As he watched these hateful women stumble over each other to retreat; fleeing in fear, Sasuke contained his ominous Aura once the warning was given and efficiently received. As for the girl hugging him, unexpectedly she didn't seem to be affected, at least not like the others. Those silver eyes of hers seemed to exude life beyond shock and were focused on him with obvious curiosity, contrary to the expected fear.
"Your eyes..." Ruby disregarded the eerie shiver of just now and the frightened reaction of these evil women, even the fact that she was still hugging a stranger, focusing only on those differently colored eyes before her. "They are..."
Before a new answer could be given regarding his lineage, the blonde girl from earlier emerged from above, covered in flames of fire to attack him head-on.
"Stay away from my sister!" Yang punched straight into that perfect face of his, trying her best to ignore those strange eyes and the nauseating feeling they were giving off, wishing for nothing but to make him back off!
Sasuke reacted instantly, pulling the silver-eyed girl off of him and dodging the fist without even trying, immediately responding with the palm of his hand over the throat of his raging attacker.
Yang choked at the sight of this guy dodging so fast, spitting out what she didn't have in her throat as she felt the tightness in her neck and the lack of ground beneath her feet, completely suspended in the air by a force that made her believe she had fallen into the grip of a bloody Ursa!
Strange, I can't touch her skin. There is something else preventing me from doing so... Sasuke narrowed his eyes, ignoring this girl's efforts to escape his hands, paying more attention to the layer of pure spiritual energy that was protecting her from harm. So this is how the Aura I've heard so much about works in this world? That, or she really is a Jinchuriki.
Although extremely weak in comparison, it was nonetheless reminiscent of the Chakra cloak worn by Naruto. Still, Sasuke was sure he could break this protection and her neck with just a little more effort...
Struggling to escape the claws of death, Yang's eyes widened as she felt the clearly deadly grip of this monster press even harder on her, to the point of making her Aura distort so as not to break!
"Yang!" Ruby came out of a pile of clothes and saw her sister expressing pain and fear in a way never seen before, struggling to free herself from this boy's vicious grip and didn't even think anything of it, pulling out her Crescent Rose to force him to stop! "Let her go!"
Flickering, Sharingan and Rinnegan locked on the silver-eyed girl and that scythe bigger than her body, coming at him without an ounce of hesitation. Reacting accordingly, Sasuke threw the blonde girl against a far wall and focused on the unexpected enemy.
Angry to see her sister being treated as if she were nothing, Ruby slashed and slashed and slashed, trying her best to hit him, but missing every swing of her Crescent Rose!
How in the world?! She might have been avoiding using ammunition to make full use of her weapon's mobility, for fear of hitting someone with a stray bullet, except that it shouldn't affect her accuracy and skill too much. So how is he dodging like that?!
Gosh, Ruby could have sworn he was bored!
In Sasuke's eyes, this girl was as fast as she was small, without belittling the obvious skill with such a large and unusual weapon.
The natural manner of her wielding indicates long-standing training. He considered that she was too fond of that scythe to demonstrate such skill. Still, she barely equals a Chunnin in terms of strength and speed. Even limiting himself to an almost extreme measure with the self-imposed restriction of his Chakra, predicting each attack before the girl herself knew what she was going to do was so easy that she didn't even seem to be moving. If I didn't want to use this opportunity to analyze what someone my age is capable of in this world, using my Sharingan would be completely unnecessary.
On the other side, Ruby was getting more and more frustrated, not to mention scared, with her trial and error. Initially, she only planned to hit him once for what he did to Yang. Now, she kept attacking only to not meet the same fate.
And to think I thought he was so cool! Well, she would still admit that those eyes really were amazing, not to mention his stylish clothes, but unlike all of that, this boy was not good at all, because he hurt her sister! And I even hugged him!
In a small moment of distraction provided by that embarrassing memory, Ruby stopped in her tracks as she had the handle of her beloved Crescent Rose clutched, almost feeling her heart go out of her mouth as he jumped above and used her own weapon to pin her against him!
Despite being attacked without warning, Sasuke had no intention of hurting, much less killing these girls, considering that after a brief analysis, they posed no threat whatsoever. That and the fact that he didn't know the weight that murder had in this foreign society. However, it didn't mean that he would let such an opportunity pass him by, and intended to use it to learn as much as he could about the limitations of Aura and its users.
Even if to do so he would have to... encourage them to keep attacking.
"A rather abrupt change of attitude, I must say," Sasuke moved closer to the girl's clearly flushed ear in his hands, whispering each word softly and making her tremble. "I don't dislike it."
