Hello, to everyone. We are finally at the third installment of Naruto Phenex, and already I have caused quite a bit of backlash when I showed a momentary bit of attraction between Grayfia and Naruto. So, to all my readers I will be clearing some of the things up. First, it was just attraction, its quite common between two young-looking and attractive people. No matter how much we would like to kid ourselves even married people feel attraction to men/women outside off their spouses. Secondly, just because there is attraction doesn't mean Grayfia is going to screw Naruto. Thirdly, they are devils their morality is kind of skewed and even my main character has gone through different things to be same as canon Naruto, it was done purposefully to rid any of you out of the notion that Naruto was the same. It's like reimagining a character. Finally, I am not saying the paring will not happen neither am I saying it will happen. In the end, its just a plot device which I will use in any way I see fit. That's my right as an author.

By the way a big thanks to TriCyberSleuth for beta'ing this chapter. There might still be mistakes here and there, if you inform me I will correct it right away. He helped quite a bit with plot, spellings and wherever he could.

Chapter - 3

Sirzech's and the Phenex's sight were stuck to the LED Television of the Research Club, with rapt attention. None dared to move from their seat since the operation had begun, the nervousness in the room was so palpable that it could've been cut with a knife. It was further compounded by the fact that no one actually knew what was happening at the Vatican since there was total radio silence. They simply couldn't risk the slight chance of their communication getting hijacked by the Angels or some other unknown entity. Just a single wrong move, and their mission could collapse like a house of cards.

As you see here, the smoke coming from the Sistine Chapel's chimney is still black which means that the College of Cardinals have still not arrived to a decision. It has only been few hours since the election process has begun, this entire undertaking has been known to last from a day to a week, though there have been instances where it had taken close to three years to select the Bishop of Rome. Especially during the start of the millennia…

As of this moment, some of the greatest followers of Catholicism have been locked behind a sealed-shut door undergoing a grueling process, to elect a Vicar of Christ from amongst them. The moment the smoke coming from the chimney turns white, it would mean that world finally has its 267th Pope.

We in CNN will be bringing you the latest updates on one of the biggest moment, for the religion with the largest followers…

This is Vicky Vale, Reporting live from Vatican.

Just doing God's work!

"She still has time... Maybe there's nothing to worry about." Lord Phenex said calmly, his eyes never leaving the blonde reporter.

Sirzechs would have believed the man if his frown didn't gave away his palpable tinge of uneasiness.

"Maybe you're right" Sirzechs replied, as he leaned back into his chair and massaged his forehead. To tell the truth even after repeated assurances from the two, he was worried. In fact, he was catatonic. It was only because of his experience in such high tension situations that he was able to act relatively sane. It had been hours since Grayfia left for this Maou forsaken mission! Frankly, she should have already gotten the boy back, but there was no news on either his peerage members or the Phenex.

Did something happen!? Are they safe!? Were they attacked!?

His thoughts were violently cut off with a loud bang. Sirzechs immediately turned towards the door, only to watch it break out of its hinges in a rough motion.

His blood went cold when he saw his knight charge to the middle of the room, with his back bent, and taking in deep breaths. His body was littered with cuts, blood trickling from them like drops of rain.

"Where's Grayfia?" Sirzechs asked, his lips curled in undescribed pain and fear. It was like he was physically hit by Durandal. He had never felt this afraid, not even when he had rebelled against the Old-Satan faction.

Grayfia's eyes roamed around with frightening accuracy as she entered the café, taking in every detail from expensive polished teak furniture to the impressive and detailed silverware the staff were parading around. Her silver eyes managed to locate every exit points in mere seconds, like a seasoned soldier she was.

After a few minutes of appraisal, she gave a light hum in agreement. The place was beautiful and no doubt expensive. It was the kind of site that would've been frequented by the high-class devils if it wasn't located so close to the Holy City. She was glad that the young man at least had the sense of taking her to a café which was considerably far from the Holy City.

They were quickly ushered in by a blushing waitress, who was constantly giving discrete glances towards her blonde companion. She would have normally been annoyed by the lack of professionalism, but she understood the young lady's predicament. It was almost impossible to not be attracted to Naruto Phenex, at first glance. He constantly gave a feeling of being enveloped in a mysterious aura, and he walked with a self-assurance which was rarely seen in a man in his age, even less so in teenagers. He always managed to suck you into his pace, even she, a woman who had years of experience with the opposite sex was unable to resist his charm for a moment… leading her to have a cup of coffee with a man who was scandalously younger than her. So a young naïve woman like her stood no chance….

