A.N: Yep, it's official, running is exactly what I need to keep a clear head so that I don't enter another slump where production on all my works suffer as a a result. I hope everyone enjoys this chapter. I actually really enjoyed writing it.
Chapter 32: Hearts Burn Hotter Than The Sun
Yang Xiao Long had a big, victorious grin on her face as she strutted her way to the spot in the stands her teammates, teacher and acquaintance (Gin Byakko) sat. "Damn, it feels good to be awesome." She said proudly. "How's that for kicking this little team match off?"
"You were awesome, Sis!" Ruby Rose let out a cheer.
"You certainly set quite the tone." Blake Belladonna nodded in agreement.
"Well, Teach," Yang grinned at Hansel Kobalt, "how'd I do? Was I awesome, or was I awesome?"
"B- at best." Hansel replied bluntly.
Yang instinctively blew a raspberry at Hansel, making Weiss Schnee roll her eyes in utter annoyance at Yang's behavior. "How mature of you, Yang." She muttered.
"Xiao Long," Hansel remained surprisingly calm in the face of Yang blowing a raspberry at him like a five-year old, probably because he was still so exhausted from the night he had. "You cannot seriously be able to look me in the eye and tell me that was an A+ effort, or really any 'A' for that matter."
Before Yang could say anything in defense of herself, Hansel continued to justify his 'grade' for her. "You were on the brink of losing that fight. It was far too close for comfort." He reminded her. "I know what ultimately matters the most is who wins and loses at the end of the day, but that's no reason to cut it so close. You fought way too recklessly while trying to figure out Lutin Rouge's weakness."
"The only reason you're not getting a 'C' for that effort," Hansel continued, "is because when you did figure out his weaknesses and limits, you finally got your act together."
Yang fell silent for a moment before grinning and shrugging. "Ah, what the hell, I can take a B-." She said with a smile. "Besides, I can definitely consider today a big win if I got you to call me above average for a change, Teach. I'm making progress turning you from a sourpuss into a teddy bear."
Blake face-palmed at her partner's behavior. "Then don't poke the bear, Yang. Gods, why do you have to make everything so difficult?"
"And while we're on the subject of being difficult," Gin frowned in worry, "you took some hellacious shots there. You sure you should be up and about?"
"Ah, give me some more credit, Gin. I'm a tough girl." Yang flexed. Though Gin and Ruby noticed her wincing ever-so-slightly.
Gin frowned, got to his feet and gave Yang a light slap on the back that made her yelp in pain. "What is wrong with you?!" She shouted in pain and anger.
"Yeah, just as I thought." Gin said with a sigh. "You didn't go to the paramedics for any help after the fight, didn't you?"
"Ugh...and what if I didn't?" Yang groaned, still feeling Gin's slap.
"You're among friends, you idiot." Gin gently told her. "There's no need to act all big and tough around us."
Yang groaned some more, rubbing her back from Gin's slap. Gin heaved a sigh and turned to Hansel. "Oi, Professor Grump," he said to the man, "you look after your other three students, alright? I'll take her to the academy's nurse."
Hansel nodded. "Yeah, you do that." He said dismissively.
At that moment, the group heard the announcement over the intercom for the next match. "Weiss Schnee, Nezha Zise, please report to the arena for your match."
Weiss rose from her seat, taking a deep breath. "Okay, I'm up then," she said, giving her teammates a confident smile, "wish me luck, everyone."
"Give 'em hell, Weiss." Yang gave her a thumbs up before being unceremoniously thrown over Gin's shoulders, making her yelp in surprise.
"What she said, Weiss-Cream." Gin gave her a thumbs-up as well. "We'll be rooting for ya all the way, even if we can't be with you in the arena. We're with ya in spirit, ya hear?"
"PUT ME DOWN, YOU CRAZY TIGER-BASTARD!" Yang screamed at Gin as Gin cheerfully marched off with the blonde brawler in tow.
"...I am amazed that Gin still goes full-speed in that crazed cavalier attitude of his when interacting with Yang." Blake acknowledged before turning to Weiss and smiling. "You've got this. Yang's set the tone, and you can definitely keep things going."
"You've got this, Bestie!" Ruby added.
