Blake scowled at where Naruto had taken them. After explaining a few things last night in a small abandoned building they took shelter in, as he was still clueless about things she thought would have been quite apparent, he had become very interested in hearing about her thinking about applying to Beacon to become a Huntress.
For what felt like the hundredth time, she had to ask how! How did someone not know what a Huntsman or Huntress was?
And when she did explain to him what they were...
Well, they were here now. In a small hub that Huntsman and Huntresses would congregate to collect missions and talk. She felt out of place, with a few of them oddly glancing at them.
Like they didn't belong.
"These jobs aren't meant for us." Blake conveyed the issue she felt as she looked at the holo-boards, seeing the job listings scattered.
Naruto tilted his head and frowned at her while jotting down a few notes on a blank scroll. He cursed a few times, struggling as writing with his left was unnatural. "Then how do we make money? We need lien or whatever it is called to afford proper supplies and some food besides fish, as I don't know about you, I need some besides it."
"Maybe you do..." Blake muttered, looking away with a scowl.
Naruto twitched. This girl had an addiction to fish like he had to ramen, which was impressive!
And now she was brooding because he wanted more variety! Was this what everyone else felt like when they tried to kick his ramen addiction?
Her brooding glare was starting to remind him of the time he took Sasuke's onigiri away from him to get back at the brooding Uchiha...
"Remind me not to get you any onigiri..."
Blake's ears perked curiously. "I love onigiri! That lovely fish filling..."
"Mah, are you two somehow distantly related?" Naruto blandly responded with a flat face, staring at her in wonder as she told the tales of how great onigiri was.
Shaking that thought as Blake finished her narrative, Naruto turned his focus back onto the task at hand. He grinned at everything written down. "Well, nothing says that someone other than these Huntsmen or Huntresses can do these jobs. All we have to do is find something that can nab us a quick score, as we're only looking for enough to get by. Some Grimm should be enough. Take the head of one of these things, bring it back..."
"You genuinely don't know, do you?" Blake lour at Naruto, beginning to believe he had no clue about anything, and she couldn't comprehend how. "Grimm dissolve into smoke when they die. There is no bringing back something to show the job was done. Huntsmen use special beacons in the scrolls they are given to mark a mission as completed the moment a Grimm is taken care of, or to call it in if there is reception where they are. Unfortunately, that isn't always a possibility. "
"Nani? They what now?" Naruto was astonished, having only recently come across things of a similar nature, and even then, something was left behind. "Now that throws a wrench into my plans! Can't exactly live off the land and do jobs with my skill set if I can't accept them! Gah, that's annoying. It's almost like they don't want anyone outside of specific people to help!"
"It's not that simple, kid," A gruff voice called out.
Blake winced, knowing it was one of the Huntsmen who had been leering at their presence before, and now she was worried. They could be less than welcoming, and she knew that. She had seen it time and time before, especially to her kind, and a couple of kids acting like they owned the place could only aggravate them...
But Naruto didn't seem to act like he cared in the slightest, turning to face the burly Huntsman, looking up, and meeting his gaze without a single shred of care. "Sounds like it should be. If Grimm are that much of a problem, anyone willing to help should be offered a fair share of the deal."
"Are you serious right now?" The taller Huntsman, with a large, cleaver-like weapon strapped onto his back, glanced incredulously at Naruto. "Grimm that are put on the boards aren't for show. Yeah, others can kill Grimm. That happens all the time. The ones put on here are the ones causing havoc and running amok. Some are more dangerous than others, but all are violent and capable of putting an end to anyone without preparation and adequate skill. You're just running to your death, kid."
"Nah, I'll be fine." Naruto waved it off with his stump of an arm, frowning as he still wasn't used to being without an arm. "Gah, stupid, stupid... Anyways, I've dealt with way worse than anything that can be thrown at me here, so that I can handle it. Just need a way to make a few bucks so I can be on my way back home or at least figure out a way to get back there."
Blake's ears perked before she tucked her head away dejectedly. He was looking for a way home? Her heart pinged with sorrow as her thoughts came to her home and how she wanted to return, but...
Scowling, the man put his hand on Naruto's shoulder and looked at him directly. "Look, I'm doing this for your own good, kid. You can't do this. Go home and train up. You aren't ready..."
