Hunted or Busted: A Side Story

Dusted: Take the Challenge Part 2

The last chapter of the year. And a close out on the last remaining open thread in this side story. Now I can start with a bunch of new ones next year.

((((((((Hunted))))))))

"COME DOWN HERE!"

"Noooooooooo~!"

"HOW ARE WE SUPPOSED TO CATCH YOU IF YOU'RE FLYING DOZENS OF FEET UP IN THE AIR?!"

"I don't knowwwwwwwww~! That's your problemmmmmmm~!"

"HOW IS THIS FAIR?!"

"Maybe it's nottttttttttttt~!"

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH-"

"Kiba," Sasuke grabbed his partner's shoulder and stifled his manic scream of anger, "Calm down. Screaming at her isn't going to get us anywhere."

"No, but it'll make me happier," Kiba said as he huffed, his shoulders rising and falling with each breath. His tattooed friend retrieved his tonfa and chucked maniacally as he started shaking, "Y-You think it'll be fair if I shoot her out of the air?"

"Okay, you might be trying too hard with this."

It had been a few days since Fū had issued them the challenge to try and catch her. Their initial surprise when her green Aura covered every inch of her body had given her a chance to blast herself into the sky and out of their reach. Sasuke and Kiba had been left scrambling for some way to reach her, chasing after her as she flew through the air above and tumbling in the sand when their feet got caught.

They yelled. They screamed. They begged her to lower her altitude. They tried to reason with her.

But Fū paid them no mind. She rose through the air like a gust of wind, laughed to her heart's content, and flew through the sky like a bird.

Sasuke watched the green figure in the desert sky without a care in the world. They had been stressed and wracking their brains about what they should do, yet she didn't seem to have a care. It honestly seemed quite freeing and relaxing. Sasuke took a deep breath and sat down in the sand, "We need to come up with an idea."

"Why? Isn't blindly chasing after her and screaming like maniacs working so well for us?" Kiba said bitterly as he dropped into the sand beside his partner, "So do you have any ideas or should I start blasting?"

"You shouldn't start blasting and I'm coming up with something." Sasuke cupped his chin in thought as he spared a look between Kiba and Fū up above, "I think the only time she's ever come down close enough for us to reach her is when she's teasing you."

"Teasing me?! It's goddamn ridicule and emasculation!" Kiba furiously yelled with his face turning red, "I get exhausted baking under this damn sun and topple over in the sand! She swoops down to laugh at me and asks if we're giving up! That's it!"

"I don't think she's used to this. If she gives challenges like this to others who have asked her to join their groups or tribes, I'm sure she's used to them giving up by now." Sasuke deduced, "We might be the only ones who have persisted this long."

"Then why does she blow gusts of wind and sand on me and not you?"

"Because it's funny watching you freak out?" Kiba ground his teeth with a twitching eye as Sasuke continued, "Look, get mad all you want but this might open a window of opportunity for us. If we take full advantage of this, we can nab her and get her on our side."

The tattooed Huntsman looked skeptical but sighed anyway, "Alright, what do we need to do?"

"You need to get her attention and let her toy with you for a bit."

…

…

"I hate you."

((((((((Hunted))))))))

Fū hummed a jaunty little tune as she swirled through the air. Even after years of being able to fly and controlling her Semblance, the joy of flight never seemed to diminish. Whether it was through a clear bright day or maneuvering through a deadly sandstorm, there was always something to enjoy when up in the air.

"C-C'mon! This is so stupid!" Fū spared a look down at the speck that had been trying to follow her. It looked like he had given up and was now just walking in circles from exhaustion. After a few more steps, he toppled over into the sand and laid on his back, "Ah, forget it!"

Fū dove through the air at a sharp angle before gradually stopping with a gust of wind. She floated about a dozen feet off the dune and looked down at Kiba, "I don't think you should pass out in the sand like that. A few minutes and you'll dry up like a mummy."

He sighed, "Whatever. Just catching my breath."

"Where'd your friend go?"

Kiba panted, "Too tired. Had to go back. Couldn't keep going." He wiped his forehead and grimaced at how sleek it was, "I might have to call it quits too."

"Aww, already?" Fū sounded genuinely disappointed to hear him say that, "Well, that kinda sucks. I was having fun."

"Fun?" Kiba raised his eyebrow, "What was fun about watching us run ragged and nearly pass out while we looked like ants from up there?"