Weiss looked over to Hansel expectantly, wondering if he had anything to say to her. Hansel noticed this and gave a curt nod towards Weiss. "Remember the tips I gave you last night. Adjust accordingly if your opponent turns out to be more difficult than you realize. And above all, don't be reckless. Treat this fight as if it were a fight to the death, but for the love of the gods don't actually kill your opponent. Do all of that, and you'll do fine." Hansel told her, rattling off all his tips for her in under a minute.
"Yes, Sir." Weiss said obediently before marching to the battlefield.
Meanwhile, the remaining three members of Team GLDN had been watching the entire exchange between their opponents. Dollie Grass scowled, raising an eyebrow at how happy they looked. "Can you believe the nerve of those kids?" She said to Gra Steinn. "They look too damn happy right now."
Gra chuckled, folding his arms. "Pay it no mind, Dollie. It's merely delusions of grandeur. One of them knocks Lutin out and they're queens of the world. That Xiao Long only managed it because Lutin was an idiot who let his guard down."
"It all comes down to the fact that even Lutin needs more training. Hopefully he uses this loss as an opportunity to improve his fighting ability." Nezha spoke up, rising from his seat to go to the arena for his battle with Weiss.
Dollie whistled at Nezha speaking up. "Seeing him lose must've touched a nerve for you, Nez." She noted. "You don't usually say that much at once. You're usually the short, sweet and to the point kind of guy."
Nezha just hummed at that statement. "Yeah, like that." Dollie laughed.
"It seems your opponent is the Schnee Heiress, Nezha." Gra got everyone back on track. "You shouldn't have much trouble with the pampered princess."
"So you say, but her performance in the Vytal Festival's double rounds suggests otherwise." Nezha replied. "I would think you'd take her seriously, after her battle with Flynt."
This silenced Gra. "It is not my way to look down on my opponents, Gra." Nezha reminded Gra in an even tone of voice before walking to the arena locker rooms to get his weapon for the fight.
As Nezha made his way to his destination, he passed by two medics taking Lutin Rouge to the infirmary on a stretcher. "A moment." He said to the medics.
Lutin looked up at Nezha and sighed. "I must look like a real fucking sight, huh?" He said, half-joking.
Nezha shrugged. "Sorry, man," Lutin said with a groan, "I really screwed the pooch on that one. Gra and Dollie must be tearing into me big time, huh?"
Nezha nodded. "Hey, give that rich-girl hell, alright?" Lutin managed a grin. "Things may not have started out well for us, but you're going in to fight now. Victory's assured when it's you stepping out onto the battlefield, man."
Nezha nodded. "Don't worry, I won't lose. At least not without giving the Schnee the fight of her life." He promised. "I carry the pride of both my team and the monks who trained me, after all."
Lutin watched as Nezha continued his walk to the arena. Nezha Zise, he thought to himself as the medics began to move him to the infirmary once more, an immigrant from Mistral. Was raised by monks who taught him to fight. Man applied for Atlas Academy after he was discovered to be a prodigy in one of the monks' fighting style of Sojutsu.
Of course, as much of a prodigy as he was, he also took their vow of silence, so the six months where he didn't say a damn thing to any of us was pretty annoying. Still, having a guy with his talents was certainly worth the annoying parts. The only reason he wasn't named leader was because he doesn't openly display any leadership qualities, and because his weapon just cannot pierce through Gra's defenses.
Lutin smirked. Still, with destructive power like his...frankly, he could probably hold his own against all four of those girls at once. Well, I say that, but I got my ass kicked by one of them, and I've at least managed to hold my ground while sparring with Nez.
Either way, considering the large hospital bill she's about to incur, little Schnee had better hope she's still covered by her daddy's money, Lutin chuckled inwardly. I may have screwed things up, but one win is as far as you are gonna get.
Nez won't lose, no matter what.
This time, the participating member of Team RWBY was the first to arrive on the arena's battlefield. Weiss Schnee took a deep breath to clear her mind of any distracting thoughts for her upcoming fight. Here we go, Weiss thought to herself, Yang got us off to a great start...it's up to me to keep up the momentum. I can't let them down.
And then, within moments, Nezha Zise arrived, carrying what appeared to be a qiang spear with what appeared to be the twin barrels of a double-barreled shotgun and a handle with a trigger.
In the stands, stars appeared in Ruby's eyes as she squealed in utter delight at Nezha's weapons. "Whoa, shotgun attachments combined with a qiang spear! That is so cool! I've never seen a design like that before, it must've been custom made!" She shouted.