Grayfia took her seat demurely with unnatural grace, only to watch Naruto Phenex as he started to slowly unbutton his Armani Blazer, his calloused fingers roamed around his well-sculpted torso in an almost seductive manner. His muscles flexed subtly as he slowly loosened his tie to reveal some of his chest, he was irresistible. To make it worse, Grayfia knew for a fact that he wasn't even trying to seduce anyone… It was such a normal action on his part, but it was done with an animalistic grace that it demanded everyone's attention.

Grayfia took a deep breath refusing to show any reaction but the waitress beside her had no such manners or compulsions. She heard the young woman gave out a shuddered gasp, as her already red cheek turned crimson like a ripe tomato, ready to be plucked. Grayfia watched with some amusement in the way the brown-haired waitress gulped and snatched away the blazer from the Phenex, holding the damn cloth almost reverently.

The waitress cleared her throat with a cough and painfully tore her eyes away from the man, she stuttered, "W-What would you like to order?"

Naruto smiled as he took a seat, "An ivory coffee for me, make sure that the beans are hand-ground, and Italian roasted. Add only two spoons of skimmed milk in it with only a teaspoon of sugar, and ditch the cream please."

That's very specific, thought Grayfia as she directed a fleeting glance towards the stunned waiter, clearly she wasn't used to receiving such over the top orders, "I will have the same with a slice of brownie on the side."

That seemed to get the girl out of her stupor, before she gave a wide smile and sauntered away with a sway on her hips. The action was clearly meant to entice the blonde Phenex, but to Grayfia's amusement, it seemed that the boy hadn't even noticed.

"So, why's the Lucifer so interested in me?" Naruto asked curiously with a grin.

"Why do you think he's interested in you in the first place?"

"Because why in hell would he send his own wife and knight to the most dangerous place for a devil on earth, if he didn't have some interest in the target." Naruto scoffed and rested his chin on his hands, "He must really desire something from me or do you want me to believe that he did all this out of the love for my parents."

Grayfia grimaced visibly at the mocking tone of the younger Phenex, "He owes a lot to the Phenex family. They were one of his greatest supporters in the last war and had supported his bid as the new Lucifer a few centuries ago. Is it really that surprising to you that he would do this for your family?"

She couldn't help but raise an eyebrow when the man in front of him started to chuckle lightly in amusement, "Oh! You are really good, I would have believed that for a moment that is if I didn't hear your heartbeat skyrocket…" Naruto continued as his grin turned downright predatory, "So do you want to have another go at it? Maybe you should try telling the truth this time, I have heard that it works wonders. And do remember a special place in hell is reserved for those who lie." He added cheekily.

Grayfia snorted in amusement, she wasn't sure whether the last statement was a threat or a joke but the more she conversed with him the more she realized that despite his carefree persona and his exceedingly young age, this man was dangerously perceptive, and until now every action of his just went on to simply prove her hypothesis.

And the most ridiculous thing was until now he had not even given her a single glimpse of his demonic power, and yet here she was, one of the strongest devil visibly intimidated by this rookie. There was just something about Naruto Phenex…

"Are you aware of the existence of a marriage contract between the Gremorys and the Phenexes?" Grayfia finally asked cautiously, wondering when the coffee was going to be served. It had already been like ten minutes or was it two, she didn't know. She just simply wanted to get out of this situation as fast as possible.

"No, Not really," Naruto replied, rolling his eyes, "If you haven't noticed I was kind of out of the loop for the past few years but I can guess. I am ready to bet that it goes somewhere along the line of, the Gremory heiress marrying one of my older brothers so that she can sire some pureblooded devils." Cause' that's just what our world needs more incest ridden stupidity from the devils, Naruto thought in an offhanded manner.

Grayfia face lit up with an actual smile at the sarcasm dripping from Naruto's tone, "You don't think much about the pureblooded devils, do you Naruto-san?"

"Well most of them tend to be hardheaded, naive or just plain lazy, who would rather ride on the coattails of their parents than do something actually productive for a change. Frankly, God didn't have to attack us with his angels to destroy us, he should have just waited for our own children to do it for him while he sipped some tea from his cushy throne in the clouds. He wouldn't even have had to waste any of his resources!"

