" Emerald asked.
"I don't care! Todd must pay!" Cinder said angrily. "I'm activating the bomb now." she said.
"Wait!" Emerald said, trying to stop Cinder.
The bomb went off and everyone screamed in terror as the smoothie shop was reduced to a smoldering mess of flames. As everyone escaped the burning building thinking it was a terrorist attack. Emerald looked around with some worry while Cinder laughed victoriously.
"I've burned you down to "cinders" Todd." Cinder said just as a robotic leg crashed through her window.
"Oh Oum!" Emerald yelled. When Mercury suddenly crashed onto the car, "Crap! Mercury!" she called out.
"Did we get Todd?" Cinder asked, not at all concerned with Mercury's wellbeing.
Mercury groaned, "Todd, doesn't work… Wednesday." he said before passing out.
Cinder angrily hit her steering wheel, "They must have changed the schedule." she said.
"I think Mercury needs a doctor." Emerald said.
"Just glue his leg back on. If that won't work, just get some staples." Cinder said before driving off. "Mercury, if your blood can't be washed off. It's coming out of your paycheck." she said.
"Salem doesn't pay us." Emerald said but Cinder didn't care.
If it was any consolation. Todd was out of a job now. Though he would probably refer to Cinder as "Cindy" if he saw her on the street or at a new work place.
END OF JASN CHIBI