221A/N:uh, back? I hope. I kinda lost my will for this for a little while there. Some reviews had some merit, and I kinda just lost motivation. I intend for this story to be larger than my other works. So I do intend to have a lot of progression. Like, epic-sized. So that leaves a lot of room for progress. Obviously, Weiss and Naruto have a lot to go through.
I want this to go well, so it's a little intimidating.
As for new developments in the show, I do intend to ignore it and continue my original path.
"My ears are still ringing,"
"What?" Pyrrha asked.
"my ears are fucked,"
"o-oh,"
Blake sighed, she shifted her weight on the uncomfortable plastic chair. The most unbearable was the constant ringing in her ears, especially since her hearing was more sensitive than the others. "That's what happens when you're indoors,"
Naruto picked at his ears, he released a groan. He crossed his arms on the table, and stared hard at the one-way mirror, "Remind me to not be inside whenever there's shooting,"
Blake noticed Weiss' silent demeanor. She tried to look collected, but she was bothered. Her impatient tapping of her finger on her arm. A familiar sight whenever Naruto displeased Weiss in some way.
Blake looked around the bare room, the only other thing being a couple of chairs on the other side of the table. A door that led out. The walls felt as if they were closing in on her.
"What's taking them so long?" Naruto spoke her mind.
She told silently told herself to be act natural.
Nonetheless, she couldn't help but think that the next room she was in would be behind bars. She tried not to glare at Weiss, she tried to picture what was the goings on in her annoying brain of hers.
Any captain but her, especially since the police wasn't a part of the plan, nor had they been mentioned other than when they brought them in.
It was far too late to ask questions, and not a place to discuss them. Culling her nervousness took effort. She crossed her legs and folded her hands on the table and stayed still. Naruto drummed his fingers, and constantly complained. His own restlessness would distract anyone who stared at the other side of the mirror.
Someone entered, two officers of Vale came in. Amber–the huntress–wasn't with them.
"Now, I'd like to ask as to how four students of Beacon managed to get into contact with these suspects?"
They were silent, and they all looked to Weiss. Whatever she said would seal her fate, and it didn't look promising.
"It was pure chance,"
Blake bit her lip, a subtle thing to catch.
The man stared at Weiss, "Really? These suspects say otherwise,"
"You'd trust the words of killers over huntresses in training?" Weiss replied. "And one huntsman,"
Naruto his cheek rested on his hand. Glad that someone could be so calm. There was blood on his jacket, a hole on his sleeve. Did he get shot? There were no bandages, and he looked fine. Plus, the paramedics had looked over them.
"Either way," Weiss continued. "We won't say anything more until our headmaster arrives, we done nothing wrong, did we?"
"No," the man frowned, "before I leave you, all I ask is that you share anything that would help in our investigation,"
Weiss was silent for that one moment. "We don't have anything,"
Blake never felt so relieved. She didn't realize that her shoulders were so tense.
"Interesting situation you got yourselves in," Ozpin fixed his glasses. The door for the airbus opened, and he gestured them inside. He did not come with them, instead he stayed outside the ramp of the air bus.
"I hope you'll attend the start of classes tomorrow," he said.
"Professor Ozpin, before we leave, did the police catch the other one?" Weiss asked.
The man adjusted his glasses with his index, "Unfortunately, he managed to get away with he assistance of his ability. Caused quite the ruckus, I'm sure you can find out more on your own,"
Blake scoffed as she sat down on the nearest seat. Naruto and Pyrrha sat near her. Weiss stared at Ozpin before the closing ramp shut close.
Inside, the silence was palpable at the new information. Blake would rather be by herself right now. Weiss found a seat near them, her expression hard with her lips tightly sealed.
The pilot turned on the broadcast, some music played to fill the silence. The door was closed, but it wasn't much privacy. It was an unnerving silence, awaiting its burst.
Even now, her nails dug into her palm. This entire ordeal could've been done much better.
Weiss was the one to break it, "Tell me, Naruto, what's the point of an ambush if you announce yourself before it?"
