- - -
Getting asked out to see Vale on the weekend by Blake was... Unusual, to say the least. Nora actually asked if the cat Faunus had turned into a robot when they weren't looking. But no, she had meant it, and despite how Pyrrha
stared at him, Jaune had accepted.
They went out via a Bullhead earlier than planned that morning, to shake off pursuit. Jaune couldn't really fault her-Yang, Weiss, Ruby, and Pyrrha had all been trying to invite themselves along. But Blake was practiced at losing tails, and so here they sat at a cafe near the main wall. It overlooked the great forests behind the city, lush and beautiful, shadowed by the great mountains that surrounded Vale.
Here they sat, and sipped coffee and tea. She wore a casual black turtleneck with a white skirt. He wore his jeans and Pumpkin Pete hoodie.
And they didn't say anything for, what, ten minutes?
Jaune was the first to break.
"Uh, so... Um..." Jaune smiled nervously.
Blake stared intently at him.
"Yes?"
"..." Jaune sighed. "Let me guess, you want me to try out your weapon and see what happens?"
"Well..." Blake slowly nodded. "I-I do, yes... But I thought we'd get to know each other, first."
Jaune blinked.
"Oh," he mumbled. Blake smiled softly, and sipped her coffee.
"I think it's an amazing ability, Jaune," she said, "But... I'm not easily won over in romance."
"I guess I'm hardly your type," Jaune sighed. Blake smiled.
"I'm... I'm not sure about that," she said, and Jaune's eyebrows went up. "I mean, I used to think I liked tall, dark, mysterious, and edgy men. Men who were dark and mysterious, and very hurt inside. Broody."
"Er..." Jaune blinked, "Well... Okay?"
Blake sighed.
"And then I dated one," she said, "And I realized... It was terrible. I couldn't... I couldn't
fix him. He didn't want to be... And... And he was..."
She sighed.
"He was... Adam Taurus," she admitted.
Jaune winced.
"Oh... Oh. I-I'm so, so sorry, Blake-"
"For what?" Blake asked quietly. "You proved... I..." She smiled slightly. "Honestly? The fear of him finding me here has hung over me. You saw what he tried to do to Weiss."
Jaune scowled.
"The fact you could fight him to a standstill is... Well..." She flushed. "Um... Remember when I told you the kind of guys I thought I liked?"
Jaune nodded slowly.
"Uh, yeah? Broody and all that stuff?"
"Well... When I was younger, it was the opposite," she said, "I liked blond, bright, happy and confident boys. Who were fiery, hotblooded, and determined to do right."
Jaune stared at her for a moment.
"Did they also wear orange?" He joked, sipping his coffee. He put it down when he saw Blake blush.
"W-Wait... You liked...
Genji the Gutsy Ninja?" Jaune gasped.
"... Still do," Blake bashfully admitted. "At first, I thought Hanzo, his rival, was hotter... But over the course of the story, Genji really won my heart and admiration."
She scowled.
"At least until the timeskip ruined
everything."
"I mean, the movies were pretty good," Jaune said, "But yeah, that was a hot mess."
"I guess..." She smiled at him. "Seeing you stand up to... To Adam like that? It reminded me of what I liked before all of that happened... And maybe I'm re-examining some things about myself."
"Errr..." Jaune blinked. "We... Are just talking about my Semblance here, right?"
"Well," Blake smiled, pushing some hair back behind her human ears, "You standing up to my violent psycho ex does tend to get a girl's attention."
"I..." Jaune stared down at the table. "That... It doesn't
feel like it was me."
"Would you have stood in front of Weiss to protect her from Adam without your Semblance?" Blake asked.
Jaune looked up, bright red, and nodded.
"Of course I would! I-I did-!"
"Then the fact your Semblance gives you a new name and a funny accent doesn't matter," Blake said earnestly. "It's still
you. The other girls... They'll understand that in time."
She smiled warmly and leaned forward a bit.
