A/N:
Turbosa22c-Damn! We got a dragon fight coming up next...does that mean we might see some dragon Faunus?!
. . . *looks away while whistling* I mean, not in this saga, but...
"YOU WANT ME TO WHAT," Audrey yelled. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! DO YOU NOT SEE HOW DAMAGED THIS BEAUTY IS?! IT'LL TAKE WEEKS FOR ME TO MAKE HER REACH HER FULL BEAUTY!"
"I just need her to be able to ride fast and be able to handle speeds faster than even me and especially that Mo'o."
"And what about her guns?!" Jaune flexed, showing off his bicep before igniting it. "Point taken. Still, I won't be able to repair her defenses."
"That's fine. I want the King's Glaive to prioritize speed for the Extermination Mission."
Audrey's eyebrow twitched. "You're kidding. You just want a fast bike?"
"Yup."
Audrey glared at Jaune. "You have a death wish. I swear to the God of Animals you have a death wish." Jaune just shrugged, making Audrey sigh. "The Extermination should be happening in about a week, right? Five days after those idiotas get back from hopefully finding a way for you to kill that thing?"
"Pretty much."
Audrey sighed as she took off her hat and scratched her coyote ears. "Fine. I should be done by then. Hopefully, they'll be delayed and I can improve her a bit more. BUT YOU'D BETTER BRING THE GIRL BACK HERE SO I CAN FINISH HER! GOT IT, HÉROE?!"
"Deal."
"Good. Alright, now you go off and learn how to fight underwater or whatever you were planning to do. I got work to do," Audrey said as she walked into her garage and slammed the door shut, the sound of power tools already roaring to life being heard.
Jaune's scroll then rang before he answered it. "Arc speaking."
'Hero, they're ready,' Howl said on the other side of the call.
"On my way," Jaune said as he grew his wings and flew to the spot where the Research Team was scheduled to leave.
When he landed, he noticed Inai looking at her watch. "About five seconds since Kimo ended his call. That's a passing grade, Jaune," she said with a genuine smile.
Jaune bowed in respect with a smile. "Happy to please," Jaune said.
"Please remember, you four," Ghira began. "This is a Research Mission. Keep your distance from the beast as much as you can, only attack areas you believe are vulnerable for research purposes, and only fight if absolutely necessary. This monster is beyond even the Beast Gods. We know that for sure since Jaune himself had to retreat."
"Oh-ho-ho, you believe this old wolf can't take on an overgrown sandworm," Mahina asked.
"I'd rather not risk it, Lady Mahina. You don't have a successor to the Wolf God Style yet, correct?"
"Mm, I suppose not. Plenty of promising students, but the ones I would have named my heirs either don't live on Menagerie..." She then looked at Jaune. "Or have too much responsibility to worry about a tiny thing like a martial arts school." Jaune laughed nervously as he scratched the back of his head.
"Lady Inai, I implore you to return safely as well."
"Oh my, High Leader, are you calling me old," she asked with a teasing look in her eye.
Ghira jolted. "O-Of course not, my lady! I'm just saying that you are still a young mother."
"My daughter is twenty-seven, High Leader."
"She still counts, babe," Howl said.
"Also, I have a husband I can't leave behind. He's stuck with me just a bit longer," she said as she winked at her husband.
"You know it, darlin'," Howl said as he winked back.
"Okay, starting to get a bit grossed out," Kala muttered. "What does Inai see in him? She's so hot and Howl is so... scruffy."
"I can hear you, ya throw rug!"
"YIP!" Kala hid behind something.
"Get away from my wings before I toss you into my pet Devil Dragon's mouth," Yuma said in annoyance. Kala stepped away from the winged Faunus in fear.
"Well, you're not taking your Devil Dragon, Yuma," Jaune said.
"Huh?"
Jaune then put his fingers in his mouth and whistled. Moments later, Sand Sharks burst out of the sand, shaking the sand off of themselves before walking up to their riders.
"Devil Dragons are definitely fast, but even they pale in comparison to Sand Sharks. If you want speed in the desert, these guys are your best bets."
"Oh-ho-ho, what lovely creatures," Mahina said as she cratched her Sand Shark's chin, making it growl in a purring manner as it shook its leg.
"Agreed. They are quite cute," Inai said as she lovingly stroked the head of her Shark, the Grimm also purring. "I almost wish I could take this one home, if I didn't live in the mountains, of course."
