"But...since you guys are here, that means you guys beat them, right?" Issei pointed out. "So what's everyone getting so worked up for?"
Raynare, recognising the importance of the yokai faction leader thanks to her studies, snorted.
Ignoring her, Rias elaborated with a new tension to her frame. "...Issei, if what Yuki-san said was true, then a head of a powerful group in Japan has been attacked by a new faction...then this will very likely affect their interactions with other factions...probably for the worse in this case."
The perverted boy scowled, grasping the basics of what his king was trying to explain, but not much more than that. "Ok...but you make that sound like it's gonna be a bad thing, Buchou."
"It may not be." the Gremory heiress allowed. "But during a time when we're in the middle of something akin to a Cold War with the two other Biblical factions, something like this can very well be the spark necessary to fire up the powder keg that we've metaphorically made."
If anything, the young man's scowl deepened.
This time, it was Saji who spoke up though. "How the hell could this start a war...?"
"Because the yokai are probably gonna be very wary of outsiders now that their leader was attacked, all while searching for new allies that they could...somewhat trust. Something that could tip the delicate balance of power between the numerous supernatural factions in this country." Sona elaborated, concise as ever.
"To be blunt." Raynare decided to cut in. "If the yokai start making alliances all of a sudden, then other factions will grow paranoid that their people could be targeted by more than one group at the same time, spurring them to create an alliance themselves. Eventually leading to a bunch of alliances in a small country with tension that you could physically see between them. Does that simplify it for you?"
Issei gulped. "Y-Yeah."
Rias, newly solemn at the possible consequences of this event being bandied around, turned to face her whiskered friend. "Naruto...after, I assume, you met the leader of the yokai...how likely do you think that-"
"Time out."
The red-head blinked, seeing the blond raise both hands to make the signal of 'time out'. "...What?"
Naruto, who was staying silent throughout the exchange, looked at everyone with half-lidded eyes. "Everything...and I mean everything you were just talking about is moot."
"And why, pray tell, is that?"
"Because..." Yuki stated dryly, covering for the blond. "The head and arms of the Hero Faction has been effectively cut by Naruto during our fight. They have lost their most powerful members and are now leaderless. They are currently not a major threat as far as I'm aware. Not anymore."
Rias felt her jaw slacken a bit, unable to do much else except stare at Naruto in order to get a confirmation from him.
The shinobi felt a bitter smile make it's way to his lips. "Yeah...I did do something like that."
Koneko squinted, noticing the decline of the blond's good mood as they broached the destruction of this 'Hero Faction's' elite.
Did something else happen out there?
Still, the news that an escalation of tension was now unlikely seemed to have eased both devil heiresses enough to miss this fact.
Enough at least that they forgot to ask something that the shinobi hoped they would forget.
Why he needed to speak with the yokai to begin with.
"Thank goodness..." Rias breathed out in relief, muscles relaxing. "Ok...is there anything else?"
"Found my old friend; Basara." Yuki noted, purposefully skipping over the circumstances by rolling onto the next big discussion. "And Naruto disappeared to help Azazel-san with a request."
Raynare somehow managed to choke on spit. "Wait...what the hell!?"
Sona, after taking a moment to recover from her surprise, raised an eyebrow at the fallen's response. "Judging by your reaction, you were not aware of this, I assume?"
"Like hell I knew!" she bit out. "What the hell goes through that man's mind for him to-"
"The Church sent an exorcist to Japan, a really strong one, in the hopes that he could retrieve the fragments of...thatsword." Naruto elaborated, making sure not to say the blade's name. "That bastard told me that he sent you to represent him, and that any meeting between the devils and fallen angels could lead the Church to believe that this was a team effort to weaken them. So...I had to convince him to turn back, that's all."
The shinobi paused, eyeing everyone in the room for a moment.
"You're all welcome by the way. I saved you lot from having to deal with exorcists dattebayo." he added as an afterthought.
Strangely enough though, the young man didn't get the accolades from his friends like he thought he would.
No, instead he got owlish stares.
"Naruto..." Rias started slowly, careful with her words. "I don't know how to tell you this, but..."
"Azazel-sama wasted your time." the sole fallen groused, irritated. "Because we, in fact, were visited by the Church's representatives in the form of exorcists...and they probably think that fallen angels and devils are in cahoots now too."
