Welcome back to another edition.
I want to wish Luta the Bush, a Discord member, a happy birthday. This one's for you, buddy.
That aside, I don't really have much to say, so let's get into this.
Beta Readers: Chris72637, Luxutor, MegaDumbo, and Tupjunk
...
A pair of tired red eyes stared out into the night sky behind a pane of glass, soon turning away in a huff, ignoring his exhaustion like he had for years at this point.
Qrow crossed his arms, leaning against the wall like a perch, "I still don't know why you wouldn't let me go after them."
For a few moments, there wasn't a response, just the digital sounds of clicking keys as Ozpin worked at his desk, with Ironwood and Winter hovering behind him as he worked.
The Director didn't spare him a glance, "There wouldn't be much use in that, Qrow, and I think we both understand that."
The Huntsman scoffed, "What? Do you think I'm not fast enough to catch them? If I transformed, I could've been on them in-"
"That isn't the point."
"Huh?"
The Headmaster droned through his files with practiced ease, the light from his screen reflecting along his dark shades, "Let's say you did catch up with them, and then what? Because unless you're planning on forcing them back, that wouldn't have much purpose."
The former bandit glanced downward, "There doesn't have to be a fight. Ruby and Yang would listen if I told them to...-"
He paused as realization took hold, "Actually...scratch that. There's no way in hell they would."
Ozpin faintly smiled, "They are your nieces, after all. It's little wonder who they get it from."
Qrow chuckled, shaking his head, "Yeah, I can't deny that one, but what's your excuse? You and Ice Queen over there."
Winter clasped her hands behind her back, giving the drunk the famous Schnee stare, "If Weiss wants to squander her opportunities by going on a joyride, then she'll have to face the consequences of her actions. At the very least, I hope she takes the ramifications as a learning experience."
From his desk, the Headmaster kept working, "It isn't a joyride, specialist."
Ironwood silently nodded, reading along a certain sorcerer's scroll as names and identities flipped by one by one, "That boy doesn't strike me as the type to do something without reason."
Qrow raised a brow, "Reason? He's a kid, they do stupid shit, especially after going through what they did today? I wouldn't blame 'em for wanting to do something dumb to get their minds off of it."
Ozpin grimaced, taking a hand off his controls and dragging it along his chin, "If there's one thing I know for certain about Yuji, he has a rather...unique mindset. He functions entirely off of what happens to interest him, ignoring anything and everything he deems boring."
"So...he's a kid?"
"Not quite. Of course, any average person doesn't enjoy doing what bores them. It's a fundamental part of our nature, but we can often push through it to do what's needed."
The Director took a frustrated breath, giving a slow exhale, "I'm sure we've all had a colleague, associate, or even student who didn't particularly improve our day with their presence, but each of us knows that regardless of that, we need to interact with them just the same as any other individual, but Yuji bases every interaction and relationship off of interest alone, even if it negatively impacts him."
Ozpin gave a forced laugh, "That boy has had more detentions than any of us could count, and I swear, if he simply bothered to explain himself to Glynda, she'd likely let him off the hook for most of it, but he doesn't. Do you know why? Because talking to her bores him, and so he does the bare minimum."
General Ironwood let off a hum, "Ah, so he's that type of person, the sort that's hard to motivate, but when they are? Good luck stopping him. I figured that was the case. It's what typically happens among our elite regiments. They have a culture all their own."
Winter kept her form proper, as always: "If that were the case, do you know what he's planning to do out there? Bringing a group of half-trained students into a warzone lacks the tact of a thought-out strategy."
Ozpin slightly nodded, "I have my suspicions, although I'm obligated not to speak of it as part of an arrangement, but if things are headed the way I believe they are, they should all be back by morning."
Qrow squinted, "I feel like you're all overthinking how a teenager looks at things. I get that some people think like that. Hell, I do it sometimes, but you only get that way after a lifetime of fighting, even if they went through it in their early career, that's just-"
"It goes deeper than that, Qrow, and it's part of why I wanted each of you to stay. I believe we need to discuss something about that boy and... what he is."
The veteran waved a hand in dismissal, "Oz if this is about him being related to Ryomen, you can hold it. I don't think any of us here are the type to condemn someone just for being born."
"It goes even deeper than that, much deeper."
...
...
The Headmaster slowly swallowed a breath before pulling up a file and letting it open on his screen, turning it toward the others, "The first day we met, while Yuji was unconscious, I took a few blood samples, at first, just in case he needed a transfusion but...the system couldn't read it."
Ironwood didn't bat an eye, "So you did a study on him?"
Ozpin glanced back, his brown eyes blank, "Of course I did. I would be a fool not to take every necessary precaution."
Qrow stared at him before looking away, "Yeah, guess I can't blame you, especially after that kid punched his way out his own grave-"
Ozpin gave him a look, "You went to the site?"
"I gave it a look, and you're right...he musta' been down there for who knows how long, and a person can only survive a few days without food or water, and I'd bet my wages he was there a lot longer."
The Director watched the file load, tapping a finger on his desk, "It's on the scale of millions of years."
"But still, Oz...people don't just come back from the dead like that. It's not possible."
"You say that as you're looking right at me."
"You reincarnate, that's different. This kid died a long time ago, didn't rot, and suddenly he wakes back up? Right now? It all feels so-"
"Planned?"
Winter's stare hardened, "So you believe he intended to do this? That there's some... ulterior motive at play?"
Ozpin shook his head, "Yuji isn't involved in some scheme, I can tell that much, but if I had to guess, he's an unknowing and unwilling participant in one...but a victim would be more likely."
The file finally loaded, showing a pair of colorful double helixes, and while one appeared normal, the other was-
Ironwood leaned closer, his brow furrowing, "The mutated one, that's his DNA, isn't it?"
The Director plucked his glasses off, setting them aside as the image rotated, "Compared to an average human's...the differences are astounding, aren't they?"
Qrow made a face, walking closer, "But he's not a human. That kid's a-"
"He's not a Faunus, and to even call him human at this point is a bit of a stretch."
"Then...what is he?"
Ozpin turned to look at his long-time ally, "I don't know."
"You...you don't know?"
The Headmaster leaned back in his chair, letting the light from the screen wash over his tired form. "I've lived more lives than you can fathom, and on more than a few, I've taken to the medical fields. With all that knowledge, I have never in my existence seen a being like Yuji."
He pointed toward the spiraling helix, "The 'skeleton' of his genetic code is human, but almost every single gene has been modified to an extent I didn't think possible. It exceeds even what Atlas is capable of."
Ironwood stared at the data for a moment, "Even we don't go this far. Our studies are largely relegated to preventing deformities, health conditions and, on occasion, dabbling in Semblance studies...though I believe Specialist Schnee is more qualified to discuss that than I am."
Winter stared blankly ahead, speaking robotically as if she had trained herself on the topic, "...As it currently stands, gene therapy is an extremely expensive and experimental technology, but our government has found great use in preventing the loss of certain... desirable semblances through it."
She silently tightened her hold over her hands, "Like all genetic combinations, a semblance isn't guaranteed to pass down from parent to child. However, if one takes preemptive action like my father, then-"
Qrow's mouth opened, "He modified you...and his other kids, didn't he?"
She didn't respond, and that was more than an answer.
The veteran growled, walking off to find the nearest bottle, "Fucking Schnees'."
Ozpin went back to work, "I see it's still a contentious issue, and that's for minimally invasive genetic procedures, but Yuji's go even farther than that. From what I can see, he's-"
"He's what? A timebomb?"
The Director kept staring at his screen, "Genetically perfect."
Qrow poured himself more than a few glasses at once, "Perfect? What the hell does that mean? Like his stats were maxed on some game?"