Naruto didn't even have the decency to look ashamed, or sheepish. Instead, he had a deep frown and his fists together holding his chin.
"That? Yeah, I don't know what came over me,"
"If you had kept to the plan, it would have gone perfectly," Weiss said.
Naruto glanced, hard blue eyes. "I also would've have caught him if it weren't for the police,"
Pyrrha was the one to respond, "It would have been nice to know if you were going to involve the authorities,"
Weiss flinched, "We needed some sort of backup," she stared at Blake. "Blake didn't want anyone to know of her status,"
Naruto was the one to speak, "Both of you should have just talked it out, especially if it was going to get in the way,"
This was surprising coming from Naruto. Far from the attitude that he had displayed throughout the semester. They were all quiet, it still wasn't a place to discuss such things.
"I suppose," Pyrrha muttered, "There's room for improvement,"
At least, she was on her way back to beacon.
They didn't talk much afterward, a comment here and there. The ride back felt longer than it did to come here. She tried to bear through it by listening to the radio. Until, Weiss stood from her seat across and sat beside her, no doubt to talk about today.
"So," Weiss started. "Where do we stand now?"
From the corner of her eye, Naruto didn't even pretend to not listen, he stared at them both. She didn't like it, especially the faint, mocking smile. Or at least, she thought it was.
Blake turned to Weiss, "At least we're not the worst versions of what we thought of each other,"
Weiss glanced at Naruto, he gestured with a lazy wave of his hand. "Anyway, should this be a fresh start between us?"
"I don't think that's possible,"
Afterall, everything they had said, or thought of one another, wasn't forgotten just like that. Still, she was extending an olive branch. Weiss wasn't the Schnee company, and nor was she all bad. A spoiled princess, but not rotten.
"But definitely something else, hopefully better," Blake added.
Weiss smiled, "Something else then, Blake,"
It could be worse, it could be better. "Yes, Rice,"
She made a face, "But definitely not that,"
Blake shrugged, it was strange to say, and it might be her first and only time. Either way, the conversation was done. She wanted to relax, and Weiss seemed to feel the same.
All that worry, for nothing. It just got in the way, she should have taken Naruto's and Pyrrha's advice. Then there was Weiss, and Blake wondered if she got the same words too.
She glanced at the other individuals. It would be far better if either of them led the team.
Naruto sat on his bed. The room was empty, Blake and Pyrrha had gone to try and find something for them to eat in the late evening. Not that he was hungry anyway.
What he was waiting for was to take a shower, even if it had been turned for a while now. Since he stayed with three other girls, he found out quite a few things. One, was that girls took a long time in the shower. Two, there were a few things he'd rather not have known.
The door swung open to reveal Weiss dressed in her nightgown. She wandered in as she brushed her hair. She noticed him alone.
"Finally," he muttered.
Weiss stared at him, and he recognized that look. A look that she wanted to talk, damn, he should've gone with the other two.
"I'm surprised that you didn't get hurt," she said. "Weren't you worried about getting shot? you don't have the shields like we do, after all,"
Naruto shrugged, he recalled the bee like stings on his arm. Even now, he fingered a hole in his jacket; good thing he bought extras.
"D-Did you get shot?" Weiss said. She grasped his arm, and gently inspected the hole. There was nothing, no bandages and the blood had already been wiped away by the rain.
He pushed her arm away. "I'm fine,"
Naruto wondered what he looked like when he realized that one of them had gotten pierced by Kaguya's technique. One that turned them to ash. He could still picture it.
"Just a scrap, nothing to worry about," he replied. He took off his jacket and threw it at the small trash can in the corner. All he had was a t-shirt, and there were no wounds on him. "Happy now?"
He rubbed his arm where he had gotten shot, or at least where he had assumed that had happened. He still remembered the barrel with the bright flash. The adrenaline must have lessened the pain, then he had healed before he felt it.
