A/n Hey guys. Sorry for the long break in between posts. Unfortunately, life decided to fuck me up the ass. After falling behind on a number of bills and working my ass off pretty much every day; in late June, my mother passed away. Now I'm juggling trying to deal with that, with work and bills…being an adult sucks ass. Truth be told I had put this on hold to concentrate on life, I had left it at about 95% done too. It just needed some proof-reading and some editing, because I always try to give you guys my best, which is why I have a slow update speed. But moving on…

Keep in mind that I plan on posting a rewrite of my first chapter and reposting other chapters with updated Author's Notes with this update…I'll finally be rid of that damn power scale in Chapter 2. I'm tired of getting reviews about it. You don't have to read the first chapter again to continue the story but feel free to go back and look at it if you want and let me know what you thought of it.

Now on with the show!

Chapter Key;

"Hey, talking never hurt nobody."
'But that kind of thinking is deadly.'

I neither own Naruto nor Highschool Dxd, they belong to Masashi Kishimoto and Ichiei Ishibumi respectfully. I make no money off of my work and I write for the pure enjoyment of writing.

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Path to Peace: Devil's Advocate
Chapter Eight: A Pool and Magical Girls?

"Hey Naruto…are you okay? You look like hell." Issei asked the blond with a raised eyebrow.

Naruto had deep bags under his eyes. After his first nightmare last night, he wound up having the same dream two more times before he decided to say 'Fuck it' and stayed awake. If anyone asked he'd say that his night definitely wasn't easy. He took comfort in the fact that after the first time he stopped yelling as he woke up. That had gotten old as quickly as it had happened. Luckily for Naruto it seemed like Sirzechs was a deep sleeper.

He yawned loudly. "Y-Yeah." He rubbed his eyes tiredly. "I just didn't get a lot of sleep that's all." He slapped his cheeks a few times before he looked at Issei. "Are you ready to start?"

Issei nodded slowly and took a stance. They had met up to do some morning training but Issei was certain that Naruto would rather be 'dead-to-the-world' asleep at that moment.

Naruto nodded back to the brunet. "Alright, hit me." He pointed at his cheek. "Right here."

Issei complied and threw a right jab, only to find out that Naruto was just as good a fighter when he was tired. Naruto caught his fist and flipped the boy over his shoulder onto his back.

"Oof!" Issei gave Naruto a glare. "What the hell!?"

"Again!" Naruto barked. He left no time for an argument.

Issei stood up and rushed Naruto with his fist raised again.

Naruto parried Issei's attack easily. "You're wide open!" He said before he landed several light punches on his chest before knocking him to the ground. "One more time!"

Issei repeated the process and wound up with similar results.

Naruto frowned as he tossed the boy on his back again. Issei stood and rushed him again and Naruto responded with a knife chop to his neck.

As Issei rose again and ran towards him, his frown deepened. It slowly became deeper every time Issei threw a punch until it had become a full-blown scowl by Issei's ninth attempt. Naruto handedly tossed Issei to the floor again and placed a foot on his stomach to hold him down. He crossed his arms and gave Issei a light glare. "Why do you keep throwing punches?"

Issei eyed Naruto's foot briefly before he looked at him and raised an eyebrow. "Um…You told me to?"

Naruto sighed and shook his head. "No no no! Issei, you gotta listen." He ran a hand through his hair. "I told you to hit me." He said. "All you have to do is land one right on my cheek." He pointed at said cheek. "You can kick me, claw at me, scratch me, knee me, blow me up, use magic, use your Sacred Gear or whatever else you can think of to get that hit in. What I want you to understand is that sometimes…" Naruto grinned mischievously. "You have to get…creative." Naruto lifted his foot and offered Issei a hand.

Issei grabbed it and hoisted himself up. "What do you mean?"

Naruto hummed in thought. "Lemme see if I got something for ya…" He suddenly chuckled and looked at Issei. "Alright…now pay attention." He summoned a clone and had him stand opposite of him. He lowered his stance and the clone prepared himself. Naruto gave Issei a side-along glance. "Now, normally I would pull some creative weapon tricks out of my ass but since you don't know any shuriken jutsu I'll stick to hand-to-hand."

Issei watched in close detail as Naruto moved towards his clone. He threw a punch at the clone who was already beginning to lean out of the way, but in a single fluid motion he dipped down and performed a swiping kick. The clone leaped in the air but while he was coming down Naruto spun then grappled him and slammed him to the ground causing the clone to dispel.

Issei's eyes widened. "Holy hell…that was like watching someone use karate and judo in a single attack…" He whispered to himself.

Naruto looked at him. "Do you see what I mean when I said you need to get creative? And that was just scratching the surface on what you can do to land a hit. If I had more time or really wanted to get fancy, I could have played my clone like a fiddle and then finally blow him to bits with an exploding tag hidden with a layer of kunai."

Issei shuddered. "Ouch…"

Naruto snorted in amusement. "It's not a pretty picture, trust me. Anyways, my point is, when you're going on the attack you can't let your opponent know what you're gonna do next. You have to catch them off guard as best as you can with whatever you can."

Issei nodded at Naruto. He doubted many other people would purposely do a sweep kick and then grab their opponent while they were in mid-air in order to judo-flip them. It just seemed so…impractical.

Naruto seemed to have read his mind. "I guarantee you that some of the stuff you pull will make people question your sanity, but let them underestimate you. Let them think you're gonna throw a punch, and then kick 'em in their blind spot while you got the chance. Use the element of surprise."

Issei nodded. "I think I get it now."

Naruto grinned, he pointed at his cheek once more. "Great! Again! Hit me in my cheek. I don't care how you do it, just do it."

Issei slid back into a stance and nodded. He tried to attack Naruto using a kick only to be parried and landing on his back again.

"Again!" Naruto ordered.

This time he tried a headbutt and landed on his side.

"Again!"

He was thrown on his backside painfully after trying a haymaker.

"Again!"

He was tossed handedly on his back once more.

"Again!"

His face planted firmly against the soil after a shoddy uppercut attempt.

"Again!"

Issei dragged himself to his feet again. He gasped as he felt the bruises on his body groan. He sprinted towards Naruto and feinted a right haymaker. When Naruto raised his hand to block Issei dropped to the floor and shot his foot towards the blond's face.

Naruto easily leaned his head back and grabbed Issei's foot. With little effort, he lifted the boy and slammed him over his shoulder. He grinned. "Good Ise, you're learning, but it's not good enough; one more time!"

Issei shakily stood up. "I-I'm trying!"

Naruto shook his head. "You're either doing it, or you're not. There's no trying here."

Issei blinked in surprise, his fatigue temporarily forgotten. "Did…Did you just copy Star Wars?"

Naruto raised his eyebrow. "What the hell's that?"

The brunet shook his head. "Never mind." He took in a deep breath. "Alright, I didn't want to rely on this so soon but I don't have a choice. Boosted Gear!" He shouted. His left arm took the shape of his Sacred Gear. He made a stance again, having gotten his second wind. "Ready."

Naruto nodded. "Again!"

Issei ran up to Naruto with a jab from his left arm, he figured Naruto wouldn't grab it with all of the spikes on the side. He was right when Naruto parried his attack instead and Issei immediately followed up with a knee to Naruto's stomach. He knew he would be blocked and instead spun with the momentum and lashed out with the clawed hand of his Sacred Gear once again.

Naruto leaned out of the way but not quick enough as the tip of Issei's pointer finger nicked him slightly on his cheek.

Issei fell to his knees and gasped for breath. "I-I did it."

Naruto beamed. The paper-thin cut on his cheek had already begun healing and was gone in seconds. "Awesome Ise! You did great!"

"Now who's the Jedi master?" Issei managed a small smirk through jagged breaths.

"A what now?"

"Nothing…" Issei said quickly.

Naruto shook his head and laughed. "Alright then-ttebayo. Go ahead and take a fifteen minute break and go get some water. After that we're gonna do this again."

Issei's stomach dropped. "What!?"

Naruto smiled sadistically. "You didn't think doing it once was enough did ya? No, your goal is to hit me ten times in a row. So we're not gonna stop until you either pass out, or you manage to hit me ten times. And this time, I'll actually hit back. Kukuku." He chuckled evilly.

Issei pointed at him, his skin several shades paler than before. He tried to say something but only strangled gasps escaped.

Naruto ignored Issei and pulled out his phone from his weapons pouch and checked the time. "You're fifteen minutes start now by the way." He slipped it back into his pouch.

Issei scrambled away towards the nearby lake; complaining loudly about sadistic blond teachers as he left.

Naruto watched him leave with a smile. He looked to the left and nodded. "Came to see how he was doing?"

Rias stepped out from behind a tree. "Sorry for intruding." She apologized.

Naruto shrugged. "It doesn't bother me." He crossed his arms. "So? Whatd'ya think?"

Rias nodded. "Well he is certainly driven, that's for sure. But shouldn't you be teaching him basic techniques? Grapples, counter techniques and the like."

"Nope." Naruto shook his head. At Rias' questioning gaze he elaborated. "I once asked my master the same thing when I started and he told me 'We're shinobi. We don't need any fancy martial arts, leave that to the martial artists and the taijutsu specialists. I won't teach you how to fight, I'm gonna teach you how to win.'" Naruto grinned. "Of course I know how much katas can help, I even use them with my Frog-Fu, but you don't always need them to win. I think he should learn this now better than later and then he can go back and learn a more traditional fighting style later on if he wants. Not to mention that my method will actually make him want it more, he's a physical learner like me, he's gonna eventually get sick of me kicking his ass, which will make him think of ways to beat me more efficiently, quicker, and cleverer."

Rias raised an eyebrow. "I see, that's surprisingly well thought out." She leaned against the tree. "It was certainly interesting to watch."

Naruto chuckled. "Come by anytime, you're more than welcome." He said cheerfully. "Plus, I think it might actually help Ise's moral too." Naruto's eyes brightened. "I just had an idea!"

Rias tilted her head in confusion. "…Go on." She motioned with her hand.

Naruto rubbed the nape of his neck. "You told me before that bribes work well with Ise, and while I don't have anything pervy to offer him…" Naruto smiled suggestively. "You heard what I told him and you know him a hell of a lot more than me. Why not give him something to work for?"

Rias' hummed in understanding. "I see, I think I have something that might work."

Naruto grinned widely. "I know I always worked harder when I had a reward dangled in front of my face." He rubbed his nose slightly. Of course, he didn't mention that that reward was usually an all he could eat ramen binge.

There was a moment of comfortable silence between the two as Naruto relaxed and Rias pondered for a moment; after several minutes, there was a rustling of leaves and Issei popped back into the clearing. "Naruto, I'm bac-eh? Buchou?"

Rias smiled at Issei. "Hello Issei."

"Buchou…what are you doing here? I mean! Not that I don't want you here! I mean-!"

Rias giggled. "It's alright. I came to check on your progress."

Issei nodded dumbly. "A-Ah."

She smiled wider. "I heard the task that Naruto is having you do and I thought I'd add a little… incentive." She gave Issei a strong gaze, seeming to convey an unspoken message.

Issei's eyes widened. "I-Incentive…Like oppai?"

She chuckled. "Fufu, for each hit you land on Naruto, I'll bring you a sandwich from the store. And if you land all ten, I'll bring a picnic lunch that I will personally prepare." She said. She gave Issei a meaningful stare and smiled.

Issei's whole body tingled, knowing that if she were to cook…she'd have to wear her apron…nude. Suddenly he turned to Naruto and glared. "Narutooo! I'm pumped! Let's do this!" He shouted loudly.

Naruto smirked. "Like candy from a baby." He muttered under his breath. He nodded at Issei. "Alright Ise…" He slid into a stance. He narrowed his eyes and watched as Issei's energy skyrocketed.

"I'm going to eat Buchou's hand-made nude sandwiches no matter what!" The boy roared.

Naruto gestured at Issei with his hand. "Again!"

XxXxXxXxXx

Issei hurriedly wolfed down the sandwiches that Rias had bought. In the end, he only landed four consecutive hits before Naruto painfully pummeled him into unconsciousness. He was greeted with four store bought sandwiches in front of his face when he awoke. Despite his teacher's harsh beating he felt a certain amount of satisfaction in himself. He could feel himself growing stronger, and it was only the beginning!

Naruto watched Issei eat with pride. He took a bite of his own sandwich happily "Is this what Kakashi-sensei felt like?" He asked himself softly. It made him feel good to see his student grow so fast. He looked at Rias. "So Rias-chan, what was Sirzechs up to today?"

Rias raised an eyebrow. "Onii-sama is out with Grayfia right now. Akeno is giving them a guided tour of the city." She smiled softly. "He had originally asked for Issei but when I told him he was training with you he quickly said Akeno would be fine." She paused. "Which reminds me, what did Onii-sama talk to you about? You guys seem to be on much nicer terms today than yesterday."

Naruto chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of his head. "We just sorta…settled our differences."

Rias gave him a look that said she didn't believe him, but she didn't press the issue. She sighed. "Very well." She crossed her arms. "By the way you two." She started.

Issei paused from his food and looked at her. At her look he quickly gulped down his food. "Y-Yes, Buchou?"

"Just a little forewarning, the Occult Research Club has been tasked with cleaning the pool this year. We're supposed to do it in a few days."

Issei groaned softly.

"However, Sona has graciously allowed us to use it after we've cleaned it."

Issei's expression brightened. "Does that mean…swimming?"

She nodded.

"A-And swimsuits?"

She nodded again.

Issei pumped a fist. "Alright!"

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "I never knew this school had a pool."

"Hmm, well you've only been here for about a month and we haven't used it yet so that's understandable. This is a big school so it doesn't surprise me that you've yet to see it." Rias said.

Naruto shrugged. "I guess you have a point, but if all we gotta do is clean it, my clones will have it done in a snap."

Issei nodded quickly at the idea; however, Rias shook her head with a soft chuckle.

"As much as I'm sure everyone would appreciate it; I can't let you do that. This is also to help form camaraderie with each other."

Issei deflated. "B-But the swimsuiiiits." He moaned quietly.

"No problem." Naruto nodded. 'I see, it's an exercise together to build character.' He frowned. 'Huh…that sounds familiar, almost like a…like a…' His face twisted in muted horror. 'Like a…D-ranked…mission…' He thought to himself. He then hung his head. 'Fuuuuuck. I can't ever escape them!' He shuddered in disgust.

Elsewhere on another continent, a raven haired youth felt a chill run down his spine and scowled. Whatever it was, he was certain Naruto was to blame.

Rias looked at Naruto oddly for a moment. "Are you alright?"

Naruto shook his head. "No…I don't want to talk about it…" He said somewhat childishly.

She sighed but nodded nonetheless.

Ninja's certainly were odd at times. She dearly hoped not everyone from Naruto's world was as strange.

She'd never understand the irony.

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto locked his front door behind him. He had a small gym bag clenched in his left hand which contained the swim trunks Issei lent him, he was wearing a casual set of clothes instead of the school uniform Rias had told him to wear (even though there was no school) in order to clean the pool. Due to his unending hatred of the damn thing, he refused to wear it on his 'off days'.

After that first night, Sirzechs and Grayfia rented a hotel room for the rest of their stay, though the red-headed devil made sure Naruto knew how to contact him. He even gave Naruto his personal phone number. Naruto thought his behavior was strange but didn't say anything. Unfortunately, Sirzechs was the only thing to leave from that night.

