Chapter 10

The grandmaster followed his current companion through the bustling streets of Mistral. The streets were filled with people going about their daily lives, cars passing by on the road, with even an occasional rickshaw being seen. It was a bustling city for certain. The two men made their way from the lower part of the city towards the middle on foot. Jiro wanted to use public transportation or a cab but Hanzo was against it, preferring to walk so as to more easily memorize the layout of the city. One could notice the better quality and state of the buildings as they went further away from the lower part of the city and into the middle. The middle part of the city was not as large as the lower section or as grand as the upper part but it served as a buffer zone between them, between the two distinct classes of people living in the city. Hanzo was not a fool to think that just because the upper part of the city looked nicer and more inviting that people in it were any better than their less fortunate counterparts. Looks can often be deceiving, a well-dressed man might look a gentleman and yet in truth be a scoundrel and a person dressed in rags might look like a thief but in actuality be an honest soul.

They passed by houses, shops, and various buildings until finally reached their destination. Jiro stopped in front of a tailor shop. Hanzo gave it a quick glance, there was nothing particularly suspicious about it, but a man can be wrong.

"Come on, let's not waste time," Jiro said and proceeded to enter the establishment. The sound of a bell alerted the ones inside of the duo's entrance. Well, one inside actually, as there was only an old seamstress hard at work patching up what looked to be a kimono. As Hanzo and Jiro entered she barely lifted her gaze from her work to see who has entered her shop before lowering it back down, making sure every movement of needle and thread was flawless. Jiro walked over to her, Hanzo standing behind the huntsman. "Have Ciara and the kids arrived yet?" The woman did not give a verbal response but just a simple nod before motioning with her head toward the door at the back of the shop. Jiro looked at the door and proceeded to walk towards it, Hanzo following. The Shirai Ryu glanced over to the old woman who did not pay any attention to them, at least it appeared so but years of experience allowed Hanzo to notice even the smallest things, like how the woman's eyes fixed upon him for a brief moment before looking away. "Don't take it the wrong way, she's not much a talker, or she just doesn't like people, I have yet to figure it out." Jiro opened the door and went inside the back room, Hanzo following.

"Honey! I'm back!" Jiro said, his voice slightly raised.

"About damn time you showed up," a slightly gruff male voice responded.

"Well, the traffic is a killer..." Jiro responded before adding. "Besides I brought a new addition to our merry band."

Hanzo stepped inside the room, his eyes going over every detail in quick succession. The room was filled with stored clothes, cloth, various other sawing materials, several chairs, and a large sawing table, and around it, three individuals stood. The first was the man who spoke, a gruff-looking young man with messy raven black hair, red eyes white and gray shirt, and black pants, His arms were crossed and he was giving Hanzo a questioning look. The second person was a ginger-haired woman with green eyes wrapped in two pigtails and glasses, a dog's tail hanging from her beck. She was of average height, wore black pants, a white shirt, and emerald green buttoned-up west over it. The third and final person in the room was a young pale-skinned woman with dark hair that turned red at the tips and interestingly silver-colored eyes. She wore a dark red and black skirt dress while her shoulders and back were covered by a white cloak. Hanzo has noticed during his travels that in this world, the color of one's hair and eyes vary drastically from what is considered normal on Earth. Yet, silver-colored eyes were a new sight for certain. The red-eyed man was giving him a distrustful look, while the two women looked intrigued. Hanzo looked over the three and gave a nod in greeting.

"And who exactly did you bring us Jiro?" the ginger-haired woman asked, her tone did little to hide her suspicion.

"Guys, may I introduce Kuai Liang," Jiro said, motioning his hand toward Hanzo. "He is a buddy of mine from Vale. It was a stroke of luck that we ran into each other. Liang please meet Ciara Chulaiinn our general tech wiz and knowitall, Qrow Branwen and Summer Rose, kids fresh of Beacon Academy."

"We are no kids, you should stop calling us that. It's starting to annoy me," the now-named Qrow said, not hiding his displeasure. "We aren't new to any of this."

Jiro walked over to a chair and sat down, lifting his leg and placing them on the table's edge and leaned back. Summer meanwhile disappeared from her spot next to Qrow and appeared next to Hanzo with a burst of white rose petals. Her eyes were wide as dinner plates as she scanned the equipment their new arrival had on him. "Throwing knives...a chained spear… so coooool," She disappeared again and appeared behind Hanzo. "A katana, old school but awesoooome," she said fangirling over the grandmaster's weapons. "No gun, such a shame."