She frowned, "I'm your captain, your life is my hands," she replied. He knew full well what she felt, "You should be more attentive, I had to save you that first time,"
He rolled his eyes, but she did have a point. It was his first time being shot at by their weapons, "I knew you had my back, but I'll be sure to remember,"
He recalled the barrel that had stared him down, the flash of light, the ringing in his ears. Of course, the way everyone's weapons seem to transform.
"Rice," he said. She frowned at the name, "You should show this side more often,"
"What does that mean?" she asked. He shrugged, and before he could answer, she spoke. "Anyway, why would you even want to speak to them?"
"Instead of that one,"
She narrowed her eyes, and that nickname had some merit to it after all. She crossed her arms, and replied with a cold voice, "Don't try to change the subject,"
"As you command my captain," Naruto replied. "I wanted to know exactly why they did something like that,"
"We would have found that out after we had dealt with them,"
"I didn't think we'd fail as we did,"
Her shoulders tensed, "It was hardly a failure,"
"Hardly succeeded either, but I know I fucked up, " he replied. He just moved. "Anyway, I thought it didn't matter, because I expected to put them down quicker than I did,"
Dammit. Perhaps he had gotten complacent with how he had beaten the students, or maybe he expected to move and hit faster than he did. He had noticed it, but it was hard to work against instinct.
Weiss released a sigh, "I see, anyhow, the police might get information from his accomplices, so the rest can be left to them,"
Was that enough? No, he wanted more.
Jaune tried to escape from his hold, but it was no trouble to keep him down. His weight on him, while he held his arm on his back to make it painful for him to try and move. He struggled, but it was only for a moment as he pulled his arm further back. Jaune grunted, groaning in pain, his teeth gritted tightly together, a little drool spilling out.
"Sorry,"
"Eh, it's fine, heh," Jaune replied. He still struggled to move.
Naruto glanced at his teammates, Pyrrha had already taken down her own opponent, rather forcefully, and already moved to help with Weiss. Blake was on her own, but she had no trouble either.
They were called to an end, and he helped up his classmate.
Jaune laughed, "Well, maybe next time I'll lose a little less badly,"
He couldn't help but laugh, he liked his attitude. He trotted to off to join his own team.
"Excellent performance, the fastest time yet,"
Naruto sighed, back to school. Why was he training when he already knew how to fight? He should be out there in the city, or maybe just fighting. Punching and kicking until he could move no more.
"You may return to your seats,"
He mindlessly followed his team back to their seats. He thought he'd feel the same as when he those people in the garage. It wasn't, that was for certain. Those people were looking to kill, students were not. It wasn't hard to solve. There were few students that stood out in fighting ability in their year.
Ruby was nearest him, and she finally managed to talk to him after all the glances she had sent him, "You finally got a scabbard for your sword! Awesome, you look cool too!"
Naruto glanced at her "I just changed into a jacket,"
"Still, a different look," Yang whispered. She glanced at the professor, who was in the middle of a speech of some sort. Since yesterday, all he could think of were guns and how he should get one. Another tool that he could use. Of course, the only one who had shown passion for such things sat beside him.
"–that's the end of the lesson for today,"
Yes!" Ruby exclaimed. "Lunch time! I'm freaking starving,"
He sighed in relief, it felt like it was going on forever. He packed up everything and caught onto Ruby before she could leave.
"Ruby," he muttered. The girl turned around, silver eyes curious. She had dropped all her notes into a bag without organizing it.
"Yeah?"
"Oh~ Is my little sister being hit on?" Yang said.
"I just want to ask for some advice on a gun, or whatever,"
Yang laughed and hit his arm, "That's even worse, I'll leave you two at it,"
"Wow really?" Ruby muttered. She had a starry-eyed look about her, "About what?"
"I need one, and you're the one who seems the craziest about them,"
"I'm so no – I mean, maybe a little, it's perfectly healthy,"
He stared for a moment, "Whatever, let's catch up to the others, I'm hungry too,"
He shouldered his stuff and exited the classroom. Up ahead, he noticed their own respective teams.
