All they really knew was that their initial training was over.
Figuring this, Asia hopped off of her seat on the bleachers and began jogging towards the two, prepared to act out her primary duty as a healer.
Issei, who was sitting next to her, leaned back in his seat, grunting. "Well...that went well. Damn it, I was hoping that she'd knock him down once at least. She almost had him when she did that spinning kick too..."
A rude snort interrupted him, earning a growl from the perverted boy as it's owner grinned at his irritation.
"I seriously doubt either you, or anyone here for that matter, could actually score a decent hit on him. Let alone 'knock him down'." Raynare scathingly rebuked, her violet eyes hooded as she challenged him.
The Boosted Gear wielder glared at her sharply. "I know I can't beat him yet, but I'd like to think that I could at least touch him now. With the strength that I've got now at least!"
She simply snorted again, much to his rising aggravation.
She's seen that man face off against beings that would easily brush off the reincarnated devil like he was nothing.
What hope did he have against someone who could face against fallen angels with five pairs of wings and a genuinephoenix?
Frankly, it was downright insulting that he could assume to be anywhere near that level yet, at least to her.
Unfortunately, between these two strong personalities, Mio was tensely resting her chin on her two hands, which were in turn propped by her knees, staring ahead with narrowed eyes.
She chose the absolute worst spot to relax on, obviously.
"Alright you two..." Rias spoke up, noticing her kohai's predicament, preparing to throw her a lifeline. "There's no need to argue about something so silly. It's all in good fun, since we're all on the same side."
Issei, chastised, turned away from the fallen angel and swallowed his aggravated feelings.
The fallen also turned away from him, casually placing an elbow onto her knee so that she could properly prop up her head, which was resting on her palm.
Her eyes were drawn to the two fighters in the distance, inspecting them with something akin to how a scientist would inspect something under a microscope.
Rias watched all of this with a sigh, a little regretful that she allowed the rival supernatural being to watch Koneko's training after school ended.
It was truly interesting, seeing the fallen angel touring the school grounds while being accompanied by Naruto's little family.
So, she thought that it'd be far too rude to exclude the other supernatural woman from the happenings that she was about to remind the blond of.
Of course, she was now cursing her thoroughly drilled lessons about common courtesy.
"Food's here, everyone~"
Her blue-green gaze snapped to what was in front of her, getting intensely mixed feelings all the while.
And how could she not?
She was getting better.
For a little bit, she was back to normal.
But with her here...
Well...the young devil could only hope that her friend could keep it together.
Cheerfully humming a tune, Himejima Akeno was casually walking towards them after having exited the elevator, carrying a large tray of delicious-looking goodies with her hands.
Beside her, Maria was also helping out by carrying an assortment of beverages, as well as some finely brewed tea to boot, looking far too pleased with herself.
Completely missing the tension in his king's frame, Issei beamed as he saw the trays of food. "Oh...! Ouh! Food made by Akeno-sempai! Hell yes!"
Unbeknownst to him, he had just blew off the hard work of his sempai's partner, who had just puffed up her cheeks in agitation.
"Hey." Maria interrupted, tapping her foot against the ground when she stopped in front of him. "She wasn't the only one who worked hard on making all of this, I'll have you know."
The pawn blinked, looking at her oddly. "...You can cook?"
"Someone has to." she replied with a long-suffering sigh. "Neither Naruto-sama or Mio-sama are decent cooks. At all. It really makes me wonder how Naruto-sama has managed to survive by himself for so long..."
Actually, now that she thought about it, the blond probably just survived off of ramen cups.
Knowing him, that's probably all he ate too.
Stepping in front of the group with a relaxed air, completely unaffected by the bickering of the two beside her, she offered the tray that she was holding with an upturn of her lips. "I figured that everyone would be rather hungry after class, so I took the liberty to make some food and beverages. I actually finished faster than expected thanks to Maria-san over here too, so please thank her properly, Issei-kun."
Flashing a nervous grin, the perverted boy chuckled and scratched the back of his head, bowing his head a little in acquiescence.