He was still having nightmares. Over the past few days he had gotten no more than four hours of sleep a night, if he was lucky. They only happened two or three times a night, but each one had him trembling and he was forced to calm himself down. He already relived Hinata's death seven times, Shikamaru's three times and Lee's once. The bags under his eyes were slowly getting deeper as the days passed.

Luckily it hadn't effected his fighting…yet. He vowed to speak to Rias about ways to suppress dreams before it got that far.

He sighed.

"Naruto, are you ready!?" Xenovia called from below.

Naruto wondered how she could sleep through his bursts of yelling but shrugged it off as either her being a heavy sleeper or they had some thick walls. "Yeah! I'll be right down." He opted for the express elevator; he hopped off the ledge of the second floor and landed right next to the bluenette.

She gave him a meaningful look. "You look…ill." She commented.

Naruto managed a small smile. "I'm alright. No worries. Hehe."

She gave him another long gaze before she nodded slowly. "Okay. But if you ever need assistance…"

"I'll stomp really loudly on the floor." Naruto said cheekily.

When Xenovia averted her eyes she confirmed Naruto's suspicions that the layouts were similar between their apartments.

Naruto grinned. "Same goes for you, if you need something bang on my floor."

She looked at him again and smiled. "Understood."

"Yo! Naruto! Xenovia-san!" A voice called out to them.

They looked behind them to see a small trio approaching, in it was Rias, Asia, and the person who shouted; Issei.

Naruto waved in greeting.

Xenovia nodded respectfully at them as they neared the duo. "Buchou, Asia, Issei." She greeted.

Rias smiled. "So, are we ready?" She gave Naruto a pointed look. "Where is your uniform Naruto?"

Naruto crossed his arms. "I refuse to wear such a stuffy and restrictive set of clothes for longer than I need too!"

Rias narrowed her eyes. "…Is it because of its lack of orange?"

Without a hint of shame Naruto nodded. "Yes."

After a brief moment of silence Rias sighed. "Then let's depart."

Naruto smirked triumphantly.

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto made a face as he noticed the grime on the walls. "I know I'm no expert when it comes to this stuff, but people swim in these?" He questioned dubiously. He had seen pools back in his world but in his experience, they were rarer than they were here, especially in his village that had a large stream running through the middle of it.

Kiba chuckled. "When they're clean, yes. That's our job for today."

"Ufufu, so make sure you take extra care today. It's our …project for today. Ufufu." Akeno said making an odd emphasis on the word 'our'. At least it was odd to Naruto, considering the look she gave him.

Naruto scratched the back if his head and sighed. 'All that training…just to end up a glorified janitor. Ero-sennin must be laughing it up where he is.' Naruto could have sworn he heard a low laugh in the distance but wrote it off as his imagination.

Rias clapped her hands. "Well everyone, let's get to it! The faster we finish the faster we can enjoy the pool!"

Issei cheered the loudest. Koneko gave him a dirty look when she noticed the perverted gleam in his eyes.

Naruto patted her head. "Let him be for now, he's been working hard and I think he needs that motivation today. Otherwise he might pass out in the pool." He said softly.

Koneko gave him a look. "…More training…Senpai."

Naruto raised an eyebrow before he decoded what she was saying. He grinned. "You got it."

She nodded quietly before walking away towards the changing rooms.

Kiba smiled. "I think Koneko-chan has the right idea. Let's begin."

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto nodded as Akeno filled the pool with water via a giant magic circle floating above it. "Convenient." He commented to himself. He looked at the now spotless, and filled to the brim with water, school pool. "Looking at it now, this thing would be great for training in."

Issei raised an eyebrow. "How?" He idly rubbed his left arm. Rias had to extract Issei's pent up Dragon energy earlier. He briefly wondered why Akeno hadn't had done it but was quickly cut off as he had a…mostly uninterrupted but very enjoyable session with Rias.

Naruto briefly thought back to when he trained on the lake not too long ago. "Endurance training." He said simply.

Issei's imagination took a different turn; he pictured Naruto swimming laps over and over again. He shrugged. "If you say so…"

Rias drew everyone's attention to her. "Now that the pool is clean, let's take some time and enjoy it. As of now, the pool is officially open!"

"Alright!" Issei shouted happily. Visions of the busty Rias and Akeno in scandalous swimsuits in provocative situations and poses filled his mind's eye and restored his energy and then some.

…Everyone else was also happy.

Naruto shook his head in amusement. He felt someone come up from behind him and felt two extremely soft mounds press against his naked back. He felt someone's hot breath in his ear.

"I can't wait to show you my little present for you." Akeno whispered in a sultry tone of voice.

Naruto felt his whole body tingle and gulped silently. He pried himself away from Akeno with a nervous grin. He turned and felt his jaw drop as he got a closer look at Akeno's outfit. Akeno was wearing a sinfully revealing orange bikini. The same one Naruto remembered from the picture she sent him. Her perfectly proportional body was a sight to behold; legs that seemed to stretch forever, an appealing behind and very generous breasts wrapped up in a neat little package decorated with orange.

At the same time, she had been sizing him up. He wore a pair of red swim shorts that Issei had lent him and nothing else. The rest of his body was open for Akeno to ogle, which she did shamelessly. His torso had a bevy of solid muscle mass. Not gigantic muscles only useful for showing off either; his body was sculpted for combat. Not an ounce of his body had any excess fat save for his face, and even that was starting to become defined. All in all, Akeno was pleased.

Issei himself was ogling the girls' swimsuits. He especially gushed over Rias' swimsuit which was a white bikini that accented all of her very generous curves yet the small pareo hinted at a sense of innocence which made it all the more erotic for Issei.

Akeno chuckled. "Ara ara, you're already showing off your swimsuit to Issei-kun."

Rias smirked. "Ah, but it seems you jumped the gun and revealed it to Naruto first."

"Ufufu…perhaps."

"That did seem to be your plan from the beginning."

Akeno smiled benevolently. "Who knows?" She said coyly.

Naruto and Issei exchanged looks. "Have any idea what they're talking about?" Naruto questioned Issei.

Said boy shook his head. "Not a clue, I wasn't listening."

Naruto squinted his eyes comically. "Of course you weren't."

Issei was about to retort but was interrupted.

"Issei-san, I've finished changing." Asia said from behind the boys. She wore a typical school swimsuit that seemed to appeal to a very specific audience.

Issei immediately looked Asia over with a nod of satisfaction and a redder face than before. "Asia, that really suits you! Super cute!"

Asia smiled. "I'm glad to hear you say that."

Naruto rolled his eyes and turned away. He noticed Koneko standing off to the side, also wearing a school swimsuit.

Naruto waved. "Yo, Neko-chan."

She nodded but her face had a slight red hue to it. "Senpai…" She looked him over and gave him a thumbs-up. "…Your level of cool is much higher than Issei-senpai's."

Issei deflated when he heard those words. "Even though her cuteness level had peaked, she's still the same." He muttered.

She frowned. "Somehow, hearing those words worries me…"

Naruto looked around curiously. "Where's Xenovia?"

Asia nodded. "She was having difficulties putting on her swimsuit and told us to go on ahead."

"Ah, gotcha."

Naruto suddenly felt someone grab his trousers. He turned and saw Kenoko's expressionless face.

"First blood…" She said monotonously as she hurled Naruto towards the pool.

On instinct he flipped in the air and channeled chakra to his feet. He landed solidly on the water with an amused expression. "Nice one Neko-chan. But it wasn't good enough." He blinked when he noticed the expressions on his friend's faces. "What?" He raised an eyebrow. "I got something on my face?"

Issei pointed at him. "You're standing on the water!"

Naruto tilted his head. "So?"

"That's not physically possible!"

Naruto looked down at the water before looking back up at the group. "Really?"

Rias nodded. "Indeed, walking on water is a feat only one other person has been confirmed to be able to do." She said in slight amazement.

Naruto's eyes widened. "You mean I never showed you guys this?" They shook their heads. He sighed deeply. "Well why are you surprised anyways? There's a bunch of other stuff that I can do that 'no other human can'." He quoted sarcastically. "I can even walk upside down on the goddamn walls!"

Kiba sighed and shook his head. "He does have a point." He looked at Naruto. "How does that work Naruto-kun?"

Naruto shrugged. "I channel chakra to the bottom of my feet and it keeps me from falling. I can do it with my hands too." He demonstrated by performing a handstand. He grinned at them. "See?"

Akeno laughed softly while Rias sighed.

"Ninja things…" She muttered.

Asia's face was still in shock. "I thought only the 'Son' could do that."

Issei patted her head. "Just chalk it up as Naruto doing…Naruto things."

After they got over the shock of Naruto being the messiah reincarnated, they all slid into the pool.

Naruto himself migrated towards Koneko once again when he noticed her lack of participation. "What's the matter Neko-chan?"

She flushed and muttered something under her breath.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "What?"

"…Can't."

Naruto deciphered her statement; he was getting better at that he noticed. "You can't swim?"

She nodded mutely.

Off in the background Issei nearly fainted. "S-So cute!" He yelled out.

Naruto looked at him weirdly. He turned back to Koneko. "Anyways, I can teach ya. It's easy."

Koneko nodded. "…Thank you senpai."

Naruto smiled brightly. "No problem-ttebayo!" He pulled her away from the wall. "Alright, we first gotta teach you how to peddle right. Iruka-sensei taught me a good way to do this when I was younger." He proceeded to instruct Koneko on how to peddle in the water.

Rias watched from off to the side with a content smile. She glanced around and saw Issei doing a similar thing to Asia. Akeno stepped up next to her.

"Ufufu, feeling lonely Rias?"

She shook her head. "Just enjoying seeing my cute Servants, plus one, having fun." She watched as Kiba dived in from the other end and swam underwater.

"Things certainly are livelier." Akeno commented lightly.

Rias sent Akeno a side-along glance. "Perhaps you should be more aware Akeno, things might not be so easy for you from now on." She said with a cryptic smile.

Akeno raised an eyebrow. "Will they now?" She smiled coyly. "I do enjoy surprises."

Naruto grinned as he held onto Koneko's arm while she peddled her legs. "Alright Neko-chan you're doing great. Just keep this up." He encouraged as he moved backwards in a circle.

"…Senpai, sorry for making you help me out…" Koneko apologized softly.

Naruto shook his head. "No worries." He assured her. "Just think of it as us training and put your all into it."

Koneko nodded. "…Right!" She pushed forward with more effort than before.

XxXxXxXxXx

In the end Koneko proved to be a natural adept at the exercise. After a few more lessons she could keep up with Naruto with relative ease. However it seemed that most of their group had decided to take a break from swimming and relax.

Koneko and Asia decided to take a nap, an action Issei wholeheartedly agreed to after seeing their adorable sleeping faces. Rias had chosen to sunbathe on a towel. Kiba was the only one to keep swimming, constantly diving from one end of the pool to the next. Naruto on the other hand, had decided to do some light exercises on top of the water; he couldn't find any leaves nearby however so training his control was slightly out of reach. He instead summoned a clone and the two did some light sparring. Issei just took in the sights with a satisfied grin.

Akeno, amusingly enough, had decided to do the same except her focus was on Naruto. She watched him with a coy smile on her face.

"Issei, would you like to spread the oil on my back?" Rias asked the boy after undoing her top while she laid on the towel.

"Of course Buchou! It would be my pleasure!" Issei bounded over to the crimson-haired devil post-haste.

Inspired by the interaction, Akeno called out to Naruto. "Naruto-kun!"

Naruto paused and looked at her. He casually deflected his clones punch and easily dispelled him. "What's up?"

"Join me for a moment." She said, she gestured with her finger.

Naruto shrugged and walked across the water towards her. He reached her and threw his arms behind his head casually. "Did you need me for something?" He asked.

She smirked dubiously. "Ufufu. As a matter of fact I do." She walked over to a lawn chair and sat on it. Naruto followed with a confused expression on his face.

"For what?"

Akeno placed a finger on her lips. "Ara ara, I seem to have a dilemma!" She said conspicuously. "I want to sunbathe but I have no one to spread oil on my back."

Naruto's eyebrows shot up. He looked Akeno up and down and swallowed a lump in his throat. "Need someone to help? P-Please, that's nothing." He managed to say with only a slight hitch. He hadn't forgotten their little game after all.

She smiled coyly, she hadn't forgotten either. "How gentlemanly." She turned and laid down on the chair. She undid her top and let it fall to the side. The majority of her breast was revealed to the blond, and they were plentiful indeed.

She reached into a bag that had been next to the chair and retrieved a bottle of oil. She held it up. "This is special beauty oil made especially for devils. We don't sunburn, but it helps relieve irritation and helps rejuvenate our skin."

Naruto nodded and grabbed the bottle from her. "No problem."

She smirked. "Don't be afraid to get all of my body. From my top to my bottom, from front to back. Everywhere." She licked her lips.

Naruto felt his face heat up. "If that's…what you want." He managed. Through sheer willpower alone he managed to keep his cool and keep his 'kunai' sheathed. 'Stupid women and their unfair body advantage.'

He glanced at Issei and saw how he was applying oil to Rias and decided to emulate him. He squirted the oil onto Akeno's back. He then placed himself standing over her body with a leg on either side. He then began to slowly knead and rub in the oil. He started with her lower back. He pressed his hands deep into her skin, simultaneously spreading the oil and massaging her as well.

She mewled in pleasure softly.

He then moved to her upper back and shoulders, kneading the oil in. He proceeded to backtrack and do her legs. He squirted oil onto his hands and rubbed it into both of her legs.

Akeno let out a low moan.

Naruto's face turned scarlet. He reached her generous bottom and spread the oil in as quickly as he could in that part; he then bent further over her and got her stomach from a very awkward position. He got all the way to her breasts before he stopped and pulled away. He sat on an adjacent seat and faced away from her.

"All done." He announced.

There was a brief moment where there was no sound, but then Naruto felt Akeno's arms wrap around his neck and she pressed her buxom against his naked back. He felt two distinctive bumps and flushed when he realized that she was nude from the top up.

"Ara ara." She nibbled on his ear as she whispered. "You forgot the most important part, Na-ru-to-kun."

Naruto's eyes bulged out. He felt certain parts of his body react. He shot up. "You know who I haven't seen in a while? Xenovia! I'm gonna go look for her!" He quickly made his retreat.

Akeno smirked as she re-tied her top. She glanced to the side and saw Rias shaking her head in amusement as Issei spread the oil happily.

Naruto ran towards the changing rooms with haste. "What the hell is with these girls!?" He asked himself under his breath. "The girls back home never acted like that, they acted the complete opposite of that. Hell, Sakura'd kill me if she saw what just happened."

He stopped at the door and sat on the steps in front to regain his composure. He brushed his hand against his forehead and took in a deep breath.

"Naruto? What are you doing in front of there?"

Naruto looked to the side and saw Xenovia standing to the side with a hand on her hip. She had changed into an exotic yet modest green swimsuit that did well at accenting her curves.

He managed a small smile. "I was looking for you."

She looked downwards and tugged at her bikini bottoms. "I was unused to how swimsuits were worn and stayed behind to change in private." She looked at him again. "I had just left when I heard something and came back here."

Naruto nodded and grinned. "Well it looks good on you!" He complimented.

