Chapter 12
Earlier that day...
Mio opened the door towards Naruto's room.
She briefly looked inside to see whether there was something that could attack her, the sheer fact that it was 'forbidden' allowed for a minor sense of danger and mystery to the area. Essentially, her imagination filled in the question of 'Why can't I go in there?' for her.
She felt silly for feeling that way but it was true.
After making sure that there wasn't some sort of rabid dog about to attack her or anything, she fully entered the room. She frowned when she couldn't see anything due to the lack of light and how dark it was getting outside.
She quickly fumbled for the light switch to find her missing companion, before she quickly retracted her wandering hand when she felt it getting nicked.
She opted to just use a minor fire spell to illuminate the area for herself, if she was gonna get it when the blond got back home for trespassing, might as well go all in. Though even she knew that was slightly faulty reasoning.
She made a small fire with her left index finger, it helped illuminate her surroundings a lot better. She moved said finger to where she nicked her finger and saw something rather...strange.
A metal star.
A very sharp metal star, likely made from similar material as the metal knife that the blond carried on his sleeve.
But unlike that slightly familiar metal knife that Mio saw before...there was no mistaking the iconic weapon that she was looking at.
Shuriken.
Mio frowned as she stared at the object, why would Naruto have shuriken? They were pretty old weapons that ninjas used back in the day right?
Her confusion only rose as she looked around with her small fire, she saw many strange things lying around the room.
There were shuriken and 'metal knives' that were lying in small pouches, rolled up scrolls that had strange seals placed on them, he even had several books on a desk which seemed to be focused on methods of teleportation. She was pretty sure that some of those books were fake though...
None of these things were really strange per-say...if they were by themselves anyways. The shuriken can be explained away as a hobby for collecting ninja-wear, the seals could be seen as a magician-thing that she wasn't aware of, and the books that were focused on teleportation could be another facet of learning that magicians were known for.
But all together...it paints a very bizarre picture. She just wasn't sure what to make out of it.
The only thing that she found that truly helped her indicate that this was Naruto's room rather than some weird alternate dimension, was the fact that she found his ramen stash hidden behind the bookshelf.
Sneaky.
But after making that discovery, she found something else that made her doubt the authenticity of the room's owner all over again.
She found a scroll which was lying open with a lot of writing on it. It was laying on Naruto's bed with several ideas of...
...of how someone can travel between worlds.
"...What...
Present...
-is this...? Naruto...?" Mio asked quietly to the blond in front of her. Was this an elaborate prank? Maybe a fit of imagination for some kind of story?
She didn't know. She wasn't sure if she wanted to know.
But shortly after her discovery, Maria came home and she shared what she found with her. They both reached the same conclusion.
They had to hear the truth from Naruto.
There were many things that were still unknown among the supernatural, so Naruto's already strange abilities, strange items, and strange plans were all pointing to some sort of cover up on his part.
Maria for her part was slightly worried and upset about the fact that Naruto-sama hid something obviously important from them. Although she wasn't too worried, he has shown himself to be trustworthy in the fact that he genuinely tries to keep them safe and sound. But it doesn't change the fact that a lack of knowledge of Naruto-sama's identity could prove to be a bad idea, if only for the fact that they don't know what kind of baggage he could be carrying.
She hoped that Naruto-sama would come to the same conclusion and just share his true identity with them. He must have hid his identity for a reason right? Maybe like Mio-sama, he has a past that prevents him from being able to share with others too liberally?
Naruto for his part was silently staring at the evidence placed on the table.
His multiple written attempts at getting back to the Elemental Nations.
When he first got this home in order to plan his escape from this world in peace, he made sure to make a list of ways to get back home. Whether they were real or not, he placed them down, including stuff that he tried already like the Kuchiyose no jutsu with notes on their effectiveness.
He sorta didn't need it anymore because it was meant to keep track of the ways he have checked or was going to check on getting home. But now the kuchiyose for the toads seemed to be getting better over time...now he was placing his bets on a Gyaku Kuchiyose no jutsu (Reverse Summoning jutsu) in order to get home.
So...maybe he should have just destroyed the damn list by now.
Bit late for that though.
More importantly though...how did they get their hands on that list? He was sure that he kept it in his room where they were told specifically not to enter...besides the room was always...
The room was always locked...
...
Oh shit.
His eyes sharpened as he gave the two girls to the opposite of him a hard look.
"...Did you go into my room?" Naruto asked quietly, he honestly wasn't sure how he would react if they actually did...
Mio bit her lips for a moment, unwilling to concede that she did indeed go in his room. But the simple fact that she stayed silent rather than deny the charges was proof enough she knew. So the least she could do...
"...Maria didn't know." Mio mumbled quietly.
Only then did Naruto feel his own anger begin to bubble up to the surface, causing him to step forward and slam his hands on the table in anger.
"...What the hell Mio! I specifically asked you guys to not go in there! Two things; not to blow it up the house and not to go into my room! What the hell!" Naruto raised his voice in anger, unbelieving that Mio would take advantage of his rush to the battlefield. She may not have known the circumstances but it was still pretty messed up!
Mio's own hackles were raised at the blond's rising tone and she stood up in to retort angrily and slammed her own hands on the table. "I was worried about you! You left school early and completely disappeared off the face of the Earth until now! I thought that I could find out where you went if I checked your room!" Mio shouted out in her defense, unwilling to back down. "Also you're dodging the question! What does this paper mean Naruto!?"
Maria quickly got up and tried to separate the two from each other, both of them were among the most stubborn people she has ever met...there was no way they'd back down if they thought they were right.
She was sure that Mio-sama thought that Naruto-sama was trying to focus on the fact that she entered his room to dodge the question she asked. She was also sure that Naruto-sama felt justifiably upset about how his privacy was violated without any sign of an apology, especially since he was still a teenager that probably stilled desired personal space.
"Wait wait! Both of you please calm down!" Maria cried while physically getting in-between the two. Hoping that at least one of them would back down so the other could take a breather and think more clearly.
Everything was silent for a few moments as the psuedo-siblings stared each other down in a clash of wills.
But slowly, ever so slowly...Mio backed away from the contest while keeping her eyes locked on the blond's.
While staring at her eyes, Naruto understood.
She wasn't backing off because she was intimidated or anything. No...
She was acknowledging her mistake. It may not have been put into words, but the feelings were at the very least conveyed.
So Naruto, slightly pacified, backed off to get a quick breather for himself. Internally he was bonking himself on the head for getting so upset, even if it was justified, he still didn't like getting angry at a friend like that.
Honestly though, if this was back at Konoha and his room was entered without his permission?
He probably would have been upset at the perpetrator, but not this upset.
Over here on the other hand...where the knowledge of being a ninja was likely to bring in some unwanted attention?
His anger was more about the fact that his last safe haven where he can be Uzumaki Naruto; the shinobi of Konoha...was breached. The last place where he didn't have to worry about hiding the fact that he was a ninja was suddenly...not so safe anymore.
That pissed him off.
It was only after the anger left his body did he wince and grab his right hand. He just slammed that hand on the table in frustration and he completely forgot that he was still hurt there.
Though it seems he wasn't the only one who noticed the wound.