Predictably, the blond teen's eyes bulged. "Wait, wait, wait! Hold the phone. What do you...? Oh...come on! Please tell me you're all just joking around here..."
Yuki shook her head, her short locks following her movements. "Sorry to say this...but they are correct. Maria and I escorted these exorcists ourselves."
Naruto went silent after that, stewing at the fact that his hard work might've literally been for nothing.
That old bastard never mentioned anything about the Church sending multiple exorcists, just Dulio!
So then what the hell was this!?
Obviously someone, somewhere, fucked up in their information gathering.
Seeing that the blond wouldn't be getting up anytime soon, Yuki decided to ask some questions herself. "Rias-san, Sona-san."
Earning both of their attention, the hero continued. "When you were telling us about that twisted man...Diodora I believe his name was, you never told us why he attacked Mio in the first place. I thought that his aim was for Asia-san...?"
Asia herself shivered at the thought of being targeted by such a person, but willed her body to stop lest she worry anyone.
Meanwhile, beford either of the high-class devils could try and respond...
"I know why."
All focus was turned to Mio, sitting beside the shinobi, her cloudy pink eyes focused on her tightly knit hands placed on her lap.
She was recalling what that man had said during their clash yesterday, delving into something she'd prefer to forget.
She could still hear his taunting words...
"I have to say...your abilities, while diverse, are pretty pathetic considering that you're the daughter of the Original Lucifer!"
She swallowed the anger that threatened to overtake her, focusing on what was important.
He let it slip then, his knowledge of her true heritage.
So caught up in the fight was she that it didn't even occur to her to think about what he was saying.
Until now.
A fact which she interconnected with a conversation that she had with Naruto about a little more than a week ago now.
A conversation following the day where she, quite literally, openly berated the nobles of devil society that attended that stupid party after Naruto finished taking down a phoenix.
After that party, she recalled falling asleep in her brother's arms, succumbing to her mental exhaustion.
Then, when she woke up, she heard of the conversation that took place between Yuki's father and her friends.
Where she first heard about the organization that Yuki was a part of, in detail.
She didn't particularly care about it that much at the time, as she has never had any problems with 'heroes' before, nor did it affect her view of Yuki herself.
But it did explain a few things, to the succubus and to herself.
Most importantly though, was what she had gleaned from the summarized conversation.
The terrorist organization that was dedicated to recreating the old devil government and overthrowing the current one.
The Old Maou Faction.
She had no doubt in her mind that the man that knew of her heritage; Diodora, was a part of that group.
Everyone that she knew or heard of had no love for the Original Lucifer, in fact, her life was in constant danger because of her heritage.
Yet...Diodora had claimed that she had an 'admirer'...
Only one that had respect for the old Maou could possibly know of her heritage and admire her, her friends in the room not withstanding.
But who led such a group?
Unfortunately no one would give her a straight answer on that, so she had no idea.
Regardless, her belief was just a suspicion at best, so maybe she should take back what she said.
Besides...admitting to her proof meant that she had to admit to everyone of her heritage...
Mio shivered, recoiling from the idea.
Don't think about it.
Just don't think about it.
"...Nevermind." Mio murmured, frowning. "I thought I knew, but I was wrong."
The silence following her statement was loud, far too loud.
A quiet that drowned out all noise.
Even worse was the look that her sibling was giving her with his shining and bright blue eyes.
He didn't need to say a word.
'I understand.'
"I see then..." Rias calmly said, letting her kohai go uncontested. "Then, for now, until we get more information, we should assume that Diodora was working alone, agreed?"
A chorus of nods and murmured agreements followed closely after her statement, settling the matter.
Which left one more important thing to talk about.
"I suppose...that everyone here is curious about the fight I ended up in the second I came back to Kuoh Town." Naruto dryly guessed, checking the facial expressions of everyone around him.
He was a hundred percent correct.
"That purple-haired girl." Issei remembered out loud, unable to forget. "She acted like she knew you, Naruto. What the hell is that about?"
The shinobi shrugged, genuinely not sure. "Dunno, all I know is that she has apparently been watching me for a long time and...that she wants to change me."
"Sounds kinda ominous to me, Naruto-sama." Maria claimed, getting some nods of agreement from others.
