While Sasuke was stuck in his thoughts and considerations, the two enemies, rivals, and possible allies were trying to digest this new information.
A goddess that used to be sealed on the moon broke free and imprisoned an entire planet in an illusion?
The scope of that was absurd!
Just how powerful was this Kaguya?!
Considering that Sasuke, of all people, needed help taking down this goddess said a lot about her overall ability.
It seems that when Sasuke said that anything was possible in his world, he meant it.
However, one doubt remained.
"Why?" Winter was the one to vocalize it since Neo couldn't. "Why would she do something so extreme like that?"
A question that applied to Salem as well and no one seemed to know the answer to her desire to eliminate the humans and faunus of this world.
"To take back the gift that once belonged only to her." Sasuke focused on his left hand, where the moon seal was with half the power Kaguya coveted to the point of missing the opportunity to get rid of him for good when she had the chance. "While in Remnant you have Aura, the power provided by the soul. In the Elemental Nations, the world I come from, we have Chakra."
An answer that only served to increase the number of questions.
"Chakra?" Winter had never heard of it, her curiosity reaching another level with this kind of unknown power. "What is that?"
Could it be something similar to magic? Or some kind of divine energy? After all, the source of origin was a goddess, and that explained a lot about the capabilities of this boy who stole her heart.
A mortal capable of opposing the power of a goddess to the point where she resorted to throwing him into another world; Sasuke was special like that and, even if it seemed wrong to think so, Winter was grateful for what happened or she would never have met this boy.
In compensation for her selfishness, she was more than willing to help in any way he needed, if Sasuke desired.
"Chakra is a combination between two distinct types of energy; one physical provided by living flesh and one spiritual originating from the soul." Sasuke turned his attention to them again, his face shadowed by the moonlight shining on his back to highlight his eyes that emitted a light of their own as they were empowered by the very Chakra he was trying to explain. "In short, what you use is only half of what makes up the power that I and the people of my world possess."
To some extent, he meant.
After all, the Chakra that Sasuke and Naruto had was special, where the essence of the world itself was part of that mix to grant them the power of the Six Paths; the power of creation of all things.
"So that's the power you were offering to me?" Neo wrote now that Sasuke was looking at them, where she could hardly believe it for thinking she had already received his power earlier! If so, how much stronger I'll become?!
More and more joining him was turning out to be an excellent decision!
Except for the part of having to fight this crazy, hungry goddess, but still...as long as she didn't die, this could be fun.
Not only was she on the side of someone equally divine, in more ways than one, but how many people could say they got the chance to help kill a goddess? Suddenly, the chance to earn the title of "goddess slayer" seemed a lot more realistic than before.
But first, she had to survive and appease the jealous rage of another powerful woman.
"Wait a minute," Winter couldn't believe what this little woman just wrote, somehow being even more absurd than the revelations made on this night! "Did you offer that kind of power to her?!"
What the hell happened and changed while she was passed out?!
The way Winter pointed at Neo and the tone of her voice made it quite clear the level of indignation present in her reaction that was more than justified.
"I did," Sasuke wouldn't deny that, and he intended to talk about it eventually. "Just like I offered power to your sister, I also made that offer to Ruby Rose, Blake Belladonna, and Yang Xiao Long."
A questionable and biased choice, he would admit, mostly because of Neo and the things she must have done in the past. However, the same went for him and the Sage of the Six Paths who, even after hearing about his true intentions for the future of the Elemental Nations and Naruto, still decided to give him half of his power.
Even if the path being taken was wrong and full of uncertainty, everyone deserves a second chance
So much so that even a monster like Orochimaru, kind of, redeemed himself after being revived. After all, after reviving the former Hokage, he could have used them to attack and try to steal Sasuke's body with an even more coveted pair of eyes; the Eternal Mangekyou Sharingan.
Not only did he let that golden opportunity pass him by, but he also joined the war for a world he couldn't care less about.
Following that same logic, it was a relief to know that the thief in white and that woman in red, Roman and Cinder, who he believed he had killed, were alive; to know that the consequences of his actions had been mitigated even further.
That and having something to...'convince' Neo to walk the line and not misuse her power.
The problem now was to explain it without making the situation worse.