"I was trying to think of a gun to get, but I don't know much about them, so I thought I'd come to you,"
"I'll gladly help!" Ruby said. "How come you never got one? We're all supposed to get one in the other school,"
"Cool," he replied. "I never got the chance before now," never thought of it either.
"Can I ask something? Why did you resign from being captain? Weiss…uh, isn't so nice,"
That was two questions, and a sort of one too. "I thought she was the better fit, she knew what she wanted," anyone was a better fit than him, if he was to be honest.
"Oh, I see, you can change captains?" she muttered. "I thought I should do the same too, but I changed my mind after I talked with Jaune,"
"That's good, you can always become a better captain,"
"Wouldn't that apply to you too?" Ruby asked.
He shrugged and looked ahead. The cafeteria was in sight, but he couldn't see where the others had gone off too. "I guess,"
They entered the line for food, and he copied one of the others' orders. They couldn't find their teams, but they didn't really search for them. Instead, they found a seat to themselves.
"You have any idea for a gun what you want?" Ruby asked. She dug into her pack and brought a notebook. She flipped it through, and it revealed all sorts of drawing with scribbles next to them. Some were silly, others about weapons.
"Not really sure,"
"C'mon, everyone has something they like. Some like big guns, or really big ones. There's even something like Yang's a wrists bands that shoot out of them,"
"What's going on here? "it was Blake, and she found a seat beside him. She had a tray of food and began to pick at it.
"We're trying to come up with a weapon for Naruto,"
"Really? You never fired a gun before have you? It can take a little getting used too,"
All the while, Ruby had been furiously scribbling into her notebook. It was impressive as to how fast she was able to draw.
"I think you might be able to do really well with a giant blade, what do they call it a Zweihander? You're strong so maybe you can use that, or hey, maybe you can turn it into a minigun or something big and explosive,"
He didn't understand half of what she said. It was more complicated than he thought. All the while in his thoughts she continued to talk.
Blake broke Ruby's talking, "Naruto already has his own blade, if you remember, and he seems rather fond of it,"
"Oh right! Then how about a great axe, or something like a mace–"
He chuckled, "Aren't you getting a little side tracked?"
She went red, "Sorry! What did you want?"
"Uhm," he rubbed the nape of his neck.
"No doubt there's a lot of options," Blake muttered. "Think of what you want of out it. If it's heavy, then it'll hit hard, or if you want something small or light weight,"
He recalled Weiss' glyph that could send him flying. It felt a rush just thinking about it. He made him think.
"You know, I only came to ask advice and not to have an entire gun made for me," he muttered.
"Sorry, did you want to do everything yourself?" Ruby replied.
"No, I just wasn't expecting that you'd want to,"
"Well, I'm totally up for it, this is my thing,"
More than he initially thought. Her eyes glowed, excitement and passion clear within them. He smiled at her energy, infectious as it was.
"I can help," Blake said. She gave him a look, "You'll probably need it,"
"Thanks," he replied. Naruto gazed around the cafeteria, he wasn't certain what he was looking for, but he caught Weiss seated alone. He wondered as to how and why anyone would want to be alone, intentionally or not.
Naruto returned to the room after the day of classes. No one returned to the room, but he expected them soon.
He sat and waited for his friends. Simply because there was not a ton he felt he could do. Reading was out of the question, and he could barely navigate his scroll–as he had seen students playing videos.
Pyrrha was a companion, they mostly talked about nothing. Weiss was the most difficult, even for him.
It mulled around with his gear until he realized they might've been off doing something else that he had missed.
Finally, Pyrrha was the first one to come into the room.
"Yo, where is everyone?"
She raised a brow, "Oh, I forgot to mention that they went to the city to return the cars we rented,"
"Oh," silence. he didn't know what else to do for today. Pyrrha stared, seemingly lost in thought. "what's up?"
"There's something I wanted to speak to you about, it's about yesterday. They said quite a few things before you arrived. Not that I'm trying to defend them or anything," she said. He waited, she continued. "They said they were looking for someone,"
"Really?" he asked. He crossed his arms. "Killing people seems to be the wrong way to do it. Who is it?"