"Every living being has some genetic deformity, and the idea of there being a 'normal' is in itself flawed, but we hardly discuss it because only about half of the population shows some visible sign of genetic abnormalities. The rest lie under the surface, not impacting things, but they're still there, and we can see them with current technology."
Ozpin pinched between his eyes, "Itadori has absolutely no defects to speak of. He's faster, stronger, more endurant, more capable, and even more intelligent than the average person could ever hope to be."
The Huntsman deadpanned, "He's pretty dumb, Oz."
"That's more because of his personality than anything. You've seen that boy fight, and he's proven to be capable of advanced decision-making in less than a second, and I'm sure there's more to read from this, but there are sections of his DNA that appear-"
The Headmaster waved a hand in confusion, "Grafted on, most of which I can't understand at all, made of unknown compounds, with radically different structures to our own, and how it works, but if I had one thing to take away from this-"
He turned, slowly looking over his allies, a stern look crossing his face, "Yuji wasn't born naturally. He was made, but the question I ask is, why?"
Ironwood crossed his arms, "Why what?"
"Why make him?"
The Director slowly rose, grabbing his cane to begin circling his office, "I've studied the ruins of his time, and their civilization was nowhere near advanced enough to achieve this...I don't even know how it's possible."
Winter blankly watched him with military professionalism like always, "I believe he mentioned something about his mother being almost a thousand years old."
"I'm aware of her likely involvement, but this goes beyond mere child-rearing, no...this involves Ryomen in some way."
Ironwood squinted, "Because of the eyes or them having the same abilities?"
"That isn't what I'm talking about. This is something none of you could sense, but Yuji is coated in Ryomen's energy, and I'm not saying they're similar. I know for a fact that it is His power coming off of that boy, but there has to be something I'm missing."
Ozpin tapped his cane with each step, "It makes so little sense. Those two are connected, but they couldn't be more different...whatever Yuji was made for, it has to involve Ryomen, but if it was mere possession, he would've killed me the moment we met, not..."
Qrow shrugged, taking a swig of his drink, "Why not just ask him directly? Why all...this?"
The immortal let off a sigh, "I can't do that to him...that boy has clearly been through a lot of hardship, and the last thing I want is for him to relive it to satisfy our curiosity. No, I won't do it unless absolutely necessary."
The general eyed the helixes for another moment before looking toward his old friend, "If you feel like it's important, just remember...it's been over a hundred years since you last used It, and it may be time for you to ask a different question."
Qrow swirled his drink around in his hand, watching as the brown liquid spiraled along his reflection, "Knowing the truth is all well and good, but we only get three of those questions every century. Let's look at the facts. This kid was made to be freakishly strong, so someone wanted a weapon, and they definitely got one out of him."
Ozpin shook his head, "If that were the case, then why did his mother abandon him with a noncombatant like his grandfather for most of his life? From what he told me, Yuji had a completely normal childhood until the last year of his life, but it makes no sense. Why put so much effort into making him just to walk away? What sort of end goal could there be?"
The Director stared down at his desk, "There's merit in waiting for the results of one's experiment to show themselves, but to leave halfway through?...it's just bizarre."
Ozpin ran a hand through his white hair, "I'll consider asking It a question, but we're clearly lacking a Maiden to achieve this...I believe it's time we begin looking for Amber's successor."
Qrow paused, lowering his glass, "Hold on, are you sure you wanna go through with that? You said that kid was good with souls, right? Why don't you have him take a look at her first? See what can be done?"
The Headmaster shook his head, "I don't plan on letting Yuji anywhere near her or any of the Maidens if I have a say in the matter. His contact with Raven was already a risk. They were made to counter Ryomen by destabilizing his connection to his host, and with how coated he is in that man's energy, I have no idea what it could do to him...keeping them away from him and Mountain Glenn remains our top priority, along with securing the Maidens into loyal vessels."
The immortal's grip tightened as his cane came to rest against the floor, "No...Amber will die, and I will take full responsibility for it. Now, let's draft a list of potential hosts. Our enemies are making moves, and it's time to make some of our own."
...
At the same time
Rooftops blurred by as a figure leaped through the skies, slamming down on one structure just to leap toward another.
Yuji blankly stared forward as smoke continued to rise across the city landscape until a pair of silver eyes looked down at him from above, "So...you gonna text her?"
"Huh?"
After Penny had left, Itadori and Ruby had decided to take the high road, jumping between buildings with her sitting on his shoulders, and while the vessel could've cleared most of the city with a single leap, the Huntress was pretty clear she would get sick if he tried-
And Yuji really didn't wanna get barfed on, so this was the compromise.
The Scythe user tapped a few fingers on his head, "You know...that girl from earlier?"
The sorcerer thought about it for a second before his eyes widened, "Oh, that ice cream chick?"
She snickered, "Yeah, her."
"Nah, she's not really my type."
"'Cause she's crazy?"
Yuji shook his head, "Crazy's not really a deal breaker for me. I mean...I'm crazy, you're crazy, heck, everyone that does the stuff we do's gotta be a little unhinged, right?"
She dropped her chin on his hair with a pout, "I'm not crazy-"
"Weren't you the one that punched me through a window?"
Oh yeah, back at the bakery...man, that felt like it was so long ago.
Ruby puffed out her cheeks like a chipmunk, "That's 'cause you insulted cookies."
"I did not."
"You so did!"
"I said they were too sweet, goober."
"That's called being picky."
He rolled his eyes, "Please, I'll eat anything if I have to. Wanna guess my favorite food?"
The Huntress hummed, blankly thinking back to the countless lunches their group had together at this point, blankly remembering him getting the same thing every time, "Mmmmmm...you eat a lotta rice-"
He raised a finger, "With food on it."
"...is your favorite food seriously rice with food on it?"
His face became chiseled, "Yes."
Her pout grew, "But that's not an answer!"
"It is."
"No! That's like me saying I like all cookies...well...I do, but I'm not gonna eat raisins unless I have to. That's gross."
He glanced up at her with the wisdom of a sage, "Rube, someday, you'll learn to appreciate all food, and then you'll get that it doesn't matter what goes on the rice of life, but how it makes you feel."
"...What?"
"I dunno, I'm just yapping."
The Huntress shook her head, "Kay, back to the real question then, why don't you like that girl?"
He made a face, "Why do you care?"
"'Cause we're besties! So I get the details!"
"Says who?"
"TV."
Yuji hummed for a second, unable to refute her genius logic, "Fine-fine...it's 'cause she's short."
...
...
She tilted her head, "Short?"
"I like tall girls."
...
...
"Like Yang?"
*Ptoooooooo
The vessel spat, feeling way too on the spot for his liking, "Oh, come on! Where did THAT come from!?"
"Uhhh, she's my sister? She tells me stuff?"
He deadpanned, "...What did she tell you?"
Ruby's smirk grew as she leaned onto his head, "Nothing, but you just did."
Yuji realized how badly he had just been played.
"Oh...you suck."
"So there IS something up with you two?... I thought she liked you, but I didn't wanna get all weird about it."
The sorcerer shook his head, "Kinda late on that one, 'cause you're making this weird."
"Am not! She's my sister, and it's my job to interview guys like you!"
"Well, you don't gotta question me 'cause we're not dating."
"...You aren't?"
"No."
She made a face, "Oh...shoot, I kinda thought you were...not-not that I'm against it or...something-"
He blankly looked up at her, "Do you really think that's a good idea after what I did today?"
...
...
Ruby's smile faded, "...Can we not bring that up, please?"
"You can't avoid it forever, Ruby."
Things got uncomfortably silent for a while after that.
...
A bit later
The Huntress sighed, looking down at the passing city, "Any-"
Yuji glanced up, "hm?"
