Welcome back to another chapter, two quick PSAs.
First: Regarding Chibis, I'm only going to do these during more serious arcs since this fic already has a lot of jokes as is, and I don't wanna be overbearing with it.
Second: I DO NOT take fanfic requests, so please stop spamming my DMs about it; thank you.
With that stuff out of the way, let's get back into this!
Beta Readers: Chris72637, Luxutor, MegaDumbo, and Tupjunk
...
It was another normal day at Beacon, well...as normal as it gets when you're teaching kids how to kill monsters or whatever they do here...Yuji really still wasn't clear on that one-
One day, you're in a class about Grimm, and the next, you gotta sit and hear some lady named after a fruit talk about plants...were these the gen-eds his senpais warned him about?
...
...
Eh, it's not like he paid attention in either.
He shrugged it off, looking up to the clear blue sky as pretty white clouds passed overhead, raising his arms behind his head as the wind flashed by, letting himself fall back toward the green grass as bullets whizzed overhead.
Oh yeah-
They were fighting, weren't they?
*BOOM-BOOM-BOOM
A torrential bang rang out as Yang shot a hailstorm beneath herself, sending the bombshell flying into the air as her blonde hair fluttered with the breeze, reeling back a haymaker as she let off a shot going straight up, the recoil sending her careening back down, gauntlets at the ready to smash the sorcerer's life into pieces-
This was his last resort-
Ah man, why's that song stuck in his head no-
*CRACK
The ground shuttered as Itadori slammed a palm along the hardened pavement, his body moving like a whirlwind as his wrist spun with the motion, sending a spinning crescent kick smashing through the atmosphere.
Yang could hardly blink as he crashed through her nonexistent defense before a red sneaker smashed against her face, her pale cheek briefly shaking before flying off into a tumbling mess.
The vessel wasted no time; pushing off his palm like a springboard, he danced backward along Beacon's endless pathways, dodging a hailstorm of colorful pellets as they flew by as a blurred figure rushed him through the smoke before taking a thunderous leap-
"Hi, Yuji!"
Of course, it was Nora, raising a giant hammer overhead, an all too happy smile on her face...seriously, he loved his sister from another mister, but he couldn't help but think she had a screw or two loose.
"I said hi!"
Should...should he respond or?
The vessel awkwardly raised a hand, "H-Hey Nor-"
"WOMP!"
The hammer came crashing down, and with the force of a thousand sugar rushes, it slammed into the sorcerer's waiting palm, the ground splintering beneath him as cracks spread for meters on end before the ginger came to a dead stop midair, with him just holding her there-"
"Huh?"
She kicked her feet for a second before starting to pull on the handle, starting to bounce up and down like a seesaw, "Oh, I love party games! But ya know what the pancake Queen likes more!?"
Yeah, she started calling herself that after realizing she wasn't going to get the Fun Crown back any time soon.
Yuji was seeing question marks, "...What?"
"FIR-"
*CRUNCH
Without missing a beat, Yuji casually crushed the end of her hammer with the squeeze of a hand as she pulled the trigger, with the sounds of a stuck timer going off as she sadly slumped over, "Awwww, party poope-"
*BOOOOM
The resounding blast sent her flying before vanishing as a twinkle in the morning sky while he didn't budge so much as an inch, and as the smoke cleared, he could see Ren and Pyrrha whispering something in the distance as the latter pulled Yang to her feet, but-
They were just standing there...menacingly.
This was your average PYRN training session at the back of campus, and while most people would call this a one-sided smackdown, they figured it was the best way for them to improve as a unit, at least when they weren't coming up with like...combo names or something-
Yuji liked doing those.
The sorcerer was a lot stronger than his teammates, so it made sense for him to be their XP farm or whatever Ren called it that one time.
Off in the distance, he watched Yang slam a fresh case of dust into her gauntlets before giving him another one of those fierce grins of hers, and you may ask-
Why was the blonde out on Bond part of this?
One, the vessel promised he'd help her bulk up...power up...grow up? No, that one sounded weird.
The point was Itadori said he'd train her, so there's that, but there was another snag-
Yuji had a hard time telling Yang no to...well, anything since THAT night, and she was very aware of it and liked messing with him about it...honestly, he'd almost take the punches his friends gave back home over this-
At least he knew how to respond to those.
A nonexistent bell dinged as his opponents seemed to get some sort of plan across while Nora hadn't come down from low orbit quite yet, with Pyrrha taking a stance in the backline, rifle at the ready, and Ren and Yang both front lining-
Yuji stood off against them. His face became chiseled-
Ah, yes, the gang-up technique; he hasn't seen this since the Mahito Era...
*FWOOM
Precision fire rained down on the sorcerer from afar. He hardly needed to give Pyrrha a confused look before the shots exploded into fragments before even reaching him-
She, of all people, should know bullets don't work on him, so why were they-
Yang let out a sudden warcry, and to his surprise, her hair caught on fire, taking on an ominous glow as her eyes flickered red. Before he knew it, she was right in front of him, blasting off the ground in an explosive fury, landing a solid hit as he braced his arms in an X, sliding back just a bit as steam erupted off them.
*FWING
*CRASH
She sent a knee straight for his chin, only for a hand to drop and catch the strike with an audible thud, and with the most casual of movements, Yuji chucked the girl over his shoulder, shaking his head as she tumbled back onto her feet with a precise roll, "You aren't gonna beat me if you're just gonna throw harder punches...you gotta throw smarter one-"
*pew-pew-pew
At that moment, Ren let off a spray of dust rounds, with them exploding into bits in front of the vessel's face, and as the sorcerer stepped back, waving a hand, a metallic clang echoed out as an object bounced across the ground, landing beneath his raised foot-
Was that Pyrrha's shield?
"Eh?"
The world turned into a massive blur as the vessel started uncontrollably spinning with the plate, feeling the wind blasting against him as it drove him straight back toward a certain blonde.
The entire time, Yuji's dull stare didn't change a bit, with shots getting shredded around him before making contact, seeing with perfect vision despite spinning at untold speeds, watching as the bombshell took a runner's stance before erupting into an all out sprint, shooting off the ground and pulling her left fist to slug him square across the face.
Time moved in slow motion as his brown eyes watched the gauntlet draw close before flashing yellow, and in one fell swoop, despite having no sense of balance and in a never-ending tornado of movement, Yuji leaned back like he was doing the limbo, clenching his right fist as Yang sailed overhead-
"W-wha-"
*BOOOM
His fist slammed into her exposed stomach, sending a spray of spittle from her mouth as the blast sent her skyward, but to his surprise, the Huntress tanked it, shooting to the side to slow her spin before crashing to the ground beside Ren, glowing that much brighter.
He stared at her with a curious eye for a moment before realization dawned on the experienced fighter's mind.
...That must be her semblance, but was she just tankier, or was she doing something else?...Wait...why was he still moving?
Reality came back in a flash as the shield beneath the vessel suddenly gave out, sending him skidding along the pavement into a more industrial part of campus, with the sounds of grinding metal bellowing out on all sides.
*SCHWING
His palms slammed to the sides, stopping two massive dumpsters from crushing him as an unseen force pulled them along-
So that's what you were planning, Pyrrha.
The vessel's gaze shifted toward his partner, seeing her standing in the distance, hands outstretched-
Yuji braced himself, ready to push the massive containers back, but to his shock, the metal bent and warped around him before shooting out, wrapping his hands in a bind before pulling his arms all the way back before the same happened to his legs, leaving the sorcerer completely exposed.
On the one hand, Yuji could shred these things in the blink of an eye, but on the other, he kinda wanted to see where this would go-
He gave his opponents his usual happy smile, "Nice one! You guys are really gettin' better at this."
Pyrrha started to smile back, with happy bubbles floating off her, "Well, thanks, I really-"
Ren deadpanned, glancing at her, "Don't fall for that. He's just trying to distract you."
"He is?"
Yuji had an unreadable look on his face, "I am?"
The redhead angrily blew up her cheeks before putting the pressure back on him, making the sorcerer wonder what he did to get the angry face.
Yang approached, a cocky grin growing on her face as she cracked her knuckles, "Sweet talkin's not getting you out of this one, Pinkie, this beat down's a long time comin'!"
He just stared at her, "What'd I do?"
The bombshell just shrugged, her fiery attitude on display, "Nothing, but you can't just expect me to live it down when we aren't even yet, can ya?"
"Huh?"
This girl was seriously competitive.
Yang took a stance, her armored hands held out like claws as her red eyes gleamed right at him, "Don't take it too hard. I got somethin' I wanna ask when you wake up."
