"Sasuke!"
The name echoed inside the hall in the voices of Blake, Weiss, and Ruby as they found themselves unable to stop the boy in their hands from disappearing/running away for a reason they couldn't understand.
Or they refused to accept because of the guilt that plagued them.
Even Yang had her hand outstretched without realizing it, trying to reach this bastard who was a cause of conflict in her mind and heart, and failing to have the same as the others.
Nothing but green leaves that were destroyed by the force of her desperate grip.
A result that represented the unconscious fear they all had of losing him.
That was all that was left as they tried to understand the situation and what had happened.
"Just now..." Weiss had her icy blue eyes wide open, in a state that seemed to be melting with the tearfulness always suppressed before she met Sasuke and felt the conflicting Aura he emanated. It was different.
Which triggered that emotional response.
Both in him and in her.
It wasn't hate or love like last time, able to strengthen the resentment inside her and then the forgotten affection for her family.
It was sadness.
So much pain amidst denial that most couldn't even comprehend.
But Weiss could.
"Don't be weak!" She could almost hear her father's authoritative voice echoing in her mind as he taught/reprimanded her, a small child for acting like one after getting hurt. "Tears are a sign of weakness and there is no place for the weak in this house!"
That's why she was forbidden to do so; to show her emotions and should always remain cold like a mountain of ice.
Inevitably, however, even a mighty mountain like Sasuke could be shaken by the storms that emotions represented.
That must be why seeing Sasuke cry, the strongest person in the world, someone she admired and came to love... hurt.
It hurt so much that she didn't know what to do other than once again forget any restraint and let her much-repeated weakness show through.
Fortunately or unfortunately, she wasn't the only one.
"He was..." Blake had her amber eyes out of focus as her emotions ran out of her control and down her face. Conflicted.
Denial and sadness were hands in hand with the confusion of that powerful Aura of his.
Once again proving that Sasuke was not the monster she believed him to be at first or even some kind of god after finding out about his origins.
He was just a boy blessed with a great power whose emotions could easily influence.
In that case, what must he have gone through to get to this point?
Merely imagining this reminded her of her own pain.
When was the last time she had felt something like that? Adam came hard enough in her mind to make her clench her fists and feel anger.
Not just because of what he turned out to be, but for her running away when she couldn't change him...for giving up.
And what about the first time? It was probably when she realized the reality of this world as a child and...ran away in tears because of the insults of some human children.
Then, before she could realize it, this kind of thing became recurrent.
Running away from what she had no control over, contradicted her, and... hurt her.
Even from her own family who did nothing but love her.
This hateful aspect of her was well represented by her Semblance.
What would she do this time then?
Keep running away?
No.
Blake wanted to change!
She wanted to be better!
She wouldn't give up on Sasuke either!
This time it would be different!
Before, she couldn't do anything when they branded Adam with iron and broke him to the point of no return, but now...
Blake would protect and fight for Sasuke!
Starting by making those responsible pay for all of this!
"Crying?!" Yang was the most skeptical about what happened, especially with what she did trying to reach him and her uncontrollable desire to comfort the reason for her nightmares with a hug, a kiss, and whatever else it took until she saw him smile like the arrogant bastard he was! Dammit, dammit, dammit!
Uchiha Sasuke was supposed to be a monster who threatened to destroy the purity of her little sister while trying to drag her into a conflict that Remnant wasn't a part of, and not... not... someone broken like that.
For if he was, what did that do to everything she felt about him?!
The urge she had to cry and kill someone answered that question and many others she still wanted to deny.
The truth?
Yang liked him... and hated him too.
Reason?
While these other two had a few tears forming in their eyes, Ruby had them streaming down her face non-stop as she crumbled in a way she had never seen before.
One of her biggest fears and reason for wanting to keep her little sister away from Sasuke was just becoming real!
"Wh-why was he crying?" Ruby asked between sobs as she grabbed her head with her hands, feeling like this was all her fault! "W-was it because of what I said?"
Sasuke had told her before that he was no hero and she, with her endless stubbornness, kept insisting on it!
Why was she always like that?!
Now, his secret was out and it wouldn't even take an hour for all of Remnant to find out.
Considering how much Sasuke disliked attention, he could have walked away from this world!
Ruby would never see him again!
The thought of this hurt in a way that made silver flames glow in her eyes.
To imagine that this was the last time she felt the cozy touch that could warm her heart, saw those unique eyes that made her daydream, and heard the calm voice full of unwavering confidence that Sasuke had, capable of touching her soul...