"Naruto-sama...how did you get hurt like that?" Maria asked with a small frown, she's seen him take on stray devils without any effort at all. So what exactly could have hurt him like that?
Mio also frowned at the wound as she moved around the table and walked up to the blond to examine it. It was only after she got closer did she notice some strange things about Naruto that she didn't notice earlier.
His clothes.
The Kuoh Academy-issued jacket was pretty singed at the cuffs, as if they were nearly burned off. His clothes in general were pretty ruffled up and dirty...as if he had gotten into a fight.
Mio then looked up at Naruto's eyes as the boy began to sweat bullets at this cross-examination.
Ah...yeah...at this rate he may as well throw in the towel for hiding who he was.
But...he really didn't want to.
Although they have been together for a short time, he couldn't help but grow a little attached to the two freeloaders in his house. Life was boring while he was trying to find a way back home. The simple fact that he had no choice but to interact with them while they lived here helped in making him attached to them as friends.
So what would happen if he announced that he was a ninja?
He seriously doubted that they would really consider the fact that he was a ninja from a different world...even with the proof literally right in front of them. So more likely than not, they would think of him as a ninja from this world.
The ninjas from this world were known for being assassins and back-stabbers, something that he really didn't want to be associated with on a normal day...let alone with people he cared about.
But more importantly...
"Naruto?"
Naruto blinked as his musings were interrupted, he looked at Mio who was staring back at him with concern.
"...Are you ok? You blanked out there for a minute there." Mio said with fresh concern, how could she not? The blond was missing since earlier today, then he comes back with a singed arm and clothes. Now he is flat-out blanking out on her!
This was all very concerning for the young girl.
Maria walked up to the pair as well, focusing her inquisitive eyes on the blond. "Naruto-sama. Obviously somethinghappened to you today. While I'm sure that you had your reasons in hiding your activities from us...I think that we have a right to know anyways. Please tell us what is going on Naruto-sama."
Naruto glanced at the succubus for a moment before glancing at his psuedo-sister.
"Ok ok, fine. Just sit back down and let me think for a second ok?" Naruto complained while rubbing his temples. This cloak and dagger stuff was hard enough on the shinobi when considering his personality, holding it all up against this scrutiny was flat-out impossible now.
Suspicion would be the only emotion that wouldn't be in short supply if he didn't explain himself. But he wasn't ready to explain himself entirely just yet.
After both Maria and Mio sat down again, he began to talk.
"Look, there has been a lot of stuff that has been going on around Kuoh Town lately. I wanted to keep you guys out of it because of your circumstances, but I guess I can't do that anymore." Naruto said while scratching his cheek, he was actually going to try and train them anyways. He couldn't help but remember how much Azazel-san liked interesting things, and while he trusted the man to an extent...that didn't extend to his friends' well-being.
After all, wasn't someone like Mio a very intersting person?
There were inevitably going to be people like that, that isn't even including the stray devils and the devils that just wanted to kill Mio. So they both needed training eventually, the question was when and how?
Well, he didn't need to worry about those questions anymore. Especially since he has a favor from the little sister of a Maou.
At least...he will tomorrow anyways.
The ninja thing on the other hand...
"Look...there's a reason why I'm not just explaining the entire situation to you two. Part of it is kinda personal and the the other part is for your safety. So if I explain the circumstances behind the burnt clothing...then can you drop the questions for a little bit? I promise that I will answer your questions as soon as I can." Naruto promised while eyeing the duo cautiously.
Maria and Mio locked eyes with one another. All evidence was pointing to some secret that Naruto knew that he wouldn't share. It was a pretty safe bet that it was quite serious as well, the wound on his arm was proof of that.
Mio closed her eyes in resignation. The blond simply never made things simple did he?
She opened her eyes with determination, Naruto took them in during bad circumstances without any hassle or questions. The least they could do was to return the favor by giving him time to answer their concerns.
"Ok Naruto...we get it. We won't ask about who you are anymore. But at least tell us what is going on. Maybe we can help!" Mio said with her hand to her chest, wanting to convey her honest thoughts. Maria nodded energetically to her words and made her own thoughts known.
"Yes Naruto-sama! You've been nothing but good to us for the short time we've known each other! If you're having trouble with something...don't hesitate to come to us!" Maria said with enthusiasm.
Naruto gave them both grateful smiles at their understanding. He needed time to reconcile with something that he has been ignoring for a long time...
His fears.
He knew...he knew that he shouldn't be afraid. These two trusted him and he trusted them in return.
But sometimes it wasn't enough. He once thought the same thing for his closest friend after all...
He shook his head to move away from the darker thoughts which began to cloud his head. He would deal with it later.
At least he kept telling himself that.
"Alright. What do you two know about the fallen angels?" Naruto asked seriously, while settling down into his own chair. Mio's eyebrow rose in confusion at the seemingly random question, but Maria caught on to the implications of the sentence and had her eyes widen in alarm.
"Naruto-sama. Are you saying that fallen angels attacked you?" Maria asked hesitantly, were the fallen angels aware of their presence here? That was the only thing that she could think of that could cause such hostility if it was true.
Naruto shook his head in the negative though. "Before you get confused, let me finish with my explanation. None of this will make sense until I'm done and I ask that you guys keep your questions until then."
Both young devils nodded and let him continue with his explanation.
"Well, the fallen angels weren't the one who attacked me...if anything I sorta attacked them now that I think about it." Naruto stated with a sweatdrop forming on his head, he seemed like a bad guy if you didn't take into account his motives...
Mio gave him a dull stare, it really sounded stupid no matter how you framed his actions.
"Now give me a second to explain! The fallen angels were not supposed to be here in Kuoh Town ya know? So I beat up this first group at a abandoned factory, that led to another fight with them at an abandoned church..." Naruto continued before being interrupted.
"THAT WAS YOU!?"
Naruto gave Mio a light glare as she gaped at him.
"...You didn't let me finish." Naruto deadpanned at her.
But the young red-head wasn't having it. "Hey! You do realize that your little battle made the news right!? You absolutely obliterated that factory! What happened in there? Why didn't you tell us? Heck, why did you even attack them to begin with!?" Mio asked relentlessly, with her unconsciously leaning into Naruto's personal space.
"Calm down, calm down! The entire thing sorta just...blew up without warning! The factory blowing up wasn't my fault ya know? That was the fallen angel; Vretiel's fault not mine." Naruto explained, ignoring the now gaping mouth of Maria who knew that name and continued. "Also, I was gonna explain why attacked them. So shush! Let me finish."
Maria was speechless and Mio calmed herself down enough to go back to her chair. She could already tell that she was gonna be tired after this.
Yuki was staring at her phone as if it was a bomb that was set off to blow any second. She received some troubling news.
There were rumors of infighting beginning to crop up among some heroes back in the village.
At first she thought that the infighting began because of her actions following her clash with Naruto. But it seemed that there has been tension for quite a while, simmering just underneath the surface over what the Hero Tribe should be doing.
Her actions just happened to have brought that tension out.
Now the current village leader wants to meet with her in order to get a full debrief of what has been happening in Kuoh Town, especially after the fallen angel debacle.