"Agreed." Yuki concurred. "But what does she want to change you into exactly? And for what purpose?"
"From what I gather..." the blond intoned through half-lidded eyes. "She essentially wants me to join her and become a bitter asshole, or something along those lines. As to the 'why'...no clue."
At least, nothing truly solid.
He only had a vague idea of what she had planned for him, he only really knew that she needed him for...something.
Until he knew what though, he wouldn't needlessly have them worry about it.
'Coward.'
A groan escaped Naruto's throat, feeling a headache throb all of a sudden, not hearing the whisper at the absolute edge of his awareness.
No one noticed, too focused on the discussion at hand.
"...Counter-productive." Koneko pointed out stoically, not seeing the logic in play.
"And delusional." Raynare shook her head, almost pitying the girl in her impossible goal. "How exactly can she make this ball of sunshine into a sadsack?"
Imperceptibly, the young man winced, hoping that the fallen's words were as irrefutable as she made it out to be.
"I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that you're also not sure whether she works alone or not." Rias predicted, disgruntled with just how in the dark they were in.
Naruto's helpless shrug was his only answer.
Sona turned from the group to face her queen, in the middle of taking notes as requested. "You got all of that, Tsubaki?"
Tsubaki raised her head from the notepad she was scribbling on. "Yes, kaichou. We so far have a heavily weakened 'Hero Faction', a traitorous former high-class devil that may or may not have connections with an unknown yet hostile group, a purple-haired woman that carries unknown intentions towards Uzumaki-san and has the strength to face him on an even playing field, and two exorcists that may or may not be hostile roaming in Kuoh Town."
...
"Quite the summary." Raynare stated with an amused expression, impressed in spite of herself.
"Thank you." the Sitri queen replied cooly.
"Yeah...it really was, wasn't it?" the Gremory heiress murmured, sagging onto the slightly table that they were using to have this discussion with. "There's just...so many enemies to contend with..."
"...Maybe. But then again, maybe not." Sona wondered, folding her hands onto her lap. "Remember, at least two groups; those so-called 'heroes' and the exorcists...they didn't want anything to do with us, and for the most part, I doubt that that has changed."
Saji shared a look with another member of his king'sPeerage, realizing that this was very true.
At the very least, they were all not those group's targets, they just so happened to be in close proximity to those targets.
"Actually, now that you mention it..." the other high-class devil turned towards Naruto, aiming to get specifics. "You said that that purple-haired woman was aiming to change you, right? So what exactly does that mean for the rest of us?"
Naruto scratched his cheek, looking apologetic. "Ah, well, to be honest, I couldn't help but get the impression that she very much doesn't care about any of you."
On a normal day, that'd be pretty insulting, but in this case it was something of a godsend.
Ironic that a devil felt that way though.
Because if what the blond claimed was true, then that meant that his adversary was at least predictable in her target.
With that in mind, they could now formulate plans and contingencies based on the target placed on his back.
Which, in total, left three out of the four...leaving only one more...
"Diodora...and whoever he is probably involved with." Sona finished her friend's thought for her.
Whoever Diodora was aiding, if he was working for someone anyway, it was obvious that the objective in that case revolved around Naruse Mio for whatever reason.
But unlike Naruto's case, the devil wasn't laser-focused on Mio, instead he specifically focused on her comrades around her to leave her isolated when the time came to attack.
So they were all fair game, and thus, if the threat still existed, would be the most immediate threat.
But, as was proven frustratingly clear in the discussion, they weren't sure.
They weren't sure about a lot of things.
But...at least they had an idea, something that was infinitely better than nothing at all.
"My...we have quite the conundrum on our hands, huh?" Yuuto asked rhetorically, marvelling at the sheer scope of the many groups around them.
That wasn't even getting into their lack of contact to the Underworld and the prospect of the rogue Grigori member; Kokabiel, still having a presence in Kuoh Town.
But seeing the look on everyone's faces, he figured that that could be left for later.
Perhaps noticing this introspective atmosphere, Naruto raised his limbs high above his head to stretch them, yawning loudly all the while.
"Hey now..." he drawled, giving everyone around him a critical look. "Don't go and overthink about this problem, or you'll all get grey hair early."