Xenovia paused and gave him an unusual look. "Thank you." She said softly. She looked herself over. "To be honest I don't know much about swimsuits."

Naruto laughed. "Me neither." He threw his arms behind his head casually. "I usually just went swimming with my clothes on or in my boxers. Didn't really have time to grab a pair of trunks."

Xenovia chuckled. "Somehow, I'm not surprised."

Naruto smiled. "Give it time, hang around me long enough and it'll happen eventually."

She nodded quietly. She gave him a look over. "Hmm, I see your training has done you well. You have a fine body,"

There was a pause before she realized what she said. Her face took on a healthy shade of pink but she refused to correct herself.

Naruto, either oblivious or uncaring to her blunder, simply chuckled. "Well thanks for that. I've been training since I was a kid."

She calmed herself down and nodded. "Me too."

Naruto could tell by the defined muscle of her abdomen that she was telling the truth. He patted the spot next to him and she took a seat. The step was fairly small so their bodies were close to each other.

Xenovia looked at him. "To be honest, I'm glad I caught you alone right now."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "There something wrong?"

She shook her head. "I wanted to talk to you."

Naruot grinned. "Alright, I'm all ears-ttebayo!"

She looked away for a moment. "This is a new experience for me." She admitted. "I never used to have any interest in these things." She gestured at her swimsuit and the area around them. "The other girls would talk about it often but it never concerned me."

Naruto could understand to a degree. Growing up alone as he did, he was never interested in the latest toys or the newest restaurants. Even as a small boy he spent most of his time either playing pranks or training in his own way, even though he wasn't that great at first.

Xenovia continued. "However recent changes have made me rethink about a few things." She looked at him and smiled. "You are a part of those changes. You've made me think on a few subjects." She sighed. "I remember the kindness you showed Irina and myself when we first arrived and times after that…and I remember the look on your face when you questioned God as you did. It was disappointment clearly etched on your face. Back then, I thought it was directed towards me so I reacted in kind, but after learning the truth I realized what you were insulting wasn't actually God, but the notion that sacrifice was needed to succeed. So you have my thanks for looking out for me, even then."

Naruto smiled. "It was my pleasure. I'm happy to have helped."

She smiled in turn. "Going further, I think that I have also been relieved of the vows I previously had to keep and I can live normally and experience things I couldn't before and be a girl, rather than just an exorcist. I can be…free."

Naruto listened attentively, knowing it was taking a lot for her to say this.

Xenovia turned to Naruto and locked eyes with him. "Naruto, there's something I need to ask of you. It's extremely important." She said strongly.

Naruto looked at her and saw the resolution in her eyes. He took in a breath and nodded. "If it's something I can help with, of course."

Xenovia nodded. "Naruto…Let's get married."

Naruto felt his brain shut down. After a moment, he regained minute amount of coherent thought. "Hu-wha?" He said dumbly.

"I said…let's get married."

Naruto, still in shock, managed to ask a question "Why?"

She mulled her answer over in her head for a moment. "…When I was young the other girls would go on and on about their perfect wedding. About how perfect and pure it would be. How feminine they would feel. I decided I wanted the same things as other girls. So I discarded my old vows and have decided I want to take new ones, I want…to be a bride." She admitted with a straight face that had the tiniest hue of red.

The cogs finally settled in Naruto's brain. In the past, Naruto would have overreacted and made a huge scene, however instead he sank against the door with a heavy sigh and rubbed his forehead. "So let me get this straight…you wanna get married…to me?" He asked.

She nodded. "I figured that was apparent."

"What made you think of this? I mean, you don't just one day decide 'I wanna get married!' out of the blue."

She frowned. "After I had been reincarnated… I felt like I had lost my way. I was no longer an exorcist or even a part of the Church. I felt like I was both betrayed and doing the betraying at the same time. And in the middle of all this I was experiencing feelings I have never felt before. In the end, I spoke with Rias-buchou about it and she gave me some advice. I decided to follow that advice which led me here."

Naruto took in a deep and sad sigh. "…Now why me? Wouldn't Kiba be a better choice? You're both swordsman and holy sword users. Hell you're even both Knights."

She also leaned back and looked at the sky. "To be honest…I don't really know the exact reason. While what you say is true that logically, Kiba does seem like a better suitor, there's just one problem."

"What's that?"

"He isn't you."

Naruto's face flushed. He tried coming up with a response but only managed a weak stutter.

Xenovia sighed. "Ever since the battle with Kokabiel I've had odd feelings, maybe even a little before then. Even as a child, I've always tried to have my guard up whenever possible. However recently I've found myself being caught off-guard more often. That at certain times I find myself relaxed. At first I thought it was a side-effect of becoming a devil, but I quickly noticed it only happened whenever you're around."

Naruto's face gained a little more red to it.

"There is certainly a factor of physical attraction. You are very handsome, and while I was still uncertain of what I wanted, I entertained the thought of conceiving a child with you." She ignored Naruto's shocked expression. "But then something changed, and I started noticing things. It happened soon after the Maou Lucifer showed up. I started to see what you were doing, and every time I saw you after that, I felt pained."

Naruto's face became panicked. "Pained? Why? Are you okay?" He started checking her over for any injuries.

She smiled softly and stopped him. "That is what I saw, without a second thought you will put someone else's wellbeing above your own. And that is what pains me." She gave him a look. "I'm not a heavy sleeper…I know you've been having difficulties sleeping."

Naruto cursed under his breath. "I was hoping you wouldn't notice."

"I see the effect it has on you and I can feel it." She pointed to her chest. "I feel it here. That was when I realized I wanted to help you, like you did to me and how you'll continue to." She looked at her hands. "When I had asked Buchou for advice, she told me that Devil's embody avarice; that Devil's want, and continue to want. After that she told me to follow my heart, because it knows avarice and what it wants." She paused for a moment. "The other day, as I was contemplating my problem I came across a bridal magazine and then I reached my conclusion. So I'll ask again." She looked at him once more. "Uzumaki Naruto, will you marry me?"

Naruto saw the look on her face and felt his heart skip a beat. The heartfelt declaration moved him and he could clearly tell she was being as honest as she knew how to be. Still, he took in a deep breath and looked her in the eye. "Xenovia, I can't tell you how flattered I am that you feel this way and that you expressed yourself to me… but I can't marry you."

Xenovia's eyes narrowed slightly. "I see." She turned away with a deep frown. "Am I not to your liking? I know Akeno-senpai has larger breasts, and that you've known her longer."

Naruto was quick to explain. He grabbed each of her arms and turned her towards him. "It's not that-ttebayo!" He shook his head quickly. "Don't ever let that kind of thinking get to you! I like you a lot, you're someone that I know I can go to and I respect your strength, you're precious to me! And I do think you're really pretty." He admitted. "But I just can't do it and be happy with myself or for you." He let her go and scratched his head. "Ah, I'm no good with this!"

He looked at her again. "Look, I think marriage is something that should happen between two people who can really understand each other. We've only met a few weeks ago and we've fought already. That can't be the start of a healthy relationship. Not to mention…" He looked away with a sad expression. Hinata's blood-soaked image surfaced in his mind. "I'm…I'm trying to deal with the demons I thought I had gotten rid of. There are things that I thought I had moved on from, but the pain is still too fresh. And that's not fair to you."

She looked at him with a worried expression. "Demons…?" She mouthed to herself. She opened her mouth and hesitated slightly. "…What caused your nightmares?"

"It has to do with how I came to this world. It was a… a very painful experience."

"Now that I think about it…why did you come to this world? I don't think I ever asked."

Naruto took in a deep breath. "…There was a war…and we lost. I had to escape that world just to survive."

Xenovia looked away and frowned. "I see. I'm sorry for bringing it up."

Naruto shook his head. "No, it's not your fault." He sighed. "There's no way you could have kno-mmp!"

Naruto was cut off when Xenovia captured his lips quickly and roughly. Just as quickly however, she released him and stood up. She placed her hand on her hip and smirked confidently at Naruto.

"Very well then!" She said strongly. "I've not given up on helping you, and like you I won't give up. Not until you're all better and you've agreed to marry me. Until then, consider that my wedding vows." She turned around abruptly and left Naruto sitting on the step with a stupid look on his face.

"What the hell?" He said dumbly. He raised his hand touched his lips. 'So soft…'

"Ara ara…that certainly looked tasty." A voice said from his right.

Naruto felt a chill run down his spine. He slowly craned his neck to the right to see Akeno standing there with a sickly sweet smile. "A-Akeno-chan…how long were you standing there?"

"…Long enough." She tilted her head. "Planning a wedding, Naruto-kun?"

"N-N-No! You're misunderstanding!"

"Hmm. Am I?" She asked innocently. She started walking towards him slowly.

Naruto backed up further against the wall and nodded quickly. "Yes!"

She cupped her face with her hand and sighed dramatically. "Ara ara, now this just won't do. I can't be beaten by an underclassman after all."

Naruto nervously raised an eyebrow. "E-Eh?" He tried looking for an escape but couldn't find one readily available. He gulped audibly when Akeno stood directly in front of him, blocking any escape.

"Ufufu." She pressed herself against him, purposefully making sure her breasts mashed into his chest. She then cupped his face lovingly. She stroked it softly, almost erotically. "Prepare yourself."

"A-Akeno-chan…what are you doi-umph!" He was quickly silenced by her lips. Unlike Xenovia's rough and quick peck, Akeno fully intended on doing a better job than her. Naruto's eyes widened when her tongue slipped into his mouth.

Within another instance, she separated from him. He fell on his behind from shock.

She licked her lips. "Ufufu, and now for your punishment." Lightning erupted from her hand in a menacing display.

Naruto gulped from the floor and inched farther away from the living light show. "Log help me…" He whispered.

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto sat alone on a chair off to the side cradling the comically large bump on his head. He sniffed as crocodile tears fell from his face. He had already changed back into his school uniform.

"It wasn't my fault." He muttered childishly.

Issei walked up to him with a concerned look on his face. "Naruto, are you okay? That looked like it hurt."

Naruto sighed. "Only my pride Ise, only my pride."

"Still for Akeno-san to try to fry you in the pool, what did you do?"

"I got 'married'…" Naruto mumbled under his breath. "Still…both of them had really soft lips…"

"What was that?"

Naruto shook his head. "Nothing Ise." He stood up. "Are we leaving already?" He asked. He felt tired emotionally.

Issei nodded. "Buchou said it would take a minute or so. I thought we'd wait by the gate."

"Alright." Naruto nodded in turn. "Let's go then."

The two of them walked towards the school gate in step.

"So, how'd you like the pool?" Issei asked.

"It was fine, but I'm amazed we managed to not blow it up, that's like one of our trademarks. I honestly wouldn't mind getting my own one day. Training on the water is harder than on the ground after all. Having one on hand would save me travel time too."

Issei sighed. "Always thinking about training…" He shook his head. "How is it harder?"

Naruto put his hands together and then separated them. "Because you gotta split your focus between staying on the water and doing whatever else you're doing. In the beginning that's really hard to do, especially as you're trying to focus on precise control, but with enough training you learn to do it without thinking." Naruto explained.

"You think I can ever learn that?"

Naruto shrugged. "I don't see why not. If you can manage to get your magic to do the same thing as my chakra that is."

Issei frowned. "Hmm, that's something I'd have to ask Buchou about."

Naruto nodded.

The two reached the gate and walked over the bridge. They passed a silver-haired teenager on the way over.

Naruto recognized him but decided to ignore him. Vali however had other ideas.

"So this is the Sekiryuutei?" He said questioningly.

Issei stopped in his tracks and turned around. He gave Vali a surprised look. His left arm pulsed and he grasped it. "What is this bad vibe I'm feeling?" He asked himself.

Naruto yawned. "If you ignore it, it'll go away." He commented dryly.

"You seem stronger than the last time, Uzumaki Naruto."

Naruto turned around and shrugged. "What can I say? I can't stay still."

Issei watched the byplay in shock. "Wait, you know him?"

Naruto rolled his shoulders in a devil-may-care fashion. "Sorta." He admitted. "We spared before."

Issei looked back to Vali. "Who are you?" He asked.

"I am Vali."

Issei frowned. At the mention of Vali's name his arm throbbed even more. "Who?" His left hand glowed green slightly.

[He's the current host of the White One.] Ddraig said out loud.

Issei's eyes widened. His eyes flickered to Naruto. "You sparred with him?"

Naruto shrugged. "It was a chance meeting, completely friendly…more or less."

Vali nodded. "That's right."

Naruto sighed. "So why are you here making a huge scene?" He asked since Issei seemed to still be in shock.

Vali smirked. "I decided to go for a walk."

"Ooh, was that sarcasm? I'm proud of you." Naruto quipped.

Vali ignored Naruto's banter and walked forward and stood in front of Issei. "Hyoudou Issei, I've done some research. The 'worst host' of the Welsh Dragon I hear."

Issei swallowed the lump in his throat. "W-What of it?" He shot back.

Naruto couldn't help the slight swell of pride. 'He's growing more of a backbone against stronger opponents.'

Vali raised his hand and pointed it at Issei's chest. Immediately he had two blades pointed at his neck. They were being wielded by Xenovia and Kiba.

"The Hakuryoukou!" Xenovia scowled. She gave Naruto a look. "Why are you just standing there?" She said in a disappointed voice.

Naruto almost winced at the tone of her voice. "If he did try anything, I could have Ise out of there in a flash. But even though he's being kinda creepy, there's no killing intent." Naruto defended himself. "To be honest I think he's just here to try to scare Ise." He looked at Vali. "Isn't that right?"

Vali chuckled. "It is true I am not here to fight. I came to warn the Sekiryuutei."

Kiba narrowed his eyes. "About what?" He stepped a little closer to Issei. Much to the latter's unspoken chagrin.

Vali looked at Issei. "You know that there is a decisive difference in our power." It wasn't a question.

Issei nodded slowly. "So?"

Vali sighed. "…Hyoudou Issei, when compared to the rest of the world, what rank do you think you hold?"

Issei hesitated.

Vali noticed. "If you counted the incomplete Balance Breaker you have, it would still be in the four digits; somewhere between one thousand and fifteen hundred. No…for such a perverted owner with low stats it might be even lower." Vali gave everyone else a glance. "I'll make a comparison. Uzumaki Naruto is arguably the most powerful of you, yes?"

They all nodded save for Naruto who rubbed the nape of his neck.

"As of the fight against Kokabiel, he would be within the three digits; between six hundred and nine hundred, similarly to myself."

"What's your point? I'm tired. I wanna go home." Naruto complained. Internally however Naruto was getting excited. 'That sounds like a challenge to me. Let's see him squirm when I reach number one.'

His compatriots felt slightly better that he was still so apparently lax.

Vali gave Naruto a pointed look. "There are plenty of strong people in this world. I doubt that even the Crimson Satan could fit in the top ten."

Naruto frowned but didn't comment. 'I doubt that. That form of his is terrifyingly strong. And if he isn't…we're in deep shit.'

Vali, having misunderstood Naruto's frown, chuckled at his expression. "Further still, the first place is a constant, nothing is above it."

"If you had to ask me." Naruto started. "It's probably a giant red dragon that lives between dimensions and is called 'Big Red'." Naruto said in an overly dramatic voice. He started laughing to himself.

Vali stared at Naruto oddly. "His name is Great Red."