"My ears…" Hansel groaned, having been the poor bastard who had been sitting right next to her.
Blake simply let out a rare chuckle before her expression turned serious again. Custom made weapons are practically a requirement for a Huntsman in training to be top of the class. He no doubt knows how to use that qiang spear of his.
Weiss raised Myrtenaster when Nezha stepped onto the arena and did a quick curtsy, making him raise an eyebrow at her. "Just consider that, me showing my respect to you." Weiss told him. "I do want a fair, clean match after all."
That was actually meant to be a veiled insult. Weiss was still angry deep down over how Team GLDN had bullied Ruby yesterday. That was her way of saying she had already proven herself above him by respecting someone she perceived to be a total prick. Nezha then surprised Weiss by bowing in respect to her, like a martial artist.
"Huh?" She could only say.
"I wish the same." Nezha admitted. "I apologize that circumstances forced us into this situation."
"You...do?"
"While I do accept my teammates' reasoning for acting the way they did yesterday, I can assure you, I had every intention of diffusing the situation if things had begun to get out of hand, like say if your blonde compatriot tried to start a fight."
Weiss was frowning now. "She tried to start a fight? Okay, no. You guys approached us first with the intention of starting trouble. She didn't start anything."
Nezha hummed. "Maybe, maybe not." He said. "Perhaps you should try to understand Gra's perspective when he sees people placed on pedestals?"
"I don't have to understand any bully's reasoning." Weiss growled.
"Fair enough, I suppose no matter what I tell you, your perspective will always be of him as a bully. And I can understand that position after the way we treated you yesterday." Nezha assured her. "That being said, I do hope that you can trust me when I tell you there won't be any dirty tricks in this fight. I don't need them."
"Normally, I wouldn't expect much from an heiress, but you are more than just that." Nezha acknowledged. "I do hope your display in the doubles round wasn't a one time thing, Weiss Schnee."
"It wasn't." Weiss promised. "I'll use every ounce of my strength to beat you."
"And I shall do the same. Good luck." Nezha said sincerely.
With that, Nezha dropped into a fighting stance that actually caught Hansel's attention. "That stance…" he muttered.
Blake's eyes widened. "You recognize it too?" She asked, now visibly concerned for how this fight was going to turn out.
"Umm...so, am I like missing something here?" Ruby asked curiously. "What is it about Nezha's stance that has you two so concerned? I don't really see why that'd be scary."
"Ruby, it's not the stance itself, it's where the stance originates from." Blake explained. "That stance is used by Mistralian monks. Spiritual men who devote their lives to honing their bodies, minds, their very spirits to reach enlightenment."
"In other words," Hansel cut in, "Schnee's taking on an opponent who's most likely been training for most of his life. She's in for a rough battle."
Ruby grinned. "Is that so, I kinda wish I was taking her place." She admitted. "I so want to fight that guy myself, see what his weapon is like."
"You'll just have to settle for watching to see what it's actually like." Hansel told her. "Look, the fight is about to begin."
As soon as Hansel said that, the referee called for the fight to begin. Nezha crouched down slightly, clearly preparing to pounce. Weiss gripped Myrtenaster hard, ready for him to make the first move.
Taste the might of the Zi Lianhua! Nezha thought to himself before lunging at Weiss.
He's fast! Weiss gasped at Nezha's speed before instinctively rolling to the side and avoiding a quick stab from the spearman.
Nezha kept a dispassionate expression on his face as he turned to where Weiss had rolled. He quickly changed directions and sped towards Weiss once again. Weiss gasped and quickly erected a glyph in defense.
Nezha stabbed into the glyph and found himself unable to break through the defense. Then Nezha pulled the trigger on the handle attached to his staff and the shotgun barrels fired two shells that blasted Weiss' glyph apart. Weiss yelled in surprise as the force of the shot sent her backwards.
Weiss quickly recovered and created a glyph to break her fall. So the shotgun is to add an extra blast to his attacks, just like Yang's Ember Celica. Weiss quickly deduced. Okay then, so if I just treat him like I'm fighting Yang, I can figure out how to beat him, and…
Weiss then heard the faint sound of Ruby trying to call out to her in warning. Weiss looked over at Nezha, wondering what Ruby was trying to warn her about and gasped. Gathering at the tip of Nezha's Zi Lianhua was a small ball of light.