Ignoring the slightly scandalized look that she got from bespectacled high-class devil, the blond continued on. "Don't get me wrong, having an eye on the future is important, but letting it dominate your head to the point where it messes you up now is a bad idea."
The shinobi felt himself ease up a little, his voice softening a bit without his input. "Relax, all of you, we'll deal with each of these groups when the time comes. So...just make sure to grow stronger and enjoy life, alright?"
Once more, the room fell silent, taking in the blond's words, letting the absence of noise stretch on.
"You're right." Yuki declared, certain of this. "We can't obsess over this, it won't help us any. We are all now aware of what has happened in the past few days, all that's left to do is live as we normally do and prepare for the next crisis."
"Yeah...that's probably for the best." Raynare backed up the hero, relaxed. "Getting worked up will do more harm than good, it will prove that you are all getting spooked. I mean, go ahead and let your enemies win if you want, not my problem anyway."
The human female's dull stare were trained onto the fallen angel, appreciating the support...without the abrasive words that accompanied it.
It seemed to have worked, as Rias' eyes flared with her innate competitiveness. "No. We won't allow our enemies to dictate how we feel or how we live our lives. We are better than that. Instead, we should all focus on improving ourselves in preparation...for whatever lies ahead."
Seeing determination flicker to life in those blue-green eyes of hers brought a assured smirk to Naruto's lips, pleased.
From Vretiel to Riser to Diodora, powerful enemies sprung up and posed a threat to her and those she cared for.
If she was convinced that they needed to get stronger before, she was now thoroughly won over by the idea.
Possibly seeing his positive expression, her eyes flicked to him.
Was there a light pink dusting her cheeks? Or was that just the light playing tricks on him?
"Can I- we look forward to your support in our growth?" she questioned, utilizing politically correct terms.
But there was no mistaking the easy smile that made it's way to her lips.
And, honestly, she needn't have asked anyway.
"You know you do."
She did too.
But hearing it verbally still lifted her heart regardless.
"Then it seems that we've gone over everything we possibly could have gone over in regards to these last few days." Rias declared unilaterally, though she doubted anyone would object. "And if that's the case, then I see no reason for us to continue this discussion, correct?"
Varying expressions were bandied about by the numerous occupants of the room.
Raynare's part mocking, part genuine smirk.
Issei's confident grin.
Yuki's rather indulgent smile.
Maria's excited beaming.
The blink-and-you'll-miss-it upward twitch at the corners of Koneko's mouth.
Akeno's...
...
Akeno's...?
Rias blinked, realizing she has stopped to stare, and quickly returned to finish what she was going to say.
Whatever that was, she'd deal with it as soon as this meeting was adjourned.
"Then, with all we have gone over, I say that it's time to return back to daily life and work together to raise our strengths and cover our weaknesses. Meeting adjourned!"
"Hey, Naruto, may I ask you a question?"
Naruto sideglanced to look at the other blond, interested. "What's up?"
Honestly speaking, he wasn't really doing anything at the moment, since everyone was talking to everyone else at the moment.
The moment that the discussion ended, Raynare opted to leave the building and go get some shut-eye.
Rias had dragged her queen off to parts unknown.
Sona was going over her own queen's notes.
The pervert was animatedly going over his recent fight with Asia, regaling her with his 'badass' maneuvers.
The rest of the Sitri group was conversing with each other, probably about student council work.
And Mio was...
Sending a spare glance ahead of him, he saw his imouto getting an in-depth rundown of what happened in Kyoto by Yuki and Maria.
Then, as if sensing him, she swiveled her head to sneak a peek at him.
He waved.
She beamed and waved back.
Then she returned to the conversation.
Worrying.
That was Naruto's dominant emotion right then and there.
As he knew that she didn't predict his looking over there.
No...actually, she had been turning to him to check if he was still there every ten minutes or so.
Her strange behavior was beginning to get to him now.
"Well, you see, Naruto." Yuuto continued, not noticing the blond's split attention. "I was wondering if you...noticed something that caught my attention last night. Something hard to miss."
The whiskered teen regained his bearings quickly. "Something hard to miss, eh? Interesting. But why are you bringing this up now? Why not during the meeting?"
A small frown was his response. "After all that's happened, I don't want to worry everyone with another issue that may be baseless."