"Eh?" Naruto paused mid-laugh.

"The strongest being is a giant red dragon that lives between dimensions, his moniker is Great Red."

Naruto smacked his forehead loudly. "This place is fucking retarded." He muttered under his breath. 'How the hell do you kill a dragon anyways?'

The others ignored him, though Xenovia's lips twitched upwards.

Vali looked at Issei again. "It's best you learn this now rather than later."

Issei frowned. He locked eyes with Vali and clenched his left arm tighter. "Who are the other nine?"

Vali raised an eyebrow. "I only know rumors, it is said that Indra, of the Hindu Gods, is one. There is another rumor that says Hades, ruler of the dead, is one as well, but another says that he has been passed over by Thanatos, the God of Death."

Issei frowned deeply, he only vaguely knew about Indra and Hades, he couldn't recall anything about a Thanatos however. "How can there be a ruler and a God of death?" he asked.

"Millennia ago, Thanatos was once an agent of Hades, a powerful being that obeyed the God Hades, although back then he was weaker. However the details are sketchy and I don't know more about it." Vali said. He looked pleased at Issei. "It is good to want to know who your potential enemies are. You seem more confident as well. It is good that you are being trained well." He glanced to the side. "Right, Rias Gremory?"

Naruto followed his eyes and saw Rias standing to the side with a deep scowl on her face. Akeno stood to her right with an equally fierce glare. Behind them stood a worried Asia and a serious looking Koneko.

"Hakuryoukou." She said menacingly. "What is the meaning of this? You know that too much contact between our factions will cause strife. You side with the Fallen Angels after all."

At the appearance of their Master, Kiba and Xenovia slowly lowered their weapons and stepped back slightly.

Vali looked at Rias and smirked. "The two 'Heavenly Dragons' as they're called; the Welsh Dragon and the Vanishing Dragon. In the past…those related to the hosts did not live happy lives. How will yours fair?"

She frowned and decided to take a page out of the Book of Naruto™ (Patent pending). "Do not compare me to the mistakes of the past. I live in the present and will decide my own future."

He nodded. "A strong answer." He complimented. "You needn't worry. I already explained I wasn't here to fight, so you can remove the glares if you want." He shrugged. "I wanted to see the school I had come to more clearly before the conference. I've had to escort Azazel and grew bored. I'll be leaving now, I still have work to do."

Rias looked at her Knights and nodded. They backed away further and put away their weapons.

Vali nodded. "My thanks." He caught Naruto's eyes and smirked. The unspoken words reached Naruto clearly.

Naruto smirked in return, he sent his own message back at Vali.

Without another word Vali walked away at a sedate pace. Once he had vanished from their sights everyone save for Naruto relaxed. Asia ran to Issei and hugged him fiercely.

Issei patted her back. "I'm alright Asia."

"I'm so glad that you're not hurt." She said into his chest.

Issei smiled softly. He looked at Rias then towards where Vali had walked away. "So that was him…" He said softly. His eyes trailed towards Naruto and he nodded to himself. "I'll beat him, for Buchou's sake." He promised himself.

Suddenly the area was filled with a loud groan. Naruto grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of his head. "So um…Who's hungry?"

XxXxXxXxXx

"Are you ready Xenovia?"

"I don't know Naruto…this is my first time."

"It's okay, I'll lead. My master taught me everything I know."

"Are you okay with us doing this, considering what we discussed earlier?"

"Just cause I don't wanna get married doesn't mean we can't do this."

"Alright…"

"It's a natural thing to do Xenovia. Doing it with you means a lot to me. It wouldn't be the same by myself."

"But still, this is a delicate situation. One wrong move and we could ruin the rest of our lives. Shouldn't we use protection?"

"I know when to pull out before things get sticky. Trust me."

Xenovia sighed and rubbed her forehead. "But still, seals are incredibly complicated."

Naruto smiled. "Relax, we're just going over the basics. I know most of this so I can help if you don't get it." He pulled out the scroll his father had given him. He unfurled it on the table in front of him. "Besides, we need to wind down anyways."

She nodded and sat next to him. They were in his apartment, on his couch.

Naruto unsealed the contents and watched as a book and another scroll popped into existence. He grabbed the scroll and passed his hand over it, he couldn't put his finger on it, but he knew it was precious. He pocketed the scroll and promised himself to look through it at another time.

He picked up the book and smiled. "This is it. This is my Tou-chan's notes."

Xenovia peeked over him and read the title. "…Seals for beginners? Why would a seal's master write his notes in this?"

Naruto shook his head. "I've seen this type of thing before. Jiraiya-sensei used this before. If I'm right…" He flipped open the book to the last page. "Aha!" He pointed at a somewhat complicated looking seal on a white page. "When we finish this book and get good enough to break this seal the next book should pop out."

Xenovia nodded. "I see. It's to prevent you from over extending yourself then?"

"Something like that. I think the Sandaime was the first to use this style. He was my master's sensei." Naruto explained.

"Very well. Let's get started."

Naruto grinned. "You got it." He opened the book and placed it on the table.

Xenovia frowned. "I can't read it…It's in kanji."

Naruto nodded. "That's right, I forgot that you're Italian. It's alright; I'll read it out loud then." He picked the book up again. "Chapter One: What are seals?" Naruto sighed. "It's gonna be one of those books." He muttered. He turned the page and raised an eyebrow; most of the page had been scratched off and replaced with a single sentence in handwriting he recognized as his father's.

"Seals are a product of imagination, understanding, and cooperation, so skip the rest of this chapter."

Naruto blinked. "Oh…okay." He quickly moved to the next chapter. He exchanged glances with Xenovia.

"The most important skill to have when making seals is calligraphy!" Naruto pointed at the word for Xenovia to show that it was emphasized. "See, my dad wrote most of this in Hiragana. You should be able to read this." He grinned at her.

She nodded. "Yes, it seems your father made things simple."

Naruto's grin widened. "I remember hearing that my mom taught him some seals too so that's probably what she told him. The Uzumaki Clan used to be renowned seal masters from what Kakashi-sensei told me."

Xenovia smirked. "That means you should pick this up rather quickly, seals are in your blood."

Naruto chuckled in embarrassment. "Let keep reading." He said with cheeks slightly flushed.

She chuckled softly. "Yes, let's."

Naruto unsealed the set of practice brushes and ink he had buried in one of his scrolls and the two dove deep into their studying after that. Following Minato's instructions they began to work on their calligraphy. He had given them an example of how their characters should look like to be acceptable. The process however required Xenovia to write in a way similar to kanji. Her penmanship in English and Italian was flawless; however seals required the same type of strokes normally associated with kanji.

Naruto had the opposite problem. He could read and write kanji, but it was very choppy with uneven strokes and sloppy lines, something Jiraiya had tried to iron out of him, but without constant practice his calligraphy had gotten sloppy.

The two had spent a few hours practicing their writing of the most basic of kanji. They repeated the same characters over and over again. Naruto finally decided to call it a night after noticing Xenovia's eyes begin to droop.

"Nonsense, I am completely aware!" She assured him. She let out a soft yawn.

Naruto deadpanned. He lightly flicked a nearby eraser at her. It hit her square on her forehead. She blinked in surprise before she shot him a look. "See?" Naruto said. "And on top of that you drew the same line on top of itself five times. Besides, we still have school in the morning, and Rias-chan isn't afraid to get on my ass about it, and neither is Hiratsuka-sensei. Especially since tomorrow is the precious 'Class Visits' everyone's concerned about."

She sighed. "Fine…" She made to stand but after sitting for so long her legs had gone numb. She stumbled a bit but Naruto caught her easily.

"C'mon, you can stay here tonight and go downstairs to shower in the morning." He started to lead her to his guestroom.

She nodded. "Thank you."

Naruto grinned. "Anytime, I got the room after all." He opened the door and led her to the bed. He sat her down and walked towards the door. "I'll be right back with some stuff for you." He quickly went to his room and retrieved a large shirt; he then went to his linen closet and grabbed a spare pillow and blanket. He returned to see Xenovia in the middle of undressing on the bed.

He dropped what he was holding in shock. "A-Ah! Sorry!" He apologized.

She turned her head towards him and smiled. "Ah good, you brought a shirt." She said casually. She reached behind her back and unbuckled her bra and let it fall to the floor.

Naruto watched as the bra fell in slow motion to the floor. He was granted the privilege to witness the bluenette in her topless glory. His eyes traced the curve of her breasts, the shape of her mound and the pertness of her pink nipples. He quickly covered his eyes with a scarlet blush on his face. "What are you doing!? Why are you getting naked?"

"Huh?" She asked with a raised eyebrow. "You're not supposed to sleep with a bra on." She said factually.

"I mean, why right in front of me?" Naruto said with his eyes covered, although there was a conspicuous space for his left eye.

She looked at herself and then back at Naruto. "I don't mind if you see me nude. You are my future husband after all." She said matter-of-factly.

Naruto ignored her, he bent down and grabbed at the shirt blindly. He tossed it at her and turned around. "I'll give you time to change!" He said quickly. He walked out and shut the door behind him. He placed a hand on his chest and sighed.

'These girls are gonna kill me…' He thought to himself, he wiped away the small amount of blood from his nose with his opposite hand.

After a moment of some slight shuffling, he heard her announce she was finished. He walked back into the room and saw she was indeed decent, though Naruto was acutely aware of two bumps prominent in front of the shirt he lent her. He bent and picked up the blanket and pillow and brought it to her.

"You know…" She started slowly as she accepted the items. "You didn't need to accommodate me. The numbness will go away soon." She neglected to tell him that it had already left.

Naruto grinned. "I don't mind!" He said. "I like having company over. Back in Konoha I'd love it when the guys would come over to hang out. They didn't do it too often though."

He handed her the blanket and set the pillow at the head of the bed.

"…Can you tell me about it?" She asked him as he fluffed her pillow.

He straightened up and looked at her. "About what?"

"Your home. I'd like to hear about it."

Naruto smiled. "Sure, I got some stories I can tell." He sat down on the bed to her right. "Ah, where should I start?" He asked himself.

Xenovia gave him an answer. "A description would be appreciated."

Naruto nodded. "My home village was Konohagakure no Sato, the Village Hidden in the Leaves. Like the name says, we were surrounded by a lot of trees; as far as you wanted to look. Big, tall, and strong trees surrounded us. It was very big too, from what I've seen of this town it's about the same size." Naruto then smirked. "And I knew the entire village like the back of my hand. It was my playground while I was growing up. I could never get lost."

"What about your parents? They let you roam like that?"

Naruto shook his head. "Never had 'em. They died when I was a baby."

Xenovia frowned. "I see, I apologize."

Naruto shrugged. "It's alright, I managed fine."

"What about caretakers? Surely an orphan had foster parents."

"Nope, no one wanted the 'demon child' as I was called a lot back then."

Xenovia's eyes flashed with anger. She turned to him quickly, which had accidentally caused her shirt to rise, exposing her dark green panties. "Demon child!? What were these people? Morons? You're clearly no more a demon than any other human!"

Naruto smiled sadly. "When I was younger I think I hated them back, but as I grew up and experienced loss myself, I realized that they were just human. They all lost a lot of family the night the Kyuubi attacked the village. So looking back I can't help but feel sorry for them instead of anger or hatred." He lifted his shirt and allowed his seal to form. "You were unconscious when I told everyone else; sorry I forgot to mention this earlier. Within my body I have the Kyuubi no Kitsune sealed in me; a nine-tailed fox with enough power to change the landscape easily. Kind of like Issei and Ddraig except I wasn't born with the Kyuubi inside of me. When I was just born a man had ripped him from inside my mother and put him under an illusion. He nearly destroyed the village before my dad could seal him inside me. Since the Kyuubi was inside of me they used me as their scapegoat." He let his shirt fall back down.

Xenovia's eyes widened. "What!? Your own father?"

Naruto smiled proudly. "Only an Uzumaki can contain Kurama, the Kyuubi, in their body safely. I'm proud my Tou-chan trusted me to protect Kurama." He shook his head. "I'm getting off track. If you want, I can tell you more about it later but let me go back to explaining my home."

She nodded mutely. Determined to find out more about this 'Kyuubi'.

"Inside the village it was peaceful; there weren't a lot of problems inside." He said. He decided against telling her about the Uchiha Massacre. No need bringing up Sasuke's dirty laundry. "Of course I wasn't gonna settle for that!" Naruto grinned. "I started pulling pranks when I was six. My first prank was against the Sandaime Hokage, our village leader. I'll admit it was probably a stupid thing to do, but I snuck into his office, past the guards and ANBU, and I painted his entire office a bright orange; his walls, windows and desk. Unfortunately for me, the Old Man decided to walk in right as I finished."

Naruto chuckled. "Oh man I thought the old man was gonna be pissed, but he started cracking up! He praised me for my stealth and creativity." He smiled. "That was the Old Man for you though. He was always ready to listen if I needed it too. He was the first to treat me like a normal kid. He'd always come and check on me once or twice a month. He'd even treat me to ramen if he had the time."

Xenovia looked at him. "It sounds like you truly cared for him."

"He was the closest thing I had to a grandfather at the time. When he died it hurt a lot. But he died doing what a Hokage is meant to do; protecting the village. So I at least know he didn't die in vain." Naruto sighed. "Anyways…" He started. "After I started the Shinobi Academy I ran into another problem: Iruka-sensei. I don't know how but he was always able to find me after I pulled a prank. And he always had a lecture ready." Naruto complained loudly but had no malice in it.

"He was always hard on me too; always wanting me to 'do better', 'go to class', 'stop acting like a fucking idiot' and so on. But in the end we always wound up having ramen together. I guess he was like a cool older brother after a while."

Xenovia noticed how he was less describing his village at that point and more of the people he was close too. He looked at Xenovia and saw her with a small smile. He raised an eyebrow. "What?"

She shook her head. "Nothing, I just feel like I understand you a bit more now."

Naruto gave her a questioning look but when she didn't respond he shrugged. He yawned loudly. "Well, I think it's time I hit the hay." He said.

She nodded. "Yes, I'm tired as well."

Naruto stood from the bed and moved towards the door. He looked back at her. "I'll see ya in the morning. Good night Xenovia."

"Good night Naruto."

Naruto exited the room and shut the door behind him. 'Talking to her about Konoha wasn't as bad as I thought it'd be. I guess I just focused on the good memories…'

He walked towards his own room, hopeful for a good sleep that night.

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto woke up the next morning feeling more rested than he had been in a few days. He blinked blearily as his alarm rang. He lazily shut it off with his right hand. It was an annoying sound but he preferred it to the one Issei had offered him. The boy had said he used one himself but Naruto wasn't interested. As Naruto regained his sense of touch he noticed that his body felt heavy. He frowned in confusion. He couldn't move his left arm very well. He tried moving under the mysterious weight and managed to nudge it to the left slightly.

"Mm-mmm, it's morning already?" A voice not his own mumbled next to him from under the blankets.

Naruto froze.

The blankets shifted and revealed a shock of blue hair. Xenovia raised her head and rubbed her eyes. She looked up and her golden yellow eyes locked with his cerulean eyes.

Naruto tried to form words but nothing would come out. He wound up making odd noises instead of actual sentences.

She furrowed her brow. "What's the matter?"

"W-W-Why…?" He stuttered.