"But hopefully not
too soon," she said.
Jaune... Leaned back. She pouted in confusion. He shook his head.
"I... It's just not that simple," he said quietly.
Blake opened her mouth... When two lines
jabbed into them both. Electric Dust went off and they both screamed. The other patrons of the cafe shrieked and scattered, as White Fang operatives clambered over the walls. Blake reached for Gambol Shroud, pulled it out...
She was bit by a Dust round, and she was knocked off her feet. The binding fabric between the gun and the sickle snapped away into her hand. Her instincts made her tuck the fabric away up the sleeve of her casual turtleneck, just as the butt of a gun hit her face. Everything went dark.
- - -
Blake woke up to a slap. She started at the pain, and took note of the situation.
She was tied up, her hands behind her and her feet in front of her. A tight collar was around her neck, humming, and her Aura was suppressed-It had to be Aura binding. She was sitting in a forest clearing, and could barely hear the sounds of the city. She looked up, and saw a familiar redhead in black looming over her. They were in a cave of some kind, though several large tree trunks were growing through the walls and ceilings. It had been thrown up relatively recently then-Created with Earth Dust. It was a common method for making a temporary headquarters in the White Fang.
Maybe it can be seen, maybe they can find us, Blake thought frantically, even as she trembled from the malice Adam was emitting.
"It's been a while, my love," Adam snarled.
"Jaune, w-where's Jaune?" Blake gasped. Adam slapped her again, backhanded. It drew blood from her lip. She looked back, managing a scowl despite the terror billowing up inside of her.
"Where's Jaune?"
Adam stepped aside. Blake stared in horror. Jaune was strung up on a large boulder as though to be crucified. He was already bloody and bruised, and covered in cuts. He looked up with a groan.
"JAUNE!"
"He actually begged for me to take your hits," Adam growled. "You got a human to heel for you. How touching."
"P-Please, Adam," Blake begged, "Do whatever you want to me! J-Just let him go!"
"The human who humiliated me? Who's been trying to steal my girl?" Adam shook his head. "No... He's not escaping, Blake. But I'll let you watch him die, how's that?"
"NO!" Blake screamed, as Adam stalked away. He drew Wilt, and slashed off Jaune's rope bindings. The blond knight fell to his knees, and coughed.
"Get up," Adam growled.
Jaune slowly stood back up, breathing hard. Blake could tell he was terrified, yet to his credit, he held his head up high and stared back into Adam's mask.
"Just let her go," Jaune said, "And I'll-"
"You don't have any say, human," Adam stated coldly, "But I will let you die like a warrior. I can do
that much."
"Adam, please!" Blake begged. "I-I'll do anything! ANYTHING YOU WANT! PLEASE!"
She fell onto her face, tears pouring from her eyes. Her hands rubbed against eachother.
"Yes. You will," Adam harshly replied.
He swung Wilt, and Jaune's Aura collar fell off. His cuts and injuries began to heal, as Adam hefted up his katana. Jaune gulped, but his gaze remained steady.
Blake felt the fabric... The smart fabric that served as the chain in Gambol Shroud's Chain Sickle mode.
They didn't take it from me, she thought in wonder.
It's part of my weapon... It's part of it... Will it be enough?!
Adam pointed the katana right at Jaune's heart.
NO CHOICE! Blake thought. Frantically, she shimmied the smart fabric down into her hands. She tensed her muscles.
"Now human, you will-"
"NO! DON'T PLEASE!" Blake shrieked. She crawled desperately, and managed to get
some purchase. She sprang forward and rolled right up to Jaune. He knelt down to try and get her. She rolled so her back was facing him, and when she felt his hands, shoved the smart fabric into his hands.
Adam
kicked her right in the gut, and she curled up in pain. Jaune tried to tackle Adam, but the White Faunus leader
swung Wilt and unleashed a Moonblade at point black range. The red blast knocked Jaune back, slamming him through the boulder and across the cave. His Aura resisted, but there was a bright flash and explosion. Blake gasped in horror.