"I don't know, but it's a huntress," Pyrrha replied. "I'm guessing they don't really know either,"
"Why do you think that?"
"It's all I've been thinking about today. If they knew what she looked like, then they might've done it subtly, but they might know something about her, so they can find her,"
Huh, Pyrrha was awfully quiet today. Naruto blinked at her, he was a little lost. "Uhm, I don't follow,"
"Artem, they're looking for a huntress. Huntsmen and huntresses help on occasion to deal with any criminals that can use Aura. Maybe she doesn't know they're looking for her, that bombing might have something to do with it,"
He remembered the destruction of his village, "To draw her out?"
"Yeah, they did know how to use Aura after all,"
How did she figure that out? He guessed that he missed context, but even with it he doubted he could piece it together. Yet all he could think about was what she said about huntsmen assisting the police.
"I see," he muttered. He felt the tips of his fingers tingle, and his foot tapped the floor.
Pyrrha was silent, and she seemed a little uncertain. "Uh, forget it, it's not like we can do anything about it,"
For now.
He wanted to rush in after them, like he'd always done in the past without a second thought. Yet, it either worked against him, or there had been someone to stop him; he didn't have those people anymore.
"I guess," he crossed his arms, and stared out at the forests beyond the school. A thought came to him. "Anyway, I can use your help,"
"What can I do?"
"Let's spar," he replied.
Her expression flashed, "Really? What for?"
"I've only sparred a handful of times,".
The way his blood rushed throughout the fight. His instincts had worked against him. He was far too acclimated to how he fought before, he was weaker, slower.
He stared at his hands, and he even he felt he was in a different skin. It was impossible to describe what he felt, but he could do how he was. This heart he had wasn't the old one, it felt of glass.
Like an imposter had replaced him.
She said something, but he didn't catch it. "what?"
"I'll be glad to help,"
"Good," he replied. "Can we do it now?"
"Of course,"
It was a quick ready up. They gathered their gear and left the room.
"Also, what the fuck are those shields? How do they work? Yesterday pissed me off," all he knew were the bars.
His swearing made her uncomfortable, "Uhm, so you want an explanation?"
Naruto threw his hands behind the nape of his neck. He yawned and spied a couple of groups wandering through the halls. "Yep, explain every little thing, like does it hurt?
She nodded, "yes, in a way, we do still any blow that comes to it. These shields are fueled by our aura, and it's passive, for a time. When aura gets low enough, you'll have to manually form the shield, until you run out of aura. Though, that's more difficult to accomplish,"
He also remembered Weiss placing a shield in front of them. "Genius like you can probably do it right?"
He had to look up at her to see the hint of red on her cheeks, she was always skittish about her fame. He changed the subject.
"What happens when your aura reaches zero?" he asked. He could die if he forced his chakra, but that didn't matter anymore.
"Oh nothing, you just can't use anything associated with aura,"
"If I hit harder, does that make it weaker?"
"Yes, different types of blows can do that,"
They reached the courtyard of the school.
"I know this is late, but are you sure you want to continue this? You don't have an aura shield, you're more at risk than anyone,"
He rolled his eyes, "I know what I'm getting into. Besides, they're just beasts,"
"I'm just saying, there's more than just Beowolves,"
Naruto had to unclench his teeth, Pyrrha was none the wiser. He wanted nothing more to do with this conversation, "If it's so dangerous, what made you want to be a Huntress?"
She was silent for a moment. They entered the training areas and begun to find a space that was open.
"It's hard for me to explain," she replied. She stared into the sky, "but I feel that I'm destined for something great, have you ever felt that way?"
Never. No matter what others thought, such as his masters had called him a child of prophecy, but he never said anything out of respect. "Can't say I have,"
Yet, all he could think of were the last words of a friend. Destiny meant all his friends were supposed to die. He didn't feel like talking anymore.