Mollified, the succubus' bloated cheeks returned back to their normal sizes. "Ok! What's everyone waiting for? Dig in!"
Permission given, Issei jumped at the chance, feeling starving as far as he was concerned.
Yuuto, the more measured of the two, just took one of the tasty biscuits and began munching on it quietly, gaze focused on the two that were currently training.
Rias on the other hand, didn't move, watching warily as the encounter that she couldn't predict went underway in front of her.
Because while the pawn had no qualms with grabbing a delicious pastry from the tray, Raynare looked at the assortment of food and beverages like with barely held suspicion.
Still, despite this, she cautiously leaned closer to the tray, expectant.
Which kick-started the interaction that the Gremory heiress really didn't want to occur.
Akeno, probably having seen the slight movement through the side of her eye, turned to the sole fallen, her pleasant smile still on.
Unconsciously, Rias held her breath, preparing herself for the fallout.
Somehow, she felt that Raynare followed her lead.
"Ara? Would you like some snacks as well?" the young woman asked with a tilt of the head. "Well then, it can't be helped can it? This is all meant for everyone after all. Help yourself."
Raynare blinked.
So did Rias for that matter.
Whereas Issei just began chomping on a muffin, breathing out in absolute bliss, ignorant of the proceedings around him.
"S-Seriously?" the fallen questioned dubiously, looking shaken. "Are you sure?"
Akeno nodded cheerfully, swiveling the tray towards the other woman, no trace of any prior hostility.
Her king watched this with baited breath, daring to hope against hope that their private 'talk' actually produced something.
Just yesterday, Rias had dragged Akeno with her to one of the other rooms after the group meeting that they all had had adjourned, seeking privacy.
She had to speak to her, that was all there was to it.
Because right when the meeting was going to end, a conclusion that left everyone feeling almost universally better about their situation, she noticed that there was an exception.
A single grim exception.
And it seemed that Akeno herself realized how much her adverse feelings to the sole fallen angel was raising everyone's tension unnecessarily as well, since she bemoaned that very fact as soon as they were by themselves.
Back then, Rias didn't even have to say a word, she just had to listen to her friend release her true feelings about the subject, and then watch her reach a new resolve.
All without her input.
Honestly, she was rather impressed.
Then, to make matters more interesting, her queen unilaterally decided to work harder in holding her distaste for the fallen woman back and to make it up to her comrades for the unnecessary trouble she's caused.
Which meant, obviously, a full-blown delicious feast for everyone, filled with food that would probably take them all at least a week to burn.
In fact, Akeno was so dead-set on this idea of her's, that immediately afterwards she left to go get the necessary ingredients.
To put it bluntly; Rias expected Akeno to follow through with her attempt at making up with her friends, but she only held a dim hope of seeing herself hold herself back with Raynare.
She was shocked, really.
And so was Raynare, if her unhinged jaw was any indication.
Apparently done interacting with the other ravenette, her queen turned to her, then turned to the two figures that were off in the distance, still talking. "How's Koneko-chan's training going so far?"
Relieved by the ease that her friend held herself in, Rias answered. "Honestly, she held out longer than I thought. She even nearly managed to score a clean hit on him despite his speed advantage. That being said, Naruto apparently just wanted to gauge her current abilities...so I can't say for sure how seriously he took the sparring match."
"Not too seriously I think..." Yuuto murmured off to the side absently, eyes still glued to Naruto and Koneko. "But seriously enough to press her hard enough. At least, I think."
Neither of the 'Great Ladies' had an answer to that, opting to join the knight as their friends continued their discussion.
Meanwhile, one of the objects of their discussions twitched as a certain aroma hit her senses, causing her eyes to glaze over at the sweet smell...
"Oi, don't lose focus here. This is something important that you've gotta hear." Naruto criticized, lightly bopping Koneko on the crown of her head, bringing her back to earth.
Pouting just a bit, she turned her full focus back to her sparring partner, waiting to hear his verdict.
He gave it to her alright. "Like I said before; you've improved quite a bit. Faster than I thought you would, honestly. Really, all you've really got to improve on is your ability to get up-close-and-personal to your enemy, as well as your overall speed."