Ruby didn't want that to happen!
But... what could she do?!
There was no answer that was able to appease her growing fear and her heavy breathing reflected this as the oxygen seemed to have disappeared to make her chest ache more and more.
"Ruby, calm down!" Yang pleaded as she kept her little sister from falling when she lost her balance and hyperventilated non-stop, this being the first time and it scared her to no end. "You need to breathe slower!"
She wasn't listening.
She couldn't hear anything.
Everything was dimming as the silver light in her eyes went out and her mind wandered...away from the one she wanted to have around and would never have the chance to know better.
"I-is everything okay?!" Nora tried to help when everything that just happened finally let her mind work again, something that applied to the vast majority in the hall, but stopped when that black-haired faunus girl looked at her with her amber eyes shining with tears and hatred. "I-I..."
Her desire to say something was destroyed as soon as she tried and Ren was by her side to get her out of the way just in time to see the gleaming edge of a sharp sword pass before her eyes, cutting the air along with a few strands of her orange hair.
Her heart sank even deeper with the added feeling of fear as she understood what had just happened and knew that if Ren had not saved her just now...
Nora swallowed dryly and her Aura responded accordingly to prepare herself for the worst.
Unfortunately, there were some things that both her Aura and the boy she had loved all her life could not protect her against.
"What do you think you're doing?!" Ren stood protectively in front of his childhood friend, already with StormFlower, his weapon, in hand and ready to fight if he had to. "Attacking another student with such malice?! You'll be expelled!"
There were rules forbidding violence within the school and he hoped that his reminder would be enough to dissuade this girl's anger which was almost palpable.
Maybe it would work if Blake wasn't, technically speaking, a criminal who didn't obey laws, much less rules.
"You!" Blake disregarded the warning of this boy who also deserved her anger, but not as much as this bitch responsible for what happened! This will not go unpunished! Not this time! With her determination burning with anger, she drew her sword again with nothing else in mind but to cut down that girl! "This is your fault! You made him cry!"
Deep down, Ruby Rose also had some of that guilt in her book, but not only was the girl already punishing herself with a sense of guilt so strong it made her have a panic attack before she passed out, but both Blake and Weiss had also insisted on considering Sasuke some kind of savior; on trying to push that responsibility so he wouldn't leave this world.
That and this younger girl also loved Sasuke, in a way that was so intense it hurt.
That certainly included Weiss as well, making them equal and in that sense more than rivals.
They were all on Sasuke's side and that made them allies for his well-being.
These other people who only stared at him with those damn looks, on the other hand...
In her eyes, they were all enemies.
"Tsc!" Ren took note of the situation as a whole and had no choice but to fight. Nora just...lost her willpower.
Inevitable, he would say.
The girl might be a tank in the physical sense of the word, but emotionally...
The last words this resentful girl used had more force than a bolt of lightning that Nora couldn't absorb to strengthen herself.
But that was exactly why he was there, to deal with what she couldn't!
No matter what!
Contrary to the will to fight shown by these two to protect and hurt, Weiss found herself unable to draw her weapon as she would have done at any other time before seeing Sasuke in that state.
The problem was that Blake and Ruby were not the only ones affected by out-of-control emotions and feelings, even if it was different for each of them.
Weiss was conflicted in a way that didn't let her think straight!
One part of her wanted to go after Sasuke to hold him in her arms until she could make him feel better.
Another part, one that shared all this anger, wanted to help Blake in this fight and punish those responsible for triggering everything that happened, even if it hadn't been intentional.
And lastly, there was that lingering sense of reason with the memory of her encounter with Sasuke on top of that building; the things she learned about him and the cloak now worn by Ruby Rose that made her want to avoid unnecessary conflict and find a way to deal with the repercussion she so feared.
"Blake, wait!" Weiss decided to prioritize what was most important, starting with keeping Blake from making a mistake that could cost her her permanence at Beacon. "Fighting won't solve anything!"
Words that fell on deaf ears as she was completely ignored.
Luckily, not only for her but for those on the opposite side of this situation, a familiar red-haired figure that Weiss had come to know and admire over the years, second only to her sister, appeared to interrupt the violent advances of her anger-blinded friend.
Following closely this unexpected apparition, a metallic clang echoed along with sparks within the hall as the black sword met a golden shield.
Blake had no time to understand what just happened before she was pushed back by a force that few could have.
