Chapter 3

Qrow was definitely not brooding.

Definitely.

"Qrow, are you-"

At once all the pencils in the room began rolling off the desks. Summer had to use her semblance and speed over, bursting into rose petals as she did so.

"We're going to have to clean the dorm again, right?" Taiyang said, getting up from his bunk and sighing at the mess of rose petals.

"Qrow, get outside. I'm portaling these out of here."

"Last time you did that, one of our beds fell on Qrow's face!" Summer shouted. "Why don't we just sweep it?"

"My idiot brother can take it."

"Hey!" Qrow shouted, finally looking up.

"So he finally talks." Raven said, smirking. "Now, brother, what's happened? Normally, it only takes getting rejected for you to fall into such a state."

"…I lost a fight." Qrow grumbled out, scratching his head.

"To whom? Is it somebody in our class?"

Summer and Taiyang shook their heads in unison. This strength seeking behavior had been a staple of Raven and Qrow's student hood in Beacon, and something like this was growing to be less and less of a common occurrence after their rise in skill, which put them near the front of the first years.

"It was some seventeen year old gangster." Qrow said, sighing. "He had a long ass sword and-"

"Language!" Summer scolded, crossing her arms. The motion caused her white cloak to sway slightly in the wind.

"-He got me in two goddamn hits!"

"Just two?" Raven said, quirking an eyebrow. "Your fighting style may be reckless, but even the professors have to do some maneuvering to face your speed."

"But that's the thing." Qrow said. "Once I began by rush, it was almost like he could predict my next move. He positioned his sword so perfectly that I would have skewered myself if I continued with the attack."

"So he's probably a predictive fighter. Somebody that likes controlling the pace of the fight."

"But his movements were completely defensive and reactionary. It's like he's used to fighting somebody… stronger than him?" Qrow said.

"He probably has his own mentor." Taiyang said, pitching in.

"And he is a gangster, right? So-"

"No, Raven." Summer said, sighing. "For the last time, we cannot begin 'beating people into submission'. It's just not right. As huntsman, we should be protecting civilians, not-"

"And by defeating this gangster, we can protect the civilians from their illegal activities." Raven said, smirking. "Good thinking, team leader."

"That's not what I meant!" Summer shouted again, stomping her foot in a very cliché manner. Taiyang chuckled.

Summer sighed, and rubbed her forehead in exasperation. Qrow rolled his shoulders and massaged where the katana had struck him about three days ago. Raven's eyes glinted maliciously, probably already thinking about victory. Taiyang… continued to scroll through webpages.

They would go looking for this… Sasaki Kojiro… soon.

…

Meanwhile, said Sasaki Kojiro was looking for his sword. His bullet wound was still fresh in his arm, and Neo had hidden his sword somewhere.

"Neo. I know you have it."

A lazy, pink eye opened as Neo slowly shook her head.

"Okay, so maybe you don't have it. But you definitely hid it somewhere."

Neo shrugged, before pointing at the bed.

"There is only so much resting one can do on a day. I've already taken half the day off."

Neo pointed to his arm.

"Yes, I was shot. I'm totally fine, though." Kojiro said, waving his arm around as if to prove a point. He still winced as that muscle fiber was pulled, and he sighed.

Neo looked at him as if to say that this was his own fault.

Kojiro sighed. Even if aura was something that he wouldn't like to depend on, he couldn't deny it came with benefits.

Alas, he missed the days where he could just repair his spirit origin to heal his wounds. Chaldea's healers were awfully convenient, even if they were usually borderline psychopaths. (Case in point: Nightingale).

"I'll just try and brew some tea." Kojiro said, sitting down amidst the jumbled mess that was the sleeping quarters of what was essentially half the Xiong gang. The other half was scattered across their territory as watchmen and local "peacekeepers".

Neo and Kojiro had their own corner of the room. It was just an industrial worker's bunk bed with a slightly frayed mattress on the metal frame. But besides the bed was an old fashioned table with some peeled paint and stains on one of the legs that made it obvious that this table had come from the dumpster. Still, it was a pretty nice table.

On top of the table, a slightly rusty electric kettle was plugged in. Kojiro was by no means an expert at tea, even in his other incarnations. Generally, he played the trope of the wandering samurai. Seeking only to perfect his sword skills, but not much else.

