"That's enough!" Weiss demanded, immediately exerting control over the chaos present with the help of the hospital security team.
Sasuke regained his senses just in time to avoid being taken over by his instincts and being the first to attack. This girl, although she looked like an Otsutsuki, wasn't even close to being a threat, based on what his eyes could see, but he wouldn't let his guard down and kept watching.
"What about him, Miss Schnee?" one of the guards asked, hopeful for the opportunity to drag this guy into a dark alley and ruin that perfect little face of his.
"I'll handle it." Weiss could see the envy emanating from the man, thus dismissing him without a second glance and approached the one who intrigued her to share a long moment of analytical silence, appreciating the fact that he maintained eye contact and nothing else, without even a trace of expected hostility, almost confirming that he wasn't a faunus. "Come with me."
Such words sounded almost like an order, but Sasuke would ignore the tone used in consideration of the help received and his curiosity. This girl was certainly no ordinary girl given her authority, superior attitude, almost noble, and appearance that could be mistaken for a goddess. Not to mention that, so far, she was the first one to look at him without showing a trace of lust, and that meant a lot in the current scenario.
"This little bitch just did the same as her family and stole what she wanted."
"What did you expect? She's a Schnee, they're all like that."
"Poor little sweetie, I hope he won't be enslaved by her."
"I definitely would if I were in her place~"
"Ha, ha~"
Weiss did her best to ignore the resentful, perverted whispers earned by her good deed and keep walking. She was used to being hated and envied because of who she was and where she came from, but it was unpleasant and unheard of to be accused of having such sinful ulterior motives.
After walking away from the reception and getting into some kind of metal box at the end of the hall with this girl, Sasuke decided to break the almost non-existent silence thanks to a kind of soft music coming from only Hagoromo knows where.
"I am grateful for your help," he admitted, mostly for keeping him from dirtying the white walls of this hospital with the red of those women's blood, yet aware of the accusations made that worried him as much as this suddenly moving cramped place. "However, I don't intend to reciprocate any kind of hidden interest you may have," Sasuke made clear, keeping a watchful eye on the small sword, or rapier, carried by her and the vast amount of spiritual energy she possessed. She must be a Huntress, the equivalent of a kunoichi in this world. However, given her age, perhaps she was no more than one in training. If so, how strong is she compared to others her age?
He couldn't help but consider, and so far, of all the people in this world that his eyes could see, only the girl in the bookstore had an Aura level similar to the one before him.
Then, how strong would a real Huntress be?
It wasn't as if he could be sure of this girl's strength, but his eyes could tell that her spiritual energy level was at the Chakra level of a Chuunin. Which wasn't much, but that was only half of the whole. If she had the physical energy to complete that half, those reserves would be several times greater, and in terms of Chakra, she would be above even a Jounin, perhaps on the level of a member of Anbu.
Speaking of Chunin, Jounin, and Anbu, I didn't see anything about ranks for Huntsman and Huntress. Sasuke had only read about those in training and those who actively perform the function as a whole. Irrelevant though, since I prefer to make my own judgment in their strength.
It would definitely be much more accurate and reliable that way.
Weiss turned to the boy who looked much more serious and intimidating than she had seen earlier, slightly nervous about her unwise choice to enter an elevator with a possible faunus.
"Normally, after hearing words like that from anyone's mouth, it would be enough to earn my anger," she had her hand on her weapon, signaling that she wasn't joking; almost as a warning to him not to try anything funny, as she tended to be short-fused when threatened by ignorant people. "However, I helped you out of mere empathy." Weiss saw the doubt in him and didn't mind showing a small smile, the same way he had done before, proudly running her hands through her long white hair to emphasize her point. "After all, you're not the only one cursed with beauty."
A narcissist... Even though he had been complimented indirectly and admitted that she was just like a princess from a fairy tale, Sasuke was almost regretting that he had chosen to follow her. Why can't even one person I know be normal?