Almost as an afterthought, he halted, his expression becoming pained.
"...I've given everyone enough stress I think."
Ah, so it was like that, huh?
"Ok then, so what's this...uh...'thing' that you felt last night?" the blond pressed, facial features backing up his open nature.
Soothed, Yuuto took the plunge. "Well...last night, before I even knew that anyone was in danger, I felt a dark energy emerge all of a sudden from another part of Kuoh Town. I...I'm not too sure how to explain it, but it felt...hateful. I thought that it might've been the enemy, but it eventually disappeared during your fight. Do you have any idea what I'm talking about?"
The shinobi's open visage slammed shut in an instant.
Steel-grey watched the change with a feeling of dread, not understanding what he had done to warrant such an action.
But the shift, as quickly as it had come, was just as quickly undone, with the young man shrugging his shoulder with an air of ease.
The knight felt like he was imagining it almost...
"Don't remember feeling something like that." Naruto claimed, sounding honest.
Nodding, Yuuto believed him, not seeing the telltale signs of a lie in sight.
And he wasn't lying. He didn't feel that hatred.
He felt something far worse.
"...Naruto-sempai?"
A haze was cleared in the blond's head, giving him the ability to lock gazes with the snow-haired teen that was one year his junior.
"What's wrong, Koneko-san?"
Koneko stared at the blond, hesitant, her small face scrunching up.
"...Nothing, never mind."
She chickened out, much to her inner frustration.
After everything that's happened, she was hoping that maybe...just maybe she could-
"Hey, Koneko-san, wanna train with me?" Naruto asked, an encouraging smile on his face.
The rook nearly tripped over herself, how did he-?
"Ah...sorry about that, I did kinda just ask that completely out of the blue, didn't I?" the shinobi apologized, scratching his cheek. "Well...the thing is, I wanted to ask you whether we could train together after that little devil party we attended, cause I figured you'd want to after that. And...well...I think I may be able to teach you some stuff."
Koneko was silent, heart swelling at the idea that he was already planning on helping her growth, no, more than that, actually train with her.
Back in her king's summer home, he simply just fought them and pointed out some flaws in their fighting styles, he didn't actively train anyone, not really.
Yet he was willing to do it now, for her.
Taking the reincarnated devil's silence as hesitation however, the blond quickly backpedaled on the idea. "Well, of course, you don't have to do it if you don't want to..."
"Thank you."
It was clear and concise, true and emotive.
He understood.
After being spooked by the feeling of senjutsu at least a week ago, and after getting thrown into a fight that no one could have possibly imagined even could have happened...she was raring to go.
"We'll start tomorrow, alright?"
Her hazel eyes shined with determination.
"Yes!"
It was a little dark outside again.
A few hours have passed since they had their little meeting, where almost everyone was spending time just chatting, catching up with one another now that they've collectively caught their breath.
But, after a while, the blond decided to slip out of the festivities, needing some time to get ready for his first training session with Koneko and to make sure that Raynare was alright.
She was a guest after all.
So, aware that Mio was checking to make sure he was there every now and again, he made sure to leave a clone behind when he slipped out.
Now he was casually walking back home, checking out the empty streets, figuring that mostly everyone was back at their homes, preparing to eat dinner soon.
Just like him.
Which was why he was a bit surprised to see someone he recognized come out of a small market stall as he entered the commercial district.
Said person, as if sensing his presence, turned to meet his blue with their violet.
"...Akeno!" he breathed.
Akeno's eyes lit up in recognition as well, but before she could say anything...
"Akeno-san! Don't tell me that that's all you're getting!" a voice rang out from the stall.
An easy smile made it's way to her lips. "Ara, but if I doubt I could finish everything if I got anymore groceries."
From the stall emerged an eldery woman, her wrinkled face stretched into a smile as she walked up to the younger woman with aid from her cane.
"Nonesense!" she dismissed, her grey eyes critical despite the smile decorating her features. "You're a budding young lady! You need more protein in your diet!"
The queen of the Gremory group shook her head wryly, having had this discussion with the elderly woman. "Can we please not have this discussion in front of my friend here?"
"Your friend?" the old lady echoed, before turning and noticing the blond teen watching them.
