Chapter 60

The Alliance of Hell

While Hades' skeletal face could not make a single expression, Issei was sure it would have been gaping. The giant skeleton had locked eyes on Ophis. The young-looking dragon god stood over four heads shorter than Hades, making her look like a child staring up at an adult, but the roles seem to have been reversed to him. Hades was the one reeling after having been sucker punched in the face.

"You… how… how is this possible?!"

Ophis actually rolled her eyes. She took a step forward, which caused the now shocked Hades to take a hesitant step back. It was instinct to retreat in the face of someone stronger.

"Were you not listening to me? I'm no longer among the Top Ten Strongest Beings in the World."

Ophis smiled, but it was not the pleasant smiles everyone saw her direct at Naruto. This smile was cold, condescending, and merciless. Issei shivered as he wondered who taught this naive god to smile like that.

"Of course, that doesn't mean I am by any means weak."

Power seemed to gather around her petite frame, coalescing into dark tendrils like snakes slithering over her body.

"I am more than strong enough to kick your ass."

She spread her arms wide, the gesturing inviting, almost as if she was welcoming Hades into her embrace. Issei knew better. This was not a warm welcome. It was an invitation to disaster.

"Well? What will you do, Lord of the Underworld?"

Hades ground his teeth together in frustration. He looked at his cohorts who were equally unsure of what to do, then looked back at Ophis, standing there so innocently with her head tilted to the side.

"Kill them! Kill them all now!" Hades commanded.

"I thought you might say that," Ophis admitted.

With the command given, Erebus, Nyx, and Angra Mainyu sprang into action.

Nyx disappeared within a swirling aura of darkness and appeared right before Issei. He didn't know who the others were fighting. There was no more time to concern himself with anything except what was in front of him—and what appeared before him was a goddess asking for an ass-whooping.

A super hot goddess whose ass he would definitely not mind spanking one bit.

"You are the one known as Issei Hyoudo, right?" asked Nyx, her smile sinful. "I've heard a lot about you, Mr. Oppai Dragon. They say you are nothing but a big pervert who is obsessed with boobs."

"Who says that?!" asked a shocked Issei. Sure, it wasn't wrong, but that someone would actually say that about him was just mean.

"Ufufu. A lot of people say that. You're the most famous pervert in the entire world."

Nyx giggled like a young maiden in love. It was a wonderful noise, but it also sent a chill down Issei's spine.

"Ahhhhhhh! Aaaaaaaaahhh! Even the goddess Nyx knows my holder is nothing but a big pervert!"

"Are you really crying right now, Ddraig?!"

Ddraig wailed from inside of the Sacred Gear. Ever since Issei had become the Oppai Dragon, Ddraig had been inconsolable with grief. It wasn't like Issei didn't understand. The dragon once feared by all as one of the Twin Heavenly Dragons, a creature so monstrous even God himself was forced to join forces with the devils and fallen just to seal him, had been reduced to a tool for a perverted and horny high schooler. Were their situations reversed, Issei might have felt the same way. But damn it. They were in the middle of a battle here. Couldn't Ddraig have waited to cry for just a little while longer?

"Ahahahahaha!"

Nyx placed her hands over her stomach and laughed heartily. This laughter sounded much more genuine than her giggles.

"This is too funny. You really are an amusing child. If you weren't a Longinus holder, I might want to take you for myself."

Her eyes sharpened as her laughter ceased, a change so abrupt it made Issei's head spin. He gazed into her eyes of unfathomable darkness and felt something other than horniness. His scalp was tingling, the hairs on his neck had risen, and he felt something a lot like sickness worming around in his gut.

This woman was dangerous.

Seriously dangerous.

That was what his instincts were telling him.

"It really is too bad. The fact that you are a Longinus user means I need to defeat you. Don't worry. I won't kill you. But you will have to remain trapped inside Tartarus for the rest of eternity."

"That doesn't sound pleasant, so I'll have to pass," Issei said dryly. "Instead of letting myself get imprisoned, I'd much rather beat you."

"Do you think you can? Little boy, do you not know what I am wearing?"

"… A corset jumper skirt?"

"This isn't just a corset jumper skirt." Nyx trailed her fingers along her outfit, which caused the clothing to tighten in certain places, revealing the expanse of womanly curves this cute-faced woman possessed. Issei found his mouth going dry at the sight. "This is called the Godly Virgin Killer Clothing. It is special clothing given to me by the Gods of Hell. It grants me immunity to attacks from male virgins." She smiled condescendingly. "You'll never be able to—"

BOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOSTBOOST!

"DRESS BREAK!"

"WHAT?!"

Before Nyx could continue her villainous tirade, Issei used his Balance Breaker's unique ability to boost without limit, granting himself an incredible wellspring of power. He rushed at Nyx, appearing before her so quickly even the goddess of darkness could do little more than blink. She tried to dodge, of course, but Issei had been sparring with people who moved faster than her on a daily basis. He slammed his hand into her chest, leaving a magic circle on it, and then leapt back and snapped his fingers.

The end result of his attack was… about what someone would expect from the world's biggest pervert. Every article of clothing, the outfit Nyx was so proud of, was torn to shreds within seconds.

Even though this woman was an enemy, Issei found himself stunned by the glorious sight of a naked Nyx. Her boobs were large and well-formed, capped with snowy pink nipples that were just begging to be sucked. They looked like two teardrops. Their perfect slopes were perky but had the kind of weight that told him they were real. As a connoisseur of all things breasts, Issei had an eye for when someone's tatas were fake, and these magnificent mammaries were definitely the real deal.

"Saving to the spank bank! Thank you for giving me this blessing," Issei said, clapping his hands together as if in prayer.

"Wha… what… what is this?!" screamed Nyx, covering her breasts and crotch with her hands, her face red and her eyes practically swirling around in their sockets. "How did you break my Godly Virgin Killer Clothes?!"

"Listen up, your bustiness!" Issei shouted as he clenched his scaled gauntlet into a fist. "I may be a hopeless pervert who loves breasts more than life itself, but that doesn't mean I'm a virgin!"

"… You're not?!"

"No! Why would you even think that?!"

"I mean… you're such a pervert… who would want to sleep with you?"

"That is just cruel! There are women who want to sleep with me! How dare you say no women would want to have sex with me just because I'm a pervert! Everyone is perverted to some degree!"

"Well, you're not wrong… but…"

"That does it! I'll show you! Witness my pervert power!"

"NOOOOO!"

~Devil Ninja~

Naruto clicked his tongue as he once more saw all the damage he'd done heal right back up. The gouged chunks of flesh reappeared as if nothing had happened. That regeneration was really annoying.

Several tentacles tried to skewer him. Naruto cut them down with wind blades. They formed back and attacked again, and he cut them down again. The process repeated itself over and over as he dodged several other attacks thrown his way. Powerful bullet-like projectiles struck the ground around him in a relentless barrage. Naruto wove his way through the hailstorm of bullets and tentacles.

Wind whipped his spiky hair into a frenzy as the scent of burnt rubber and ozone filled the air, an odor so poignant he would have wrinkled his nose if he hadn't smelled worse.

A tentacle whizzed by his left as he jerked back, shuffling along his feet to avoid the incoming attack, which impaled the ground and caused a wellspring of darkness to expand across the road. He removed this obstacle with another wind blade. The tentacle was severed and the darkness disappeared, though the appendage grew back seconds later.

I feel kind of like I'm in a hentai gone wrong.

"Please don't say that. It worries me when you mention hentai."

Eh? Why?

"I'm concerned you'll become even more perverted than Issei."