He stopped there, crossing his arms and closing his eyes, delving deeper in thought.
The rook tilted her head, feeling like her sempai wasn't quite done with whatever he had to say, feeling just a little bit of trepidation fill her as she waited.
She didn't know why but...
"Hey...Koneko."
But this felt...important.
"I need you to focus on me. Don't split your attention to anything or anyone else." the blond continued, looking at her with a mix of seriousness and apprehensiveness that she couldn't help but reciprocate.
Yet she could feel how important this was, despite how strange the request seemed at first glance.
So she nodded, and did as she was asked.
Smiling a bit in gratitude before it was washed away, Naruto studied her features intensely, doing nothing except standing there for a few sparse moments.
The two of them stayed like that, motionless, waiting for a reaction from the other as a light wind drifted past both of their bodies.
Koneko frowned, trying to ignore the brush that tickled her skin and focus on the boy in front of her, confused as to what they were doing and why.
Whatever the young man wanted her to see, feel, or hear obviously wasn't reaching her however, if his scrunched brows exemplified his state of mind.
"...I knew it was weird...but still, this close she should be able to..." the blond muttered, more to himself than anyone else, even though Koneko was able to hear him without trouble.
Then his eyes refocused on her, as sharp as knives. "...Stop thinking."
Feeling her confusion grow by the second, the devil opened her mouth to ask what he could have possibly meant by that-
"Stop thinking." he reiterated in no uncertain terms. "Don't try and control what you're feeling, just...let go. Let your instincts take control, and feel."
The wind brushed against her again, tickling her, shifting her pure white hair as she struggled to accommodate her friend's demand, unsure of how to go about it.
So she did the only thing she could think of.
She closed her eyes.
This time, when the strange breeze tickled her skin again, begging for her to listen to it's whispers, she...very simply...
...Listened.
It was a strange thing to do, to just be quiet and pay attention to the environment around you, especially considering the sheer amount of things that one could pay attention to in this day and age.
For a moment though, she placed all of those distractions into the back of her mind, focusing on nothing.
Nothing except the breeze brushing her hair.
Or the light sound of rustling that whistled against her ears.
Or the clean air that rushed into her nose.
Or...the azure light that lit up in front of her closed eyelids.
Then, just like that, her eyes snapped open.
And that's when the reincarnated devil finally began to feelit.
It was subtle, and barely noticeable, but the feeling that tingled her senses and re-energized her couldn't be denied, or ignored.
Nor could the blue wisps of energy that simmered near her, acting like a wind that rushed around both of them, entangling them in it's warm embrace.
Her eyes stopped following the energy that surrounded her and focused on the blond again, a question at the tip of her tongue, begging to be asked.
She needn't have to.
His smile said it all.
"...You see it now, don't ya?" he muttered, his smile stretching to the edge of his face.
Koneko didn't move, as still as a stone. "...This..."
"Do you recognize it?" the shinobi questioned softly, peering at her with that calm air of his. "You should."
She did.
Except...she also didn't.
Koneko admitted as much when she raised her hands to look at them, feeling the 'wind' brush through her fingers, so intimately familiar...yet so foreign.
That was just it though, it felt familiar, but she...couldn't grasp what it was.
Fingers bents back to their palms, turning into fists once she closed her eyes, daring to wonder whether this 'feeling', which felt about as native to her as breathing could really be...
Could actually be...
"It's chakra."
The rook stiffened, raising her bowed head to look her sempai in the eye, growing wider than he honestly ever thought possible.
"...How?" was all she could ask.
What else could she ask?
How was it possible for a human being to have chakra? Let alone wield it with such ease and confidence?
But, at the same time, how could she have missed this?
Just looking at the young man in front of her, she could practically feel the chakra that was leaking out of him, all without much reserve, with plenty left to spare.
Simply put; it was obvious.
Naruto wasn't hiding this power from her or anything, to the contrary, he was exhibiting it for her to see in plain sight.
So why couldn't she-?