"Guns tend to make too much noise," Hanzo stated, his voice even. "I prefer to be silent."

"Soooooo, are you a real ninja? You look like one," Summer asked, walking in front of Hanzo as he caught one of the rose petals on his fingers and looked at it before turning his attention to the huntress. "Can you sneak around without being noticed? Do you know kung fu? Are there more like you nearby?" she asked in quick succession. Hanzo raised an eyebrow at the young huntress's antics. He did not give her an answer just stared at her for a moment, the hard stare making Summer let out a nervous chuckle and rub the back of her head. She took a step back away from the yellow-clad warrior.

"Others," Hanzo thought. "There are but not in this world."

"Oh yes you are," Jiro countered Qrows earlier statement, a cat-like grin on his face. "You might have fought Grimm and an occasional petty criminal but you've never been on a task like this. That's why Oz put me in charge," Jiro said pointing at himself with his index finger. "Besides annoying you is too easy by far kid."

Qrow gave Jiro a dirty look and looked as if he was going to say something but was cut off by the silver-eyed woman.

"Don't mind him, he is just cranky after a long trip. As Jiro said, my name is Summer, nice to meet you," Summer said, offering a cheery smile and a hand in greeting. Deciding that a standard greeting would be better than rushing him as she did. Hanzo shook her hand after a brief moment.

"Kuai Liang," Hanzo offered his alias in greeting.

"And that's Qrow," she said pointing with her thumb to the man behind her. The young man have Hanzo a simple Hey in greeting to which Hanzo responded with a nod.

"Mind telling us how you two know each other," the ginger said, moving her glasses slightly upward. "I would have remembered if you ever mentioned someone like him," Ciara eyed the yellow-clad man, more specifically his posture and weapons. He was a Huntsman, that was certain, and one on the older side by the looks of it. Probably around fifty years old. Her eyes met Hanzos, they were stern and hardened, an eyes of a man who had seen much and done just as same. Just by looking at him, Ciara knew that this man was dangerous.

Jiro moved his head to the side to look at Hanzo. "We met a while back in Vale, a village was being attacked by Grimm, they were swarming it, I was engaging them as best as I could but I was alone," Jiro paused dramatically. "And then he appeared out of nowhere and proceeded to cut down everything that stood in his path. He one-shot an alpha beowolf with a punch to the face, at least that's what the people of the village said."

"So they met once," Ciara thought. "They barely know each other and Jiro sees him as a friend, how typical."

"Wow!" the silver eyes woman said in wonder. "That's awesome! So badass!"

Qrow let out a small chuckle. "Nice."

"It is certainly impressive," Ciara said, continuing to eye Hanzo like a watchful hound. "What is your business in Mistral?"

"Relaxation," Hanzo said, keeping it short and vague. This got some attention but Hanzo refused to divulge any further information. His answer did get a snicker from Jiro. Ciara turned her gaze from Hanzo to her fellow huntsman.

"What about the guy who jumped Bucky and the others, got any info on that?" Ciara asked.

"The three stooges ended up in the hospital due to their own stupidity and the attempt on Bucky's life has nothing to do with that," Jiro explained. "Well, they are somewhat connected actually."

"How so?" Ciara asked, eyes slightly narrowing.

"Our esteemed colleagues ran into our friend here and started a fight, we all know how well that ended," Jiro said pointing at Hanzo. "He later found Bucky and it was him who brought her to the hospital."

"And you believed him?" Ciara asked in disbelief.

"I asked the eyewitnesses, their accounts match what Lian told me," Jiro replied.

Silence filled the room for a moment before Ciara marched over to Jiro, lowering herself slightly to look him in the eyes. "Why by havens name did you think it's a good idea to bring a guy who beat up half of our team here? Do you want him to finish the job?" she shouted, her tone accusatory.

"Wow, wow, calm down, calm down," Jiro said, raising his hands in front of him. "Liang is good people, I know it. It was Jason and his two amigos who ganged up on Liang first. Can't blame a man for defending himself, can we?"