Naruto rolled his eyes. I'm pretty sure it is way too late for that.

Tartarus was not stupid, Naruto discovered when the god released a barrage of attacks that blocked every path of escape he had. Coating his hands in Kurama's powerful chakra, he struck the bullets that he couldn't dodge, slicing through them. Each attack was powerful enough that Naruto felt a shockwave travel through him. However, he was durable enough that none of these attacks injured him.

"You know, for a god, you're kinda weak, aren't you?" Naruto asked Tartarus. "I mean, I was expecting a primordial god like you to be ultra-powerful or something, but you're not much stronger than that pussy, Zeus. What's up with that?"

"Don't compare me to that wimp."

"Why not? From where I'm standing, the both of you are wimps."

"That child is nothing but a fake king. He claims to be the King of Olympus, but he doesn't have anywhere close the power other gods wield. The only reason he has even been able to stay in power is because history teaches people more about Zeus than it does us primordials. Were it not for that, we would have far more influence over the people than him."

Naruto remembered listening to talks about how the many powerful religious and mythological deities of this world gained their power through the faith of their followers. He didn't know much about the Greeks, but it would make sense that Zeus was in power if the vast majority of people who believed in Greek mythology were taught more about him than the others, though that didn't explain Hades' power.

Putting that out of his mind, Naruto flew into the air, ascending higher and higher, and then turned around and dive-bombed toward Tartarus. He thrust out his left hand and created a Rasengan. Then he pumped more chakra into it and created an Oodoma Rasengan. The massive Rasengan was easily three times larger than a normal one, and it packed enough power to destroy a building.

His attack didn't hit Tartarus.

It struck a barrier that Tartarus created between them.

As his Rasengan ground into the barrier and attempted to pierce it, Naruto created several hands from his chakra shroud, each of which formed a Rasengan, and had them travel around the shield and strike Tartarus's body. The attacks exploded one after another as Naruto overloaded them with chakra. Each detonation created massive holes in the god's body.

Naruto landed on the ground after his previous attack. He looked up with a grin—only for the grin to be wiped from his face when he saw Tartarus's body healing over as if nothing had happened.

"GAAA! DAMN YOU! STOP REGENERATING!"

~Devil Ninja~

While the battle between Issei and Nyx was progressing in a way no one could have imagined and the annoyed Naruto was duking it out with Tartarus, Azazel and Michael found themselves fighting against Erebus and Angra Mainyu. Sirzechs, Brahma, Shiva, and Indra were unable to fight because of the commandment against them, which meant they were the only two who could fend these gods off.

Michael had decided to take on Erebus. As a god of darkness, Michael had a distinct advantage over him thanks to his light magic.

Michael had already created a pair of light-based divine swords. They looked a lot like rapiers, though one of them was smaller than the other and held within his offhand. He was not ambidextrous by nature but had trained himself extensively to fight with two weapons in hand.

He rushed at Erebus, who created a powerful barrier of darkness in front of him. Michael sliced through the barrier with ease. However, Erebus was not on the other side of it, which caused Michael to frown as he turned and observed his surroundings for any sign of his enemy.

A little ways over, Azazel and Angra Mainyu were clashing. It looked to him like Angra Mainyu had the upperhand.

Azazel no longer had the Down Fall Dragon Spear since he'd given Fafnir to Asia, who had formed a contract with the dragon in exchange for her panties. Instead, he wielded another Artificial Sacred Gear that looked like a sword formed from a mixture of light and darkness. Michael remembered it was called Blazer Shining or Darkness Blade or something like that. It was a very Azazel name.

He swung the sword of light and darkness at Angra Mainyu, but the sword never reached his opponent, who merely created a defensive magic circle before his hand and used it to block the attack. Sword met circle. No sparks flew from the meeting, though arches of powerful energy streamed out like bolts of lightning. Angra Mainyu proved how capable he was by redirecting the attack away from himself.

Meanwhile, with his other hand, he created another magic circle. This one flared with elemental energy. Azazel's eyes went wide as he leapt back and contorted his body. He was just in time to avoid the bolt of magic that flew from the circle, whizzed past his face, and slammed into the wall of a building, destroying it.

"As expected of a god, you're a fierce opponent," Azazel said with a grin.

"And you're an annoyance," Angra Mainyu said.

"I'll take that as a compliment."

The battle between Azazel and Angra Mainyu started up once more, but Michael was no longer able to pay attention as several bolts of darkness flew at him from the aether. He spun the swords in both hands, deflecting the multitude of attacks as they came at him from different angles, at different times, and in different directions. He spun left and reflected a beam of darkness that would have pierced his leg. Then he twisted to the right, swinging his sword from left leg to right shoulder. Six beams were deflected in quick succession.

"You are very good at hiding," Michael said at last, voice still calm as he continued to deflect attacks. "Could it be that you are not well-versed in combat?"

"I am not surprised you noticed, Archangel Michael," Erebus' voice echoed all around him. "I am not good at fighting. What I am good at are tricks. So I won't fight you in a frontal assault like some kind of brainless idiot."

"So I see. If that is how you want it."

Michael remained calm, even as he swung the short sword in his offhand to deflect a bolt of darkness that shot out from a portal to his right. Erebus was obviously hiding in the darkness of this room. As the god of darkness, he could merge with it any time he wanted, and this place had quite a few shadows. The only way to bring him out would be to overwhelm him with a powerful light that banished all the shadows in the area.

Unfortunately, while Michael did have spells that could do this, he could not use them while in the presence of Sirzechs, Issei Hyoudo, or Rias Gremory. Sirzechs might be able to protect himself, but the other two would not. They would be injured if he unleashed such a powerful attack.

Which meant all Michael could do was continue deflecting attacks and hope an opening would present itself.

Or that was what he thought.

"Ahhhh?!"

A pained and surprised scream echoed from somewhere to his left. He spun around as Erebus finally appeared, blood dripping from a wound on his arm. Michael only had a moment to see the spear of light that had attacked him embedded into the ground before it faded away. A little ways behind Erebus was a figure clad in dark blue ninja clothing disappearing into the shadows.

She must be one of Metatron's ninja…

Michael was impressed with how well-hidden that woman was. He had not even sensed her presence.

Because he didn't want that female ninja's—he believed they were referred to as kunoichi—efforts to go to waste, Michael created several spears of light and launched them at Erebus. The god of darkness flinched as he erected a barrier. An explosion of light and darkness erupted all around them, forcing the other fights to stop as the building itself was destroyed.

Michael soared into the sky, flapping his twelve golden wings. He quickly observed the situation and saw that everyone else seemed to have made it out safely. Azazel and Angra Mainyu were still fighting a little ways off, though now they were soaring through the sky instead of fighting on solid ground. Sirzechs, Brahma, Indra, and Shiva were floating in the sky not too far away, a barrier surrounding them. Ophis and Hades were locked in battle, though, and perhaps he was just imagining things, it seemed like Ophis was having difficulties. Rias was sneaking up on that particular battle. Meanwhile, Issei was fighting against Nyx.

Now that the building they were in had been destroyed, Michael could also see the battle happening between Naruto and Tartarus. The young blond man held a spinning ball of pure destructive force above his head. It was emitting a bell-like shriek and had spinning blades rotating all over it. This was the Rasenshuriken that Michael had seen before. It was a very destructive technique.

Naruto thrust out his hand. The Rasenshuriken flew forward as a strange hand-shaped mass of energy flew from Naruto's hand and extended to incredible lengths. It struck Tartarus on the left flank, detonating into a sphere of condensed wind blades. Such an attack would have normally done devastating damage, and indeed, a large chunk of Tartarus' body was destroyed, but all that damage soon reversed a mere split second later as the primordial god's high-speed regeneration kicked in.

