Naruto stood alone— his body couldn't move, as visions of a past that haunted him for many sleepless nights came to life.

Around him, everything was white— not a single other color existed in the room he was in. Shifting his eyes around, Naruto could make out figures, their faces blank without a single definition, but despite the lack of any noticeable features he could recognize them still. After all, who else could they be except for his friends, the ones he had grown up with?

And the same ones he had selfishly left behind.

Averting his gaze away, Naruto wouldn't dare to have the guts to look at them, the guilt being too much. Except, despite him looking away, he could feel a lump forming in his throat as he sensed their stares, empty and full of contempt. It was like they were trying to burn holes into his very soul, twisting and manipulating his feelings in an attempt to make him a shell of himself. A husk of emptiness and loneliness deprived of love and warmth.

"You failed us!"

"You left us!"

"You abandoned us to die!"

"No, stop…" Naruto groaned, scrunching his face as their voices all spoke as one. A sick feeling came to him, like something unnatural and malevolent. Without warning, the air suddenly became thick with it.

Their hate, their anger, their sense of betrayal….

It was almost overwhelming.

"I'm—"

"Why didn't you stop her, Naruto?"

"Aren't you the Child of Prophecy, the one to bring peace?"

Naruto tried to shake his head. "I didn't mean to come here! It wasn't my choice!"

"Liar! You had a choice!"

"You could've stayed, instead you ran away!"

"Why didn't you die for us, like Sasuke did?!"

"Because I had a choice!" Naruto cried. "Sasuke didn't have one, and I chose to live!"

"You're pathetic, you're scum!"

"Traitor! Weakling!"

"Why don't you rot in hell?"

The figures moved forward, their hands reaching for the blonde.

"Get away from me!" he exclaimed, swiping an arm at them. He could feel his eyes turning red as he began to draw upon Kurama's chakra.

Remembering where he was, however, made him put a stop to that.

"Good work, Naruto."

Kurama's booming voice echoed throughout the room. Rather than flinching in fear, Naruto instead felt a strange, but comforting sense of warmth that had replaced the previously hostile and demonic presence that was once associated with Kurama. While it had taken time, through their struggles together, the war had forced the two of them to come to an understanding. And when they did, neither of them had any regrets.

After all, right now, both of them were the only significant figures they had left in their lives.

With renewed vigor, Naruto was snapped out of his trance as a heavy scowl formed on his face, his lips contorting into a vicious snarl.

"Don't mess with me, ever again. Get out!"

At once, and almost as if the mere presence of the fox had commanded them to, the blank figures began to disperse, shimmering away as they faded into the background. As their forms filtered away, Naruto felt his chest become lighter, and he was filled with a sense of relief.

"Well that was fun…"

"Just don't get too worked up over it."

Naruto deflated slightly, a sheepish smile curling onto his lips. "Yeah, yeah…" he said, before the world around him faded in a bright light.

He awoke to a soft pair of hands roughly shaking his shoulder.

"Naruto. Naruto, wake up!"

Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, there was little that could hold back the satisfying yawn that escaped his mouth.

"How long was I out?"

"Couple of minutes, but we're getting close now!" Ruby said as she jumped excitedly.

Naruto then felt a fist pound into his shoulder. Looking up lazily, his eyes met a mane of long blonde hair before they were greeted by a playful smirk. "Had a nice cat nap, Whiskers?"

Her boundless energy seemed to energize him. As if she were coaxing him, Naruto simply smiled back.

"I wouldn't say it was the best, but I did wake up to a nice view."

The girl in question grinned even wider. So this guy liked to play, huh? Using the opportunity to further tease her fellow blonde, Yang's purple eyes glinted with mischief as she made sure to give Naruto a better view of her babies as she folded her arms underneath her bust. "So you do like what you see?"

And indeed he did, as it should be with someone as 'gifted' as Yang Xiao Long. For the short time that he knew her, he had a feeling that Yang was the type of person who took great pride in herself and her figure. Like a mini-Tsunade, the attractive blonde was gifted with an impressive set of 'assets' that was only matched by her exuberant personality.

Naruto blushed. "A-as I said, Yang, it isn't bad," he stammered, snapping his head away to avoid the teasing grin plastered on her face.

It didn't help that her choice of clothing only made it more prominent. In fact, you could say that she had chosen her clothes for exactly that very reason. Dressed in a tan jacket that was loose on the top, golden brown piping lined the edges of the jacket as it finished with short, puffy sleeves that had black cuffs and two gold buttons attached. Underneath this, Yang wore a low cut, yellow crop top that exposed her cleavage, with her signature emblem stitched on the left breast in black along with a pair of black mini-shorts. The shorts were accompanied with a brown belt with a pleated brown piece of material covering her from hip to hip attached to the rear of her belt, another copy of her emblem emblazoned on the right-most pleat in gold. Underneath the pleat was a longer, white, asymmetrical piece of material that reached to her knee on the right side. Following that, Yang also wore a pair of brown, knee high boots with orange, over the knee socks, with the right sock being pushed down to below the knee. A gray bandana could also be seen tied around her left knee, before her outfit finished with an orange infinity scarf around her neck while she also wore black, fingerless gloves.

Seeing Naruto's increasingly flustered expression, Yang couldn't help herself. "Oh really? You know, you can touch them if you want. All you have to do is ask," she purred, wiggling her eyebrows suggestively.

Ruby's face grew as red as her name. "Yaaaaaangggg!"

Naruto, in turn, started to feel blood run down his nose as numerous thoughts swirled in his head, with a part of him contemplating on taking up her offer while the other persuading him to simply make a break from all the craziness. When Ruby had introduced her sister to him, he definitely wasn't expecting this.

He was stopped, however, when Yang caught him by the collar. Knowing not to push his buttons further, lest she make a complete fool out of herself and make him think she was a creep, Yang gave him a rather hard pat on the back and laughed. "I'm just messing with ya, don't worry! Besides, I don't date guys my sister likes."

"YAANNNGGGGG!"

'Ero-sennin would be having a field day right now.' Naruto thought with a sigh. Not surprisingly, Yang really was a piece of work, as he found out almost instantly when they had boarded the charter plane bound for Beacon. Ruby had made it a point to introduce him to her older sister, who he was slightly older by a few months and both of them being two years older than Ruby.

Deciding to calm her pouting sister, Yang began ruffling her sister's hair. "Relax, Ruby! I kid, I kid!" She said, as Ruby covered her face in embarrassment.

"You're the worst, Yang."

"Well, that's what big sister's do. We always find ways to embarrass our younger siblings." Yang said, laughing as she did before she grinned and pulled Ruby into a hug. "Oh, but I can't believe my sister's going to Beacon with me! This is the best day ever!"

"Please… stop," Ruby gasped, feeling the air being squeezed out of her lungs before Yang let go.

"But I'm so proud of you!"

"Really, sis, it was nothing." Ruby tried to play it down.

"What do you mean? It was incredible! Everyone at Beacon's going to think you're the bee's knees!"

"Yang's right, you know," Naruto piped in. "Back in my village, people would take notice of things like what you did and they'd look at you differently."

Ruby stamped her foot as she blushed, feeling meek from the praise. "But I don't want to be the 'bee's knees', okay? I don't want to be any kind of knees! I just want to a normal girl with normal knees."

Ruby's attempt to humble herself didn't deter her sister, however. "What's with you? Aren't you excited?"

"Of course I'm excited! I just… I got moved ahead two years. I don't want people to think I'm special or anything."

Seeing the downturn look her sister had, Yang tried to brighten her spirits up. Though she couldn't sympathize with her, not knowing what it's like, Yang did know that the thing Ruby was most afraid of was the great expectation and potential that many see in her, and that a lot of people, including herself and Ruby most of all, must feel that she must live up to.

"But you are special," Yang said, wrapping an assuring arm around Ruby's shoulders.

"Hey, look Ruby, on the projector. It's that guy."

Naruto's finger pointed to the screen as a news report came up. What was featured was a familiar orange haired man who was partly the reason why they were now enrolled at Beacon. Despite his dislike for him, he had to thank the guy in some way, as if it weren't for him, he'd have a much harder time convincing Ozpin to let him into the Academy. Probably would have had to steal some poor sap's transcripts as well seeing as he had no records of himself in Remnant.

He looked over his shoulder. Maybe that blonde guy in the corner? He didn't look so good, after all.

"The robbery was led by nefarious criminal Roman Torchwick, who continues to evade authorities. If you have any information on his whereabouts, please contact the Vale Police Department."