"Before you think I'm some kind of narcissist," the slight raise of an eyebrow said she was late with her words, but she would ignore that for admitting she had gotten a little out of line with her statement. "Just know that I am only repeating the statements of unwanted flattery received since ever." Weiss enjoyed seeing a gentle change in his serious face, defining that she had hit the nail on the head. "I suppose you're familiar with that, right?"
"More than I'd like to admit." Sasuke decided to relax his rigid posture a bit, recognizing the lack of typical female reaction coming from this girl and threatening to lean back against the metal box. Empathy is the ability to put yourself in the shoes of others and understand their feelings. She must have had equally unpleasant experiences in the past. "In that case, may I assume that I am not about to be enslaved?"
"Ha, ha. Very funny," Weiss rolled her eyes, almost humored by his sarcastic tone. "No, the Schnee family owns no such thing as slaves... that I know of." There was a lot she didn't know and didn't know if she really wanted to know. "Only don't expect to be helped for free."
"Hn." Sasuke knew nothing about this Schnee family, just assuming it was one with a vast reputation; the negative kind, similar to the Uchiha clan. "Money is no problem."
Depending on how much he was charged, Sasuke meant. As a last resort, he could simply run away without paying.
"I am the heiress to the wealthiest family in Remnant, I don't need your money," Weiss said, slightly confused by his touch of surprise. "You don't know me, do you?"
"I suppose I should?" Sasuke didn't expect that this girl really was some kind of royalty. Before you had my attention, now my interest.
"Not necessarily, but... faunus tend to know," Weiss decided to test the waters, discreetly addressing the topic that interested her most without being rude.
"It makes sense that I don't know you then." Sasuke had already expected a question of the sort, just as he was prepared to answer accordingly. "Considering I'm not a faunus." The change in her demeanor was noticeable, much less rigid than before, he noted. It seems that the inter-race grudge is real and more apparent than expected.
Since most of the information he got about this world came straight out of history books, there was a chance that everything was in the past and things had changed.
Naïve of him to think so, since history was bound to repeat itself.
That, or this girl was a case apart.
"Hmm, I kind of figured that." Weiss relaxed more than she should have with that confirmation, deciding to move a little closer without violating his personal space to come face to face with a guy capable of causing uproar and what could only be a Semblance, whose effect she was unaware of. "Your eyes, they're..."
"Scary?" Sasuke decided to ignore this closeness, answering as he used to and hoped was the only possible answer, however, he remembered a certain shy cat and her different opinion. "Maybe beautiful?"
"Hmph, who really is the narcissist here?" Weiss sort of teased, satisfied when she saw him look away, yet her eyes never moved away from his captivating face. "However, I agree with both." She felt a twinge of shyness arise at the thought that she had just admitted that she considered him handsome for the second time. Focus, Weiss! She wouldn't act like those simple-minded women, no matter how good-looking he was! "I meant to say unique."
She is good at keeping herself composed. Sasuke could see with his eyes, these details that no one else could, but he preferred to stay on topic. "You're not wrong." Obito was supposed to be dead, so there really wasn't anyone else alive with eyes like his. Kaguya has a type of Rinne-Sharingan, but she too will eventually die by my hands. "These eyes are my Semblance and also the reason for me being in this state."
"I figured it was." Weiss loved the fact that she was right about her theory regarding those eyes of his. The elevator stopped at the desired floor and she was curious to know more, especially how he ended up in this state. "Would you mind elaborating?"
He did but wanted to take advantage of the moment and see how effective his false story would be.
"I'm not from Vale," Sasuke began as he followed her down a different hallway, giving a reason for his lack of knowledge about her identity... and everything else. "I come from a village outside the four kingdoms, one quite isolated from the world. When I arrived here, I was..." a short pause to be dramatic, "harassed." He feigned disgust to get an additional touch of sympathy and seeing her stop in her tracks to look at him, demonstrated the desired effect, even more so that technically he wasn't lying. "Obviously, I rejected this girl, but as expected from someone of her type, she didn't take it very well."
"A girl did this to you?" Weiss was almost incredulous, never imagining that a woman would stoop so low. Usually, it was men who committed such acts of villainy, not the other way around. I have to remind myself that not everything in the world is black and white.