"I've been told that I'm not good enough all my life." Naruto's features had turned for the first time Blake had ever seen, the muscles tightening in the jawline, the glistening of raw determination glinting from his eyes. "People have constantly doubted me. Put me down. Said I'm not good enough. Look down on me for my dreams. And all I've done in my life is go out, work as hard as possible to prove them wrong."
"Nothing has stood in my path on my journey, and neither will you, so if you would kindly take your hand off me, I have somewhere to be." Naruto's voice lowered a decibel, and his gaze shone cerulean.
Blake's hair stood on end, her ears standing straight, and her body was tense. Where did this come from? This goofball she had been hanging with had this side to him? This kind of intensity?
She knew he was strong, as he had done something she had never seen before and stopped Adam's Moonslice, even if it wasn't charged, and destroyed Wilt and Blush with a single blow with his odd weapon that he could summon at will. She knew he was capable, but he was also struggling to adjust without one arm, and it seemed he had lost his dominant arm. He was taking things he had done before for granted...
Watching him wave just now was proof enough.
The taller Huntsman, peering into Naruto's gaze, felt something impress upon him as he nervously started to sweat. Pulling back his hand, he stumbled as he stepped back, unsure of what he was feeling.
Suddenly, Naruto grinned, patting the man on his shoulder with one arm as he walked by. He called for Blake with a chipper tone. "Blake, you got any ideas on how we can collect on a bounty for these Grimm? I also copied a few for some of the criminals, which should be easier as we can bring them in, but they're not worth as much."
Snapping out of her frigid state, not wanting to be in here, Blake was quickly at Naruto's side. She still was awkwardly gazing at him, wondering where that intensity had come from, but she put it in the back of her mind for now, seeing the smile she had come to know from him plastered on his face. She would have to think about it later and ask him once they were better acquainted whether he was comfortable.
Oum knew she wasn't willing to answer any questions he asked her that she wasn't comfortable with.
Puckering her lips at the thought as they walked from the station, thankfully leaving it and the awkwardness behind, she glanced at the locations he had written and names he had taken. Her eyes dangerously narrowed at one that was taken.
Did he realize whose name that was, or did he take it full well knowing...
Taking a breath, she would put it aside for now. She would ask for it later, when there was time. For now, they were hunting Grimm. "For the Grimm, I would think it would be wise to take video evidence. It's rare, but sometimes mercenaries do cash in on Grimm bounties, and I would guess they would have to have some physical evidence that they did it, so that would be my guess."
"Great, we need to buy a video camera?" Naruto exhaled, rolling his eyes and deflating as this would be tougher than he had thought.
"No need," Blake smirked, pulling out her scroll, and Naruto curiously glanced at the small gadget, unsure what she planned on doing with it, as she pointed it straight at Naruto. "This also happens to have a camera feature, so recording is something it is more than capable of. Just with a small touch here... Tadda! You're on camera!"
"Nani!" Naruto took the scroll from Blake, eyes nearly coming out of their sockets as he looked at the small screen and saw it was taking in the information. "It's a recorder too? This is amazing! This small device can do so many things!"
"I'm giving up," Blake closed her eyes and waved her hands in the air with a sigh. "I don't know how you don't know these things, but it's clear you aren't from around here..." Her eyes shifted, and she fidgeted meekly, a thought crossing her mind. "But it does sound nice, whatever backwater place you come from, not to have to deal with everything. A place where you don't have to worry..."
"Oh, that's something," Naruto grinned as he held the scroll at a specific angle, a gleam in his eyes, and had a confident grin that suddenly had Blake on the defensive. "Jiraiya would kill for this device. All the research he could have done with it... May his soul rest in the Pure World."
"Where are you pointing that at?" Blake roared, her eyes sharpening as she snapped her scroll out of Naruto's hand. "You... You..."
"This is the part you are supposed to be hitting me," Naruto frowned, tilting his head at the scarlet Faunus, hand covering her rear as she looked indignantly at him.
"Stop acting so juvenile!" Blake snapped, gnashing her teeth, flushed as a tomato. "I am not going to play into your game, either, so grow up! I am not twelve! Now give me your coat!"
"Okay..." Naruto shrank, intimidated, and lightly insulted at her insinuation before sliding off his tattered coat to her. "Was only meaning it to be a game..."
"Well, now I feel insecure, thanks." Blake hissed, still vividly flushed, taking and trying his coat around her waist to ensure her behind was covered.