The resulting shock was one that made her hand shake a little and weakened the grip on her sword that nearly slipped from her hand, forcing her to pull herself together enough not to attack without thinking again and reevaluating her options.
She hated to admit it, but this extremely familiar girl who bared her attack was strong, Huntress's level of strength.
Next to her, a Yang busy caring for her unconscious little sister made sure to clear up any doubts as to the identity of this new obstacle.
"The invincible girl, Pyrrha Nikkos..." she narrowed her eyes at this little champion, feeling some hitherto non-existent hostility towards her. Now that I don't need you anymore, you decide to show up.
Before, this girl, even if only for a moment, represented a ray of hope along with the other girl that Sasuke said to hate him and that was even stronger.
Something hard to believe, considering the achievements that Pyrrha Nikkos had by remaining undefeated for so many years.
However, Sasuke was a monster on a completely different level and those eyes of his could see things that Yang couldn't even imagine.
If he said the other girl was stronger, then it was true.
Simple as that.
That's why Yang resented this girl, for her strength recognized by the world itself.
If Pyrrha had shown up earlier, she would have been the one to receive Sasuke's interest, thus preventing the outcome in the form of a broken-hearted Ruby in her arms and...her own broken in half with that conflicting feeling of love and hate.
Inevitably, she still remembered the burning sensation of having Sasuke's lips on hers and the desire that burned endlessly for more.
As well as, the fear of his power, unknown end goal, and danger he posed to her family.
Her concern wasn't unfounded, however...her resentment for this girl might be.
After all, Pyrrha was on Sasuke's radar.
And so, out of some almost unknown feeling of jealousy, she simply didn't like this girl and her greatest desire was to join Blake and help in this fight until she was rid of all these bad emotions.
However, Yang didn't have the luxury of getting carried away; not when her little sister was unconscious after having a panic attack.
Her breathing is stabilizing, but the tears keep falling... The mere thought of Ruby still crying served as fuel to her anger, but she needed to contain that fire from burning any harder and get to the infirmary. After that, however...
Her red eyes indicated everything she wanted to and was going to do when she returned.
With Yang's hasty exit with an unconscious Ruby in her arms, there was only Weiss left to try to do something before everything got completely out of hand.
Something that wouldn't take long to happen given the way the people around them were reacting.
"Blake, are you okay?" she tried but didn't even get a positive response from her friend who had that same look in her eyes from when they fought until they almost died. "This is no time to be fighting, Blake. We should be going after Sasuke!"
That should be the only priority!
Maybe it was, but not when Blake knew better.
Finding Sasuke when he didn't want to be found was just impossible.
Just remember the last few hours they had spent searching and couldn't even feel his Aura, especially when he was only a few meters away from them.
"You're wrong, Weiss." She pointed her sword forward, looking only at what mattered. "The priority is to make these people pay for what they've done," that was all Blake had to say to this new friend of hers and all her concern before focusing on her new obstacle/opponent, one whose strength she recognized. "I don't care who you are and so I'm only going to say this once," her eyes narrowed with her determination to keep fighting, "get out of my way if you value that little title of yours."
A bold claim but one that no one could refute given the seriousness and confidence shown.
"Blake..." Weiss really didn't know what to do, especially when the target of all this hatred, that girl named Nora, seemed to have broken as well and had no desire whatsoever to fight. This... isn't right.
Still, she didn't want to oppose Blake, not when she was her only friend.
"My intention is not to go against you," Pyrrha would disregard that threat which had potential given the force behind the attack used and the speed of reaction this Blake had in regaining her posture after being repelled. "I just think Weiss Schnee is right and there are more important things at the moment than fighting."
If the way the others inside the hall were handling the realization of Sasuke's true identity said that much, Remnant was about to be shaken to the core again.
"More importantly, you say..." Blake had her teeth showing and her hand clenching the hilt of her sword. "Do you have any idea what's going to happen now because of this bitch?!"
The whole world was going to know who Sasuke was!
His stay in this world would be anything but peaceful!
If he hadn't already left!
"You drove away the only good thing this world ever had!" Blake was never going to forgive these two for that! The only one who could make me forget everything else and hope that things could change!
And now he could be gone and never come back!
"I-I..." Nora didn't know that her inconsequential request could result in something like this, either such a revelation or the turning away of this hero, and for it, she felt bad in a way long forgotten. "I'm sorry..."
There was nothing more she could say and unfortunately it was far from enough.