"You met a guy for a day! How the hell can you know that? Of all the things..." she replied back with annoyance, her voice rising. Qrow and Summer just watched from the side, not wanting to get in the middle of this, especially considering it was a matter between their two superiors on this mission. That did not mean they weren't wary of the newcomer now. He took out half of their team. Qrows hand moved back slightly, ready to pull out Harbinger at a moments notice, Summer copying her partner while hoping that this does not turn ugly. Hanzo did not fail to notice the movements of the two young huntsmen but did not take any action.

"Two days actually," Jiro corrected Ciara.

"Wonderful," she said sarcastically, raising her hands in the air. "Two days and you are best friends."

"Hey, what can I say, I'm a people person after all," Jiro said, smirking at Ciara, who glared back at him with annoyance. "It's not my fault people like me as soon as they meet me."

"I don't like you much," Qrow interjected, his arms crossed over his chest.

"Well kid, you are in the minority then. Summer likes me, don't you rosebud?" Jiro said as he turned his attention to the huntress. The smirk turned into a pleasant smile.

"Y-Yeah, sure," Summer replied, stuttering slightly.

"Alright! That's Enough!" Ciara shouted and everyone's eyes turned to her. Her emerald green eyes turning slightly red did not go unnoticed by the grandmaster. The work of her semblance perhaps. "We don't have time for you to play jester Jiro, we haven't even started our mission properly and we are already down half of our team. Lionheart and Ozpin won't be happy when they hear about it if they haven't already. And it's your ass on the line if anything else goes wrong, so get it together or I will be taking over the leadership of this op."

"Wow, wow, relax gingerbread. Seriously relax, breathe," Jiro said, his tone now more serious, and slightly worried as he watched his angry teammate. Ciara stared at him for a second until she turned around and took several deep breaths to calm down. Nobody knew how to annoy her as much as Jiro could. He understood the woman's wariness, he was a stranger brought over by someone who by all accounts has a tendency for brash action.

"There is no need to call Oz or Leo for this, I guaranty all will be alright, scouts honor," Jiro said, his voice losing most of its earlier mirth as he tentatively gazed at Ciara.

"There is no need to fret Miss Ciara, you have my word that I'm here as an ally, not a foe," Hanzo said truthfully.

Ciara frowned, eyes narrowing slightly as she turned her gaze at Hanzo. "Sorry if I'm reluctant to trust someone I just met."

"Your feelings on the matter are understandable and shared," Hanzo replied. He too wasn't certain about his new company but had little choice in the matter, he had already agreed to aid them in exchange for their help. Jiro reminded Hanzo much of a certain actor from his realm, he had the same cocky attitude and liked to hear himself talk. Ciara from what Jiro said was a technician and one with a quick temper or one reserved for the hook sword wielder. He could deduce little of the young man named Qrow and Summer, one could see that she possessed a certain aura of youthful innocence to her by just looking at her. Time will tell what the true characters are like. "You have my word that I'm here to provide assistance. I swear it on the souls of my ancestors."

Ciara stared at Hanzo for a long moment before huffing. "Good to know we understand each other. Now seeing as we have no other choice..." she started but was cut off by the assigned leader of the operation.

"Let's get down to business," Jiro said jumping from his chair. "Gather around kiddos, we got an operation to plan," Jiro rubbed his hands together enthusiastically while his gaze went over everyone in the room.

"And what exactly is the assignment?" Hanzo asked.

"Our assignment is to aid the Mistral authorities in culling down the influence and operations of its criminal elements," Ciara explained. "You might have heard about the gang war between the Spider and the Mouse and Parrot, well the Mistral council has had enough of it and has finally decided to do something about it. In addition to their own teams of huntsmen assigned throughout the city, the kingdom of Vale has offered a group of huntsmen of their own to help in the endeavor. We have been given the mission of finding and shutting down a black market shop that recently opened. It is named the Broken Memories and it deals primarily with stolen Atlassian tech, there are rumors of their reverse engineering the technology. We have little actual information on it aside from the identity of a man tied to the shop, a man by the name of Bisque. He also has ties with the Spider. Unfortunately, we don't have an image of him but there are plenty of rumors going about and the one thing we heard from multiple sources is that he fancies a place called The Luck of the Mountains. It is a nightclub owned by the Spider."

"Hey, I think I heard of that place, they have this really good new singer, what was her name again..." Jiro said, tapping his chin as tried to remember what he had heard.