"Why what?"

"Why-you-bed?" He cleared his throat. "Why are you in my bed!?"

"Oh that." She said as if she had forgotten.

Naruto pursed his lips comically. "Yes, that!"

She looked at him intensely. "You were having a fit in your sleep."

Naruto paused and was suddenly calmed. He sighed and looked away. "…Sorry."

She shook her head. "I had read a book once before that said when someone was having nightmares, just having someone nearby that they were close to might help. When I heard you yell I thought of that." She shrugged casually. "I guess I fell asleep." She sat up and stretched. She pushed her chest forward as she stretched her arms, shamelessly displaying her breasts without a second thought.

Naruto leaned his head back against his arm and shut his eyes. "These dreams are killing me." He mumbled.

She frowned. "Are they that bad?"

Naruto opened his eyes again and nodded somberly. "They can get pretty bad. Usually are."

"You were talking in your sleep too; you mentioned a person named Neji."

Naruto frowned. He couldn't actually remember his dream at that moment, which was odd considering his other dreams were vivid; however it seemed like he got a full nights rest. "He was a close friend, and a man I respected a lot. He died during the war."

"I see, I'm sorry for your loss. May he rest peacefully in heaven." She said. She had to physically refrain herself from putting her hands into a prayer.

"I appreciate the sentiment." Naruto smiled softly. "But to be honest Xenovia, Shinobi don't really believe in god and even if we did we'd all be going straight to hell for all the blood we've shed. Some of us believe in the holy log though. At least some in Konoha do."

She raised an eyebrow. "You mentioned that before…but what is it?"

He chuckled. "It's kinda complicated, but according to some of the older shinobi, the reason why when we use Kawarimi without an intended target that we're replaced with a log goes back a long time ago. 'We protect the forest and the forest protect us', or something along those lines." He shrugged. "Not everyone believes the story but I think it's kinda cool; knowing you always have an ally ready to save you. That's what I believe anyways."

At least he managed to take his mind off of the topic. Xenovia noticed as well as she didn't comment on his dreams further. She nodded and smirked. "An ally is always appreciated. I can see why you feel that way."

Naruto looked at her. "So do you…believe too?" He asked hopefully.

"Nope." She said coldly.

His face fell. "Cold-hearted rejection." He muttered.

"I'm a firm believer in God, even if he's gone he's still who I-ow!" She winced and cradled her head.

Naruto smiled softly in amusement. "Well on that note, I think we've wasted enough time. We should start getting ready."

She rubbed her head one more time before she nodded. "Very well, I'll go downstairs now." She stood from his bed.

"I'll see you out front, yeah?" He asked.

"If you get ready on time."

Naruto waved his hand flippantly. "Yeah, yeah…"

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto laid his head on his desk as the bell signifying the end of the period rang. "Blech, I always hated math. I can feel my brain melting." He moaned.

Several of his male classmates chuckled, as well as some of their fathers. Others gave him a dirty look for not taking his education more seriously.

Kiba shook his head in amusement. "Cheer up Naruto-kun, our workshop is next period."

Xenovia nodded. "Yes, that should provide you some entertainment, right?"

Naruto sighed. "Yeah I guess." He muttered under his breath.

The door slid open and Hiratsuka-sensei walked in holding a box. She placed it on her desk before turning towards her students and their parents with an uncharacteristically wide grin "So! I heard that the other workshop teacher assigned his class to use modeling clay and one of his students made something incredible. Now I'm nothing if not supportive of friendly competition, and since I volunteered to be a workshop teacher for today, let's upstage him by doing something even better than them!"

Naruto raised his head and stared at her. "Careful Sensei, your fangs are out." He commented lightly. Several others chuckled.

Yukiko raised her hand. "So does that make you jealous of his student's success?" She said bluntly.

Saori shushed her quickly. "Yukki-chin, one shouldn't say those kinds of things!" She said in a harsh whisper.

Kitomi nodded quickly. "That was brutal. She's finally being a cool teacher and you wanna bring her down?"

Hiratsuka-sensei smirked. "Not at all. That just means there's a higher plateau for us to reach."

"So what are we doing?" A random cannon fodder asked curiously.

"We'll be taking a more subtle approach to art. We'll be drawing today!"

"Well what do you know, something you're good at Kitomin." Saori teased Kitomi, who flushed. Kitomi's parents could be seen with happy smiles on their faces.

Naruto ignored his classmates and frowned. 'Drawing? Instead of clay?' He exchanged glances with his fellow club-mates who shrugged in return.

The class was silent as Hiratsuka-sensei opened the box to reveal professional grade drawing paper. "I managed to pull some strings with the Art-Club to gather these resources so I'm sorry to say everyone only gets one so please take your time and do this right." She explained. She then proceeded to hand out the papers to the head of each individual row. As they passed the paper further down the row she spoke again.

"Now, today's assignment is to draw something precious to you. It could be anything you feel is important to you. Like a family member, a favorite sport, your club, or even objects like a personal computer; as long as it's important to you."

Naruto raised an eyebrow as he received his paper. He quickly took one and passed it down the line. "Precious to us?"

Once everyone had gotten a slip of paper Hiratsuka-sensei clapped her hands. "Alright everyone, please show off your prowess and begin."

'Who knew she was such an art enthusiast? Normally she's so proper. Maybe she just doesn't like to lose?' Naruto thought to himself. He looked down and stared at his paper, his pencil lazily twirling in his hand. Naruto was self-admittedly, a so-so artist, so he was clueless as to what to draw. His old artworks were usually a spur of the moment type of thing he decided while playing a prank. Having to premeditate what he was going to draw was fairly new to him.

He let his mind wander as his hand started to move on its own accord. 'It can't be that different from drawing seals.' He told himself. He watched numbly as his hand started making rough sketches of various objects that didn't seem to be in place.

Was that a face, or a disfigured ear? No one would know.

He sighed and shut his eyes for a moment. 'Something important to you?' There were plenty of things and people important to him, but he didn't know how exactly he was supposed to draw them. 'Maybe, instead of being so broad…I can try something really personal…but what?'

"Thank you, for letting Minato and I be your parents."

Naruto opened his eyes but they were unfocused as his hand continued to move. He pictured each line as a segment to be put together. Like his father told him in his notes; understanding, imagination and cooperation.

"It's a father's duty to believe in his son, right?"

The figures started to take a more defined shape. The lines started to connect and cross, forming the beginning of a drawing.

"There's something I say to men who compliment my hair. I love you."

A faint image of two individuals began to come into view.

"Naruto…don't be picky about your food. Eat lots and grow up to be strong. Also, make friends. Even if you can't make many friends, at least have a few you can truly trust. Speaking of trust, beware of Jiraiya-sensei-ttebane. Naruto…from now on you'll face lots of hard and painful times. Make sure you cherish yourself. Cherish your dreams. Have the confidence to make your dreams come true. I have many, many, many, many other things I want to teach you. I want to stay much longer with you! I love you!"

The image was clearer now, it pictured a tall man and a woman next to him, judging by the way the lines were forming she was cradling her stomach.

"Naruto…listen to your motor-mouth mother."

Naruto smiled, even now his parents were helping him, it seemed all the more appropriate that it was the day for classroom visits too. He understood more about what his father was talking about, he didn't understand everything yet, but he was getting there. He glanced down to see his drawing completed. He blinked in surprise. When did his hand finish moving? He shook off his surprise and gave his picture another look.

It was an exact replica of the picture he saw once before only in grayscale; his father and mother were standing next to each other with happy smiles and both of their hands placed on her obviously pregnant belly. It was so life-like Naruto could have sworn it was actually taken by a camera.

He felt a hand on his shoulder. He turned and saw Hiratsuka-sensei giving him a proud smile. "Good job, Uzumaki-kun." She said softly.

He nodded dumbly. 'How long was she standing there? Aah dammit. I'm getting sloppy if she can surprise me like that.'

She patted his shoulder and moved on to the next student. "Ah, I see what you're making there. I like those too."

Naruto felt a tingle go down his spine. He craned his neck and looked behind him. He narrowed his eyes as his eyebrow started to twitch irritably. 'What the hell is that guy doing here?'

Sirzechs waved at him with a cheery smile on his face. He had a camera in his hands pointed right at Naruto, he seemed intent on capturing his drawing as well.

Naruto deadpanned. He slowly turned back around and refrained from smashing his face onto his desk, unless he wanted to ruin his new portrait. He watched as Sirzechs pocketed the camera and slipped around the room towards the door. He pulled it open and looked back towards his sister's group. With a small nod in their direction he exited and shut the door behind him. No one seemed to notice he was even in the room. They seemed to purposefully ignore him as a matter of fact.

Naruto frowned. 'Stupid Devil's and their stupid mind magic.' He looked down again and cracked a smile. 'Still, today wasn't a waste after all.' He traced the lines on the picture with his nail. 'I better find a frame for this.'

XxXxXxXxXx

Despite the way she introduced the activity, Hiratsuka-sensei didn't end up making a huge spectacle of the event. She instead offered praise to select individuals who performed well. Naruto and Kiba received praise (Kiba, true to form, had wound up illustrating a medieval Knight wielding his Balance Breaker), as well as a few other girls and Kitomi. The parents all clapped politely, though Naruto did hear a couple say "That's our Kitomi".

Last time he checked, he vaguely remembered seeing her among his fangirls once before. He shrugged dismissively.

The final bell sounded soon after and Naruto decided to high-tail it out of the classroom before some of the girls could approach him. He decided to head to the clubroom right away. That would probably the most obvious place for a spare picture frame. He clutched the manila folder where he had his drawing closer to his body.

He quickly moved past small crowds of students and parents alike. Luckily it seemed the presence of the parents made his own fan-base calm that day, not that he would complain. As he passed a pair of male students he overheard their conversation.

"Did you hear about that event in the Assembly Hall?"

"No. What's happening in the Hall?"

"I heard that there's some kind of cosplay idol there. Supposedly she's wearing one of those outfits from that anime you really like. The one about the Mahou Shoujo, Milky Spiral-something."

"What!? Really!?"

"Dude…really? Gross."

Naruto raised an eyebrow as the students turned the corner and made it out of earshot. "A magical girl? What are those?" He asked himself. He debated whether to continue to the clubroom or check out this new piece of information. Ultimately, Naruto's curiosity won out and he changed course.

He quickly reached the Assembly Hall and slipped inside. His eyes widened at the spectacle he was witnessing.

On the stage was a young girl wearing some kind of…witch's outfit? Naruto couldn't be sure but she was jumping around the stage and twirling with surprising ease. The outfit was very risqué so she frequently flashed her panties shamelessly. She seemed to have the body of a young girl, except for the impressive breasts she seemed to be gifted with. In front of her was a large crowd that seemed to slowly be growing in size. Now even more interested, Naruto made his way towards the group. By the time he made it to the edge the group was already twice the size it was when he arrived. Naruto frowned. 'Man, these guys are pathetic.' He entered the crowd and expertly maneuvered through it using his years of experience from evading the ANBU.

As Naruto approached the front he began to feel a tingle go up his spine. It was a minor thing so he ignored it at first, but once he breached the edge and finally reached the front he gave the girl a wide-eyed look.

He could sense her! It had taken him a moment, both with her suppressing her magic and with all these people letting their perverted energy run wild, but there was no mistaking it now; she was a Devil and a damn strong one too. She wasn't as strong as Sirzechs but she was definitely stronger than any other devil in that school.

Naruto sighed. 'Somehow though…I'm not surprised. Why the hell does all this crazy shit always happen to me?' He asked himself. He looked up and stared at her intently. He blinked when he caught her eyes.

She too was staring at him; now that he realized it she had been staring since he first appeared in her line of sight. She gave him a wink that was meant to be cutesy and continued her show.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. She was certainly energetic, and coming from Naruto, it was a marvel in its own right.

"Yes! Yes! This is every man's dream!" Naruto heard from the side. He turned and sweat-dropped when he noticed Issei's perverted friends Motohama and Matsuda cheering and snapping photos.

From out of nowhere Saji appeared on stage and stopped the girl. "Alright, alright! Knock it off! The shows over."

Right away the crowd's reaction went dark. "Get off the stage!"

"Yeah, you damn Student Council!"

"Go die!"

Saji stood up straighter. "Today is the day to show off your workshop classes to the public." He gave them a hard look. "So stop making fools of yourselves and behave!"

The crowd was quelled and began to disperse, muttering dark thoughts as they exited the hall. Naruto heard several of them conspire to kill Saji before they left. He raised an eyebrow at their surprisingly dark plans. He decided to stay where he had been standing and crossed his arms. He looked at Saji and nodded. "Yo, Saji."

He nodded in turn. "Uzumaki, it's been awhile." He turned to the girl. "Now you, are you somebody's family member?"

She smiled and nodded. "Mhmm!"

"Whoa, That's a Milky Spiral Galaxy alternate suit cosplay!" A voice said from the back of the hall.

Naruto turned and saw Issei standing near the entrance with Rias, Akeno and Asia. He gave them a small wave.

Saji continued to speak with the girl. "Even if you are someone's family you can't dress like that at the school. Who are you anyways?"

She winked and did a dramatic spin. "Miruru Miruru Spiral!" She said but honestly Naruto wasn't paying too much attention. His focus was on something else.

'How the hell did she do that!? There were sparkles and lights and stars! That was awesome! I gotta see if I can learn that! Only I want something cooler like flames or lightning!' His mind began racing with different ideas and ways to pull them off.

The side-door to the hall burst open and Sona Sitri entered. "Saji. What's the fuss here?"

Suddenly the girl's face burst into happiness. "Souna-chan~! I found you!"

Sona blinked in shock. Her face started to turn red.

"Could she be someone the President knows?" Issei asked.

The girl leapt off the stage and bounded towards the Student Council President. "Souna-chan~!" She stood in front of Sona. "What's wrong Souna-chan? Your face is red. Onee-sama is here already! I wish you'd look happier than that~!" She made an attempt at acting like Sona. "'Onee-sama…', and 'Sou-tan', and then we'd hug each other and have some great Yuri action!"

Naruto pictured it in his head, he didn't mean to but it happened regardless. His face turned slightly red before he shook his head.

Sona's face was stoic save for the small bead of sweat dripping down her cheek.

Issei raised an eyebrow. He stood next to Naruto. "Onee-sama?"

Naruto looked between President and her sister. Now that he paid attention she had seemed vaguely familiar to him. He had only met Sona on a few occasions but the rare times that they passed each other in the hall they exchanged brief nods.

Saji leapt down from the stage with a smile. "She's one of the Yondai Maou."

"Serafall Leviathan-sama." Rias finished with a soft sigh. "To think she would show up here at this school." She shook her head in amusement.

Naruto gave Saji a look. "Don't act so cool when you didn't recognize her to begin with. You don't have an excuse."

Saji looked away with a sheepish expression. "Well it's my first time meeting her also."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Yeah whatever." He looked at Akeno and smiled. "Yo, Akeno-chan. How was class?"

Akeno smiled coyly. "Ufufu, boorish and easy. I heard you did well in your workshop class."

Naruto grinned, not surprised that the news had already spread so quickly. "Boorish and easy." He parroted.

Akeno's smile widened. "I see."

Serafall grinned at Sona. "I bet you're actually really glad to see me aren't you?" She teased Sona.

