Last night, Remnant was caught by surprise with a sudden announcement from the legendary Huntsman and Beacon Headmaster Ozpin. Apparently, the academy was hosting a surprise tournament to help select the next generation of Hunters-in-training, and the whole world was invited to watch the live transmission.
The details were scarce at the time, but more would be revealed earlier the next day, when the tournament would take place and be decided before nightfall.
At first, the world received the news with some skepticism, wondering why they were doing something like this for the initiation. At the same time, there was excitement about a surprise event and the prospect of watching an out-of-season tournament.
It was Beacon we were talking about, after all. The place where only the best of the best can get in, so this event was bound to be good.
Naturally, the news exploded and became a trending topic in minutes, dominating every news outlet and available means of communication, to the point of snuffing out every other topic of the moment.
And now, people from all corners of the world were tuning in on this fine Sunday morning to watch the show that was about to begin.
The tournament began at 7 o'clock, and the scene opened directly on the main combat arena in Beacon, which, despite being indoors, was still a big stage ready for action.
No nonsense, ads, sponsors, and whatnot.
People liked that a lot.
Then, there was a glimpse of a huge crowd of students and contestants, who were just as excited despite the early hour.
Honestly, that youthful energy alone was enough to make even the most tired viewers focus with excitement. That, and the camera made a deliberate pause on Pyrrha Nikos, the four-time champion of Mistral.
Now that was a pleasant surprise, just as much as seeing the famous heiress of the Schnee family and singer Weiss Schnee. The bad reputation of her family aside, there are a lot of people around the world who actually like this young girl's music.
What many didn't expect, though, was the confirmation of the topic that was trending before the Beacon Tournament was announced.
Many outlets risked their neck by publishing articles with scandalous titles like:
"Was the Ice Queen's Heart Melted?!"
"A New Family Member: Who's the Mysterious Boy Holding Weiss Schnee's Hand?!"
"A Match Made in Heaven! White Princess and Black Prince!"
Among many others, accompanied by pictures of the said couple being really close to each other.
In short, Weiss Schnee had a boyfriend now, and it was someone who could easily stand by her side as an equal, even if only in appearance, as nothing else was known about the boy.
And damn, they do look good together.
More than that, there's the way Weiss was acting, being a far cry from her usual, cold, and distant self. She was so bright and warm, smiling and laughing as she spoke to the boy beside her, that many couldn't help but smile, too.
Love was such a beautiful thing, after all.
Unfortunately, not everyone felt that way, whether due to envy or hate towards the girl and her family.
So much so that even her family had a mixed reaction to this reveal.
In the Schnee manor, Jacques Schnee was fuming in anger at this open and public display of affection towards an unknown boy! Not only did he have to go out of his way to suppress the story before something better stole the spotlight, but he also did a background check on this boy and found nothing other than his name!
It's almost like he just appeared out of thin air!
Winter, on the other hand, was torn between relief and concern for her little sister. Relieved to finally see an expression of genuine happiness in Weiss, and concerned for the dangers that came with opening her heart to someone who could potentially be dangerous out of some fleeting teenage emotions.
Just for good measure, Winter would find time in her schedule to make an earlier visit to Beacon and find out for herself if her little sister was being used or not.
Whitley was just amused to see his sister fall for some pretty face and couldn't wait to see them both lose in this tournament. Who knows? Maybe after that, Father would finally make him the true heir of the Schnee family.
As for Willow, she had too much of a hangover to care, but at least she would admit that her daughter had good taste in men. That, and she hoped that Weiss had chosen someone better than her father...not that it was something much harder to do.
The bar that Jacques had set was that low.
Even so, Willow would spend the day watching and seeing what her potential son-in-law had in him.
"Welcome, welcome, everybody! To the first Beacon Tournament!" Professor Port let loose on the mic to remind the world what the main event really was. "I'm Professor Peter Port, in charge of Grimm studies here at Beacon, and your main host on today's event!" He then pointed to the green-haired man sitting by his side. "And to help me on this wonderful endeavor, I have my colleague and friend Professor Bartholomew Oobleck!"
That was enough to take people's attention away from the new couple and focus on what was to come.
"Doctor Bartholomew Oobleck, but yes, I'm happy to be of assistance on this remarkable day," Doctor Oobleck said as he adjusted his glasses and poured a cup of coffee to help keep him going. "Just like the viewers, I expect to see great things from our new generation of Hunters."
Even if it was just the beginning of their journey to becoming true protectors of humanity and the faunus kind.
"Indeed, my old friend!" Professor Port couldn't agree more. "Now, without any more delays, let's explain how this tournament is going to work, and its rules!"
Just like that, a big screen lights up to help illustrate the outline of the event for the public back home and the students.