But now he also wants to see someone else.
Now the leader of the Hero Tribe wants to meet with Uzumaki Naruto. For what purpose she had no idea...
But she didn't have much choice in the matter, she would broach the subject with Naruto tomorrow.
Although she couldn't help but rub her temples, she wasn't exactly looking forward to meeting her foster father so soon...with a boy no less.
Naruto sort of expected the gaping reactions from his listeners, a lot has happened that they weren't privy to.
"N-Naruto-sama. Are you sure that the leaders of the two devil groups are little sisters of Maous?" Maria asked hesitantly, obviously finding it hard to wrap her head around the fact, they were so close to close relatives of the current Maous.
Naruto simply nodded in affirmation.
Mio for her part, was combing her bangs from her her forehead in frustration. The real status of the devils of this territory, the knowledge of Yuki's true affiliations, the fact that these groups have managed to form an agreement with one another, and the debacle of what amounted to a series of battles against the fallen...
Yeah, she was mentally exhausted from all of this information.
"Naruto. I still don't understand why you didn't tell us earlier?" Mio asked with a questioning gaze. The blond glanced at her for a moment before turning his eyes to the ceiling.
"You two...you two went through a lot in such a short time. All that has happened had nothing to do with either of you, so I wanted to make sure none of you were worrying over what was going on. I'm sorry if I worried you two." Naruto said apologetically.
The young daughter of the original Lucifer didn't say anything, she just stood up and walked towards the blond with a blank face.
She then moved into his personal space in order to look at him in the eye with a deadpanned expression.
"Are you an idiot?" Mio asked incredulously.
How rude.
Before Naruto could complain however, Mio continued. "The second that you were involved in all of this Naruto...we became involved too. Don't forget, we are your friends too, and as friends...we will worry about you. You don't have to do this alone, let us help!"
The shinobi blinked at her words, was he really making them worry?
Then he scratched his head in irritation, maybe he was being unfair to them. Maybe the fact that he has been working by himself for more than two months have made him less reliant on others.
Even when he should be.
Pink eyes regarded blue as they thought on her words, she then shook him physically so that he could pay attention to her next words. "Naruto...promise me you that you won't do something stupid like this again...ok? Promise me that we will face whatever we have to face together." Mio pleaded, with her fists clenching the blond's clothes.
Maria walked up to the duo and placed her hand on Naruto's hand in reassurance. "Yes Naruto-sama! You don't have to do this alone...let's do this like a family." Maria said with a large smile.
Naruto stared at the two for a moment.
Then he grinned...maybe he could be a big idiot sometimes.
"Alright alright...you two win. I promise that I won't hide stuff like this from either of you from now on. But you do realize what this means right?" Naruto asked cryptically, much to the confusion of both devils. "Now that means you gotta be able to defend yourselves against more powerful enemies. So I think it's time to train." he concluded.
Mio would have likely balked at the idea, but the very fact that so much has happened around Kuoh Town without her knowledge helped to make it easier to accept.
"But Naruto...I can understand how you can train Maria. But what about me? I use magic and that can't be trained by someone that doesn't know it's uses, at least not trained very well." the teenaged girl wondered aloud.
Naruto gave her a thumbs up in response.
"Leave that to me!"
After their enlightening talk, the group agreed to go to bed. Two out of the three people living there had to go to school after all.
When morning came, Mio couldn't help but notice how twitchy Naruto seemed to be.
"Naruto? You ok? You seem...tense." Mio asked with a wondering stare.
Naruto decided to reassure her with the most empty reassurance of his life.
"...I'm fine."
The young girl called bullshit on that one. But decided to let it go and kept a 'wait and see' posture.
The moment they left the house for school though, she found out the source of her pseudo-brother's anxiety.
"Naruto?"
Naruto accordingly froze up and began to sweat bullets. He knew this day would come...but he hoped he could delay it.
Tutoring.
Mio blinked as Yuki appeared out of nowhere in front of their home. Was she waiting for them? Also, why did she seem to be strangely happy? Heck, her facial expression didn't even change much, yet she seemed to be practically sparkling.
She was internally happy though, Yuki was still Yuki despite being a hero, there was nothing to fear from a friend.
"Naruto." Yuki said quietly, before a small smile graced her face. "I'm glad that you have embraced the light."
Although Mio seriously needed some context here.
Naruto was crying with grief internally. Ever since he promised Yuki that he would take tutoring sessions from her after she explained her Sacred Gear, she would pester him on when they would actually start. He managed to avoid the issue and avoid his incoming hell-on-earth.
But then he had to promise her that they would start the very next day in exchange her help at the forest.
Just like that, he had no way out.
"...Huuuuu..."
Mio gaped as Naruto fell on the floor in a heap with waterfall tears flowing down from his eyes. She had no idea what the hell was going on.
Maria for her part, just watched the entire proceedings with amusement. A confused Mio-sama, a happy Yuki-san, and a remorseful Naruto-sama was a pretty good day for the young succubus. if only she had her video camera...
"...I don't know why...but I really want to hit Maria!" Naruto shouted out on his position on the floor.
Eh!? She was innocent this time!
Naruto was having a bad day.
He was going to school, that was already bad enough.
He had to take tutoring sessions from Yuki, another negative.
Now he could add another negative to that list.
"Stop! In the name of the student council!"
With that big-ass butterfly net!? I don't think so!
"You will never take me alive! I refuse to take my classes willingly! Not unless I'm bored!" Naruto exclaimed while dodging the swings of numerous members of the student council.
"It's your duty as a student to take classes! Stop being a delinquent Naruto-san!" a boy named Genshirou Saji called out in anger.
"NEVER!"
"Catch that delinquent!"
""""RIGHT!""""
The chase was attracting the attention of many students who were taking classes, many of them couldn't help but laugh or snort at the scene.
A pair of blue-green eyes seemed particularly interested, they watched on with barely concealed amusement as Naruto continued to frustrate the members of Sona's Peerage by using unique ways to get out of their grasp.
Who knew that a water hose could be so effective?
Rias was happy that Naruto seemed to be completely unharmed though. Both Issei and Nonaka-san also seemed to be unharmed as well, so Naruto obviously managed to deal with the fallen angels. But what happened in there exactly?
She supposed that they had much to talk about in the future.
"Ara ara? It seems that foxy-kun is in trouble. Should we save him Buchou?" Akeno asked with amusement, the scene looked to be straight out of an anime.
Rias just smirked at Akeno. "It isn't too bad if we wait and watch the fireworks for a little bit longer is it Akeno?"
Akeno giggled into her hand. "No, I suppose not Buchou."
"Damn it. You know the student council president right Rias-san!? Tell her to get off my back!" Naruto complained as he stood face-to-face with the red-headed Gremory.
Rias rolled her eyes at the demand, it wasn't like she could stop Sona from doing what she thought was good and just. She was stubborn in that regard, especially when it came to her role as student council president.
"Sorry Naruto-san. I'm afraid you're on your own with that one." Rias claimed with an apologetic smile. Though admittedly, even if she could stop Sona...she probably wouldn't.
It was too fun to watch.
"So. I suppose you came here to talk about what happened at the abandoned church the other day." Rias stated while folding her hands on her desk. The moment of truth has arrived it seemed.