"You really are spoiling us, boss," Yuma said as he rubbed the Shark's back before patting it, making it shake its whole body in response before giving a sort of squeak that was really cute.
"W-Wait. W-We're riding these t-things," Kala asked.
"Huh? Of course, you are. You didn't think you were running into the desert and back to a village, did you," Jaune asked with a raised eyebrow. "Menagerie's desert is way bigger than you think, and these beauties know it better than anyone here. Plus, Grimm don't get physically tired as easily or quickly as any other living beings, so they can get away from the Mo'o just fine."
"R-Right. But still... riding a Grimm?"
"What, you're not afraid, are you," Yuma asked with a smirk.
"What? Me? Nah. What do I have to be afraid of? They're just tamed Grimm... right?" Kala gulped as he looked at the Grimm. "H-Hey, big guy," he went as he reached toward the Sand Shark.
It then roared at Kala, making him scream before he used his Semblance to appear right behind Mahina, clinging onto the old woman while shaking like a leaf. The old woman sighed. "Young people these days. And here I thought Jaune-Boy needed more training."
Yuma laughed his ass off before looking at his leader. "You did that on purpose, didn't you?!" Jaune shrugged, making Yuma laugh even harder. "Best! Boss! Ever!"
The Team consisted of Kala, Yuma, Mahina, and Inai Howl; with Inai unanimously voted as the leader, the team rode through the sands toward the coordinates Jaune laid out for them.
"So, just to be sure, we're just gonna try and see if the Mo'o has any cracks in it," Kala asked.
"Exactly," Inai said. "We're only four Faunus. It takes much more to fight a monster the size of a Mo'o. This is a legendary creature with next to no information about it."
"A small team is always best when studying a creature," Mahina said.
"And these things will keep us safe," Kala asked as he looked down at the Sand Shark he was riding like a surfboard.
"These 'things' are Sand Sharks given to us by Jaune himself. You saying you don't trust my leader," Yuma asked.
"You know, Yuma, you weren't like this when Corsac and Fennec were in charge of the Menagerie Branch of the White Fang."
"Well, Jaune isn't like the White Fang. I tried to kill him, and he still gave me a second chance. There's something about that guy that makes you want to improve, ya know? Makes you feel like you're more than just a piece of shit criminal that tried to kill the leaders of the island, TWICE."
"He is indeed special. Oh-ho-ho," Mahina went, riding the Grimm as easily as the youngsters.
"I'm just glad he's relying on others," Inai said. "You can tell that his biggest flaw is trying to do everything himself. He needs to realize that no one has the power to carry the world on their shoulders alone, even beings as powerful as he."
"Where is Ultra Faunus anyway," Kala asked.
"He said he was going to meet with Lady Kai and have her teach him the Shark God Style," Yuma answered.
"Shark God Style?! The Mo'o is in the middle of the desert! What's a martial art literally made for the water going to do out here?!"
"In that man's hands," the three went in unison. "Quite a lot."
Jaune was walking through Kuo Kuana, headed toward Kai's hut when he spotted someone. "Arie?"
"Hm? Oh, hey Dad. What's up?"
"What are you doing here?"
"I'm going to Ms. Kai's house. She's going to teach me the last Fin," Argent said with a toothy smile.
"Huh. Mind if I come with you? I'd like her to teach me the Shark God Style, too."
Argent's toothy grin became a cat smile.
"What's with that look?"
He leaned in, his smile widening into a teasing smile.
"What?"
"I'm gonna be your senior," he said with a snarky tone.
"Oh, gods," Jaune with a chuckle and a roll of his eyes.
"I am your senior. I am your senior," Argent went as he skipped around his dad.
"Somewhere in Remnant, I know your Aunt Nora is proud of how much you're like her right now. She would ABSOLUTELY be doing this."
"Huh. Neat. Anyway, I am your-"
"You do realize I can still bribe your mom to give you nothing but cabbage for dinner tonight, right?"
"EEP! BUT I HATE CABBAGE!"
"That's the point."
"I'll be good," Argent said as he slumped over in defeat, making Jaune chuckle.
They then reached Kai's hut, and Jaune knocked on the door.
"Coming," Kai called. "How can I... help... yoooou," Kai said as she saw Jaune.