Grayfia was visibly taken aback from the pure disdain and passion in that single entire statement. It was a very brutal and honest assessment about the entire new generation of devils, and it actually gave her some insight of this man's character, "Is that why you decided to leave your parents?"

Naruto just raised an eyebrow and then he let out a heavy sigh and replied in a clipped tone, "It's one of the many."

"You were only six…" Grayfia asked, with a gob smacked expression.

"And yet I was old enough to understand that to truly become strong, I couldn't allow myself to be sheltered like my peers, because unlike them I actually came from the streets of Lilith (Capital of Underworld), from the slums if you will, and I have seen the how the world is truly like down there… It truly deserves to be called hell."

Grayfia winced as he trailed off in a haunted tone, she had an inkling of an idea of how life was for the kids starving on the streets of Lilith. It was an absolute hellhole. She wouldn't wish it on anyone… and at the same time she couldn't help but admire the person sitting in front of her, this was a man who refused to live a life of luxury so that he could learn the true nature of their world which in turn made him more knowledgeable than his peers. She wasn't so sure about his physical or spiritual strength but just by the way he carried himself she was ready to bet that the man was not all talk. But deep down she also felt sadness, all this time living and doing things alone had made this young devil colder and cynical towards their world. It normally wouldn't have alarmed her, but somehow Grayfia had a feeling that Naruto was more powerful then he portrayed himself as.

For few minutes Grayfia appraised the person in front of her trying to discern more about him only to fail spectacularly. She didn't know how to proceed with their little conversation anymore, it had started out light, only for it to take such a heavy turn. She glanced away from the piercing ocean blue eyes, which were still looking at her with such mischief.

She sighed in relief when the waitress finally arrived with their coffee towed in a large silver tray, the brown-haired girl's cute button nose visibly deflated when Naruto Phenex didn't even deign to spare her a glance despite her valiant efforts to attract his attention. If it was anyone else other than Grayfia, she would've considered the action extremely rude but she was used to it. Her husband was the Lucifer, she was used to various woman trying to steal her husband's attention. Even though their law clearly decreed against the practice of a Satan having a harem…

"Before all this, we were talking about the contract," Naruto finally asked the dreaded the question after the waitress left with a slouch, "You were going to tell me something about it, before we got derailed by other matters."

Grayfia took a long sip from her cup and exhaled, "You're right, Rias was supposed to marry one of your older brother however there has been some changes, after your existence was revealed….."

Naruto frowned into his cup, he didn't like where this was going.

"The contract clearly stipulated that the heiress of the Gremory family was to marry the youngest son of the Phenex," Grayfia replied in an impassive tone, "and until now Riser was the youngest but after you were inducted into the family the circumstances have duly changed."

Fuck! Naruto thought incredulously, his grip on the cup visibly tightened, he would have thrown a tantrum but over the years he had learned to calm himself, thanks to regularly practicing his craft of senjutsu. But even then this came out of nowhere, he wasn't prepared of anything of this sort. He was only sixteen for god's sake as far as rest of the world knew. He was nowhere near prepared for something like this. Marriage was one big responsibility, if he tied the knot then it would mean he would have to take care of the woman along with her entire peerage.

I can't get married, not when she would become nothing more than a target for someone like him… Naruto thought darkly, as his bangs shadowed his eyes. He hated that man with a passion like no other.

"I see…" Naruto finally replied, his voice devoid of any emotion whatsoever, "That explains why he would use someone like you to extract me. He must be very desperate, especially if there's some truth to the rumors about my brother."

"You mean about him being a chronic womanizer." Grayfia snipped blithely. Naruto didn't miss the edge in her cheerful tone neither did the rest of the patrons. She was practically radiating murder from her every pore simultaneously making everyone near her unable to breath.

"That can be said about any male devil, in fact most of them use the peerage system just to have a subservient harem of their own." Naruto shook his head as he took another sip, "As far as I think the only reason for Ms. Rias Gremory to even consider annulling the contract is either because of severe dislike to Riser's character in general or maybe she just doesn't want to be tied down."

"That would be very accurate description of the entire situation." Grayfia replied as she finished her cup and placed it on the saucer with a slight clang and directed a pointed glare towards the Phenex, "So, what are you going to do about your impromptu engagement?" She asked.