"Hmph," Blake almost spat on the floor in disgust, letting that bad side of her towards humans show through again. "'Sorry' isn't going to solve anything."
It never did, not with sincerity and the intention of making amends, or the White Fang wouldn't even exist.
"And you think violence will?" Though grateful for the help of someone like Pyrrha, Ren could speak for himself. "That attacking a fellow student who clearly has no intention of fighting is going to help in any way?"
The regret in Nora's eyes only added weight to his words.
"Probably not," Blake wouldn't be a hypocrite about it, acknowledging the irrationality behind her actions. "However," she wasn't trying to be logical at the moment, much less fight to make the world a better place. That fight I left behind when I left the White Fang. The edge of her sword reflected the emotions on her conflicted face that she so desperately wanted to appease. "That doesn't change what she did; what you two did for nothing."
Nor the hatred she felt.
"Blake, Please," Weiss stood before her with her arms outstretched to stop her from attacking further. "That's enough."
Nothing good would come of this conflict if it continued.
"Why are you trying to stop me, Weiss?" Blake didn't understand, especially knowing this girl felt the same way. "Aren't you angry?"
A rhetorical question and they both knew it.
"Yes, I am," Weiss would admit this much, but before Blake could say anything, she would also say the reason that kept her from trying to attack that girl. "Do you remember the cloak that Sasuke was wearing? What did those red clouds represent?"
Blake's eyes widened with the recent memory of when Sasuke crushed Ruby's childish fantasies and naiveté in assuming that those clouds had a positive meaning behind them.
Maybe it did now, but before...
"The blood spilled in the endless conflict of a battlefield." The deadly grip of her sword wavered along with her will and she was trembling as tears returned to her eyes. "The-the clouds symbolize the cycle of hatred created through the pain of losing those you love and the desire for revenge..."
Pyrrha and Ren let their guard down as they saw this girl finally come to her senses, but not without being equally shaken by the meaning behind that cloak and its red clouds.
They could never have imagined that there was something so...heavy behind a piece of clothing that people were wearing around the world in order to honor the one who paved the way for a better future for all Remnant.
Likewise, it explained a bit about the motivations of that enigmatic hero.
Uchiha Sasuke, the Moonlight Shadow, wasn't just fighting against the Grimm, but hatred itself.
A contagious and deadly disease in this world where hating and being hated was as common as breathing.
That must be why Ren couldn't hold any grudge against this girl and felt guilty for having helped accidentally reveal Sasuke's identity, possibly driving him away from Beacon.
Later, if he had the opportunity, Ren would apologize personally, both for him and for Nora.
As for Pyrrha, now her desire to meet Sasuke was even greater than before.
For he was more than the eye could see, which wasn't little, and his goals were deeper, just like the cloak he wore as he fought to protect.
Truly someone worthy to walk beside.
Her considerations became more and more real with the sound of a sword falling, followed closely by the faunus girl in the Schnee's arms in a scene that made one envious and created prospects for the future.
After all, how many times was a Schnee seen being friendly, affectionate even, with a faunus?
Never, and that said a lot about Sasuke's influence.
For Blake, Weiss was the only friend she had in Vale, someone who until a few days ago was considered an enemy and was now comforting her after waking her up for life.
"S-sorry..." Blake hated this, these emotions and confusion, that's why she liked Sasuke so much because he made her forget all this and made her happy just by being around. "I-I'm an idiot."
One who was repeating her past mistakes and creating more conflict when there was already enough of it.
"I know," Weiss smiled a little as she stroked the long black hair of this friend of hers while trying not to cry too. "We both are for loving that boy."
An irrefutable truth.
Just the fact that Sasuke was from another world said a lot about how complicated these feelings were.
Still, they couldn't help but like him more and more as they learned about him.
"What will happen now?" That was the fear that gave life to Blake's irrationality. "Sasuke, he..."
She didn't finish, unable to as she noticed some teachers approaching and expecting only the worst of this.
After what she tried to do, being expelled right there wouldn't be surprising.
Contrary to her pessimistic expectations, however, Beacon Headmaster had good news.
For Weiss and her.
For the others? Not so much.
"Nothing is going to happen, Miss Belladonna," Ozpin reassured this girl who was one of the keys along with Ruby Rose, Weiss Schnee, and perhaps Yang Xiao Long to keep Uchiha Sasuke under control. And possibly control him. Something impossible to happen, as James had stated, but which had potential regardless. I guess we'll just have to wait and see the outcome. Other than that, he still had a thing or two more to say. "That's because, as some may have noticed, I block all communications within the school grounds, including the internet." That wasn't all. "Likewise, all students are forbidden to leave the school until the initiation is over."