"Good morning, Lady Kai. My son's told me a lot about you. Do you have time to teach me the Shark God Style, too?"
"J-J-J-J-J-"
"J," Jaune asked with a raised eyebrow.
"JAUNE ARC," Kai screamed before falling to her back, father and son looking at the white-eyed, stiff Sea Faunus.
"Dad?"
"Yeah?"
"I think you killed my teacher."
"Seriously, though, shouldn't he go to Byakko," Kala asked.
"He's not quite ready for Byakko yet," Mahina said.
"He's still the strongest of us all. Even at his age, I doubt anyone here could beat him," Inai said.
"And that's two of the Beast Gods saying that," Yuma added.
"I'm more afraid of his daughter. Nishi's a beast."
"You're only saying that because she kicked your ass when we were kids," Yuma said.
'And just a few days ago,' Kala thought, remembering how easily Nishi took out him and the rest of Creed's crew.
"Stay alert, everyone," Inai called. "We're in the vicinity of the beast."
Kala looked around. "That is a lot of sand. How are we supposed to find this thing?"
"Jaune said it found him, not the other way around," Yuma said.
"SO WE'RE RIDING BLIND," Kala yelled.
"Basically," Yuma answered.
"Oh, we are screwed."
"Oh, hush up, youngin," Mahina snapped. "You young people shouldn't be so frightened of every little thing."
"Last I heard, the Mo'o was anything BUT little," Kala yelled.
A rumbling was then heard.
"Oh, boy," Yuma went.
Then, the Mo'o roared as it burst out of the sand, just inches away from the team, all of them spurring their Sand Sharks before the beast could slam into them. As soon as it did slam, the four were now surfing a tidal wave of sand. It took expert skill, but they were able to ride the wave safely, being able to avoid getting buried.
They all looked at their target, the beast swimming around away from them before it began to turn, the four Faunus now in its sight. The Mo'o roared, making it even more apparent it knew of the trespassers.
"THAT'S THE MO'O?! IT'S MASSIVE! ULTRA FAUNUS WANTS TO FIGHT THAT?! HE'S INSANE," Kala yelled into his comm link given to him by Jaune.
'He might be the only one in the world who can take that thing on,' Yuma said.
"THEN WHY THE FUCK ARE WE OUT HERE INSTEAD OF HIM?!"
'Did you already forget our mission,' Inai asked. 'Yuma said "might" for a reason. We need to find out what weaknesses this creature has so it can be even easier for Jaune to eliminate it.'
"Oh, great! Dammit, the only good thing about this is how slow that thing is!"
'Slow,' Yuma asked. 'That thing is slow to you?'
"It's practically standing still in my eyes. Oh, right. My Semblance. Anyway, thing is only going about a hundred miles an hour. I'm pretty sure Ultra Faunus is faster than that."
'Especially in the air. At the very least, we have information about Jaune's speed advantage,' Inai said.
"The guy's supposed to be the Strongest Huntsman, right? How do we figure out how strong that thing is?"
'I'm not sure we can, youngin,' Mahina said. 'But we can determine how strong its defenses are. Yuma, dear, I believe I saw my student give you something.'
'A pickaxe. Why? . . . Oh, I get it.'
"He gave you one, too? What's the point," Kala asked.
'So he gave you the other one, huh? Well, Kala, get ready. We're going to see if we can mine the Mo'o.'
". . . I'm sorry. WHAT?!"
'Get your pickaxe ready and jump onto that thing's back,' Yuma yelled into the comms.
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MIND?! DO YOU NOT SEE THE SIZE OF THAT THING," Kala yelled.
'Less bitching and more mining! Keep complaining and I'll feed you to that thing myself,' Yuma yelled.
'Don't worry, youngin. We'll make sure you don't die,' Mahina said.
Kala groaned. "Why isn't Arc doing something this crazy?"
Meanwhile.
Argent and Kai's jaws dropped when they could still see Jaune's Tidal Wave from miles away, the man still in the stance. He then turned back to his son and their teacher. "How's that?"
"It's... perfect. You just mastered the first of the fins on your first try," Kai went. Argent fainted. All that trouble he had trying to learn the technique, and his dad did it on his first try.
Kala rode his sand shark as close to the Mo'o as he could. When he was right next to the monster, he jumped onto it, grabbing onto its fin before trying to climb it. He almost fell off.