"Wawawawa?!" Ruby wasn't able to think straight! Not only did she not understand how this guy could dodge everything and still immobilize her like this, but he was clearly teasing her! Boys are mean!
Still, why was her heart pounding non-stop?!
"You bastard!" Yang recovered from the insanity of being treated like a rag doll and the almost casual way he was handling attacks that even her father had trouble defending when helping to train Ruby. Only none of that mattered, swearing that she wouldn't let anyone take advantage of her little sister! "I told you to stay away from her!"
Again, Sasuke was attentive and easily predicted this angry blonde's every move.
Although clearly stronger than this girl in red, this Yang is too slow. Sasuke was beginning to establish the level they were on. Throwing the girl in his hands onto a pile of clothes beside him for the second time, he entered hand-to-hand combat with the eccentric blonde. Speed of a Gennin, reserves of pure spiritual energy on the level of a Chunnin. He chose to defend himself from her punch instead of dodging it. Physical strength of a Jounin... Limiting himself as much as possible to meet these descriptions and without making use of his eyes, he began to really exchange blows with her. Extremely skilled in hand-to-hand combat.
All this combined resulted in an imbalance that was difficult to understand.
Why don't they exercise control over their Auras? If he had to compare, he would say that they had the same level of control that he had before he became a Gennin. In other words, almost nothing. The amount of power in their hands wasn't great, so it shouldn't be difficult to control. Nevertheless, they preferred to use every drop of their spiritual energy to protect rather than to strengthen themselves and increase their combat efficiency...
If they could make real use of the power they had, these two would be several times stronger than they were right now, and that bothered him; to remotely consider that they were holding back against him.
Flower petals reminded Sasuke that there was more than one opponent and the silver-eyed girl was attacking again, this time with a complicated expression on her face.
She looked annoyed with him but in a cute way?
Idiot, idiot, idiot! Ruby's cheeks were puffy, fuming with shame and anger! First, he throws me away, then me... me... She could still feel the heat on her back, the tightness of his arms, and the whisper in her ear! Wawawa!
This boy was definitely mean!
Her attacks became more erratic, Sasuke noticed, as did the almost flawless synchronicity emerging between their joint effort. Sisters... I guess that kind of bond doesn't differ between our worlds.
Such a realization lessened his desire to hurt them, because this fight for them, much of the reason they were going against him, was to defend each other.
Even with that shred of empathy kept him from sending them to the hospital... or a graveyard, for you never know, he would still use them to gather information.
Yang was quick to raise her guard, receiving this guy's heel and feeling her feet leave the ground once again!
How can he be so strong?! Her arms were shaking and at least half of what was left of her Aura was gone! Without this to protect me, my bones would have broken!
Even her father couldn't do that and this guy was clearly the same age as her, so who in the world was he?!
Ruby tried to hit him right then, making use of her Semblance to attack with as much speed as possible and... seeing him crouch to dodge without even looking at her!
"Gahh!" she felt pain wake her from her state of shock as the air in her lungs was knocked out of her and her body bent over his palm, losing her grip on her weapon and being thrown far away as a result of the absurd force used. Luckily, Yang had recovered and was there to stop her from crashing into a wall on the other side of the store! "H-He..." she tried to speak as she regained her breath, bewildered by everything that had happened at the last minute, "he's too strong!"
Even worse, he had her beloved Crescent Rose on his hands!
"You two," Sasuke began to speak without looking at them directly, focused on studying the weapon taken from the girl whose name he didn't know, trying to understand its general mechanism and failing due to lack of knowledge. That aside, he addressed the topic that was bothering him during the course of this fight, "Why are you holding back?"
"What?" Yang put Ruby on her feet, almost relieved to know that her Aura hadn't been broken and there wasn't any injury, yet aware that they were still walking on thin ice and paid attention to this guy, "What are you talking about?"
"Don't play dumb," Sasuke warned in a lower but threatening tone. "Every time we exchange blows, your Aura weakens, but something else inside you grows stronger, almost as if the friction resulting from the damage is converted into power and stored," he described what his eyes picked up during their little fight, and if his listener's reaction was a response, he was sure he got it right. "You've already accumulated enough to multiply your total strength, so why are you hesitating to use it? Afraid of what might happen if you miss, or maybe..." he expressed a small, almost twisted smile, "of killing me?"
Ruby swallowed dryly, beginning to believe that this guy really was bad news and that they were climbing in a dangerous direction.
How the hell does he know about my Semblance?! Yang clenched her fists, almost in awe at the level of precision and detail of the description given. Do I know this guy? For a moment she thought he was also a Signal student, but it would be impossible not to remember someone capable of creating turmoil just by existing. Definitely not someone I have provoked in the past either.