"At this moment nothing," Naruto replied truthfully, "I have simply no idea of the circumstances which has brought me to this predicament. It would be foolish to make a decision based on understated facts."

"Now since all that heavy talk's out of the way," Naruto continued with a grin as his eye lit up in sparkles, "You are now allowed to ask any question you want from me."

"And you would answer all of them?" Grayfia asked, skepticism apparent in her tone.

"I only said you could ask them," Naruto replied cheekily, "I never said I would answer any of them."

"That's very funny," Grayfia replied with a flat stare, her tone devoid of any humor.

If anything Naruto grinned harder, "So you want to ask anything from me?"

"Since you insist so much, I would like to know what you were doing at the Vatican in the first place." Grayfia asked, her tone frigid.

"Why must you always tread on such dangerous path?" Naruto asked in a mock stage-whisper making Grayfia frown and glare daggers at him. A normal would have been scared to death but Grayfia's glare only managed to amuse him further which in turn only managed to earn more of her ire. It was a one vicious cycle.

"If you must know, I was taking in the sights, renewing my faith in god and well, confessing my sins in general."

"…"

"A little religion is not going to kill you…. You know?" Naruto replied his grin stretching from ear-to-ear, "You might not believe this but I think I really made a bond with the guy upstairs, after our little talk he was all like, 'Son, I forgive you go live your life. You deserve it.' Guess I made quite the impression on him… I think I might even go to heaven, if something untoward happens to me."

Grayfia's jaw clenched momentarily before it morphed in to a nasty scowl. Maybe antagonizing her was not a good idea, Naruto thought with a sweat drop and hedged, "I was here to facilitate some of my plans." That might have been the vaguest answer one could have ever given to anyone. Naruto mentally cringed.

"Oh, so there is a plan!" Grayfia replied scathingly.

"I can detect an undertone of sarcasm in your voice. You don't trust my schemes, do you?" asked Naruto as he poured some more coffee into her cup.

"I think for a surprisingly smart man, your actions are moronic to the extreme, and risk the fragile peace we have cultivated with the other factions. What else can you surmise, Mr. Phenex?" Grayfia replied with an arctic smile.

Naruto leaned back into his chair and smirked not bothered by her comments in the slightest, "About you Ms. Lucifuge? Quite a bit, I am afraid."

Grayfia scoffed, "Why don't you enlighten me then?"

"Well your beauty is a problem! You worry that you won't be taken seriously." Naruto replied as his ocean blue eyes stared into her silver ones.

"Which one can say about any attractive women with half a brain?" Grayfia replied imperiously.

"True, but this one overcompensates with more muscular clothing, even during an undercover mission she simply discard's her maid getup for a business woman's. She acts more aggressive than her colleagues which ironically gives her… somewhat of a prickly demeanor making it less likely for her to be accepted or promoted by her male superiors who mistake her insecurities for arrogance."

Naruto took a deep breath as his eyes roamed her voluptuous figure before it settled on her eyes, all the while Grayfia continued to smile slyly, "You didn't have much of a childhood, did you Ms. Lucifuge?"

If Grayfia was disgruntled by his deduction or his cocky behavior she didn't show it on her face instead she gave him lop-sided smirk and replied, "Well alright! From the cut of your suit it shows that despite lacking resources, you somehow managed to educate yourself from a premier institute maybe from Oxford or Harvard or whatever." Her smirk turned into a scoff, "You naturally think people dress like that, but you wear it with such disdain. Clearly, the only reason you ever managed to get in there was because of Phenex's charity hence the chip on your shoulder and my guess your peers never let you forget it."

Grayfia's eyes trekked towards the sleeves of his shirt and she saw a silver watch peeking through it, "Rolex?" she questioned.

"Omega, Actually?"

"Beautiful." Grayfia intoned before she gave a sly smile and continued, "As I have only met you, I wouldn't go as far as to call you a cold hearted bastard…"

"Of course not." Naruto snapped back with a smirk of his own.

"But it wouldn't be a stretch to imagine that you think of most women as disposable pleasure bags rather than meaningful pursuits. So, as charming as you are Mr. Phenex, I will be keeping my eye on you and off your perfectly formed ass." Grayfia finished with a smirk. Her eyes were chips of ice.

"You noticed?" Naruto asked slyly as he waggled his eyebrows in a suggestive manner.

"Even we maids have our imagination." Grayfia replied with throaty chuckle, "How was your coffee, Mr. Phenex?"