"Why?!" Winter could understand the offer made to her little sister and was proud of it, even if she didn't like the implications that came with the possibility of her having to fight a goddess of all things. Still, Weiss had her value recognized by Sasuke. However, the same couldn't be said for that little psycho! "She tried to kill you!"
That was the fact that remained, where even she almost died fighting Neo earlier!
How could Sasuke forget or even forgive something like that?! Winter wanted to believe that his heart was kind like that, but an irrational and jealous part of her refused to accept it.
"Are you still dwelling on that?" Neo rolled her eyes, much to the endless irritation of her new rival in more ways than she'd like to admit. "Just get over it already!"
And that wasn't just her trying to get rid of the consequences of her actions, as there really were more important things to deal with, like a goddess who wanted to put everyone to sleep and lunch Remnant!
"The hell I will!" Winter was having none of it! "You're a criminal and should be locked up in a cell!"
Especially now that she knew it wasn't an underage girl standing before her!
The response this woman had was more than proof of her maturity.
"You know, with that attitude," Neo crossed her arms as she pretended to be disappointed in this woman before delivering a devastating blow to more than one target and reveling in it, "We'll never have a Threesome~"
Just like before, silence closely followed the nonsense that was casually written in the air.
It must be a gift. Sasuke was shaking now, really wanting to hit this girl, for making him remember one of the most embarrassing moments of his life, second only to his first kiss, and the reason why he came to hate the internet. Or a curse that won't let her take anything seriously.
Considering her Semblance, Neo actually liked to escape reality.
"L-like I'm ever going to do anything like that with you!" Winter wanted to choke this girl for making her think about that kind of thing! A kiss was as far as I've ever gone and she's talking about...about...
How absurd it was to even remotely suggest something indecent and dirty like that!
"With me, you say?" Neo didn't miss the choice of words used and didn't hesitate to point it out. "So with other people, it's okay?"
The smile was more suggestive than the words used and Winter was red, both from embarrassment and anger.
Before she could explode for good and put this little hussy in her place, someone else had already done it for her.
"Stop that." Sasuke hit Neo in the head in the same second, so fast that her Aura didn't even have time to manifest and surprisingly not get knocked out by it. She really did get stronger, huh?
The result of having evolved her Semblance during the fight before and then mutating her Aura from being healed by his Six Paths spiritual energy.
As for Winter, she was the one smiling this time.
It might be wrong to feel that way, but she was just as happy to see Neo get reprimanded as she was impressed by how it happened.
Before, when Sasuke had said it took him around twenty seconds to get from Beacon to Vale, Winter had found that hard to believe. Now, after seeing him move in a way that could only be described as instantaneous, it said a lot about the truth behind his words and divine ability.
Unfortunately, not everyone thought the same way.
"Ouch!" Neo saw doubled for a second and had her hands on the top of her aching head where she could already feel a bump forming. "That hurts!" She looked at Sasuke with remnants of tears and hatred in her eyes, being one step away from getting carried away and cursing at his mother, but she knew better than to make him even angrier, so she went with the second-best option. "Not so hard, Daddy~"
She could fall, but she would fall shooting!
This girl... Sasuke had his fist closed and ready to hit her again but stopped as he saw her cower in fear. Right, I had forgotten about that. The fact that everything that makes up this girl, be it her looks, semblance, and personality was a way to escape reality; That we are alike. Letting out a breath of air along with his momentary anger, he did the opposite of what he intended as he opened his hand and stroked her hair. "What do I do with you?"
Neo opened her eyes wide in surprise, feeling goosebumps and warmth under the gentle touch of this boy who had every right to hate her, just as she did him.
It only took one look at the melancholy behind those strange eyes for her to understand why.
Because we are the same. Neo recognized her mistake and stepped forward to do the unthinkable at any other time if not to piss him off, and hug this boy. "Sorry," she wrote in the air without moving a muscle from where she stood. "I'll behave."
Kind of, she wanted to say but preferred to keep it to herself.
"I don't like this," Winter was clenching her teeth as she said it, almost as if her heart was aching to see someone she hated in the arms of her beloved. "Especially after what she did."
Because of what Neo was doing at that very moment.
"I can't blame you for that," Sasuke didn't take away the reason for the distrust and grudge Winter had against Neo. "However, she only did that in response to my own actions."
Neo swallowed and squeezed Sasuke tighter, feeling her heart palpitate for a different reason; for fear of what he would say.