"In other news, this Saturday's Faunus Civil Right's protest turned dark when members of the White Fang disrupted the ceremony. The once peaceful organization has now disrupted—"

Naruto blanked out what the rest of the report said and also ignored the appearance of Prof. Goodwitch's projection. Having his attention caught in his musing, various thoughts began swimming in his head, in particular ones that were centered on the discrimination and racism suffered by the Faunus. He was by no means an advocate for prejudice, but he also didn't support the methods the White Fang employed in order to endorse for equal rights. Moreover, it reminded him of a certain organization back home, and despite their intentions to bring about peace, their actions and motives painted them as little more than a terrorist group.

Although he would have liked to be more involved, to put a stop to the White Fang and the terror they brought, there was little Naruto could actually do. When he had learned of their activities, Naruto and the fox agreed that, along with his more destructive jutsu, dealing with the White Fang right now was not a top priority nor was it a very good idea. Not yet at least. Firstly, he was still fairly new to this world, and involving himself into things he knew little about could unleash a series of events that may prove disastrous. Furthermore, he could also potentially alert Kaguya of his presence, and right now Naruto knew that it was not the right time to deal with the machinations of the Rabbit Goddess just yet. He would be risking the lives of the people in this world. Once he had found a way home, if he ever did, or if he had a clue on what really was going, then he would direct his full attention into taking them down.

He would give credit to Akatsuki. They were far from heroes, but their ability to covertly manipulate things to their favor taught him a thing or two. Despite being effective, a show of strength was not always the best way to put an end to things.

"Hello? Are you feeling okay?"

Naruto blinked when his thoughts were greeted by a new and somewhat charming voice. He noted how pleasant it was, before he was forced to fight down the blush that threatened his cheeks when he saw how easily the voice matched the equally tall and gorgeous girl in front of him.

"Ah, yeah. I'm fine, thanks. I just zone out sometimes," he said, smiling awkwardly.

His answer seemed to amuse her, as she started to giggle, a light sound that made his heart swoon.

"I'm Pyrrha Nikos, nice to meet you," she introduced, sticking out a hand. He couldn't help but note that Pyrrha was also quite muscular.

"Naruto Uzumaki," he replied, returning the gesture as he tried his hardest not to stare. It took a great deal for him to control himself, as not only was she very attractive, but the bed of red hair on her head truly captivated him. Not one person he knew had hair like that, except maybe his mother, but to compare both of them would be unfair. Like Yang was a striking image of Tsunade, Pyrrha was that to Kushina Uzumaki, both possessing the same fiery red locks that was equal parts striking as it was beautiful.

Add to the fact that her clothes made her look like a warrior, with her top looking like a strapless, bronze cuirass, along with a black mini-skirt and bronze greaves and boots; it only seemed to make her even more attractive in his eyes.

Naruto coughed. "So, umm, what brings you to Beacon?" he asked, trying to sound as friendly as possible so as to not weird her out. There were no romantic undertones in his choice of words — he only wanted to get to know the girl seeing as she was the one who struck up a conversation with him.

Thankfully, Pyrrha didn't appear to be unnerved. "I want to be a Huntress, so I thought that applying to Beacon would be the best choice for me," she replied easily. "And you? What made you choose Beacon?"

"Funny story about that actually," Naruto laughed. "You know that guy on the screen before, Roman Torchwick? Me and my friend ran into him the other day, but he's as slippery as they say he is. Lucky for us though, Prof. Goodwitch was there on the scene and after that whole fiasco she brought us to Prof. Ozpin, who invited us to Beacon."

"Wow, that's quite a story," Pyrrha admitted.

"Yeah, to be honest, I wasn't expecting it either." Naruto grinned.

"So where is this friend of yours? Is she here with us now?"

"You know what, I actually don't know. She was just here with her sister…" Naruto confessed, turning his head around as he tried to spot a familiar shade of yellow and black. They had been standing beside him this whole time, where could they have wandered off to now?

"I think I did see them, but they walked off when you were daydreaming." Pyrrha giggled. "But it's fine, I have a feeling it wouldn't be too difficult to find them when we land. We will all be heading to the induction ceremony when we arrive at Beacon," she said, before she pursed her lips.

"I—" she stopped. Naruto noted she looked apprehensive, like she was afraid of what she was going to say next.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

"Do you… mind if I accompany you in the mean time?"

Naruto felt his heart skip a beat.

"Oh, this is going to be good…"

"Yeah… yeah! That's fine, absolutely! I'd be glad to."

Other than hanging out with Pyrrha, the ride to Beacon had been admittedly uneventful.

Not that he didn't mind though, as not only did it give Naruto some peace and quiet, he also had the benefit of having an absolute babe to keep him company. It was refreshing, to say the least, that he had the chance to kick back and relax, to take his mind off his troubles for once. Gods know he needed it anyway.

Despite his initial shyness, he quickly found that Pyrrha was actually very nice and easy to talk to. Other than her, Ruby and Yang, there weren't many other people Naruto would really consider as 'friends'. While he had been in Remnant for a couple of months now, other than the three of them there wasn't anyone else that he really had any meaningful conversation with. Not because he had been avoiding people, but his previous line of work didn't really afford the chance to chitchat with his employers. Not only that, but he also didn't tend to stick around in one place for too long.

"Hey Ruby! Yang!"

Naruto waved before he ran up to the two girls. Their already bright faces lighted up even more when they saw him.

"You done daydreaming now, Whiskers?" Yang teased. "You know, you look kinda cute when you're all serious and stuff."

"Yang! Stop trying to flirt with Naruto!" Ruby chided.

"I see your friends are very lively," Pyrrha stated, having caught up to them. "Are you Ruby?"

"Yup!" Ruby said, before she was hit by a sudden familiarity. She scrunched her face as she tried to pinpoint what it was.

"Sorry, but what was your name again? I think we've met before, I remember seeing you somewhere—"

"Ruby, that's Pyrrha Nikos. You know, the 'Invincible Girl'?" Yang cut in.

Ruby's eyes lit up in excitement. She was the girl on those cereal ads!

"Oh, wow! It's nice to meet you, Pyrrha!"

"Wait, so you're famous?" Naruto asked incredulously, turning his face to the redhead.

Pyrrha smiled but Naruto could tell there was some hesitance to it, like she was uncomfortable about something.

"I'm pretty well known, yes. I was also a four-time Mistral Regional Tournament champion. Please don't let my achievements make you think any differently about me. I'm still a student at Beacon, and I would prefer if you treat me like your fellow classmates."

Naruto could trace a hint of desperation in her voice, yet he didn't know why.

Yang being Yang though, decided that she wasn't one who could stand for an awkward situation. "Nah, don't sweat it! Ruby here joined up two years early. Pretty crazy, huh? I mean, dad and I knew she would go far, but this is something else!" Yang said, earning a bright blush from Ruby.

Her blush grew brighter when Naruto walked up and hooked an arm around her shoulder, eliciting a raised eyebrow from Yang and Pyrrha while also making Ruby stare up at him in disbelief.

"Yeah, you wouldn't think a girl as cute as Ruby can pack a punch!"

Seeing the blonde's actions as a bit strange but deciding to ignore it, Naruto and Yang's reassurance made Pyrrha feel a bit more comfortable with herself and that she wasn't the only person who stood out. Prior to her application, she had thought that because of her status, she would have a hard time making friends — 'true' friends at that.

"That is extraordinary, Ruby. Naruto didn't tell me that," Pyrrha said, with a hint of relief. Now that she knew there were other people like her, she could feel better about herself. Maybe now she could finally open up to people rather than them seeing her as some social tool.

"Y-yeah, well, it's cool, I guess…" Ruby said, before she pried herself off of Naruto and tried to cool her reddened cheeks. Really, what was he thinking?

Not being offended at the least, Naruto nonetheless felt the need to apologize as he gestured to Pyrrha. "Sorry, Ruby, my bad! But both of us are gonna head off now, I'll see you guys later at the ceremony, okay?" he said, before he turned and waved his goodbyes as the two of them walked off.

"Thanks again! It was nice seeing you!" Pyrrha called out.

Once they were out of earshot, Yang looked at her sister and noticed that she was oddly quiet.

"Hey, you alright there, Rubes?"

No response.

"Helloooo? Earth to Ruby?"

Ruby blinked. "Huh? Yang?"

"Thinking about lover boy, eh? Gotta act fast though, or else Pyrrha's gonna stake her claim. Heck, I might even put a few moves on him, too. He's not exactly bad on the eyes…" she teased, giving her sister a wink. Ruby's jaw dropped open as another blush grew on her cheeks.

"W-w-what are you— I mean he's not— I'm not— We're just— ah! Yaannggggg!"