She shrugged, "It was fun listening to you guys from up there. You were still far away but your voice carried like crazy! It was fun!" She giggled, "Well if that's the end of this then see ya. Stay safe and-"

"Wait!" Kiba sat up out of the sand, "If you're so interested in listening, why not stick around for a little bit?"

Fū narrowed her eyes suspiciously, "Are you trying to figure out a way to catch me still?"

"Yeah, but mostly just trying to catch my breath. And you bring a breeze around when you float nearby like that." Kiba laid back in the sand and slowly caught his breath as he felt the gentle gust of wind linger over him. That meant she was still floating around and interested in talking, "So, do you have any family? A tribe? Someone to be worried about you while you're flying around willy-nilly like this?"

"Not anymore." Fū said as she casually floated a few dozen feet off the ground, hands behind her head as she stared up at the sky, "I mean my family passed years ago and I only stuck around with tribes until I was old enough to control my Semblance. After that I just," She pushed her hand forward like she was taking off, "I mean I help out other tribes now and then if I need food or water but that's it."

"Do you get lonely?"

"Sometimes, but I just," She hummed, "I love flying. And I never get tired of it."

Kiba scoffed and watched her circle overhead, "Yeah, if it's half as fun as you make it look I can understand that."

"So what about you guys?" Fū turned to look down at Kiba, "Why do you want me to come with you anyway?"

With a sigh Kiba sat up to better engage with her, "You heard about the Fall of Beacon, right? You might be a flying nomad but you've heard what happened in Vale?"

"Of course. You can't go anywhere without someone mentioning it. Although most of the time it's just bitter old people saying they're not surprised Atlas destroyed another Kingdom or that Vale deserved it for being weak or something. Why do you ask?"

"We were both there." She froze midair and even though her face was masked by her green Aura Kiba could tell from her body language she was cringing from what she said. He smiled, "It's okay. Believe me, we've heard a torrent of worse shit spewed out of drunken mouths while traveling. But my friend - that's how he lost his hand." Kiba shifted a part of his beard around, "And you probably can't see it but my throat was nearly torn out from the fighting. And we lost friends during the fight - including the leader of our team."

"I…I'm sorry."

"Everyone keeps blaming Atlas for attacking, or the White Fang, but we know they weren't the only ones behind it. Someone set everything up with the White Fang, and someone took control of the Atlesian Soldiers, and they were the ones that stirred up fear enough that Grimm rushed through every inch of the city. And that someone got away with it, slinking back into the dark so they could plan their next move. And we won't let that happen." Kiba clenched his fists, "Our friends went ahead to fight and prepare while we were recovering our strength, but we're trying to gather allies to help us fight."

"Oh, so that's what this is." Fū nodded in understanding, "So wait, are there more of you guys that are just waiting for you to come back with me in the fold?"

"Pfft, I wish!" He belted out a hearty laugh before giving a defeated sigh, "Nah, me and Sasuke have had no luck in recruiting other people. We suck at it! We tried in Vale but most of the able-bodied Hunters were understandably busy dealing with the fallout of Beacon. And the ones we reached out to in Vacuo were too busy with other stuff. Carter. Rojo. Zabuza. We even heard about some girl who ripped a guy in half longways but hasn't found any info on her. It has not been a successful campaign."

"Oof, sorry to hear that."

"Yeah, but we can't give up yet. That's why we're here now." Kiba looked back up at Fū, "Knowing that, you still want to give us a chance to catch you and bring you on our side?"

"Absolutely," Fū answered with a giggle. Kiba raised an eyebrow at her response, "What?"

"I just don't get it," He said, "I mean if you like being out here flying all the time, why risk it by making this challenge? Why let anyone have a chance at even catching you if it might mean taking you away from this?"

Fū looked up thoughtfully and crossed her legs, rotating in the air with gentle wind as she pondered his question, "Ever since I unlocked my Semblance as a kid I haven't felt bound to other tribes or anything. And as I got older and kept moving around, a lot of the stuffy and opinionated people had a problem with that. 'You should use your power for our tribe.' 'Go stick it to those other Kingdoms!' 'Help get the glory of Vacuo that was stolen from us back!'" She recounted in a mocking tone, "And even people that weren't complaining like that told me that I was selfish and should be doing something. So I decided to come up with the challenge; because if someone's cause was so much more important than me getting to fly, they should have no problem catching me."