"Man...I have to admit, I was pretty worried there for a minute. I was starting to think that you completely threw away your instincts in regards to chakra." the blond admitted, filling in the gap in the conversation. "Seriously, I've used my chakra near you before, yet you've never sensed it. Despite the fact that you've also got chakra...I just thought that that was weird when I figured out that you had that power within ya."
Nudging her a bit with his shoulder, he continued. "...Until I figured that you were kinda like me, that is."
Koneko looked up at the taller boy, squinting at him. "...Like you? How?"
Scratching the back of his neck in a bashful gesture, he decided to elaborate. "Well...I know what it's like to do everything that I can to avoid using a power that I don't trust. Kinda like senjutsu for you, right?"
Hazel eyes hardened as soon as the word 'senjutsu' emerged from his sentence, raising her hackles like nothing else could. "...Are you going to begin lecturing me, Naruto-sempai...? Are you going to tell me that...it's selfish for me to not use...that power?"
Blinking in momentary surprise, Naruto propped his chin between his fingers, humming.
"Nah. Can't do that." he eventually claimed.
Nearly tripping over herself in her surprise, the young devil had to genuinely try and not gape at the other teen, which was really saying something for her. "What?"
"You heard me." Naruto reaffirmed. "I can't do that. The only way I would have any right to lecture you about something would be if I actually...ya know...followed my own advice. The thing is; I still haven't overcome the obstacle that you yourself are dealing with, so what right do I have to lecture you?"
While Koneko refused to touch the natural energy of this world, and possibly for good reason, Naruto himself was very skittish about using the kyuubi's chakra, even more so when it felt like a darker persona of himself took control in that state.
It was all so strange to him, but that only proved his point; he had no right to criticize her.
That being said... "I get why you don't want to use senjutsu, but I'll have you know that chakra and senjutsu, while connected to one another, are not the same. You have nothing to fear from not using it dattebayo."
He then patted his own chest, the azure fire around him becoming just a tad brighter at his action. "After all, I'm living proof of it, aren't I?"
The rook nervously watched the energy with all of the enthusiasm of a brick wall. "...Your chakra...it's different though. It's more...'alive' than any I've ever felt. What if-?"
"No 'What ifs'!" the blond cut her off, glaring sternly. "Are you gonna live life by pondering the 'what ifs'? Or are you actually gonna give it a try when you have no reason to believe that it will hurt you? I mean, senjutsu, yeah, I get that. But chakra? C'mon, I'm literally using it right in front of you!"
Going off on a mini tirade seemed to have at least given his 'apprentice' enough of a shake to actually consider what was, until that point at least, a forbidden venue of power.
But the way she bit her bottom lip and clenched her small fists by her side suggested that she was, putting it mildly, pretty conflicted about utilizing that power within her. Without a doubt because of it's association with senjutsu.
So, taking a breath of air, the blond decided to take a different tact. "Hey...you're frustrated by your slow growth, right? Well, to be brutally honest, unless you access that chakra within you, your growth will remain slow, since the only thing we can improve would be your basic strength, endurance, and speed. No, in my opinion, you need access to new powers to compliment your fighting."
Thumping his fist against his chest, the young man grinned now, supportive. "And I have just the techniques for it, but you could only use them if you have chakra."
Koneko stared at him, her face a mask of neutrality, keeping her thoughts well hidden now.
But her eyes showed him the truth; her conflict.
And she would stay like that, wavering in what she wanted to achieve in comparison to what she wanted to disassociate herself from.
Then she raised her head to lock her gaze with the young man, seeing the cool ocean-blue and the confidence that simmered within their depths.
And with that, made a decision. "I...I'll try."
Naruto's grin exploded into a full-blown smile. "Let's get started then, shall we?"
Swallowing her misgivings, the young devil got back into a fighting stance, prepared to restart their training.
"W-Wait!"
A squeak made the rook blink, slowly turning to the side to see a panting nun reach them with a brave attempt at looking stern crossing her features, which failed miserably. "K-Koneko-san! Naruto-san! Please stop! Koneko-san's body should be repaired first before you fight again, so please be patient!"