Nezha then let out a grunt as he thrusted his qiang spear forward. Weiss let out a yell of surprise as that small ball of light then fired off an extremely hot beam of what almost appeared to be the sun, manifested in a laser beam.
I can't get out of the way in time! Weiss realized, creating a glyph to try to mitigate the damage as the blast collided with her defense.
Gra smirked from the stands at his teammate already taking control of the fight. "There it is." He mused, happy to see Nezha using his Semblance already. "Solar Flare."
"He directly concentrates his Aura into inanimate objects, heats it up and fires it like a laser beam." Dollie smirked. "Even Lutin and I can't last long against it. Now that I think of it, you're the only person I know who's actually managed to withstand it."
"It helps that my Semblance is the perfect counter for Nezha's." Gra replied. "But our little rich girl? Not so much. They may have managed to bring down Lutin, but Nezha will end this farce."
Weiss yelled in pain as she was blasted all the way to the other end of the battlefield. Nezha took a moment to look up at the board and saw Weiss' Aura drop to 80%. He also saw his Aura drop to 90%. I can fire off 9 more of those. He noted.
"That was unbelievable." Blake said from the stands before turning to Hansel. "His Semblance is similar to yours, Professor."
"Not at all." Hansel looked up at the board. "For starters, I have a far greater control over my Semblance and what it does to me than that monk does. Look, his Aura dropped after firing off that blast. It's like a spell in an RPG that's cast from HP rather than MP."
"Semblances are cast from one's Aura, that means it's a given that it will drain it." Hansel explained. "That being said, most people, with proper training, only use a small percentage of their Aura. And of course, the stronger and vaster a person's Aura, the less that's used when using a Semblance."
"So this guy Weiss is fighting…" Ruby began.
"He basically trades more of his Aura for more destructive power." Hansel replied.
"That still sounds like you, Professor, what with how destructive your flames are." Blake sagely pointed out.
"Then it just comes down to the fact that my Aura is massive compared to his." Hansel shrugged. "The point is, he's strong, but his Semblance is a high-risk, high-reward ability. Theoretically, Schnee could force him to fire off more of those blasts and drain his Aura to zero."
"I'm sensing a 'but' somewhere in this." Ruby added.
"He makes up for that tradeoff in being a physically superior fighter. Comes with his monk training. Schnee can't afford to get into a contest of stamina with someone like this. He can either beat her with his Semblance or with that spear of his. Either way, defense is not going to help her in this fight."
"Her best hope is to outplay him offensively." Hansel revealed before narrowing his eyes. "She needs to figure out her summoning ability, right here and now if she wants any chance at winning this fight."
And in an ironic twist of fate, that was exactly what I was trying to help her with last night. Hansel mused. I gave you all the advice I could give you during your session, Schnee. Everything else is up to you, now.
Weiss got to her feet. Even with my glyph to protect me, that still hurt so bad. She noted.
I need to focus on staying upright until I find a surefire way to beat him. Weiss decided, changing tactics for now. That means, I just have to outpace him.
With that, Weiss created several glyphs on the floor and began speeding around the arena like a speed skater. Nezha, however, was immediately on her trail. Smart of her. She knows she cannot win a direct confrontation with me after a display of strength like that, so she's trying to turn this fight into a contest of speed. Nezha noted.
So, Nezha adjusted his strategy as well. He held out the Zi Lianhua and began firing off shotgun shells at Weiss, trying to catch her. Weiss ducked instinctively as a stray shell sailed over her head. "It's a buckshot!" Ruby realized immediately.
"Smart, buckshot can catch someone due to the sheer amount being fired and scattered as a result." Hansel complimented. "Makes me wonder why he wasn't named the leader."
"At least it seems like Weiss can outpace him so far." Blake tried to assuage Ruby's worry.
"Barely," Hansel said with a sigh.
Nezha noted he was running out of bullets, so he loaded more shells into the Zi Lianhua's ammo cartridge. Weiss, meanwhile, decided to go on the offensive. Myrtenaster's revolver chamber spun to fire dust. Weiss waved Myrtenaster around and several small fireballs flew towards her opponent.
Nezha narrowed his eyes as the fireballs flew towards him. He quickly spun Zi Lianhua, blocking and extinguishing the fireballs with ease. Weiss continued spinning Myrtenaster's revolver chamber, and yet all she shot at Nezha were more fireballs. Nezha frowned slightly, a bit put off by Weiss seemingly using the same strategy.