"What?!"
Reactions that were more than expected.
Understandable, since nobody liked to be confined, or else jails wouldn't be considered a means of punishment.
"The initiation is too important and can't be stopped without a good reason." Ozpin would rather die ten more times than lose this enigmatic piece that Uchiha Sasuke was. One that could help me finally put an end to this fight and...my suffering.
A pity that not everyone knew the dangers that lurked in the shadows of this world and could only respond with their emotions to what they didn't understand.
"Doesn't the true identity of that monster count as 'good reason'?!" Cardin Winchester couldn't help but express his anger and regret with the stares he received soon after. "Wh-what?! It's the truth and you all know it!"
Something like that shouldn't be among normal people, much less in a school!
"Watch your mouth!" Weiss couldn't contain herself, being the one to almost burst out in anger before Blake could. "That monster saved your worthless life, or don't you remember that?!"
Sasuke saved the whole kingdom!
How could anyone be so ungrateful?!
"I remember it very well," Cardin had veins popping in his forehead from being offended like that. "I also remember him almost destroying the whole kingdom!" He managed to shut this girl up and didn't intend to stop there. "That part you don't remember? Or would you rather forget it because you like him?!"
Not only Snow White, the cat girl, and even that younger girl who fainted too!
That bastard had a bunch of girls eating out of his hand and Cardin couldn't help but hate him for it.
"Why you little!" Weiss forgot her own words of peace and was about to freeze this bastard in place when a hand stopped her from moving. "Blake?"
The possibility of her wanting to help teach this ungrateful bastard a lesson was there, and that didn't cheer her up at all.
Fortunately, that wasn't the case.
"Don't worry, Weiss," Blake would return the favor and be the one to stop her friend from making a mistake that would make her regret it later. "Ignore that Envious Idiot, he's not worth an expulsion."
No one was.
"Who are you calling envious?!" Cardin was pissed off, glowing red with anger and shame. "Just because he has a bunch of stupid girls like you drooling over him?!"
Wrong choice of words, managing to win the disapproval of more than half of the people present, the vast majority of the female audience.
"Heh," Blake had a shallow smile on her hitherto sad face, knowing exactly what to do as she hugged Weiss closer to show what they had for Sasuke and only Sasuke. "Lucky you then," she touched her face with that of a blushing Weiss before finishing with this excuse of a man, "for you'll never have girls like us fighting for you." her eyes were on that of her friend, so close it was impossible not to have certain memories. "Right, Weiss?"
It took a second for Weiss to understand what was happening and decide to play along.
"Definitely," although embarrassed by this display of affection in public, she had already kissed Blake, shared a bed, and bathed together. That's right, a hug in public is nothing but a sign of friendship!
And a weapon to destroy the self-esteem of someone who didn't know his own place.
Living and learning, Weiss would say.
Cardin was blushing and fuming with rage at the sight of these two beauties rubbing in his face what he couldn't have.
Before he could sink further into a pit of envy and resentment, Ozpin interrupted him.
"As I was saying," he had to tap his staff a few times to regain focus on the matter at hand, almost forgetting how complicated and undisciplined teenagers could be. "Because of the repercussions such information is bound to bring, momentary secrecy is necessary. After that, if Uchiha Sasuke so desires, a formal announcement will be made." That was all Ozpin could do with the intention of keeping the situation from getting out of hand before the initiation even began. "Until then, behave yourselves or there will be consequences." The warning was clear as day and everyone there knew not to take his words lightly. "That is all for now, settle down and rest, for tomorrow we have the initiation at Haven."
A day that would certainly go down in Remnant history, just as it had happened the day before.
Ozpin would be sure to make it happen.
But first, it was necessary to ensure Uchiha Sasuke's presence on the scene.
How?
That was what Ozpin was trying to find out, and he could only keep his hopes up that that heartbroken young man would return to these girls for comfort.
That, or they would find him.
Regardless of which, Ozpin would get what he so desperately wanted...
One way or another.
One more chapter to the pile and I hope you all enjoyed it.
Very tired today, so I don't have anything else to say.
Don't forget to review, and if you want to support me and read ahead take a look at my P t r & on (slash) Bertoti
The next one comes out by the end of the month.