Naruto nodded at her statement, best not leave her out of the loop. "Yeah, I don't want to explain absolutely everything that happened at the abandoned church. But I will give ya a rundown. After that, a friend of mine will be coming here, he's someone that I want you to meet face-to-face."
Rias raised an eyebrow in curiosity, but quenched it. She would find out later. "Before you begin Naruto...what happened with Vretiel? Is she dead?"
Naruto shook his head. "No, Azazel-san picked her and her followers up. Apparently their actions weren't sanctioned...or something like that."
"Oh I see. Well then-" Rias started before stopping herself prematurely, she only just registered his words. "Wait! Azazel was there!? As in the leader of the fallen angels; Azazel!?"
The shinobi scratched his cheek, he did kinda just throw that in from out of nowhere he supposed. "Well...yeah. Azazel didn't want to start a war, so he met with me and allowed me to take out the rebels. Strange how these things work out eh?"
Rias couldn't help but agree, but then that would mean that the blond took out not only Vretiel...but all of her followers as well.
That was insane...!
She was immensely glad that Naruto was seemingly quite passive, she doubted any of them could live from a confrontation with the teen. But before she could continue to think on it, she heard the door being knocked on.
"Buchou, you have an interesting visitor." Akeno called out from the other side, when it was opened to reveal her visitor...she couldn't help but agree.
She glanced at Naruto, she supposed this was his doing?
"Um...you're Rias-sempai right?" the human boy asked as he walked up to the high-class devil. He was being led by...
...Another Naruto?
"Oh, by the way. I can make corporeal clones of myself." Naruto said blandly, as if it wasn't serious news at all. Ah, another strange thing in a list of strange things about Naruto it seemed.
But for now she turned her attention to the human boy that the other 'Naruto' led here.
That boy was none other than Hyoudou Issei.
Issei was actually quite scared at the moment. He could be brave for Asia if he needed to, but now he was in front of beings that could probably kill him without any effort if they wanted to. He was terrified that he might piss them off enough that they would...
"Issei, whatever you're worried about...don't. These are good people. I promise nothing bad is going to happen here." Naruto said in reassurance, receiving a concurring nod from both of the 'Great Ladies' in agreement.
The perverted boy took a deep breathe to calm himself, being in several near-death situations made him a little...wary of the supernatural. He's been living a normal life before that, so of course he'd be like that. Hell, it was so hard...that it made it difficult to concentrate on their lovely oppai!
That was really saying something!
"Um...Rias-sama, right? I just want to tell you that I'd like to join your Peerage as a member." Issei said while bowing, hoping that he didn't cause his own death sentence. But hr was instead shocked to feel the female devil's hand on the back of his head in comfort.
"Issei. You don't need to call me 'Rias-sama' or anything like that. If you become my servant, then you become a part of my family. On that note...I'd love for you to join my Peerage." Rias said with a genuine smile. But before she could continue, Issei stood back up and stared into her eyes with a serious expression.
"But...I have a condition."
Rias blinked at this about-face, a condition?
"Rias-sempai...I want you to promise me...that you will help me protect Asia!" Issei announced, hoping that the devil in front of him would be lenient and help him.
The young Gremory was quite confused, she had no idea who 'Asia' was. So asking that from her was a little...
Thankfully, Naruto intervened. "Ah, Rias-san. Asia is the name of this guy's friend. She was about to be sacrificed in a ritual by the fallen angels to take her Sacred Gear...thus killing her. They are...pretty close." Naruto said wryly, much to the sputtering indignation of Issei.
As the two bickered for a moment, Rias thought about her options. This 'Asia' had a Sacred Gear? One that the fallen angels specifically wanted for their own? It must be quite the powerful one then...perhaps she could convince her to join her Peerage as well? It's almost too good to be true.
"Ah. By the way Rias-san, she's a nun." Naruto stated offhandedly, while ignoring Issei's words denying that kind of relationship with Asia.
Turned out it was too good to be true.
If she was a normal christian then it would be fine...but a nun? The only way she could ever get away with getting a nun into her Peerage...was if they died through some incident and she revived them afterwards. Even then, the Angel faction and the Church might take offense to it if that nun was unsatisfied.
Add the fact that a holy nun would probably be used to doing things that could hurt them accidentally and you have a bad idea for a Peerage member. Things like reading the bible out loud, praying, or even carrying holy water.
Well money wasn't exactly an issue for the extremely wealthy female devil...
"Alright Issei. How's this sound? I will pay for Asia's induction into Kuoh Academy, where she will attend classes. That way not only will you continue to associate with her, she will also have immunity from most threats due to her close proximity to all of us. I promise as a Gremory...to keep Asia safe from the supernatural. I accept your terms Issei." Rias stated seriously, willing to pay for the girl if she could gain Issei and his powers for her Peerage...she was quite desperate for power at the moment.
Issei looked ecstatic, Asia would be safe and he could get stronger as a devil! "Thank you Rias-sempai! I won't let you down! I promise!"
Rias nodded at his words, she was positive that Issei would be strong one day. She glanced towards the blond human who was watching the entire thing. Looks like she 'owed' him...well that was fine, she learned a lot about the strange teen from this experience. "Issei, we will begin the ceremony for your induction into my Peerage once everyone is done with classes. So for now...can you please leave so that I may speak with Naruto here?"
Issei blinked for a moment before glancing at the blond, Naruto encouragingly nodded at him. Telling him without words that everything was fine.
Akeno was still standing by the door to make sure no one listened in on the important conversations, she opened the door to lead Issei out once Rias had asked him to leave.
Naruto decided to disperse his clone as well for Rias' benefit.
The two remaining occupants of the room stared at each other for a minute before the high-class devil sighed.
"Looks like you did it Naruto. I don't really know how...but you did it. Now I owe you favor within reason now, right? So what is it that you need?" Rias asked while leaning back into her chair.
Naruto tilted his head in thought for a moment before replying. "Right now...nothing to be honest. Although I do have something that I'd like you to do for me. It's about my sister..." Naruto claimed, while moving closer to Rias to face her properly.
Rias raised an eyebrow in interest, he mentioned that he had a younger sister. But she never had the chance to meet her before. But why would he want her to train his sister?
"Now Naruto...you do realize that training someone else is extremely time-consuming don't you? I still have my own responsibilities as the owner of this territory, so how can you ask something like that from me for absolutely nothing?" the female devil reasoned, it was quite the tall order after all.
The shinobi grinned and then dramatically swiped his arms to his sides in order to answer her question. "Why...that's because I think it's high time that we all go on a training trip!" Naruto declared enthusiastically.
...
"Huh?" Rias questioned with a dumbfounded expression, what was he talking about right now?
Naruto scratched the back of his head in slight embarrassment, he let his mouth move faster than his brain again. "Well, I figured that it would be a good idea to go out as a group for training. Considering what has happened recently, it might be a good idea. Not only that, but we'd take your Peerage, Yuki, Mio, and her...uh..'friend' Maria! That way we can all bond together as a group! I figured that since I probably had the most experience among us that I could even teach all of you guys a thing or two. So whaddya say?" Naruto explained energetically, hoping that all of his new friends would get along better with this group trip.