"Any idea what you're gonna say to her?"
"To Blake?"
"Yeah...Blake."
Itadori blankly stared ahead as the wind swept over them, "The truth, I guess...that I'm an idiot and I did something really rude without knowin'."
"And what about her?"
"What about Blake?"
The Huntress closed her eyes for a second, "Well...with all that stuff she said, doesn't that mean she was part of the White Fang?"
"Does it matter if she was?"
"What? Of course, it does! I mean, what if she...did bad stuff? That's just...I don't know if I can handle being a team leader for someone like that."
Yuji sighed, "You don't mean that. It's just your anxiety talkin'. You're dealing with a lotta stress right now, but take a second and think, has Blake ever done anything to hurt you or your team?"
"...No, I guess not...but still, what if she was part of the White Fang?"
"So what if she was? I'm not the kinda guy that preaches about second chances or whatever, but if she changed, and I mean, really changed, then there's just no point in hating her for something that's said and done."
Ruby's lip quivered for a second, "I don't hate her. I'm just...confused. Why would anyone join them with all the terrible things they do?"
He awkwardly reached up a hand, tapping it against hers as it clung to his shoulder, "It's easy to ask that sorta thing, but a lot harder to understand it...before me and Choso knew we were family, he-"
Yuji took a breath, "He worked with a group of Curses and hurt a lot of innocent people, and at first, I wanted nothing to do with him when he started saying we were brothers, but...Over time, I realized that Choso wasn't a hateful person. If anything, he was hurting and made a really bad decision because of it."
Ruby's hold tightened, "That doesn't excuse doing those things, though. You can't just hurt someone and say you felt it too, and that just...magically makes up for it."
Yuji nodded, "It doesn't, but you gotta find out where they came from. Our mom abandoned my brothers and left them to fend for themselves in a world where humans hated them as monsters, and all they had were each other...Choso passes as human, but Eso and Kechizu?"
The vessel shook his head as images of his long-dead siblings blurred in his mind, "They would never fit in, so Choso did what he had to, even if it meant working with other Curses...I know he hurt people, but I also know that my big brother loves all of us and that he changed when we had each other...it's not perfect, and neither of us can ever make up for our mistakes, but that's life...maybe Blake wanted to do better and came to Beacon for that, but that's her story to tell, not mine."
Ruby opened her mouth but stopped, taking in his words, "I don't know how you're so cool about this when she tried to shoot you."
The vessel gave a knowing chuckle, "At this point, it's kinda a right of passage for my friends to try and kill me at some point. Who knows, maybe you'll try someday?"
Ruby raised a hand and-
*CRACK
"Ouch!"
She pouted, holding her pulsing finger after trying to flick his forehead, feeling like she just smacked concrete, "I don't fight my friends...I just...gosh, I hate how complicated all this is getting. It's like...you get older and-"
"Things suck more?"
She slumped onto his head, "Yeah, kinda."
"That's how it goes, Rube. You just gotta find people that are worth dealing with it for, ya know?"
The Huntress stuck her tongue out, "You sound like my dad, he's so-"
"Daddish?"
"Huh? How'd you know that?"
"Yang told me about him a while back. He seems pretty cool."
"Eugh...In a dad way, yeah, but he's such a worrywart. You don't wanna know how long it took to convince him to lemme go to Beacon."
The sorcerer only smiled, "It's still nice he cares that much...I wonder if my dad woulda been like that."
"...do you...you know...miss him?"
Yuji let off a slow exhale, "It's kinda hard for me to explain... I heard all about him from my grandfather, but...I never met the guy, or at least, I don't remember it, so...I just don't have any memories to make me care about him. I'm sure he did the best he could for me, and I appreciate it, but I don't think I could ever say I love the guy if that makes sense."
The vessel glanced up at her, his smile persisting, "It's never bothered me, 'because if I want people to care about, I have you and all my other friends. I guess I made my own family in a weird way, huh?"
Ruby smiled down at him, "You have a funny way of showing it, always messing with me-"
"That's 'cause you're fun to tease."
She poked him in the face with a finger, "Jerk."
"You're still tiny-"
"Says the shortest guy in our class-"
"Oh please, the only girl shorter than you is Weiss."
"She is WAY shorter than me! Those heels are like four inches tall!"
"I'd be careful. She'll punch you if you say that to her."
The Huntress stuck her tongue out, "Nope! You're the only one she hits."
"Eh, she hasn't punched me in a while. I think we're good now."
"Seriously, I have zero clue how you pulled that off."
Yuji blankly looked at her, "Pulled what off?"
"Making her like you! Weiss is the prickliest person I have ever met!"
He shrugged, "It's all about perspective, Rube. She's sweet in her own way."
...
...
"Do you like her?"
He deadpanned, "We're not doing this again."
"Why not!?"
"Because you're even worse with dating advice than I am."
"No! Yang's told me stuff!"
"Like what?"
"Don't do anything she wouldn't do?"
"You don't even know what she WOULD do!"
"Yeah, well...shut up! I can know stuff, too!"
"Mhm..."
"...Jerk."
He smiled at her frustration, deciding to change the subject, "So, oh-great-leader, what's your plan to talk Blake down?"
Ruby paused, looking up to the fractured moon as it glowed overhead, "I...I'm just-"
She stuttered for a second, "I don't know how to handle stuff like this...Patch is...pretty humaney if you get what I mean. There just weren't a lot of Faunus where I grew up, so...it's hard to know what to say."
The sorcerer dully nodded, "Nah, I get it. Sorcerers are basically all Japanese, but there's a few that aren't...I remember hearing that time my Sensei said something racist on accident, and it was a whole thing."
She hummed, leaning closer, "Huh? What did he say? Was it bad?"
Yuji awkwardly stuttered, realizing this was a box he shouldn't have opened, "Gojo didn't mean anything by it. He just...didn't say it well, like...look, there was a sorcerer named Miguel, and my Sensei said something that made it seem like he was strong because of his race and not because of the person he was...you know, 'cause we're Japanese and Miguel is African so-"
"What's an African?"
"...Seriously?"
"What?"
"You don't know what Africa is?"
"S-should I? Is it bad that I don't?"
The vessel shook his head, muttering something about sheltered kids, "Honestly...Fine, I'll just say it. Miguel is black, and we're Japanese, and he took offense to what Gojo said, and even if my Sensei didn't mean anything by it, that doesn't make it okay to treat someone differently just 'cause of what they are...so just-"
Yuji pinched between his eyes, knowing he was the least qualified to talk about these things, "I'm not saying drop the Faunus thing, 'cause that's bad too, but...just...when you look at Blake, don't only think, 'Faunus,' because that's ignoring who she is. You gotta think that she's a person that happens to BE a Faunus, get what I'm saying?"
Ruby's eyes were spinning, "I'm so confused."
He tapped her on the arm, "If it makes you feel better, I never got a clue what's goin' on when you guys talk about smart people stuff."
"So...what do I say?"
He shrugged, "You're a good person. Just say what your heart's tellin' ya-"
She sputtered, "Then-then...why did we have this talk about race if you just wanted me to say what I wanted!?"
"I dunno, dude! I'm from Japan. We're not really a beacon of diversity. Half the time, I don't know what you Europeans are on about!"
"What's a European!? I'm from flipping Patch!"
His eyes widened like dinner plates as he pointed a finger at the Huntress, "YOU!"
"You what!?"
"You're a European!"
"WHAT DOES THAT MEAN, YUJI!?"
"YOU'RE WHITE!"
"What does me being pale have to do with this!? You're like a few shades tanner than me!"
"No, I'm an Asian!"
"I thought you were Japanese!"