"Do we have any descriptions of the man?" Qrow asked.

"There were attempts to get a picture of him but it seems he is wearing some kind of device that causes his face to be replaced by a white blur. It doesn't matter if it's with scrolls, cameras, it's always the same. The description we got is that of a middle-aged man with jet black hair, blue eyes, a ponytail, and most importantly a cybernetic arm," Ciara replied.

"Shouldn't be too hard to spot a cyborg," Qrow said with a chuckle.

"Is the club a front for something?" Summer asked.

Ciara shook her head. "From what we know it's not, although it could be used for laundering money. We can't be certain."

"So we need to find this Bisque guy and make him tell us where he is operating his shop from," Summer said. "Easy!"

"I wish I shared your enthusiasm," Ciara said, her tone slightly solemn.

"The mission's success hinged on finding this Bisque. Once we do we have two options the way I see it. The first, is as Summer said make him tell us where his shop is by any means necessary and the second is going with a stealthier route and simply following him there," Hanzo pointed out.

"You didn't really mean by any means, a few threats and some jail time will be enough," Summer said, her unease clear in her voice. She didn't really like the way Liang said it, she knew what she was implying, and torturing a person for any reason even if it's for something good is a big No in her book. This Bisque might be a criminal, he needs to be brought to justice but not even he deserves to suffer in that manner. Hanzo spared the young huntress a quick glance before turning it back to Jiro.

"The naivety of youth," Hanzo thought. "Sometimes one must do what is necessary to achieve a goal even if the things needed to be done are considered wile and distasteful by others. In a perfect world, there would be one need for such actions but the world is not perfect, nor is the universe." His experiences in both life and death had taught him that much but that does not mean he does not understand and respect the youth's view of things, for it is that drive and willingness to see good in the world that made him realize that the universe is not a bleak place. It's what gave him what he needed to once again rebuild his clan. "Maybe..."

"The way of getting information out of Bisque aside, we need to first find him," Ciara said sternly. "So any smart ideas on how to do that?"

"I think..." Jiro started but was not allowed to finish by Ciara.

"You have done enough talking for now. I want to see what our teammates have to offer," Ciara said, her eyes going over the two young hunters before settling on the Shirai Ryu.

"Well we do have a general description, so sending someone inside to have a look around and get a good look at him would be a good start," Summer offered her two cents.

"A good proposition but not without danger. Whoever enters that place will be entering a lion's den," Ciara said.

"Count me out, there is a good chance someone might recognize me if I go in," Jiro said. Hanzo raised an intrigued eyebrow at the man, something Jiro picked up immediately and decided to elaborate on a bit. "This is not my first mission in Mistral and not the first time chasing after criminals. That's why I was put in charge. That same reason is why I can't go anywhere near that place, if any of the Spiders goons see me, someone might recognize me and they will know something is up."

"Summer and Qrow are our best options, they are young, so they won't look out of place in a nightclub. Jiro, you will stay behind, the best option for you is to act as a lookout from one side while Ciara will serve as a lookout on the other, keeping an eye on the main entrance of the club," Hanzo said, his mind quickly formulating a plan of action. He would draw too much attention if he entered that place as it is. A disguise would be needed perhaps.

"And you? What will you do?" Qrow asked. "Let us do all the work?"

Hanzo gave the young man a stern look. "I will serve as a lookout from a high vantage point. I will our eyes in the sky so to speak."

Ciara hummed thoughtfully. "Considering what little info we got to work with, the plan is not bad. The two of them will fit right in with the rest of party goers."

"We have a decent description of the guy so we won't be needing to go around asking everyone if they are Bisque," Qrow said and then smirked. "Maybe Summer can use some of her charm on him."

The white-cloaked woman's face went red like a tomato as she turned her head to glare at her partner. Qrow could not help but laugh at his teammate's reaction. That was one thing he liked most about Summer, just how innocent and pure she can be. She is a stark contrast to the way he and his sister grew up. It also served as a good source of entertainment to take little jabs at her and see her reactions. He had done that throughout their time at Beacon and still does it, although maybe a bit less.

"I'm not into older men," Summer said, embraced. She composed herself enough to come up with a comeback. "What about you, why don't you use your charm? Who knows maybe he prefers men."