In that case, this was all just a random encounter that ended really badly, because this guy was as strong as he was sinister!
Damn, I messed up. Yang was almost tempted to apologize and get Ruby out of there as soon as possible. Only, he didn't seem at all willing to let us go. Understandable, considering that she attacked him out of pure fear. Besides, he really seems to want to test our strength to the limit...
"No answer?" Sasuke could see the hesitation written all over her face, so he replicated the girl's in red wielding style and handled the scythe in a way that made them stare at him dumbfounded before burying the tip of the blade in the floor below. "It's not bad, it might even be useful to me."
"You..." Ruby had a shaky finger pointed, almost as if she was looking at herself in a male body; at the way he had her weapon over his shoulder in a pose she loved to do. "Did you copy me?" Only then did the rest of what he said hit her and her surprise was replaced by angry fear. "What do you mean by be useful to me?!"
"Exactly what that means," Sasuke tilted his head, feigning innocence. "After all, you attacked me out of nowhere and I think I deserve some kind of compensation," he teased even more as he noticed the abrupt change in the girl in red. "I need a new weapon and this one looks pretty good to me."
"No!" Ruby huffed, standing up in an instant, ready to fight with tooth and nail to rescue her beloved! "Crescent Rose is my partner! I won't let you have her!"
"Hold your ponies, Ruby!" Yang had to restrain the girl so she wouldn't mess up and make everything worse... that she herself caused. Damn it! Realizing that everything would get worse before it started to get better, she decided to swallow her pride and address the one who had part of the reason; trying to remedy the situation any way she could, "Look, it was my fault, okay? I shouldn't have attacked you just because you... I don't know, released that sinister Aura to scare a bunch of annoying bitches, so give my sister back her weapon, it's not her fault she wanted to help me when she saw me in danger."
So her name is Ruby, Sasuke made a mental note, confirming that the names of people in this world were quite strange. "Maybe I can give it back, but not for free."
This son of a! Yang was trying to be the voice of reason, and this guy wasn't helping! "What do you want? Money?"
"Nothing so trivial, I assure you. What I really want is you," Sasuke pointed at Ruby and watched the girl choke on the blush rising to the tip of her ears... again. Just as he was about to explain what he wanted from the girl with a creative mind, the other interrupted him.
"Just over my dead body!" Yang was burning, ready to forget any restraint and use her Semblance with lethal force! He wants to see all my strength?! I'll show him!
Oh My God! Oh My God! Oh My God! Ruby wasn't listening to her sister's threats, trapped in a different world with the given answer. He doesn't just want my weapon, he wants me too?!
This was unheard of! Never before had a boy shown interest in her weapon, let alone her as well!
No, Ruby! He's mean! Just because he was really handsome, she blushed even more, stylish, and could wield Crescent Rose as well as she could, didn't mean she could get carried away! You still need to save your partner who has been taken as a hostage!
Another misunderstanding... Sasuke held back a sigh, preferring to stick to the topic that interested him. "Ruby," he called the girl by the name and was sure he saw her smile before she regained her senses and glared at him. "That ability to turn into petals and gain speed must be your Semblance, correct?" The girl hesitated to answer but eventually nodded in confirmation. "You want your scythe back, don't you?"
"Obvious!" Ruby would do anything... she felt her face heat up. N-Not anything!
What would she do if he wanted to hold her hand?!
"Let's make a trade then," Sasuke decided to stop stalling and get to the point. "All I want is..."
"Never!" Yang didn't let him finish, deciding that she would also use the Dust ammo from Ember Celica that she had been avoiding doing so far. I don't care if this place burns to the ground, I won't let him lay a finger on her!
Then, for the second time, the chill spread, and both Yang and Ruby shivered at the glint in the eyes of a boy who was as beautiful as he was sinister.
"Do not interrupt me again," Sasuke didn't ask, he ordered, and they seemed to have gotten the message, as the blonde girl's red eyes returned to normal almost immediately. Calming himself as he realized they were becoming afraid and with motive, he tried once more, "I will return your weapon if you, Ruby, show me your eye ability."
A moment of silence provided by something other than fear made the sisters look at each other, clearly at a loss as to the request being made.
"My what?" Ruby tried not to think about how intimidating this boy was when he wanted to be and focus on the request made.
"Exactly, what the hell are you talking about?" Yang needed to measure her words, hating to have to start listening before speaking. She didn't want to admit it, but she could still feel a tremor in her hands just by looking at this guy. How could someone so handsome be so scary?!