Also, he wouldn't have to try and find a spot to train Maria and Mio properly. That was the biggest problem in this world...actually finding a place where normal humans don't go to. He was sure that Rias had somewhere for that.
Rias blinked. It stunk that she would have to maintain contact with the hero...but she and her Peerage could get training from someone extremely powerful. Someone powrful enough to beat Vretiel...
They wouldn't be able to do anything for a while since this idea was brought up in such short notice but...the thought was very much a good one.
She thought she could stand Nonaka Yuki's presence long enough for that.
Diodora Astaroth. High-class devil and directly related to one of the current Maous. Currently aspiring to be far farcloser to the throne of the Underworld.
But until that happened, he had to content himself with playing his...'games'.
Games which involved emotionally and psychologically breaking woman of the church into his slaves. It was his...exquisite form of entertainment. He was even about to get a new 'toy' to play with...but as if he was a child again, that toy got snatched away at the last moment.
By humans.
By humans.
That made him furious! How dare these filthy humans get in the way of his fun! He would have gone down there himself in order to teach them the meaning of power...!
But it seemed that at the very least...two of the humans were more powerful than they first appeared. It didn't change the fact that he wanted them dead though...just on the means that they would die.
Especially the blond male.
He heard the name spoken...a one; Uzumaki Naruto.
He would pay...he would pay for his insolence through the menacing hand of his master.
"Lucifer-sama. I bring news of the protector of the daughter of the original Lucifer...!"
Blue eyes regarded the kneeling Astaroth, information on the girl's protector hmm? "Well then...? Spit it out Astaroth."
Diodora shivered at the hidden threat underlying his tone. "Y-Yes Lucifer-sama! The boy...Uzumaki Naruto...he defeated a decent-sized fallen angel task force led by Vretiel of the fallen milord!" Diodora explained, with a slow and sick grin spreading on his lips.
If Lucifer-sama began to see this boy as a threat...then he wouldn't have to do anything...! The future Maou would destroy the human for him! Then without the powerful human backing them...the nun would be his to break.
The 'Lucifer' pondered on this information, while he was sure that the little cretin had a stake in this...it didn't change the fact that Astaroth wouldn't lie to him. He was far to afraid to do anything such as that...especially to his face.
'Uzumaki Naruto huh...? Well then...let's see how powerful you really are.'
Chapter 13
Yuki was walking in the hallways of Kuoh Academy with her bag, she was currently on a mission of great importance. A mission that several people seemed to have taken upon themselves to complete today...mostly due to her friend's bad luck no doubt.
The mission? Catch 'the Naruto'.
She ignored the fact that she just treated her friend as if he was an animal.
It seemed that the Student Council under Shitori Sona was currently hunting down her friend in order to force him to go to detention for all of the classes he has missed. Not only that, but detention seemed to include remedial classes for any students that were failing their classes. A measure seemingly directed by the kaichou herself.
At least that was the reason yesterday...she had no idea why they were chasing him now. Maybe for the same reason, or a new reason entirely?
Nevertheless, the moment he heard of their hunt, Naruto had ran as fast as he could to dodge these 'punishments from hell' as he called them.
So her mission was simple. Find Naruto before the student council caught him so that they could begin their tutoring sessions.
The kaichou should be reasonable enough to see that her tutoring would help make the blond a better student, he was a human that needed to integrate into modern society after all. Despite all of his ridiculous claims that he wouldn't need education for anything useful, she was sure that he just needed a friendly push in the right direction.
So she was searching for her blond friend, she figured that if she looked for the area that seemed to have the most commotion, then she would find her objective.
Where was that currently?
Well considering the dull roar of noise that was coming from outside the building, she thought that she could make an educated guess.
But before she could go down the stairs...
"Nonaka Yuki-san."
The hero immediately ceased her movements and briefly had her hand twitch.
It was itching for the comforting handle of Sakuya on it's palm.
She sent a side-glance towards the one who called her name. Slightly wary that she would speak to her now after all of this time. They've been doing a good job of ignoring each other's presence so far...so what changed?
"...Gremory-san. Himejima-san." Yuki intoned while unintentionally clenching and un-clenching her fists, while she now wanted to be on better terms with the devils of Kuoh Academy...she didn't feel comfortable facing them without her blade.
Old habits die hard it seemed.
Blue-green eyes trained themselves on yellow, as their owners continued to stare one-another down without speaking. The contest was ended abruptly though, as one person realized that they wouldn't be alone in that hallway forever.
"Buchou." Akeno said simply, trying to get her friend to concentrate on the task at hand.
It seemed to have done the trick.
Rias politely coughed onto her hand in order to collect her thoughts, this wasn't exactly easy to say. She has been taught to fear and consistently stay vigilant against the legendary heroes of old since she was a child.
Now there was one in front of her.
She didn't trust her. Not for one moment. Especially when the lives of her Peerage were at stake on that trust.
But she trusted Naruto to be a reliable third-party. That was enough for her for the moment, but this still needed to be said.
"Nonaka-san. We have been enjoying somewhat of a...status quo haven't we?" Rias asked rhetorically, while inclining her head politely.
Yuki nodded cautiously, she knew what Rias meant. Despite her earlier conviction of making allies with the devils here, she was thoroughly uncomfortable with approaching them without either Naruto...or her sword. The devils seemed to share the same conviction as she did, so there was a somewhat unofficial status quo in effect.
They avoided one another like some sort of deadly disease.
That alone was actually very satisfying for Yuki, as the simple fact that they haven't attempted to kill each other yet was actually quite the achievement. Whenever devils and heroes have met, conflict always ensued, so she was actually content with the baby steps regarding their relationship with one another.
Yet here Gremory was, doing...something.
"Yes. I suppose we have Gremory-san...that isn't a problem is it?" Yuki asked with a steady stare.
Rias did her best to ignore the annoyance that she was beginning to feel, she was the diplomat between the two. She had to keep her cool in such delicate situations, she was practically raised since she was a child to do such things.
Didn't make it easy though.
"...I felt that considering the circumstances...that we should resolve our differences for now in order to promote harmony with our little group session in the future." Rias said simply with a politician's smile.
Yuki stared at the red-headed devil blankly. Circumstances? "I fear that I have no idea what you are talking about Gremory-san."
Both devils turned towards one another in confusion. Did Naruto not tell her about the training session he proposed yet?
"Hasn't Naruto told you...? Well, if not then the responsibility falls to me it seems. Earlier today Naruto has suggested that everyone involved in our little 'pact' should go on a training trip. All in order to better prep ourselves for future conflicts and to improve relations with each other. You aren't aware of this?" Rias asked with a curious look. They literally talked about it yesterday...so surely.
Ah.
Nonaka wasn't here yesterday was she? They don't live together either, so school was probably the only time they can meet each other.
He was currently dodging the relentless student council at this very moment as well. Apparently he pranked the student council room in retaliation for the morning chase that they instigated yesterday...so he probably wouldn't have had the chance to tell her.
Yuki widened her eyes at the new information. When had this happened? Why didn't Naruto tell her?