"What is that supposed to mean?" Winter had her eyes narrowing, hating every second of what was happening before her. As if that wasn't enough, he also offered power to a criminal like her and not to me...
Suddenly, she wasn't only being affected by jealousy and envy, but also by an unknown sense of inferiority.
Neo was strong, had a unique Semblance, and was extremely cute, as much as Winter hated to admit it. Plus, she had been recognized and chosen by Sasuke, just like Weiss and those other three girls she saw in the main hall of Beacon.
If all that wasn't a reason to feel like this, then what else would be?
"The night the Grimm attacked, just before that, when I let my anger and hatred manifest without restraint." Sasuke would never forget that night; the mistake he committed. "I was extremely frustrated by how some things were slipping out of my control."
Finding out that his revolution was flawed; that this world was heading towards its own destruction while conflict remained despite the common enemy; his unexpected concern for Remnant when he needed to focus on the Elemental Nations...
As if all of that wasn't enough, there were the girls who contradicted his initial view of the opposite gender who normally only saw him as a means to an end; as an object of empowerment, where more than one girl in this world was able to show feelings for him without knowing about his hereditary lineage, status and power.
The near-breaking point that left him in that emotional state, however, was after the conversation he had with Ruby in front of the police station; understanding that she had a pure heart and remembering the time when he was the same before losing everything under the full moon.
"I decided to vent all that frustration and clear my mind by using some thugs who were robbing a Dust store downtown." He felt Neo stiffen under her touch and with good reason; because he was talking openly about what he did to someone who was important to her. "While I intended to hurt them, killing was not my intention... At least, not at first."
Now Neo was shaking, her nails trying to pierce this boy's exposed skin as she remembered why she hated and tried to kill Sasuke in the first place.
Roman was alive, yes, but only because that doctor gave his blood to keep him alive.
If it were up to Sasuke, Roman would be seven feet under.
In fact, even now, that was still a possibility given the state he was in, being in a coma and all.
"What happened?" Winter put her insecurities aside as she noticed the change in the very woman that made her feel this way in the first place, starting to put some pieces together as she remembered a report on this matter that the General had received earlier; one that she unfortunately didn't have access to before being dismissed. That explains the level of attention Ironwood was giving to this in particular.
At the same time, it also meant that Sasuke was responsible for something that made the centered man she had followed for so long show expressions of anger and act the way he was acting now, certainly by believing that Sasuke was responsible for everything that happened there and...maybe it really was true.
"In the heat of the moment, fear made one of the thugs kill his own ally right before my eyes." Sasuke avoided using Roman's name out of respect for Neo and she noticed that as she relaxed, even if just a little. "That wasn't supposed to happen and, even if indirectly, it was my fault, and that made my mood even worse... something that unfortunately ended up being reflected in the Chakra I released without restraint and unleashed that horde of Grimm."
An event not even the world itself would forget, especially because of what he did soon after in exterminating that very threat.
As for Neo, while she was still taken by the conflict of her emotions, at least now she was sure of something.
It was Roman who charred that henchman and that triggered Sasuke's destructive response to leave even the monster that Cinder was at death's door.
That being the case, what was she supposed to do about it?
Theoretically speaking, everyone was to blame for what came to pass.
Except that the hatred I felt coming from Sasuke that day wasn't something a situation like that could justify. Neo knew hatred from the experience with her family and from making other people feel it before succumbing to despair. That means he's not saying everything.
Understandable, since everyone has secrets and considering the little Sasuke told about himself, his must be terrible...and that only made her want to learn so much more about him.
"The person who exploded a Dust crystal and killed one of his companions was an...acquaintance of Neo's." Sasuke would keep these details as vague as possible while explaining what happened that day. "After that, I forgot my restraints and took my anger out on him and a woman who appeared soon after; one who was even worse, full of bloodlust and didn't hesitate to try and kill me along with those around me."
The look in his eyes was meaningful, as were his words.
That could have been even worse than it was.
Cinder... Neo never liked that bitch for obvious reasons, now even less after what Sasuke was implying. Did she try to kill Roman too?
If so, she'd be happy to unplug her life support later!
Just like she should have done from the beginning!
"So...you killed this man Neo knew and that woman too?" Winter understood this girl's motivations now, except that it did very little to appease her heart at the possibility of her beloved being a murderer. But they were criminals, and one of them even killed a person just before being killed...