His head was spinning at this point, "It's the same thing! No...wait...no, they're not just-AHHHHHHH THIS IS TOO COMPLICATED, FORGET IT!"
...
Sometime later
With a final thud, the pair came crashing down onto the banquet hall's roof, the same place the vessel had been mere hours prior, where everything seemed to have gone wrong in such little time.
Ruby hopped off his back, hardly making a sound as she landed, taking in the sight, spinning a slow circle as she stared out across the city, with this building acting as an epicenter for the chaos.
The Huntress stopped her spin, raising her hands in uncertainty, "I don't get it; why would Blake come here of all places?...Unless-"
She stared off at the open rooftop door, with darkness looming inside, "She must've known that guy...or maybe...no, I don't wanna assume anything until she tells us the truth."
The vessel only nodded, letting Ruby take the lead as she took a breath, beginning a slow march into the building.
Their descent was slow and awkward, with the entire structure feeling haunted despite being used such a short time ago-
It had been cleaned, the bodies had been removed, but still, there was an odd pressure in the atmosphere that clung to the walls, and the two hadn't even left the stairwell.
Ruby winced, plugging her nose, "God, I hate that chemical smell. Why does it even stink like...Oh."
Realization seemed to dawn on the Huntress, and she immediately went quiet, and it didn't take a genius to figure out why she was upset.
Their footsteps rang out, bouncing off of desolate and cold walls, and soon, the pair found themselves walking through a stage set, the podium where the vessel gave his speech looming just beyond an open curtain.
Ruby stopped to look at it, "...Were you nervous?"
Itadori was knocked out of his thoughts, "Me? About what?"
"Talking...in front of so many people? Weren't you a little freaked out?"
He hummed, tapping a hand on his side, "Not really. I mean, is there a point in getting freaked out? It's not like I was ever gonna talk to any of those people again."
The hooded girl bit her cheek, walking toward the podium, grazing a hand along the railing as she stared out toward a nonexistent crowd in the dark space below, "I don't know how you do it, Yuji."
He walked up beside her, "Do what? Talk?"
"Anything...I-"
Ruby crossed her arms, "Things feel so easy whenever you're around, and I keep thinking about what happened here, and I...I was so upset about it...all of it, but I don't think-"
She closed her eyes for a moment, "I don't think I could've done ANYTHING if I was here. Uncle Qrow and Weiss would get hurt...maybe worse. The same goes for everyone else here...I just...how do you live with that sort of pressure? I can't-"
Her silver eyes opened, with tears prickling at the surface, "I can't even imagine it."
Yuji's stare narrowed as he felt his stomach tighten just a bit, "You don't-...You don't have to worry about it, Ruby."
She took a step forward, "But I do! I don't want you to feel like you're on your own with this!"
"It's my role in things, alright? What else is there to say?"
"What role!? What does that have to do with anything? Why you?"
...
...
Itadori's face tightened for a second as he turned away to hop up, taking a seat along the stone railing, looking out into the void below as he tapped a hand beside him, "Wanna sit with me for a sec?"
Ruby stared for a moment but soon followed suit, with the pair remaining in silence for a few seconds.
Itadori blankly stared out into the void, remembering the flashing lights of countless reporters taking pictures of him and the others, "...Do you remember our talk when we first met? Back when you wanted to be my partner?"
The Huntress gave a tiny nod, "You said you used to be really weak, right?"
"Yeah...it's so weird to talk about. Less than a year ago, I was just some nobody highschooler, livin' everyday aimlessly, like I had no purpose. I coulda joined a sport, coulda gone pro. Everyone told me I had it in me, but I just didn't care, and why would I?"
He laughed, "Do you know how much it sucks being better than everyone else at something? It really does. There's no challenge in it; no one on your level to make it interesting. You just dominate, and if some people like that, then they just have a bloated ego. It was only when I met my first Curse that I realized how weak I was."
He lazily kicked his feet, "When I met Gojo Sensei for the first time, I was...heck, it was like I was meeting a celebrity or something. He was so cool, looking threats in the face with this aura...this...unreal confidence and power that made me think everything would be alright because HE was there-"
Yuji faintly smiled, "It didn't matter what we were facing...Curses...Sorcerers...even Jujutsu Society with all its screwed up ways, none of it mattered because HE was the Strongest and could force change, and what he wanted was more people on his level, and for the longest time, I thought it was to deal with our problems better, but that wasn't it."
The sorcerer held out a hand, opening and closing his digits, "You guys call me strong, but I'm nowhere near his level. I might as well be a bug compared to him...still, the closer I get, the more I understand how he felt and how lonely he really was because that's what it means to be the Strongest. It's not some game of you just having fun and getting to decide things for yourself. It's a horrible weight that puts a lot of distance between you and everyone else."
He visibly scowled, "Gojo wanted a lot of things...to stop the corruption, to rebuild Jujutsu Society from scratch, and raise a new generation of Sorcerers to defend it so that he could finally have equals, and now he's gone, and I'm all that's left...I-I don't think I'm smart enough for a lot of it, but the least I can do, is keep clearing the path for my friends because I don't want you guys to get hurt."
Ruby put a hand on his shoulder, "No one's asking you to do that to yourself, Yuji. So...why? Why put that on yourself?"
"You already know the answer to that."
"I do?"
"Think about it. What do you actually get out of being a team leader? There's no extra reward; you don't get more privileges or money or anything like that, so why? Why did you agree to take it?"
He pointed a finger toward her heart, "Because out of all of your teammates, you stood the best chance of keeping them safe, even if your screwups got you in a lot of trouble, even if it was so much responsibility that it made you wanna collapse into the dirt, you took it because deep down, you knew, this was their best chance."
Ruby shook her head, sending her black hair to the side, "It's not the same! I have three people to watch, and I can't even do that right! What you have is-"
"It might be a larger scale, but do you really think I'm doing anything right, Ruby?"
Yuji took a breath, looking straight up, "People are dead, there's riots in the streets, and all I could do was keep the ones I care about safe...nothing is ever perfect, you gotta throw that idea out of your head and ask yourself: What's the best I can do, and am I doing it?"
He winced a bit, "Maybe if Gojo was here, he could've solved all of this...or maybe he couldn't...maybe I just thought he knew everything because he was so far above me that I just looked like a clown compared to him or maybe-"
Yuji tensed, "Maybe I'm the problem. If Gojo were still alive, I wouldn't be the Strongest. I haven't surpassed him, and I haven't gotten to match him...I'm not the Strongest because I earned it-
"I'm not Yuji Itadori because I'm the Strongest-"
"And I'm not the Strongest because I'm Yuji Itadori-"
"I'm the strongest because I'm the only one that's left."
He waved a hand out over the desolate room, coated in violent slash marks embedded into the stonework, "This is the best I can do."
His head lowered, "It's the best I can do."
...
...
Ruby sat there quietly for a few seconds, not even sure what to say.
She tried to reach out a hand but stopped.
The Huntress tried to say something but couldn't.
...
...
Eventually, she settled on something, scooting along the railing until she was right next to the sorcerer and, without any elegance, leaned her head on his shoulder, "...I think you're pretty great."
Yuji hardly reacted, "I don't want your pity."
"It's not pity...why else would you tell me all this stuff if you didn't wanna talk to someone about it?"
"...I don't know."
The vessel blankly looked down, "I dunno why I tell you this stuff. It's just a feeling-"
Ruby looked up at him, "Feeling?"
He barely nodded, "That someday, you'll need to know these things."