Looking at the hero's shocked reaction, Rias concluded that Naruto definitely has not spoken to her yet. "I see...you two have much to talk about. I only wished to propose a...'truce' for lack of a better term. That way we could all get the best experience from this trip, what do you think Nonaka-san?"
Yuki was still slightly stunned from the rather new and abrupt information, but she was cognizant enough to nod her head at the high-class devil's words. A truce sounded like a good idea considering the circumstances.
But she still couldn't quite believe that she was agreeing to what amounted to a cease-fire between a group of devils and a hero...
"...It's quite surprising that we are even talking about this isn't it?" Yuki voiced her own amazement at what they were even contemplating. Her words caused Rias' eyes to widen slightly as well.
She didn't really think about it but...yeah. A truce between supernatural factions was one thing...but a truce with a human hero in any capacity was something of a far-fetched idea.
Yet here they were.
"...Yeah...you're right Nonaka-san. Let's work hard together ok, 'hero'?" Rias said with a small and tentative smile. She then extended her hand to shake.
Yuki stared at the hand.
She took it in a handshake. "Yeah...let's work hard 'devil'." Yuki said with a small smile of her own.
Akeno couldn't help but smile warmly at the sight, it seemed that the times were changing. Who would have thought it possible?
If this was possible, what else was possible she couldn't help but wonder? Real peace with the other biblical factions?
For a split-second a gruff-looking man with black hair and beard appeared in the forefront of her mind, she shook away the image and frowned darkly.
...Yeah right. As if that was possible.
"Hey! Yuki!"
Everyone immediately became stiff as a voice called out to the hero. The hero in question knew that voice however, and couldn't help but internally sigh at her friend's bad timing.
Especially when considering the company she was in.
Naruse Mio finished walking up the stairs and spoke again. "Hey hey Yuki! Have you seen Naruto? We were going to talk about something, but he disappeared again..." the young girl complained before stopping herself after realizing that the bluenette wasn't alone.
Rias stared at the girl that was addressing the hero, she felt like she was looking at a mirror for a moment. They shared quite a few physical similarities with each other. But was more important to her at the moment was the fact that she felt that the girl wasn't normal.
She couldn't feel what energy the girl had, but it was definitely something...why wasn't she aware of her before now?
Mio for her part was panicking slightly, of all of the times to meet the little sister of the current Maou Lucifer...especially when she wasn't as good as Maria at hiding energy signals.
She was good enough at it that they wouldn't sense her, as long as she wasn't close by anyways.
At the very least she doubted that the older devil could sense her demonic energy. So she could simply play ignorant for now...just in case.
"Ah Mio...now really isn't the best time." Yuki mumbled, hoping that the younger girl would take the hint and leave. But it seemed to be too little and too late.
"I'm sorry. We haven't met before, my name is Gremory Rias and this is my friend; Himejima Akeno. Pleased to meet you." Rias said with a pleasant smile, still slightly shocked at the presence of what was very likely another supernatural being. Seriously, she was beginning to worry that she wasn't very good at governing her territory...
Mio immediately bowed in a show of respect to her senior. "My name is Naruse Mio, I recently enrolled into this school thanks to my...onii-san." Mio said with slightly gritted teeth, still embarrassed that she had to call Naruto that in public.
Rias pondered the name for a moment, she could have sworn that she heard the girl's name before...
Wait...a brother?
"Wait. Your older brother wouldn't happen to be Naruto right?" Rias asked with widened eyes, so this was the blond's elusive sister?
Considering Naruto's penchant for surprising people, she supposed that she shouldn't be surprised at his little sister's lack of presence until now.
Mio simply nodded in confirmation, unsure of whether admitting to the fact would be good or not. All she knew about the high-class devil was the fact that she had formed a pact with Naruto...but she had no idea if she was genuine in her positive demeanor towards the blond.
Well, she would find out in a moment she supposed.
Rias nodded at this and smiled at the younger girl, if she used the same reasoning with Nonaka then it was very likely that the girl in front of her had no idea of her brother's scheme.
"I see! Well then it's very nice to meet you at last Mio-san. I was just speaking to Nonaka-san here about your brother's newest hare-brained idea, do you know about it?" Rias asked cheerfully, wishing to make a good first impression on her fellow red-head.
If she had to guess after seeing Mio's twitching eyebrow though, she'd say that she had no idea either.
"Let me guess...I'm involved in this little idea of his aren't I?" Mio groaned while pinching the bridge of her nose.
The 'Two Great Ladies' just smiled at her guess while Yuki just shrugged.
Awesome.
"Mou! Naruto always does this! He does whatever he wants without anyone's approval or anything! What if I have plans or something when this was gonna happen!?" Mio complained, feeling a small headache begin to coalesce.
If she brought up the issue to her psuedo-brother, she could already imagine his response...
'Eh? Whatcha mean I promised to not do anything stupid? Are you implying that my plan is stupid!? Oi! My plan is absolute genius dattebayo!'
Mio placed her head into her hand...he would definitely do that...
"Ufufu...it seems that foxy-kun can make things quite difficult for little Mio, doesn't he Buchou?" Akeno giggled with hand covering her mouth daintily. But her king didn't respond to her words.
Though the queen couldn't help but be slightly surprised at the thoroughly understanding look that her king was giving the younger girl.
Rias walked up to the girl and placed her hand on the younger girl's shoulder.
"...It's tough right? To have such an energetic older brother that constantly does random things without telling you? To have him do things that embarrasses you all the time?" Rias asked softly with an understanding smile.
Mio looked up at her fellow red-head with slightly teary-eyes. She understood the trials of a little sister with an overly energetic, but still well-meaning older brother? That could only mean...
"You have one too...?" Mio asked hesitantly.
Rias nodded solemnly, an unfortunate truth.
All was silent for a moment as both young teens stared at each other in the eyes, conveying their understanding of one another before...
"Rias-sempai!"
"Mio-chan!"
Both girls suddenly embraced each other! Tearing up as they finally found someone to share and understand their frustrations over their big brothers!
"Ara ara, it seems that they will get along just fine." Akeno said with a small smile, she supposed that considering the shenanigans of Sirzechs-sama and foxy-kun...they couldn't help but bond quickly over their shared 'pain'.
Yuki for her part just sighed melodramatically, she was worried for nothing it seemed.
Now that the introductions were taken care of, she supposed that she should re-focus her objective back towards finding that elusive blond friend of hers.
"Where are you Naruto?" the hero wondered aloud.
Naruto was running back inside the high school section of Kuoh Academy.
Why was he running you ask?
Well...
"Today is the day I catch you Uzumaki!"
Yeah, the student council was at it again. His current chaser; Saji-san, was trying pretty desperately to catch him this time around.
He wasn't doing a good job at it.
Apparently this latest chase was started because of the prank he pulled on the student council...which in turn was caused by their attempt to take him to detention yesterday.
Why this guy was crying angry tears while has was chasing him was beyond him though.
"Damn it Uzumaki! Because you flooded the entire room, the kaichou had the entire student council stay behind and redo all of the paperwork that we have done! You soaked all of our work in that flood damn iiiiiiiiiittt!"
Ok...so maybe he did have a somewhat geniune reason for getting angry at him.