Listening to the water boil, Kojiro looked in a dented metal tin for some tea leaves, before putting the box down and leaning against the wall, waiting. His fingers itched for a sword that wasn't there, and his back felt lighter without his scabbard in the correct place. The bullet wound still ached, now that he was moving that arm again.

It was both enjoyable and boring to be a human instead of a heroic spirit. He could relive his journey of discovery and pursue the sword of infinity once again. But of course, there would be days like this that previous incarnations of him couldn't recall because most of the time, he was a mere side character without much of a presence in scenes in between the fights.

Without knowledge of what to do, and without anybody to really talk to (and most importantly, without his sword)…

Kojiro sighed, and continued watching the vapor rise.

That was, of course, until the streets exploded.

…

The four huntsman students outside of the dinky bar with a wood carving of a bear head over the words "bar" looked into the rather old building.

"Qrow, are you sure this is the place? It looks old, but it isn't that bad…"

"Yeah, this is the place."

"Well, everybody ready?" Summer asked, a hint of nervousness on his eyes. Taiyang was also understandably nervous, but Raven was from a bandit tribe. She wouldn't be so easily swayed by a lowly city gang-

"They've come for us! For the rebellion!"

A man came charging at them, preparing to throw a package in his arms.

"Wha-" Summer said, confused. Qrow, however, pushed everybody out of the way as the package exploded.

Amidst the coughing, the groaning of flimsy buildings, and the pavement crumbling, the whole place was frozen as everybody processed what had just happened.

Kojiro, of course, chose this moment to burst out of the bar, a slightly excited look on his face as he grabbed one of the Xiong gang's signature machete.

The huntsmen in training looked owlishly at Kojiro, who looked suspiciously… excited about a bomb going off before what was his house.

Kojiro rapidly composed himself, attempting to sheathe the machete, only to realize that he didn't have his sheath. All the while, Summer Rose and Taiyang took in Kojiro's horrible fashion sense. Though Qrow had described him as an "absolute monster with the sword" and "a seventeen year old gangster", they instead saw a rather tall teenager with orange hair, green eyes, and wearing purple robes.

"Ah. I remember you." Kojiro said, nodding. "Qrow, was it not? Have you come back to challenge me?"

"Are you just going to ignore that a bomb went off right in front of your… establishment?"

"Incidents like these usually bring out the whole pack of opponents, like starting birds in a forest. This, however, was a signal to retreat. The enemy has disappeared, and we will find him and their base in due time."

"Well, well, well… If it isn't Sasaki Kojiro." An obnoxious voice said. Wearing a leather jacket and red shirt, the newcomer had slung a spiked bat over his shoulder and looked at the huntsman students and Kojiro condescendingly.

"Finally come outside after eating a bullet from Verdant yesterday?"

"We had won that duel and secured the territory." Kojiro said, tapping his feet a couple of times. From inside the bar, two more Xiong clan gangsters appeared, flanking Kojiro in either side. "Why are you here?"

The man took off his shades and hung them from his shirt's collar, before shaking his head.

"Isn't it obvious? It was about that utterly incompetent bomber."

"What about it?"

"Kid, you may be good with a sword, but you're hopeless at running a gang."

"I admit, organization isn't my strong suit." Kojiro said, handing his machete to one of the Xiong clan grunts as they retreated back into the bar. "But that is why I am a mere enforcer."

"I was just here to tell Old man Xiong that a new gang is in town, and us old timers might have to… beat some sense into them, you know what I mean?"

"Our leader and his son are out today, presumably on business, to the wealthier areas of Vale." Kojiro said, his hands tucked into the sleeves of his robes. "I shall relay your message."

"Anyways, you still out of commission?"

"Regretfully."

"This is why you gotta get aura, man. Sooner or later, you're going to get lead put in a place that isn't one of your limbs."

"Wouldn't that be less competition for you? You're the muscle of the gang eastwards of ours."

"Y'all run protection brackets and run information. We smuggle dust. What competition is there to be had? These new guys are just terrorists calling themselves the 'Monarch' gang or something, and if they keep blowing shit up, it's gonna be bad for business."

"Are you sure you should be saying this in front of them?" Kojiro said, motioning towards the silently standing huntsmen students.

"Ah, shit. Well, by the looks of it, half of 'em aren't exactly goody two shoes either. Probably doesn't matter. Catch you in the next fight, Kojiro." The gangster said, cracking a smile. "Don't die before then."