Itadori looked so tired, "When you're strong, everyone thinks you have all the answers, that you can do everything they can't, and then some, but the truth?... I don't know a thing. Being strong doesn't magically make you God. It just means there's no one above you to stop you from doing what you want, and that's a dangerous thing-"
The sorcerer flinched as he felt the slits along his face move oh-so-slightly, "People and things just orbit around you, and you're responsible for all of it because you have the power to choose what happens. It would be so easy to stop caring, to just give up and not try anymore, but if I ever did that-"
Yuji glared at seemingly nothing, "I'd be just like Him...a horrible, selfish piece of garbage that thinks he can hurt whoever he pleases, just because he gets a kick out of it."
The vessel suddenly clenched a fist, soon loosening it as he dropped it on Ruby's head, staring her right in the eyes, "I won't let it happen, and I'll make sure you and all the others don't get hurt. The least I can do is clear the way for you before I'm gone."
...
...
Ruby kept staring at him, "Who-"
She steeled herself, "Who do you keep talking about?"
Yuji's eyes widened, "Did...did I-"
She shook her head, "Every time you get like this, you...you mention someone, and you get this look on your face like you're-"
Ruby's expression dropped, "...like you're scared of someone."
Itadori barred his teeth, looking off to the side, "It's not-"
He seemed angry for a moment but dropped it, his glare dulling, "It's not him I'm afraid of...I hate him too much for that to happen. I just...I'm afraid that one day if I don't keep myself in check if I...if I stop caring about people, I'll end up like him."
The sorcerer visibly shivered, "And that's something that really scares me."
Ruby leaned closer, "Who?"
...
...
"...Sukuna."
She opened her mouth to ask more questions, but the vessel quickly turned around, hopping off the railing and walking away into the darkness they came from.
Yuji paused by the curtains, looking away. "...I'm sure Blake's gonna have somethin' to say about this, and I...I don't know if I can do this twice in one day, so just-"
His head turned, giving the most forced smile the Huntress had ever seen, but his eyes looked so exhausted, "Do me a favor and wait a little while, alright?"
The hooded girl didn't respond at first, just watching his every move and how fake it all looked.
Ruby wanted a lot of things, but the most important right now-
She wanted to help her friends but didn't know how or...even if she could help Yuji-
But still-
She wanted to do the best she could.
With a nod, the two were on the move again, walking through the barren halls in complete silence.
...
A bit later
It didn't take long for them to find Blake. There were only so many places you could look in an open building like this, but more than that, she wasn't trying to hide. No, the Faunus had her own reasons for being here, and they weren't hard to guess.
They found her in the room where the encounter began...well, below it would be a better statement, considering Yuji shredded the second floor.
Yang's bike was leaning against a wall, and the Faunus stood in the center of the chamber, looking up at the slashes strewn about the chamber, her feline ears lightly twitching as their footsteps drew near.
She didn't bother looking at them as they stood in the entranceway, "...Figures one of you would find me."
The quiet teen pulled out her scroll from a pocket and blankly looked down at the device, "Even when I try to walk away from all of this, it keeps finding me...He makes me keep my scroll on to know where I am at all times as part of our deal...me and your grandfather...if Ozpin even is your grandfather."
Blake slowly turned, staring down at the vessel with her yellow eyes, "So, are you here to kill me, too? I wouldn't blame you. I did shoot you in the face."
Yuji hardly seemed to care, "I think we both knew that wouldn't do anything."
Her face was just as blank, "And if it did hurt you...do you think I wouldn't take the shot?"
"You probably would."
"Then why don't you just slice me in half and get it over with?"
"Because I don't feel like it."
Her ears twitched at that one, and the dark-themed Huntress let off a forced laugh, "You really are his descendant, aren't you? It's just-"
She let a hand slap against her thigh, "It just sounds like something he would've said...honestly, you'd be doing me a favor if you put me down. There's nothing for me out there anyways."
Ruby's expression was nothing more than shock, "B-Blake? Why would you even...don't say stuff like that!"
The Faunus sighed, "What else is there to say, Ruby? It's all out in the open, I-"
*Fwoosh
There was a storm of rose petals, and before the cat-girl could hope to respond, there was a thin pair of arms wrapped around her waist, and a certain Huntress was digging her head into her stomach.
Blake shook her head, trying to gently shove the girl off of her by her shoulders, "Ruby, this isn't the time for you to-"
"I don't care!"
"What?"
The hooded girl's silver eyes glared up at her, "I'm not letting you run away from us again, not ever!"
Blake visibly recoiled as if she had touched a hot stove but soon gently pushed the girl back, "Ruby...just stop, okay? You telling me things are gonna be alright won't just fix this because it's a lot more than me taking a few shots at him, it..."
She walked away, coming to sit along a set of stone stairs, "Do you know where I grew up?...It wasn't one of the kingdoms. It isn't even a recognized country. Menagerie might as well be a no man's land as far as Vale and the others care."
Yuji crossed his arms, staring across at her, "I heard it's pretty bad."
She shook her head, sending her black locks to the side, "It's not the paradise Atlas talks about in their propaganda. I saw one of their fake little clips pop up on my feed the other day...they call it an island resort, a fucking resort. Do you have any idea how much of a joke that is?"
Blake raised her fingers one by one, "Do resorts have mass hunger? Do they have armed gangs that terrorize innocent people for 'rent?' Do resorts have buildings made of scrap metal and whatever else people can get their hands on after they were forced onto the worst land available because the alternative of living in the Kingdoms was that much worse?"
The quiet teen dragged a pale hand along her face, "That's the Menagerie I grew up on. A hopeless place full of desperate people, and I was just another unwanted kid trying to help my family not starve by stealing. One day, I saw a few carts getting dragged through town, so I snuck up when they stopped and tried grabbing a few things, and a boy caught me in the act."
The Faunus sadly laughed, looking up at the nonexistent ceiling, "He was hiding under the freaking tarp, I don't know how I didn't see the red hair or the horns or his bright blue eye, and all I could do was stand there, with a bunch of food in my hands, waiting for him to call someone over and beat me into the dirt, but...he didn't...For some reason, he grabbed some stuff and took off running with me. We sat there by a dirty little stream, talking about our lives."
Blake's smile faded, "That's how I met Adam, and that was the same day I joined the White Fang."
Yuji shook his head, crossing his arms, "These things never start like they do in the movies, huh?"
She was quiet for a second, "Never thought I'd be a terrorist...well, I didn't start as one, but I sure didn't think I'd get swept up in all of it with a few nice words...how did it go for you?"
Itadori scoffed, dropping to the floor as he let his hands rest against his knees, "I didn't have much of a choice, well...I did, but...let's just say, I did something stupid without thinking, and next thing I knew, I was tied up in some basement, and they told me I could either die then and there or make my death worth something."
Ruby was getting pale.
The vessel chuckled at the madness of it all, "That was my first day as a sorcerer, and it was my teacher telling me all that crap too. Wanna know the dumbest part about it? He talked about getting both of us some snacks like five minutes after saying he could kill me."
For once, Blake actually laughed, "Yeah...that sounds about right. Adam got me hooked on the dream faster than I wanna admit...that the Faunus could be...people, not just things someone owned...and it started nice and small."
The feline girl tapped the ground next to her as Ruby shuffled toward her, taking an awkward seat beside her teammate as she paid her no mind, "We snuck into the Kingdoms, went to protests, peaceful stuff, but it felt like maybe...just maybe, it was enough. He was sweet, and I couldn't get enough of him, but-"
Blake's head dropped just a bit, "He started talking a little differently, and I don't know if Adam was always like that or if something had happened to make him change his mind, but one day, at one of our rallies, he picked up this rock and I saw him throw it...the thing just bounced off an Atlas soldier's helmet, but that was enough for dust to start flying. Thirty of our people died, and two of theirs were too."
Yuji blankly nodded, "It's never what you want it to be."