All he wanted to do was fight.
"I'd like something small, something that I can hide easily, but I would like it heavy,"
"Something like mine perhaps? Gambol Shroud is my weapon, and I can turn it into a blade like yours,"
"A pistol, or a revolver? Those are smaller, we can use heavier components.," Ruby said. She wrote down words.
"I, uh, guess,"
"A revolver uses larger calibre, which hits harder, but there are some pistols that can do similar" Blake clarified. "Revolvers usually take longer to reload too,"
"We'll figure that out later," Naruto replied.
Ruby interrupted, "Or maybe, something like a sawed-off shotgun! Double barrel too!"
"Depends," Blake replied. He mentioned toward him, "On his preferences, a revolver can be more accurate at a farther range. The other is more of a spread shot, but more devastating at close range."
"Uhm, let's stick to the pistols or whatever,"
"Haha! We finally figured what kind of weapon, but what kind of calibre, there are different types too,"
Oh jeez, this was a whole lot of complicated. "Is it the same with this 'shotgun' too?"
"You hardly know anything about weapons, do you?" Ruby asked. "Most 'shotguns' use a shell type casing, different gauges, as well as a different type of spread and shots. They also take longer to reload, depending on the type of reloading action,"
Naruto sighed. What the fuck, were his repeated thoughts. How the fuck, was another. So many things to keep in mind, it was like training for a technique.
His brain was fried, and it didn't help that classes were all done for today again.
"That's enough for today, I think, " Blake said.
"My savior," he said.
"What!? How can you be tired of it?" Ruby asked.
"Supper is about to end, I'd rather not have cold food. Anyone want to come?"
"I'll come!" Ruby said.
He wasn't hungry, "I'll pass for now,"
She shrugged, and they quickly left the study area. Naruto wandered the school again, but inside felt to close so he went outside.
He thought a little of his weapon. He stared at the large walls of the schools, he would love to scale it. Just as a reminder, like his spar with Pyrrha.
It didn't work, Pyrrha just didn't have it in her. It likely had to do with that she obviously didn't want to kill him, or even cause him any type of harm. Too soft on him.
It was a massive school, there were plenty of buildings, and each one was tall and narrow. It reminded him more of a cathedral. Most of the building walls were flat surface, with hardly any climbable grooves or something to grapple. That was until he found a spot that was manageable. Window sills, pipes, grooves and the like.
He clambered up and attempted to climb as fast as he could. There was only one spot and the next. It was a decent exercise. It was only until he was near the top when he realized that he couldn't progress any further with any lack of holdings.
Not even something that he could leap too; higher was an Eaves, but he was stuck as of now. It didn't matter, there was always way. He brought out his kunai and he jumped as high as he could manage. He dug his kunai into the wall and hung off it. It brought him closer to the eave, he pulled and jumped atop the kunai. There was only room for one foot, but it was enough.
Something to help him climb would be useful, to stick to ceilings and walls. He would love that, he would have to bring it up to Blake and Ruby.
He would have to leave this kunai behind, he jumped to the eave and found purchase. He climbed the steep slanted roof with little problem and found a spot at the edge to rest and watch.
Naruto let out a sigh of contentment. This felt nice. He leaned against the roof long while and stared at the sights.
He needed more than this, he craved it.
For now, he was quite content staying up here to try and find a way to find that man.
What brought him out of his reverie was when his scroll buzzed and rang. He pulled it out and stared at a flashing picture of Weiss. He pressed the green button.
"Uh, hello?" It was too quiet, until he held it up to his ear. "Say again,"
"Where are you?"
"Hold on," he replied. He stared at the scroll and pressed the button of a camera. His face showed up on the video, and he turned it to the horizon and the surrounding places. "There, see?"
"Wait, you climbed up there?"
"Yep, having a bit of fun,"
"I can actually see you," Weiss said. "Either way, your fun is over for now. We're doing a team exercise. Come find me at the sixth spot training, I'm there now, "she said. She hung up before he could say anything else.