"GAAA! DAMN YOU! STOP REGENERATING!" Naruto's scream echoed up to Michael.

"I should say the same to you! What the hell is with that high-speed regeneration of yours?!"

Michael would have chuckled as he listened to the argument. It was just so Naruto to argue with his enemy over something so stupid. However, he was unable to find any humor in the situation as he gazed at Erebus, now forced into the light of day. He must have known what kind of disadvantage he was at because he didn't dare attack Michael like he had before. Darkness swirled around him like a shield or maybe a smokescreen, but he remained floating several meters away.

"I hope you are ready to continue," Michael said to Erebus as he held both weapons ready.

~Devil Ninja~

Even though Issei had talked a big game, Nyx was a lot harder to beat than he thought she would be, virgin killer clothes or not. He guessed it made sense. She was a god, after all—a primordial goddess at that. What else had he been expecting?

The battle was no longer taking place inside of the meeting room, which had been utterly annihilated by Michael's last attack, but now happened on the streets. Fortunately, this was a recreation of Kuoh conceived by the Sitri Peerage and therefore something they could afford to wreck.

The scent of battle and sound of explosions rang out everywhere. Issei was currently in his Blaster Bishop form, firing projectiles at Nyx as she transformed into wisps of darkness that somehow made her intangible. None of his attacks hit. Even now, he fired yet another projectile that struck Nyx's body, only to burst straight through her without doing any noticeable damage. The attack continued on to destroy a building in a bright blaze of energy.

"That's quite the powerful ability you have there," Nyx said with a laugh.

She had somehow managed to change clothes… or maybe her clothes had been formed out of darkness. It looked like she was wearing a black cloak with frayed edges. He couldn't see if she was wearing anything underneath it. All he saw was darkness, which made him think she might be using the power of darkness to hide her naughty bits. That was disappointing. He'd have liked it better if she'd just fought him naked…

… On second thought, that might be a bad thing since it would distract him.

"What kind of magic is that?" asked Issei as he shifted from his Bishop form to his Knight form.

The Welsh Sonic Boost Knight possessed immense speed that far surpassed even some of the best Knights, though he was still slower than Kiba. To make full use of this ability, Issei shed all of his excess armor, which made him vulnerable to powerful attacks. However, it didn't matter if his armor was weaker so long as he didn't get hit.

Issei sped forward and reached Nyx within less time than it took to blink. Then he shifted to his Welsh Dragonic Rook form, which gave him a massive amount of power and defense but lowered his speed. His armor might be thicker. Yet that hardly mattered. The propulsion jets on his elbow increased the speed of his right arm, which he slammed into Nyx with all the force of a nuclear missile.

He hit nothing but darkness.

Because he had put so much power into his attack, the force of his punch expelled outward and decimated the area behind Nyx. The ground ruptured. Cracks formed all along the asphalt. A building barely a meter behind them cracked, dented, and then caved inward before crumbling completely.

Nyx appeared several meters to his right, her body forming together from threads of darkness. She looked at the destruction he had caused and giggled.

"Oh, my. That was quite the attack. You might have really hurt me if I let that hit."

"It was supposed to hurt you." Issei turned around and faced Nyx with a glare. "Why is it that none of my attacks are hitting you?"

"Who knows," Nyx replied with a shrug and a smile.

Issei knew this woman was being obtuse to frustrate him. Blond Bastard Sensei—er, Naruto would often do this when they sparred. In the beginning, Issei could never understand why his friend was doing it, but after fighting so many opponents, some of who used the exact same tactic, he understood that Naruto was training him for moments like this. Since he had already dealt with his before, he was able to remain calm and analyze the situation.

Leaping into the air, Issei changed forms once more, this time to his Bishop form again. Rather than attacking Nyx directly, he launched an attack at the ground beneath her feet. An explosion of power turned the ground into a smoking crater. Nyx was launched into the air, but then her body dispersed into black smoke and reformed. She didn't have a scratch on her.

"That was a good try. You knew your attacks didn't affect me, so you decided to attack the area around me. Too bad that won't work on me either," she said to him.

It seemed her main ability was her power to manipulate darkness. Nyx was the Goddess of the Night in Greek mythology, so that made sense, but the problem was that Issei didn't know what sort of weaknesses darkness had—except maybe light. If light was the only weakness of darkness, then he might be in trouble.

"Since it seems none of your attacks are hitting me, I hope you don't mind if I fight back now," Nyx said.

Issei prepared himself for whatever this woman could throw at him, but even he was not expecting her to create a massive tornado of darkness from her hands. The tornado flew forward so quickly he barely had time to dodge. Its sucking force was immense. He gritted his teeth before transforming into his Knight form and using the speed it granted him to move away. Meanwhile, the tornado swallowed several buildings whole before dispersing. The buildings remained intact, but there was a massive crescent-shaped cutout going through all of them.

"You're quite fast," Nyx said, her voice coming from behind Issei.

Eyes widening, Issei spun around as Nyx slammed her fist into his chest. He was still wearing the Welsh Sonic Boost Knight armor… which was almost like wearing no armor at all. With a cry of pain and surprise, he was blasted backward, slammed into the ground, and felt blood and bile rise up in his throat. He forcefully swallowed it. The acidic taste was awful, but he didn't want to give this woman the satisfaction of seeing him injured.

Nyx landed on the ground not far from him as Issei stood to his feet, glaring at the woman as she returned his vicious look with a smile.

"Hmmm. I thought your Knight form was supposed to be weak. You're really quite durable, aren't you?"

"Hmph. I get my ass kicked by Naruto on a daily basis. Of course I'm durable."

"Ah. Yes, Naruto Uzumaki. He's definitely a concern to all of us. That boy isn't even at his full strength, and yet he is able to take on several gods at once. No one should have that much power."

"I don't know what you're going on about, lady, but none of that shit matters to me." Issei shifted back into his regular scale mail and began boosting himself to increase his power. "The only thing I care about right now is kicking your ass."

Nyx giggled. "Do you really think you can kick my ass? Well, it's right here if you want to try."

Despite his words, Issei didn't move at first. He still wasn't sure how to fight Nyx. She seemed to be capable of transforming her body into darkness to evade all of his attacks, which meant his current attacks weren't enough. He might have to use something stronger, but that would mean revealing his trump card. Nyx was currently not fighting seriously. She must still have several trump cards up her own sleeve, and if he revealed his too early, then she could take advantage of that.

Just as Issei was beginning to wonder how he would win, someone appeared behind Nyx, like a ghost, or a mirage. Issei had to blink. Nyx hadn't noticed this figure yet. The person, a woman if he were to judge by her large breasts, was clad in the dark blue garb of a kunoichi. Issei thought she seemed familiar somehow. He was certain he recognized those boobs, even though they were currently confined by cloth and bandages.

The kunoichi thrust out a spear of light that stabbed into Nyx. The woman cried in pain and surprise as she spun around. Issei, not one to miss such an opportunity, rushed forward with his Knight form, shifted into his Rook form, and slammed his fist directly into Nyx's left cheek. This time his attack hit. The woman was lifted off the ground, spun through the air, and crashed into a building. Seconds later, the building crumbled around her.

As Nyx disappeared into the crumbling building, Issei shifted into his Bishop form, took aim, and fired.

"Dragon Blaster!"