"Bitter, one sympathizes."

Sirzechs paced around the ORC with long strides, ignoring everything around him. His teeth grinded and he was sweating like a pig. He had never been this worried before. Someone had managed to separate Okita from Grayfia and whoever he was, he was good. He used a single lapse of judgment from his peerage to his benefit, essentially crippling their mission in one single blow.

Somehow the man had managed to teleport Souji of all people to a forest filled to the brim with dangerous monsters ranging from seductive nymphs to dangerous man-eaters. He would have applauded if he wasn't racked with concern. He knew that Grayfia was strong beyond measure especially when compared to average foot-soldiers of any faction but even someone like her could be taken down given the opponents had sufficient numbers on their side. The threat to her life became even higher when she was already weakened by just being near the Vatican. It was the worst case scenario before things came to blow that is.

It shouldn't be taking this long for Grayfia to retrieve a sixteen year old boy or to dispatch a pesky exorcist or angel for that matter! Or am I wrong!? Was it too much for her? Is she dea— Sirzechs bit the inside of his cheek almost drawing blood, he didn't dare to finish his thought instead he looked towards the Phenex's and immediately winced. Both the Phenex's were fidgeting, one had a frown while the Lady Phenex was sporting a downright anguished expression on her face. Her hair were frayed and what little make up she wore had already washed away by her tears. She wasn't looking a single bit the nobility she was supposed to be.

Sirzechs took a deep breath and choked down his apprehension brutally, he would have prayed for their safe return if he wasn't a devil but he had simply other things to take care off. Sometimes he hated being the Lucifer. Years as one of the Maou had allowed him the unique ability to compartmentalize his work, which was the only reason he still managed to do this high-tension and frankly stressful job. He still wondered whether it was a good thing or a bad thing.

"Lord Phenex," Sirzechs asked breaking the couple from their melancholy, "I have been thinking for quite some time now and there are things which just doesn't seem to make sense. What's so special about this boy? Why would you ever adopt him?"

Lord Phenex stiffened at first, for a moment Sirzechs thought that he would deny him the answers or might even get violent instead he gave a heavy sigh and his eyes glazed over as if he was lost into his memories. Considering the frown marred in the old devil's face, Sirzechs was sure that whatever the man was thinking wasn't a happy moment.

"We found him years ago," Lord Phenex spoke with gravelly voice, "He was such a small little thing Sirzechs, shorter than boys his age barely three years old and was nothing more than skin and bones. He was all alone in the slums of Lilith. Normal kids would be scared, crying and begging for their mothers but he was different…"

Lord Phenex trailed off, as his eyes grew haunted, "He knew how to fight, how to survive in a cruel cold world. If someone pushed him he knew how to push back harder."

"We were walking through the streets of Lilith as usual doing our business, when this little kid somehow managed to steal my purse," Lady Phenex replied with a nostalgic but wry smile, "We chased after him but the little midget was simply so agile, we must have chased him for hours but somehow he managed to escape our sight. My Lord Husband insisted on giving up however I refused to let a brat get the best of me."

Sirzechs leaned towards the Phenex, his arms folded and his face twisted in rapt attention. He was hooked. His want to know more about Naruto Phenex was palpable by the very atmosphere. He might be a stupid boy but he was still a devil who had the balls to do the unthinkable, those were the kind of people you always had an eye out for.

"After hours of toil we eventually found him, all bloodied and sweaty," Lady Phenex let out a sob as she clenched the hem of her dress, "Fighting boys twice his size with his fists to protect an innocent girl so that she would not be bullied by them. They would beat him until his little legs gave in but he would get just back up for more. His entire body would lit up in flames to heal him so that he could keep on fighting. It was the strongest and the most innocent thing we had ever seen, we couldn't help but look at him at think of him as a Phenex. The courage, the loyalty, and the will which he demonstrated were staggering…"

Sirzechs eyes widened in disbelief, this boy could heal like a Phenex. Now, it made some sense for the Phenex to adopt him. Accelerated healing was a bloodline which was unique to the Phenex and considered their major strength after their tears. It allowed them to fight for days and take unnatural amount of punishment. It was no wonder they would want to keep Naruto under their family umbrella.

"So, he's got accelerated healing like your other sons?" Sirzechs asked, still not quite believing it.

"Yes." Lady Phenex replied in a monotone.