The ground around her burst into cinders as she charged up, her hair shooting sky high, making the vessel wonder if she was going super saiyan-
That'd be awesome.
*BOOOOOM
From the sidelines, the rest of team RWBY idly watched from the grass, with none of them interested in 'throwing hands on a Saturday.'
Ruby was ecstatic, shouting to the heavens above, "KICKHISBUTTYAAAA-"
*Twinkle
An orange meteor burst into existence overhead, flying straight at her.
"AAAA-...aaang?"
*CRASH
Neither Weiss nor Blake batted an eye when Ruby suddenly got buried underground, with only her hood visible and a peppy Nora hopping to her feet covered in soot from head to toe, with absolutely no signs of damage despite falling from orbit, "I met a Martian!"
All the while, Blake just stared at the fight with a bored look on her face, "It's kinda weird how he's just standing there...I mean...wasn't he the one who punched a deathstalker? Why doesn't he just-"
She glanced to the side at the Schnee, who was already rubbing her temples, "Is...something wrong, Weiss?"
The heiress stayed quiet for a second, taking a deep breath, "Just...preparing myself for something unbelievably stupid."
The bow-tie-wearing Huntress squinted with her totally not enhanced eyes, watching as the sorcerer bit his cheek, not doing much of anything as Yang came rushing in, "Are you sure he's gonna-"
*PTU
All at once, Yuji's head lurched back before shooting forward, spitting a pencil-thin line of blood right in front of Yang's boot, and the second it slammed made contact, the liquid began to glow, rising around her as tiny red spheres.
"W-what?"
Yuji just gave her a blank look that said more than words ever could-
Checkmate.
"Supernova."
*BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG-BANG
The droplets exploded into visceral buckshot, bouncing off the bombshell's aura as the ground around her ruptured into a massive crater, the shots impacting her on all sides, with not nearly enough Cursed Energy to be dangerous, but more than enough to hurt like you wouldn't believe.
Yuji coined these his beanbag rounds, and bein' honest, havin' to go non-lethal was really freaking hard for a sorcerer, but the guy had to make do.
With a shrug, Yuji looked toward his metallic binds before spitting a spray of red on both sides and within moments, the entire framework rusted away into orange dust.
It didn't take much more than a flick of motion for him to break free, but the second he landed, the teen sweatdropped seeing Yang laid out in a crater like a certain victim of the Saibamen, "Hey...you're...you're good, right?"
The blonde just groaned something about blood, making the sorcerer panic; running into a slide, he pulled the girl close, turning her over in his lap, "OY! Seriously, are you-"
Yang weakly looked at him, raising a hand, "I...I asked...for type A..."
"What?"
"I think there was a type-O."
*Finger guns
His face was so dull it had no features, "Really?"
Yang was reaching levels of smugness so high it threatened to break reality, "Ye."
...
...
*Pfft
Yuji started laughing, shaking his head in disbelief, "You're unreal...alright, just stay there, and I'll fix ya up once we're done-"
The vessel put a hand on her shoulder, giving a thumbs up with the other with his usual goofy grin, "Your hits are gettin' better. Seriously, good job!"
Yang let off a content sigh, resting her head against her arms, that smug look not leaving her face for a second, "Awww, thanks, I'm always tryna... B Positive."
The sunglasses materialized without her having to move. Such was the power of her puns.
Yuji suddenly stopped, looking around at her teammates who were doing whatever, with Weiss on her scroll and Blake reading a book, and Ruby was ...underground for some reason, with just her head popping out of the ground like a gopher...but what about his team?
Itadori's eye twitched, seeing them just standing there, "Hey...how come you guys weren't worried about her?"
Pyrrha awkwardly looked to the side, "Well...this is...oh, how do I say this-"
Ren rolled his eyes, "It's like the fifth time she's done that, dude. She falls over, you get worried and come running over just for a pun."
The redhead nodded, "It's...a bit...distracting-"
Yang rose from the dead, pulling a finger under one of her eyes and sticking out her tongue at the two, "Oh boohoo, you guys just don't appreciate my comedic genius, is all!...-"
She pointed a thumb at the vessel, "Besides, it's not my fault; Pinkie's a big old softie."
Yuji squinted, puffing his chest out in manly pride, "I ain't no softie!"
Lie shook his head in disbelief, "Man, you're, like, the biggest softie I know. Weren't you the one that ran across town to try Pyrrha's new chocolate b-"
Pyrrha turned red, looking off in a huff, "Please don't talk about the Invincible Bars, but...he's right...you really didn't need to do that."
The sorcerer waved a hand in front of him, "Aw, come on! Of course, I gotta support you guys. That doesn't make me a-"
The armored girl stared at him with those big ol' green eyes, "You don't even like candy! I've seen you eat it once!"
"Well...Nora does-"
Ren snapped a finger, "That's the point, Yuj, you're textbook Softie...and Yang's taking advantage of you to say her puns."
The blonde had an appalled look on her face, "Don't believe them, Yuj...but besides, you're forgetting something important-"
Her smirk became downright insidious, "ALL the cool kids are saying puns-"
Pyrrha stuck out a hand but was too far to reach her partner in time, "She's gaslighting you, don't fall for it! Please, Yuji, I know you're stronger than this!"
He was starting to regret teaching her slang...some words did not sound right coming out of Pyrrha's mouth.
Yuji looked to the ground, hands trembling in weakness, "...ALL the cool kids, you say?"
Ren couldn't get any duller than he already was, "Oh my God, he's actually falling for it."
Yang's head dropped, overshadowed by her long hair, almost like a...dark cloak, "Good...I can feel your humor...they are defenseless...take your puns...say them now with all of your satire...and your journey toward the comedic side will be complete."
Yuji suddenly tilted his head, "Weren't we like...training or somethin'?"
A dim bulb dinged over Yang's head, "Oh yeah...go like...beat 'em up or something, I dunno."
Those two legitimately shared a brain cell, and Yang had it most of the time.
He just flashed a thumb into the sky, "Got it!"
Leaving the blonde where she dropped, the sorcerer slowly approached the two remaining combatants, figuring Nora was too busy...chewing on Ruby's hair...apparently-
The ginger had somehow gotten it in her head that the scythe user's black and red hair was actually some secret kind of laughy taffy and turned into a horse whenever Ruby showed up for something...poor thing couldn't even fight back.
Before Yuji got too far ahead, he stopped himself, wondering how Gojo would go about actually teaching his buddies something and not just...well, beating them up...wait-
Why was he asking what Gojo would do? He loved his Sensei, but the guy was even worse at teaching than Choso...well, he did always look cool...ohhhhh...maybe he could show off a little?
You know, to set an example of what to shoot for...or whatever?... Yuji seriously had no idea what he was doing here.
*SNAP
With the crack of a finger, the dumpsters exploded into metal shrapnel, sending bags of trash flying into the sorcerer's hands as he took a pitcher's stance, surrounded by more ammo than he could imagine, "Whaddya guys say we work on dodging?"
He tilted his head as poor Pyrrha turned green, and Ren somehow became even more dull than normal, which was saying something, and it was enough to make the quiet guy talk, "Can we...please not do that?"
Itadori shrugged, giving his teammates a happy smile, "Oh, I can get the baseballs if that's better!"
The mere thought of that sent shivers through both of them for one reason-
Living with Yuji, you'd almost instantly realize he's good at sports. I mean, he was like the epitome of a jock besides being super bubbly all the time, but those two had seen him break more than enough stuff to know-
That dude
Had a cannon for an arm
Pyrrha took a calming breath, shoving aside her shaky knees, and pushed Ren behind her, raising a hand as her shield flew off from the distance, landing in her grasp as she took a stance, "There's nothing to fear, Ren! I'll keep you sa-"
From the ground, Yang mumbled, "He's already gone, Pyr."
"Eh?"
She looked over her shoulder, then around the area, spotting him sitting next to Nora in the grass, far from harm, "Really?... Really, Ren?"
Lie gave her a dismissive shrug, "Nora already ruined my other clothes. I can't lose these ones, or I'll be stuck in that bathrobe again."
"But...But you like the bathrobe!"
"...Not in class, Pyr...that's a Yuji thing...by the way, you might wanna duck."
"Huh?"
*FWOOOM
The armored girl ducked aside at the last second as a black mass flew by, exploding into rotten juice against the wall behind her, "Oh, come on!"
Yuji casually kicked another bag into the air, catching it in his hand and tossing it up and down like a baseball, "Better start runnin' before ya start stinkin'!"
"EEEEEEEEE!"
Bags flew like the wind, exploding trash in every direction as the redhead took off in a sprint, dodging disgusting shrapnel with every explosion around her, making a crater on impact.