"We will be following regular tournament rules as any other to keep things simple," Doctor Oobleck pointed out on the screen, showing the schematics of 32 matches that become 16 in the next round, then 8 successively all the way to the finals. "We have here today 64 new applicants for Beacon, so there will be 6 rounds of combat to select the winner and the other 23 new students that Beacon will be accepting this year, making 6 teams in total."
That was one team more than the usual, as a means to make up for the inconvenience.
As for the explanation, it seems simple enough for spectators at home, but it wasn't pleasant for some of those participating in the tournament.
And that's because less than half of them will make it into Beacon! Being even less than the original initiation, where 32 students had secured a relic, enough for 8 teams!
Besides that, there's an even bigger problem: Pyrrha Nikos.
It doesn't matter who it was; if you fight this girl in the first round, you are done for!
That was especially true for Jaune, who was frecking out and for good reason. Not only did he lose his place in Beacon after being carried by Pyrrha and that anomaly that made the Grimm act weird, but now he could end up fighting her!
It was so over!
"As you may expect, the 32 students who lose in the first round are eliminated and will have to choose another academy or try again next year," Professor Port wasted no time and continued to explain. "As for the 16 who lose in the second round, they will have a second chance and be able to fight among themselves to have 8 of them pass the exam, but that's where their journey in the tournament ends."
Otherwise, this would take longer than necessary, and there was too much to be done in just one day.
For the public, it felt like a hassle having to watch the losers go at it, but it was a good thing it was only to decide the last 8 spots. Besides, they are in the comfort of their home, so those who didn't want to waste time could do something else and come back later to watch the rest of the show.
"Now, for the rules." Doctor Oobleck changed the screen slide to help with the new subject. "The matches, except for the semi-finals and the finals, will have a time limit of 5 minutes or until a student's Aura levels hit the red mark. If the time ends with both students still standing and with similar levels of Aura, the victor will be decided by our combat instructor and Deputy Headmistress: Professor Glynda Goodwitch!"
And that was the cue for the woman in question to make an appearance.
Many rejoiced, for this was a name well known around the world. In fact, it was often said that Glynda was the strongest Huntress alive!
That and one of the most beautiful ones.
"Hello everyone," Glynda greeted those watching from home and the ones present in front of her. "Today, I'll fulfil the role of the referee for every match. My goals here are to make sure the rules are followed, so that no student is harmed, and to give a fair judgment on who goes to the next round if the need arises."
No complaints there, as it was public knowledge that this woman had a strong sense of justice. Honestly, only Ozpin himself could be seen as a better choice for the role.
"Thank you, Glynda. We are counting on you!" Professor Port said to his beautiful colleague and changed the screen back to the tournament schematics for one last clarification. "So, before we begin, there is one last thing that needs to be taken care of: how the opponents of the matches are gonna be picked."
Now that was the part that many were expecting, especially the students participating in the tournament.
"Normally, we make it random to be fair with everyone. But in this case, where two of our strongest students could end up fighting in the first round and be eliminated, which would be a great loss for the academy and the world itself, we had to make things different," Doctor Oobleck said as the names of the students were put one by one on the screen alongside their respective opponents. "Therefore, our trustworthy Headmaster took upon himself the task of selecting every match, and he has done it to the best of his ability, making it as fair as possible for all of the students here today."
Immediately, everyone was looking at the reveal and focusing on one thing only: where was Pyrrha Nikos?!
It took a few seconds, but eventually, her name appeared at the very end, on the last match.
Saving the best for last was predictable, but still annoying for those who wanted to see the Invincible Girl in action. However, there was one pleasant surprise at the very beginning of this roster: Uchiha Sasuke.
The unknown boyfriend of Weiss Schnee!
While it wasn't as good as Pyrrha Nikos, it would certainly be interesting to see what the boy who melted the heart of the Ice Queen was capable of.
Would he impress or disappoint? Only one way to find out!
Unfortunately, not everyone was happy with this arrangement, as one student ended up with the short end of the stick.
"How is this fair?!" Someone shouted from the benches, indignant at being paired with the Invincible Girl and not in a good way! "Putting me against the strongest person in the room in the first match?!"
That was the same as telling him to pack his things up and go home!
"Mr. Lake, as said by Doctor Oobleck, every match was decided by Ozpin himself." Glynda took the liberty of answering that and clarifying one mistake in that claim. "If he placed you against Miss Nikos, it's because you were the most suitable choice for that match. So it's up to you to accept that decision and fight or give up and go home." Then she looked at the girl under the spotlight and smiled. "And besides, Miss. Nikos may not be the strongest contender that we have here today."
That was quite the bomb she just dropped, and one received with skepticism by both the people at home and most of those present on the site.