"I can understand why you would adopt him into your family," Sirzechs replied as his fingers fidgeted, "But you should know how rare it is for a devil of the pillar to adopt a child, especially a kid with no background or nobility in his blood. The high council is not going to let this go…"

"It's not illegal to adopt a child!" Lady Phenex screamed and glared balefully towards him. She wasn't going to let some bureaucrats take her son away. Not when she had lost him once, already. She just couldn't bear to think about something like that.

"It isn't," Sirzechs replied, his tone somber, "But you of all should know, how much we devils care about being pureblooded, and in these people's eyes you have just made a street urchin into a high class devil without informing any of them. The Baels, Astaroth and not even my family would take this laying down. They would consider this as a grave insult. Especially when your refusal to disclose his existence has caused such serious repercussion to the contract."

"Truthfully, I don't know how my parents are going to react to this," Sirzechs replied democratically, "The contract between us was made under good faith and with the idea of creating stronger and more resilient pureblood lines however now thanks to you people breaking your word, this has turned into a complete mess. We Gremorys are known for our kindness but even we have our limits…"

"If it's just about the contract we can easily renegotiate," Lord Phenex replied, he was exhausted, "We can make concessions as long as they are reasonable, frankly if Rias doesn't want to marry Naruto, we can arrange someone else. We have other children or if you want some other kind of compensation even that can be arranged…." He trailed off knowing that the Lucifer disliked the contract since the very first day it was formed. Even though it was his family who actually brought up the damn thing.

"That's fine Lord Phenex, it just might satiate the Gremorys," Sirzechs replied, "But what about other families, especially the Baels, they have always shown how they feel about reincarnated devils or devils of lesser status…. Zekram Bael was never one to mince words or actions for that matter, he will not take this kindly and considering his house holds the rank of the 'King'… You people are going to have one serious problem in him."

Lord and Lady Phenex paled, their skin went chalk white with fear and a face of absolute terror crossed Lady Phenex's face. Everyone who knew about Zekram would say that, he was a hard and pragmatic man who believed in the old ways of the devils. His cruelty was considered overzealous even by the standards of the devils of old. Considering what he did to his own family Misla and Sairaorg just because the latter couldn't use the Power of Destruction was horrible. They didn't deserved to be exiled from their own home, for a reason so paltry. A man like that would never accept Naruto's existence as a high-class devil or the marriage to his niece 'Rias Gremory.' It would be nothing short of sacrilege for someone like Zekram Bael.

Any further talk between the three was interrupted as two glowing circles of light appeared in front of them. The brightness was so heavy that Sirzechs had to squint his eyes, until they became nothing more than thin lines so that he could see the individuals who had just strolled in the middle of their conversation.

His heart soared the moment he saw a lock of silver hair. It couldn't have been anyone else other than his wife. It was as if a weight had lifted from his shoulders, she was safe and that's all mattered to him. Before he knew it, his legs carried him towards her and he immediately enveloped her in a deep hug. He could feel her stiffen in his arms, Grayfia never liked public displays of affection and normally she would demonstrate her unpleasantness with violence but today it seemed she just didn't have the heart to deny him.

After a minute which felt like ages, Sirzechs finally released his wife as his eyes trekked towards the teenager standing behind him. The softness in his eyes earlier turned into a hard glare. One look at the young Phenex, and immediately Sirzechs felt intense dislike towards him. He didn't know why, he wasn't the kind of person who disliked anyone based on first impressions but there was something about the devil in front of him which just rubbed wrong on his skin. Maybe it was the way he smiled, his posture or the way he regarded everyone around him with cynicism, like he expected worst from the people. His instincts screamed at him to be wary of the young boy and over the course of his life, he had learned to trust his various impulses. After all, they had served him incredibly well in the Civil War.

Sirzechs shared a look with Souji and even he had a frown marring his face. Clearly, even he felt something inherently wrong with the young man standing before them and which set off silent alarms within the two. Sirzechs could've sworn that under all that bravado the boy was afraid of something but it was not of him. This Naruto Phenex walked with caution, the action as simple as breathing to him, as if he expected to be attacked any moment. He only saw that kind of behavior on someone who had went through something traumatic or was involved in some kind of brutal war.

How interesting? Sirzechs mused.