"But more importantly...your prank got everyone wet! That would have been a perfect staring opportunity with their clothes sticking to their skin...but you did it while I was out! WHY!?"
"THAT'S WHAT YOU"RE PISSED ABOUT!?" Naruto shouted out incredulously, the water thing wasn't meant for peeping shots!
Speaking of water...this guy wasn't caught in his prank in the student council room...
That had to change, his title as a pranking master was depending on that.
That's why he grabbed a water bucket from a student that was holding it up for punishment outside of a classroom. Rebels gotta look out for one another anyways.
After that, Naruto ran into a art class that was still in-session, much to the students' and teacher's frustration.
"Uzumaki! What the hell are you doing!?" the balding teacher roared out in anger as he saw the blond menace run into his classroom.
"Sorry teach! Needed something real fast! See ya later!" Naruto shouted in response with an easy-going grin. While he was responding, he quickly grabbed some super glue for his newest prank and left the class as fast as he appeared.
Saji kept chasing after the troublemaker, intent on catching the blond and giving him sooooo many detentions...
Detentions for the rest of his life.
But before he could catch Uzumaki and extract his vengeance, the delinquent came running back at him with a bucket of water! Saji immediately got ready to tackle the blond, but before his very eyes he vanished in a burst of speed.
Naruto quickly pushed the bucket filled with water over Saji's head and then with incredible speed and practiced hands, glued the teenaged boy's collar to the bucket.
The end result was a soaked Saji that was flailing around trying to get the bucket off of his head.
"Grblganslgh!? UZHUGAKI!" the bucket-head screamed out.
The shinobi admired his handiwork and gave himself a pat on the back for protecting his title as 'master of pranks' before running from the student council member. Time to get away before any of his comrades found him.
He decided to just hide inside the classroom that he was close to, better than finding a new place or staying 'on the run' so to speak.
He opened the door to the classroom and shut it before anyone saw him enter the room from the hallway. He turned to face the students inside the room in order to-
"Naruto?"
Naruto glanced at the source of the voice and waved lazily in greeting.
"Yo Issei, sorry for barging in but kinda in a hurry." the shinobi said with a toothy grin, completely ignoring the flabbergasted looks he was getting from the other students.
"You! I remember you!" a boy with glasses shouted out and pointed an offending finger towards the blond. Naruto looked at him for a moment, feeling like he met him before...
Then it clicked.
"Ero-megane!" Naruto said with wide eyes. "I totally forgot you existed for a while there!"
The dubbed 'perverted glasses' just scowled and retorted. "Never mind that! You promised me something right!? You promised that you would get me a woman! Where is she!?"
Naruto blinked.
"...I just said I'd try to see if there would be any offers. I never promised you that you would lose your virginity or anything..." Naruto said with dull eyes, he quickly glanced around the room to see if there was anyone who would take said offer.
As he thought, the second he looked around all of the girls there immediately crossed their arms in an 'X' in order to announce their refusal.
Naruto just gave the perverted boy a helpless shrug. "I tried."
The teen just sat down in gloom at his 'horrible' loss in fortune, but another boy immediately went by his side in order to comfort him. "Don't worry Motohama! You can get rid of your frustration with a new porn video that I got! You're not alone in this battle against popular guys!"
"Matsuda...!"
The two boys hugged each other and reveled in their own pathetic pain.
Naruto just scratched his head, thoroughly confused at the turn of events that have happened. He turned to ask Issei about what's up but...
"I know right you guys!? Death to all popular guys in the world! How dare they experience the wonderful sensation of losing their virginity!"
He forgot that Issei was an idiot too.
"Get away Issei! You are a part of the popular group now too! Don't think we didn't notice that blond beauty that was in your house...!" ero-megane shouted out in a jealous rage.
Ah...he must be talking about the nun; Asia.
Issei tried to deny the charges, but the accusation was already out.
"Huh!? That beast has a beautiful girl in his house!? He must have blackmailed her! Or maybe he's keeping her captive! You better let her go Hyoudou!" a brunette girl called out when she brought out a shinai to attack with.
Naruto quickly decided that this class was a bit too insane, so he decided to make his escape and find refuge in another class. But before he could leave, he noticed that there was a girl with glasses standing close to him. He couldn't help but notice the glint in her pale yellow eyes.
She was staring at him very intently.
"...Not bad Uzumaki Naruto. Not bad at all."
He shivered.
Why did he suddenly feel so...violated?
Yuki figured that she was getting close to Naruto after walking past some evidence of his recent...actions.
One of which happened to be a rolling around Genshirou Saji, who was trying to get a glued bucket off of his head. He was even screaming quite a few obscenities while he was at it.
Ignoring the strange scene, she kept moving forward. That seemed to be relatively recent so he shouldn't be too far...
"Sorry! Gotta go...like...now!"
A blond bullet sped off from a classroom and crashed into the hero, nearly sending the two sprawling to the ground.
Yuki blinked as she recognized the blue eyes that met her own.
"...Found you Naruto."
Naruto groaned. From the frying pan...into the fire huh?
The worst part was that he promised to do these tutoring sessions with her. So it wasn't like he could just escape or anything.
The only reason that it didn't happen yesterday was because Yuki happened to be absent, now he had no excuse!
Well, he supposed he could do his best to postpone it...
"Hey wait Yuki! I got classes still so can we do this-"
"You are already skipping classes and you are obviously going to keep skipping classes." Yuki retorted before he could finish his sentence.
...
"Yuki! As class representative, you shouldn't be skipping classes! Let's do this lat-"
"I have received the full support from our sensei in my endeavor of tutoring you. He allowed me to skip classes today." Yuki relpied quickly.
Damn it sensei...! You definitely allowed her to cut class justto fuck with me!
He'd add him on his hit-list later!
Naruto tried to think of another excuse to latch on to but he immediately felt himself getting dragged through the school hallways by the hero of Kuoh.
"Let's begin our first session Naruto. We have a lot to catch up on." Yuki said with a comforting smile, trying to convey how beneficial this would be in the long run.
But in his fear, all Naruto saw was a distorted smile from the young hero.
"Nooooo! I don't wanna learn damn it!"
Classes have officially ended.
Mio was quite happy today, she made a new friend that she could share her embarrassing stories to! To think that her new friend would be directly related to the current Maous though...
She shrugged her shoulders, not like it was too big of a deal. Rias seemed to be a genuinely good person, so she wouldn't judge her because of her family. Especially when considering all of the shit that her own family relations have caused her.
Speaking of family...
Now that her classes have officially ended for today, she could now search for her constantly missing brother. Hopefully he wasn't out fighting life-and-death battles like the last time he went missing...
But she trusted him to keep his word, more likely he was just running away from the student council again.
As she was looking for her missing sibling however, she ran into a rather interesting sight.
The student council was escorting what looked like...a bucket-man away.
Well...not something you can claim to see everyday, but this was a good chance to ask about the blond's whereabouts.
"Kaichou! Wait up!" Mio shouted out to the retreating backs of the group as she jogged to reach them.
The entire procession stopped in order to wait for the red-headed teenager. The student council president moved up to acknowledge the young half-devil as she rushed towards them.