She stared back at him for a few seconds, turning back to her young patron again.
Then looked at him once more.
Until finally landing on Akeno, a cheesy grin on her face. "Oh ho! Now I understand!"
Naruto narrowed his eyes when the elderly woman waved for him to come closer, wary.
When he reached her, he was able to see Akeno's apologetic features through the side of his eyes.
"Here, take this young man." The weird lady said, grabbing his arm so that she could bring his hand up to her, then place something into his palm.
Raising his hand to inspect what he had just received, his eyebrow twitched.
It was a small square plastic package with a slight bulge in the center, belonging to something circular within.
He knew exactly what he was holding.
"Stay 'safe' Akeno-san!" the woman chirped, chuckling as she backed up into the stall, probably to get back home.
Both teens stood there, watching her go.
Until Naruto swung his arm to the ground, flinging his 'gift' to the ground with a red face.
That perverted old bat...!
"Apologies, although she's...a bit eccentric, she does mean well."
Naruto grunted, but didn't really say anything else.
Both teens were roughly going in a similar direction, so they began walking together following that...'event'
He still had no idea what the hell happened there.
"She seemed awfully nosy, don'tcha think?" he commented, not really expecting an answer.
He got one anyway in the form of a chuckle.. "Ufufu...she's like that to everyone she's taken a liking to. Please forgive her."
Naruto kept walking as he tilted his head to peer at his companion through the side of his eye. "She's taken a liking to you?"
"Yep!" Akeno chirped. "As a matter of fact, I know most of the vendors in the commercial area since I act as the de-facto cook in Buchou's Peerage. Especially when it comes to making Koneko-chan's sweets and, of course, brewing tea."
"Seriously?"
"Ara ara, do you not believe me?"
The shinobi raised his hands up in surrender, marvelling at the idea that someone like Akeno would be friends with vendors from these local market stalls.
It was something so small and mundane that...well, it never crossed his mind as being in the realm of possibility.
A small snippet into a person that he really didn't know all that well yet.
...Maybe that should change.
Starting with something besides her weird aversion to Raynare, since she obviously wasn't willing to part with that information yet.
As the blond was reaching that conclusion, the voluptuous woman beside him was in her own little world herself.
Having only recently left from the small talk that her kinghad dragged her into, the young woman was initially looking forward to some time alone to her thoughts.
But then the blond showed up, and she suddenly felt more inclined to talk.
So the both of them were, unbeknownst to each other, ready and willing to have have heart-to-heart, maybe.
Unfortunately, it wasn't to be, since the duo had continued to move forward, where they eventually wandered past an abandoned alleyway.
An alleyway that had an occupant.
"Shit, shit, shit!"
A hunched form deep in the shadows was vehemently screaming expletives without a care in the world, earning the attention of anyone within hearing distance.
Like the two supernatural-aware young adults passing by.
"That shitty geezer promised me blood if I gave his toys a few test runs...but there's been no blood!" the insane man clothed in priestly clothing roared, furiously slicing apart an innocent garbage can with a wicked-looking sword. "'Don't kill any normal humans' he said, 'it would cause too much of a commotion' he said!"
Viciously kicking a fallen can, the 'priest' bellowed. "Well, fuck you old man! I'm here for some blood! Whether it's shitty devil blood or heathen human blood doesn't matter anymore! I'm gonna get my decapitated teddy bear with fresh blood to help me get some sleep if it's the last thing I do!"
He paused there, an exaggerated scowl on his face, deeply considering...something.
"...Maybe two decapitated bodies, and any children or pets I come across will get some too. That will teach those shitty devils to hide from me!" he declared arbitrarily, haughty.
Decision reached, the psychotic turned on the spot, his red eyes gleaming with ill intent.
Which was wiped away as soon as he noticed the two figures who had witnessed everything.
"...Ara, this is rather awkward." Akeno noted playfully. "We have heard everything just now."
"Yeah, we did." Naruto agreed readily, rolling up his sleeves. "So, you wanna do this or should I?"
A considering hum was what he received as an initial response. "Hmmm...instead of doing this separately...why not do this together?"
The dark grin that emerged on both of their faces gave the 'priest' the shivers.
Made even worse when, out of nowhere, the blond produced a small knife and electricity began to dance around the ravenette's body.