However, Yuma swooped in and lifted him onto the monster's back before landing on it himself. "Get your shit together!"
"MY SHIT?! WE'RE RIDING A DAMN SAND WHALE DRAGON MONSTER THING! WHO COULD POSSIBLY 'GET THEIR SHIT TOGETHER' WHILE ON A LITERAL MONSTER'S BACK?!"
"SHUT UP AND MINE," Yuma said as he took out his pickaxe, lifted it above his head, and smashed it into the side of the monster.
Kala covered his ears, expecting the monster to roar. When nothing happened, he looked to still see Yuma mining the monster. Groaning, he threw caution to the wind and began to mine the monster's back.
As they were chipping away at the beast, collecting as much as they could from it, Inai flew near it to see if she could find any weaknesses on it. The first area she analyzed was the massive horn on its head. It was big enough for her to land on it, which she did. She knelt down and analyzed the creature's horn, finding any cracks or weaknesses on it.
'Find anything, dearie,' Makina asked.
"No. It seems solid." Inai stood up and raised her leg. She took off her shoe and flexed her talons before stomping down with all her might, making the monster roar in pain as it began to swerve.
'Whoa! Careful, leader,' Yuma went.
'We're still on this thing's back, you know,' Kala screamed.
"That was an interesting reaction. The horn in this area might be a weakness! Still, I didn't leave so much as a crack!"
'YOU?! YOU HAVE THE STRONGEST KICK ON THE ENTIRE ISLAND! EVEN BYAKKO HIMSELF PRAISES YOUR KICKING POWER," Yuma yelled. 'IF YOU CAN'T LEAVE A DENT IN THIS THING, WHO CAN?!'
"I'm hoping Jaune. I'm going to see if I can locate any other weak points. You two continue to-"
The Mo'o roared as it began to shake violently, the three Faunus barely keeping their balance before it dove beneath the sand, Inai and Yuma taking to the skies while Kala began to run across the desert.
'WHERE DID IT GO,' Kala screamed as Inai was searching the sands.
"I can't find any traces of it," she called out.
'INAI,' Yuma cried out. As soon as he did, Inai heard the burst of sand followed by the roar of the Mo'o, looking to see the monster falling towards her. It was moving at too great a speed for her to avoid.
Fortunately, Yuma slammed into her right as the beast fell, creating a tidal wave of sand that chased the Flying Faunus before they flew too high for the sand to reach them.
"Thank you, Yuma," Inai went.
"Thank me after we get out of this alive. Where did it go?"
Inai looked around with Yuma, wondering where it would appear.
'BELOW YOU,' Mahina screamed.
The two looked down to see the Mo'o lunge out of the sand, maw wide open with a roar as it tried to eat the two Faunus.
Yuma and Inai kicked each other's soles, sending each other flying away just as the beast snapped its massive mouth shut with a booming clap that sent a shockwave out. It had enough force to send the flyers spinning in the air out of control before they regained their balance, both watching the beast slam into the sand as it began to swim through the desert. Yuma then saw the beast look him dead in the eye.
"Well, if it wasn't obvious before, that thing definitely knows we're here," Yuma said.
'CAN WE PLEASE RETREAT,' Kala begged.
'Unfortunately not," Inai said. 'We don't have nearly enough information on the beast.'
'ARE YOU KIDDING ME?! YOU JUST SAID ITS HORN IS ITS WEAKNESS!'
'One of them, youngin'. The Extermination Team needs more to attack than just a horn,' Mahina said. 'It's why I'm on the creature's tail.'
"Seriously, Lady Mahina," Yuma asked.
'I can't let you youngins do all the work. Besides, I'm finding quite a bit of interesting material on this creature's back. I even found a hole.'
'A hole,' Inai asked.
'Our dear Jauney-boy might be able to use this to his- eh?'
'Uh, Lady Mahina, why did you stop talking,' Kala asked.
'WHOA,' Inai went.
Everyone looked to see the Mo'o expel boulders from its back, Yuma just barely avoiding one falling toward him.
'My, my, this creature is just full of surprises,' Mahina said.
'IT SHOOTS GIANT FREAKIN' BOULDERS,' Kala yelled.
'The Extermination Team needs to know about this,' Inai said.
'WE NEEDED TO KNOW THAT! WHAT ELSE CAN THIS THING DO?!'