"Ah, I get it." Kiba nodded, "Bit roundabout but I can respect it." Fū giggled as he picked himself up and started bouncing on his feet, "Okay, time to try again!"

Fū stopped in the air and looked down as Kiba kept jumping in place and fruitlessly swiping up in her direction. She knew that he knew he'd never be able to reach her, but still, he persisted in trying to do so. There was something admirable about that, but it would just be cruel to prolong this any further when there was no hope for him to ever reach her. She was about to tell him to stop-

Why did he have such a big smirk on his face?

Fū's confusion was answered when a giant explosion went off under the dune and Sasuke came flying through the air out of it. He was sent flying with a burst from his shotgun and sailed upward directly towards Fū. Only seeing him at the last moment, Fū flew a little higher and just barely avoided his reach as he passed by.

His entire body glowed with a purple Aura and Fū watched in shock as he controlled the wind too and tackled her.

Kiba watched them drop out of the air together and rushed up the dune to meet them. He shielded his eyes as the last dredges of their wind kicked up sand in his face before finally settling. Lowering his arm, he looked down at them with a smirk, "So I guess we win, huh?"

Cradled in Sasuke's arm, the green-haired Faunus blinked in shock and confusion. Sparing a look between Sasuke's curious expression and Kiba's smug grin, she tilted her head, "How…how did you do that?"

((((((((Hunted))))))))

"You can copy other people's Semblances?! That's so cool!" She jumped in the sand with excitement before dropping back down to sit across from them, "Dude, you have to come flying with me! All I've ever gotten to fly with are birds and Grimm that were a little too hungry!"

"Maybe another time," Sasuke tried to calm her excitement, "During your talk with Kiba he let you know what exactly it is we're dealing with, right?"

"Yep! The guys behind the attack at Beacon, right?"

"That's right. And it's gonna be a serious fight when we finally manage to find them." Kiba said, "So even though we caught you, we're not gonna force you to do anything. If you don't wanna come with us that's fine."

Fū took a breath and looked up at the sky, balancing on her rear with her legs crossed before she nodded, "Yeah. I mean this sounds like something important, and you guys wanted it so bad you managed to catch me. I mean what will we be doing exactly?"

"Well," Sasuke pulled out his Scroll, "We'll keep traveling around Remnant where we can. Keep trying to get more capable people and fighters to help us."

Kiba nodded, "And then we'll make our way to Mistral and regroup with our friends to prepare for what we'll do next."

"We're going to travel?" They nodded as a giddy smile grew on Fū's face, "Heh, I've never left Vacuo before. I've never seen what the rest of Remnant looks like."

"Well, you'll be seeing a lot of it with us."

Fū smiled and started shifting in place with excitement, "Y'know, this does sound like a lot of fun! I mean I know there'll be danger but still a lot of fun! Way more fun than what those White Fang guys were saying to me. That it's my sacred duty and that I should give my all for the Faunus cause and-"

Something whizzed by their head and landed in the sand beside them. They looked over and saw some figures in the distance before the sound of a gunshot followed.

Kiba immediately tackled Fū to the ground as Sasuke activated Fū's Semblance and sent a massive blast of wind that created a cloud of sand around them, "Kiba, hide Fū and get her back to the settlement! I saw a mining site not too far away - I'll lead them there and away from you!"

"Roger!"

Kiba pulled out a cloak and quickly covered Fū before rushing towards the settlement. Sasuke dropped the purple Aura and rushed out in the other direction towards where the mining site was. The White Fang group saw the two separating shadows and split up to follow each of them to reclaim the Noble Guard for their efforts.

((((((((Hunted))))))))

After dealing with their respective groups, the trio met up again in a portion of the settlement where they knew they wouldn't be followed. Sasuke and Kiba shared a quick fist bump in relief before turning to their new recruit, "You okay?"

"That was terrifying. Awesome! But terrifying!" Fū let out a breath of relief before looking between them, "Does that happen often?"

"Not too often," Kiba shrugged, "I mean it's mostly Grimm that swarm us out of nowhere, but we do get the occasional idiot that wants to run their luck."

"Still feel like joining us?" Fū thought for a moment before an even brighter smile spread across her face and she nodded. They all shared a smile before Sasuke pulled out his Scroll and they gathered around it, "Let's see where we're going next."

((((((((Hunted))))))))

Done

It was fun bringing Fū's recruitment to a conclusion, and tying it to Sasuke and Kiba's shorts too.

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