There really wasn't any elegance in this. It was more Pyrrha running for her life in circles while Yuji kept picking up bags to throw at her, showing absolutely no signs of giving up.
The redhead threw her shield in an arc, letting it fly before rounding around, slicing along the bags before they could reach her, sending their contents to the ground in a tsunami wave of nastiness, only avoided with a well-placed dive and roll, landing in a crouch she pushed off once more, really wishing she didn't have heels on right now.
"STOOOOOOP!"
Yuji called back, his potato face all too apparent, "Ah, come on, Pyr, you're smart! Figure somethin' out!"
Her face burned hot as she growled into the winds, "YOU'RE TERRIBLE!"
The invincible girl's tactical mind raced as Miló shifted into its spear form, expertly hurled, impacting a bag of what she hoped wasn't Port's trash against a tree-
Wait-
The further she got away, the more time it would take for it to reach her, but that didn't matter when he could throw things LIKE A HUNDRED MILES AN HOUR!
Saving herself with a last-minute pull on Akoúo̱, making the poor shield take the bront of an explosive impact of cafeteria goop, the redhead saw one answer, one horribly...awful...nasty...answer if things went wrong...but an answer nonetheless!
To everyone's surprise, the armored girl took off running straight at the vessel as he happily called out, "Oh, you're approaching me? Instead of running away, you're coming right to m-"
"STOP REFERENCING THINGS I DON'T GET!"
Yuji paused for a second, "How...how did you know that was a reference then?"
...
...
"I LIVE WITH YOU!"
"You know, I don't think I've ever seen ya this worked up, Pyr. We should do this more. You're fun like this!"
Did he just call her fun?
That really made Pyrrha want to smile, but she was Pyrrha-mad, so it would have to be...later...that'll show him.
Oh when she gets her hands on him she'll...she'll...
...
...
Give him a strongly worded talking to. That's what she'll do.
The barrage kicked up, with the sorcerer hurling several bags a second, each kicking up dust and grime with each concussive blast, with him not even able to see the redhead, relying entirely on his heightened senses.
With a happy laugh, Yuji reached down again to pick up another, but caught nothing but air. He looked down, seeing yet more bags, but before he could grab them, a finger tapped him on his shoulder-
"Ah..."
"Ah..."
He looked up, seeing a pair of angry green eyes looking down at him, matched with a pout, "Hi...Pyrrha..."
You know...a girl was a lot more intimidating...and pretty when she was like...a foot taller than you.
Nice.
The next thing the sorcerer knew, her hands were on his shoulders, lifting him up to eye level. "No more throwing things...okay?"
See, a normal person would be scared out of their mind in a situation like this, but when you're an arguable nutcase in a sea of nutcase sorcerers? Well-
"Yuji?"
"Yuji?"
Sparkles were coming off his face as his eyes shimmered yellow, "Why are you looking at me like that?"
His potato face got very smug very fast, "...This has been on my bucket list for so long."
Pyrrha was so confused, "What are you-"
She remembered something-
Back at the trials, when he asked-
"Wait...was your dream really...and I mean...REALLY for someone to pick you up?"
His face went back to normal as he just hovered over the ground, "By a tall girl, yeah...why?"
She remembered something else that happened last night-
When Ren had walked up to her and said...some...things-
She still got annoyed thinking about that blank look he gave her with a sparkling thumbs-up, saying he was rooting for her.
Terrible-
She thought Ren was lying. Something like that was so specific there was just no way, but...the guy in front of her just straight up said that-
...
...
Her chest thumped, and her face burned a bit more; looking away in a huff, "Why are you so blunt about this sort of thing?"
Yuji, none the wiser, just shrugged, "I dunno, I just say it like I feel it, but you're givin' me a weird vibe right now... are you mad?"
"..."
"Pyrrrr?"
"...I'm...not...mad, okay?"
The sorcerer hummed, moving his head back and forth like a bobblehead, "Come on, lemme make it up to ya! Whaddya wanna do, make somethin' special for dinner? Play a game or somethin'? Anything?"
Her green eyes flashed to the side, meeting Yang's for a split second before looking away, "Anything?"
"Yeah!"
"Well...there's a movie I've been wanting to see. Could we...maybe...go-"
He tilted his head, "Gooooo?-"
"You know...t-together."
A lightbulb dinged over his head, and Yuji just gave his usual dopey smile, "Oh, that's it?"
The sorcerer lightly chuckled, "I was worried you were gonna like...I dunno toss me in the trash or somethin' as payback."
"What!?"
The vessel just snickered more, "We really gotta work on your sarcasm; I swear, it's like you were raised on Veggie Tales or somethin'."
The redhead just took a deep breath, leaning back to face the clouds, "Yuji...what was the rule about references?"
...
...
He tilted his head to the side, "I forgot."
Pyrrha's soul escaped to the great beyond, "...You have to explain them?"
Itadori's eyes widened, "Oh, it's like... a cartoon about some fruits or somethin'...oh wait, I'm thinking about the one with the orange that talks...nah, this one was like...religion and talking vegetables... I think?"
The girl suddenly gasped, pulling the vessel right up to her face, his entire field of view going green, "You watch Mistral Munchies too!?"
There's no way that's real.
In a shocking turn of events, Yuji was confused, "Misbal wha-?"
Out of nowhere, the Huntress started happily squealing, tapping her feet like crazy before letting him fall, "Oh, this is perfect! The new movie just came out, too! Quest of the Mystic Morsels, we can watch it together and have so much fun!"
Yuji was seeing stars, "W-...wha-"
"I have to get ready, rewatch the show once, no twice, no...five times! Ohhhh, I can't wait; I'll see you at five!"
*FWYOOOM
Just like that, she vanished in a cloud of dust across campus, sending him for a spin and leaving the poor sorcerer in a daze, "I...I-"
Yuji deadpanned, "I didn't understand a word of any a' that."
From the ground, Yang lazily rolled over to look at him, "Man, I knew she was sheltered, but not THAT bad-"
"What's bad?"
The blonde looked down, "Well..it's not bad, but like...do you know what Mistral Munchies is, Yuj?"
He hummed, tapping a foot, using the full power of his 500k IQ, "...No idea."
"It's a kids show! You know, with like goofy characters that do stupid stuff in la-la land, get a big moral lesson and that's it? I watched it with Rube when we were younger...I just didn't think Pyr was the type."
She looked to the side with a mild glare, grumbling, "Well...didn't stop her from bein' a floozy over it either."
The vessel squinted, "You say somethin'?"
The blonde huffed, closing her eyes in annoyance, "Nope, not a thing...now can you like... pick me up, please?"
"Oh, my bad."
With no elegance to speak of, the sorcerer walked over and grabbed the bombshell by the back of her jacket before slinging her up and over one of his shoulders.
The girl lost all color, "Really?... You're just gonna hang the Yang like that?"
*Upside-down finger guns
Yuji raised a brow as he started walking, "Well, how else am I supposed t' carry ya?"
Sometimes, Yang forgot this guy wasn't all that bright, so she just accepted her fate as a bag of potatoes.
Yang-tatoes, some might say...okay, even SHE thought that one was lame.
...
A few minutes later, with the others
With a pained grunt, Yang sat upright, feeling a palm pressed against her back, "So am I supposed to...you know... do anyth-"
*FRRRR
Yuji's hand glowed white, sending a pulse down her spine and making the blonde go haywire.
"Okay, that feels weird! That feels really freakin' weird!"
The sorcerer rolled his eyes, trying to concentrate, "Ya gotta sit still if you want me to fix it-"
"Eugh, this so a you-thing, don't try and deny it-"
"Whaddya mean? I'm just tryna help ya."
She playfully hummed, "Mhm, you know, my aura would deal with it in a few hours...you don't gotta fawn over me, I'm fine."
He tried to wave her off, "I know, I know, I just don't like seein' you guys all dinged up is all...not when I can do somethin' about it."
She scoffed and leaned back to look at him, a smirk on her face, "Softieeee."
He stuck his tongue out, "Pfft."
The blonde matched him tit for tat, "Don't you 'pfft' me. I'll pfft you!"
"pfft!"
"pfft-pfft!"
"pfft-pfft-pfft!"
From the side, Weiss dropped her scroll, an angry scowl on her face, "Can you two stop making that noise!? I'm TRYING to text my butler!"
Yuji gave her a funny look, "You...text your butler?"
The heiress puffed herself up, waving an elegant hand, "Of course I do. How else would he know what I want him to do when I'm not home?"
"But...couldn't he just...say he did it and...not do it?"