"You too, Mason." Kojiro said, chuckling good naturedly.

" Where's that hellion of yours, by the way?"

"Neo's… somewhere."

"Probably robbing ice cream shops again."

Kojiro nodded. "Truly I pity the shopkeepers of those unfortunate stores."

The gangster left, and the rest of the Xiong gang finally began sweeping up the broken pavement. Some other men came out of the bar to patrol for the newest threat.

"… Wait, you don't have aura?" Qrow said, finally reacting to that sequence of dialogue.

"I follow a swordsman's path, and to use anything other than my hands, my strength, and my skill would be an insult to the blade."

"… Whatever you said just sounded way too complicated." Summer said. "Anyways, we're team STRQ-"

"And since you almost butchered my idiot brother the other day, we're here to challenge you again." Raven said in a deadpan.

"That's a bit of an exaggeration…" Qrow muttered.

"Which part? Almost butchering you or you being an idiot? One of those sounds pretty right to me." Taiyang whispered.

"… Shut up." Qrow said, turning away in shame or embarrassment.

Kojiro sighed. "As you probably heard, I'm not exactly in the best of conditions right now, and Neo has ran off with my sword to stop me from practicing."

"… What kind of psychopath are you, anyways?" Raven asked, hands on her hips. "First, you didn't even unlock your aura before going into a duel where the opponent has a gun. Secondly, you have to literally have your sword confiscated for you to stop practicing."

"I like to view myself as merely a man with a dream."

"… What dream?" Summer asked, white cloak blowing in the wind.

Taiyang facepalmed.

Kojiro brought his hands together to mime holding a sword, before holding the imaginary sword in front of his face.

"Recreating the Tsubamei Gaeshi. To master a technique that allows one to strike three times within a single breath, and not allowing even a swallow to escape. This is the task that I have dedicated my life to fulfill." Kojiro said, sighing as he put his hands down.

"You're just seventeen. That's very early to make life choices like these." Summer said.

"… I mean, aren't there semblances that allow you to do three things at once?" Taiyang said, a pensive expression on his face.

"Again, what the fuck-" Qrow began.

"Language!" Summer said once again. Like usual, she was ignored.

"Is a swallow?" Qrow continued, now exasperated. "You keep mentioning this imaginary bird!"

"I'm starting to think that he's either insane or just uneducated." Raven said, shaking her head. "Let's stop wasting our time. Don't we have a test on Grimm Physiology to study for?"

Taiyang's face paled, and Summer looked at her scroll before almost screaming.

"Guys, we have to get back and study! What were we thinking?"

The storm of rose petals surrounded the teenagers, and with a light smile on his face, Kojiro watched the four blur into a single cloud of white as they sped down the streets, towards the bullhead docks.

Kojiro remained outside on the bar's steps, enjoying the air but also keeping an eye out for any other potential threats. After all, it would not do for the Xiong's base of operations to get bombed when their enforcer was still nearby.

At least this time, as a gatekeeper, he wouldn't be fighting anyone like that blonde saber.

(He was relieved, but at the same time, disappointed.)

…

"So, what's this about the new gang?"

The Xiong gang's meeting was now in session. Old man Xion's son, Hei (also known as Junior), was in the corner, pouring drinks for everybody else as the leaders of the various groups and patrol routes sat around the table in the cellar.

Kojiro leaned against a barrel, listening in just because he might have to fight against these guys in another duel for territory. Neo "helped" Junior by conveniently making cups vanish or create fake tables with her semblance.

"The Monarchs are a terrorist group, according to scouts and some other gangs." Olive, the officer in charge of information said. "It seems like their leader claims to be the son of the last King of Vale, and they're trying to stage a rebellion."

"Psh, stage a rebellion? They couldn't even throw bombs right."

"What they do have are a lot of fanatics, and they're probably starting out here in the slums to garner support and promise a 'better life' to anybody who aids them in their cause."

"We all know the state of the city after the war. Some of you even fought in it."

There was a moment of silence as the gang sipped on their whisky. Junior shot a glare at Neo after almost dropping a flask.

"So there's actually a large chance that the poor could be mobilized up into rising against Vale."

"Wouldn't we benefit from this, though? Through the chaos, maybe we could expand our territory, and maybe even put a foot in the wealthier districts-" a particularly young patrol leader said, rambling nervously, but also avidly.

"One of their promises is to end gangs and corruption."