The Dragon Blaster was Issei's finishing move for the Welsh Blaster Bishop armor. Two powerful shots from his charged canon flew forward and struck the building, which disappeared in a blaze of light so bright both him and the kunoichi had to cover their eyes. Wind and debris flew into his face. He was fortunately protected by his helmet. The kunoichi had no such protection and shifted behind him to protect herself. When the attack finally ended, Issei found himself staring at a massive crater that expanded for what looked like a one or two hundred meters.

"I wonder if that got her," Issei mumbled to herself.

"I doubt it," the kunoichi said. "Nyx is a Primordial Goddess. If something like that was enough to kill her, she'd be an awfully weak goddess."

Issei spun around. That voice…!

"Raynare?! Is that you?!"

"Oh? You recognized my voice. Surprise surprise. I didn't think you'd know who I was unless you saw my tits."

Issei blushed. "Of course I recognize your voice… though your boobs did have a familiar shape."

The kunoichi shook her head. "You just never change."

"So you've joined Metatron's ninja?" asked Issei curiously.

Reaching up, Raynare removed her facemask. Long locks of raven hair shimmered as they fell down her back and around her face. She shook her head once, causing her hair to bounce, then looked at him with a smirk.

"That's right. You and everyone else are getting stronger and stronger. Meanwhile, I haven't gained any power at all. I knew that if I wanted to make sure I wasn't left behind, I would need to do something to give myself an edge. So I decided to join Metatron's ninja village." She shrugged. "I'm better at gathering information than I am at fighting anyway, and I'm learning how to assassinate people, which I think suits my personality better."

"Well, I guess," Issei said.

There was merit to her words. Raynare was very abrasive and rude, but she also knew subtlety and could manipulate people's emotions as easily as she breathed. That was how she'd originally been able to kill him, though Issei knew he was an easy mark. He was certain she'd make a good ninja.

"Still, why didn't you tell anyone?" he asked.

"Why should I tell everyone what I'm doing?" Raynare shrugged, then grinned at him. "Besides, I wanted this to be a surprise."

"Well, I am definitely surprised," Issei admitted.

"You'd better be."

Their moment of camaraderie ended when someone appeared beside them. Nyx finally looked injured. She had wounds littering her body, and her cloak of darkness had partially dissolved, revealing hints of her bare shoulder, cleavage, and thighs. While she looked like she'd been involved in a bad experiment that exploded in her face, she didn't seem all that distressed. In fact, she was smiling.

"That was a good attack," she admitted. "However, the fight's not over yet. Don't you two think you should be less focused on flirting and more focused on me?"

Issei and Raynare leapt back as Nyx exploded with the powers of darkness. They engulfed everything around them, enclosing around the two and trapping them. Issei recognized this as a barrier.

"We'll continue this later," Raynare said. "Perhaps in your bed."

Issei wasn't blushing. Certainly not. Nope. Because he had a battle to fight, he was definitely not blushing.

Right.

~Devil Ninja~

Ophis held out her hands and launched a dozen snakes at Hades, who snarled as he used his Divine Aura to enhance his own magic. He launched numerous blades made of hellfire at the snakes Ophis attacked him with. Each hellfire blade sliced right through one of her snakes, which dissolved into nothing, causing Ophis to purse her lips.

Hades was one of the Top Ten Strongest Beings in the World. In terms of power, he was just below Sirzechs, which put him on the lower end of the Top Ten Strongest in terms of ranking. However, that meant he was technically still more powerful than Ophis now, who had lost her place within that ranking because of Razivem.

After cutting through her snakes, Hades swung his staff at her, releasing a powerful surge of magical power. Ophis grunted as a magical formula appeared around her body. She struggled to move to no avail. Her body simply didn't have the strength to break this formula, which had been enhanced by Hades' Divine Aura like his other magic.

Power surged through her body and was expelled as black miasma. The formula finally shattered, but Hades had already launched his next attack, a beam of darkness that struck Ophis before she could put up a proper defense. All she could do was cross her arms and grit her teeth as the attack pushed against her. Pain overrode her senses as the skin of her forearms was burned away. Grunting, she pushed her power into deflecting this attack, shoving it off to the side. It struck the ground behind her and detonated with so much power that fierce winds pushed against her back.

"It seems you really have lost your power," Hades said with a cackle. "I never would have expected one of my little attacks to actually damage the legendary Ourobouros Dragon. It looks like that talk of you still having the power to defeat me was just talk."

Ophis looked down at her arms and grimaced. The skin had been burned right off, showing the fleshy muscles underneath as smoke rose from her damaged limbs. This was one of the first time she'd ever been injured to this extent. Having been born as one of the strongest beings in existence, Ophis had never been hurt at all, much less to this degree. Even when she lost all of her powers, it hadn't hurt so much as felt draining.

She looked back at Hades, expression hardening as she held out her hand. Snakes appeared as if born from the aether. They twisted and morphed, combining together to form a weapon with a dual-pronged tip. It looked somewhat like a pitchfork. The ends of both prongs were sharp and glinted in the light, but the pommel at the bottom looked like a snakehead that was alive. It hissed and spat at Hades as Ophis twirled the weapon around with surprising expertise.

"I did not realize you knew how to wield weapons," Hades said with some surprise.

"Hmph. That just goes to show how much you know," Ophis said. "I have existed since the creation of the Dimensional Gap. I have traveled this world many times over and seen much. Do you really think I wouldn't learn how to wield weapons of war?"

Humans were great at making war. Everywhere she had traveled, she had watched as humans fought amongst each other. She used to think humans were stupid because of their constant need to fight. She hadn't understood it. She still didn't understand it, though she did know now that it wasn't like humans were the only beings who fought. Even Ophis wanted to fight Great Red. Her reasons were to kick him out of her home. She imagined the humans who waged wars had similar reasons for fighting.

"Then why don't you show me how good you are with that thing. I'd love to see what sort of skills the legendary Infinite Dragon God possesses."

Ophis knew Hades was mocking her as he waved his Skeleton Staff in a beckoning gesture. It was a strange weapon with three blue eyes and horns adorning its face. Because she was a god of the highest caliber, even with her power missing, she could tell this weapon was used to enhance his Divine Aura. If she let him fully power his attacks, he might be able to actually overwhelm her as she was now.

Not letting herself get worked up over being mocked, Ophis used teleportation magic to appear directly beneath Hades. She thrust her bident at the lord of the underworld. It was blocked when Hades moved his staff to intercept her attack, though the force behind her thrust was such that both she and her enemy were pushed away from each other. Ophis simply teleported again. This time, she appeared behind Hades and tried to puncture two holes through the back of his head.

Hades must have had eyes in the back of his head because a shield sprang up near his skull. Ophis grunted as her bident slammed into the defensive magic circles, was reflected off them, and stumbled backward through the air.

Turning, Hades held out his staff and launched several magical attacks at Ophis, who decided blocking or redirecting them would waste energy. She landed on the ground and made liberal use of teleportation magic to avoid his attacks. The world around her became inundated with a series of powerful explosions. Each one was powerful enough to destroy a city block. This forced Ophis to further space the distance of her teleportation since it wouldn't do to teleport in the middle of an explosion. However, Hades seemed to have some method of tracking her, and he followed after Ophis, unleashing one powerful attack after another every time she appeared.

Ophis knew that if something wasn't done soon, she would not be able to win against Hades. It galled her to think that she would be defeated by such a wimp. But it was also true that Ophis no longer posed the threat she once did. It was sad. To think that she, an entity so strong no one would have dared touch her, was now being pushed back by an upstart like Hades. It was humiliating.

Just as she was thinking about how much she hated her newfound weakness, Hades screamed in surprise and pain. Ophis looked up. Her eyes widened as she found Hades being consumed by what looked like a reddish-black sphere of pure destruction. The sphere was enormous, at least two times larger than Hades himself, and contained unimaginable amounts of demonic power.