Both combatants looked at her, both prepared to inform her that her worries were unfounded and that they could keep going-
"Ah."
Until Asia poked the nasty bruise that formed on her stomach.
The rook bent forward a bit, her eye twitching as she did her best to hide how much that actually hurt her.
Unfortunately, Naruto didn't miss her reaction. "...Ah crap, sorry, I should've noticed that you were hurt. Let's stop our session for now, alright?"
"No, wait." Koneko protested softly, carefully straightening herself. "I can keep going, so let's-"
"We accomplished what I hoped we would for this session, don't worry." the shinobi raised his hands up in a calming gesture. "We'll continue this tomorrow, besides, you probably want to think about using...that energy, right?"
A small frown made it's way to his kohai's lips, seemingly to continue the argument.
Until she was shut down by a surprising source.
"Stop it."
This time Koneko did let out a yelp, snapping her head to look at the perpetrator of the hard poke that dug into her stomach a second time.
She met with a stern set of emerald eyes.
...Which very quickly morphed into panicked and worried comical swirls.
"I-I-I'm sorry! I-I just wanted to stop you from hurting yourself even more! Please forgive me!" Asia sputtered out in a near panic, waving her arms around frantically as she went on meltdown.
Looking at the nun with wide eyes, the devil's brain didn't catch up to current events until a roaring laughter echoed right next to her.
"Ha! Will you look at that? If even Asia is giving you this much trouble to take a break for the day, then I'd suggest doing it." Naruto advised, not bothering to hide his amusement.
Shooting him a glare, the reincarnated devil finally relented and nodded towards the human girl, giving her the go ahead to heal the admittedly painful wounds.
It seems that this was the signal that their audience needed to finally get off their butts and move towards them, no doubt with many questions.
The first to reach their little group was Mio, who had instantly seized his arm as she breathed out in relief, the tension that made her body rigid petering out as soon as she physically connected with him.
Seeing her like this, stressing about the fact that she wasn't within a certain distance to him, really made the blond question whether there was something more to her behavior than he thought.
For now though... "See? I told you that our session wouldn't be that long. That's why you need to trust my judgement more, it'd make life easier for both of us."
Mio raised her nose to the air, giving him a borderline imperious look. "Don't give me that, I didn't hear the words, but if Asia-san's actions are anything to go by, she had to really try to stop you two from going at it again. You'd probably be at it until it got dark out!"
Chuckling nervously, the shinobi couldn't really dismiss such a belief.
It probably would have happened if the young nun didn't intervene if he were honest.
Not that he'd admit it, since it felt nice to rub it in his sibling's face that he wouldn't take all day to finish this training session, especially since it took forever to convince her to let go of him and sit by the bleachers until he was done.
He managed to convince her in the end, as long as he didn't go further than a half kilometer away from the bleachers and she always maintained visual contact with him, she'd let go of him for a limited time.
Strange how he had to bargain for his own limb back...
"So! How is she, Naruto?" Rias called out with interest, approaching the duo with all of the grace of a noble woman.
Which...well...she was.
"Better than I thought." was the easy reply. "Her basic stats have definitely gone up since the last time we went at it, but I'm thinking of teaching her some new tricks that could definitely help flesh out her fighting style...for the most part."
"I see." the red-head murmured, rubbing her chin in thought. "Well then, it looks like you've got an idea of what to train her in. Good, then we can focus on our own training from here on in, right everyone?"
Practically everyone that were watching the clash between Koneko and Naruto nodded along with her, even Mio and Maria.
A fact that made the shinobi go rigid. "W-Wait...does that mean that..."
He raised a finger to shakily point at everyone around him, his tone accusatory. "...That you lot thought that I would screw up her training!?"
Rias turned away innocently.
Akeno giggled into the palm of her hand.
Yuuto flashed a nervous smile.
Issei became intensely interested in the ceiling all of a sudden.
Maria was in the middle of stuffing her face in with the leftover snacks.
Mio was still in the midst of trying to meld their bodies into some sort of fused state.
Asia was focused on healing Koneko.
Which...altogether, only really left one person to give him a blunt and straight answer.