The Mo'o then began to swim in a circle.
"You had to ask," Yuma said. "Inai, we need to retreat!"
'What do you see, Yuma,' she asked.
"It's swimming in a circle."
'Wait, that's not so bad,' Kala said.
"It's picking up speed! Wind pressure's picking up!"
'By the God of Animals,' Mahina went.
'RETREAT! NOW,' Inai yelled.
'Why?! What's going on,' Kala yelled.
"IT'S TRYING TO CREATE A SANDSTORM, YOU IDIOT! GET OUT OF- WHOA!"
'Yuma, fly out of there! We Winged Faunus are at a huge disadvantage near wind storms, let alone tornadoes!'
'THAT THING IS MAKING A TORNADO,' Kala asked.
"WHY DO YOU THINK WE'RE TRYING TO GET AWAY?! MOVE!"
"Don't gotta tell me twice," Kala yelled as he ran away from the now-forming tornado.
Yuma and Mahina were also trying to escape, but Yuma looked at just the right angle to see Inai flying in place, concentrating. "LADY INAI, WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"
Inai took a deep breath exhaling. Then, her eyes opened, revealing her glowing, pure white eyes, showing she had activated her Semblance. "Protecting my team."
As if knowing what she said, the Mo'o's glowing red eyes looked directly at Inai, as if accepting her challenge. Then, it swung its tail, unleashing the full force of its gathered winds.
Inai then unleashed her own wave of collected wind, the two forces clashing together.
Then, a massive explosion of sand, and a gale of wind occurred. The wind was so powerful, that the village felt a strong blow. It wasn't enough to damage any of the huts, but more than enough for everyone to notice it, even indoors.
Howl ran out of his hut and toward the desert in time to see the massive mushroom cloud created by the clash.
"Inai," he went in worry.
The desert was clear and empty. The only thing to be seen was sand and dust blown by the wind.
Then, the Mo'o burst from the sand with a roar, slamming down upon a dune, revealing its massive clawed fins for the first time. The monster looked around, searching for the foolish gnats that tried to attack it in its territory. When it saw no sign of any of them, not even the flying one that tried to challenge its power, it let out a victorious roar before diving into the sand, more than likely back to its hidden den.
Moments passed since the rumbling of the beast was last heard, meaning it was now long gone, yet there was still no sign of the Research Team.
Then, the sand began to move.
Kala's head burst out of the sand, taking a desperate gasp before he dragged himself out of the desert that practically tried to eat him alive. He looked around to see none of his teammates. "Am I... the only survivor? . . . I'm sure Creed will love to hear this."
"What about Creed, youngin?"
Kala screamed before looking behind him to see the Wolf Beast God, hands behind her back as she hunched down due to her age, still a bit of sand on her shoulder. She brushed it off when she noticed it. "L-Lady Mahina. You survived."
"Of course, I survived. What makes you think a kitten like you could survive that and not a veteran wolf like me?"
"It would be quite odd for someone as tenacious as Lady Mahina to be bested by something so trivial."
The two looked toward the muffled voice to see Inai rise from the sand, looking like a resurrected goddess, especially with the sand sliding off her white wings.
"Trivial, my ass," Yuma said as he landed near the group with a wince and a groan as he held his side. "I can't believe that thing was able to create a sand storm that powerful. It outclassed your Semblance, Lady Inai."
"And shattered your Aura, I see. I can't say I approve of myself as the leader to allow you to bleed," Inai said as she saw the blood trickling down Yuma's side, his fingers already turning red from his own blood.
"Ah, it's nothing. Just landed on the wrong rock, is all."
"The fact still stands," Mahina began. "That creature is powerful enough to shatter Auras with that technique."
"Yours as well, Lady Mahina," Inai asked.
"Sadly, yes. It has been decades since my Aura had been shattered."
"Wait, you have your Aura unlocked," Kala asked in surprise.
"Hm? Of course, I do, youngin! All Beast Gods do. We use our Aura to recover from our injuries quicker than normal so that we can resume our training. Do you realize how many bones we break as we master our trade? Allowing our Aura to heal us is much easier and cheaper than relying on medicine."
"That doesn't mean we do not need first-aid, of course," Inai said as she dug into her pouch. She then tossed a first-aid spray at Yuma, who caught it with his free hand.