Once she was satisfied, she crossed her arms over her chest and, with a huff, turned and moved forward. However, she warily kept her eye on Naruto, ensuring his eyes were upward.
She couldn't believe him. Recording her with her scroll. The nerve...
So juvenile...
So arrogant...
And why couldn't she get the thought of him looking out of her head? It bothered her...
But there was that one part in...
[ X ]
"There is a farming village around here," Blake frowned, glancing at the map on her scroll.
"It's not too far. Over that hill," Naruto pointed out in a direction after opening his eyes.
Blake looked up from her scroll, frowning as she noted the direction Naruto was pointing. "How do you know that? Out of everything you don't know, you know where this village is?"
"I can feel where they are at," Naruto said with a slight smile. "Something I recently picked up. Makes locating people easy."
"You can feel where people are?" Blake clamored, ears perking inquisitively. "But you have those orbs... What is your Semblance? This doesn't make sense. Aura doesn't work in this manner!"
"My what?" Naruto stopped, raising a curious eyebrow, unsure of what she was talking about. "I have never heard of anything you just said."
"What do you mean you never heard of..." Blake's pinned back, eyes narrowed as she couldn't believe what she was hearing before they suddenly lifted, a sound catching her attention, and she looked back carefully.
"Don't draw their attention and alert them that we're aware we know they're there," Naruto whispered, knowing she would hear it with her sensitive hearing. Blake's attention returned to the relaxed form of Naruto as he strolled on the forested hill. "Had sensed them for a while. Got to say, they're better than I thought, as I thought you would have heard them earlier, but they've been covering their tracks pretty well, it seems. Huntsman and Huntresses are better than I give them credit for."
Blake scowled as her nerves began to settle in. Were they after her? Was it a mistake for her to go to the hub with Naruto so close to the train bombing after it happened? She knew she wasn't a known member of the White Fang, but she may have been distinguished enough and seen at Adam's side sufficiently to warrant...
"Are you okay?" Naruto's voice carried a tender tone; his eyes now glancing back at the Huntsman and Huntresses, noticing her tenseness with a light pulse of the Kurama's Yin chakra, Naruto kept from frowning, feeling the negativity oozing from her. "You look worried? Something the matter?"
"How are you not worried?" Blake took her ire out on him, seething and trying not to bite her tongue. "These are Huntsman! Not just random mercenaries or thugs, but people trained to be the best and protect Remnant from the Grimm first and foremost! It's not often they get bested, and when they do, it is newsworthy material! I know because it has been happening a lot here in Vale as the crime kingpin has made fools of many Huntsmen here..."
"So they are not as infallible as you think they are." Naruto grinned, further agitating Blake before keeping his intent focused forward. "Well, I wouldn't worry too much. I don't feel any ill intent coming from them. Probably making sure the stupid kids don't get over their heads or something like that. Well, whatever. If they want a show, they're about to get one."
"It comes." Naruto broadly grinned as he stopped, gazing upwards with a cocky grin on his face, as he had felt it when he pulsed Kurama's chakra, glad he still had something of the fox.
"What?" Blake could hear the rushing currents, and her eyes widened as she looked above. In horror, she saw what was coming. "A Nevermore! An Alpha Nevermore with a murder of little ones!"
As it swooped overhead, the wind pressure nearly sweeping Blake off her feet, dozens of small Nevermore scattered from the Alpha, swarming down and diving toward them.
"Wait, it isn't a Grimm? I'm so confused!"
"Huh, yes, it is! Ah! Why don't you know these things?" Blake screeched, drawing Gambol Shroud, shifting it to its pistol mode as she aimed at the swooping tiny Nevermores. "Shut up and fight! You dragged me into this!"
This drew his attention briefly as he took out a few of the flock, murder Naruto supposed, with some shuriken. The weapon transformation was interesting: he thought it was a simple wakizashi, an odd one, but suddenly it was this handheld weapon capable of firing projectiles and sniping the black-and-white birds of the sky? And killing them in a single shot if it hits them in the head? *
It intrigued him, but not enough to lose focus.
Blake could handle the little ones. They were fodder anyway. Nah, he wanted mama.
"So this is a Grimm, huh?" Naruto smirked as the small Nevermores closed in, focusing on the big bird as it slowly flapped overhead, seemingly unaware of what happened below as its murder took care of fighting. "Not so intimidating. Looks like a big ole summon to me. Hey Blake! Betcha ya I can take that thing out with a single strike!"