"I wouldn't be surprised if they did." Raynare claimed, no fuck's given. "I would do the same if I actually cared about that loli."
Damn the lot of them.
"Oi! What the hell!? I'm super trustworthy, aren't I!?" the blond complained loudly, petulantly folding his arms together as he glared at everyone around him.
Rias didn't say a word.
She merely shoved her hand into her pocket, picked something out, and then offered it to him.
Naruto regarded the item in her hand with a blank expression.
It was another phone.
"...Yeah." she deadpanned, wiggling the device in front of him. "Suuuuuper trustworthy."
...
...
"Shut up." was all the shinobi could counter with, snatching the phone from her hand and stuffing it into his pocket.
He refused to look at her smug grin.
Instead, with as much dignity as he could muster, the young man walked towards the elevator to get back upstairs in a brisk pace, unilaterally deciding that he was done for the day.
Watching him go, the red-head clapped her hands together. "Alright everyone, after watching Koneko-chan give it her all, I say that we all push ourselves today as well! Is everyone ready?"
Cheers erupted from those that were ready to get back to work after witnessing the rook's improvements, getting a fond smirk from the shinobi as he made his way to the elevator.
Now that was the spirit that he wanted to see.
"Ouch."
Koneko made the sound with such a flat voice that Mio wondered whether Asia's cursory poke actually hurt at all.
Whether it was or not to her was beside the point though, since she wasn't the designated healer here.
As soon as she made such a sound, green light raged back to life, brighter than before, making sure to engulf the area that the devil was trying to hide from the nun.
The rook obviously wanted to get out of the blond's grasp as soon as possible, but trying to hide her injuries was, ironically, making the process move slower than it could have if she was just honest.
There was a lesson in there somewhere, she was sure.
Mio, who was curiously watching the proceedings, jerked a bit as the ground underneath her shook almost infinitesimally.
"Yeesh..." she couldn't help but marvel. "They're really going at it today, huh?"
"Yep!" her brother agreed heartily beside her. "Isn't it awesome?"
Pink pupils shifted to send a sidelong glance to the blond next to her, noting the self-satisfied smile that was firmly plastered on his face.
Not that she could blame him for it, really.
"It is." she assented readily, crossing her arms under her bust as a contemplative air took hold of her. "Then again, considering the circumstances...I'd think that everyone would be motivated to reach new heights. Even me, even though I'm not a fan of training to be honest."
Could you blame her for that sentiment?
Training was hard, always left you tired, and only really helped reach new heights if you consistently pushed yourself to your absolute limit.
Doing something like that every day was exhausting to her, who was merely an ordinary teenaged girl just a few months ago.
She did it still, of course, but only because she had to.
Yet another difference that she could attribute between herself and the blond she casually called her 'brother', who practically loved to train.
"Hoh? Is that so?" Naruto wondered aloud, turning to her with a glint in his oceanic eyes. "If you believe that, then why aren't you going back down there to join them? You still haven't managed to accomplish that little task that I left for you, right?"
Because I don't want to leave you.
Her true thoughts almost leaked out to the forefront, but she managed to rally. "I'll get back into it as soon as I'm sure that you won't thoroughly destroy the ORC's living room again."
Let it be known to all that her sass was an excellent way to cover up her feelings.
Especially when it elicited such over-the-top reactions from a very expressive knucklehead. "Hah!? Oh come on! That wasn't even my fault!"
Unable to stop the grin that grew on her features, the teenaged girl refused to back down. "Didn't you instigate it though?"
"She had a damn shower in the middle of the living room!"
Ah yes, if he had the right to tease her relentlessly, then she bared the right to return the favor.
Too bad that it had to stop though. "...Can you not talk about that incident right now?"
By that point, Rias had stepped out of the elevator that led to the training center underground with a healthy hue of pink staining her cheeks, looking positively frazzled.
Both; literally and figuratively.
Her long crimson hair, usually her pride and joy, was currently jutting out everywhere, standing out on end.
Something that the blond couldn't help but point out. "What the hell is wrong with your hair?"