Her dark giggling didn't help.
"Well, if it's any comfort, there is at least one thing that all three of us can all agree on." the blond claimed, twirling his kunai as his glare sharpened. "...And that's that you came to the wrong neighborhood."
The insane 'priest', even with his limited logical facilities, knew a lost battle when he saw one.
Which is why he; Freed Sellzen, only had one thing to say.
"...Fuck."
"You seem to be kind of anxious there, Yuki."
Yuki jerked a bit, a little dusting of pink lighting up her cheeks in embarrassment.
She didn't realize that she was so distracted that the succubus could sneak up on her.
"Do you think so, Maria?" the hero couldn't help but wonder.
Maria, playful to a fault, frowned. "Well...you were up here instead of inside, then I see you stare blankly at the sky. I even managed to sneak up on you. You kinda have a habit of internalizing everything to boot, so..."
The hero marked everything she said as factual in a mental checklist, but didn't reply immediately.
Maria was impatient though. "Did I guess right?"
That was a guess? "Maybe."
"I got it, didn't I?"
Yuki stayed silent.
The succubus watched her for a moment, then idly balanced herself on the balls of her feet, twirling around in place. "Is this about the guy that you had me lug when we were going back to everyone else?"
Basara.
While, yes, she was worried about his comatose state, she knew that he'd be alright in the end.
Especially since he was secure in one of the guest rooms within Rias' base of operations, monitored.
That wasn't what was occupying her mind.
"Heh, bet that you're anxious whether they'll fight for your love or something like that."
No, she wasn't.
"Oh! Maybe you want that though! Ohhhhh...if that's the case then you should have me as an advisor before it blows up in your face, you're too fresh to handle such delicious drama by yourself. Unless, you also want that to happen..."
"I finally did it." Yuki interrupted.
Maria tilted her head to the side once she stopped twirling. "You finally had your first time? Well I hoped that you recorded it at the very least..."
"No." the hero sighed, why was she even telling her this? "I...I finally contacted otou-sama."
It took a moment for her to receive a response, but when she did, it was in the form of a proud smile.
"And? How'd he take it?" the silverette prompted, curious.
"About as well as you'd expect a father to take it." was the hero's vague response. "It...will take him a while for him to sort through his emotions."
She pulled her legs closer to her chest in her seated position, daring to hope that she could say 'otou-sama' after all was said and done.
What was wrong with the Great Hero?
Ever since the surprise kidnapping of a key member of the Hero Tribe, the entire base was on lockdown, with the higher ups of the faction immediately convening in an emergency session to figure out what to do.
The base had been compromised by an unknown group, several heroes laid dead, and an important member was kidnapped.
This was precisly the time that leadership and focus was needed, as well as decisive action.
Yet when Takashi, the only witness to the identities of the perpetrators, identified the ringleader of the group, his response was lackluster at best.
Instead of immediate reprisals, he cautioned against it, unwilling to rush right into hostile action.
At first, even with the emotions of many heightened, they listened to their Great Leader, their respect for his achievements and power obvious.
Until another higher up angrily wondered whether his caution had far more to do with keeping his adopted daughter's 'friend', who matched Takashi's description of the attacker, safe, rather than wisdom.
The Hero Tribe leader was no doubt regretting giving the elders a description of his daughter's newest ally.
Still, the damage has been done, and many heroes couldn't help but question Toujou Jin' s motives now that the charge was out there.
The Hero Tribe quickly became split between those that advised caution and those that advised immediate action.
Then, to make matters worse, during another heated discussion with the Hero Tribe's elders, the Great Hero's phone rang.
It wasn't so much the fact that his phone rang that was the issue, it was his response to it when he irritably picked it up and listened.
It was a slow change, but Toujou Jin's features grew deathly pale, his cigarette falling out of limp lips, the whites of his eyes going red.
He was forced to excuse himself for a moment, but as he went, so did the elders' confidence in him.
Which has led to Takashi's curent situation, his newest mission, given to him behind their leader's back.
To retrieve Nonaka Yuki from Kuoh Town, whether she wants to or not.
A mission to gather intelligence on her erstwhile 'ally'.
But he doubted that he could do it alone, he was going to need some help.
And he knew exactly who to go to.