That's…!

Ophis swiveled her head around to see Rias, sweat pouring from her forehead, breathing ragged, yet gaze steady as she glared at Hades. This attack had definitely come from Rias. It was her newest move, Extinguishing Star, which was Rias' ultimate one-hit kill technique. This attack was formed when Rias manipulated her Powers of Destruction into a compressed sphere. While the attack moved slowly, it contained a powerful magnetic force that pulled enemies toward it and disintegrated whatever it touched.

Even Hades struggled against this attack. He was being pulled into the reddish black star, though he struggled hard against it. His left hand soon touched the sphere, and his screams echoed around the city block as the fingers of his left hand disintegrated up to the knuckle.

Unfortunately, while this attack was indeed one of the most powerful Ophis had seen from a devil, it was not powerful enough to destroy a god of Hades' caliber. His incredible durability protected him. Only his fingers up to the knuckles had been destroyed. Not long after that, he slammed his staff into the sphere. An immense wave of power erupted from the staff, struck the sphere, and created a ripple that spread outward as the Extinguishing Star exploded.

"That was a cheap trick," Hades said as he glared at Rias.

The redhead shrugged as she floated over to Ophis. "Using the Ark of the Covenant to protect yourself from the other Top Ten Strongest Beings in the World is an even cheaper trick. Don't talk to me about being cheap when you're just a coward who can't face your peers without assurances."

Hades growled but said nothing, perhaps realizing he had no ground to stand on. Rias used that time to place a hand on Ophis' shoulder.

"You okay?"

"I'm fine. Thank you for your help."

"It's my pleasure. Do you think you can defeat him with my help?"

"It would be hard to beat him with my current state. However, it looks like we will not need to."

While the many battles happening here continued to wage, the battles all across the city seemed to have stopped. Ophis was the first to spot the numerous people coming this way. Most of them were flying in on wings, but a few like the Valkyries came in on flying chariots. The angels, devils, fallen, yokai, and valkyries were pouring in from every direction, something that Hades did not fail to notice.

"It seems this battle will go to you," Hades announced. "But do not think I will let you continue to exist. The Alliance of Hell will come back one day, and when we do, the Longinus users and all who oppose us shall suffer a fate worse than death."

As he spoke, Nyx, Erebus, Angra Mainyu, and Tartarus retreated from their respective battles and appeared next to Hades. A magic circle appeared underneath them. Ophis recognized a teleportation circle when she saw one. Sadly, neither she nor the others were able to stop the group from teleporting themselves away.

~Devil Ninja~

Several days had passed since the battle with the newly minted Alliance of Hell. Naruto still didn't know much about this new group. They said they were not part of the Chaos Brigaide, which meant they were an entirely new enemy faction that had sprung up from nowhere. That was pretty concerning. New factions didn't just appear at random. People had to meet, plan, and decide to join forces in order for that to happen. The fact that this alliance seemed to appear as if by magic was concerning since it meant they had no spies located within the faction.

Hades must have been keeping this very close to his chest.

In either event, with the Alliance of Hell making a temporary retreat, Naruto and the others had been busy dealing with the aftermath. Several humans had been killed during the latest attack. The calculated total number of casualties was 124. That might not sound like a lot, but Rias felt each death hard, especially when it was discovered that a dozen people who died were students from their school. Thanks to Azazel and the Grigori, no one remembered what happened and all evidence of it had been erased, but nothing could erase the fact that those people were now dead.

Dealing with the fallout of the attack required Naruto and Rias to work alongside Sona, Azazel, Gondul, and the leaders of the various factions within Kuoh. The first thing they did was created a cover story to explain what happened. Someone had smuggled weapons into Japan and attacked the citizens of Kuoh. Basically, they were claiming it was a terrorist attack, which wasn't far off the mark anyway. The Gremory Family owned many of Kuoh's news media outlets, so it was easy enough to make the story stick.

The biggest problem was the funeral services they needed to hold.

While a memorial was held publicly for those who were killed during the terrorist attack, Rias worked with Sona to plan a funeral for the school. She gathered information on each student who was killed and compiled it all together. While the one who would be speaking at the funeral was Sona, Rias made sure to write up a good speech that her friend could use.

A bright day with a clear sky greeted the students as they stood on the track field, lined up in rows based on their grade and class. The sunny day seemed to mock the somber group. Naruto stood beside Kiba and Irina with his back straight, eyes on Sona, and his expression blank. He'd done a number of funerals back in Konoha. While he was usually a prankster and preferred to always smile, he knew how important it was to honor the dead and mourn the loss of life.

"… Murayama and Katase were just on their way back home when they were caught up in the vicious terrorist attack that claimed their lives. They were best friends and members of the Kendo Club. Both were talented, beautiful, and admired by their peers. They will be greatly missed…"

Sona stood on a raised platform, a mic in front of her as she spoke of those who had lost their lives. Tsubaki and the other members of the Student Council stood behind her. In front of the raised platform were several caskets. Each one looked simple but was decorated like a small shrine. A picture of the students who died sat on each casket to mark who they belonged to.

Naruto of course paid attention to Sona's speech, but at the mention of Murayama and Katase, he glanced over at where Issei, Asia, and Xenovia were standing. Asia was sobbing into a stoic Issei's shoulder as Xenovia clenched her hands into fists. Her arms were shaking. On the other hand, Issei was not making any expression at all, though his mouth had become a flat line. Standing beside them was Kiryu, Motohama, and Matsuda, none of whom exuded their normal perverted nature.

Murayama and Katase had been in the same class as Issei, Asia, and the others. From what Naruto understood, Asia in particular had been good friends with the two girls, which made their passing that much harder for her. He hoped Issei would be there for her. Naruto thought of Asia as his little sister, so he wanted to make sure she had someone by her side during this time.

Something warm suddenly engulfed his right hand. Naruto glanced down to find his hand conjoined with someone else's. Soft, delicate, and feminine, the hand was familiar to him, and he let his gaze travel up the arm to the shoulders and neck before finally landing on Irina's sorrowful face. She had tears in her eyes, but they were unshed. As he stared at her, Irina glanced at him and gave a trembling smile.

"I've noticed since coming here… but a lot of innocent people are getting caught up in our war," she said.

"You feel guilty?" he asked.

"I can't help it," she admitted. "When you think about it, the only reason these people died is because we were here. If we didn't live in Kuoh, Hades and his alliance would have had no reason to attack them. Everything that happened is our fault…"

"You can't think like that." Naruto shook his head. "Do not forget that there are rules put in place regarding battles between factions. We aren't supposed to get humans involved in our affairs. This has been an accepted rule for I don't even know how long, but Hades and his alliance have broken this rule. The Chaos Brigade too. Rizavim and his group don't much care for the rules. That is because they want to return to the world to chaos. They want to return to a time when humans feared them."

"Naruto is right," Kiba agreed. "What happened the other day was a tragedy, but you can't blame yourself. You did not kill those people. We did not kill those people. Hades and his ilk are the ones who disregarded the rules of conduct and got innocent humans involved in our war."

"Well, I guess. But I still don't like what happened," Irina said with a sigh.

"None of us like what happened," Naruto assured her.

He tugged on Irina's hand to pull her closer, then wrapped his arm around her waist. Irina flushed red the tips of her ears. However, she didn't resist him and instead leaned into Naruto's embrace.