Mio elbowed her tactless sibling, which was expertly intercepted by one of his hands. "Naruto..."
"It's alright, Mio-chan." the Gremory heiress mumbled, combing her hair with her hand as a jolt of self-consciousness hit her, helping her ease her nerves. "As for what happened? Well...as you can see, I've gotten jolted by electricity. A lot of it, actually."
Naruto's eyes dully looked past the red-head to look at the pleasantly smiling offender of the act that was described. "...That was you, wasn't it, Akeno?"
"Ara, you know me so well." Akeno daintily covered her mouth with her hand, far too amused.
"She caught me in that new technique of hers." Rias grumbled, glaring at her queen irritably. "Even if it was a mock fight, couldn't you have dialed your power back a little bit more than that, Akeno?"
The raven-haired beauty nodded reasonably. "I could have."
She paused there, her beatific smile widening.
"But I didn't."
Huffing, the red-head turned away from her and strode towards the stall that was installed in the living room, preparing to strip and wash herself in a refreshing shower.
Before she could even take off her school vest, her eyes flashed towards curious blue orbs and the accompanying flash of golden spiky hair.
That shock of self-consciousness returned to full force then and there. "...If it's possible, can you guys go to a different room while I shower? I'll be quick."
Naruto quirked an eyebrow, an imaginary question mark no doubt floating above his head.
His questions would have to wait however, as her queenseems to have understand the situation better than the blond ever could and began to push him lightly towards one of the guests rooms. "Ara, are you all going to make a lady spell it out for you? Come, let's take this to another room so that we can give Buchou some privacy."
"Ah...wait." Koneko spoke up, shuffling away from the nun as her queen began to herd all of them to another room. "I wanna go back downstairs."
Asia tried to protest the rook's decision, but the younger girl ducked under Akeno's arms and reached the elevator, determined to continue working until she knocked herself unconscious.
Seeing the nun's pleading eyes train themselves on her, Akeno could only shrug airily. "If she's that determined to continue, who are we to stop her? Don't worry, the three that decided to stay down there won't go too far. As a matter of fact...why don't you check up on our...'other' guest instead?"
Scrunching her brows together and puffing her cheeks out cutely, the human girl relented reluctantly and allowed herself to be shuffled into one of the many guest rooms along with Naruto and Mio.
The shinobi in question perked up as soon as they entered the room, interested. "Guest...you mean...Yuki's old friend, right?"
Instead of answering, the blond-haired girl led the way, heading straight to the door on the other side of the room.
Mio, aware that Naruto was going, and was curious about seeing this mysterious young man anyway, trailed after her.
Naruto made to follow as well, until a hand that gripped his shoulder halted his advance.
Turning his head to the side, he saw Akeno stare at him, her mouth partially opened, as if searching for words.
She found them eventually. "...Can we talk?"
The blond raised an eyebrow.
He wasn't gonna say no...so...
Might as well, huh?
Mio tilted her head, gazing upon the sleeping face of the resting young man in front of her.
So this was the guy, huh?
"How long do you think he'll stay like this? Unconscious I mean." the red-head questioned the nun who was skimming her glowing green hands over his body, checking for damages.
Asia, focused on her task, didn't falter at all in her response. "I'm not sure. Yuki-san said that the ones who tended to him before claimed that he should be waking up any day now. So I make sure to check up on him every no and again, just to be sure."
Mio inclined her head, seeing the logic in that sentence. "Got it. So I guess that means that we will be making a new acquaintance soon, huh, Naruto?"
The red-head expected either a hearty agreement or a random exclamatory remark from her beloved fool.
What she didn't expect to hear was silence.
Frowning, the half-devil swiveled on the spot, seeking a sunny and lopsided smirk in the room.
A sudden tension gripped her.
He's not here.
She did another three-sixty, eyes dilating as her heart beat faster.
He's not here.
"M-Mio-san?" Asia cut through her trepidation.
Going quiet, the red-head spun around one more time, the sinking belief that was overtaking her preventing her from answering.
In a delirious part of her mind, she wondered whether the blond young man that she was looking for was actually just playing a prank on her right now.