Rias smiled and walked forward. "Serafall-sama, it's been a while."

"Ah, Rias-chan!" Serafall smiled a little brighter. "Have you been well?"

"Yes, I haven't been troubled too badly." Rias said amicably. "Are you here to visit Sona? It's her workshop class today, right?"

"Mhmm~! But Souna-chan didn't tell me~! I was so shocked when I found out; I almost decided to lead an assault on Heaven!"

Issei looked at Serafall strangely. "Please don't casually say you'll attack heaven…" He whispered to himself. "I can't tell if she's joking or not…"

Said Maou noticed him. "Ara, is that him? Ddraig-kun?"

Rias nodded. "Yes." She turned to Issei. "Introduce yourself Issei."

"Yes!" Issei stumbled around for a moment before he bowed in front of Serafall. "Nice to meet you! I'm Hyoudou Issei! I'm Rias-sama's Pawn. Please treat me well."

"Nice to meet you! I'm the Maou Serafall Leviathan!" She performed another dramatic turn. Sona looked away. "But please call me Levia-tan okay?" She looked at Naruto. "Could this be the rumored Flame-chan?" She asked her younger sister.

Sona nodded. "Yes, that's the one people are calling the Amethyst Flame."

Rias looked at Naruto. "Could you also introduce yourself?"

Naruto couldn't stop the devilish smile that spread across his face. 'After her own intro…Let's have some fun.' He thought to himself. He put his hands in a Tora seal and burst in a puff of smoke, when he emerged he was garbed in a set of kabuki robes similar to his late sensei and his folder had changed to look like one of his sensei's Icha Icha Paradise books. He struck a dramatic pose. "I am the Gama Sennin all the way from Mt. Myouboku! All over the world my name is known! I am revered from the Far East to the Far West for both my power and my dashing good looks! Women want me and men want to be me! I am the amazing, the powerful, the gallant, Uzumaki Naruto of the Amethyst Flame! Bow before my greatness!"

Rias palmed her forehead. "Not what I meant…" Having already seen this intro, she sighed deeply.

Serafall's expression changed radically.

Sona frowned. "And that's her trigger…thanks Uzumaki…" She pinched her brow. "It's going to be all day with this."

Serafall took a step back and struck her own dramatic pose. "Gama Sennin! I am the Maou Serafall Leviathan~! Call me Levia-tan~! While I won't bow, I'll admit that your reputation is almost as legendary as mine~! My influence covers all four corners of the earth and the Underworld ~! No one is a match for Levia-tan !"

Issei smacked his forehead. "This is like a scene from an anime I once saw…" He muttered.

Naruto grinned like a madman. 'Now we're talking!' He changed poses. "If two legendary warriors like us were to team up, no one could defeat us!"

Serafall followed his example and struck a different pose. "No one can beat Levia-tan anyways, but together we'll be even more powerful than Super Saiyan Blue~!"

Issei shuddered at the image.

Suddenly, much to everyone's surprise, the two struck a pose together in sync.

"The unstoppable team of Leviaru-tan!" They shouted together in perfect unison. Somehow there was an explosion of orange and pink smoke from behind them. No one tried to figure out how it had happened.

The room was so quiet one could hear a pin drop. Rias smacked her forehead with her hand…very hard. "No…it's a lie…" She mumbled. Sona seemed to join in on her feelings as she was noticeably subdued.

Naruto looked at Serafall and grinned. 'Ya know, she's not so bad at all.'

Sona appeared to have had enough. She stepped forward. "Onee-sama. I'm the Student Council President at this school. Even if you're family, your conduct and clothes are completely unacceptable!"

Serafall dropped her pose. "Eh? Even after that stunning performance? Souna-chan, you know I love Mahou Shoujos!"

Issei smiled awkwardly. "I've heard that before." He said before he shuddered.

Naruto decided he was better off not knowing. He silently dispelled his transformation.

Serafall struck a magical pose. "With this shining stick, I'll butcher all Angels and Fallen Angels!"

Naruto sweatdropped. 'She's one of the four leaders? I'm amazed war hasn't broken out yet.'

Sona pressed forward. "Onee-sama, face reality. If you 'shine' like that the whole country will be annihilated in mere seconds."

Naruto almost whistled.

Issei looked at Saji. "Hey, Saji. When Kokabiel attacked and Kaichou didn't call her sister, it wasn't because they didn't get along was it?"

Akeno chuckled. "It's the opposite. Serafall-sama dotes too much on her dear little sister. If she had called her, the situation would have gone out of control. However, Issei-kun. Kaichou didn't call her sister because Buchou placed her faith in Naruto-kun here." She gestured at the spiky haired blond.

Saji nodded. "To be honest, if someone had told Serafall-sama someone from the Fallen Angel side had hurt her sister, the entire place would have been a warzone."

Naruto watched as Serafall continued to bug an increasingly agitated Sona, until she finally seemed to crack. Her eyes started to water. "I can't take any more!" She ran away in tears.

Serafall ran after her. "A-Ah! Wait! Souna-chan~!"

"Don't come any closer!" Sona yelled.

Naruto shook his head and released his transformation.

Saji smiled at Issei. "I'll see you later, I still have to support my president."

Issei nodded. "Okay, do your best."

Saji ran after his master, who was fleeing from her sister as best as she could.

Rias sighed and placed a hand on her forehead.

"Saji-san seems to have a hard time too." Asia said softly.

Rias nodded sadly. "I didn't want to admit this, but the current Yondai Maou-sama's…are all like this. They lack a sense of privacy."

Naruto laughed. "Well at least we won't get bored with them around."

Issei's face fell. "Great…"

Rias gave him a comforting smile. "You'll get used to it…probably." She looked at Naruto. "On another note, I've already seen the results of Issei's class workshop, but I haven't seen any from yours yet. What was assigned?"

Naruto flipped open his manila folder and showed her his sketch. "Hiratsuka-sensei headed our shop class, she made us draw something important to us."

Everyone huddled together to get a better look at his drawing.

Akeno giggled. "Ufufu. It's very well done, if I had to garner a guess…these are your parents?" She gave him a playful wink. "The similarities are rather obvious."

Naruto flushed slightly and nodded. "Yep. This was taken while Kaa-chan was pregnant with me. Someone had shown me this picture and it popped in my head while I was working." He refrained from mentioning that it was actually in Obito's Limited Tsukuyomi that he had seen that picture and many others, it was too complicated even for Naruto to really get it fully. "I was hoping that there was a spare picture frame in the clubroom." He looked at Rias.

She nodded. "There might be one in the storage room. I'll have it found."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks!"

Akeno smirked. "Fufu, if you're this good, maybe I'll let you draw a portrait of me."

Naruto laughed. "Why not, I need to practice drawing seals and normal drawing seems like it would help."

"Of course, it would be a nude shot." She said as an afterthought. She gave him a knowing look. "…Full nude." She finished.

Naruto sputtered as the image popped into his head.

Issei grinned perversely. "Hoo! I'll gladly volunteer to draw you!" He raised his hand high.

"That'll never happen!" Asia and Rias said in unison.

His entire posture fell. "Ah-ha. I figured." Issei grinned sheepishly.

Akeno smirked coyly at Naruto. "Does that sound acceptable?"

Naruto gulped. He composed himself slightly and nodded. "O-Of course! It's more than acceptable."

"Ufufu, I fully expect you to have repented over what happened at the pool by then."

Naruto smiled awkwardly. "Eh…he…"

Rias cleared her throat. "Anyways, I think we've spent enough time lounging around in this place." She smiled benevolently. "Let's go."

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto swung the Arashi down in a vertical swing. He was in the middle of his preferred clearing, away from prying eyes. It was still daylight outside and there were still students in the school. He had declined the invitation to Issei's house in order to train some more. He realized that it was the second time he had done so and he vowed to himself that he'd make it up to Issei. He'd probably go and buy him a manga or something. Those were pretty popular back in Konoha, he remembered there was talk about somehow bringing them to television but seeing as he never owned a TV at his home, he didn't pay much attention.

He raised his sword again and swung once more.

He had tried to get Kiba to train with him but he unfortunately had gotten a call from a well-paying client. He then tried Xenovia only for the exact same thing to happen. Figuring it was just one of those days he decided to train solo. Which is why he had spent the last few hours practicing his kata's…

He heard a grunt beside him.

…With at least a dozen clones of course. Any more and he risked a random student or parent showing up. He had two clones patrolling in case someone stumbled on his training.

He changed stances and started on the diagonal slashes Kiba had shown him. His clones also changed to various other stances. While they couldn't gain the necessary muscles to wield a sword, the muscle memory they provided him was more than enough. After all, it was more of a mental thing than physical. Repetition and other complicated things Naruto never bothered to learn.

While he repeated the exercise, he let his mind wander. He thought about his meeting with Rias' father; Lord Gremory, because he decided to never reveal his first name. 'Hmm…Gremory-ossan is kinda mysterious like that.'

They had exchanged normal greetings with each other, neither one revealing what but a few people knew. The man seemed just as pleasant as his children. He was smiling, laughing and even talking in a joking banter with Issei's parents…again, who never bothered saying their first names.

'Do the adults here just not give a shit about first names or something?' He thought to himself. Naruto swung his sword once more.

The man had also approved Naruto's (without his consent) adoption. Just thinking about that made him feel odd. Honestly if the Gremory family was any kinder they'd be the villains in a children's story. Naruto was actually glad that he hadn't said anything in front of Rias. That was something he wanted to avoid for as long as possible. It would have been extremely awkward if she knew.

Hi! I know you've only known me for about a month, but I'm family now!

'Yeah…that'd go over great.' He thought sarcastically. He overextended slightly on his latest swing and nearly tripped. He quickly recovered and shook his head. "Shit, I got too distracted."

There was just a natural lull in practicing his sword stances that his mind often wondered. That meant he only had one other option. He turned around and saw his clones still practicing. He grinned to himself. "Alright guys, stop!"

They paused mid-swing and gave him a look. "What? We're stopping early today?"

Naruto shook his head. "Nope!" He dispelled them wordlessly. He ignored the influx of experience and quickly summoned the same number of clones that he had dispelled. He raised his sword high. "Last man standing!"

His clones mirrored his grin. "Alright! I'm gonna kick some ass!"

"Let's do this!"

"I wanna do Akeno-chan!"

There was a pregnant pause as everyone else turned to the horny clone.

He shuffled in place. "Well it's true. We all do, and Xenovia and Rias-chan. Let's be honest, they're fucking hot!"

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Guys, let's focus here." He said.

The clones turned back towards him.

"Alright, the only rule is that we have to use nothing but swordsmanship. Shoving is okay but no kicks or punches. On the count of three?" He looked at his clones.

They nodded silently.

"One…"

Everyone spread out evenly in a circle.

"Two…"

They all readied their own Arashi and took their stances.

Naruto's grin turned feral. "Three! Let's get wild!"

Play BGM Risking it All (Naruto Shippuden OST 1)

They all moved towards the center at the same time and began their brawl.

Naruto started by attacking the clone nearest to his left. He swung in a wide arc only for the clone to duck under him and press towards a different clone.

The other clone blocked as best as he could before he managed to push his clone brother off of him.

The original Naruto dashed towards one of his clones and performed a rushed diagonal slash.

The clone's eyes widened before he brought his weapon up to parry. He barely managed to get it ready in time as Naruto's blade passed mere millimeters away from his ear. He breathed a sigh of relief.

The rest of Naruto's clones slashed and swung at each other in a mad attempt to be the victor. If a casual observer were to witness this it would seem like a melee involving teenagers play-fighting with actual swords; crude, ineffective and slightly amusing to watch. Unknown to Naruto he did have a casual observer.

"Hehe. Naruto-chan is working hard." Serafall said quietly from atop a tree branch nearby. Avoiding his clones had been easy for her. While not an expert in stealth, she knew how to hide her presence and she had an advantage in the fact that she could fly. After their performance she found herself amused by Naruto. He was more fun than most of her younger sister's other acquaintances. He actually understood dramatic flair and wasn't intimidated by her title or power. She swung her feet childishly and watched him. "Sirzechs-chan was right when he said he would be funny to watch."

End BGM

Naruto, unaware of his audience of one, finally managed to beat his final clone with a downwards diagonal swing. He held his position and gasped for breath.

"Those bastards…were pretty tough." He said in between breaths. He could feel the welts on his body burning as they slowly began to heal. He gently lowered himself onto the ground and sat lotus style. He laid his weapon across his lap and took in a deep breath.

"Okay…let's never do that again." He shook his head. "That was just terrible. If I'm gonna train by fighting others it should be against someone better than me." He ran a hand through his hair. "Well on the plus side I let off some stress from the day."

He closed his eyes and relaxed for a moment. He felt one of his patrol clones burst and he knew someone was on their way towards him. He heard a twig snap from his right. Without opening his eyes he addressed his company.

"Yo, Sona."

He cracked open an eye and looked at her. She had appeared to have regained her composure from earlier and was standing with a neutral expression on her face.

"Please show me the proper respect Uzumaki-san." She said respectfully. "Either 'Kaichou' or 'Senpai' will work."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. She was the first person to actually have a complaint about it. Seeing as he didn't really have a problem with her request he shrugged. "Alright, Senpai." He picked himself up from the ground and sealed his katana away. He looked at her with a cheeky grin. "But only if you don't call me Uzumaki."

She nodded. "That's acceptable Naruto-san."

"So what's up Senpai?"

She sighed. "To be honest…I'm trying to find my sister." She admitted quietly.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Weren't you trying to get away from her earlier?"

Her cheeks colored slightly. "Yes, I had a moment of weakness…those happen a lot around Onee-sama. But still, I have to find her to make sure she doesn't cause trouble around the school."

Serafall smiled from above them. "Aah…Souna-chan cares so much for her Onee-sama." She said quietly to herself.

Naruto chuckled. "Your sister is something else though. I've never seen someone sparkle that much before and I've seen some crazy things before."

"Yes she certainly is…something else."

"So what brings you here?"

"Well, she seemed to have gotten along with you earlier, so I deduced it was worth a try to see if you've seen her. Rias mentioned that this was your usual spot, so here I am."

Naruto shook his head apologetically. "Sorry, I haven't seen her. I've been training by myself this whole time."

She sighed again. "I had hoped for otherwise."

Naruto smiled sympathetically. "I'll let you know if I see her."

"No, no. At this point most of the students have gone home, so there's little chance that she can cause a scene at this time. It just would have been convenient."

Naruto nodded. "Ah okay."

She gave him a polite nod. "Thank you for your time Naruto-san."

He grinned. "It was no problem. I just finished training for now anyways." He rubbed the back of his neck. "Anything else I can do for you?"

Sona was about to shake her head when she stopped. "Actually, I was hoping you might answer a few questions for me."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Yeah, sure. What's up?"

Her face turned serious. "My main concern is the protection if this school and its students as the Student Council President, so I wanted to make sure that no one else from your dimension could cause trouble. Is there still a way to travel here from your dimension?"

Naruto shook his head sharply. "No, the jutsu that took me and my friend here was created by people who died a long time ago. They had been revived by a forbidden technique, which was how they could do it now. But after all this time, it's safe to say they were returned to the afterlife."

She frowned. "Revived? From the dead?" She looked at him. "Do you know this technique?"