The instant Grayfia had told him the teleportation location, a sense of wariness gripped him. It has been so many years since he had seen his parents. Yes, his parents might not have given birth to him but they sure had taken care of him like one, and what did he do to repay them!? He left them like they meant nothing, like they were nothing more than strangers to him. He wished, he could explain his reasons, but they would never understand him. How could anyone ever empathize with him? He was stuck in a world that wasn't his own. Not that he needed anyone's pity.

So it was with great apprehension that Naruto teleported himself to the Kuoh Academy, and the moment he was inside the club, his eyes trekked towards a very familiar woman. Immediately, his heart was filled with intense guilt and shame, his always beautiful mother looked horrible, her eyes were stained red with tears, there were dark circles beneath her eyes. She looked thin and weak. He had never seen his mother this frail. Just how many sleepless nights was he responsible for!?

Naruto stood his ground in utter shame as he refused to look into his mother eyes. He heard the soft click of the soles of her high heeled sandals, then he felt a hand grab his cheek softly as he was forced to look upon the devastated visage of his mother. He opened his mouth to apologize but he was promptly silenced by a tight slap to his cheek.

The crack of skin contacting skin echoed through the walls. Naruto didn't feel pain at least any of physical kind but mentally it was an entire different thing. He deserved all of it…

Naruto could feel the eyes of everyone on him. All of them were watching, holding their breath, none daring to interrupt the Lady of House Phenex.

"I am sorry, mother." He finally choked out through his immense sense of guilt. He didn't think that he was even capable of such emotion anymore. Apparently, he was wrong and deep down he was glad.

Naruto's heart clenched in anguish when the woman in front of him started to sob, thick tears flowed down her cheeks washing away her delicately put mascara, "Do you know how long I have waited to hear you call me mother once more? Do you!?" She screamed by the end of it. Naruto flinched.

And to think he planned to wait at least two more years before he returned home. Had he really lost so much into his work that he stopped caring about his family!? He had never felt this worse in his life, it was somehow worse than the time he killed Sasuke. He ran away from his family, his brothers because he never thought that he deserved people as amazing as them. It might have been because he has always been put down since the day he was born, by his colleagues, his teachers, by the villagers and after sometime you start believing them.

Naruto struggled to apologize again but what else he could do to alleviate his mother's pain. His breath was stolen away from him when he was enveloped in a tight hug. The warmth in the gesture totally catching him off-guard. He could count in single hands, on the number of times he had been hugged like that.

He was used to getting casual with women, but genuine affection always managed to stun him. Maybe because he never really had to go through many of those. The warmth and love in the hug reminded him of a redheaded woman who was so dear to him.

"My baby!" Lady Phenex wailed into his chest, "I have so many things I need to ask but for now just let me hold you… I am not letting you go this time."

It was only after a solid fifteen minutes before Lady Phenex released him only to look at him with wonder, "Just look at you, you have grown so much, you used to be so little but now you are even taller than me… and I didn't get to see you grow at all." She replied as even more tears flowed from her.

"I missed you too, mother," Naruto said, his eyes shimmering as he gripped her tighter, "I just never realized how much. I obsessed over things which I thought mattered the world to me but now I am not so sure… "

Sirzechs watched the entire thing from the sidelines, he planned on asking questions as soon as possible but that could wait. He wasn't cruel enough to interrupt them, and it didn't seem like the boy was going to pull another one of his stunts. He was still wary of him but now at least he knew that despite the boy's idiotic actions he still loved his family. That was good in his book. There was more to this Naruto Phenex than what's portrayed at first glance.

Even his wife seemed to be immensely surprised and murmured, "Well what do you know, He's not a total cold hearted bastard after all."

Sirzechs raised an eyebrow, he was sure that there was some story there somewhere. He frowned when he saw both the Lord and Lady Phenex hugging and kissing the boy with their very being. He was happy for them, but there were tough times ahead for the family, especially the young teenager. He just hoped they were strong enough to survive it…

Well that's the end, I will most probably now work on my RWBY story. This chapter took a lot out of me, at first I thought that I would just make some simple changes from the original but that didn't work out. So I had to write almost the entire chapter from the scratch, scrapping the original version of crazyrajat.

Share your thoughts in the review, give me any kind of criticism you please. I would love to hear all of them. Try to write long reviews describing how you like the plot, writing and everything. It really helps to improve my writing. Love you guys very much! You all have been very supportive so far...

SamaelTheDevil is out :D