Nevertheless, he persisted and continued to block each fireball with the greatest of ease. Dollie scoffed. "I can't believe this is the same rich girl that beat your buddy Flynt, Gra." Dollie said, audibly and visibly disappointed. "At this rate, the only thing she's going to accomplish is annoying a guy who frankly is one of the most difficult men to bug in Remnant."
Gra remained silent as Weiss continued to skate around Nezha. Then, much to everyone's shock, Weiss suddenly leapt into the air, created a glyph, and propped herself onto it in midair. "What's she doing?" Ruby asked.
"No way!" Blake yelled. "If she stops even once, she'll be leaving herself open to that guy's Semblance again!"
Nezha scowled. Fine then. He said inwardly as a light began to concentrate at the tip of Zi Lianhua's tip once more.
Gra's eyes widened as he finally caught onto what Weiss was trying to do. "Don't fire you fool! Nezha, look around you!" He yelled as Nezha fired off his Solar Flare.
Weiss suddenly leapt into the air, this time avoiding the Solar Flare with ease. She quickly created another glyph and rocketed herself towards Nezha, slashing at him with Myrtenaster. Everyone watching then gasped when they realized Weiss had actually been creating other glyphs while skating around.
They had all been so focused on her fire attacks against Nezha, they had all failed to notice what she had been creating on the side. The more eye-catching a performance, the more the audience misses subtle actions behind the scenes! Weiss noted as she propelled herself off another glyph and slashed at Nezha once more.
Gra narrowed his eyes. Damn it! Nezha's one weakness is his blasted tunnel vision. His monk training was so strict and rigid, he focuses entirely on one thing!
"Alright bestie!" Ruby cheered as Weiss trapped Nezha in a cage of constant slashing.
"Great! And Nezha can't risk firing that Semblance of his at short range because of its destructive power!" Blake said with a cheer.
Hansel remained silent, watching the fight with a keen interest now. He then looked up at the board and sighed. Just as I thought…
After Weiss threw out yet another slash, Nezha braced himself onto the ground as he trained his Zi Lianhua on Weiss. "Wait, what?" Ruby was surprised by this sudden turn of events. "How could he have recovered that quickly?"
"Hmm!" Nezha let out a grunt as he fired off a Solar Flare that blasted Weiss right in the back, sending her flying.
"Weiss!" Ruby yelled in concern.
"He recovered because he was never even hit by her attacks." Hansel noted.
"But we saw…" Blake began.
"You saw what you wanted to see. Unfortunately, the more stimulus your eyes are exposed to, the more likely your mind will begin to play tricks on you." Hansel pointed out. "Look at the board. Other than Zise firing off another blast from his Semblance, has his Aura changed?"
Ruby and Blake looked up and gasped. "No way, it's only at 70%?" Ruby was stunned to see this.
"That's not possible!" Blake exclaimed. "With how many times she had hit him, he should be down to less than half!"
"And that's because she never hit him. Zise was so damn fast with how he wields that qiang spear of his, I don't think even Schnee was aware that her attacks weren't connecting. Rush attacks like those can give you tunnel vision where you only focus on what's exactly in front of you. It seems they both suffer from that problem."
Weiss landed on the ground, groaning in pain. Hansel looked up at the board once more. "The one who's Aura is less than half...is Schnee's." Hansel grimly noted.
Gra, meanwhile, regained his composure and smirked. As much of a pain in the ass Nezha's tunnel vision can be, it can also be quite the boon when his focus is on one opponent. It makes his reflexes highly dangerous. As much as I'd rather not admit it, he's as superhuman as they come, even more so than I am.
How this battle would be decided...was obvious from the get-go. The little princess has nothing to answer with. She's powerless.
Nezha then watched as Weiss shakily got to her feet. "I can't say I'm surprised to see getting back to your feet." Nezha admitted. "You displayed a great deal of courage against Team FNKI. You are not, by any means just a weak, pampered princess. You've earned your place as a Huntress."
"Tch, I really can't figure you out." Weiss admitted. "I just can't figure you out. You claim you approve of how the rest of your team acted and their reasoning for the most part and yet you think I'm a proper Huntress?"
Nezha remained silent at this. "Whatever," Weiss said with a sigh, "if you want to be odd, that's your prerogative, I guess."