"You are joking!" Blake narrowed her eyes before she looked stumped, seeing Naruto effortlessly bat away a single Nevermore, and it turned to smoke as it collided with the ground. "If your stick or orb thing can hit from here and kill it, I'd be impressed..."
"Nah, that'd be overkill." Naruto grinned brilliantly as he tightened his left fist, cracking his neck back and forth. "I'll only use the Gudōdama when we first met, since I couldn't move. I would have stuck to something more basic if I could have, as those things pack way too much of a punch for that kind of situation. Wasn't trying to kill your friend, just make him listen, so I was holding back as much as I could with them."
"You were holding back!" Blake narrowed her eyes, switching her weapon into her sword form, and quickly jumped away as a Nevermore dove to where she was, flipping and landing crouched on the base of a tree. "You were nearly dead and were still holding back!"
Launching back, she sliced through the tiny bird before shifting its form back, gripping the ribbon and catching Naruto's attention once more as she began to use the weapon like a Kusarigama, whipping it around her, slicing the birds getting too close. It was a marvelous and versatile weapon. He wanted to know more about it!
"For that attack, yes!" Naruto exclaimed, cutting down a few more Nevermore with a couple more shuriken. "Otherwise, I really wasn't able to move! It was the only thing to do!"
Blake gnashed her teeth, her eyes glistening with discontent. Attack? He made it sound like he had more than one ability. How was that possible? How versatile was his Semblance to work like it did?
Snapping back into focus, Naruto looked up. Getting rid of the mama should do the trick...
"I think a tried and true favorite will get the trick done here..." Naruto thought about it for a second and then bent his knees, predicting the bird's movements, and grinned. "And here we go!"
"What do you... Whoa!" Blake nearly fell flat on her face from a shockwave. Her eyes widened as she fell onto her knees and looked up into the sky. "Are you kidding me right now? This doesn't make any sense!"
With a single leap, many of the smaller Nevermore in the sky were suddenly plummeting, unable to keep flying as a pulse of wind pressure knocked them off balance, courtesy of Naruto. His eyes glimmered as he held out his left hand, chakra flowing smoothly, spiraling in the palm of his hand. The air flowing through the locks of his hair felt terrific, and it felt much cleaner out here than it did in the city, but it still wasn't quite up to par with what he was used to.
Something wasn't right here, wherever here was. He had to figure it out soon so he could get back home, but he knew money was his priority. Had to be able to sustain himself by taking odd jobs while looking for a way back home, something Jiraiya had taught him on their trip, one of the valuable things he had to admit. So he was taking it to heart and glad their journey to help him become more manly had some benefits after all...
"Coming in hot!" Naruto gleamed, his eyes cerulean, shining as he extended his left hand and flew straight toward the Alpha Nevermore and its open... "Whoa, whoa, whoa! I am not for dinner! Change of direction!"
With a poof of smoke, something he did out of sheer instinct as he had mastery of the technique like no one before him, a clone gripped Naruto's wrist, tossing him over the Nevermore's head as it clamped its beak shut. Flipping down on its skull, the blonde let out a sigh of relief and attempted to wipe the sweat off his forehead before screaming in frustration as his right arm moved and he cursed. "Are you... Sasuke, I hate you right now! Want my arm back!"
"Eat this, you stupid bird! Rasengan!" Naruto roared, his frustration hitting its peak as he drove the spiraling blue ball into the Grimm as it desperately rolled but could not get the shinobi off its head, and he stuck to its head with chakra and drove the attack home.
An erosion of smoke and chakra ripped through the sky, scattering the Nevermore to dust in seconds. Its head collapsed under the piercing pressure, unable to withstand it, and dissolved, its body quickly dissipating, leaving Naruto in a predicament for anyone else as they careened back to the earth below.
Instead, he flipped back onto his feet, landing in a crouch, and stood back up as if nothing had happened. Walked off as if the landing wasn't an issue, heading to where Blake was handling the rest of the Nevermore, grinding her teeth as the flock was still an issue. "Mama bird down."
"I see that!" Blake roared, her eyes glistening with raw fury as small Nevermore swooped in and nearly pecked her ear, but she managed to roll, bounce back, and slice through it with her sheath that Naruto recognized also doubled as a blade. "Mind helping me rid the rest of the nuisance while the so-called Huntsman sit on their asses! I am so done with this day! Done with this! Done with you! Your bullshit! Done with it all! I wanna go home!"