Weiss raised a finger to argue back but stopped, pulling her scroll close, "Set a reminder...facetime Klein from now on."
Yang rolled her eyes, looking at the white-haired girl upside down as the bruise along her cheek slowly faded away, "Well sorryyyyy princess, you get hit with a bloody claymore, and I'll tone down the pfft-ing whenever you ask."
The Schnee huffed, "Unlike you, I deal with things I understand before...what is it you call it?...Throwing down? Because some of us live in reality."
Yang lazily glanced at the vessel, "Yuji, confirm somethin' with me, will ya? You're real...right?"
The sorcerer shrugged, "I mean...I think?... Honestly, I thought this was some weird afterlife when I got here."
The two stopped for a second to stare at him, with Yang shaking her head, "Huh?... Where did THAT come from? Why would you even-...why think that?"
Yuji reached up to scratch the side of his head, "I dunno, right before I met you guys, I was in the fight of my life, and next thing I know, I woke up here, and it just-"
Weiss dropped her scroll, giving him a questioning look, "It just...what?"
He bit his cheek, looking up at the clouds as they peacefully rolled overhead, "It just...seemed too nice to be hell, is all."
Yang blew air through her lips, reaching up to pinch his cheek and pull it, "You're not dead, dummy! Why the hell talk, though?-"
She leaned closer, "Got some dirty secrets you wanna share?"
He waved her off, "Well...kinda, but like...I dunno, man, I'm a sorcerer...we're not really upstandin' citizens, ya know?"
"We'd know if ya told us about it...just sayingggg."
Weiss nodded, "Yang's got a po-...p-..poin...-"
She almost gagged, "Oh God, I can't believe I almost just said that...she's not...entirely wrong...there I said it!"
The blonde just dully stared at her, "Seriously?"
The Schnee proudly nodded, pointing a finger at the vessel, "And you swore you'd tell me something...so tell-"
"Tell you what?"
"Something!"
Blake dropped her book, an incredulous look on her face, "When did you two get so close?"
Yuji glanced at her, his usual happy grin on display, "Ah, me and Weiss are good pals!"
He reached over and started poking her on the shoulder, "Right? Right?-"
The heiress swatted his hand away in an annoyed huff, "Eugh! Yes! We're...friends, happy!?"
His goofy smile just grew wider, to her further annoyance.
"I...I-"
Blake was at a loss, "I don't...I don't know what to say to that-"
The vessel held out a fistbump, "We can be pals too, ya know?-"
She glared at him, "Not until you apologize-"
"Are you still mad about the book thing?"
The bow-wearing girl went back to reading, leaving the guy hanging until Yang whispered something to him-
"I'll...buy you...that book you want? But what book does she want?...stop saying what you're whispering out loud?...why would I-"
A yellow eye glanced back at him as her bow twitched, "One condition: You don't read i-"
"I don't read anyway-"
Her glare slowly came back, sending him for a loop, "I mean...I won't open it...even if there's cool pictures?"
There was a finger in his face, "ESPECIALLY NOT THE PICTURES!"
He dumbly nodded, and the next thing he knew, she scribbled something on a piece of paper and shoved it into his jacket pocket before going back to her reading.
Yuji shrugged it off, adding that to his list of many things, looking back to the other two as he focused on fixing up Yang, "Soooo...whaddya wanna know?"
"MMMMM-"
He looked down, seeing a tuff of black hair sticking out of the ground, and with one fell swoop, his hand breached the surface and pulled out a shiny Ruby-
Yeah, no, this wasn't Pokemon; she was covered in dirt.
The scythe user coughed up a storm, giving the vessel a desperate hug, "THANK YOU!"
She soon stumbled off, deadset on revenge or probably cry-yelling at the brick wall that was Nora, who was off chasing Ren with a worm on a stick.
The blonde hummed, completely ignoring her sister's plight, "Can ya...tell me how you blew me up with blood? I mean, don't get me wrong, it was super cool, but like...how?"
He started to speak, "Well I...hold up-"
Yuji looked at Weiss, "You're not like...still sick, are ya?"
The Schnee closed her eyes in a huff, "I'm fine."
He happily smiled, "That's good, 'cause now I can talk about it without ya dyin' on me!"
"Die? What do you mean die!?"
"Well...you know...cause you drank my-"
She stuck a hand in his face "Don't you dare say it!...But-but...if that's the case then...why didn't you check on me sooner!?"
He stared straight at her, "Oh...well...I kinda had to wait and see if you got sick cause you wouldn't let me help ya if you weren't...-"
Itadori laughed, "You're kinda prickly, Weiss."
The heiress guffawed, "I am not prickly!"
Yang deadpanned, "You are a freaking cactus, and you know it."
"Hmph!"
Yuji ignored that argument like the plague, not that he could catch it anyway, "So, Yang...remember like a few weeks back when I told ya about sorcerer families?"
Her purple eyes glanced toward him, "Mmmmmm...oh yeah, the whole 'you aren't cool enough to join the club' talk?"
"I never said th-"
She was playfully sticking her tongue at him, making the vessel laugh, "Haha, you got me...anyways yeah, sorcerer powers are pretty much all about who you're related to or whatever...at least with Cursed Techniques, and I'm kinda related to a lotta strong people-"
"Hold on-"
Weiss was holding up a hand, "So...if it's genetic, then what you're saying is...those clans you told me about...selectively choose people to-"
He blankly stared at her, "Have kids? Yeah, it's gross."
As the heiress shivered as he pressed ahead, "Anyways, the whole blood thing is cause I'm related to Noritoshi Kamo-"
Yang looked back and forth, "Who?"
"Oh, he's like the most evil sorcerer to ever live-"
*PTUUUUUU
She spat to the side, making Weiss cringe as the girl leaped out of the way, "Hold on, you can't just drop a bombshell like that on a girl and move on! What'd he do!?"
Yuji nonchalantly dropped his shoulders, "I dunno, he like killed a lotta people and experimented on them or somethin'...the whole evil scientist thing-"
The most unbelievable thing to either of them was the fact that Yuji is somehow related to a scientist.
Unaware of their thoughts, the sorcerer raised a finger, "And it's 'cause of that connection that I got the best technique the Kamo clan has. It's the same one Choso got! Blood Manipulation!"
He happily clenched a fist, "It lets me control...well...everything about my blood, I guess...how fast it goes, what it's made of, and I can make stuff out of it too if I want."
Weiss ignored him making a dagger out of his own blood, trying not to gag at the sight of it, "And why did...that...get me sick exactly?"
"Huh?...Oh yeah, that...me and my brothers are all kinda like this, our blood is like...really-really toxic to everyone that's not us."
She cautiously looked at the red knife twirling around in his fingers, instinctively scooting back a few inches, "And...just how deadly is it?"
"Uhhhh...hmmm..."
"What do you mean hmmm? How do you not know!?"
Yuji started humming, "Never had to think about it before... I mean...it's not like poison works on Curses. They don't got bodies to poison well...they do, but like...they're made of Cursed Energy...so they aren't alive-alive...get what I mean?"
Weiss was just staring at him, "I didn't...I don't...not a word of what you said makes any sense!"
The Yuji hum engine got louder, rivaling a semi-truck with ease, "Okay, fine...from the start...in the beginning, there was no flow-jo, so the world made Gojo-"
Yang, who was already healed at this point and just chilling, let off a yawn, "TLDR, please."
Yuji nodded, "Kayyyyy...so...picture somethin' you're scared of, it can be anythin-"
The blonde shivered in his lap, "Eughhhhh...spiders-"
He stopped, "Really? I thought you'd say like...losin' a fight or somethin'..."
She huffed, lazily reaching up a hand to slug him in the ribs, "Oh please! I am not THAT shallow!"
"Yeah-yeah, got it-"
"Pfft!"
He ignored the urge to argue back in the language of the gods, "Alrighty...let's say a lotta people are afraid'a spiders, well...everyone, even non-sorcerers, makes itty-bitty amounts of Cursed Energy by feeling negative about stuff. Sorcerers actually use that stuff to fight, but most people just sorta let it out-"
Yang rolled her eyes, "...Can't believe Weiss isn't one of you guys. She'd a champ at that-"
The heiress puffed up, "Hey!"
Itadori kept the mental train chugging along by some miracle, "That energy groups up over time and 'cause so many people are afraid'a spiders, you'd get a thing that forms from that fear and boom, spider-curse! But they aren't alive like you and me. They're just...well, energy that can kinda think and do stuff, I guess...but they mostly just kill people."
Yang shivered like she was in the arctic at the thought of a ghost-spider...was there a pun there-
Maybe she'd...look it up on the web.