"Talk all you wish, you won't be able to figure out a way to win." Nezha promised, immediately catching onto how Weiss was trying to stall for time. "I spent a great deal of time studying the fighting styles of all four members of Team RWBY in preparation for this. Not a single one of you has the offensive capabilities to defeat me."
I can't believe this, Weiss looked at Nezha's body, noting that there was not a single mark on his body, when I was rushing him with Myrtenaster, I failed to land a single hit. No, it's not that I failed to land a single hit, he blocked every single one of them!
Meanwhile, Winter Schnee was frowning as she watched the match from her office. She took note of how Weiss' grip on Myrtenaster was tightening. She heaved a sigh. Weiss is starting to get stressed. She noted. She just has no answer for Nezha's incredible athletic abilities. Among every single Atlas Academy student, Nezha is arguably the most physically gifted of the bunch.
Professor Kobalt...I really hope you advised Weiss on a particular ace in the hole. I would hate...for you to have set her up for failure like this.
I...I don't think I can beat him… Weiss admitted inwardly. For the first time...in so long...I don't believe I can do something. I'm a Schnee, and yet…
"If you accept that you can't do something, you'll never do it. But what I don't understand is, you've done it once, and yet you still can't seem to believe you can do something." The professor's words suddenly rang out in Weiss' head.
"What do you mean?" Weiss had asked.
"I read up on your conduct in the incident after the festival." Hansel had told her. "You managed a partial summon. And yet, you've failed to do it since. We've been over this, Schnee. I want you to be able to use that ability consistently, and yet you haven't used it once."
"...Honestly, Professor, I don't know how I did it back then." Weiss had then admitted. "It...it just seemed like a fluke to me."
Hansel had shaken his head upon hearing this. "Seriously, what in the world did you girls learn from the combat instructors at the prep schools, huh?" He lamented. "Listen to me, Schnee, when it comes to Semblances and Aura, there is no such thing as a fluke."
"What do I keep telling you? Our power comes from our soul. Semblances are a manifestation of our soul. Our desires, our hopes, our dreams. There's no such thing as a fluke when that power comes directly from your own desire."
"So I want you to think real hard, Schnee, because if you can't figure this out yourself, I really worry about your future as a Huntress." Hansel had told her. "What went through your mind just before you were able to accomplish that partial summon? What did you desire deep in your heart that allowed you to use it?"
What I desired in my heart back then was…
"I do not wish to strike someone with Solar Flare more than I have to." Nezha interrupted Weiss' train of thought. "So I ask that you surrender now. There is no need for anymore meaningless conflict. You gave it your best shot, and it just wasn't enough."
"Let us end this team battle, Weiss." Nezha offered. "I'm sure your teammates would much rather see you safe, even if it means losing."
Yeah, that's right, what I desired in my heart back then…
"Sorry, but I refuse." Weiss glared at Nezha.
Nezha frowned at Weiss' response. "Pride is a very dangerous sin, Weiss." Nezha warned her. "Though, I suppose it is something the materialistic are simply doomed to suffer from."
"It's not my pride, Nezha, it's the pride of my friends." Weiss said to him. "I...I carry the hopes and dreams of my teammates on my back right now. To be honest though, it feels like their very lives are in my hands, because of how this fight is set up."
"So I refuse to surrender, and for one very simple reason," A glyph suddenly appeared in front of Weiss, "I won't be defeated as long as I carry the pride of Team RWBY!"
What I desire in my heart most of all, is to protect the people who I've grown to cherish just as much as my family name! Weiss declared inwardly. It was never the desperation of that night! Or desiring the power I needed to survive. It was simply that I wanted to protect Velvet! Just like I want to protect the pride of my team right here and now!
Professor...thank you for setting up these matches this way. Everything you've been trying to say to me...I guess it all finally got through to me! Now I'll show it!
And with that, a white-colored boarbatusk suddenly charged right out of the glyph. "Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa! WHAT?!" Ruby yelled in surprise.
Winter, in her office, smiled in pride. She's done it. Weiss has finally figured out how to summon.
Nezha gasped. His focus was now broken. Weiss had never displayed this kind of ability before. By the time he realized he had lost focus, he was only barely able to block the brunt of the charging boarbatusk.