The memorial service lasted several more hours. Sona extolled the virtues of each student who died, and then there was a moment of silence as someone sang Japan's National Anthem. Kimigayo supposedly contained the oldest lyrics among the world's national anthems. After the song was finished, everyone stood in line in front of the caskets for each student. People wandered up one at a time, placed a flower before one or more of the caskets, and then left. Some were crying. They were the friends of those who died. Parents were also allowed to attend. It was heart wrenching to see mothers and fathers shedding bitter tears at the loss of their son or daughter.

No parent should have to outlive their own child.

The thought came to Naruto as he stood before the caskets, remembering his own parents. He'd never met them until he turned 16, and even then, he had only met them as extensions of themselves. His mom had sealed a remnant of herself inside of him, to help him when he decided to master Kurama's power. His father had been resurrected by his enemies using the Edo Tensei.

His parents had given their lives for him. He couldn't imagine how these parents felt, but he imagined they too would have knowingly sacrificed themselves if they could have saved their children.

The memorial soon ended, and Naruto filed into the Occult Research clubroom with an incredibly somber group. It wasn't just members of the Occult Research Club who came with them. Sona and her peerage, Michael and Gabriel, Azazel, and Sirzechs entered the room along with them.

Naruto was surprised to see Gabriel. He had met her on a few occasions.

Gabriel was an extremely beautiful woman with curly blonde hair, a voluptuous figure, and twelve wings growing from her back. She was widely known as the most beautiful woman in heaven. At present, she was wearing a dark dress that matched Michael's suit. They looked very much like brother and sister as they sat side by side with matching somber expressions.

"I'm sorry for asking for this meeting," Sirzechs began. "I know everyone would probably like to get some rest."

"It's fine, brother. We understand you would not have called for us to meet if you didn't have something important to say," Rias said. She was not sitting at her desk because Sirzechs was currently sitting there. She was instead sitting next to Naruto, holding his hand in a firm grip as she leaned into his side, taking comfort in his presence.

"Thank you." Sirzechs smiled at his sister, but then his expression became somber. "With this latest attack, it has become clear to us that our enemies do not care if they get innocent bystanders involved. In fact, we believe they are intent on using innocents to cause chaos and mayhem because they know that we will try to protect them, which will inhibit our combat capabilities. That is why we have decided to send all of you to the underworld until further notice."

His words were met with shocked silence.

"You should all pack your bags tonight. We will be leaving tomorrow," Sirzechs added, much to the shock of those who hadn't been in the know.

~Devil Ninja~

"I cannot believe him! The nerve! Telling me of all people that we need to leave Kuoh and travel to the underworld until further notice now of all times! Can you believe this?!"

Naruto shared an awkward smile with Koneko, Ravel, Rossweisse, Le Fay, Ophis, and Irina as they listened to Rias rant about how much she disapproved of her brother's decision to send them to the underworld. She was on a roll. They'd been listening to her for the last half an hour since they arrived home. Even now, as she neatly folded her clothes and placed them in a large suitcase, she continued to complain.

"Doesn't he know I'm graduating soon? How am I supposed to graduate if I'm not even present? And my class is relying on me to be their representative? Does he not realize that I am responsible for ensuring my peers have a fun and eventful graduation?"

"I think he knows that," Ravel said quietly. "I don't think this is a decision he made lightly either."

Rias did not say anything, though Naruto was sure she'd heard what Ravel said. She had paused halfway through folding a nightgown.

"The situation has obviously become incredibly volatile if Sirzechs is asking you to return to the underworld," Rossweisse added in a stern voice. She sounded like she was in teacher mode. "I can't say I blame him. The Chaos Brigade and now the Alliance of Hell has attacked Kuoh because this is where so many of our kind gather. It's become the literal trading hub of the supernatural world and the Three Factions Alliance's main base of operations. Staying here right now is dangerous."

Every word Rossweisse said was completely true. While Naruto liked being forced to leave about as much as Rias did, he would not deny this was the best thing they could do. It would be safer for everyone. This included the humans, who would be spared the wrath of the gods so long as they remained away.

"It's not like I don't understand that…" Rias said at long last.

"If you understand, then stop your bitching," Koneko said.

"Excuse me?" Rias gawked at the catgirl.

Koneko met the redhead's gawking with her own signature deadpan. "You heard me. Nobody likes that we're being forced to leave, but you're being especially childish."

"I… ugh, I guess you're right." Rias' shoulders slumped. "I'm sorry. I guess I am just frustrated. I always imagined being able to graduate with my peers. I wanted to walk down the aisle with everyone else, receive my diploma, and then celebrate with my friends and family. But it looks like I won't be able to do that now."

While Rias always took her duties as the heiress to the House of Gremory and a High-class Devil in charge of Kuoh very seriously, that wasn't to say she didn't have her childish side. Rias didn't want to just be a Gremory. She also wanted to be a normal high school girl. That was the whole reason she had opted to live in the human world instead of the underworld. She wanted to get as far from her title as possible.

What they were seeing now was undoubtedly that childishness coming out.

Rias was not the only one folding laundry and putting it into suitcases. All of them were getting ready to travel. Koneko and Ravel knelt side by side, one dressed in a cute nightgown and the other wearing catprint panties and a spaghetti strap shirt, placing various items such as clothes and necessities in their own cases. Rossweisse already had her suitcase ready. It was sitting by the door. Le Fay and Irina had the least amount of items. The magician among them was only taking a duffel bag (she had most of her stuff stashed in another dimension). Their resident angel would have what she needed brought over from Heaven.

Ophis had nothing. Naruto often wondered just where all those clothes he bought her had gone since it didn't seem like she had any.

"Not gonna pack?" asked Le Fay.

Ophis shrugged. "Not much to pack."

"What about clothes?"

"Why wear clothes when you can just wear tape?"

A single droplet of sweat trickled down Le Fay's face and neck as she laughed awkward at the dragon god's words. She busied herself with her own packing and studiously ignored Ophis, who sat on the bed with her legs crossed, one hand being used to prop up her head, and the other resting against the mattress.

On a side note, she only had two strips of tape covering her nipples.

Naruto finished putting his clothes away, closed his suitcase, and set it next to Rossweisse's case before wandering over to Rias. He closed the distance and embraced the woman. Her body was a perfect fit in his arms. She was neither too tall nor too small, able to rest snugly with her head on his shoulder.

As she relaxed into his warmth, Naruto said, "I know it's frustrating. The god of ramen knows I've caused people untold amounts of grief by not staying put when they ordered me to… but that's also why I can tell you this is the only thing we can do right now. Try not to be too hard on your brother."

"I hate it when you actually talk to me using logic." She sighed, squeezed him once, then stepped out of his embrace, and smiled. "I know you're right. I just… wanted to complain a bit. I need to release my frustration somehow."

"Which is fine." Naruto shrugged. "I won't begrudge you complaining."

"Half an hour of moaning and groaning is pushing it," Koneko said before she whirled on Naruto. "And you, since you just hugged Rias, it's my turn."

"Your turn for what? A hug?" asked Naruto.

"Damn straight," Koneko said. "This cat is looking for some of meowffection."

As she spoke, her split cat-tails and two triangle-shaped cat ears appeared from behind her rump and within hair respectively.

Naruto took a step back.

"Uh-huh… you know, I normally wouldn't mind… but we really do need to get a good night's rest tomorrow. Also, Irina is here."

Irina was an angel. While that might not mean something to some people, to Naruto, it meant they couldn't have sex because she would fall if she did. He always tried to be respectful of her boundaries and didn't want to make her uncomfortable.

"What is that supposed to mean?" asked Irina, placing her hands on her hips. "Are you saying you can't do… lewd things because I am here?"