Yang grinned, mentally giving herself a pat on the back. As always, she couldn't help herself, not when it was so easy to mess with her sister. "I'm kidding! But seriously, Ruby, while Naruto is a start, you should still keep trying to make other friends of your own."

Yang pulled her hood down as a joke. Ruby smiled—shyly— as she put it back up, knowing that her sister was trying to be nice and was only thinking the best for her.

"But why would I need friends when I have you?"

"Well, actually…" Yang replied, being quickly surrounded by a group of people. "My friends are here now. Gotta go catch up. 'Kay, c'ya, bye."

"Wait! Where are you going?" Ruby cried in a daze as her sister sped off. The amount of people that ran past her made her head spin. "Are we supposed to go to our dorms? Where are our dorms? Do we have dorms? I don't know what I'm doing…"

The world became a dizzy mess as Ruby felt herself lose track of her feet, making her fall backwards. What was she going to do now? Yang had literally left her to fend for herself, throwing her to the wolves, this time without anyone she knew. No Naruto, no stupid older sister, no anyone. She would have to look out for herself at Beacon, find her own way around things without being salty about being abandoned by her own friends.

"What are you doing?!" A snooty, shrill voice shrieked loudly when Ruby smashed into her luggage.

"Uh… sorry," Ruby mumbled.

"Sorry?" the girl pointedly mocked. "Do you have any idea of the damage you could've caused?"

A pair of pale blue eyes glared heatedly at Ruby as the girl stomped her foot in disapproval. Examining her appearance, the girl had long white hair pulled back into an off-center bun tail that was pinned with an icicle shaped tiara. As if following a winter-centered/snow-centered theme, she was dressed in a thigh-length, strapless dress with faint color gradation from white to pale blue at the hem. A small piece of black lace sat on the front of her neckline and the hem of her dress is scalloped and stitched to resemble snowflakes, with layers of white tulle under the skirt. Over her shoulders was a bell-sleeved bolero with the same color gradation as her dress from shoulder to wrist, lined in red and with a ruffled collar, while on the back, a crest representing the Schnee family could be seen. The girl also wore a small apple pendant in a silver chain and thin, rectangular silver earrings. A thin white sash was tied around her waist with a pouch attached to the back, and on her feet the girl wore a set of white boots that were lined in red on the inside with wedged heels, the boots being higher at the back than the front. A small silver decoration could be seen across the top of the foot.

Ruby also noticed that an obvious, crooked scar ran vertically down her left eye, something that Ruby guessed the girl had gained from battle. Despite that, it did little to mar her elitist beauty, and if Ruby would admit, the scar only made her appear to be more dangerous, giving the impression that she was not the type to stick around at home all day and was afraid of getting her hands dirty.

"Uhh…" Ruby muttered dumbly, feeling sheepish from angering the obviously short-tempered girl. She tried to hand one of her suitcases back to her, only to have it snatched out of her hands.

"Gimme that! This is Dust mined and purified from the Schnee Quarry."

"Uhh…"

"What are you, brain dead? Dust!" she said, pulling out a vial from the case and waving it in front of Ruby, unaware—maybe even ignorant—that some particles managed to escape and had floated into Ruby's nose.

"Fire, Water, Lightning, energy! Are you even listening to me? Is any of this sinking in? What do you have to say for yourself!?"

"I—uhhaahhh-Choooooo!"

Unable to contain the irritation any longer, Ruby let out an almighty sneeze that triggered a reaction with the Dust particles in the air, setting them off like an explosion.

Unfortunately for her, it only seemed to infuriate the girl further.

"Unbelievable!" she screeched, dusting herself off as she had been caught in the blast. "This is exactly the kind of thing I was talking about!"

"I'm really, really sorry!" Ruby tried to put in an apology, fidgeting her fingers to emphasize the point. Her eyes wouldn't dare look up at the yelling, angry girl as they were drawn to the ground, like it was the most interesting thing in the world.

Ruby heard a scoff. "Ugh! You complete, dolt! What are you even doing here? Aren't you a little young to be attending Beacon?!"

"Well… I… um…"

"This isn't your ordinary combat school! It's not just sparing and practice, you know. We're here to fight monsters! So watch where you're going!"

Starting to get fed up with the crabby girl's pointed insults, Ruby could feel the irritation slipping in when her eyes narrowed and she bit back furiously.

"Hey, I said I was sorry, Princess!"

"It's heiress, actually."

Ruby turned and was amazed when her eyes landed on a girl who almost took her breath away.

"Weiss Schnee, heiress to the Schnee Dust Company, one of the largest producers of energy propellant in the world."

"Finally, some recognition!" Weiss said haughtily, a smug grin on her face. It felt good when people recognized greatness in front of them, unlike some people.

But the other girl wasn't finished. "The same company infamous for its controversial labor forces and questionable business partners."

Ruby started giggling when she saw Weiss reaction as her face morphed from one of self-satisfaction to anger once again. Taking a look at the other girl, though, she could tell that she was serious about what she said, like she had intimate knowledge about some of the Schnee Company's shady practices.

Taking a closer look at her, the girl's long black hair and piercing amber eyes tied with her appearance as a refined beauty. A large bow sat on the top of her head, and Ruby could swear that she saw it twitch ever so slightly. Purple eye shadow done in a catseye style further accentuated her feline-like theme. Seeing her clothes, she was dressed in a black, buttoned vest with coattails and a single silver button on the front. Underneath this was a white, sleeveless, high-necked, crop undershirt that exposed some of her stomach and belly button, along with white shorts that had a zipper on the front of each leg. She also wore black, low-heeled boots and full stockings with a color gradation of black to purple at her ankles, her emblem visible on the outside of both thighs just below her shorts in white. On her left arm is a detached sleeve with a silver cuff around her bicep, while black ribbons were wrapped around both forearms. A small, loose scarf was wrapped around her neck, and Ruby had caught sight of a gray, magnetic backpack strapped onto her back that was hidden by her hair.

All in all, if one were to say that Yang was a bombshell—a jaw-dropper—this girl would be more of a sophisticated and 'out-of-your-league' type of beauty.

Weiss scowled heavily, offended at the blatant insult to her family and their reputation.

"What— How dare—! The nerve of—! Ugh!"

Finding herself tongue-tied, Weiss decided that she would not tolerate the insolence any longer. It was unbecoming of her, after all, as a lady, and she would not lower herself to these people who obviously were only here to spite her.

"I promise I'll make this up to you!" Ruby exclaimed, feeling a bit guilty as she watched Weiss storm off. Her shoulders slumped. "I guess I'm not the only one having a rough first day. So what's—"

She stopped when she found that the other pale-skinned girl had disappeared.

Ruby sighed as she sank to the floor, muttering, "Welcome to Beacon," as she began to feel sorry for herself for being left alone once again. She felt like blaming herself. If she hadn't been so socially awkward, maybe things wouldn't have turn out like this. The truth was that Ruby had always had a problem with meeting new people, mostly because she was afraid of leaving a bad impression. Now that she had the chance to try to make new friends, unlikely as it was with Weiss, in the end Ruby knew she blew it all completely.

Heck, it was so bad even that blonde guy who was throwing up on the ship was probably having better luck than her.

"Hey."

Ruby opened her eyes when she heard someone approach her. Casting her gaze up, she saw a teen with a mop of blonde hair although she could tell it wasn't Naruto.

"I'm Jaune," he introduced, extending his hand to help her up.

Feeling a bit nervous, she hesitantly took it. "Ruby," she replied back. Speak of the devil…

"Aren't you the guy that threw up on the ship?"

Naruto groaned. Maybe leaving those two behind wasn't such a good idea.

"Naruto, are you sure we're heading in the right direction?" Pyrrha began, voicing her doubts. They had been wandering around the school for little more than half an hour by now.

"Hey, they don't call me the most unpredictable ninja for nothing! We'll get there in time, don't you worry!" Naruto assured as he gave her a thumbs up.

Pyrrha giggled. "Alright, lead the way, almighty leader."

The two of them walked around for a few more minutes before they spotted a congregation of people gathered in what looked to be an auditorium.

"Guess this is it," Naruto said, almost sighing in relief as they joined in.

"Hey! Naruto! You took your sweet time!"

Naruto had a smile grow on his face when he saw Yang waltz up to him. "Oh, hey! Nice to see you again, Pyrrha."

"Hello again." Pyrrha returned with a small wave.

"So… have you guys seen Ruby?"

"Huh? Uhh… no? Wasn't she with you?" Naruto questioned.

"Yeah… about that, heheh…" Yang rubbed the back of her head. "You see— oh! Ruby! Over here! I saved you a spot!"