Naruto's eyes widened. "No! Of course not!" He denied quickly. "And even if I did I'd never use it. It needs a living sacrifice to bring back the dead. Only the most twisted and evil bastards would use it. We just happened to have one who, for some reason, decided to side with us."

Sona breathed a sigh of relief. "Excellent."

Naruto rubbed the back of his neck. "Yeah, you don't have to worry about that."

She nodded. "Now my next question."

"Shoot." He said.

"How strong are you?"

Naruto blinked. "Eh?" He tilted his head. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, can we trust that you can be strong enough to deal with even stronger opponents?"

Naruto shrugged. "I don't know. I mean, I've met some pretty strong people but I can't say for sure if I could beat them. At least, not right away." He grinned. "See, to me, you don't always have to be the strongest to win. You just have to win. Don't forget, I am a ninja. If I can't beat them through force, I have other ways." He shrugged. "But I guess if I had to give you an easier answer." He looked her in the eye. "As I am now, I could probably beat the Hakuryoukou."

Her eyes widened slightly. "I see. That's comforting." She crossed her arms. "This is my last question."

He nodded.

"Do you ever plan on joining Rias' peerage?"

"Nope."

"Would you be willing to join mine?"

"That's two questions, but the answer is the same. Its nothing to do with you guys, I just don't want to be chained down to the Devil's society. That way, if I do anything that might not be okay by your rules, it won't look bad on you guys." He said with a smile. That was also one of the minor reasons he was against being adopted by the Gremory family. Naruto knew he had a tendency to go by his own rules and he didn't want to get his friends in trouble. He didn't know exactly how much of his actions could affect Rias' family. The major one was that it had been done without his input.

Sona nodded. "Thank you for your honesty Naruto-san." She looked at him. "And thank you for that time."

Naruto raised his eyebrow. "For what time?"

"I realized that I had never thanked you properly for taking care of Kokabiel. I'm sorry for taking so long, my duties as the President take up a lot of my time."

Naruto shook his head. "It's no problem. I wasn't about to let him destroy this school and hurt innocent people anyways."

"Still, thank you."

"You're welcome Senpai."

She sighed. "Now to find my sister."

Serafall chose that time to appear. "Souna-chan~!" She shouted as she flew down towards them.

Sona's eye's widened. "O-Onee-sama! Were you here the whole time!?"

Serafall landed and tilted her head. "Eh? No, I was looking all over for you~." She grinned. "I finally found you talking to Naruto-chan here."

Sona breathed a sigh of relief.

Naruto chuckled. "Looks like she found us instead. Isn't that convenient Senpai?"

Sona nodded. "Yes." She looked at her sister with a tired expression. "Let's go Onee-sama."

Serafall nodded happily. "Hmm~! Okay Souna-chan! Let's get some of that stuff you really like on the way home! Onee-sama will treat you~!"

Sona's cheeks flushed slightly. "Er…sure." She looked at Naruto and nodded. "Have a good night Naruto-san."

Serafall waved. "Good night, Gama Sennin-chan! Let's make the team Leviaru-tan again soon and fight real bad guys~!"

Naruto laughed. "Of course! Who else is gonna protect this world?" He smiled. "Good night Senpai, Serafall."

Sona turned and began to walk away. Serafall gave him one last wave before she ran after her sister. "Hmm…" She hummed. "I think Sirzechs-chan has the right idea." She whispered to herself.

Naruto shook his head as the sisters disappeared from his line of sight. His phone began to ring and vibrate. He fished his phone out of his pocket and flipped it open.

"Yo Rias-chan."

He heard Rias sigh through the speaker. -"Naruto. I have to tell you something. Are you busy?"-

"No. What's the matter?"

-"This might take a little while. Onii-sama just gave me permission."-

"Permission to do what?"

-"…To unseal the other Bishop."-

Naruto's eyes widened. "What?"

-"This will need some explaining."-

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto stood in front of his door with a tired expression on his face. "To think she had someone sealed up because they couldn't control their power." He sighed. "That either means that they're all hypocritical assholes… or this person's power is that dangerous, even to themselves." He shook his head. "No point in worrying about it now. I'll know tomorrow." He fished his keys from his pocket and unlocked his door. Immediately after he opened his door he dropped to the floor. Just in time as a small beam of electricity flew over his head.

He glared at his attacker only to blink in surprise.

"Ara, ara. It seems my shock of love missed its mark. Impressive reflexes Naruto-kun." Akeno said casually from his entranceway.

"Akeno-chan? What the hell!?" Naruto leapt to his feet. "What was that for!?"

She smirked. She walked forward and pressed herself against him. "Ufufu…I know your secret." She whispered in his ear.

Naruto raised an eyebrow, he tried his best to ignore the soft feeling of her breasts pressed against is chest…he was failing. "Secret? What secret are you talking about?" Was she talking about his nightmares? While not something he was openly sharing, it wasn't exactly a secret.

"I know you're a lightning user." She whispered conspiratorially.

Naruto's eyes widened. He rubbed the back of his head. "Ah. That's what you were talking about." He smiled sheepishly. "I just sorta found out myself."

Akeno laughed lightly and stepped back. "I figured as much. I noticed it when Sirzechs-sama had come to the clubroom."

"So why'd you throw a lightning bolt at my head?" Naruto asked.

"Hmm? I was just showing my affection."

Naruto deadpanned. "Uh…huh." He sighed. "Alright, so you know I can do lightning now…so why exactly are you here? On another note, how did you get in?"

"Ufufu. I have a spare key Rias gave me in case of emergencies."

Naruto smacked his forehead. "Of course…" He muttered. "I really should look into getting those damn locks changed."

"As for why I'm here, why I'm going to show you how to use your new…talent." She licked her lips sensually. She moved a hand slowly up her body. "Onee-san will show you how to caress and elevate your new skills to reach a level where your… potential will burst out in a single, mind numbingly pleasurable experience."

Naruto gulped. His pants had gotten just a bit tighter.

"After all, I don't mind my first to be with you."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Y-Your first?"

"Ufufu. Of course. The first person I will teach lightning magic." She finished with a deceptively innocent smile. "Why? Were you thinking naughty thoughts Naruto-kun?"

Naruto took in a deep breath. "You're evil." He gave her a light-hearted glare. "Tryin' to give me a heart attack or something?"

"Ara, ara. I just want to make sure you're nice and erect when it counts." She gave his pelvis a side-along glance and smirked.

Naruto sighed at Akeno's innuendo. "Alright then, I guess I can start doing some training with that too." He rubbed his neck. 'Jeez, any more training and I might burn out…' He snorted silently. 'Yeah right.'

She smiled. "Excellent. I'll be staying in your guest room tonight."

Naruto blinked. "Eh? When did we decide that!?"

"You mean you're going to make me walk home, alone, at this time of night? Ara, ara. How terrible, Naruto-kun."

Naruto deadpanned. 'I think I'd be more scared for who tries to mess with her than the other way around.' He shook his head. "Fine, fine. I don't mind."

She smirked victoriously. "Good, because I've already brought my things."

Naruto rolled his eyes and walked further inside. "Well than, since you've already made yourself at home…" Naruto said jokingly. "I'll go get the spare linens."

"Ufufu, what a gentleman."

He smirked. "I try."

XxXxXxXxXx

Naruto's eyes snapped open. His breathing was heavy. Tonight's dream was different from the others. Instead of a memory he had a new experience. His body was still wired from it. He dreamt of his own death. The Kyuubi had been extracted from him and his life slowly left him. Sakura tried her best to save him but it was too late. He could feel himself dying; he could hear his heartbeat slow to a standstill until it finally stopped beating. It was so vivid he almost believed it had happened. He felt a hand touch his shoulder and his body reacted before he could think. He spun in the bed and grabbed the intruder. He slammed them against his bed and held a kunai to their throat. He snarled threateningly as he observed his enemy. His eyes widened when he noticed he was staring into a pair of familiar amethyst colored eyes.

"O-Oh shit. Akeno-chan!" He tossed his kunai away. "Oh fuck. I'm so sorry!"

Akeno gazed at him from her position on his bed. Her eyes filled with worry. The moonlight glinted from his window onto her. Her pajamas were simple, but they were ruffled from Naruto's sudden move so they were unkempt with several buttons undone.

Naruto shuffled backwards away from Akeno. He raised a hand to his forehead; his naked torso glistened with a cold sweat. "Shit. Damn it." He muttered. "I-I-I didn't mean-"

"Are you okay Naruto-kun?" She cut in. She looked at his shaken expression and frowned.

"I-Wha-What do you mean? I-I'm fine. Are you okay?" He looked at her as if she had grown a second head.

"You were having a nightmare." She said. It wasn't a question.

Naruto looked away and didn't say anything. His face twisted in frustration.

"…How long?"

"Not too long…" He said evasively.

"You're a bad liar, Naruto-kun. Those bags under your eyes aren't from one or two nights."

Naruto lowered his head, his eyes hidden by his bangs. "…about a week. This one was pretty bad…"

He'd never been so on edge after one of his nightmares. Apparently seeing your death has that affect. He clenched his hands together in irritation.

"Naruto-kun, do you…want to talk about it."

Naruto shook his head. "There's nothing to talk about…it's just a stupid dream." He muttered. "I can handle it."

There was no sound for a moment. Then Naruto felt movement on his bed. He felt a hand on his face. He looked up to see Akeno smiling reassuringly at him with a twinkle in her eye. Naruto was surprised to see her looking so honest and innocent. Seeing her look at him with such intense emotion Naruto realized just how beautiful Akeno really was.

"I'm here."

His eyes widened. His mouth opened to say something but no words escaped. After a moment of trying to express himself he finally settled for something more basic. He smiled thankfully and nodded.

She moved to leave but Naruto grabbed her hand.

"Please…stay for a little while. I don't want to be alone right now." He asked her, silently pleading. Right now, he felt like to be alone would feel like dying.

She smiled and nodded.

They sat on his bed in silence. Naruto took in deep breaths as he tried to soothe his nerves.

Akeno looked at him with a hint of her usual coyness. "Fufu…I'd never thought I'd see you looking this way."

Naruto looked at her with a raised eyebrow. "What are you talking about?"

"I've never seen you look so vulnerable. Even during that spectacle when Kiba-kun activated his Balance Breaker, you looked sad, but not vulnerable."

Naruto chuckled humorlessly. "I'm not that strong. I'm full of weaknesses. Stuff I have to and should have worked on earlier. I'm not that smart, my chakra control is okay at best and I only really have a few jutsu that I've mastered." He leaned back and looked at his ceiling. "Hell, my main element is wind and I only have two weak jutsu's and one really strong one. Not a lot of choice."

Akeno laughed softly. "I only meant that it means you're still growing, and that you're real."

Naruto looked at her. "What do you mean by that?"

"When you first arrived here, you seemed to be too good to be true. Strong, confident, happy-go-lucky, an ally. Even after we started to see certain things, you still seemed to be able to mostly handle it on your own. Seeing you now, I'm actually relieved a bit."

Naruto gave her a weird look. "My nightmares make you relieved. Man you really are a sadist."

"I'll take that as a compliment, but no. These nightmares are only further proof that you can rise up even more, and grow even stronger; physically and emotionally."

Naruto looked at her. "You really think so?"

"Ufufu, if not, I can always burn that lesson into your body for you."

Naruto laughed. "That's more like the Akeno-chan I know."

She smirked. "You know me so well."

Naruto gave her a side-along look and took in a deep breath. "…Probably better than you realize."

She raised an eyebrow. "Oh? How so?"

"I know that… underneath all of your Devil magic, you have Fallen Angel energy inside of you."

Her eyes widened. She turned her head coyly and smiled mysteriously. "Ara ara. What a bold thing to say. What makes you say that?"

"…If I can trust you with some of my feelings I want to extend the same thing to you Akeno-chan." Naruto looked at her. "When I'm in Sennin Mode, my sensing becomes unmatched for up to a couple of kilometers. As far as I know it's a skill only Senjutsu masters in my world can use." He then shrugged. "I'm not so sure about masters here though." He leaned back and rested on his hands. "So when we first met I had noticed that there was something slightly different with your energy than the others. I didn't think about it too much because I didn't know then, but after I fought Kokabiel I became intimately familiar with both Devil magic and Fallen Angel energy and I figured it out from there." He looked at Akeno and smiled. "You were born half Fallen Angel weren't you?"

Akeno lowered her head and frowned. "Sometimes you can be annoyingly perceptive Naruto-kun."

"I just know when someone's hiding who they really are inside. I have personal experience with that."

She sighed and shook her head. "I never thought it would come out this way though." She looked at him and stared into his eyes with seriousness not common in her usual personality. "Yes, my 'father' is a Fallen Angel; Barakiel, one of their leaders."

Naruto committed the name to memory.

She drew her brow together in frustration. "Thanks to him…I can never be considered pure by anyone. His dirty blood flows through my veins. And it is shown through my wings."

Naruto frowned. "Your wings? I've only seen devil wings from you." He looked at her back. "…Can you show me Akeno-chan?"

"Do you really want to see them that badly?" She asked lowly.

Naruto nodded slowly. "I want to know the real you."

"Fufu… very well. I'll show you my filthy wings." She said self depreciatively. Without another word she willed her wings out. Two different wings greeted Naruto. While one was the leathery bat-like wing he had seen from the many devils he knew, the other was fuller. It was large and covered in pitch black feathers. There was no doubt about it, it was a Fallen Angel's wing.

However, Naruto didn't see it like that. His eyes widened and he took in the sight of her wing. "…It's beautiful." He whispered in awe.

She turned to him in shock. "What did you say?"

Naruto shook off his awe and looked her in her eye. "I said it's beautiful."

She looked down and frowned. Her wings curled around her and she gripped them tightly. "How can anyone think that these dirtied wings could be beautiful?" It was her turn to chuckle humorlessly. "Although I suppose they fit someone like me. Neither Devil nor Fallen Angel, except a being much more disgusting."

"Of course they fit someone like you." Naruto started.

Akeno looked at him, hurt clearly showing in her eyes.

Naruto removed her wings from her hands and gently rubbed them through his fingers. "Akeno-chan is Akeno-chan after all." He finished with a kind smile. "And I'm glad that Akeno-chan is by my side, now and in the future." He smoothed the ruffled feathers of her Fallen Angel wing. "So be strong and display your wings proudly."

Akeno looked at him in shock for several moments before she coughed into her hand, her coughing then turned to snickering which grew into a full-blown laugh. Naruto watched her with a small smile on his face. Eventually she stopped laughing and wiped a stray tear from her eye.

She looked at him, an unfamiliar emotion flowing through her eyes. "Those are damning words Naruto-kun."

Naruto placed a hand on her shoulder and looked at her the same way she had done to him earlier that same night. "I'm here." He said simply.

She nodded. "Fufu…indeed we are." She smiled ruefully. "I can't tell who is supposed to be cheering up who now."

Naruto grinned, his earlier tension and stress completely vacant from his body now. "We support each other."

She retracted her wings wordlessly and leaned against Naruto. She pulled him down until they were lying next to each other.

Naruto blinked in surprise. "Eh? What are you doing Akeno-chan?"

Akeno smirked and nestled closer to him, much to his embarrassment. "I'm tired, I think it's time we went back to sleep."

"But why here?"

"Ufufu, I don't feel like moving back to the guest room. Besides, you wouldn't turn down the chance to sleep with a beautiful girl would you?"