"Do you need something Naruse-san? We are rather busy at the moment." Sona said crisply, she wanted to get that silly bucket off of Saji's head as soon as possible. It wouldn't exactly reflect on the student council too well if one of their members was looking like this.
"Of course kaichou. I'm looking for Naruto right now, he said he wanted to talk to me and I can't find him. Do you know where is?" Mio asked quickly, hoping that they might have a clue.
Sona sent her a small and inexplicable smile, one of genuine happiness. But she couldn't help but notice that her eyes seemed to be taking some slight sadistic pleasure from something...
"Why...I do actually. Check in the library and you will find your missing brother." Sona said slyly, immediately afterwards she motioned for her student council to move again.
As they left, Mio was greatly puzzled over what Sona just said. Naruto...Uzumaki Naruto...her foolish foolish brother was in a library!?
Also, the Shitori Sona she knew never acted like that before...
Well, she knew where to head to next at least. So she quickly jogged towards the library in order to find more clues to this mystery.
"Uhhhhh..."
"Come on Naruto. When was the first shogunate established?"
"...Damn it...I don't know! I'm not too good with names..."
Naruto had his hands over his head as he tried to stop the colossal headache that was forming.
Yuki sighed at his answer. "The family that formed the official shogunate won overall control of the country in 1185, but only established official control in 1192."
...
Naruto moaned into the table as he repeatedly bonked his head onto wooden surface. He could only remember this kind of stuff with sweeping generalizations, not the very specific stuff!
...Like dates and names of dynasties...and stuff.
"Damn it Yuki...this isn't going to work. You should be proud that I even remembered the heai...no wait...heyia? No! Heian Period! You should be proud that I remember about the Heian Period instead of pushing me to remember more ya know!?" Naruto complained with a twitching eyebrow.
But this only received a passive stare in return from the bluenette. "We wouldn't have to cram all of this information if you studied in the first place." Yuki intoned with a slight glare.
He truthfully had nothing to say against that.
"But still Yuki! I really don't have to learn any of this! I'm telling ya that I will never use this information ever again-!" Naruto started before wincing as a flying projectile hit him in the forehead. He glared at the perpetrator, that devil woman over there...
The librarian.
The elderly woman just glared at him while throwing an eraser in the air and catching it, it was a show of force. She was threatening to throw another of those damn rubber erasers at him again...!
She'd get hers!
Yuki sighed at the blond's hostility to the chief librarian. The elderly woman hated when the silence of the library was broken and all perpetrators were punished with a precisely aimed eraser to the forehead. It legitimately hurt as well.
Mostly because no one expected such a frail-looking woman to throw so hard.
Naruto just grumbled to himself and sat down again to continue glowering at the history textbook in front of him. He was actually making a lot of progress, the problem was that she had to deal with his continuous and ridiculous claims that he would 'never use the information' once he was done in Kuoh.
Didn't he know that it would look suspicious if he worked at a low-end job while he was extremely wealthy? As humans they needed to fit in the modern world, so he couldn't be uneducated in the basics!
As a friend, it was her duty to stop Naruto from making silly decisions because of laziness!
"Hey Yuki...can we take a break? My brain is fried and I really don't want to keep reading about the Kamakura..." Naruto said tiredly while scratching his head.
Yuki stared at the blond for a moment before nodding at his request, she had something to talk to him about anyways.
"Alright Naruto. But first there are some things that we have to talk about." Yuki said quietly while moving up from her seat opposite of the blond to the seat right next to him.
Naruto raised an eyebrow at the move and couldn't help but remember that the hero had no sense of personal space. But her tone shifted to a more serious one, so he assumed that she moved so that there wouldn't be any eavesdroppers. "Alright. What is it Yuki? Sounds serious."
Yuki nodded. "Remember that call that I received at the abandoned church? Well it was from the leader of the Hero Tribe...he wants to meet me in order to discuss the recent events surrounding Kuoh Town. He also wanted to personally speak with you Naruto."
Naruto narrowed his eyes at that, the leader of a faction wanted to talk to him? Personally? Guess he got big names interested in him now. "Any idea why he might want to meet me Yuki?"
The young hero simply shrugged, she honestly wasn't sure.
"But...I do trust him Naruto. He's a good man." Yuki said with a comforting smile.
Naruto's eyes softened at that, so he's got Yuki's approval then...
The shinobi nodded decisively, meeting with such an individual could be nothing but good for him. He could get information on the individual who is leading the heroes and maybe find out more about the faction as a whole. The only thing he had to truly worry about is a double-cross...but since Yuki trusts him, he would trust his integrity.
"When can I meet him?"
Yuki smiled at Naruto's question. "The coming weekend."
Naruto nodded at that and began to think about meeting with such a person...he doesn't have much experience with treating important people with a lot of respect that their positions granted them. At most he treated such people formally, but never with outright deference like most people...
He wouldn't start now either.
Before he pondered the question further, he heard the library door creak open and saw Mio enter the library.
The young daughter of the original Lucifer pinned Naruto with a stare before walking towards his table.
Yuki glanced at the teenaged girl with interest as she stopped before the two of them with her hands on her hips. Obviously at least somewhat annoyed.
"Naruto. I can't really believe what I'm seeing right now...but I will ask later. For now, we have to talk about your lack of information-sharing skills." Mio said with a dry expression.
Yuki blinked at her words. Wait...
Naruto widened his eyes at her words. Wait...
"Ah right! Mio I forgot to tell you that-!" Naruto began, but was quickly silenced when an eraser smacked him in the head, most likely caused by the evil old lady.
"Ah. So you were going to tell me at least. But when were you planning on telling me this Naruto? This was pretty important to know about, especially when it involved...well...who it involved." Mio said while consciously trying not to talk about supernatural things in a library.
Naruto was about to defend himself, but he felt a sharp poke hit him in-between the sensitive juncture of his rib cage and his hips. He glanced at Yuki who was responsible for the annoying feeling.
"...You forgot to tell me too." Yuki said with dull eyes.
...
"I know! I was going to tell you two, but I was distracted by the evil student council and-!"
Another eraser was all he got before he finished his fast-tracked explanation.
He mentally decided that the librarian was going to go onto his hit-list.
No...she was going onto his shit-list. She was just thatannoying to him right now.
As Naruto was distracted by the flying rubber projectiles, Mio only just noticed how the two individuals in front of her were sitting. Literally arm-to-arm, with no personal space being considered.
Mio blinked for a moment.
"...Yuki? Aren't you sitting too close to Naruto?" Mio asked hesitantly, pointing out how close they were to one another.
The hero looked to check her current proximity with the blond. They had to sit like that in order to talk without anyone hearing their conversation, plus they were friends right? This was what friends did, at least she was pretty sure they did. "I don't see what's wrong with how close we are Mio. Is there something wrong?"
"Uh...no not really. Just wanted to point that out I guess, not really a big deal or anything. Yeah, forget I said anything." the young half-devil reassured quickly and somewhat clumsily.
The hero looked at the young red-head with a tilt of her head before shrugging and watching the spectacle of the librarian face off against Naruto.
Mio just plopped down onto another chair, inexplicably annoyed for some reason.