"Wait, this is some high-grade meds. It's supposed to be expensive. How did you-" Yuma began.
"Youngin, you do know that we Beast Gods are considerably wealthy, don't you? We were Huntsmen before we were martial arts teachers, too. I'm sure our dear young Eagle God has plenty of lien."
"That, and I'm married to a high-ranking Menagerian Guard," Inai shrugged.
"Um, doesn't Howl and Kaha have Super-Healing Aura or something," Kala asked.
"I'm not my husband or my daughter," Inai said as she gave Kala a deadpan look.
"Oh. Man, I'm dumb."
"You won't hear me disagree," Yuma said as he emptied the spray on his wound before pocketing the bottle. They can be refilled at the local herbalist, after all.
"So, can you please say we collected enough info," Kala went to Inai.
"I actually can. We've collected enough data. Let's return and report to High Leader Ghira."
"Oh, thank the God of Animals. That thing is Ultra Faunus's problem now. . . So, how do we get back home without letting that thing know we're not dead?"
Inai whistled, the Sand Sharks jumping out of the sand.
"They survived?!"
"Dude, they're Sand Sharks," Yuma began. "All they needed to do to avoid that thing's attack was dive beneath the sand. It's like how you dive beneath a wave before it crashes down on you. Haven't you ever gone surfing before?"
"Uh... no."
Yuma groaned. "Figures," he said as he rubbed his chosen Sand Shark's neck, making it purr before it shot a look toward a direction.
The same direction the Mo'o dived into.
"Oh, crap," Yuma went.
"IT ALREADY KNOWS," Kala yelled.
"ON THE GRIMM! RETREAT! FULL RETREAT! NOW," Inai ordered, everyone jumping onto their Sharks, the Grimm diving and swimming away with their riders on their backs.
Not too soon after, a rumbling was heard. The rumbling then turned into a quake. Then, the Mo'o roared in rage as it burst out of the sand, the desert raining around the riders before they heard a massive boom.
Yuma looked back to see a wave of sand rushing after them. "OH, CRAP! ANY IDEAS!?"
"GO FASTER," Kala yelled.
"OH, BRILLIANT," Yuma yelled sarcastically.
The wave came closer and closer to them, looking ready to overtake the Team.
"IT'S HOPELESS," Kala yelled.
"I DON'T HAVE TIME TO USE ANY OF MY TECHNIQUES," Mahina yelled.
"AND WITHOUT MY AURA, I CAN'T USE MY SEMBLANCE," Inai yelled.
"OH, GOD, WHY ISN'T THAT HERO HERE TO SAVE US," Kala yelled.
Yet, as soon as he screamed that, a blade of wind rushed past the ground and clashed with the wall of sand.
No, not clash. It destroyed the wall.
Everyone was shocked.
"T-That was-" Mahina began.
"The Fifth Claw: Tiger Slays Dragon," Inai finished.
The Team then looked forward to seeing the village. More importantly, they saw who used the Final Claw of the Tiger God Style.
There he was, the strongest of the Beast Gods and considered to be the strongest Faunus in the world:
Byakko the White.
The Research Team was shocked to see Byakko before realizing they didn't sense any more danger. They looked behind them to see the Mo'o far in the distance, swimming around in the sand. The monster continuously swam until it dove beneath the sand.
"It's not chasing us," Kala asked.
"Because we're out of its territory," Yuma said.
"We can at least take solace in the fact it doesn't want to leave its territory," Mahina said.
"But that doesn't change how dangerous it is," Inai said. As soon as she said that, boulders blasted out of the sand, falling toward the team and the village. "Case in point," Inai said as the massive boulder shadowed her.
The Team maneuvered out of the way of the boulders, the massive stones crashing down and causing a rain of sand. One of the boulders, which Mahina and Inai noticed was the boulder that was sent the farthest, was falling toward Byakko.
Byakko looked up at it with a bored expression before easily stopping the massive stone by merely jabbing his finger into it. The stone was impaled on his claw, the man holding up the shack-sized boulder as easily as if it were a balloon. He then placed it in the sand before stepping out out from behind it to greet the team.
The Research Team reached the village safely, jumping off their Sand Sharks before standing in front of Byakko.
"Lord Byakko, we weren't expecting you," Inai said.
"It would be odd if you were, considering I never gave any indication that I would be in this new village."