"Grossness aside, what's the point? Is there like...an end game to that, or are they just dicks?"
"I mean...if you're afraid'a spiders, you're probably afraid they're gonna hurt ya, so...they're just doin' what you think they'd do."
Weiss just huffed, "I hate how much sense that makes-"
Yuji nodded along like a bobblehead, "Mhm, there ain't much to it, but it sure doesn't end, I'll tell ya that. Sorcerers are the ones who deal with Curses, so they can't hurt regular people, but it's not like you can just get rid of 'em for good...you'd have to, like...you know what? Nah, I'm not gonna go there. The guy who tried that deserved what he got."
"You're...really just going to leave us with that?"
The vessel dumbly grinned, "I gotta keep some secrets. Otherwise, you might end up thinkin' I'm boring or somethin'!... Besides, from what my Sensei told me, that guy woulda just called you two monkeys...people like that just aren't worth rememberin' or talking about."
Ignoring the fact that Yuji just talked about him.
With an indifferent shrug, the sorcerer hopped to his feet, "Alright, I gotta get ready for this thing with Pyr. I'll see ya guys later!"
He was seriously just leaving after saying something like that.
Yang grumbled to no one in particular, "Call me a monkey...kick his ass if I ever meet him...oh wait a sec-"
She cupped her hands "Hey Yuj! Wanna hit up the arcade with me and Rube tomorrow!?"
He stopped mid-walk, surrounded by the trash he threw earlier, a bead of sweat dripping down his face, thinking what Goodwitch would do if she saw this, "Uh...sorry, I kinda gotta go get a suit with Coco tomorrow-"
"We can do both! I'll hook you up with some real style, too!"
"That sounds awesome, but there's no way Ruby would be down for that."
Off in the distance, the hooded girl popped out of yet another hole a certain ginger piledrived her into. "He's right, you know!"
Yang pointed a finger to end all fingers at her sister, "Three words, Nora and your cookies."
Ruby stiffened up like she was in the military, giving a salute, "Yesmaa'amunderstoodma'am!"
Seeing the fist-fighter's look of satisfaction, Yuji could only give the younger sister an apologetic smile before grimacing at the ocean of trash around him, "Guess I'll see you guys then...by the way, I'd like...back up if you wanna keep your eyebrows-"
There was a collective pause as everyone watched him raise a hand, with only Weiss picking up on what he was about to do, "YUJI, DON'T YOU DAR-
"Fuga."
Some would say the campus mysteriously combusted that day and that through the flames, a soot-covered girl with white hair was chasing some poor boy, shouting about how 'he was so punched.'
But that was just a rumor.
...
Later that day, on the streets of Vale, after several arson accusations
Yuji glanced up at the redhead walking beside him, having ditched her usual costume for the first casual outfit he had seen the girl wear-
It was nothing crazy, just jeans and a short brown sleeve sweater with a pair of leather boots, but when you're in a country where everyone is dressed like some knockoff DC character, the vessel would take whatever normalcy he could get.
"Alright, let's try this again. I walk up lookin' fly as always-"
The not-so-armored girl snorted, "That one's debatable-"
He flashed a thumbs down at her, "Boo...so, I rock up and go, 'What's poppin', Pyr?' Whaddya say?"
She clasped her hands behind her back, bobbing her head back and forth, "I would say...what's good-"
She looked down at him, "...In the hood?"
...
...
*Pfft
The vessel started snickering to her puffed-up annoyance, "Oh, what's wrong with that one?"
He happily waved her off, "Nothin', it's just...I dunno. You're too nice to say stuff like that!"
She cocked a hand on her hip, "Oh, and you aren't, Mister Softie?"
"Oy, don't you start on that too. I throw some mean hands-"
"And I don't?"
"Nah, you're plenty tough. What I'm gettin' at is...you aren't...from the streets, so some things just don't sound right when you say 'em...you spent your kid years watchin' cartoons or whatever-"
She leaned down toward him, her red hair drifting just a bit, "And you didn't?"
He tilted his head, "Well, yeah, but most of the time, I was just gettin' into fights, you know me."
She shook her head, "A bit, but you're just a big question sometimes...for someone who says he hates fighting, you seem to get into a lot of trouble-"
Yuji nodded, "Well, yeah...just 'cause I don't like it doesn't mean I won't do it if I have to...I just...hate bullies, is all."
She dropped a hand on his shoulder, giving him a squeeze, "That's not a bad thing, but it might do you some good to be a little more patient...you might even skip detention for a day."
The sorcerer just smirked, closing his eyes for a moment, "Orrrr... we team up and pummel Cardin twice as hard-"
She deadpanned, "And get double the punishment... I swear, you two are like night and day."
He sighed, "It's not like I wanna fight the guy. Heck, I'd even be willin' to be his buddy if he just stopped being such a dick to everyone...some people get a sliver a' power and let it go right to their heads...I'm just glad you aren't like that, Pyr."
Pyrrha happily smiled before pointing a hand toward her chest with pride, "I'll have you know I have an image to maintain-"
"Cap, you hate bein' famous."
The redhead deflated like a balloon, "I meant self-image, Yuji..."
His eyes widened in realization before he gently patted her on the back, "Ah, my bad...but you shouldn't worry about that stuff anyways. I've always got your back, famous or not!"
Her green eyes dully stared at him, "Your puns are still terrible, but...it means a lot-"
The redhead bashfully looked to the side, "especially from you."
That one went over his head, like normal.
His grin grew wider, "You got it...but I wanna ask...if you don't like being famous...why do the commercials and stuff? 'Cause...if you need the money, I could ask Gramps to-"
Her hands flashed over her chest in an X, "You don't need to do that!"
"You sure?"
"Yes! Please don't!"
"Why?"
"We've talked about this! It's embarrassing!"
"Everything embarrasses you, Pyr!"
"You are impossible sometimes, you know that!?"
"No, I'm not."
"You just...you just proved my point!"
"...No..."
...
...
*Pfft
The two broke out into a laugh as the redhead looked off in disbelief, "Honestly, I can't keep anything from you, can I?"
"Nah, I'd just annoy you 'till you told me."
"Ohhh, but when I do it-"
"Pyr, the odds of you ever annoying me are like...zero. You're too nice!"
The unarmored girl deflated again, silently despising her natural kindness, watching the street as she went.
...
...
She watched her reflection in a car window as it passed by, "I just...really want to make it up to them...-"
He looked up to her, "Hm?"
"My parents...everyone's always going on about invincible girl this...Pumpkin Pete's that, but...if it wasn't for them pushing me to keep trying...to keep practicing day-in, day-out, I wouldn't be here-"
The redhead let off a sigh, staring down at her hands, "So I do those stupid ads...join every tournament I can to send the money home and help pay off their bills and...next thing I know? Everyone suddenly needs help with something, and I don't know what they'd do if I didn't step in...it...it-"
Yuji raised his arms, resting his head against his hands, "It sucks, huh?...The Curse of Strength is no joke."
She tilted her head, "Curse of Strength?"
Itadori nodded, "Yeah...the tougher ya get, the more you can handle. People notice it and start relyin' on you, and even after doing so much for 'em, you can't help but think they don't get you, and it only gets worse the more that gap grows."
His face seemed to drop for a moment, "It gets lonely... if you let it bother you."
Pyrrha seemed to go quiet for a bit, running a hand along her sleeve, "It...wasn't always easy living in Argus...Mistral even...the other girls would ask for my help, but then it's like...they didn't know how to talk to me like I was a normal person-"
She blinked fast a few times, "I was just the girl that never lost to them and that...It really hurt sometimes, but...things got better."
Yuji looked up at her, "How's that?"
The unarmored girl snickered, looking down at her feet, "It's a bit embarrassing, but...-"
She looked back at him with those bright green eyes, "I met you."
The sorcerer backpedaled, pointing the finger at himself, "I...you-eh?...me?...seriously?"
Pyrrha just laughed at his disbelief, "It's not that you're the one person I don't think I'll ever keep up with. I just...almost don't know what to do with you sometimes, Yuji."
"Well, we're doin' something right now, aren't we?"
She rolled her eyes, "Obviously, but what I mean is...you don't need me-"
He shook his head like a dog, "Of course I need ya, we're partners! I wouldn't wanna do all this by myself. Imagine how boring things would be if we didn't have each other!"
The redhead's smile grew as she reached out to tussle his hair, "That's the big difference, you goof. It's not about asking each other to do things, but...well...you're...the first person that wanted to spend time with me...for me."
Her happy glow was matched only by the sun shining behind her, "This is all a bit new to me, so I just wanted to say...I'm...really glad you're the one I get to do this with...that didn't sound weird, did it?"