"What in the world was that?" Blake demanded before looking at the professor. "Sir, is that…"
"It is," Ruby looked over at Hansel and gasped. On the perpetually serious professor's face was actually a small smile of pride. In fact, Ruby doubted the professor even noticed the sincere feeling of pride he was experiencing right now. "That's the power of summoning that the Schnee Family wields."
"This fight is now even."
Weiss gasped in shock at her sudden development in power. I...I did it! She declared happily. She then watched as Nezha recovered from the charging Boarbatusk. I can't relax yet though. He's good. He's definitely the toughest opponent I've fought yet.
Time to draw on more of the power of the vanquished foes I've gone up against! Weiss declared, forming another glyph in front of her.
A Beowolf suddenly appeared from the glyph. Nezha narrowed his eyes. So she can only summon one being at a time. That's far more manageable than if I had to fight an entire army.
The Beowolf rushed towards Nezha with Weiss following close behind. The Beowolf began swiping at Nezha, who blocked the claws with Zi Lianhua. However, Weiss immediately positioned herself above Nezha with another glyph and propelled herself towards him. Myrtenaster's chamber spun as Weiss switched to lightning dust. She slashed Nezha, this time striking him in the side.
Nezha let out a grunt as lightning coursed through his entire body. His tunnel vision had come back to bite him once more. The lightning also slowed him down enough for the Beowolf to swipe him to the side. Nezha's Aura dropped down to 55%.
Weiss and the Beowolf attempted to strike Nezha from both the front and the back. Nezha narrowed his eyes and propelled himself into the air with the shotgun attachment from Zi Lianhua. Weiss looked up and gasped, noticing that light was being gathered at the tip of the qiang spear.
"Fall." Nezha growled, firing off yet another blast of Solar Flare.
Weiss let out a gasp, creating a glyph in front of her to propel herself away from the blast at high speeds. She watched in horror as Nezha's Solar Flare enveloped her Beowolf summon, vaporizing it easily.
It's still not enough. Weiss noted, looking up at the board to see that her Aura had dropped to 40%. Okay...so I guess my Aura hasn't gotten used to the sudden strain of summoning creatures of such power. And if he hits me directly with another one of those blasts...I might actually run out of Aura.
The match is still quite even though. My 40% against his 45%. I can still win!
An even larger glyph appeared. Weiss grit her teeth as her Aura dropped to 35% now. If this can't beat him...no, it will beat him!
With that, the Arma Gigas suddenly rose up in front of Nezha, making him gasp. What in the world is that?! Nezha yelled inwardly. Where did she get a power like that in her inventory?
The Arma Gigas charged towards Nezha, tightly gripping its massive broadsword. Nezha narrowed his eyes. Blast! As if I have a choice at this point. I need to use another Solar Flare to blast this thing out of existence!
A few fireballs suddenly appeared from behind the Arma Gigas. Nezha gasped in surprise. Weiss was still keeping up her assault. He instinctively spun Zi Lianhua to block and repel the fireballs. Nezha then tried to leap away from the Arma Gigas before it could strike him, only for the giant to roar and swipe at him with the broadsword.
Nezha yelled in pain as the broadsword slammed into his side. He could feel a few of his ribs crack, even with his Aura protecting him. He was sent flying off to the side. Weiss took a brief look at Nezha's Aura, seeing it drop to 35%. Weiss could not help but smile. She had taken control of this fight now.
Weiss mentally commanded the Arma Gigas to continue it's onslaught of Nezha. Nezha was forced on the defensive now. The monk growled inwardly. In spite of his frustration though, he had no intention of giving up either.
"Weiss Schnee!" Nezha yelled at his opponent. "I am the same as you! I won't go down as long as I'm a member of Team GLDN! I too carry the pride of my teammates!"
"I am a warrior!" Nezha yelled, propelling himself backwards with a blast from the shotgun attachment.
Gra and Dollie gasped in shock. Nezha was acting the most expressive he had ever been. "I will win!" Nezha yelled before firing off yet another Solar Flare right at the Arma Gigas.
As the Solar Flare neared the Arma Gigas, it's broadsword suddenly vanished. Weiss charged forward just as the Solar Flare collided with the armored giant, making it explode into mist, due to the giant being made of ice.
Nezha's eyes widened, immediately realizing his mistake. No, I let her throw up a smokescreen!
Weiss then appeared from the mist. Of course, Nezha knew she had something planned, but his Aura was at a quarter now thanks to that last use of Solar Flare. He had to end this, no matter what.