That or he was lying.
"Yes and no," Sasuke was doing well, keeping himself in the role of victim without having to act like an idiot. "She got help from some other people, claiming that I was a faunus and, consequently, a criminal."
Again, the reaction gained was over the top and that was good.
Exactly the same as I would have said... Weiss felt bad to think that she herself would be no different about her definition of all faunus being criminals. Am I that prejudiced?
The nasty answer seemed to suggest that she was still walking the same path as her father, even after she had managed to escape him.
How free was she from her family really?
Physical freedom was one thing, but what about mental freedom?
In the end, it seemed that she was still a prisoner of Jacques Schnee's rotten principles.
Sasuke was satisfied, more and more efficiently adding the necessary details to enhance his little lie.
"I can defend myself, I came to Vale to try to get into Beacon, so they were probably Huntsman," he decided to go on to check a doubt, and this time she looked him straight in the eye.
"You are going to Beacon?" Weiss snapped out of her contemplative mood, more excited than she should have been at this little revelation. She had already considered the possibility with the fact that he had such an eye semblance, those clothes just as unique, and the similar age. "I'm going too!"
This confirms my suspicion: she is not yet a real Huntress. Sasuke was right to remember the age criteria required by Beacon earlier, and he wasn't wrong to assume that she was also joining or participating in one of these Academies. Given her status, it is not surprising that she is joining the best of them. Still, to think that someone with so much spiritual energy would have a position equivalent to, or even lower than, that of a Genin from my world...
Despite the fact that the cycle of hatred and wars were present in both worlds, Remnant was indeed different from the Elemental Nations in more ways than the eye could see at first.
Sasuke wasn't sure what to think about it, however, he would reluctantly admit that this world was far more complacent with the new generation than his own had ever been.
Besides having the freedom of choice in whether or not to become a Huntress or Huntsman, the preparation time to face these Grimm is much longer than that given to the children of the Ninja Academy. He could almost feel in his eyes the desire to dazzle more of that thread of hope; dazzle more of the non-existent opportunities in the world plunged into endless hatred that was the Elemental Nations. Itachi... you must be happy, right? To know through these eyes that not everything is so bad. His brother sacrificed everything for peace and kept fighting for it even after death and never got the chance that Sasuke was getting. What else would you have been able to see in my place?
A rhetorical question, because it would certainly be much more than he would ever be capable of, and most of all, that he didn't want to see.
Sasuke was not Itachi and never would be.
His brother made choices that he never would have made and this time would be no different.
While you are in the past that I intend to discard, what you wanted to obtain will be eternalized once I obtain true peace. Closing his eyes with the traces of light remaining from Itachi, Sasuke opened them with the darkness he represented. What I will see until I accomplish this goal, however, is not the same as what you would want, so rest assured, brother.
"Is everything okay?" Weiss watched him stand in contemplative silence and soon saw him display a sad expression capable of making her want to hug him, something unthinkable considering he was just harassed by some worthless woman. It is not for nothing that something like that happened, even more so if you consider such a commotion that was triggered earlier.
Truly, this must be one of the most handsome guys in the world, and admitting this to the point of recognition stirred her heart, creating expectations for her future stay in Beacon, as unknown as these emerging feelings.
"Hmm?" Sasuke regained focus to see the little princess watching him closely with what appeared to be a concern, reminding him of what mattered most at the moment. "Sorry, I was having terrible memories of that incident."
He didn't fail to return to his act with efficiency and this girl seemed to want to comfort him, but didn't know-how.
"I see." Weiss didn't understand exactly how he must have been feeling at the moment, however, she wasn't unfamiliar with situations of the sort. "I've been in a bad position before, being attacked and antagonized for merely being a member of my family, so I can relate to some extent."
Sasuke would keep that information in mind, seeing more similarities between this Schnee family to the Uchiha clan.