He casually shrugged, his grin outpacing hers by miles, "Sounded right to me, partner...I'm just hopin' this lasts a good long whil-"
*Caw-Caw-Caw
The sorcerer's eye drifted to the side as a shadow passed by overhead, his demeanor stiffening as he briefly met a bright red stare-
In the blink of an eye he was back to normal, looking up to his partner, "Hey, think you can bend down for a sec?"
There were certain downsides to tall girls, especially when one was so tall you couldn't whisper anything to them, but still-
Nice.
Pyrrha quirked a brow before rolling her eyes, dropping to eye level, "I swear, if this is another one of your jokes I'll-eh?"
To her surprise, the vessel reached up, pulling her in for a hug, sending the redhead into a sputtering mess, her hands twitching behind his back, "whawhawhawhawha-"
From a nearby rooftop, a pair of beady red eyes watched the pink-haired teen suddenly whisper something, with the girl adjusting one of the bracelets along her wrist, staring down at it for a moment as she twirled it about in the sunlight, soon giving a nod.
Pyrrha seemed to compose herself all too quickly, "Well, we should get moving. I really want to see the merchandise they have this time-"
Yuji dropped his arms, shoving them in his pockets as the two started to walk again, "Are you one of those stuffed animal girls?"
The redhead suddenly looked offended...and very defensive, "What does that mean!?"
"...You totally are-"
"Hey! I don't...only a few!"
"What's a few to you?"
"Well, no more than fift-"
Time seemed to slow as the sorcerer's foot dropped toward the ground once more, and in that moment, the observer blinked and-
*FWING
He was gone, leaving nothing more than a spread of dust in his wake-
They looked left, right, everywhere yet saw nothing-
Where-
Wh-
*TAP-TAP-TAP-TAP
There was a blast of motion as a figure rushed overhead, their pink hair flailing in the wind as his entire frame lurched back, veins bulging against the cloth of his jacket before crashing down at a breakneck speed straight toward the avian observer-
*FLASH
*BOOOOOOM
There was a resounding blast of light as the rooftop exploded, sending a shockwave in every direction, carrying a mix of concrete and rebar as it rained down onto the streets below.
Yuji rose from the impact crater, staring ahead into the fog of kicked-up dust, listening in as a pair of boots clicked against the rooftop, a ragged voice breaching the veil, "You don't look like him, and you sure don't act like him. So tell me, kid-"
A figure leaped from the shroud, landing in an uncaring crouch atop a pile of wreckage, his red eyes staring into the sorcerer's brown, "Is Oz shooting blanks, or are you just a little rebel? I'll take either."
With spiked black hair and a mess of stubble, the man didn't care to maintain, Yuji almost wanted to call this guy a bum...especially with the stained grey dress shirt, worn-out black pants, and a pair of dress shoes that had seen better days, and all topped off with a shredded red cloak hanging off his shoulders.
If the sorcerer was still the naive kid he once was, he wouldn't take this guy seriously, but he knew better than anyone just how deceiving looks could be.
Itadori's demeanor shifted, becoming utterly neutral, "Who knows?"
The man scratched his chin, "I'd say you do...don't play games, I cheat at all of 'em."
Yuji seemed to ignore every jab the guy threw at him, "...How do you know Gramps?"
The man shrugged, "Trust is a two-way street, kiddo, and I'm not about to give out my hand to just anyone. Why should I?"
If this was who Itadori thought, then things were gonna get ugly, and in the middle of a city like this? If he didn't take things seriously, people could end up getting caught in the crossfire.
The sorcerer kept his eyes on him the entire time, his stare intensifying, "I'll kill you if you don't."
The disheveled man's smirk seemed to fade at that as he reached behind his back, "...Not like him at all. Do you just go around throwing threats like that at anyone you don't like?"
"Don't play dumb, old man; I know what you are...Branwen."
That seemed to catch him off guard, "How do you-"
Yuji blankly stared at the man, hands in his pockets, ready to strike at a moment's notice, "...You're her brother...aren't you? The other shapeshifter-"
A look crossed his face, "Raven?-"
He jumped off the ledge, landing with an audible crunch, hand clenched around the grip of his sword, "How do you know that?"
There wasn't a hint of pride or any emotion on the vessel's face as he took a stance, left hand forward, right drifting back, "I'm the one who beat her, so I'm gonna give ya the same chance I gave her. Get lost, or I'll do what I gotta."
"Raven lose...hahaha! That's a good one!"
The man shook his head in disbelief, slowly withdrawing his weapon from its sheathe, "You got guts, Bubblegum. I'll give you that, so I'll hand out some free advice. You don't want this; just tell me what I want to know, and we'll be square."
"You're right, I don't, but I'm about t' let a bandit like you have his way."
The Huntsman coldly smirked, "Gutsy...I like that. What's your name, runt?"
The vessel's frame tightened as Cursed Energy bubbled across him, igniting in an engulfing black and blue flame, "...It's Yuji."
"Yuji, huh?"
The supposed bandit shrugged, flipping his sword into the air before catching it by the grip, pointing its tip straight at the sorcerer, "Name's Qrow, and I guess playtime's come early, just you and me."
The host didn't pay the comment any mind, absently cracking his neck, "I never said I was doin' this alone, right, Pyr?"
*RRRRRR
The Branwen raised a brow as his sword started to vibrate before being violently yanked forward, dragging him for the ride, "What kind of carnival ride are you taking me o-"
Yuji took off in an explosive lunge, his right foot cracking against the rooftop as his entire body spun like a whirlwind, his left mere inches from smashing against the Huntsman's exposed skul-
*FWIP
Huh?
A sudden loss of friction sent the sorcerer tumbling out of control, earning an indifferent smirk from the Branwen as he let his sword fly off, slamming into a nearby wall, using his now freed hands to catch the falling vessel by his arm, "What rotten luck-"
*CRACK
With a yank, he pulled the sorcerer closer, smashing a knee against his chest before throwing him off in a lazy spin, sending the teen smashing through a solid brick wall as the entire structure crashed down on top of him.
Qrow let off a laugh but winced as he tried to set his leg down, "Gah...are you made of rocks or what?"
"Yuji!"
Pyrrha rose from below, riding a sewer lid of all things, and with the flick of a wrist and a pull on the metal supports, the entire pile blasted off the teen and toward the bandit like a tsunami-wave of debris.
He paid it no mind, casually flipping back, arms stretched wide as he gracefully floated back toward an opposing rooftop, "Magnetism, huh?... You must be the Nikos gir-"
Pyrrha slammed onto the rooftop before kicking the makeshift shield out from under her, sending the object hovering right in front of her as the unarmored girl held her finger like a gun, "Bang."
*BOOM
The sewer grate smashed through the wall, missing its target by a mere few inches, leaving her at a loss, "I...missed?"
Qrow could only give the girl a cocky smile, "Might wanna spend more time on your aim, just sayin'."
"But I...I almost never miss...how the-"
With an annoyed groan, Yuji kicked his legs straight into the sky before launching off his palms and back onto his feet, "Tell me about it...he's doin' something weird with his soul, like an AOE from a video game."
That guy made him slip somehow like a nonexistent puddle just appeared under his shoe mid-kick...seriously when did he ever slip during a fight?
The redhead looked him over for a second, "AO-what?"
Yuji silently promised himself he'd teach Pyrrha to play Smash Brothers or something later...she was good at fightin', so she had to like fighting games, right?
He popped his shoulders, swiping a layer of dust off with the brush of a hand, "The long and short of it?... Souls usually only stretch as far as your body goes, maybe a little further if you got lots'a energy... but his goes on for way farther than that...it's weak but-"
He reached back, pulling the Huntsman's sword out of the wall before taking a pitcher's stance, letting it fly with superhuman strength toward the bandit, breaching the sound barrier with his throw, giving off a sonic blast-
"It's just enough to manipulate the odds."
Qrow didn't so much as flinch but simply tilted his head to the side, allowing the blade to drift right by his dark strands of hair, snatching it up by the handle at the last moment.
He slung his blade over his shoulder, taking a moment to take a flask out of his pocket and taking a massive swig before chucking the object aside, "What? Not like it always works...you got some experience with chance, don't you, Bubblegum?"
Yuji dully nodded, "Yeah, one of my seniors hits a jackpot every time without even tryin."
"Tch...lucky bastard."
Pyrrha's mind ran a mile a minute, "But if he's working off chance, how do we counter that? There's no tactics then... just-"
Itadori shook his head, giving her a tap on the shoulder, " 'Course there is...you're just thinkin' too smart, is all."