Blake studied him for a second, "...You wanted to be a hero, didn't you?"
He recoiled but forced a smile, "It's dumb, but...yeah, I really did. I grew up watching all these shows where characters had superpowers and did awesome stuff with 'em...and then I found out that I had some power of my own..."
Itadori's smile faded as he waved a hand at the walls covered in countless indentations, some still crackling with dried blood, "This is what I can do with this technique of mine...I never would have thought that it would have come to-"
Blake raised a pale hand, "I don't hate you for killing those people, Yuji. They're the ones who took Adam from me in the first place. Those Cultists are the ones who ruined the White Fang's name and made it that much easier for the violent factions to take power...it used to not be like this-"
"This isn't about you hating me, Blake."
She gave him a look, a stare so cold, it gave them both an unspoken understanding, "I know...I just...look about what I said about you and-and Weiss, I-"
Yuji raised a hand, "It's fine."
The quiet girl awkwardly rubbed her arm, "Just...let me say it...I was with them for a while, and...some things rubbed off, and I say those stupid propaganda lines when I get freaked out, okay? Especially when it comes to him."
The Faunus sighed, curling into herself a bit, "Adam just got worse, and worse, and worse...he stopped going to rallies and vanished for days on end. I only found out that Sienna was sending him on missions by digging for the facts myself, and they weren't just sabotage runs. It was-"
Blake shivered, "I didn't know how bad it was until I forced my way into one of his runs, and I...he made me...I-I thought I was angry and that I hated humans more than anything, but when he put it in my hand, I didn't think I just-I just..."
*Drip-drip
Ruby's expression dropped as she watched droplets splash against the cold ground, realizing that her teammate was crying, her yellow eyes dulling as she stared off at nothing.
The Huntress tried to raise a hand, "Blake?"
No response
"Are you?"
*CRACK
In a burst of motion, the Faunus slapped her hand aside, "Don't!...just-"
She raised her head to meet the girl's stare, "I don't deserve it."
The scythe user held her thumping hand, unsure of what to do, "What? What don't you deserve?"
Blake's tears only worsened, "You...all of you, not after everything I did, after all the humans he made me...no...that I-"
The quiet girl curled up more, "I kept my distance because...because I knew I didn't have the right to talk to any of you...to be friends with you...a monster like me doesn't deserve that. So day in, day out, I read those stupid fucking books because they're the one thing Ozpin can't watch me do...but it's what I deserve-"
The cat girl slumped forward, burying herself in her knees as her yellow orbs stared at the sorcerer, "I ran away from the White Fang...I made a deal with your grandfather...I thought I could just walk away from it all, but seeing Adam just brought it all back...I can't escape from what I did, so just do it."
Blake glared, "I should've died with him, so just get it over with and kill me. It's the only way to make this right, so just...do it."
She slumped into herself as a flow of tears trickled across the floor in silence, "Please do it."
...
...
Ruby was pale, unable to even speak. This entire situation was far too much for the poor girl to handle, and she didn't have the faintest clue about what to-
*Click-click
The Huntress' stare shifted, seeing a certain sorcerer slowly rising to his feet, "Yuji?"
He didn't respond, his pink hair covering his eyes as he began to approach the Faunus.
...
...
It took a few seconds, but soon, Itadori was standing over her, and Blake was completely unresponsive.
"...Was it one?"
The quiet girl shuddered, "It was a lot more than just-"
"One is already too many, and I think we both know that."
Blake paused, slowly looking up toward the vessel, "...You?"
Their eyes met, both completely battered by the world around them, and another wordless understanding was met.
Both of them had taken innocent lives, and it never stopped haunting them.
Yuji stared down at her, "Do you really think you deserve this?...An easy way out?"
"...What?"
The sorcerer crouched to her level, "You dying isn't going to fix anything, and no matter what you do, you'll never be able to bring them back. You can't redeem yourself, not when something can't be undone. Death is just a way to end your own suffering, and neither of us deserves that sort of rest."
The vessel's stare was so blank, it might as well be inhuman, "You know what I think? You didn't just leave the White Fang because you disagreed with what they did. It would've been a lot easier on you to just ride it out with that guy and die with him, but you didn't because you know what you did was wrong and that you shouldn't get out of it that soon."
He reached out a hand, dropping it on her shoulder, sending a shudder through the Faunus' body as she looked up at him, "Instead, you're going to hold their pain on your shoulders. You'll wake up every morning remembering the things you've done, and every forced smile, every fake interaction where you try to keep it together, and every single day where you live with the never-ending guilt of your mistakes?-"
The vessel pointed a finger at her heart, "You'll use that to stop other people from suffering the same, and when, and only when, the world decides it's done with you, will you get to die and be done with it...no sooner, and no later, because-"
"You and I both lost the right to choose our fates the moment we took someone else's."
Blake's tears continued to fall, "How?...How do I do it? Every time I try to make it right, I just feel worse...does it ever stop?"
Yuji shook his head, "It never does, but remember, you take those horrible feelings and all that pain and ask yourself how they felt when you took everything away from them, and use that as fuel to get stronger. You're not free to choose your life anymore. You're a tool to be used up and thrown away when it's broken. That's what we deserve. It isn't redemption. It's penance."
The sorcerer thought back to his trial, standing before Judgeman itself and what he deserved at the end of this road.
Her tears kept falling, so the vessel did the only thing he could. He pulled the Faunus into a hug, even as she let out a quiet gasp, "Convicted or not, Blake, we both know what we did, and this is our lives from now on. We have our teams and our sins, and we have to carry both of them with us until it's over. It's gonna be a long road, with a lotta hardship, but you can start by doing right by the people close to you."
Eventually he could feel her give a slight nod, which only made him sigh as he patted her back, "...And I'm so sorry for outing you like that."
...
...
"Just so you know, I think the cat ears are kinda cute."
"...Heh-"
"Hm?"
Blake started shaking as she laughed into his chest, "hehehehehehahahaha."
The Faunus stopped, soon looking up, "I tried to kill you, and you're the one apologizing?...Weiss is right. You are pretty weird."
The vessel shrugged, "You're not even close to the first person that's tried to kill me."
She sniffled a bit, backing away from their embrace, "Yeah...well...Adam kind of outed you for being related to...Him... so, it's only fair I-"
Yuji shook his head, "You aren't responsible for Adam, he-"
"He made his own choices...I know but at the same time...He taught me everything I know...how to read, how to write, and how to fight... I owe him that much to take some responsibility for him.
Blake grimaced, "Not because of what he ended up as, but because of that sweet boy I met a long time ago."
...
...
The quiet girl took a breath, "There's a lot of things I could start with, but I want it to be him."
Blake glanced around at the slashes strewn about the room, "In a few days, Atlas will have erased all of this from history and spew out a bunch of lies like they always do...They'll try to downplay it and make it seem less awful than it actually was, but I think it's better if I get the real story and record it all so that the world can know what really led to the end of Adam Taurus-"
She spared Yuji a glance, "If...if you don't mind helping me with that."
Itadori raised a brow, "I don't really understand it, but...yeah, if you want, I'll tell you what I can."
Blake pushed her hair back into place, "It's nothing, just...When I was a kid, I always dreamed of being a reporter, so I practiced this sort of stuff a lot. I think the truth matters. I'm so sick and tired of the lies that mess with peoples' heads, not just the ones that ruined Adam, but the ones I say too, so-"
The Faunus awkwardly turned to the side, facing her team leader as she shakily raised her arms, "So...Ruby, if...if you want, we could-"
The Huntress didn't move, "I...what were you just talking about? Why is Blake better now?...what happened?"
Yuji shook his head, "You don't need to understand it right now, Rube."