Naruto and Pyrrha blinked in surprise when they saw a clearly annoyed looking Ruby stomp over and promptly glared daggers at her older sister.

Pyrrha smiled. "Hello, Ruby. How has your first day been?" she asked innocently. Ruby scoffed.

"You mean since Yang and Naruto ditched me and I exploded, right?! Yeah it's going absolutely wonderful!" She rolled her eyes.

"Yikes. Meltdown already?" Yang cringed.

"And you said you… exploded?" Naruto pointed out.

Ruby frowned. "Yeah, I literally blew up a hole in front of the school! Then there was a fire… and I think there were some ice?"

"Uh, okay…?"

"You're joking right?"

"Ugh, I wish! I tripped on some crabby girl's luggage! And then she yelled at me! And then I sneezed! And then I exploded! And then she yelled again! And I felt really, really bad! And I just wanted her to stop yelling at me!"

"You!"

Ruby jumped in fright when she heard Weiss sneak up behind her. She felt a pit form in her stomach; Weiss had definitely heard all that.

"Oh no, it's happening again!"

"You're lucky we didn't get blown off the side of the cliff!"

Yang and Pyrrha looked shocked.

"Jeez, Ruby, what's up with that?" Naruto asked, essentially voicing their thoughts.

"It was an accident! It was an accident!" Ruby claimed. Heck, as far as she knew, it was actually Weiss' fault in the first place. If she hadn't been waving around that vial of Dust, she would never have sneezed and it wouldn't have ever turned out like this.

Weiss scowled. "You really want to start making things up to me?" she asked.

"Absolutely!"

Weiss reached into her pocket and pulled out a brochure.

"Read this and don't ever speak to me again."

Yang and Naruto were about to retort to defend their sister/friend respectively when instead Pyrrha beat them to it.

"I think both of you got off on the wrong foot. Maybe you two should start over and try to be friends?"

Weiss scoffed. "Yeah! And we can paint—wait, Pyrrha Nikos?"

"Hello." Pyrrha waved.

"Ahem…" coughed lightly a voice that came from a microphone. "I'll keep this brief."

All five of their attentions were then drawn to the front as a silver-haired man and a blonde woman both stepped onto the podium.

'Professor Ozpin?' Naruto thought as he stared at the man. He noted the Headmaster's face had an illegible look, his gaze cast over his students as if he were studying them all at once. What unnerved him, however, was the way Ozpin had moved his eyes over directly at both him and Ruby, as if he did it intentionally. If Naruto were to be honest, he had found that a tad uncomfortable, yet also it made sense a bit. Ozpin was the reason why both he and Ruby were at Beacon; maybe he was trying to look out for them?

"You have travelled here today in search of knowledge, to hone your craft and acquire new skills. And when you have finished, you plan to dedicate your life to the protection of the people."

"Remind you of someone?"

Images of a certain mentor of his came to mind.

"Yeah, definitely."

"But I look amongst you and all I see is wasted energy in need of purpose, direction. You assume knowledge will free you of this, but your time at this school will prove that knowledge can only carry you so far. It is up to you to take the first step."

The Headmaster then walked off from the podium as he finished his speech. Naruto narrowed his eyes slightly. That was odd, he thought. While it wasn't uncommon for him to hear weird speeches and messages like that, being a ninja and all, the one Ozpin that had said in particular didn't sit well with him. It was the complete opposite to words of motivation or praise, and there was also a strange, foreboding undertone to it, like Ozpin was warning them for things to come.

It made Naruto question: what exactly was Beacon?

He shook his head. Whatever it was, it definitely rubbed him the wrong way. And he never forgot that strange presence that brought him here in the first place.

Unaware of Naruto's dilemma and seeing it right to organize the students, Glynda stepped up to the microphone for yet another announcement.

"You will gather in the ballroom tonight. Tomorrow your initiation begins. Be ready. You are dismissed!" Glynda said, watching the students begin to disperse.

As the crowd of students around them made their way to the exit, Yang looked at Naruto and noticed that he had that same glassy, far-off expression on his face again.

"Yo, Whiskers? You're doing it again," she said, poking him in the cheek. Naruto blinked a few times before shaking his head.

"Damn, I gotta stop doing that." Naruto laughed.

"Did you notice the Headmaster though, he seemed kind of… off."

Ruby nodded. "Yeah, it's almost like he wasn't even there."

"Indeed." Pyrrha added her two cents.

"Man, still can't believe I'm here."

Naruto yawned as he stretched on his bed, his eyes gazing upwards to the roof. After their little introduction in the auditorium, all new first-year students had been directed to the dining hall for their accommodation for the night. Since they weren't official Beacon students yet, they therefore weren't allowed to sleep in the dorms. Instead, sleeping bags had been set out for them and we're scattered in rows throughout the room, and Naruto's group had decided to settle somewhere in the middle.

"You wouldn't be here if it weren't for me. By now we'd still probably be wandering around in the wilderness like lost sheep because of your stupidity."

"Hey, you're the one who said we should keep contact with people to a minimum."

Currently, the blonde was dressed in his pajamas—a pair of orange shorts and a black t-shirt with the Uzumaki symbol emblazoned in white on it—as he lay on his sleeping bag situated between Ruby and Pyrrha.

"And you still can. We're only here to investigate that strange energy. Maybe even that professor since he seems to know more than he lets on. But even though were in this school, it doesn't mean you have to be friends with anyone. And you've obviously already failed in that regard."

"Well, it's not my fault people are attracted to my magnetic personality." Naruto grinned.

"More like they're helping out a lost pup. Remember, if we somehow manage to find a way home, you'll more than likely never see them again. So don't go crying to me when you have to spill the truth to your new friends. You brought this on yourself."

"In other words, you care about me that you don't want me to see me get hurt?" Naruto winked.

"Sh-shut up! Why you little—!"

With his great power, Kurama then suddenly forced Naruto out of his mindscape, although not before the blonde had a caught glimpse of a blushing fox. With the image being ingrained into his mind like a nail, the blonde had found it to be way too funny. Unable to control himself any longer, and also feeling his whole body begin to tremble, Naruto's mouth burst open as a loud, uproarious laughter caused him to double over.

"Hey Naruto, why are you laughing?" Yang asked, confused, as the three girls watched Naruto hold his sides and roll around in his sleeping bag. Like the others, she was dressed in her own pajamas, which was an orange tank top with her emblem on the front in red, and black boy shorts.

"Huh? Oh… don't worry I just…. thought of a really funny joke…" he replied between breaths.

"Okay…? You know… you're weird, right?" she asked rhetorically.

"Even though you have nice boobs doesn't mean what you say's true!"

All three of them blushed a bit from the indirect, yet slightly perverted compliment, before Yang left her fellow blonde to his own devices as she crashed into her own bed and looked at her sister, who was writing in a little notebook.

"It's like a big slumber party!"

"I don't think dad would approve of all the boys, though," Ruby added. Her pajamas consisted of a black tank top with a heart-shaped Beowolf design on the chest and white long pants with pink roses as decoration. She also had a black sleeping mask with triangular red eyes sitting at the top of her head.

Staring at some of the boys, Yang smirked. "I know I do," she purred. She cringed a bit though when she saw Vomit Boy walk past. To tell the truth, Jaune wasn't exactly bad looking, all right? He just didn't fit her type.

Pyrrha, however, was staring fleetingly at Jaune with interest.

"So… what'cha doing, Rubes?" Yang asked, looking at the little book she was writing in.

"A letter to the gang back at Signal," Ruby replied. "I promised to tell them all about Beacon and how things are going."

"Aww, that's so cuuuttteee!" Ruby threw a pillow at her sister's face.

"Shut up! I didn't get to take my friends with me to school. It's weird not knowing anyone here."

"What about Naruto, Pyrrha and Jaune? They're all pretty cool, especially Naruto! Who by the way, is actually quite handsome, eh?" she teased, bumping her elbow into Ruby a little. Yang whispered the last part into her sister's ear so that the other blonde wouldn't hear.

Ruby blushed. "I swear, Yang—"

"But at least you've got a few friends, right?" Yang interrupted her. "That's a 300% increase!"

"I'm pretty sure Weiss counts as a 'negative friend'."

"Ah, forget about that, she'll come around eventually. You still did pretty good, sis! I see good progress, and I barely did anything!" Ruby threw another pillow at her face.

"You still ditched me and I blew up, by the way." Ruby pouted.

Yang sighed. Yeah, she definitely messed up on that one. Their dad wouldn't be too happy either if he found out she left Ruby behind with her friends. Being the youngest in the entire school, he had asked Yang specifically to look out for her on the first day, as her big sister, since Ruby didn't know anyone. What Yang did basically amounted to abandoning her.