A bead of sweat fell on the back of Naruto's head as he saw Blake's position before quickly drawing a kunai and moving in for assistance. "Yeah, yeah! Sorry about that! My bad! Should have left some clones down here!"
"What? What is your Semblance? Why can you do so many different things? This doesn't make sense!"
"I told you I don't understand what that means! Is that like a bloodline limit? I don't have one of those!"
Blake's shriek was heard throughout Remnant.
"I am so done with you!"
[ X ]
"I gotta say, never seen anything like that, kid." The burly Huntsman rubbed the back of his neck, handing a card to Naruto along with a scroll. "You sure you don't want to apply to one of the academies? Haven could use someone like you, especially with the skills you just showed. And after the pride of Mistral decided to come here to Beacon, it'd be a boon for sure. You'd surely be a top student and become a renowned Huntsman under Leonardo's tutelage."
Blake twitched as she sat in the seat in the oriental restaurant, muttering to herself. They thought he could butter her up now after that incident. She was still so annoyed with everything that happened...
Naruto just being an enigma...
And those Huntsmen! They just sat around and did nothing! They watched them, letting them take on the Grimm as a test to see if they were capable! The nerve! Weren't they supposed to protect and serve the people?
She hated people like them...
Even if he was now paying for this meal and had helped open an account for Naruto, and had gotten him a scroll. He could have helped when it mattered...
"Nah, I'm just trying to get home." Naruto had a toothy grin as he closed his eyes and chuckled. "Doing jobs like this so I can have cash in my pocket while I search and figure out where I am. Gotta make a living, ya know, so I can afford to travel."
"Well, can't say I don't blame you, and can I understand that! Home is where the heart is, I hear ya!" The gruff man let out a hearty laugh before placing a thoughtful hand on his chin. "But I say, I've never heard of your home before. Though new villages do pop up fairly often with how many people are disenfranchised with the Kingdoms, so I wouldn't be all too surprised if it is out there somewhere, and you just got lost here in Sanus. I'll put out a few feelers with my connections and see what I come up with. I'll contact you later."
"Thanks! Appreciate that and everything you've done today! Guess it's true even after first meetings, can't judge a book by its cover!" Naruto grinned as the two shared a wave as the man took his leave, and he returned to a crestfallen Blake, her ears lying flat on her head. "You doing okay? You look..."
"What, oh, I'm fine..." Blake replied, startled by his sudden appearance, listening to their conversation as her thoughts turned to home. "Was just thinking..."
"Thinking about going home, too?" Naruto took his seat, with a soft expression, as he had the sense she was listening to their conversation, and when she flinched, he knew he was correct. "Why don't you? If you have family or friends waiting for you back home, I'm sure they would be ecstatic to see you."
"It's not that simple..." Blake growled before lowering her head, her gaze glistening as she looked downward. "I can't... Not with them... With him looking for me..."
A look of recognition dawned on Naruto, his gaze glimmering over her for a moment before he softly smiled. "That's why you were trying to talk some sense into him. You've known him quite some time, haven't you?"
"Yes." Blake acknowledged it, feeling there was no need to hide the truth. "I've known him since I was around ten, when he first came into our organization, injured and homeless. He was always so perseverant, able to overcome everything put in front of him, no matter the task, yet... Ever since I've known him, his heart was always full of hatred, being swallowed slowly by it until he had become what you saw when you were conscious."
"Huh, sounds like someone I know..." Naruto muttered, having another strong sense of deja vu as he couldn't shake the feeling.
"So I have to ask you this, along with many other questions that have been eating away at me, though this takes priority," Blake's eyes rose and gazed directly into Naruto's, an intensity he hadn't seen within shining through. "When you took names from that board, did you purposely take his name, knowing who he was? Were you mocking me by going after him? Is this some kind of joke to you?"
"What, hang on, no!" Naruto was immediately defensive, shaking his head, and his eyes widened. "While I recognized I took someone named Adam, I didn't realize it was the same Adam that... You were in a criminal..."
"Quiet!" Blake hissed, her eyes glimmering, putting her hand over Naruto's mouth as she bit her lip and looked despondent, taking her hand off his mouth. "Yes, okay, I was. The White Fang is now a terrorist organization, but that isn't what it originally started as, okay? I joined because I wanted to make a difference... Like how my father and mother originally did when they started it, not realizing what it had evolved into and what Sienna and Adam had turned it into."