Someone in the same age group as Pyrrha who could be stronger than her?!
How was it?!
There was no answer to it, but the mere prospect of it was enough to make the audience excited with the mere prospect of such a genius being present in the tournament!
Pyrrha instinctively looked at the only person in the room that Professor Goodwitch could be talking about, and felt her heart leap for more than just his good looks.
If Sasuke were really that strong, then perhaps, today, the legend of the Invincible Girl would come to an end.
That would be like a dream capable of opening up to her the life of a normal girl.
Even so, Pyrrha can't betray her family and all the support of the people who believe in her by approaching this half-heartedly.
If Sasuke was truly stronger than her, then good. If not, too bad, because she had no intention of making this an easy win for him.
As for the boy in question, he was on the benches with his arms crossed over his chest and watching in silence the whole thing with the girls by his side.
"She was definitely talking about you," Weiss said with a proud smile, happy to see Sasuke's strength recognized by one of the world's strongest. "But don't think I'll make it easy for you to get to Pyrrha."
If she wins two matches, which she intends to do without wasting much of her Aura, Weiss would be facing Sasuke in the third round!
"Neither do I!" Yang chimed in, excited to have her long-awaited rematch! "Because it will be you and me in the fourth round, pretty boy!"
And this time, she intended to hit him at least once! Then, after that, she could give him some kisses.
You know, to make it up~.
"The two of you are so lucky." Ruby was moping over being in the latter half of the fights. "For me to fight Sasuke, I need to get to the finals!"
And there's no way she could get that far.
"We can fight after the tournament, as much as you want," Sasuke said to the younger girl, and it only took a second for her to light up again. "After all, the four of us will be on the same team. So we will be training a lot together."
And he meant it, for there wasn't much time to prepare for Kaguya. So he had to see how far they could go and focus on his own training.
The girls didn't answer right away, being caught off guard by the confirmation of something that had been on the back of their minds since the day before, and the reason why they wanted to do well in the tournament.
"You...are really going to choose us as your team members?" Weiss had to ask, just to be sure she didn't hear it wrong. "Even when Pyrrha is much stronger than any of us?"
It would be only natural for the best to choose the second best as his partner. Then two of them could be chosen for the remaining spots. So, naturally, one of them would be left behind.
Or at least, that was what they believed.
"She is not that much stronger than the rest of you, and not for long either." Sasuke intended to make these three so strong that no one else in this world could threaten them. "Besides, I can't really see myself in a team with anyone else."
And there were many reasons for that, including the special trait each of these girls possessed, but it was mostly because they all loved him.
That made them more likely to listen and keep secrets, which was crucial given the out-of-this-world revelations that Sasuke had for them.
Besides, it's not like he can't reach out to Pyrrha if she really was that special, just because she was on another team.
It took the girls a second to digest all that Sasuke said, and when they did, the three of them became a blushing mess that couldn't even look him in the face!
Ruby went so far as to put on her red hood to hide her embarrassment and her happy smile. As for Weiss and Yang, they used their long, silk hair to cover the bottom half of their faces.
"I can't really see myself in a team with anyone else."
Those words kept echoing in their minds, making their hearts leap nonstop.
"Well, aren't you a smooth talker?" Yang tried to laugh it off and gave a light punch to Sasuke's shoulder. "I hope you don't regret being in the same room as me for four years~."
And she intends to make use of and enjoy that time!
If only things were that easy.
"Keep dreaming, Yang!" Weiss said, as she made the bold choice of hugging Sasuke away from this dangerous seductress. "I'm not letting you touch a finger on him!"
If it comes to that, she prefers that he keep sleeping in a separate room, like he did last night!
It was sudden, but Professor Glynda showed up and escorted Sasuke to a private room. When they asked why, she said, "reasons," while looking at the bunch of starving wolves that were eating Sasuke with their eyes.
The intention was clear: protecting him from being assaulted during his sleep.
"Heheh, we will see about that~." Yang touched her lips and showed a predatory smile as she pulled Ruby by her side. "Besides, little princess, it's two against one."
Weiss wanted to play selfishly like that? Fine, they would just steal Sasuke away from her!
"Wawawa!" Ruby didn't even know what to say, as this was not what she wanted! But even so...if things had really come to this, she had to make her intention clear, too! "I-I'm not losing!"
Just like that, she was holding Sasuke's hand while looking Weiss in the eye without backing down.
This was war now!
These two... are not competing against each other but working together against me! Weiss hugged Sasuke closer as she felt intimidated by this pair of sisters. As I thought, they are dangerous!
Maybe she will need Winter's help with more than just a few pieces of advice!
Otherwise, Weiss could lose the first boy to move her heart, and she had no intention of letting that happen!