"Look, it's only been one day. Trust me, you've got friends all around you. You just haven't met them yet."

They then saw the flickering lights of a candle as Ruby looked to see the same black-haired girl from earlier. She was sitting in a corner by herself while reading a book.

"Who turned on the lights?" Naruto mumbled as he rubbed his sleepy eyes. Apparently, he had managed to control himself and both he and Pyrrha had fallen asleep.

"That girl…" Ruby began.

"You know her?" Yang asked.

Ruby shook her head. "Not really. She saw what happened this morning, but left before I could say anything," she explained.

Yang grinned. "Well, now's your chance! Come on, hot stuff, you're coming with us!"

"Wait, what?" Naruto murmured before he was pulled along by Yang.

"Hey, wait! What are you doing?!"

"Helllooooo!"

The black haired girl looked up from her book. Oh, it's that girl again. And who's that big chested blonde waving at her? And she brought her boyfriend?

"I believe you two may know each other!" Yang said. Naruto and Ruby glared at the back of her head.

"Umm, hi? Aren't you that girl that exploded?" the other girl asked, looking at Ruby.

"Y-yeah! My name's Ruby. What's yours?" she replied, about to offer her hand to shake before she pulled back when the other girl went back to her book.

Naruto frowned, crossing his arms. "Hey, she's talking to you, ya know? Ruby's just trying to be nice. What's you're problem, huh?" he said, defending his friend. He absolutely hated it when someone rebuked you when you literally did nothing wrong. Growing up alone without friends or family made him resent that.

The black haired girl looked up to send a heated glare at Naruto. Really, they couldn't take the hint? Sighing in frustration, and the fact these annoying people won't leave despite her making it clear that she wasn't interested, she lowered her book and decided to indulge in them so they could finally leave her alone.

"I'm Blake," she answered bluntly. Naruto noticed the way her 'bow' twitched.

"Well, Blake, I'm Yang! Ruby's older sister!" Yang introduced cheerfully. "I like your bow!"

"Thanks."

"It goes great with your… pajamas!"

"Right."

"Am I seeing things? I swear to whatever deity these people worship that I'm speaking to Sasuke."

Kurama snickered. "Well, we know how much of an unhealthy obsession you had with that guy. You'll probably be the same oblivious idiot who'll fall head over heels with her," he teased. "By the way, Remnant worships this deity called Oum. Or did you forget those religious fanatics who tried to kill you when you mentioned Kami?"

"Oh yeah… ehh. Doesn't matter anyway. I was never that religious."

And to his relief as well. While he didn't discriminate, since he was in fact part of the same religion the majority of the Elemental Countries followed, he couldn't imagine people like those guys who wanted to build a literal wall just because you had a different religion.

Not only that, they were also planning on bombing a whole nation so they could endorse themselves as 'the dominant superpower in the world'! What was up with that?!

Anyway, that was the end of that line of thinking. Funnily enough, he couldn't actually voice these thoughts because it was such a sensitive topic here in Remnant.

"You don't want to make the people mad."

"Yeah, yeah, I know."

"Heheh, nice night, don't you think?" Yang asked awkwardly as she tried to make something out of this conversation.

Blake sighed. "Yes, it's lovely," she said dryly. "Almost as lovely as this book…"

His Sasuke-dar was going off the charts.

"Kurama, what does the scouter say about her power level?"

"It's over nine thousand."

"That I will continue to read."

The sisters kept smiling.

"As soon as you leave."

Naruto palmed his face.

"Yeah, this girl's a lost cause," Yang finished. Ruby slumped in defeat.

"What's it about?" Naruto abruptly asked.

Blake's eyes widened slightly. "Huh?" she said, dumbly.

Naruto nudged his head. "You're book. What's the title?"

"Well," Blake started. She decided to give the blonde a brief summary since he was being pushy. "It's about a man with two souls, each fighting for control over his body."

Naruto almost jumped in disbelief. Kurama saw the irony in it all.

"That is absolutely rich."

"You're kidding…"

"That actually sounds… really interesting," Naruto slowly admitted. Blake picked up the slight hitch in his voice, like he was familiar with what she said.

"Have you read this book before?" she asked, genuinely curious. Her smooth, sweet voice tickled his ears. Naruto was surprised at how pleasant it was.

"C-can't say I have, no. But I'd like to read it sometime," Naruto stated, blushing as those kinds of thoughts came to his mind. Now getting a good look at her, he had a slight feeling of nostalgia when he saw what were probably her pajamas. It consisted of a black, long-sleeved yukata with white edging over a purple undershirt, and a matching skirt. A black obi was wrapped around her waist and was tied with a black and white string. All things considered, her whole appearance reminded him of home.

He also couldn't help but note that she was also really pretty.

Wait, where the hell did that come from?

'Bullseye.' Kurama thought.

"I-I love reading, too." Ruby shyly said. "Yang used to read to me every night before bed. Stories of heroes and monsters… they're one of the reasons I want to be a Huntress."

Blake rolled her eyes. "Why is that? Hoping you'll live happily ever after?"

"I'm hoping we all will. When I was a girl, I wanted to be just like those heroes in the books. Someone who fought for what was right, and who protected people who couldn't protect themselves."

Naruto smiled. 'Guess I found a female mini-me.'

"That's very ambitious for a child," Blake admitted. "Unfortunately, the real world isn't the same as a fairy tale."

"Well, that's why we're here… to make it better."

"Ohhh, I'm so proud of my baby sister!" Yang said as she wrapped her little sister in a tight hug. Ruby felt her cheeks grow hot when she saw Naruto give her a wink and a thumbs up. Stupid Yang and her stupid boobs and her stupid teasing…

"Cut it out!" Ruby cried before bonking her sister on the head. She then started to tussle and wrestle with her older sister as Yang refused to let go.

"Stop it, you two!" Naruto said as he brought his hands up. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Ruby felt herself be torn from her sister and saw the same happen with Yang by two familiar mops of blonde hair. Oh yeah, she forgot that Naruto's Semblance allowed him to clone himself. Now that she thought about it, with the number of clones she saw him make the last time, his ability was actually quite powerful.

Blake, meanwhile, looked on in shock when she realized that she and Naruto shared a very similar Semblance. It piqued her interest.

"Sorry, I… didn't catch your name before?" Blake asked, still astonished.

Naruto grinned. "My names Naruto Uzumaki, the coolest and most awesome Huntsman to ever exist!"

"Hey! That's my line, Blondie!" Yang snapped angrily as the clone holding her popped out of existence.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "What the? You're blonde too?!" he exclaimed.

"What in the world is going on over here!? Don't you realize some of us are trying to sleep?!"

An angry Weiss trudged irritably towards them before her eyes widened when she recognized Ruby.

"Oh, not you again!" both she and Yang yelled simultaneously.

"Shh! Guys, she's right! People are trying to sleep!" Ruby said in an attempt to placate things before they got out of hand again. It wouldn't do well on any of their records if they got told off on the first day by one of the professors, most notably if the professor was someone as scary as Glynda Goodwitch.

Weiss snorted. "So now you're on my side!"

"Weiss, I swear, you coming here just made things worse," Naruto said as he rubbed the bridge of his nose to calm the headache he knew was beginning to grow.

"Excuse me? What is that supposed to mean? Are you saying that this is my fault? How dare you!"

"We were perfectly fine until you showed up."

"And I was always on you're side, Weiss!" Ruby added.

"Yeah, what's your problem with my sister?! She's only trying to be nice!" Yang asked fiercely.

"I can't believe all of you! And Ruby is a hazard to my health!" Weiss replied indignantly.

Fed up with their bickering, Blake decided that she had enough.

"Lights out, kids," she said, before extinguishing the light from her candle.

The new day started off with a high. Upon awakening, each of the new students knew that today was the day to make it or break, either to succeed at Beacon and become a Huntsman, or to fail and try to find another path to their dreams. Unfortunately for them, there were no second chances, just like out in the field. With their spirits bright, they each gained confidence in themselves for whatever challenge Ozpin had prepared for them, keeping in mind the training and trials they had undergone for the chance they had now. For years, this was what their whole education had been centered on. Their teachers had painstakingly engraved to them the necessary skills from their previous Academies, and today, they were finally going to be put to use. There was nothing more to hide, nothing for them to hold back for, and each of them had no intention now of letting themselves down.

"So, Pyrrha, have you given any thought to whose team you would like to be on? I'm sure everyone must be eager to unite with such a strong, well known individual such as yourself."