Seeing the look in her eyes, understanding the pain held in her heart, knowing there was more to it, Naruto called over the waitress. "Hey, can we get an order here? I'd have a bowl of miso ramen, and she'd like a plate of onigiri."
As the waitress nodded and took the order, Blake's ears perked, and she squinted at Naruto with a frown, and he grinned at her. "Hey, sounds like we have a long story to be told, and I wanted to be prepared as I want to listen and hear you out and since you expressed you liked them earlier..."
"I just wanted to make sure you were comfortable while you shared." Naruto flashed a dazzling smile that made Blake flush.
She then glowered, turned away, and crossed her arms. Memories of earlier arose, and she was not amused or had forgiven him."What makes you think I want to talk about it?"
"Then you don't have to. Not forcing ya. Got a lot I'm not saying either as I don't want to say either, but we gotta start somewhere." Naruto shrugged before earnestly staring directly at Blake. "You've helped me out quite a bit since I came here. Kept me informed about everything I wasn't aware of, and I thank you for that. So if there is something I can do to assist you, just name it."
Gazing at Naruto, her head tilted, Blake tucked her head into her. Despite all the negativity she was bringing with her, he was still thanking her? And wanted to...
Help her...
No.
She couldn't involve someone else in her problem. This was her issue to solve...
But...
"Just name it, huh?" Blake held a distant gaze in her eyes before a gentle smile spread on her lips. "We barely know each other, and you are willing to do such a thing for me..."
"Heck yeah, I would!" Naruto grinned foolishly as the waitress returned with a bowl of his ramen and a plate of onigiri. "You helped me get to the hospital when I possibly could have died. You've been a big help in telling me things I wouldn't otherwise know, and honestly, I hate admitting this, but I have needed a little help adjusting to only one hand. It's been rough, and you have been really helpful, so whatever I can do, yeah, name it. I'll do it!"
"You are an odd one. You know that? Not many people are like that in this day and age." Blake glanced quizzically before returning the smile. "It's almost refreshing to see. Wish more people were like that..."
Chuckling as he scratched the back of his head, noting the small sparkles developing in Blake's eyes as she stared with a small amount of drool leaking from the corner of her lips, Naruto could help but smile. "Yeah, heard that a few times. Been told I go a little too far sometimes."
Her ears perked as she slowly reached the onigiri. She temporarily took her attention from the food, finding this more critical. "Is that so? Well, there is something I do want..."
"Name it..."
"To know more about you," Blake said, sitting up straight and gazing directly into Naruto's eyes with a confused stare. "Ever since you have shown up, all you've done has confused me. Why don't you know things, yet the way you act, why I feel so comfortable around you for some unknown reason. I want to understand you better, so maybe hearing more about you would help. And perhaps, explain a few things for both of us."
Naruto frowned at the cat Faunus. That was...
Not a request he had expected. Or wanted to, for as friendly as he was, he had learned better than to blab his secrets to just anyone. But, seeing that look on her face and thinking about it...
He didn't have to tell her everything. Just talk about himself.
That he could do.
He could avoid any secrets. He was sure of that.
"Well, I guess I don't mind too much, given everything you have done for me so far." Naruto gave a side nod before a wicked idea popped into his head, and he acted upon it. "But under one condition."
"Hm? What condition?"
"This is mine now." Naruto reached across the table and slid the onigiri plate to his side of the table, much to Blake's dismay and horror. "No takebacks."
Blake's wail of agony was heard throughout the restaurant as she face-planted and cried into the table.
"Nnnnoooo!"
[ X ]
"So satisfying..." Naruto gave a contented sigh, three bowls perched on top of one another, a massive grin stretching from ear to ear, patting his stomach. "Could use another, but..."
Blake mewled on the other side of the table, wiping a few pieces of rice from her lips. "Much as I would like to, I think it would be in bad taste. He paid for our dinner and did help us, so he wasn't as bad as I thought. I only question his motives when we were faced with danger..."
"Huh?" Naruto raised an eyebrow and puckered his lips, tilting his head at Blake. "Nah, what he did was pretty normal. My senseis did that all the time. He was only making sure we could handle ourselves and would have intervened if he didn't think..."