"My eyes, they are not an ornament." Sasuke didn't like the answer he received at all, being sure that he hadn't been wrong about his guess regarding this girl. "I can see people's aura. Yours, Ruby, is dark red. Your eyes, however, give off a different coloration, that color being silver."
"They do?" Ruby touched her own face, having no idea about any of this, and Yang seemed as skeptical as she was.
"Where I come from, that can only mean that you also have some kind of eye ability, just like me." Sasuke decided to move closer, ignoring the tension Yang had as she stared at him with closed fists. It seems she has regained some willpower. Hardly enough to really try her luck again, of that he was sure. "That, or you transplanted someone else's eyes."
"Of course not!" Ruby found the mere thought of having someone else's eyes frightening! Even more so because she wasn't sure of her answer! "I mean... not that I know of."
"You didn't get an eye transplant, Ruby. Mom had silver eyes too," Yang comforted her conflicted little sister, trying hard to stay composed now that this guy was mere feet away from them. "Also, how are we gonna know you're telling the truth?"
"Other than the fact that I don't know you and I have described your Semblance accurately?" Sasuke answered without looking at this girl, but he was sure she was red with irritation for not being able to retort. "As for you." He reached out to the girl who had his full attention, touching Ruby's face and watching her freeze in shock. "You really don't know anything about the gift you possess..."
Such a possibility was disappointing, just as it reminded him of one of the biggest regrets of his life; the fact that he was oblivious about having awakened the Sharingan at seven. Because of that, Sasuke went five years without having access to his ability and being able to develop it.
"I-I..." Ruby was about to collapse! His large, rough, cold hand was almost caressing her face and she didn't know what to do!
Before Yang could have another fit of anger capable of overcoming fear and restarting a losing fight, Sasuke withdrew his hand and extended the other to return the scythe taken from the girl.
"Crescent Rose?!" Ruby awoke only to have her beloved in hand! "I will never let you go again!" She hugged her weapon with carefree affection, soon remembering that she wasn't alone and giggling nervously, mostly because of the boy who might be a bit nicer than he seemed. "I... I thought you wouldn't give her back to me anymore."
"If you are ignorant of your own ability, it's useless to try to force you to show it, so your weapon no longer has any purpose in my hands." Although curious about what those silver eyes could do, Sasuke would accept this flawed outcome. "That and I don't have time to continue playing with you two, since I need to find another store, because this one..."
He didn't need to finish, they could see the damage done by their little clash.
"Dang, we're in trouble..." Yang allowed herself to relax a little when she recognized that maybe this guy wasn't a complete ass and that nothing else bad was going to happen now that he lost interest in them, more concerned about the outcome of this little party. Daddy is definitely going to kill us!
"You have no idea how much."
The three of them turned to the unfamiliar voice, coming face to face with a beautiful blonde woman with glasses, wearing a purple-bottomed cape, pointing some kind of wand in their direction and feeling their bodies paralyze.
"What in the world..." Yang couldn't move and she wasn't the only one, however that was the least of it, what worried her was whether this monster would accept to stay as such or do something about it. He is definitely not the type to take any crap; not with his temperament and absurd strength.
A woman with a Jounin-level Aura. Sasuke, once again, had to restrain himself from letting his instincts take over and covering this stranger with black flames. Calming himself with the lack of imminent danger, he went on to analyze the situation with his usual calculative coolness before deciding what he would do. She's not trying to do anything but keep us immobilized, more concerned with checking out the place... maybe she is related to this property, or part of the local authorities. Gaining more reason to stay composed with the lack of threat and wait before making a move, he decided to focus on the power used by her. Some kind of telekinesis? Probably her Semblance.
It was almost amazing how much these abilities could differ from person to person, very reminiscent of the bloodlines back in the Elemental Nations.
Before more could be added to his analysis, the silver-eyed girl helped confirm his suspicions.
"You're a Huntress!" Ruby, unlike the others, was almost elated at the appearance of the authorities. "Can I have your autograph?!"
"You three will accompany me to the police station," Glynda ignored the troublesome little girl's request, saying exactly what was going to happen from then on while trying not to let that unnerving feeling of being under the gaze of an incompatible pair of eyes get the best of her. "You all have a lot of explanations to do."
Normally, Sasuke would have done something by now, repudiating the idea of letting anyone order him around like that, much less arrest him, but this situation worked for him. Not only am I not to blame for anything, but I'm not going to waste my time looking for the police station.
Things might be going a little out of order, but they were still moving towards the desired outcome and that was more than acceptable... for now.
I hope you enjoyed the chapter and if you want to support me and read a few chapters ahead of the public release, take a look at my P t r & on (slash) Bertoti.
Don't forget to leave your opinion and I'll see you again in two weeks.
Until then.