"Then...what's your plan?"
The sorcerer stretched back, slamming a fist into his open palm, "Good or bad, luck runs out, so Ima keep hittin' him till one lands-"
Pyrrha gave Yuji what could only be called the dumbest look of all time, "...Why are you like this?"
Itadori took a step forward, feeling the ground crunching beneath him, "You don't got your gear, so stick back and play support with the Static Shock act and I'll handle him."
"Can you please not reference things in the middle of a fight!?"
He didn't respond, sending the poor girl's frazzled brain into the stratosphere.
She sighed, raising her hands as a tension radiated throughout the area, with every surrounding bit of metal starting to shake, "Honestly, you're ridiculous sometimes, you know that?"
If this was a game of chance, Yuji couldn't take any risks. Shooting a supernova off in this kind of place, with no guarantee where it'll go, was the worst imaginable case. That's just begging for someone to get hit.
*BOOM
The roof ruptured as he took off, but to his opponent's surprise, he wasn't aiming for him, but-
The building itself.
"Wha-"
*SCHWING
The second the vessel's hand made contact, a violent slash rang out, breaching the world with a howling wind, bisecting the entire derelict structure in one fell strike, breaking the ground out from beneath the Branwen as the building came tumbling down in a thunderous roar.
So long as Itadori used cleave, it should be fine, but dismantle was off the table, along with every other thrown attack at his disposal...good old hands it is then.
A sudden force slammed against his heels as his partner assembled a platform beneath him, and using it like a springboard, Yuji blasted upward, dancing between the falling chunks of rubble, spiraling around the falling Branwen, moving so fast he appeared as nothing more than a blur-
Right in front, then to the right, reappearing at the left only for it to be a faint at the last second, when was going to-
*Bump-Bump
Above.
The sorcerer flashed into existence practically on top of the Branwen, raising a leg high before his heel came crashing down, only to meet the Huntsman's blade's blade flashed up at the last second, the dull end deflecting his strike to the side as a thunderous boom echoed out.
They struggled for a moment, with reinforced skin meeting solid steel, with Qrow judging his every move, "Tacky, what's that strength and speed gonna do for you when you're an open boo-"
*CRUNCH
Yuji reached out at a breakneck speed, grabbing a falling brick before crushing it into dust with his bare hands, and with a throw to match a professional athlete, the cloud of dust splashed against the man's face, sending him into a blind, sputtering mess-
"GAH!?"
Itaodri took full advantage, pressing more power into his legs. He broke through the stalemate, the sheer force sending his opponent spiraling upside down, unable to see a thing as the vessel came blasting down, wrapping his arms around the man's frame in a vice grip, keeping the pair in an unrelenting spin, headed straight for the ground, becoming a blur in the afternoon sky as black and red flashed across the horizon.
In for a reference, in for another from his favorite character in his 'homeland.'
That green jump suit-wearing boy would be proud.
"Primary Lotus!"
Right as the pair neared the ground, the Huntsman's eye forced itself open, and in a blinding flash of light, the vessel's face dropped, realizing his chokehold had suddenly gone empty as a mass of black feathers shot off across the skies, leaving him to crash into the ground, followed by an explosive blast of rubble in his wake.
The sorcerer took the landing in stride, slamming into the ground before taking off in an all-out sprint, racing along the streets of Vale, outpacing every moving car as he danced between them, following a speck of black flying off in the distance, and with a burst of Cursed Energy, the roadway cracked beneath him as he launched across the city skyline.
Feeling the vibrations surge across the air, Qrow glanced behind with his one good eye and could only squawk as the teen flew in from out of nowhere, and with a panicked flash, the avian turned back into a man at the last second as every bit of force came crashing down on his chest-
To the man's disbelief, the sorcerer had wrapped his legs around his torso in one fell swoop, sitting on his stomach as the two plummeted back toward a bustling train station below-
"What kinda freaky shit are you kids into these da-"
Yuji clenched a fist, ignoring the wind billowing across his face, pulling back before slamming down, slugging the Huntsman across the face as blood splattered from his open mouth-
Qrow watched the droplets fly, a confused look crossing his face, "What the fu-"
*BOOM-BOOM-BOOM-BOOM
The vessel slugged him again and again, each blow landing with enough force to give any normal person a concussion at the least, and the former bandit could do nothing but tank it, his frustration growing by the second-
All right, you little brat, let's go.
Before another hit could land, the veteran Huntsman leaned back, letting the strike graze his cheek, and leaned forward the second the fist flew by-
*PTUUUU
The vessel's vision turned into a world of red that reeked like booze as Qrow spat his own blood right in his face and, with a burst of motion, flipped the pair over right as they neared the terminal, crashing through a glass roof, sending the teen back first into the hard tile floor, utterly destroying it in the blink of an eye as bystanders screamed in shock.
Yuji didn't so much as feel it; pulling his legs back, he kicked the man square in the chest like a horse, sending him crashing through row after row of electronic terminals as sparks flew like the wind-
Qrow rose to his feet, watching as the teen did the same, squinting through a haze as he tried to wipe the gunk from his eyes, "Ain't so fun when it happens to you, hu-
*CRACK
*BWOOSH
With the snap of a finger, a blast of blood shot out of the sorcerer's eyes, clearing the fog in an instant. All the while, the Huntsman could only deadpan, still feeling bits of rock stuck in his, "Oh, that is just not fair...you fight dirty, even skip right through my aura, where's the dignity in that?"
Yuji just stared at him with complete indifference, raising his hands like the street fighter he was, "I'm tryna win, not show off like some circus clown."
Qrow stared at him for a second, soon swiping the blood off his face with a thumb, a toothy grin shining in its wake, "No nonsense, huh?...I like your style. Let's do this, then."
The former bandit ignored his scroll audibly ringing in his pocket, flicking a mechanism along the hilt of his sword, sending a whir of machinery into motion, making the blade elongate and unfold into a massive scyt-
Huh...looks just like Ruby's.
Yuji glanced around them, seeing people pressed up against the walls, running for their lives, the sight making him bite his cheek...
Not good...gotta get somewhere more quiet...but this guy wasn't making it easy.
Qrow blitzed into motion, moving like a blur as he leaped across the platform, bouncing between the concrete support poles adorning the station, and as the sorcerer traced his every move, his scythe came crashing down, slicing an entire segment of rock off one of the structures, slamming a boot against it, sending the massive chunk flying straight at the vessel.
Yuji watched it approach before leaping up, landing along its surface, his hands violently shaking as blood pooled along his palms, solidifying into a solid mass as his opponent came racing down, landing across from him with an all-out charge, culminating in a violent swing that breached the atmosphere itself-
*SCHWING
*CLANG
Qrow stared at the tiny objects in the vessel's hands. Two short daggers made of the teen's own blood were holding him back, earning another chuckle, "You're just full of surprises, aren't you, bubblegum?"
His stance adjusted, pushing the vessel back as his finger aligned with a trigger, and as he pulled, Yuji could see a distinctive flash of red down a set of elongated barrels.
*CRACK
His leg slammed up, driving a knee straight into the weapon, sending its flaming projectiles off course, crashing through the destroyed roof as glass rained down around them.
Is that thing a shotgun?...Really?
He dove straight in, his knives flying like the wind, swinging with absolute precision, only to be met with his opponent's elongated blade again and again-
It didn't matter if it was a closed environment or not. This bandit knew his stuff, swinging his massive weapon with so much accuracy it didn't even come close to hitting something by mistake.
As the object fell, Yuji took the initiative, slamming a foot down on the chunk of rock, hoping to send the man flying, but instead, the entire structure crumbled into pieces beneath them mid-fight-
He almost forgot...bad luck.
Both of them tumbled across the station floor, bouncing along into one of the tunnels as a distant light drew closer with each passing second. Both fighters came to a pause, and Yuji stared blankly at the Huntsman... and the oncoming train.
"...Your luck really sucks...huh?"
Qrow deadpanned, "Tell me about it."
*HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONK-HOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOONK
Qrow took a graceful leap onto the oncoming vehicle, but the teen was nowhere in sight-
Where the hell did he-
*CRRRRRRRRRR
A violent metallic hiss drew his attention, and as he looked in front of the train, his eyes widened, watching the sorcerer gliding backward along the metal tracks, his legs unmoving, somehow in motion despite not seeming like he was doing anything at all, an indifferent stare on his face as sparks rained down around him on all sides.
The two stared each other down as the train barreled through the tunnel system, neither saying a word as a distant light drew closer-
You could only wonder what the conductor must be thinking while watching a magical teenager drift along the tracks right in front of him.