"Thank you, I'm fine now," he continued, practically forcing himself to use words long forgotten. "That aside, it's a great coincidence to run into someone else who's also going to try to join Beacon this year," trying to change the subject, Sasuke focused on what mattered most at the moment, even considering whether or not it was a good thing to get acquainted with this girl. On the one hand, he would have to stay in this more accepting character with her around. On the other, she was the heiress of a powerful family and thus could be of great use during his stay in this world. Starting now. "Only, I don't have a recommendation yet, so my future presence at the academy is uncertain."
Realizing that he no longer wanted to talk about his incident, which was more than understandable, she agreed with him, never expecting to find another person her age about to try to join Beacon.
As for the fact that he didn't have a recommendation, I guess that was to be expected. Through her sister, Weiss learned that outside the kingdoms was quite different, so it made sense that he didn't have everything he needed to have a chance to attend the initiation.
Preparatory schools were extremely rare, even more so those recognized by the kingdoms.
"If you are as strong as you appear and claim to be, I can help with that." Weiss was sure she could get something like that with a mere phone call, even more so for the possible benefits of helping him. If he's on my team, we'll be the most popular in the whole Academy!
She could imagine the envious looks on the faces of all the girls, and the giving up of the boys when they saw someone of the same level walking beside her.
They would be unstoppable and that put her in a very good mood.
"Not for free, I imagine." This girl could be a lot of things, but she wasn't exactly the charitable type, Sasuke noted. I can almost see an evil scheme forming in that little head.
One that, even without knowing what it was about, sent shivers down his spine.
"Clever, that's good too." Weiss smiled at the small touch of discomfort provided by something other than the unfortunate events that brought him to this hospital. Stopping in front of her medical room, she held up her hand to show him two fingers. "As for payment, it would be two things. One for your treatment here and one for your recommendation to Beacon."
"I'm sure any other hospital would charge me for favors instead of money, but I'll listen to what you have to say." Sasuke was disliking more and more his inability to simply use a Genjutsu to get what he wanted, forcing himself to be part of these little games. "One thing, though." He narrowed his eyes in warning. "Don't ask me to do anything that goes against my moral principles."
Weiss felt almost as if the temperature had dropped by half, defining that in addition to being handsome this guy could also be quite dangerous, and strangely she felt even more excited about it.
"It disappoints me that you think so little of me," she feigned hurt, trying to put aside these foreign thoughts to then add, "At the same time, it pleases me that you are not so naive."
"Hn." She also had a sharp mindset for opportunities, Sasuke would admit. "Your requests?"
"The first one is pretty simple," Weiss pointed at him, smiling almost shyly at how silly and perhaps cheeky what she wanted was. "Your name."
Sasuke opened his mouth to refuse when he realized that the request was not irrational or dangerous as expected from a girl, but rather something trivial.
It seemed that this girl wasn't that bad.
"Sasuke, Uchiha Sasuke." It was kind of weird having to introduce himself when he was used to everyone in the Elemental Nations knowing his name backward and forwards... for bad reasons. I wonder how much reward I had over my head in the Bingo Book.
Being an S-class international criminal didn't help his reputation at all.
"Uchiha Sasuke..." Weiss repeated, preferring not to question the family name that came before the name, just that she liked how it sounded. "I'm Weiss Schnee, it's a pleasure to meet you, Sasuke."
A hand was extended to him and reluctantly, considering her almost noble status in this world, Sasuke returned the gesture before surprising her with a formal kiss.
"No," he looked at her in those icy blue eyes, almost melting with the heat that surged through her pale skin, saying with a smile and facial softness that grew with the unrestrained increase in her pulse. "The pleasure is all mine."
One more chapter and I'm a little excited to be able to keep to the deadline. I know, it's not a big deal to many of you, but it means a lot to me.
My mission being accomplished, don't forget to leave me your opinion, as it's matters a lot, maybe even help me to guide the course of this story since not everything is set in stone.
Also, I have a P t r & on (slash) Bertoti, where you can support me and read some chapters of this story ahead if you want.
I think that's it for now, so I'll see you guys again in two weeks.
Until then.