"Uh… I mean, isn't that kind of obvious?" Naruto asked. "You're an angel. I don't want you to fall, so we can't have sex, but doing that with you here would be disrespectful to you."

"W-well, you have a point, and I am grateful to how considerate you're being." Irina blushed before her eyes hardened. "But I don't think it's right that everyone else has seen what goes on in the bedroom while I'm stuck outside. I might not be able to do anything with you right now, but I can at least watch."

Naruto deadpanned. "Are you serious?"

Irina's cheeks were flushed bright red, but she didn't take back her words. If anything, she looked more determined than ever. Naruto thought she was being weird. What kind of flex was this? Regardless, her words seemed to give the other girls newfound courage, and it wasn't long before Naruto found himself surrounded on all sides. Even the often taciturn Rossweisse looked like she was ten seconds away from ripping off his pants.

"You girls are really freaking me out right now. What's with those creepy hand motions? You look like a group of perverted old men getting ready to grope some poor, helpless teenager on the train. L-look… let's just talk about this calmly, yeah? There's seven of you and one of me. There's no way I can please all of you at the same time."

"So make some shadow clones, mrrrreooooowww," Koneko said.

"That's a good idea," Rias agreed. "Naruto, make us some shadow clones."

"I call dibs on the real one," Ophis said.

"Absolutely not. I get the real one first."

"Don't be so stingy, Rias. Let meow get the first bite of his juicy manmeat."

"Hmph. While you girls are arguing, I am going to get the prize first."

"Hold it right there, cunt-tuckey fried chicken. There's no way I'm letting you get his sock puppet first."

While the girls began arguing with each other, Naruto decided a night with them might be too intense right now and tried to slip out. He should have known it wouldn't work. The moment he tried to leave, Ophis appeared to block his path. Then Rias, Ravel, Rossweisse, Koneko, Le Fay, and even Irina pounced.

"AAAAAYYYYEEE!"

The next morning, Naruto would find himself walking with a limp.

~Devil Ninja~

Naruto jerked awake due to the jostling of the carriage. Blinking several times, he reached up and rubbed his eyes, trying to clear the blurriness from them.

He was sitting in one of the carriages belonging to the Gremory Family, which had picked them up at the train station. When he turned his head, Naruto could see the vast grounds of the Gremory Family spread out before him, an expanse of lush and beautiful land. Any human who saw this verdant sea of grass, trees, and lakes would have never believed this was the infamous underworld.

Something shifted against him. Naruto looked down, a tiny smile playing on his face as he saw the various women surrounding him. Koneko was resting with her head on his lap. Rias was sleeping on his left, her head on his shoulder. Behind Koneko was Ravel, also using his lap as her pillow. She was hugging Koneko from behind, spooning the nekousho. Rossweisse was also fast asleep. Unlike the others, she was leaning against the wall of the carriage.

The only ones who were awake was Irina, Le Fay, and Ophis.

He glanced at Irina. She was staring at him, but the moment their eyes met, she squeaked and looked away.

Naruto chuckled. "I told you that you didn't have to watch us."

"That—but that's not fair to me," Irina complained, red up to her ears. "I'm also your girlfriend, but everyone else is having sex with you and I can't even do that much. The least you can do is let me take notes."

"And yet now you're too embarrassed to even look at me."

"That's not true!"

"Look me in the eyes and tell me that."

Irina turned her head toward him. They stared into each other's eyes for maybe one second. Then Irina slowly slid her gaze from his as her face became an entirely new color.

Naruto chuckled again. Irina was too cute.

"Don't worry," Le Fay said to Irina, patting the girl on the hand. "I'm sure you will eventually be able to watch Naruto have sex without shame."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?" asked a confused Irina.

The carriage soon pulled up to the Gremory Family's mansion—their main mansion. They had, like, upwards of six hundred or so. As the carriage rolled to a stop, Naruto began the laborious process of waking up his women. Rias was first to wake. She was already stirring, so a few kisses was all it took. Koneko was the hardest to wake up. He and Ravel both had to shake her several times, and she swatted their hands away when they tried. Ravel eventually got upset and squeezed Koneko's tail.

"MRRREEEOOOOWWWW!"

It was interesting to watch the way Koneko leapt onto the ceiling of the carriage, sticking there and hissing at Ravel, who merely smiled at her. Naruto was certain this was Ravel's payback for all those times Koneko made fun of her.

Naruto stepped out of the carriage first. He turned and held out his hand to Rias as she descended. She smiled and took his hand, allowing him to help her down, then let go so Naruto could do the same for the others. Ravel acted with the same grace as Rias. Koneko squeezed his hand like she was trying to crush it. Rossweisse simply thanked him, Irina looked like an apple, Le Fay grinned, and Ophis simply kept a grip on his hand once they were all outside.

The other two carriages in their caravan had also stopped, and the rest of Rias Gremory's peerage were exiting. Akeno, Asia, Kiba, Issei, Gasper, and Raynare emerged from one carriage. Servants were wandering over to the last carriage. They began removing the group's luggage and carrying them toward the house.

"Come on. Let's not keep Mother and Father waiting," Rias said as she led the way up the stairs.

The doors swung open and everyone was greeted by a menagerie of butlers and maids. In perfect synchronicity, the group bowed low or curtsied, and said, "Welcome home, Lady Rias!" None of the servants spoke loudly. Perhaps it was because of the acoustics, or maybe it was because there were literally dozens of them, but they sounded very loud despite their softly spoken words.

Standing near the sweeping staircase was Zeoticus and Venelana. Both were smiling at the group. Behind them with her hands clasped before her was Grayfia, easily recognizable by her signature silver hair and eyes.

"Welcome home, dear," Venelana said as she stepped forward and held open her arms.

"Mother."

Thanks to Naruto and the others, Rias was no longer feeling discontent, though she did walk with a slight limp as she stepped into her mom's embrace. Naruto thought it looked a lot like an older sister hugging her younger sister. He would never tell this to Rias, but her mom was a MILF.

"I've got such a chub right now," Issei muttered.

"Oh? Care to say that again, Ise? I didn't quite hear you. Did you say, 'yes, Naruto-sensei. I would love more training?' That is what you said, right?" asked Naruto with a grin so dark and ominous even the servants took a step back.

"Eck! I'm sorry! I didn't mean it!"

"So you're saying Rias and her mother aren't good enough for you?!"

"That isn't what I meant!"

"Just give it up. You're only gonna dig yourself a deeper grave," Koneko said.

While Issei slumped his shoulders as if the world was rejecting him, Zeoticus stepped forward with a hearty laugh.

"Naruto, it's good to see you."

"Zeo—Father-in-law."

Naruto reached out and clasped the man's hand in a firm shake.

"You know you can just call me 'dad' if you want," Zeoticous said.

"That doesn't sound like it would be appropriate," Naruto admitted with a shrug. "I'm already having a hard time with this."

"Well, I suppose that's fine. We have a long life ahead of us. By the way, are you feeling all right?"

"Of course. Why wouldn't I be?"

"You're walking with a slight limp."

"… I just trained too hard yesterday."

Naruto heard snickering in his mind and sent the equivalent of a mental jab at Kurama. Damn fox. How dare he make fun of Naruto's plight!

Zeoticus was a rather gracious and hospitable man. After speaking with Naruto, he went up to each member of Rias's peerage and asked how they were doing. He not only remembered each person's name, but he showed genuine concern for their well-being. It was seeing this that made Naruto realize who Rias got her kind nature from.

While Zeoticus spoke with Kiba about his swordsmanship, Venelana was observing Koneko, a hand cupped to her chin. The white-haired neko put up with the scrutiny well. Her eyes hadn't changed from their typical deadpan.