Naruto stuttered. "I-you-that is-."

Akeno smiled to herself, it was a softer smile than her usual smirks. "Good night Naruto-kun."

Naruto silently groaned as he felt Akeno's body against his, particularly her backside against his pelvis.

It was going to be a long night.

XxXxXxXxXx

Sirzechs opened the door to see what could only be described as a laboratory. On the opposite end was a young man with green hair styled back wearing a long-sleeved jacket looking over some documents at a desk.

"Finally, my pizza is here." He turned around and saw Sirzechs. He was a handsome man with a youthful face. He sighed in disappointment. "Oh, it's just you Sirzechs."

"Ordering out?" Sirzechs joked. "You seem to be living comfortably."

Ajuka chuckled. "I just didn't find time to heat up some cup ramen." He smiled amicably at Sirzechs. "It's been some time since you last visited me. Is everything well?"

Sirzechs smiled casually. "Hopefully. I'm nearly done with the preparations for the meeting."

Ajuka moved towards a small table and motioned for Sirzechs to join him. "I see, everything's proceeding smoothly then?"

Sirzechs took a seat opposite to Ajuka and sighed. "More or less…are you sure you can't be present for the conference?"

Ajuka nodded. "Yes, I'm positive you and Serafall can handle anything that shows up. I'll be here, working on my experiments."

The crimson haired man reached into his pocket and retrieved a small vial filled with a hazy purple mist. "That reminds me…" He started. "How caught up are you with current affairs?"

Ajuka raised an eyebrow. "I try to stay up-to-date." He eyed the vial in Sirzechs' hand. "Why?"

"Have you heard of Naruto Uzumaki?" Sirzechs said as he placed the vial on the table.

"A bit. I had noticed when he ripped a hole through space and tried to keep tabs on him, which is surprisingly difficult might I add." Ajuka crossed his arms and gave Sirzechs a quizzical look. "What of him?"

"He managed to recreate the Contract of Families."

That made Ajuka chuckle. "That must have stepped on several toes down in the R&D lab. They've been trying to figure that out for a little over a century and this kid shows up out of nowhere and upstages them."

Sirzechs also chuckled. "Yes, when Rias told me what she suspected I immediately looked into it. That kid is full of surprises." He crossed his hands and smirked. "Did you know that he temporarily became a Devil?"

Ajuka's interest was piqued. "You said…'temporarily'?" His eyes flickered to the vial once more. The cogs in his head worked in overtime.

"What's more is that he's a Senjutsu Master from his own world." Sirzechs revealed. "And Issei-kun had used Gift on him during his battle with Kokabiel."

Ajuka's eyes widened. "If that's the case- and with your sister-o-ho-ho I see." He smiled in amusement. "I figured it out." He gave Sirzechs a look. "He performed the contract with Rias, which is how she told you, from there he battled Kokabiel in a version of Senjutsu not of this world. While in this form the Welsh Dragon used Gift on him which flooded his system with Devil magic. Using his unique physiology as a human and a Senjutsu master he became a devil for a few moments. During that time he defeated Kokabiel while he was a devil. And finally, since he was a devil at the time he defeated Kokabiel you used the Military feat clause for promotion and made him a high-class devil which brings us here…" He grabbed the vial and handled it expertly. "…With his magic nice and corked for me and in need of a set of his own." He smirked at Sirzechs. "Right?"

Sirzechs clapped. "Impressive as always. Yes that's true." He smiled at Ajuka. "I think you'll find his magic interesting to test with, I believe its mixed in with his own natural energy; he calls it 'chakra'."

Ajuka smirked and pocketed the vial. "You always did give me the best gifts."

"I try my friend."

The green-haired man smiled. "Is that all Sirzechs?"

Sirzechs shook his head. "Unfortunately not. I need your help on another subject."

Ajuka nodded. "I'm at your disposal. What is it that you need?" He motioned for Sirzechs to continue.

Sirzechs locked eyes with Ajuka and hardened his eyes slightly. "It's time to unseal that weapon."

Ajuka's eyes widened. "Now? Is it for you? Last time it didn't want to cooperate with you."

He shook his head. "No, it's for Naruto."

"…Do you think he can wield it? He doesn't have that person's blood in him."

Sirzechs cracked a small smile. "He has already taken it upon himself to start swordsmanship training from both the Holy-Demonic sword user and the wielder of Durandal, both of whom are part of Rias' peerage. Not to mention that I've witnessed his power first-hand, it's quite formidable for someone that young." He chuckled good-naturedly. "I would put him at the very least on the same level as my cousin Sairaorg, who can be argued as one of the strongest of the next generation. His strength could smash large boulders bare-handed easily, according to Rias. His speed is very impressive, faster than any Knight I've ever seen, even Souji."

Ajuka raised an eyebrow, he had an impressed expression on his face. "That's a feat not many can boast about."

Sirzechs nodded. "Yes, it was like fighting a yellow blur…or rather, a yellow flash of light." He furled his brow. "Hmm…Yellow Flash…that has a nice ring to it."

Ajuka chuckled. "You were saying, Sirzechs?"

"Ah yes, continuing my point, while he is not academically inclined, he has a keen sense for combat. When he realized a tactic wouldn't work he would immediately switch to another tactic seemingly effortlessly. In fact had I not ended the battle then I probably would have seen more inventive and complex tactics. I'd say within a decade or two he could even be stronger than both of us combined."

Ajuka nodded. "That is an impressive resume, and obviously judging by the vial in my pocket he can now use magic?"

"It was accidental…but very powerful. In sheer strength it matches any High-class Devil easily. He only lacks control and proper training."

Ajuka sighed. "You've proven your point, it's worth a shot." He smiled. "Alright, I'll help unseal it."

"Excellent." Sirzechs smiled. "…Now where's our pizza?"

Ajuka raised an eyebrow. "Our pizza?"

He was interrupted by a knock on his door.

"Pizza!"

XxXxXxXxXx

"Ahem!" Cao Cao cleared his voice loudly. He was standing in front of a large assembly of people. "Thank you everyone for coming. I called you from your assignments for an important announcement."

The crowd murmured amongst themselves.

"As you all know, the assault on the Conference is fast approaching. I know the Human Faction has decided to stay out of this assault, but something has changed." Cao Cao continued in a formal tone of voice.

"We have a new member of our organization, someone to help fight against the threat that is Uzumaki Naruto. His strength is formidable; many of you would not stand a chance against him. The Old Maou Faction, as deplorable an action it was, requested our aid. I was firm on being the bigger person and agreed. So I've decided to introduce our instrument to Uzumaki's downfall. I want all of you to meet our newest member." He turned and beckoned for a person to come out.

A young man with raven-like hair walked out from the shadows. His expression was cold as his onyx colored eyes tracked everyone across the room. Trailing to his right was a brunette woman who seemed nervous to be there. She stayed close to the young man's side.

Cao Cao smiled. "Welcome to the Khaos Brigade…" He started as the boy stood next to him.

The boy's eyes morphed into a deep crimson with three tomoe's circling his pupil.

"Uchiha Sasuke."

XxXxXxXxXx

A/n Jeez, it took me forever to actually release this chapter even though I said it wouldn't take too long. Like Iaid s, life hit me, really hard. Plus, I got really anxious over releasing this. I might have reread it at least thirty times before I felt the slightest bit comfortable releasing this…even now I'm…nervous about the response. This story has become much bigger than I thought it would, but I'm thankful at the same time. Because of this story and you guys I've decided to become a story writer and concept artist. I wanna go on and make video games, and I couldn't have done it without this story and you guys. Speaking of how things could have been, I have a special omake prepared! This is basically what I had originally planned for this story to go. It's essentially an alternate ending to chapter three. It starts after Naruto tells Rias to forgo honorifics. So please enjoy my version…of what could have been.

XxXxXxXxXx

Omake

Rias chuckled softly. She smiled genially at the blond. "Ufufu, very well… Naruto." She crossed her hands together. "Have you considered my offer?"

Naruto looked away for a moment. "I …I have a question I need answered before we go any farther." He said softly.

Rias raised an eyebrow but nodded. "Of course, if it's within my ability to answer."

Naruto reached into his pocket and retrieved his hitae-ate. He caressed the worn-down metal plate gently. He rubbed his thumb against the symbol of his home etched into the metal. He looked Rias in the eye. "Above all else…what is the most important thing to you?"

Rias blinked in surprise at the intensity of Naruto's stare. "Most important to me?" She repeated.

Naruto nodded.

Rias frowned slightly as she gave Naruto's question thought. She glanced around the room at her servants and caught each of their eyes. Her gaze lingered on Issei for a moment longer than anyone else's. She looked back to Naruto. "The answer to that question is ridiculously easy." She commented.

Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Is it?"

"Of course, for what could be more important to me than my servants and their happiness. They are my family after all." She said confidently.

Naruto lowered his head and smirked softly. "Ah…I see." He muttered. "We're more alike than I thought."

"Eh, what was that?" Rias asked.

Naruto shook his head. "It was nothing. But I've made my decision. I'll join your peerage Rias-chan." He clutched his hitae-ate tightly. 'I won't be alone in this big and dangerous world. I swear to that.' He vowed to himself.

Rias' expression brightened considerably. She clapped her hands together. "Excellent!"

Issei recoiled in shock. "E-Eh!? Just like that? Buchou, you're really gonna make him a devil!?"

Rias nodded. "Yes, I won't turn away someone who's willing to join me."

Issei fell silent. Asia looked between Issei, Rias and Naruto. "Ano…Buchou, which piece will you give Naruto-san?"

Rias smiled and pulled out a chess piece. "I'll have Naruto become my second Rook, it will compliment Koneko well, the ultimate defense and the ultimate offense."

Naruto nodded. "Sounds good to me, I like up close and personal."

"Then you'll do well as my Rook. Please, step forward." She told him.

Naruto took several steps forward before he stood in front of the Ruin Princess. He gave the chess piece a once over. "Is this gonna hurt?"

"It shouldn't, you might feel some tenderness as your body adjusts. Now, please lie on the floor."

Naruto complied wordlessly. He laid completely flat on the floor, patiently waiting for Rias to start.

Rias smiled and placed the piece on Naruto's chest, surprisingly it stayed put without aid. She stood again and raised her demonic power. A large, crimson red, magic circle appeared below Naruto.

"I command, in my name; Rias Gremory. You; Uzumaki Naruto, I reincarnate as my servant and have you be reborn as a Devil. You; my Rook, be thrilled with your new life!" She finished dramatically. With a flourish of her hand she willed the piece into Naruto's body.

Naruto's eyes shot open. "Guah!" He choked out. Halfway through his body the Evil Piece froze. Naruto began to convulse. "Ggguuaa! W-What t-the f-fuck!? Kurama!" He shouted in a pained voice.

Suddenly his body was enveloped in a golden aura, he hadn't gone into Kyuubi Chakra mode, but the portion of Kurama's chakra that Naruto had taken was leaking out. The Evil Piece reacted to it and started to absorb it.

Issei darted to Rias' side. "Buchou! What's happening!?"

Rias narrowed her eyes. "I have no idea; this shouldn't be happening."

Asia nervously stepped forward. "Should I try and use my Twilight Healing on him Buchou?"

Rias seemed to consider it for a moment before she shook her head. "No, there's a chance that introducing a foreign energy could cause some kind of backlash."

Aisa nodded quietly.

Issei pointed at Naruto's Evil Piece. "Buchou, look!"

Rias turned to where her Pawn had pointed.

It seemed like Naruto's Evil Piece had finished absorbing the Kyuubi's chakra and had somehow pushed itself out of Naruto. It radiated a bright golden glow that briefly blinded the group. When they regained their sight they bore witness to an unusual sight.

There, floating several inches above Naruto's now lax body, was the Rook piece, but it had been changed. Instead of the crimson piece that Rias had originally used, it was replaced with a deep orange piece, with flickers of red and yellow occasionally showing. It then peacefully lowered itself into Naruto and melded with him easily.

"B-Buchou…What just happened?"

Rias looked stunned. "Unless I'm wrong…I think Naruto just turned his piece into a Mutation Piece."

At Issei's perplexed expression Rias explained further. "It's essentially a very rare and powerful Evil Piece, a single Mutation Piece is likened to several Evil Pieces combined."

Issei gulped. "Damn…and he basically just upgraded his?"

"Most likely."

"…Glad he's on our side."

Akeno chuckled. "Ufufu, things will certainly be livelier."

Kenoko watched impassively as her new peer adjusted to his new power. "Orenji no Kitsune…" She muttered to herself.

Rias spared her a look. "Fox? Is it because of his whisker marks?"

She shook her head. "Feels like…a fox."

Randomly, Naruto's body sprouted a set of jet black bat-like wings before they retracted on their own.

After a moment of tense silence Naruto sprung to his feet with a kunai in his hand ready to kill. "Where's the sorry bastard!?" He looked around for a moment before he flushed. "Er…sorry. Forgot where I was."

Issei pointed out something that had bugged him. "…Where'd you get the knife from?"

"That, you uncultured swine, is a kunai, not just a knife." Another presence said as it made itself known by dropping down from the ceiling. It was a Naruto clone.

Naruto sighed. "Sorry, my clones tend to make their own personalities every once in a while." He glared at his clone. "C'mon, behave."

The clone waved him off. "Yeah, yeah. Just wait until you see what I saw though."

Rias frowned. "You mean you had another clone here the whole time?"

Naruto nodded. "Yeah, since this morning."

"Why? Did you not trust us?"

Naruto pointed at himself. "Hello? Ninja. I wanted to get a feel for the situation, besides; I can't learn anything until he dispels. So I was trusting you by having him not pop earlier."

The clone nodded. "Yeah, I saw everything since this morning from up on this ceiling. Let me tell you, it was boring!" He crossed his arms petulantly. "You didn't do a damn thing all day, just sat for forty minutes after Boss left doing paperwork then you left for classes! Who does that!?"

Naruto palmed is forehead. "J-Just get out of here." He dispelled his clone without another word. He blinked as he filtered through the clone's memories.

"Damn…I put on a hell of a light show." He frowned as he focused. 'I can't feel that bit of Kurama's chakra…it really did absorb it.' He focused back towards Rias. "So…?"

Rias shook her head. "Other than that…entertaining spectacle, how do you feel?" She looked at Naruto with a small bit of concern.

Naruto grinned toothily, his eyes flashed gold for the briefest of milliseconds, no one saw the change due to its speed. "Like I can change everything! Before I was pretty damn strong, but now I feel like I can handle a meteor no problem!"

Rias chuckled. "Excellent. You're ready for your first assignment then?"

"Of course!"

Rias smiled mysteriously. "Issei, please show Naruto his first assignment."

Issei nodded happily. "Of course Buchou!" He grabbed Naruto's arm and pulled him along. "Come on! As your senpai I'll show you what has to be done!"

Naruto felt a pit drop in his stomach. 'Why do I have a sickening feeling about this…'

So, with a pensive heart, Naruto began his life as a Devil.

End Omake

A/n pt. 2 So that was that! As you can see, very different from where I went ultimately. Thanks to one of my reviewers I changed directions in a way that I'm more satisfied with. Anyways. Thanks for putting up with my year long Hiatus. I'll try to update sooner next time fellas. So with giddy and nervous tension I'm signing off. See ya next time.