He stared at the direction of the training, and he could see the unmistakable white in the distance. Plenty of people walked the path below toward the school or out to the fields. He thought of an idea.
"Yo Rice!" he shouted. He swung his arms in the air to catch her attention, and any others that passed below. "Rice! I'll be right there!"
He couldn't see her too well, but she went out of sight. He laughed.
There was some support that he jumped on, and he continued jumping down and catching onto an edge to slow his descent. He reached the bottom and wandered over to where Weiss was located.
A couple people noticed what he had done, but he barely paid attention to them. He jogged through the paths, until he found the area where Weiss had been.
She sat on the lone bench, and he went to his great captain. There was no one else, she was alone. He had to wonder how long she could handle it. He was noticed.
"Was that necessary? And can you please stop with the nickname?" Weiss said.
"What? It's funny, for me at least," he replied. "Where's everyone else?"
Her lips tightened, "They were doing something else with their own friends. They said they were going to finish up and then come here,"
She was off alone, he guessed.
"What we doing here?" he asked.
"The rest of us have semblances, I thought it was important to know the full details,"
"Oh,"
"Anyway, we do have to come up with a schedule for you to learn how to read, tomorrow should work fine."
He groaned. but nodded all the same. Then it was silent between them. He felt an urge to fill the silence, but he quelled it. He never forgot the need to be acknowledged that he existed in his youth. He didn't need that anymore.
So, he was simply content enough to stand by the bench. It was Weiss who broke silence between them.
"What's the real reason you gave me captain?" was she already doubting herself? Or maybe it was just a question and he was overthinking it. "Pyrrha was just as good a choice,"
He rolled his eyes; did she have to frame it that way? "Where's this coming from?"
"I'm just curious," she replied. He stared, and she cracked a little. "I didn't ask at first, because I was surprised, I would've been just as happy with Pyrrha,"
Always with Pyrrha, "But I chose you,"
"Still, why was I the first choice? You're closer to her than to me,"
No one was close to her.
"I didn't give a second thought about Pie," he replied. He found that funny for some reason, then he felt a little hungry.
"What? Why not? I was only the choice?"
He snorted, "No, of course not, obviously Blake is apart of the team. It was her or you,"
"Her?" Weiss almost shouted. It was like she trying to dissect his reasoning with her eyes alone. She stared at him with furrowed brows. "Why?"
Everyone doubted her, which meant everyone doubted his choice. "Both of you have…How do I put this? drive,"
Weiss blinked, "And Pyrrha doesn't?"
He shrugged. It was just something he noticed. If Pyrrha had something, it wasn't as strong as theirs.
Her brow bunched up, "Is that the only reason?"
"Pretty much," he replied. Then he felt the need to talk more, "It's not that I'm afraid of failure, but I think it's better if someone can push the team, or whatever you want to call it. Someone else can do that better than I can,"
"What do you mean by that?"
"it can always be better, even here and now,"
She wasn't pleased, and that fire in her eyes made his heart beat a little faster. If only he could be so furious.
"Better than you, definitely,"
He grinned, and it felt so easy, then he shrugged. "Who knows,"
Then the others arrived.
"Yo!" he walked in, and he found the Ozpin seated on his desk once again.
"I'd appreciate it if you'd knock,"
"Oh," he said. Too late now, "Anyway, get us on with what those huntsmen do to work with the police. There is supposed to be missions next year, right?"
The man never seemed to show any inch of surprise, it was kind of weird. He mentioned with a hand to take a seat, and Naruto took it. "Quite the request, and why should I approve it?"
"Because my team wants to stop them, and just like how we found them the first time, we'll do it again,"
Ozpin stared at him for a long while, almost gauging, but not quite. "Fine,"
"Wait what, just like that?" this felt like their first conversation.
"Surprised?"
"Yeah! I mean, I was expecting some sort of test, or questions,"
"Your team are far beyond most of your peers, and I'm quite aware of Blake's history,"
What the fuck. "Oh, well, I think I like you,"