The quiet teen gave a gentle nod, "I promise, we'll talk all about it when you're ready to hear it, okay?"
The hooded girl didn't last long before tackle-hugging her teammate.
It wasn't perfect, but neither was the world they lived in.
...
Time passed, and Yuji spent a lot of time going over the events leading up to the disastrous party, with Blake writing down and recording bits for her project.
Things were still tense, and the two weren't just magically friends; if anything, it felt more like an uncomfortable truce, but as the talking began to wind down, they eventually made their way outside, slowly following the path of destruction the vessel had made during his fight with Taurus.
Itadori and Ruby walked side by side as Blake trailed behind, pulling Yang's bike along for their travels.
The Faunus took a breath as she looked around at the shredded cars and military vehicles lining the roadway, "There's just...one more thing I wanted to ask you...about what Adam said. Are you...really related to...to him?"
Yuji came to an abrupt halt, his hands visibly twitching.
Blake stopped in her tracks, letting the night winds sweep through her frayed black hair, her feline ears still twitching as she dug through a storage pouch on Yang's bike, "I thought there was a chance...a while back when I saw those marks on your skin. They're the same ones those cultists use, but I didn't know for sure, so I ordered this."
The teen slowly pulled out a withered old book, simply titled The History of the Faunus Race, an old, leatherbound collection of scrap-like pieces of paper. "Believe it or not, this book is banned in every kingdom. Even stores on Menagerie don't sell it because it brings problems wherever it goes."
Ruby zoomed back to her, trying to look over the girl's shoulders on her tip-toes, "What makes it so bad? It's just a book."
"A story...one most people think is just a myth, but...you saw what its believers look like...and what they're capable of."
Blake slowly looked toward the sorcerer, "Have you ever heard the tale of Ryomen, the Unbound?"
Yuji's expression went cold as his skin visibly paled, "...What's it about?"
"It's...well...I guess it's mostly a kid's story. A lot of Faunus grew up hearing it from their parents, on the street, or anywhere you'd listen to a fairy tale. It's one of those things that is technically illegal, but no one enforces it on Menagerie."
Blake looked around, soon finding an unbroken bench to sit on, "Mind if I read a little of this to you guys? It'll help explain what I'm getting at."
She took their silent nods as a yes and slowly began combing over the pages.
...
There once was a boy, not strong or tall,
With almost no joy, perfectly ordinary as you or I,
So little to enjoy.
What made him different was something no one could destroy,
Something unexceptional, a thin little mane,
One that was unintentional.
He didn't choose to have it, but he was punished with a hit.
The schoolchildren laughed, called him names,
Threw rocks, and insults that hurt just the same.
What was he to do, feeling such a disgrace?
Within those kingdom walls, he always felt out of place.
He stared at them like a cage and wondered if this was the case.
What lay beyond, he would ponder,
What would happen if they fell asunder?
He would smile in glee, for he would be free.
Oh, the places he'd go, to spaces beyond imagination,
Oceans of fire, deserts of frost, a world of remnant,
But he was just another tenant.
Time passed, and he would grow,
Things became uncomfortably slow.
Though his dreams would always show,
They forced him beneath the ground, and he labored.
He would like to call humans his neighbors,
But to them, they would always be greater.
Time passed, and he grew tired,
No matter what he did, he was never desired.
One day, he said a prayer,
For some way to make them aware,
To find a way to make them care.
In a tiny little square, something happened in a place with almost no air.
He changed, his mane rose, such a strange set of hair.
He gained another set of eyes, for him to share,
He became something without compare,
Something all too rare.
But still, they wouldn't listen, so he decided not to be fair.
The walls out there would fall without repair,
There was no need to prepare when he came to bear.
A few cuts, a few tiny slashes, and their kingdoms fell to despair.
There he declared, were they to share,
Were they to care, there'd be no need for this affair.
But still, they refused to compare,
The Faunus race they wouldn't spare.
How dare they become aware
That their lives were so unfair?
So, the Grand Wizard of all the land would prepare,
Four maidens, a sight to beware.
They met, and they stared,
For all their might, they and the Wizard himself could still get a scare.
They sealed him in their lair, and the world became unaware.
Though a lesson to beware, he may be in a state of impair,
He still rests down there,
Many can attest and swear,
His dreams burn like a flare,
And those four eyes continue to stare
At the walls that bind him like a snare.
A reminder to tyrants: beware,
When the boy with a mane shall return, he will not dare
To leave their lands any more than bare.
...
Ruby seemed incredibly disturbed, "That's a kid's story!?"
Blake passively smiled down at her text, "Well...it's more of a poem, but...I think it does what it's meant to do by showing that you can only push ordinary people around for so long until they can't take it anymore...and you end up making what you're so afraid of."
Her pale hands moved around the pages, lazily flipping through them one by one, "It never mentions Ryomen by name, but most people assume it's about him...he's always been sort of a half-legend to the Faunus, but...I guess with Yuji, he-"
*Bump-Bump
It was a sudden sensation, but Blake's entire body seemed to go cold, and with a shiver, she felt the undeniable sense that someone was watching her.
The Faunus slowly raised her head, looking up to see Yuji, who was just blankly staring into nothing, an unknowable expression on his face, but-
What she focused on-
Was the single red eye on the side of his face, half open, staring right at her.
*Bump-Bump
It was like time had just stopped.
Her throat was dry, and it hurt to even swallow.
Her eyes refused to blink as if somehow, the Faunus instinctively knew if she looked away for a moment.
She'd die the most gruesome death imaginable.
There was no Yuji
There was no Ruby
Just her and...It-
She may be a feline but for the first time in her life.
Blake felt the undeniable sense that she was prey.
It wasn't doing anything, just-
Staring-
But what was behind it? She had no-
Her yellow eyes twitched as the urge to blink began to grow worse and worse, seconds dragging on for an eternity, but still, Blake fought to keep them open, but it was a losing battle.
Her orbs slowly closed, but before they did-
*CLICK
For the briefest of moments, a small mouth opened beneath the gleaming red lens, giving her a smile that sent tremors through her soul.
Blake blinked, jumping back in her seat, soon reopening her eyes to see-
Nothing.
There was nothing there.
Ruby tilted her head, "Blake?"
She reached out a hand, tapping the girl on the arm, making her jump in place as her cat-ears twitched, "W-what?"
"You okay?"
Blake looked around, then between the two people before her, trying to make sense of something unexplainable, soon pinching her forehead, "Sorry, I-"
The Faunus took a deep breath, "I think I'm just really tired. I haven't been sleeping right lately, and...I think it's messing with my head."
Ruby kept her hand in place, giving the girl a sweet smile, "We can take a break if you want...not like we're in any rush."
The dark-themed Huntress shook her head, "No...no, it's fine. I can't waste any more time than I have...there's something I still need to do before it's too late, but first-"
Blake looked toward the sorcerer, who was still seemingly in his own world, "Ryomen...he's real, isn't he?"
...
...
Yuji was dead silent for a few seconds, "...When was that story written?"
She hummed, putting a hand on her hip, "The story? It's...a few hundred years old, at least. Why?"
The vessel slowly lowered his head, staring down at the battered street, mumbling to himself, "It makes no sense. He couldn't...there's no way he could-"
Itadori visibly seemed to shake, running his hands through his pink hair, "No...no...no...no, it doesn't make...it couldn't have happened that way. Only me and Megumi were ever his-"
Yuji seemed to bristle as if he were hearing someone who wasn't there-
Asking him how long he thought he was dead for.
Ruby tried to take a step toward him, "Yuj?...Yuji? What's-"
His hold over his head got tighter as his knuckles audibly popped, "STOP TALKING!"
The Huntress flinched, "I don't-What's wrong!? You're freaking me out!"