They were currently in the changing rooms where all new students had stored their belongings the previous night. Despite dreading that she may have to deal with some annoying people, Weiss had awoken feeling hopeful that she could convince the famous Pyrrha Nikos to team up with her. Besides, she'd be more fitting as a teammate than that rude and idiotic blonde guy whom Pyrrha seemed to like to hang around with.

"Hmm… I'm not quite sure. I was planning on letting the chips fall where they may," Pyrrha admitted.

"Well, I was thinking maybe we could be on a team together," Weiss said.

"That sounds grand!"

"Great!"

"Hi Pyrrha, Ice Queen."

Naruto greeted the two as he stepped up to join them. Unlike his previous jumpsuit, he was now dressed in a black uniform jacket with an orange zipper and buttons on the waist and sleeves. While it couldn't be seen, underneath the jacket was a black, mesh undershirt that served as a form of light armor, while he also had visible, orange pants that had a holster of some kind on his right knee. He also wore black sandals and had a red armband that held the Uzumaki crest on his left bicep.

"Hello again, Naruto. I have no doubt you're ready for what happens next?" Pyrrha asked nicely, taking a glimpse of his outfit while Weiss snorted and snapped her head away.

Naruto pounded his chest. "Ready as I'll ever be," he assured. "Any of you two know how teams work around here? I heard rumors the professors are the ones responsible for assigning us to our teams."

Pyrrha had a pensive look on her face. "I think I've heard similar information myself, although I am not quite sure about the selection process. What I do know is that teams are comprised of four students each, so there is a good chance we may be together if we play our cards right," she said, smiling slightly at the idea of being in the same team as Naruto.

An amused grin came to his face. Four-man cells, huh? He had to force himself to hold back a laugh. First Ozpin, then the book Blake was reading, and now he found that the team system was another reflection of his past life. It was uncanny, how the more things change; the more they stay the same.

"Well, guess I know who to look out for when we're being picked." Naruto winked, which made Pyrrha giggle.

"I think you'd make a great leader, Naruto."

Off to the side, Weiss began to seethe as she felt like she was being ignored. Seriously, this was the last thing she wanted, and the whole reason why she went to talk to Pyrrha as soon as she could. She knew once the blonde arrived, Pyrrha's attention would be directed more at him rather than her. And Weiss wasn't having that!

"Seriously, please stop it. Blondie, don't you have Ruby and Yang with you already?" Weiss probed. She stared at him skeptically.

Naruto shrugged. "Pyrrha's a good friend of mine too, so of course I wouldn't mind if we're all together in one team. Why? You jealous you weren't invited to the super awesome ninja club." He wagged his eyebrows mischievously.

Weiss huffed. "Argh… you're so… infuriating!" she cried, before she turned and left for the designated area for their exams. She'd show him! Weiss swore that she'd prove to Pyrrha in the exam that it was her, Weiss Schnee, and not that stupid Naruto who was better suited to be the red-head's teammate. She'll show that dumb blonde a thing or two! And make him regret ever looking down on her!

"Don't take it too hard, Weiss! I was joking about the last bit!" Naruto called out as he watched her leave. Feeling bad for the way he'd been treating the poor girl, he could only resign to a sigh. He'd do better next time.

As the blonde wallowed in his guilt, unknown to him, the fact that he had said that she was one of his closest friends made Pyrrha's chest feel strangely warm. Despite all her talent and achievements, a true friend was—no matter how hard she worked—something that she could never gain. So to feel like this—was this what it was like, to have an actual, meaningful relationship? Not a lot of people could look past her status, and they would always see her as this unattainable goal. It made her feel lonely, and it was difficult knowing because of that; Pyrrha never really had any real connections with anyone.

Thankfully, the familiar voice of a stern blonde-haired woman caused them to break out of their stupor. "Would all first-year students please report to Beacon Cliff for initiation. Again, all first-year students report to Beacon Cliff immediately," came the announcement over the PA.

"Looks like it's go time." Naruto said. Pyrrha nodded her head.

"Good luck, for the both of us."

Having gathered at the edge of Beacon Cliff with the rest of the students, Naruto stood straight and ready as he silently waited for the beginning of their exam. Rather than feeling even slightly anxious, he was filled to the brim with confidence, knowing that—despite only being limited to shadow clones—his strength was still more than enough to handle several packs of Grimm. Shifting his eyes to his left then to his right, Naruto smiled when he noticed Ruby was twitching with excitement and when he saw the ear-splitting grin on Yang's face. Since arriving at Beacon, this was probably the happiest he had seen them, especially Ruby, and was glad to know that just like him, the sisters were also itching to get in on the action.

Ruby, in particular, was feeling somewhat relieved despite the heavy expectations on her shoulders. Finally, she was doing something she was familiar with, and something she knew she was good at. And at least this time, there was no having to talk with random people, no having to try to make friends with strangers, and the best of all, no angry girls yelling at her. Despite making some progress in a few of those regards, and was genuinely happy she had Pyrrha, Jaune and Naruto now as friends—outside them and Yang—she still didn't feel comfortable interacting with anyone else. And as much as she liked them, she still felt much better when it was her scythe who was doing the talking.

As directed, each of the students stood in a line atop single, square-shaped platforms that were separated along the edge of the cliff. If they were to look forward, all they would see were vast stretches of forest that seemed to go on for miles, and which no doubt held scores of Grimm within.

Ozpin coughed before taking a sip out of his mug. Good, he thought, passing his eyes for a moment over two certain teens. All the individuals he had been interested in the most were here. "For years, you have trained to become warriors. And today, your abilities will be evaluated in the Emerald Forest," he said, before Glynda decided to step in.

"Now, I'm sure many of you have heard rumors about the assignment of teams. Well, allow us to put an end to your confusion. Each of you will be given teammates… today."

"What? Aw…" Ruby groaned softly.

"These teammates will be with you for the rest of your time here at Beacon. So it is in your best interest to be paired with someone with whom you can work well." A smirk then grew on Ozpin's face, like he enjoyed the downtrodden looks from some of the students. It almost made it seem like he took delight in Ruby's plight. "That being said, the first person you make eye contact with after landing will be your partner for the next four years."

"What?!" Ruby whined, her voice going up a pitch.

"See? I told you!" an orange-haired girl said who stood a few meters away.

Naruto had to bark back a laugh when he heard Ruby's voice break. Man was he cruel, as instead of feeling sympathy for the girl, he instead found it really funny how her demeanor had become sour really quickly. It was like watching somebody take a candy from a baby, only this time he could also see Ruby's metaphorical world literally crumble around her.

Naruto then saw her look at him pleadingly, and he could spot a small amount of tears forming in the corner of her eyes. Oh damn, now he felt bad for the girl. Now that he mentioned it, Ruby was actually kind of an introvert. Unlike him, who wanted to make as many friends as possible—annoyingly so—Ruby was the type who would rather keep to herself and to her closest people only, and even then he knew that she wasn't comfortable being around strangers.

'Wait, how could I be so stupid…!' His eyes widened as he realized something. Shit, how could he not have seen it sooner? All the signs were there. How could he not know that Ruby had genuine social issues, and that forcing her to adapt quickly only made it worse. He uttered a curse under his breath. If there was anyone to blame, it was both himself and Yang. They were expecting way too much from her too quickly. She may be fifteen, but this wasn't his world. She was still technically a child!

"After you've partnered up, make your way to the northern end of the forest. You will meet opposition along the way. Do not hesitate to destroy everything in your path, or you will die."

Naruto heard the blonde guy beside Ruby laugh nervously. Jaune, was it? Either way, his whimpering didn't seem to bother Ozpin.

"You will be monitored and graded for the duration of your initiation," he continued, pausing for a moment before dropping the proverbial 'bomb'. "But our instructors will not intervene. You will find an abandoned temple at the end of the path containing several relics. Each pair must choose one, and return to the top of the cliff. We will regard that item, as well as your standing, and grade you appropriately."

There was a certain glint in Naruto's eyes now. 'Finally,' he thought. 'They were about to get some action.' But he had something to do first before he focused on the relics.

"Are there any questions?" Ozpin finished. Despite the students' mixed reactions, the Headmaster still had that same blank look.

Jaune slowly raised his hand.

"Yeah, um, sir—"

"Good!" Ozpin said cheerfully, ignoring the clearly worried teen. "Now, take your positions."

Naruto crouched, pumping some chakra into his legs. He saw the others copy him and proceeded to take their own battle positions.

"Uh, sir? I've got, um, a question?" Jaune spoke up again as he continued to press the Headmaster.

Naruto saw Weiss shoot up in the air. Okay, so these platforms can launch people? That's pretty cool.

"You can fly, idiot."

