When the sun set and the moon rose to take its perch in the sky, Beacon Academy truly came to life. Being so far from the main city of Vale and its lights, the stars were able to show their brilliant lights. Alongside the light of the moon, the stars bathed the buildings and grounds of Beacon in a dim white light, bringing an almost ethereal feel to the atmosphere of the academy.
Many students and teachers would often venture out to any one of the higher structures of the academy and spend minutes or even hours simply enjoying the peace and tranquility that came with the blanket of Night. With the cool breeze blowing softly, many others chose to go for a jog or simply meditate, taking advantage of the crisp and clean air.
One particular blond Uzumaki found himself also partaking in Beacon's night life, laying on his back staring up at the twinkling stars, perched atop the second tallest structure situated not too far from the main lighthouse that was Beacon's namesake.
The silence that enveloped the teen and the snoozing fox on his chest was broken when Naruto spoke aloud, "Come to enjoy the view too?"
While most would think him odd for seemingly talking to himself, the figure that emerged from the shadows of the nearby stairwell entrance broke that notion. Garbed in her usual dark clothing, Blake showed no signs of being surprised that Naruto had known she was there. Still she was curious though.
"I'm surprised you knew I was there."
Still not tearing his gaze from the star filled sky, Naruto grinned and replied, "And I'm surprised at how quiet you could be with those heels on."
Blake huffed at the jab at her clothing choice causing Naruto to chuckle.
Shaking his head the blond rose to his feet, dusted his clothes off and moved Kurama to his usual spot around his neck.
"So what brings you out here at this time of night?" Naruto asked, donning his usual carefree grin.
Blake sauntered over to the edge of the building and situated herself on it, crossing her legs and leaning back as her gaze focused in on Naruto.
Naruto seemed to take it in stride and sat himself back down on the floor, meeting Blake's intense gaze with his own nonchalant one.
Neither side spoke for a moment before the raven haired female broke the little staring contest and turned her head to the side, casting her sights on the front of Beacon Academy.
"Everybody began to worry about where you had gone off to after what happened in the lunch hall. I was lucky enough to be the first to find you."
Naruto nodded his head, "So are you gonna bring them here or take me to them?"
The dark themed Huntress to be turned her eyes back on her blond companion before speaking, "I'll let them know where I found you and that you were alright as well...after I get some questions answered."
Deciding to have some fun with the stoic girl, Naruto grinned and spoke, "Curiosity killed the cat you know."
Blake's gaze went from curious to cold and deadly in the blink of an eye.
'Does he know?'
Deciding that it was better if she played it off, Blake continued, "Not many people would have interfered in that fight, let alone react in such an angry manner."
Still unfazed by the ravenette's cold and distant demeanor, Naruto shrugged, "I'm not 'many people'."
'Though I could be thanks to a certain jutsu hehe,' the blond chuckled at his own in joke.
Seeing that she wasn't getting anywhere by trying to dance around the question, Blake decided that the straightforward and blunt path would be the better option, "Why were you so angered by that fight? Being angry I could understand, but you looked downright furious, at not just that jerk Cardin, but at Professor Goodwitch as well."
Naruto sighed before turning to look up at the stars above, "One of the things I can't stand to see is someone picking on someone else, because of something they don't understand, for something that the victim can't control. That girl didn't choose to be born a Faunus. Cardin chose to be a jackass. As for why I was mad at Professor Goodwitch? Simple. She and any of the other professors could have easily put a stop to it and even stopped it from happening again in the future, but they chose not to simply because if they interfered it would have looked like they sided with the Faunus, and with the White Fang being the spokespeople for the Faunus, well it wouldn't have gone over well."
Blake couldn't help but to agree with Naruto. Even if the Faunus didn't want to be represented as a whole by the less than savory actions of the White Fang of recent years, there wasn't much they could do about it.
The White Fang had once been a group of Faunus who fought, peacefully, for equal rights for their fellow Faunus and fought to put an end to the years of discrimination against said group. There had been progress made, but it was slow going and many Faunus began to tire from the constant struggle to prove themselves. From there it all went out of control and in recent years, the White Fang had turned to violent acts of terrorism to get their point across.
Was it effective?
That was a question many asked, and none could give a solid answer to.
Because of how sensitive the topic was many people took a sort of neutral stance and chose to neither help nor hinder the discrimination and hate crimes against the Faunus.
Still what made Blake curious was Naruto's tone of voice and the words he used. He spoke like he knew personally what the Faunus were going through. It also said that he wasn't exactly a fan of the White Fang's decision to turn to fear tactics to achieve their goal.
"Why do you care so much? Usually the only people who are so invested are the Faunus themselves and you don't look any Faunus I've seen."
This was a question Naruto had prepared for the moment he had found out about Faunus and the discrimination against them. Seeing as how he was trying to keep the fact that he was a shinobi and Jinchuuriki from becoming public knowledge, he and Kurama decided to go with the perfect cover.
Naruto turned to Blake and stared her down. While normally this action wouldn't have been too surprising, what the young woman saw in Naruto's eyes caused her to gasp.
Gone were the normally bright blue eyes that usually greeted those who looked into the blond's eyes. Instead what stared into Blake's own amber eyes were twin pools of burning, vivid crimson with the slit pupils of a creature of the feline or fox family. The six marks that marred Naruto's tan cheeks were now thick lines that were visible even in the dim light of the moon and stars.
Then it hit Blake.
'How has no one else figured it out? For goodness' sake, Yang's nickname for him is Foxy!'
Still reeling from the small revelation, Blake only muttered a single sentence, "You're a Faunus."
Naruto grinned, showing off the sharpened canines that now poked out of his lips, "I'm surprised no else has called me on it yet."
Blake was then hit with another small epiphany. Faunus had senses far more similar to the animals they exhibited which meant that from the looks of Naruto had an enhanced sense of smell.
"You know don't you?"
Naruto shrugged casually, "What? About you being a cat Faunus? Yeah, Kurama was the one who picked up on it when we first met you. Said you reeked of cat."
:::
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