As soon as it started, his arms dropped, and Yuji was panting, his eyes seeming to shift between their normal brown and a dull glow, "It doesn't...it doesn't matter. He's sealed away and can't hurt anyone anymore. I made sure of it."
Blake stared at him, "Who? Are you talking about-"
He suddenly pointed a finger at her, his tone growing severe, "You can't write this down, none of it. Not a single word, got it?"
Yuji wasn't asking. He was clearly telling her.
The Faunus raised her hands, "Alright-alright! Just chill out, dude! What has you so worked up out of nowhere?!"
The sorcerer started pacing around, looking as if anything could set him off, "They pray to him...they worship him like a god...and now people are telling kid's stories about him!? What the fuck is happening?... Don't they know-"
He bit down so hard that a trickle of blood flowed down his lip, "Don't they know what he's capable of? That piece of trash would destroy EVERYTHING if he had the chance, and they fucking WORSHIP HIM!?"
The vessel suddenly snapped his head toward the Faunus, his mere look making her flinch, "Your story's right-"
Blake pushed back into her seat, "What the hell are you talking about!?"
"I said."
Yuji marched toward her, looming overhead, his face completely pale, "Ryomen Sukuna isn't dead, and he's not my ancestor. He's my uncle."
"W-wh-"
"Stop talking, and let me finish."
Itadori stared down at his hands as they instinctively opened and closed, "Whatever you think Sukuna is. He's not. He isn't a Faunus, and that person your story's talking about is just someone he possessed. There's no other way it could happen. No, someone must have fed him a finger, but I thought they were all gone-"
Only one was unaccounted for, but it was destroyed when Yuta used it, so why?
How could there be another...how long had he been-
Yuji felt like his head was about to explode the longer he thought about it.
"I can't...I can't do this right now-"
Yuji's eyes were flashing in every direction, and he soon started to take off, "I gotta go, I can't...I can't stay here another-"
"Wait!"
He stopped in his tracks, slowly looking over his shoulder to see Blake standing on the roadway behind him, "Let's...let's just drop it for now, alright? The last thing any of us needs is another freak out and chase across town so just calm down, alright?"
The Faunus marched toward him, pointing a finger into his chest, "You said you'd help me deal with the truth about what happened here, so...let's focus on that. There's one last thing I need your help with before we head back. I-"
Blake visibly winced, "I need you to show me where Adam's body is...so I can bury him. Can you do that?"
...
...
He didn't respond, so she took a step closer, "If I don't do it, then Atlas or someone else could take him and do God knows what with him, so I need you to please hold it together until then."
It took more than a while for the words to even sink into the sorcerer's mind, but eventually, they did, and he gave a short nod, "...Alright...alright...I'm good- I-"
Blake looked him over for a second, "If you're sure then, let's get this over with...I-"
She sighed, "I still have to think about what I'm gonna tell the others so, the sooner this is done, the faster we can be done with this awful day."
Itadori stood still, "Yeah...just one sec. Alright?"
Yuji gave Ruby an awkward nod, "Sorry for-sorry for yelling. It...wasn't at you."
The Huntress' mouth hung open for a second, "Then...who were you yelling at?"
He didn't respond and was already walking off into the city.
Things had gotten awkward after that, and it was more than clear that all parties involved were just done with it all.
Today had been a marathon, and they were exhausted, physically and mentally.
They passed by their arena bit by bit, going by the downtown buildings, the bank, even spotting where the vault door had slammed into the pavement, and eventually settled on one of the many highrises in Vale.
Yuji stood at the base of the structure, looking toward Blake, "You sure you wanna see him? I'm not gonna lie, it's not pretty."
Blake was quiet, "...Is any corpse ever pretty?"
"Never."
The Faunus looked to her team leader, who looked more than uncomfortable, "Hey, Ruby...maybe you can go call the others while we handle this, okay?"
The scythe-user rapidly nodded and walked off, quickly dialing her sister's scroll number.
Yuji watched her go for a second before going back to the bow-less Blake, "You...wanna go up there and see for yourself or?"
She shook her head, "I...don't like heights."
He knew she was lying. Blake just didn't wanna see the blood or anymore of how Adam died than she needed to.
The vessel didn't respond and, instead, took a superpowered leap into the skies, flying past row after row of dark windows, and by the time the top of the tower had passed, the air whistled around him-
His eyes narrowed, and the ground thudded beneath him as he landed, staring at a puddle of blood-
It was an inaccessible spot, and he felt the teen's heart stop during their fight, so why-
Why was Adam's corpse already gone?
...
Chibi
Yuji Itadori stirred in his sleep, tumbling out of the pile of brothers, self-declared brothers, Nora, and more than a few jars.
He lay on the floor, muttering obscenities, his voice slowly distorting as black markings crawled over his skin, "My...precious...my special-"
He lurched forward as all four eyes opened, each a vibrant red, "My freshman, Mahoraga-chan."
He was no longer Yuji Itadori, but a being far worse-
Not quite human-
Not quite a Curse-
But something truly horrid-
An upperclassman-
Some might say a senior-
Super Senior Sukuna had arrived.
The King of Curses strolled into the hall and soon raised a hand toward a nearby door-
*Tap-Tap-Tap
There was a groan, followed by a crashing sound as Yang grabbed the handle from the other side and tried to-
*Creak-Creak
"Huh?...Rubeee...diddya break the door 'gain?"
The hooded girl let off a yawn from inside, "Noooo...the peanut buttah was one time...fo Zweiii-"
"Then why's the-"
*BOOOM
Sukuna raised a foot, slamming it against the hardwood, sending it blasting off its hinges as Yang flew through the wall, tumbling out into the courtyard below.
The noise woke the entire team as the sorcerer strolled in, stolen hands in his jacket pocket, looking around as Ruby tumbled to the floor, looking out the new hole in their wall, "YANG!"
She turned on her heels as the King of Curses started digging through one of their desks, "Yuji, what the heck!?"
The teen just hummed in response, his hands finding something, "You have sensitive eyes, right?"
"Why do you sound like that? Are you sick? You better not be, 'cause I have a big-"
Sukuna lazily pulled out a scroll, dragging his finger to max out the little lightning bolt on its camera app, and in a burst of motion-
*FLASH-FLASH-FLASH-FLASH-FLASH-FLASH-FLASH-FLASH-FLASH
Ruby screamed, tumbling back out the window as dozens of photos blinded her, earning a content chuckle from the Fraud himself, "Hehehehe, I gotta post this on OnlyEvil."
With a few taps, it was up with a simple caption-
'Just blinded this silver-eyed Brat.'
A moment later, there was a ding-
Salem liked this post.
*GRRRRRRRRR
He hummed, looking down toward the floor, spotting a tiny Corgi biting at his ankles, and with a single glance toward a certain cat-Faunus-
*BOOOOOOOOM
Blake met the same fate, exploding out the side of the building with an angry dog thrown in her face.
Sukuna took one look at Weiss, then realized the scroll in his hands was hers, and with a few taps, a few posts saying she supported Faunus rights, and more than a few angry texts from her father, he was content-
...
...
No, he wasn't.
The King of Curses spent more than a few minutes rubbing Ruby's melted chocolate in the Schnee's white hair and posting it online-
Adam Taurus and the White Fang liked this post
Now satisfied, the strongest sorcerer to have ever lived disappeared out of one of the holes he made, but not before slicing apart the thin strings holding up Ruby's bed, making the entire thing collapse onto Weiss.
Professionals had standards...and his standards for love were so much higher.
If only Mahoraga-Chan would notice him.
...
With everything said and done, I can happily say we can go back to shitposting in the next arc, so I'll see you guys in the next one; cheers.
Discord:
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