"So, this landing strategy thing, uh, w-what is it? You're, like, dropping us off or something?" Jaune asked hopefully.

"No." Ozpin deadpanned. He ignored how quickly the color faded from Jaune's face as the blonde realized what he was going to say next. "You will be falling."

"O-oh, I see. So, like, did you hand out parachutes for us?" Jaune had a really bad feeling about this.

"No. You will be using your own landing strategy."

"Right…"

Naruto winked at Ruby before he was promptly sent off.

"Woohoo! Yeah this is awesome!"

Naruto grinned as he felt the wind rush past his face and hair. While this certainly was fun, he knew he had a job to do and he could see that he and the others were already past the peak of their flight. The first thing on their list was to descend safely towards the ground.

'Alright, I got this!' He thought as a plan came to mind. Since he can't use his more advanced abilities, he was going to have to make do with what he had.

Pulling out a kunai and some ninja wire from the holster on his knee, Naruto tied a line around the kunai tightly before he pulled his arm back and aimed for the largest tree closest to him.

'This is gonna hurt a bit…' Once he was in range, combined with the force of his descent, Naruto hurled the dagger powerfully at his target and felt relief when the blade dug deep into the tree trunk. Having no other choice now, else he risks breaking a few bones, Naruto grabbed on tight to the ninja wire as he used his body's momentum to swing himself around the tree.

"Clumsy, but it works." Kurama admitted with a shrug.

It fell on deaf ears though as Naruto focused on the task at hand. Unlike Tenten, he wasn't an expert with ninja tools, but he knew enough about them to be able to use them effectively. For example, as a testament to their origin and craftsmanship, ninja wire was renowned for being durable and strong enough to carry the weight of a single person. It was why he always carried a spool on his person, for situations like this where its versatility could be put to good use, and during times where he couldn't use his clones or jutsu. Not only was it simpler, but it was also most likely a better alternative for what he wanted to achieve.

Eventually, Naruto slowed down enough that he was able to stick himself onto the thick bark with his chakra, choosing instead to run out the last vestiges of momentum his body had left.

"Alright, now where's Ruby?" Naruto muttered as he hopped back down to the ground. That went smoother than he thought, not that it mattered to anyone.

Examining his surroundings, Naruto looked around and saw nothing but lush greenery. He found himself genuinely comfortable here, while quietly noting the large amounts of natural energy in this place and how closely it resembled home. From his training as a Sage, Naruto knew the longer he was in tune with nature, the more powerful and peaceful he felt. It made him thankful that despite all that's changed in his life, these things had stayed the same.

Deciding that sparing a moment to himself wouldn't hurt anyone, Naruto stayed still as he began to mix the natural energy with his own chakra. Like taking a breath of fresh air, it felt good. He could feel the natural energy flow through him, strengthening him, gifting him with an inner peace most spend years to achieve. But this was just a taste of the true power of a Sage. Continuing to reach out to it, Naruto could feel his senses stretch out as nature filled its avatar with all the benefits it can give.

"Okay, that's enough. Gotta get back to Ruby," Naruto said, breaking the connection he had before speeding through the forest.

Ruby, meanwhile, was also facing a similar predicament. But rather than just looking for her sister, she was also trying to keep an eye out for Naruto, unaware that he was also looking for her. Whether it was either the blonde or her sister, Ruby didn't mind as long as she didn't get paired up with anyone else. She wouldn't know what she would do if she got paired up with someone like Weiss.

"Yaaanngggg!" Ruby cried. 'Ugh, this is bad, this is really bad!'

She listed the possible individuals in her head that she wouldn't mind being paired with. Weiss was definitely a no. Blake… maybe? Jaune was pretty cool, but she thought he wouldn't do much good in a fight. Pyrrha was fine, and she was nice!

She shook her head. Okay, as long as it wasn't Weiss, then she'd be fine, right?

Ruby was forced to slide to a halt when another girl came into view.

'You have got to be kidding me…' Ruby mentally groaned when her eyes met the last person she wanted to see. Oh Oum, why did it have to be the Ice Queen?

For a moment the two girls stared at each other, before Weiss turned on her heels and walked away.

"Wait! Where are you going?!" Ruby called out, trying to catch the attention of the aforementioned Ice Queen. She kicked the ground dejectedly when Weiss ignored her. "We're supposed to be teammates…"

A few seconds later, Weiss came back and pulled Ruby by the hood.

"By no means does this make us friends," Weiss said, refusing to even look at her as she dragged her away. While she wasn't exactly her favorite person in the world, Weiss didn't doubt that Ruby was a far better option than that creepy blonde guy who probably had a thing for her.

Ruby couldn't believe it though. "You came back!" She didn't even care that she was being lugged like a sack of potatoes, the fact that Weiss was willing to partner up with her already made her day.

What could possibly be better than that?

Unknown to Ruby, the reason why Weiss was so willing was because the alternative wasn't exactly much better.

"Just great…" Jaune mumbled. As his luck would have it, he had his jacket embedded into the bark of a tree by a spear that came out of nowhere. And to make things even better, Weiss showed up and left him when he was literally struggling to get himself free. But to be fair, he did look kind of stupid…

"Jaune?"

He was slightly surprised to hear someone call him. His eyes searched for it, with Jaune eventually peering down to find Pyrrha looking up at him worriedly as he hung in mid-air.

Thank Oum she came with the save.

He also absently noted that she had a nice rack.

"Have you… found a partner yet?" Pyrrha asked.

"No…" Jaune moaned in return. Of course not, Weiss would deny ever meeting him in the forest if anyone brought it up.

Pyrrha scratched her cheek. "Well… I'm still free if you don't mind…" she said coyly as she smiled at him.

"O-oh! Really?" His tone was incredulous. Unfortunately, he failed to see why she was so willing to help him. A normal person would. But not seeing the deeper meaning of something wasn't exactly new to him. "So, um, could you help me get down first?"

Inwardly, Pyrrha couldn't be happier.

"Of course."

"Damn, where the hell is she?!"

Naruto gritted his teeth as he continued to look around, trying to find some kind of hint for his scythe-wielding friend. During his run, he had come across a few packs of Ursa, which didn't provide him too much trouble as in essence they were just simple, mindless beasts. Apparently they grew stronger the older they were, but he hadn't faced any of the sort yet.

What did surprise him, however, that he found shortly after his first ever battle with the Grimm was that they contained a familiar, yet strange type of energy. It was something that he could never quite put his finger on. What he could say about it was that it was something impure, and that it felt corrupted, filled with anger and hate. It reminded him of something he would expect from someone who murdered innocent people, a presence so foul and tainted that sucked the life around it.

It reminded him of what Kurama had said a few weeks after his arrival on Remnant:

("These creatures, even to me they are a mystery. Unfortunately, it is impossible to study them since their corpses disappear upon death. All we know is that they are filled with such malice that there mere presence taints the land. The only comparison is that they are very vaguely similar to the Jūbi.")

That was the most information he could get about them. Otherwise, he was just in the dark about their origins as the rest of Remnant. Not that it mattered, and that didn't prevent him from destroying them when he could. To him, they were just mindless killers with an unquenchable thirst for bloodshed. As long as they kept murdering innocent people, then he'd be damned to allow them to continue without restraint.

"Ruby? Ruby!"

Naruto's eyes widened when he was alerted by Weiss' voice.

'Guess she's paired up with Weiss. Oh boy…' Naruto winced as he turned and moved towards the sound. Both were each other's worst enemies. Knowing that both Ruby and Weiss would be put on the same team if they pass, it would be a miracle if Beacon remained standing by the end of it. If only this world's deity was merciful enough that their future teammates wouldn't kill themselves from the headache. He'd sure hate to be them.

Finding himself in a clearing, Naruto saw Weiss be surrounded by a pack of Beowolves that was led by an even larger and more powerful Beowolf.

"Naruto?!" Weiss exclaimed, her eyes shifting to the blonde when he suddenly appeared behind her. How did he… she never imagined he would be this fast. She didn't even hear him coming, not to mention his speed must've been out of this world if he could cover the distance between them this quickly.

She shook her head, directing her focus back to the Grimm. Whatever he did, Semblance or not it was irrelevant right now.

"Where's Ruby?" Naruto basically demanded, pulling out four shuriken and placing one between each finger on his right hand while his left held a kunai. His eyes narrowed when he saw the larger Grimm stalk closer to them.

"I don't know! But I'm not waiting to find out," Weiss replied, before she brought her rapier up. She thought back to her training, and assumed the correct posture and poise that set her up to attack.

'Head up, shoulders back, right foot forward, not that forward, slow your breathing, wait for the right time to strike…'

"And… Now!"