"Take this!" Nezha yelled, blasting at Weiss with shotgun shells, only for Weiss to block them all with a defensive glyph.
Then Weiss raised her other arm in the air and the broadsword of the Arma Gigas suddenly revealed itself. Nezha gasped, realizing that was why the blade vanished as his last Solar Flare had hit the armored giant. She used that giant as bait to get in close...and hit me with a much harder hitting weapon!
Nezha then narrowed his eyes. Very well, so you wish to end this with an all or nothing gambit, Weiss Schnee? Then I shall answer your resolve with my own!
Nezha began charging up a Solar Flare point blank. "Wait, is he for real?" Dollie was now worried. "He never fires off a Solar Flare at point blank range. He knows he'd get caught in the blast!"
"Weiss!" Blake and Ruby yelled in worry as Weiss swung the giant broadsword downwards.
She slammed it into Nezha's dominant shoulder just as the monk fired off his Solar Flare. The blast hit the ground, enveloping both fighters and sending them flying away. "Weiss…" Ruby muttered, worried for her best friend's safety.
Meanwhile, in the infirmary, Yang and Gin found themselves watching the fight on a monitor they had managed to procure. "Oh man…" she muttered.
Then, the dust settled, and both fighters were on the ground. Both looked like they had been put through the ringer. Their Auras were beginning to flicker back and forth like broken light switches. "Wait...so who won?" Blake wondered.
"...It'll come down to who gets up first...and who can stay standing." Hansel replied.
Nezha then began to force himself to his feet, using Zi Lianhua to support himself. He looked to see Weiss trying to force herself to her feet as well, likewise using Myrtenaster as a crutch. The two were soon on both feet, visibly struggling to stay standing though. "You...say you fight for the pride of your teammates." Nezha weakly noted. "You know...there are many people who have been negatively affected by your family that would be offended by you acting like some kind of altruistic warrior."
"I know," Weiss weakly acknowledged, "but I am more than just my family name. I'm a member of Team RWBY. I'm a Huntress."
Nezha then managed to laugh, in spite of the pain that resulted. "You know you…" He muttered as his legs shook for a moment before giving out.
Nezha then fell forward. "...are a true warrior." He acknowledged before falling onto his face and passing out from sheer exhaustion and pain.
Everyone fell silent in utter disbelief. They all looked up to see the final numbers on the board. Nezha Zize's Aura was left at a single percentage. Weiss Schnee's Aura was at 5%. Even the ref was in disbelief. However, he managed to snap himself from his shock and made the call. "Nezha Zise is unable to continue, the winner is Weiss Schnee."
Weiss' body desperately wanted to give out as well. The truth is, while hitting Nezha in the shoulder had managed to redirect the Solar Flare, allowing her to avoid a direct hit, taking the blast at point blank was still a dangerous gambit. However, her pride would not allow her body to give out. She was going to stay standing, and show all these Atlesian students that she was indeed more than just her name.
"She did it." Blake said with a smile.
"Aww yeah!" Ruby cheered before looking at Hansel.
She smiled when she saw that Hansel's small smile of pride had returned. Hansel's smile then faded as his strictness returned. "That gambit at the end was a bit reckless." He said. "But she strengthened her Aura in the fight through unlocking the use of her summons. That itself deserves a lot of praise."
"You must be proud of her, Professor." Ruby noted.
"How do you figure, Rose?" Hansel asked.
Ruby giggled. "Professor," she said, "you were smiling earlier. In fact, you smiled twice throughout the fight."
Hansel scoffed. "I was not." He denied. Ruby could not help but notice a pout on his face.
Ruby giggled again. "It's okay," she assured him, "you're still pretty hardcore. Though, I would love to see that smile again."
"I wasn't smiling." Hansel muttered.
"Professor," Ruby ignored Hansel's denial and made him a very simple promise, "you'll be smiling when I win my fight tomorrow."
A.N: The beauty of RT doing the bare-minimum when it comes to power-scaling and the mechanics behind certain things and abilities? I get a lot of leeway as a result. Anyway, as I mentioned before, this was actually a pretty fun chapter to write. Got to design a very interesting character in Nezha, who slightly deconstructs the 'Token Good Teammate' trope, and Weiss got a hard fought win. Hope everyone enjoyed this chapter. I'll see you all next time.