Qrow huffed. "Knowing my luck, he probably does."

It was Summer time to laugh and Jiro joined her. Ciara remained silent but did find it amusing, a sentiment that even a stoic warrior like Hanzo shared, a small smile appearing on his lips. The Shirai Ryu are a warrior clan but they are also a family and there have been plenty of moments like this during his life, especially when the younger members of the clan are in question.

"It's settled then, Summer and Qrow will pose as normal partygoers and enter the club. As soon as they find Bisque they are to radio the rest of us. If anything goes wrong or starts feeling wrong leave the place. If you get into trouble and are unable to get out or need help, call us, we will be waiting outside for your signal. We will try the stealthier option first, and let him lead us to his operation. If he does not and instead goes somewhere else then we will take more drastic measures," Ciara said and everyone nodded, even Summer. It was then that something came to the young huntress's mind.

"What if he does not show up tonight, what then?" Summer asked.

"Then nothing," Jiro said with a shrug. "You leave and come back tomorrow and the next day if necessary. This is the best lead we got, we can't waste it."

Qrow and Summer exchanged looks before turning their gazes toward their elders. "We will try our best," Summer said determent.

"Do or do not, there is no try, remember that," Hanzo said firmly.

The two young hunters stared at him with confusion for a moment until Qrow decided to say what was on both of their minds. "What does that even mean? How can we do something if we don't try it?"

"It is a simple but powerful reminder that if we want to achieve something in life, we must take action instead of just waiting for it to happen. We must put in the hard work and never give up; only then will greatness follow," Hanzo explained.

Ciara hummed thoughtfully. "Deep words, there is merit in them."

"A fighter and a philosopher, you are just full of surprises aren't you?" Jiro said, giving the yellow-clad man a large grin. "Is there anything else you are holding out on? Are you secretly good at baking or gardening?"

The night came and the team commenced their infiltration operation. As agreed Hanzo took to the rooftops overlooking the club while Ciara watched the main entrance from the north side and Jiro watched the back entrance from the south side, carefully hidden in an alley.

"Eyes up everyone, the Trojan horse is arriving at the gates," Ciara said through her com device as she spotted Qrow and Summer nearing the entrance, stopping to wait in the line in front of the club. She herself was sitting in a cafe opposite the club, her table position so she had a good view of the club while seeping her espresso.

"More like Trojan horses," Jiro said snickering.

Ciara withheld saying anything, she liked Jiro, he was a good huntsman and a good person in general but the constant attempts to be funny were annoying to her. Not to mention his lack of mindfulness when it comes to picking company. She looked towards where their ninja friend was perched on.

"Anything to report?"

"Negative," Hanzo responded in a solemn tone. He was overlooking the club from a tall apartment building, letting the shadows obscure him. He had a perfect vantage point overlooking almost everything apart from the side Jiro was placed to watch. A bird's eye view was important on a mission such as this.

"Nothing but two Spider thugs guarding the back door," Jiro said with disappointment. "This better become interesting, it's going to be terribly boring if I have to spend the entire night watching a guy scratch his ass."

"You will make it," Ciara said, a small smile of satisfaction coming to her lips.

"Don't forget about us," Qrow chimed in. The two young hunters were standing in the line outside of the club waiting to be let in. Qrow wore the same black pants he always wore but with a different buttoned-up shirt this time, his weapon was left at the tailor shop so as not to immediately catch everyone's attention. Summer on the other hand changed out of her huntress attire into something more befitting a night club, a black and white sleeveless dress that reached her lower thigh and heels, not too high as she barely learned to walk in these heels. She had some makeup on, courtesy of Ciara, nothing too much, some eyeliner, and lipstick whose shade matched the tips of her hair.

"Wouldn't dream of it," Ciara responded. "You are the most important part of his whole op after all."

Hanzo paid little heed to the com chatter, as amusing it is to listen to his current teammates go back and forth, they had a mission to do, he had a mission to do. So far his eyes did not spot anything of interest, streets were filled with passing cars and people even if it was nighttime. A large city like this never sleeps after all. He turned his sharp gaze to the two would-be infiltrators.

"Remember stay vigilant, always be aware of your surroundings and be careful with the people around you," Hanzo said over the comm.

"Sure thing pops," Qrow said. "And we will be back by eleven, promise."