"JAUNE!"
Adam grabbed her by the hair and held her up painfully. She winced as he turned her to look upon the clearing smoke. Tears poured down her cheeks as she saw Jaune laying there, unmoving.
"NO! JAUNE! JAUNE!" She bawled. Several White Fang members laughed mockingly. Adam pulled her hair to make her face him.
"I granted him a warrior's death," he sneered, "You, my love, will suffer
far more before you-"
There was a loud
popping sound. Adam and Blake looked back at Jaune's body.
Nothing lay there, save for a small cloud of smoke. Blake's eyes widened.
What the...?!
"YO! BLAKE!"
All eyes went up to the tree branches overhead. Relief flooded Blake's body, and tears fell from her eyes.
There was Jaune, arms crossed over his chest, standing on a tree branch. The smart fabric from Gambol Shroud was wrapped around his head like a bandana, the ends waving slightly behind him. He grinned broadly, even through the cuts on his cheeks.
"JAUNE!" Blake cried out.
"You were right," Jaune called out, "And I realized something. I'm more afraid of losing my precious people... Than myself. So I won't give into fear..."
He grinned and gave a thumbs up.
"That's my ninja way!"
Blake's eyes widened in shocked recognition.
Did he... But how-?!
"KILL HIM!" Adam shouted. The White Fang opened fire with Dust rounds. Jaune vanished again in a cloud of smoke. Adam searched the trees quickly, as did Blake.
Where did he-?
She saw him on another tree branch. He jammed his fingers together into a familiar handseal, and his Aura
burned like a sun.
"SHADOW CLONE JUTSU!"
All of a sudden,
hundreds of copies of Jaune appeared all over the branches, walls and boulders of the HQ, completely surrounding the White Fang.
Adam's jaw dropped, as Jaune's grin shined like a beacon.
"SORRY FOR THE WAIT! THE GENJI ARC NINJA CHRONICLES HAVE JUST BEGUN! CHAPTER ONE: BEATING ALL YOUR ASSES!"
The hundreds of Shadow Clones jumped and dove for them, yelling battle cries.
"They're just illusions," Adam shouted, "They can't hurt you-!"
One Jaune
punched Adam right in the jaw. He fell back, spitting blood. The other White Fang members opened fire into the huge mass of Jaunes, but the Shadow Clones either popped, or evaded the fire to land hits on them. Dozens of clones attacked Adam from all sides.
While that first hit had hurt him, Adam wasn't a formidable warrior and terrorist for nothing. He fought them furiously, swinging Wilt around and slicing through the clones like a hot knife through butter. He was driven back, back, as more clones charged and began throwing rocks and anything else they could.
Blake felt a hand reach for her collar, and snap it open. Her Aura returned, and she took Jaune's hand.
"CHEESE IT!" Jaune shouted. They ran out of the cave, dodging gunfire, followed by Adam's roars of rage... And made it out into the nighttime forest.
Jaune pulled Blake onto his back with a grin.
"I'll handle the transportation! You just heal!" He said. He climbed up a tree gracefully, and began tree hopping through them. He sailed through the trees with ease and grace, his style... Remarkably similar to hers.
"Are-Are you okay, Jaune?" Blake asked.
"Yup!" Jaune said, "Though you should call this mode 'Genji'." He grinned back at her. "Thanks for everything."
"I... You saved me-"
"Yeah, but my Semblance lets me use your Semblance, and supercharge it! It's sooo awesome!" Genji cheered. "Wow, can I do it with other Semblances? That would be
super cool! Bet I could beat up a whole lot of bad guys! And become the Arckage!"
"Is... Is there such a thing?" Blake asked, unable to help her little smile as they sailed through the trees.
"No... But I can dream, can't I?"
Blake actually giggled, and held on tightly.
Maybe her childhood dreams were so silly after all... If they could be realized like this.
- - -
Because we all had a Naruto phase.