"What brings you here, youngin," Mahina asked.
Byakko knocked on the boulder. "After hearing about the legendary Mo'o, I had to come see what all the fuss was about. I can see it's a threat to Lani judging from this boulder. If I wasn't here, this thing would have rolled through the village and caused an uncomfortable amount of damage, if not unwanted death. The other villages would be in danger as well. It seems I might need to participate in the Extermination Team after all."
Yuma's eyes shot open. "L-Lord Byakko the White on the Extermination Team!? The Legendary Faunus is going to help kill that thing?!"
"Legendary? I believe that's a bit far fetched, son."
"E-Excuse me, lord."
Kala was sweating bullets. 'This is Byakko the White?! I thought this guy was pushing seventy! Why does he barely look a day over forty?! I thought that old granny, Mahina, was a monster, but this guy makes her look adorable in comparison! No wonder Creed is afraid of this guy,' Kala mentally screamed.
"Is there a reason you're staring at me, boy," Byakko went as he glanced at Kala.
He yelped, shocked that he didn't wet himself, before frantically waving his hands. "N-No, sir! It's just that you're pretty much the hermit of the Beast Gods, so I didn't know what to expect when I saw you for the first time!"
"Mm. Lady Inai, High Leader Ghira should be at his estate. Do you have enough information to report to him with?"
"Of course, Lord Byakko. The mission was successful. In fact, you helped at the end with your little boulder measurement," she said as she looked at the boulder.
"INAI!"
She sighed. "Here we go," she said with a roll of her eyes, a shake of her head, and an expectant smile.
Howl, followed by some Menagerian Guards, ran to his wife, completely ignoring Byakko. "Are you alright," Howl asked as he grabbed her arms.
"I'm fine, Kimo."
"I can't believe anything could take you in a storm fight. Your Aura shattered. Did it hurt you at all," he asked as he lifted her arm to check for wounds.
"No."
"Nothing broken," he asked as he sniffed her abs to check for blood that her clothes might hide.
"Nothing."
"What about your wings," he asked as he gently rubbed her wings.
Inai then lightly chopped Howl's hand away, grabbed his face, and kissed him. When they parted, she smiled lovingly into his eyes. "My love, I'm completely fine. Just some shattered Aura. The beast was not able to harm me."
Howl sighed. "Thank the God of Animals."
"You're far too protective of me," Inai said with a raised eyebrow. "Last I checked, I was the Beast God, considered one of the Five Strongest Faunus in the world?"
"Well, yeah, but a guy can't worry about his wife? Besides, I almost got the title of Strongest Faunus, remember? It took the big guy himself to beat me in the final round of the tournament, after all," Howl bragged.
"The big guy?" Howl blinked before looking behind him. "Are you referring to me," Byakko asked with a confused raised eyebrow.
"Oh, Yakko. Didn't know you were here, bub."
Byakko sighed. "Still calling me by that silly nickname, are you? Well, it matters not. Lady Inai, Lady Mahina, shall we meet with the High Leader?"
"Of course," Inai said as she extended her wings.
"Lead the way, youngin," Mahina said.
The three Beast Gods then vanished like a gust of wind, no one even blinked when they vanished.
"I hate how fast those guys are. Makes me feel... ya know, less," Yuma said.
"Fast? Oh, yeah. I guess that was fast for others, huh," Kala went. Yuma smacked the back of his head. "Ow."
Yuma sighed before looking at Kala. "You know, you might be part of the Outskirts, but you did alright. Maybe there's hope for you, yet."
"Hey, don't get mushy on me, Yuma. I just did it for the pay. I can't have Misty breathing down my neck all the time about my tab. So, come on, Howl, please tell me ya got the pay?"
Howl sighed before digging into his satchel. He then took out an envelope with the lien visible within. It vanished out of Howl's hand in a heartbeat.
"HA-HAAH! THIS IS MORE THAN ENOUGH TO PAY OFF MY TAB! WHOO! LATER, LOSERS!" Kala then vanished as quickly as the Beast Gods, leaving behind Howl and Yuma.
The men sighed.
"Will that idiot ever grow up," Yuma asked.
"We did," Howl shrugged.
"You only mellowed out after you married Lady Inai."
"And you changed after you started to date Trifa."
The men stared at each other before sighing. "He's doomed," they said after they realized no girl would want to be with Kala.