"You don't need to worry Mister Liang, we are trained huntsmen. We got this," Summer added enthusiastically. There was silence from Hanzos's side for a moment.

"Just be careful and keep your eyes up for our target," Hanzo said.

"Got it," Summer said with a nod. Soon enough the line moved and the duo entered the club. Once they passed the entrance and entered the main area of the club they were met by loud music and bright colorful lights. On one end of the club was a large bar being tended by three bartenders, waiters moved through the crowd as some occupants sat at the tables to the sides while others danced along the dance floor. "This is it then, let's find a spot with a good overview of the club."

The duo found a spot that overlooked the entrance and the dancing floor while not making them too noticeable, well as noticeable as one can be in a crowd of dancing and drinking people.

"I'm going to get us a drink, don't go flying away without me," Qrow said and headed towards the bar while Summer's eyes scanned the club for their target. The place was still being filled by new arrivals but there was a decent crowd inside already. Summer's gaze went over the entrance area and around it, not noticing anyone fitting the description they were given. Most of the occupants were on the younger side about her age or younger, so it shouldn't be too hard to spot a middle-aged man with a ponytail. She continued to scan the club with little success. Then suddenly a glass came into her view.

"Strawberry sunrise, just the way you like it," Qrow said offering the drink to her.

"What? No alcohol?" Summer asked.

"Yeah, the last thing we need now is for me to carry you again. We don't want a repeat of Tay's birthday," Qrow said with a knowing smirk.

Summer's face was bright with embarrassment. "You said you will never speak of that ever again."

"One drink is enough for you, two is too much. Dealing with you on a sugar rush is bad enough..." Qrow said.

"Fine," She said accepting his point, and took the glass. Qrow himself took some kind of beer, with a low alcohol percentage apparently. Qrows is not much of a drinker, he can handle his alcohol well but doesn't tend to go all out with it. "Spot anything on your way to the bar?"

Qrow shook his head. "Nothing except a cute waitress," he said with a smile.

"Let me guess, she fell for your charm quickly and you dint even have to pay for the drinks," Summer said eyeing her teammate, a small knowing smile on her lips.

A slightly disappointed look crossed his features. "Unfortunately not this time."

"Better luck next time then Mister Casanova," Summer said taking a sip from her drink.

"Yeah, luck..." Qrow said, there was hidden bitterness behind his tone.

"So, what do you think about Liang?" Summer asked as she continued to discreetly watch the crowd of people.

"Looks serious enough, taught too, but..." Qrow said.

"But?" Summer asked.

"Ciara has a point, we know nothing of the guy and Jiro simply bringing him along without any input from Oz or Lionheart is rash, even for me. There's no telling what the guy's motivations truly are."

"Jiro seems to trust him," Summer said thoughtfully.

"It takes more than helping in one fight to build trust, you know that as well as I. We have to wait and see how this goes," Qrow said joining his partner in searching for their target. Unbeknownst to the two, their entire conversation was heard but the rest of the team, including Hanzo, who remained silent. He held no grudge against the two youngsters for being wary of him.

"Ah, guys you know this is an open com channel right?" Jiro's voice said suddenly heard over the comms. "We can hear everything."

A wave of embarrassment washed over the two hunters. "You think he heard that?" Summer asked.

"I did," Hanzos voice came over the com device. It only made the whole situation more awkward.

"Focus you two, we got a job to do. You better not screw this up," Ciara's commanding voice was heard making the two hunters double their efforts in tracking down Bisque.

AN: And the show continues. Fleshed out Jiro a bit more and inserted Summer and Qrow into the mix. At first, I wasn't intending on having any characters from the show meet Hanzo so early but I changed my mind, seeing as it would be interesting to see young members of team STRQ interacting with Hanzo and they suit the need perfectly. They are going to be part of the Mistral arc for now. Qrow isn't an alcoholic yet as Summer isn't dead, I think he started drinking after her death due to the guilt he felt. Raven and Tay are together so this takes place around fifteen years before the start of the show. I based Ciara on the Irish legend of Cu Chulainn, basically a demy god who can turn into a monster. Hope you guys liked it and as always leave a review. Now for the response:

SolSparda36: Yeah the guy can teleport anywhere, it's the best mode of transportation, not taking into account the fiery tornado that scares the living daylights out of people.

Fatswordsman: And it continues mate.