That had to mean something, right?
At least, that's what she wanted to believe even if the reality was very different.
Love can blind in the face of truth... Winter remembered hearing something like that before and had her fists clenching tightly as she felt the conflict inside her escalate. I'm letting my feelings influence my judgment.
After all, regardless of what happened in losing her position as a Lieutenant and Specialist, she was still a Huntress who was just now trying to arrest Neo for attempted murder and should be doing the same with Sasuke. Instead, she was just standing by and listening to what seemed to be the confession of a crime without remotely considering arresting him...not that he was capable of it, anyway.
Her point, however, remained; Love really was an inconvenient thing that messed with the mind and heart in the worst way.
"I wanted to get information from him and I used my eyes for that; to try and see his memories." Sasuke still remembered the screams of pain and agony that both Roman and Cinder let out after using the Mangekyou on one and the Rinnegan on the other. "To do that, I needed to put my Chakra inside their bodies and unlike what should have happened, I only found rejection for my power, where their Aura acted like an immune system against a virus and started an excruciating battle to expel my Chakra from their bodies; one that couldn't be won."
His power was dangerous like that.
Miasma... Neo remembers that being the word the old doctor used to describe what was slowly killing Roman and Cinder before he gave his all to save them. It's not for nothing that Sasuke believes that the two of them had died.
Anyone in the same position would come to that conclusion. Hell, even she did exactly that when they fought earlier.
So it was manslaughter? Winter sighed, feeling some relief at understanding that there was no intent to kill behind Sasuke's actions and soon being taken by guilty for thinking that way. It just proves how biased I've become...
With that kind of mentality, did she still deserve to be called a Huntress?
Fortunately, her conflict was proven unfounded soon after with what her beloved had to say.
"At least, that's what I believed as I left the scene to investigate the emergency alert that was issued." Sasuke looked directly into Neo's eyes and saw fear rise in her as she understood what he was talking about, where she even tried to pull away from him and possibly run away, but he wouldn't let her. "The truth, however, couldn't be more different and those two lived to have the chance to see another day."
In short, he hadn't killed anyone since he had arrived in Remnant.
At most, Sasuke was indirectly to blame for creating the circumstances that forced the hand of that Dust thief, resulting in the death of a henchman and that was enough for Winter to feel an absurd weight come off her shoulders.
While this revelation served to bring her peace of mind, the same couldn't be said for her greatest enemy; one who regretted being within arms reach of her beloved.
He knows! Neo was beginning to hyperventilate, her multicolored eyes out of focus as her mind was taken over by chaos. Wh-what do I do now?!
This almost felt like karma!
All because she mocked that girl in red, Ruby Rose, and Sasuke; they were both victims of a panic attack, just like the one she was sure she was having at the moment!
As despair born of fear of uncertainty about what would happen next began to take hold of her, sudden pain in just the right measure hit her in the forehead to clear her mind and finally see Sasuke expressing the opposite of what her pessimistic heart had expected.
Instead of having a cold expression that promised death like the one he showed before they fought, there was something comforting in the form of a soft smile that only accentuated this boy's divine beauty while his hand had two fingers outstretched that he used to hit her on the forehead.
"Calm down, Neo," Sasuke asked after repeating a gesture Itachi often used with him, hoping that this and a smile would be enough to reassure her even if just a little. "I'm not going to do anything against them."
If he intended to do something, to begin with, Sasuke would have done it already, and without letting anyone know.
"You...won't?" Neo had her hands over her forehead, not because it was hurting or anything, but because she couldn't understand what just happened as she let her Semblance express her surprise and confusion in words. "Why?"
Especially after everything that had happened?
Neo expected only the worst coming from him, for that was exactly what she would do against someone who not only made an attempt on her life but also awoke the dormant hatred in her soul.
In fact, she would kill for much less and so would he; they should be alike like that. However, Neo was forgetting about how inconsistent this boy was; the fact that he was changing.
The warmth emanating from his Aura was more than proof of that and one of the reasons she decided to follow him in the first place.
"Because I made a promise." Sasuke wasn't Naruto, but even he took what he said very seriously. "That you would never be alone again if you came with me." He held out his hand to her. "Killing someone important to you would be the same as going against that promise and I don't intend to do that."
Which was true, but not for the right reason.