"My, Koneko. You have the same glow about you as Rias…" She trailed off, then turned her head to look at Rossweisse, Le Fay, Ravel, and Ophis in that order. "Hmm. In fact, all of you have a rather immaculate glow about you." She smiled. It was gentle, but there was a hint of mischief in her eyes. "I'm guessing you've been enjoying your youth with Naruto, yes?"

While Rossweisse, Le Fay, and Ravel had the decency to look embarrassed, Ophis merely nodded.

"Having sex with Naruto has become one of my favorite activities."

"Is that so?" Venelana actually looked a little startled.

Ophis gave the woman a serious nod. "I am particularly fond of our sexfests."

"Sex… fests?"

Venelana didn't look like she understood what that meant. As she looked at her daughter as though asking a question, Rias seemed to realize they were treading dangerous waters and attempted to steer their conversation somewhere else.

"Mother, I believe my servants and I are rather exhausted from the trip. Would you mind terribly if we retired to our rooms to freshen up?"

"Oh. Of course, dear. The rooms have already been prepared for you. Please allow Grayfia to show you where they are."

With the crisis seemingly averted, Rias sighed and had everyone follow Grayfia as she led them to their bedrooms. Along the way they ran into Milicus, who latched onto Naruto and Issei and began talking to them about their next gig. He was, of course, talking about the super sentai shows they were doing. Naruto was rather happy that Milicus enjoyed their shows, though he did feel his heart complain when the young boy spoke of how his favorite character was the Oppai Dragon.

There was a small problem after they arrived at their rooms. Naruto and Rias were obviously sharing a room because it was acknowledged that they were basically engaged, but that didn't jive with the other women in his harem. Koneko in particular demanded she be allowed to sleep in their room.

"You girls have been able to have more than enough of Naruto's affection, and I have not complained even once. Now it is my turn to have him all to myself," Rias declared.

"That's sophistry and you know it," Koneko was quick with her comeback. "None of us have had Naruto to ourselves. Stop trying to pretend you've been magnanimous, Buchou."

"I have been magnanimous. You're sleeping with Naruto, aren't you?"

"Like. I. Said. Sophistry."

Rias and Koneko were practically bust to bust—er, face to bust. Naruto knew he wasn't supposed to laugh, but seeing the tiny catgirl glaring up at Rias even though she only came up to the redhead's chest amused him. He covered his hand with his mouth to stop himself from laughing. It didn't seem to work, however, since both Koneko and Rias turned to him.

"Is something funny?"

"What are you laughing about?"

Naruto waved his hand back and forth. "Nothing. I was just thinking about something is all."

"I do not mind having my own room," Rosseisse said. "I think it might be a good idea if we slept separately for the time being."

Naruto wondered if Rossweisse was feeling the sting like him. His body was sore from all the exercise they had been doing in the bedroom. It was true. Even his legendary healing factor had not been able to fix his limp before they arrived at the Gremory Family estate. He could only imagine how the others were dealing with it.

It was eventually decided that Rias would get Naruto tonight, and then he would rotate and sleep with someone else the next night. Naruto himself had no say in any of this. It was clear to him that his life was now ruled by his women, but he couldn't find it in himself to feel bad about his situation. Wasn't this what most men wanted anyway? To be loved and taken care of by many women? He was pretty sure this was the American Dream—no, wait. He lived in Japan. Then wouldn't it be the Otaku Dream?

While Naruto was angsting over this issue of most importance, he and Rias arranged their bedroom to their liking before simply relaxing on the bed. He lounged with his head on the pillow and she rested on top of him. It was a bit interesting to only be snuggling with Rias. He was so used to the other women being a part of his bedroom activities that he wasn't used to having only one woman taking his attention.

"This is nice," Rias mumbled against his chest.

"It is, isn't it?" Naruto agreed.

"I love the others, but sometimes, I just want you all to myself," Rias admitted. "Do you think that makes me bad?"

"I think that makes you normal."

"What do you think is going to happen now?"

Naruto understood when she asked that, that she wasn't talking about what would happen to them while they were at her family's estate. He didn't answer right away. Having matured greatly since being sent to this world, Naruto carefully thought about his reply.

"I think Sirzechs and the others are going to work hard to find Trihexa before Yami. Barring that, they will try to stop Yami from releasing Trihexa from its seal. I suspect once they have found either of those two, they will call us to help them deal with it."

At the very least, they would call upon Naruto since Yami was his other half. They would need him to deal with that man.

"They had better. I do not like being left out of the loop," Rias said.

"Neither do I."

They must have fallen asleep while chatting because Naruto found himself startled awake by someone knocking on the door. A voice came from the other end, announcing that dinner was ready and the lord and lady were requesting their presence. Rias groaned as she sat up, stretched, and climbed off the bed. Naruto was also forced to reluctantly get up.

Exiting their room, the two met up with the others and made their way to the dining room, which was every bit as massive as Naruto remembered. Zoticus sat at the head, while Venelana sat on his left. Rias was directed to sit on his right with Naruto next to her. Ophis sat on his other side, then it went Koneko, Ravel, Rossweisse, Irina, and Le Fay. Akeno, Asia, Kiba, Issei, Gasper, and Raynare sat with Venelana.

The dinner they served that night was pizza. That didn't sound like something that would be served at the Gremory Family's dinner, but this pizza was anything but ordinary. Toppings consisted of mozzarella di bufala, lobster, and caviar. Dinner was also served with an expensive wine that Naruto didn't recognize, but it was supposedly something that cost a small fortune. The wine paired with the pizza made for a surreal experience. After dinner was dessert. It was something called an Italian cassata flavored with Irish cream and was served with pomegranate and mango compote. Zeoticus talked it up a great deal, but all Naruto understood was that it was fucking delicious.

"Well? What did you all think of dinner?" he asked after everyone finished eating.

"It was amazing," Issei said. "I've never eaten such a fancy pizza before."

"My compliments to the chef," Kiba added.

"Um, I really liked the dessert," said Asia.

"The food was the bomb dot com," Koneko gave her approval with a nod.

The others all added in their compliments, which caused Zeoticus to smile.

"I'm glad to hear you enjoyed it. And now that we've all eaten, I believe it is time to talk about something—namely, the reason all of you are here."

Everyone shared a look as Zeoticus placed his clasped hands on the table and looked at them in turn. No one seemed to know what he meant by that. Weren't they here because it was dangerous for them to stay in Kuoh?

"Could you clarify what you mean, Father?" asked Rias.

"Of course." Zeoticus nodded. "There are two reasons you kids are here. The first is obviously because it's no longer safe in the human world. With the Chaos Brigade and now the Alliance of Hell wreaking havoc, we cannot afford to endanger either you or the humans who get caught up in our conflicts. However, the other reason is because we are going to need your help. You in particular, Naruto. We will require your aid in dealing with Yami."

Naruto could only agree. He already had a feeling this would be the case. As Yami was his other half, he might be the only one capable of truly dealing with him.

"And what is it that we will be doing here?" asked Rias.

"Why, you'll all be training, of course. Several powerful individuals have offered to give each of you individual training that I'm sure you'll find beneficial," Zeoticus said with a glint in his eyes.

Hello all. While this chapter deals with the end of the battle between the Three Factions Alliance and the Alliance of Hell, the next chapter will be about my characters training and relaxing. I'm also thinking it's about time Irina got some more screentime, so I'm planning to focus on her for at least some of the chapter. I don't know how long the next chapter will be, but it probably won't be smaller than 12,000 words, so it will be another long one.

Thank you everyone for reading this chapter. I hope you all enjoyed it.