"That's not good enough!" Blake snapped, her eyes glistening before she let out a small click of disgust. "Whatever you think and say, I didn't feel safe, and that does not excuse that kind of behavior! That was an Alpha Grimm, one who has lived for a long time and has gotten stronger because of it. And that was the first time I actively hunted Grimm like that, and I wasn't sure of myself. I didn't know what to expect and..."
"I apologize." Naruto could see that Blake was resentful about what had happened and that something was troubling her. "Guess there is a lot I still have to learn, and I didn't consider that. From now on, I'll give you my word that I'll do my best not to leave you in situations where you are vulnerable. If you feel uncomfortable with something, let me know. Might not always get it, but that's just the way it is sometimes! Got to listen to one another if we're gonna figure things out and work together."
Blake's face fell, taken aback by how quickly Naruto blamed himself even when he wasn't entirely at fault. Yes, they needed Lien, and they could have done something more reasonable, but...
To hear him say those words. After hearing a little about him and some of what he would do...
What that meant...
"You would... Give your word? Just so I feel more secure?" Blake tilted her head, and a peculiar expression overtook her features as her ears sagged. "I didn't ask for that... That's too much. I don't want to be a bother..."
"What bother?" Naruto beamed before shaking his head. "Mah, if you weren't ready for something, you aren't ready! Simple as that! Sometimes things get too much, even when you are skilled enough, and you get too in your head, and everything weighs you down. I get that! Happens to me more than I care to admit! I fight through it all the time, but I know others aren't like me and get bogged down and have a harder time, so I understand!"
Eyes shot wide, and her body went rigid. It was so odd hearing those words. After so long of being put into intense situations, one after another, as it was demanded of her... For the betterment of the White Fang...
Of Faunus rights...
To hear someone say they struggled with similar issues, whether they were or not...
Was comforting.
Her cheeks flushed as Blake looked down and away, shaking her head. She couldn't find the right words. Didn't know how even to respond. What could she even say to that? He was still a stranger to her, even though she was starting to get to know him a little better.
Well, an acquaintance was a better term, she supposed. He might call her a friend with his terminology, but she couldn't...
So how could she respond to this? She really shouldn't be trusting him at all! Blake barely met him a few days ago on death's door, and now they were partnering together mostly out of necessity. She knew she could get by on her own...
"It's getting pretty late. We should probably head out. Got a decent amount of lien. Maybe we can stay somewhere instead of an abandoned warehouse tonight. Could go for a shower right about now." Naruto mentioned, interrupting her thoughts and stretching his arms out, grimacing at the stump of his right arm before muttering to himself. "Still feel it too. Like it's not even gone at times..."
Blake's face sank, and her ears depressed, hearing his murmur after agreeing with his earlier statement. She was about ready to take up an argument after his perverted actions didn't make her feel all too supportive of such an idea, but they were dashed as she glanced at his arm. After seeing what little she had seen of him in action...
What could have caused him to lose his arm? To be left in the state he was in when she found him? What he had shown today wasn't just skill...
It was an extraordinary power that didn't make sense...
"Naruto," Blake solemnly spoke, unable to look away from the table as she had before gaining the courage and finally looking up into his eyes as she asked the question. "It's okay if you don't want to answer this one. I'll understand, given the condition you were in when I found... It's just, after what I've seen, and it's clear you aren't at your best and have been holding back, what could have left you like that? Taking out an Alpha Grimm the way you did is unimaginable, as I've never seen or heard anyone move like that before with a simple jump. Maybe a Semblance, but then you used another ability in the process, and then you have those orbs and..."
"Okay, I'm really beginning to think we have a fundamentally different understanding of what chakra is." Naruto chuckled softly under his breath.
"What is Chakra? Is that another word for aura?" Blake tilted her head, her ears perking in confusion, gazing at Naruto, who, for the first time, had the same stupefied feeling Blake had been experiencing the entire time with flipped onto him. "Is that what you meant by bloodline limit earlier? Does your home have different words for Semblance? But you clearly do, as I've seen so many different things that don't add up!"
Naruto choked on his spit. He then looked upon Blake with wide eyes, unsure how to process any of this, like she had been unable to process how he had been throwing things at her. And as his brain cell fried from overload, he saw a button in his head.
A big red shiny button labeled EJECT.
He pressed the button.
And got up and started walking for the exit without a word.
"Don't you leave me here! Hey, what's with the silent treatment? Cat got your tongue?"