The second the vehicle breached the outside world, the vessel leaped into the skies above, his bloody daggers flashing straight down as the veteran Huntsman lunged back, watching them slash through the metallic floor with ease.
As the vessel rose, there was a tension between them, neither certain who would strike firs-
*FWING
From a bridge up above, a familiar redhead came slamming down beside him, "Honestly, you're lucky I picked the right train."
For a split second, he broke character, a dumb look on his face as he looked up at his partner, "Eh...Pyr? How'd you know we'd end up on a-"
She gave him a look to end all looks, "I just asked myself what the most ridiculous thing to come out of this would be...so I made a guess."
So she was learning to think stupid?...Nice.
Itadori hummed, flashing his daggers at her, "Speakin' of stupid stuff...wanna try that thing."
The unarmored girl sighed, raising a palm, "As long as you don't make that joke about being rusty again."
"But you like it..."
She shook her head, "Not when you say it every time we practice, goofball."
"...Got it."
Despite his blank face, she could still feel the disappointment coming from her partner.
With the clench of fist, the vessel's blades slightly changed color, and to the former bandit's surprise, he took a pitcher's stance and with the force of a thousand baseball throws, he hurled the blade straight at him, only for it to be dodged with ease, and did the exact same for the other-
*Bump-Bump-Bump-Bump-Bump
The sorcerer followed in the second's wake as his partner stayed behind, hand outstretched as he charged right into the fray, his right foot sliding back as his left fist reared back-
Qrow raised his scythe to block, but the metal floor beneath him suddenly gave out, the entire structure shifting to the side, dragging him off balance-
"What the-"
*CRASH
His blade shifted at the last second, deflecting a solid blow from the sorcerer as they struggled for control, their reflections gleaming off the jagged surface of his weapon, and with a precise move, the Huntsmen let himself fall back, tumbling backward before pushing off his hands and back onto his feet as the vessel's hand tore through the spot he once stood, sending waves of shrapnel into the air.
The former bandit hissed, glancing between the two students, an annoyed look crossing his face.
Shit, he forgot about the girl's magnetism...that made this entire train a death trap just waiting to be sprung on him.
What could those two kids be plannin-
Off in the distance, the vessel's flying knives suddenly stopped in their tracks, shakily turning around before flying at the Huntsman's exposed back-
He noticed it in an instant, his stare on them as his scythe spun like a whirlwind, waiting to deflect the blades with ease, but the vessel suddenly raised a hand, and with a snap of a finger, the weapons exploded into rust-coated shrapnel circling around the man in every direction-
This was a little something those two had been cooking in the malevolent kitchen, and after a lot of hard work from the invincible girl, they found a way to make it work-
With his and the King of Curses' energy, Yuji's body and, by extension, his blood were basically Cursed Objects, making them perfect weapons that were nearly impossible to break by normal means, and with a little Manipulation...and a lot of iron, they made a great tool for his partner to play around with.
It just took tons of convincing for her to be cool with it...there were a lot of gags and head shakes involved in that.
Qrow tried to swipe at the storm cloud of metal, only for a violent sound to echo out as his weapon was pierced across its frame by jagged spikes of hardened blood, earning an interested nod from the Huntsman.
Pyrrha gave the man her sternest look, which was basically a tiny glare, "Just surrender. There's nowhere for you to go."
He grinned at the pair, "Not bad, kids...not bad at all...but you're forgettin' something important."
As the pair tilted their heads, the former bandit simply flipped his weapon upside down, and with the simple pull of a trigger, the floor beneath him exploded into bits, allowing the man to fall into the train and out of harm's way.
*FWOOSH
"Don't expect people to stand still for whatever nonsense you've got planned...you'll just get left at the altar."
With a gust of wind, he reappeared behind the pair in a swirl of black feathers, sitting along the platform, a scroll in hand as he flashed the screen toward the two, "Mind if I take this? It's my boss."
Yuji squinted, reading the faint text along the screen, "Oz...hold up...you know my Gramps?"
The former bandit just rolled his eyes, answering the call as a familiar old face blipped onto the screen, "Ah, Qrow, so nice of you to finally answer."
The man shrugged, running a hand through his hair, "Yeah, well...you know me, Oz...I was a little busy meeting that kid you're so proud of-"
He gave the vessel a knowing grin, "Lost track'a time having a little fun is all."
The Headmaster took a moment to sip from his beloved mug, "Well, that saves time on introductions at least...though I can't say I'm surprised you took a look for yourself."
The Huntsman dug through his jacket, pulling out another flask as he popped it open to take a swig, "It's what ya keep me around for...that and my good looks, but I gotta say, kinda hurts you didn't tell him 'bout good ol' Uncle Qrow-"
The Director gave him a dull look, "It's a shame. I must've looked the other way, as I've done for all the bills you charge to my name."
"Hmmm...hey Oz-"
"Yes?"
The former bandit gave the man a cocky look, "Am I your...dirty little secret?"
"...I'll see you soon, Qrow."
The Huntsman chuckled as the Headmaster hung up on him, "Heh, works every time."
With that, he stood up, lazily stretching as his broken scythe retracted into a sword, soon sliding it away along his back, "Well, I hate to cut this short, but I've got some nieces to visit and a liquor cabinet to raid...We'll have to do this again sometime, Bubblegum."
The Huntsman casually approached the edge, letting his arms drop to the side as he fell off, and in a blinding flash of light, flew off in his avian form into the horizon, leaving the students in the dust.
Yuji blankly watched him go, "So...that was for nothin'?"
Pyrrha matched his energy, "Why didn't he just...say who he was?"
...
...
Itadori huffed, "Old people suck."
The redhead let out a sigh as she checked her scroll, "And now we're going to miss our movie...I really wanted to see it, too."
The sorcerer glanced at her, "How long we got?"
"Five minutes..."
"And where's the theatre?"
The unarmored girl hummed, looking around at the passing city before pointing off to the East, "A few miles that way...too bad the train isn't heading that way-"
She shrugged, "Oh well, there's always next ti-"
Yuji's hand was in her face, "I can get us there, but you really aren't gonna like it."
She stayed quiet so he continued, "Remember back at the trials when you were tired and I asked-"
Pyrrha turned red in the blink of an eye, "Oh no, we are NOT doing that!"
"Why?"
"What do you mean why!? It's embarrassing!"
"No one's gonna see!"
"Oh, no one's going to see you running me across town? One picture of that, and we'll be in newspapers for months!"
Being famous must really suck.
"I can get you there in thirty seconds flat, no foolin'."
...
...
He put his hands on his hips leaning closer, "Pyrrr, I know you wanna see iiiit."
...
...
Her face was still on fire, "And...no one will see?"
"Unless they got like a plane or somethin'? Nah."
...
...
"Okay, fine...so how are we going to EEEE!"
With no warning, the vessel kicked her feet out from under her, catching the unarmored girl as she fell, and as she looked up at him with absolute confusion on her face, he just flashed a goofy grin, "You're gonna wanna hold on for this."
"...I'm scared to ask whYEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE"
*BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM
The entire train shook as the sorcerer launched several miles off into the distance, flying high above city limits-
Some would say it was a bird-
Others a plane-
But most would just hear a girl screaming bloody murder before an abandoned building collapsed near a movie theatre.
...
Sometime later
The vessel found himself in a dark room surrounded almost entirely by kids, watching a talking apple somehow fly a plane to save his friends from making bad choices.
Sat next to him, Pyrrha slumped down in her seat, "...What a crazy day."
He tilted his head toward her, "Really? Seemed kinda average for me-"
"Well, not everyone gets into fistfights with people they just met-"
He grinned up at her, "You joined in on it-"
Pyrrha guffawed, "I...you...n...well, what was I supposed to do? Just let you deal with it all by yourself?"
Yuji laughed, tapping her on the shoulder, "See, now you're gettin' it. Next, we just gotta work on the mid-fight smack talk, and you're right there in it!"
The redhead puffed up her cheeks, "You are just...the worst influence, you know that?"
The vessel shrugged, putting his hands behind his head to lean against, "Startin' to regret being my partner?"
*pompf
A flash of red filled his vision as the unarmored girl leaned her head against his shoulder, a content smile on her face, "Not at all."
He stared at her for a second, a warm feeling filling his heart, making his smile grow that much wider, "...Me neither."
The movie was kinda lame, but he had fun with her, so it all worked out in the end.
...
And that's a wrap!
Sidenote: The next batch of Volumes will be the end of my RWBY Volume 1, looking forward to it!
I hope you enjoyed the chapter as usual; take it easy, and I'll see you guys in the next one; cheers.
Discord:
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