"O-oh." The patrol lead put his head down.

"Maybe we should ease down the protection fee for a bit, just so people in our own turf won't turn."

There was a forest of nods.

"How goes the Mt. Glenn offshoot operation?"

"We've got men on the operation, but rival gangs are already marking out…"

Kojiro tilted his head. Wouldn't rivalries with other gangs potentially mean… more challenging opponents? Maybe he was on board with this.

In the background, Junior almost made the whole stacks of barrels collapse and earned several glares. Neo laughed from on top of one of the ammo racks.

…(One week later)…

The ugly hole in Kojiro's arm had finally faded back into a faint white scar, and his arm in that area was tighter than usual. Neo had finally unveiled his sword from the illusion that had kept it from him. It was near the pile of dirty, blood soaked laundry that the gangsters shed nearly every day, and Kojiro had returned to the roof, practicing over and over again, trying to get over this new inconsistency in his strength and swings.

But Kojiro was nothing if not persistent.

…

On a leather armchair, a figure sat in the back room of a bookstore. A tall collar obscured most of his face, but locks of light orange hair spilled over the shady ensemble. Fingers covered in black, leather gloves were crossed as the figure awaited the arrival of a messenger. His sleeves were sown with a distinct emblem in the shape of the old king's crown.

The door creaked open, and a man in a worker's outfit entered. The floorboards creaked under his dusty shoes as he put down a briefcase, adjusted his glasses, and then took out some blueprints from a trench coat pocket.

"The tunnels to Mt. Glenn have begun construction, have they not?" said the elaborately dressed figure, analyzing the papers.

"It opens straight into the heartland of the wealthier districts." The worker said.

"Exactly where a catastrophe would occur, if, say we sabotaged the tunnels."

This gave the worker some pause, but he nodded hesitantly.

"Uh… how goes the suppression of the gangs in the slums? Our sect leader needs to know that before we begin the sabotaging process."

"We've barely begun. Most gangs are deeply entrenched into their territory. But we'll need an event to start rooting them out. Something that impacts the lives of everybody. If we could successfully pull off the sabotage and then blame it on, say, the local gangs… The grimm would knock our social pyramid down, our industries would suffer, and everything would come crashing down. And if we blame the gangs, that would prompting the council to begin a costly war with its own citizens while we take advantage of the situation and begin our rebellion."

"What about that bomber that was on the news?"

"Just a distraction." The figure said, waving a hand casually. "It's to take the media's attention off of what our true operations are."

The worker retrieved the blueprints, put it back in his pockets, and adjusted his tie. Before leaving the room, however, he turned and asked one question.

"Hey, sir.. Don't you think what we're doing is a bit… cruel?"

"We may be hurting most people in Vale, but we're doing it for their benefit. The indecisive counsel has disbanded our military, and left us vulnerable to the influences of other countries. Vacuo, Atlas, and Mistral may have not realized yet, but right now, we are virtually powerless against invasion."

"… If you say so. Where is the heir, by the way?"

"It's not something we should be concerned about." The seated figure said. "The heir's identity must remain a secret, even to us. Only then can we work for the goal of creating a just society, and not fall into the same pitfalls that our Valean council has fallen into."

"What pitfalls?"

"Follies like dividing into parties and working only for their own popularity."

The worker paused, before nodding.

"I guess so. Will reinstating the king… really help with this?"

"My friend, it will certainly be better than our current situation. Do you not want Vale to reclaim its name as the warrior kingdom instead of cowering under Atlas's feet?"

"Yeah. Yeah!" the worker said, a patriotic glint back in his eyes. "We're doing this for the benefit of all!"

"Yes. The benefit of all." The seated figure said, nodding. "Now, my comrade, continue with your operations! The dawn of the rebellion is almost upon us, and communications must be hastened!"

"Of course!" the worker shouted, before walking out of the room with much more vigor.

"Pah. For the benefit of all. What a bunch of shit." The seated figure said, laughing. His green eyes began glinting in the dim lamplight that illuminated this particular information exchange station.

"Why else would you join a rebellion if you weren't looking for bettering yourselves? After I subjugate the gangs…"

A small map of Vale was posted in a corner, and the figure got up to give it a cursory glance.

"The slums will be mine."

And with the majority of the population in Vale behind his cause, who cared about this mysterious heir? The figure smirked. He himself could be the one running the show, and nobody would be able to stop him after the control was his.