Meanwhile, Kala ran to Misty's bar, holding his pay. He slammed the door open with a big stupid grin, not even caring if he hit anyone. Fortunately, he didn't. "MISTY! FOR ONCE, YOU'RE NOT GONNA WANT TO THROW KNIVES AT ME!"
"I'll be the judge of that," she said as she served a patron his booze, the already drunk Pig Faunus guzzling down the pint before falling to the floor.
"Check it, babe," he said as he held the envelope in front of the beautiful owner.
She swiped it out of his hand. "Call me that again and I'll turn you into taxidermy."
"Y-Yes, ma'am," he went nervously.
Misty opened the envelope and took out the lien, counting it. "Mm, just enough to pay off your tab."
"YES!" He then saw Misty put it away. "Uh, Misty?"
"Mm?"
"Where's my change?"
"What change? You had just enough to pay off your tab AND the broken dishes, the damages to my bar YOU caused, oh, and my GODDAMN DOOR THAT YOU SLAMMED OFF THE FUCKING HINGES," she went as she pointed at the door.
Kala looked to see it just in time for it to fall with a heavy thud. "Uuuuh."
"Just be glad I'm not throwing knives at you. AGAIN."
"Y-yes, ma'am," he said as he slumped down and sighed sadly. He then heard a clunk and looked to see a full pint of beer in front of him. He looked up with a tear in his eye to see Misty cleaning a class.
"It's on the house."
"R-Really," Kala asked with praying hands and a hopeful look.
"Don't make me change my mind, cheetah."
"THANK YOU," he went as he grabbed the pint. "YOU'RE THE BEST, MISTY! I LOVE YOU!" Kala heard the shling of a blade and looked up to see Misty hold up one of her sharpest knives as she analyzed her recently cleaned glass. "S-Sorry, ma'am."
"Mm," she went as she put the knife away.
Kala graciously took the mug and guzzled down as much beer as he could. "Oh, God of Animals. So this is what free beer tastes like. Nothing is better than this," he said as he drank more.
"So, idiot, how did you get that much money?"
"Mm? Oh, risked my life to help research that monster in the desert," he said, not realizing someone was walking up behind him.
"Monster in the desert," Misty asked as she turned her back to Kala as she was organizing her glassware.
"Yeah. The Mo'o."
"So that thing's real, huh?"
"Yup. Had to work with two of the five Beast Gods and Yuma, but we found some of the thing's weaknesses, so now it's Ultra Faunus's problem."
"Ultra Faunus," Misty asked as she turned her head a bit toward Kala while holding a bottle before putting it in its designated area.
"Oh, I mean Arc. Better he gets killed fighting that thing than me, right?"
"Wait, you helped a human," Misty asked.
"Oh, yeah. I guess I did. Aw, well. I still got paid and Creed is none the wiser, so I'm safe," he said as he took another swig.
"Is that right?"
Kala choked on his booze before slamming the mug down, his face turning blue. He then slowly turned around to see the last person he wanted to see in that situation.
There Creed was, towering over him, glaring down with eyes so murderous they were basically glowing blood red.
"C-Creed. W-What's up? W-Wanna pint? My treat," Kala laughed nervously as he held up the mug.
Creed backhanded the mug, turning the glass into dust, not even the tiniest of shards remaining. The only thing that was left was the glass handle. Kala just dropped the handle, thinking it was a miracle he wasn't pissing himself. Misty groaned at the loss of another one of her mugs.
"You HELPED them?!"
"I-It was just to get paid! I'm desperately broke, Creed! You're the only one in our group who has an actual job! I'm no good for the Menagerian Guard and being an Outsider who was part of the Taurus White Fang makes it nearly impossible to get a job! And we all know I am NOT a fisherman, and I have a black thumb instead of a green one!"
Creed slammed his hand onto the bar near Kala with such force that he felt the wind rush past him, shaking as Creed growled when he got close to him. "You. Helped. Arc."
"I mean... I was actually helping the Beast Gods! How bad would it look if I said no to any of them?! I mean, one of them's your sister-in-law, man!"
"Inai?! Inai was there?!"
"Yeah! She was a real badass, but nothing compared to Byakko!" Kala covered his mouth.
Creed's eyes narrowed. "Byakko was there? Kala?"
"Y-Yes," he squeaked.
"Tell. Me. Everything."