Unlike Neo, Sasuke couldn't care less if Roman was alive or not, but showing that level of forgiveness was vital to ensuring that she would join him for good.
That, and making this girl take things more seriously.
Neo just stood there as she looked at this boy and the offered hand not knowing what to do.
This is the second time... she still remembers when Roman did something similar all those years back in Mistral, whispering sweet promises of greatness and notoriety to have her by his side when she didn't care about any of it. Yet, that changed my life forever.
That's because Neo was the one who used Roman to get the freedom she so desperately wanted; she took that opportunity so she wouldn't end up alone and be rejected by the world again...only to live with that risk constantly.
The path she chose to follow was dangerous like that.
Even if Sasuke had never appeared in this world, Neo knew it was only a matter of time before something bad and irreversible happened.
Her quest for revenge was nothing more than a desperate attempt to reject reality...something she had been doing unconsciously since she was a child, to the point where her Semblance was a literal manifestation of it.
Changing her name and appearance; assuming the identity of an imaginary friend who was a representation of her repressed desires only helped to confirm this.
If Roman or her didn't end up in prison for the rest of their lives, one of them would be killed, just like how it almost happened before when they met.
Getting this far in itself was a miracle; one that had an expiration date considering the absurd plans that bitch Cinder had for the future of Vale and probably the other kingdoms.
That was the reason why Neo never could or would allow herself to see Roman as more than a partner in crime and replacement family; the idea of loving and losing that same love was unbearable, especially after having experienced something similar when she was still Trivia Vanille and saw the physical manifestation of Neopolitan being destroyed by her mother.
Even with these restrictions, she almost had her heart shattered completely when she believed Roman had died at Sasuke's hand.
Had they been in a relationship, that would have been much worse.
Thankfully, this time was different.
The one reaching out to her offered exactly what she wanted and more; he was someone powerful that only a literal goddess could threaten and he was willing to fight rather than submit.
Sasuke was so much more than Roman would ever be and as hateful as it was to think so, Neo wouldn't let her disillusions blind her to reality; not anymore.
Perhaps that was the reason she had ignored this divine boy's hand and moved forward to embrace him again and revel in the comfort of his touch; in the warmth radiating from his body that contained endless power and feel like anything was possible.
Maybe even... she smiled a little as she felt her belly tingle when Sasuke began to stroke her hair again. Damn playboy, making me think about something like that, even after everything that happened.
Inevitable, she'd say, because if it was with this god, she could even allow herself to feel something for a man for the first time without being afraid of the consequences.
Something to keep in mind.
"This doesn't mean I forgive you." Neo couldn't look him in the eye right now, so she just wrote as her face warmed a little from clearly acting like a tsundere. "Nor that I don't hate you anymore."
At least, that's what she wanted to believe.
"You don't have to forgive me." Sasuke preferred it that way, hate was much more familiar and easier to deal with. "Just like I said before, you can hate me all you want, I'll accept whatever you have in your heart."
That was a small price to pay to achieve his goals and to see if peace born of hate could exist or was just an illusion.
The answer to that came faster than Sasuke could ever imagine.
"So..." Neo tried to shift the focus of all of this to calm her turbulent heart and couldn't help but notice the way Winter was looking at them. "Is this the part where you kiss me?" A playful finger rested on the exposed chest of this boy responsible for leaving her heart in this state, teasing in revenge. "Or do you want me to take the lead?"
In the next second, before Sasuke could think of hitting this girl in the head, someone else had already taken the liberty of doing it for him.
"Get your hands off him!" Winter could no longer watch this girl do as she pleased! "He is my beloved!"
And no puny murderess was going to steal him away from her!
"Gyah!" Neo felt a chill run up her spine as she remembered the last time she had been on the ground fighting with this woman! "Get away from me, you crazy bitch!"
Written words that were ignored along with her gaze that begged for help from the only person in the room who could help.
I was asking too much, wasn't I? Sasuke sighed as he looked at these two rolling on the floor, one pulling the other's hair. That peace through hate could be created...that and Neo would behave.
At least they weren't trying to kill each other and that seemed like progress...probably.
So... my last author's note hasn't aged very well, huh? That's why I hate making promises. You just don't know what's coming tomorrow to try and f*ck you up.
Anyway, I won't say anything else, I just hope you enjoyed the chapter and I'll see you on the next one.