Almost on command, Weiss lunged with her sword while Naruto flicked his wrist and sent the throwing stars towards the center of the larger Beowolf's face.

But to his utter surprise, a certain black-haired teen then showed up out of nowhere and got in the way.

"Uhh! Gotcha— whoa!"

Ruby ducked as she avoided the projectiles from skewering the back of her head. It was in the nick of time, too, as she had barely seen them in the corner of her eyes. Where did they come from, anyway? And couldn't they have warned her beforehand? Thankfully, her training from her Uncle Qrow taught her the importance of being aware of your surroundings. It helped for times like these, especially. Otherwise, she'd be as dead as a log if it weren't for her Uncle beating it into her head.

"What the… Ruby?!" Naruto couldn't believe his eyes. If she had been more careless, he could've seriously hurt the girl!

"Naruto? What was that for?!" Ruby asked angrily as she sent him a glare.

"Watch where you're going, idiot! And where the hell have you been?"

Not giving them another second to regroup, the Beowolf howled as it pounced upon the three.

"Dodge!" Naruto cried as he leapt out of the way.

The other two jumped in the opposite direction allowing the large Beowolf to get in between them.

"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto said before a small army of clones appeared behind him. "Alright guys, let's show 'em who's boss!"

The Grimm stepped back when they saw how quickly a multitude of the blonde's copies appeared and outnumbered them three to one. Ruby and Weiss, in the meantime, couldn't believe their eyes.

Shaking her head, Ruby tugged on Weiss' sleeve. "Come on, Weiss! We've gotta give it our all, too!" Ruby said as she prepared Crescent Rose and changed it to its rifle form.

"Let 'em have it!"

The army of clones charged as they each ganged up on a Grimm. Sniper rounds were shot from Ruby while Weiss sent Dust-based ranged attacks that pulverized the outnumbered Beowolves. Despite their resilience and single-minded goal to kill these children, their numbers quickly dwindled against the blonde onslaught, with the original not even appearing to tire at all even after using such a taxing ability.

Naruto sidestepped a Beowolf's claw before pounding it in the face with his fist. The force of the punch skidded the Grimm back a few feet, dazing it and causing it to remain helpless as Naruto's kunai slit its throat.

After a few minutes of fighting, the Beowolves numbers faded until one remained, the largest and possibly oldest of the pack.

Ruby was about to charge head-on into the enraged Grimm, until Naruto put a hand out to stop her.

"No, he's mine," he said, his tone leaving no room for argument. Ruby relented and took a step back as Naruto cracked his knuckles.

"Let's dance." Naruto broke into a sprint and pulled out another kunai from his pouch. Now both of his hands held one each.

The Beowolf snarled as its blonde nemesis came to meet it without fear. Angered at the fact that Naruto was underestimating it, the Beowolf crouched low onto its fours before it pushed off hard against the ground.

The remaining clones followed the original as several of them tried to impale the wolf Grimm with their kunai. As they got closer, surprise would be an understatement when they saw the Beowolf's speed, catching them off-guard a bit as they were quickly dispelled when it swiped its large claws at them.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, noticing that this guy wasn't like the others, and it was definitely more powerful than the other lesser Grimm his clones had no trouble fighting. This must've been one of those older Grimm they kept talking about, the ones that, through years of experience, had developed enough intelligence that it could predict and anticipate his strategies. It surprised him, blurring what he previously thought as mindless beasts. He hadn't encountered these types of Grimm before.

Either way, he was going to take this a bit more seriously this time.

The Grimm roared as it dived after another set of Naruto's clones, unaware whom the original as it resorted to just taking out every single one of them. Slightly annoyed that this thing wasn't dead already, the clones managed to move out of the way in time and followed up with a jump as they impaled their kunai into the Beowolf's back.

"That should do it," Naruto remarked, twisting his kunai to emphasize the point. A long, pained howl emanated from the Beowolf's throat before it slumped forward, dead as it evaporated into black mist.

Naruto sheathed his weapon when he felt the job was done and dispelled the rest of his clones. When the field cleared, he turned to look at Ruby who was gawking at him in disbelief, while Weiss had her arms crossed and was stamping her foot impatiently with an accusing look. The Ice Queen definitely wanted some answers.

"That… was… awesome!" Ruby cried as she ran up to the blonde teen, staring up at him with stars in her eyes. The way his clones manhandled those Grimm, and how easily he took out that big one, it was amazing, spectacular, and all sorts of cool! Where did he learn to fight like that? And what was with his crazy Semblance?! How can he multiply himself so much that they become a literal one-man army? There must be drawbacks to it, right?

"Okay… Ruby? Ruby, stop…" Naruto said as Ruby continued to bombard him with questions he couldn't even make out since she was speaking so rapidly. It was like she was talking in a whole new other language.

"Come on, Naruto! Tell me, I won't tell anyone, I promise? We're friends so you can trust me, please? Please, Naruto? Pretty pleeaaasseee?" Ruby whined, cupping her hands to beg him to tell her. Naruto had to pry her off of him when Weiss sent him a death glare.

"Ugh, stop being such a child, Ruby!" Weiss groaned as she stepped closer to him. She pointed her finger at him accusingly. "You! What kind of Semblance is that? There must be some drawbacks if you can create that many clones of yourself!"

Naruto had to sigh when Weiss didn't leave any room to argue. "My 'Semblance' allows me to create as many copes of myself as long as I have the energy for it. Since it depends on my stamina, I've trained my whole life to conserve as much energy as possible whenever I use my techniques. Other than that, I don't experience anything other than some fatigue, which rarely happens nowadays," he explained, frowning slightly as he returned the look she was sending him.

Thankfully, he didn't have to explain himself further as Weiss seemed satisfied with his answer, seeing as she leveled her glare before her same, haughty expression reappeared on her face.

"Come on, Ruby. We still have to find those relics," Weiss said as she walked back into the woods. Seeing her partner was leaving, Ruby uttered Naruto a goodbye before running after Weiss.

Left by himself again, Naruto felt relief when he saw Weiss was willing to somewhat cooperate with Ruby, even though they had come off to a rocky start. She may be rough around the edges, but Naruto knew that deep down Weiss was a genuinely good person who, while she tried to hide it, held her own insecurities and who also did care about what other people think. Someone just had to help her not get too worked up over it. Although it may take time, Naruto had enough faith in Ruby that she would eventually break Weiss out of her shell and let her open up more. Besides, being so uptight all the time was bad for your health, and it'd be a shame to waste such a pretty face.

Knowing that his job was complete, Naruto looked up and noted that there was still plenty of daylight left. He'd probably been here for about an hour or two, and looking for Ruby had distracted him from another crucial part of this exam.

He forgot to find a partner.

"Now where can I find a nice, quirky girl around here?"

Author's Note: 9 August 2017

Soooooo...

I guess I'm back?

Anyway, I finished this chapter WAY back in April but I tried to hold myself from uploading till I finished Chapter 5. Unfortunately, though, due to work commitments, university, university-work placement, gaming (Overwatch and DS III), spending time for myself just chillin' with friends and stuff, fanfiction had been the last thing on my mind and I never did get around to working on it till now. To be completely honest as well, chapter 5 is still under development, and as of yet I don't have an estimated time that it would be finished. That being said, this story has always been under my radar and nagging me within my thoughts, and every day this little voice in my head tells me: "Come on, get back to it! Finish what you started! Have a go!"

I've always been aware of the feedback and reading you guys' messages as well. Yeah, this story potentially has some plot holes that, most likely, I have carelessly over-looked. When I feel more comfortable with this and the further along we go, I will definitely go back and revise it. Right now, I'm aiming first to get this story straight. In fact, that last tidbit in chapter 2 was something I now (sorta?) think shouldn't have been revealed yet. Feel like it reveals a bit too much, but can't do anything about it now, eh?

Don't you just love it when ideas suddenly swarm into your head without much organisation?

Despite my faults (not to mention that not everyone's perfect as well), I feel like whatever I have in mind in the future is something that you, the readers, would find exciting and I hope that whatever I've produced now is satisfactory enough. I'm not aiming to make this the greatest story ever told or what not, just something that's good to pass the time and enjoyable to read as a small project of mine. I may not be the savviest person like some other great people on this website, but I do enjoy doing what I'm doing right now despite that.

So, moving on, I haven't really gone over this chapter much since I felt it was time to finally put it out. Hopefully, I can start pumping out the next chapter soon since I have about a week's break till university starts again. If there's any other questions or mistakes that you guys notice, feel free to let me know so I can rectify when I'm next online.

Till then, hope to see you guys in the next chapter!

Peace.