Grasping that slim hope, the teenaged girl convinced herself that Naruto would jump out any time now and terrify her, shouting; 'Ha! Got you, Mio~! You should've seen your face dattebayo!'.
Holding onto the idea, Mio finally stopped spinning, waiting, feeling that very slim hope begin to drift away within her.
Not getting any response and forced to watch the other female act strangely, the human girl tried to get through to her again. "Um..."
She wasn't able to go any further once wild pink eyes seized the nun and froze her in place.
There was a desperate quality that were held within those orbs, one that spoke of a genuine fear that Asia never saw in her eyes before.
...But she has seen that desperation before.
Staying eerily silent, the red-head turned right back around to the door she entered from, needing to be near him again, lest she face the prospect she has been avoiding for all of this time.
She couldn't bear the thought...of those blue eyes looking at her differently.
Of looking at her with disgust instead of warmth...
"Mio-san...I don't think that Naruto-san would hate you for whatever you've done."
The half-devil grabbed the door handle, knuckles going white as a dangerous amount of pressure pressed against it. "...Where do you go off saying that, exactly?"
The simple fact was, the nun had no idea what she was talking about.
Acting as if she knew what she was talking about...kind of pissed off the daughter of Lucifer.
But Asia, innocent to her thoughts, merely blinked. "Because Issei-san didn't."
Mio faltered there, turning around to look at the nun, her earlier stress and anger momentarily forgotten in her incredulity.
The blond girl smiled. "Mio-san...did you know that, once upon a time, I was an official part of the Church?"
Unwittingly, the taller girl let her hand slip off of the handle to fully face the other female, instinctively feeling that it was important.
Or, maybe, she was hoping that she truly had some personal experience with this...
"Well..." she trailed off, glancing at the ground nervously. "Do you know why I was sent to Japan in the first place?"
This time the half-devil shook her head, eyes remaining trained on her.
Now Asia smiled. "Well...I was exiled. For saving the life of a devil that was on the verge of death."
Mio stared at her, unable to fathom how she could possibly smile at such a memory when such a decision was obviously a blatant miscarriage of justice by any stretch of the imagination.
But the human girl wasn't done, her smile becoming sad. "At the time, I couldn't remember what he looked like, but something clicked in me after that attack in Rias-san's summer home...something that helped me jog my memory."
Finally, her smile faltered. "It took me a while...but now I can say for sure that the devil that I saved back then...was the same evil devil that tried to capture you."
All at once, the breath was knocked out of the young woman's lungs, unable to even contemplate what she had just heard, let alone process it. "You...wait, what?"
"I saved his life." the innocent young girl repeated, wording it as if she couldn't quite believe it herself. "I don't know whether it was planned, or if it was just coincidence...but I'm positive."
Taking a second to take a breath, the nun steadied herself and met Mio's eyes again. "I...I was afraid that Issei-san would be angry with me if he learned that I saved the man that brought him pain. I was afraid of how he would look at me. Whether it would change the way he looked at me now to something...else."
For a moment, the blond girl's unease with the prospect became obvious to her, exemplified by her small dainty hands clenching tightly into fists and how she bit her bottom lip.
Then, in a flash, it was gone.
Asia brought her hands together, the relief palpable in her form as her feelings uplifted, a sense of comfort replacing her angst.
All of which was explained in her next statement.
"I was wrong."
Mio stared at her, confounded to see the girl's confidence in her statement.
She could still remember how timid the nun was when she first met her, how fretful and full of uncertainty, about both; her place and her future.
And yet here she was, filled with a certainty and determination that she could've only seen reflected in herself through a life and death situation.
Even if she wanted to, she couldn't stop the feeling of pride leak into her heart.
"And if I'm wrong, then I'm positive that you're wrong too." Asia claimed without apology, nodding firmly, resolute.
The red-head stared at her, stuck in a daze, having nothing except the even breathing of Yuki's unconscious friend to remind her that she was not in some strange dream.
But still, Mio's uncertainty was by no means quelled. "...Your actions are less damning than mine though...and I'm just not sure..."
"If Issei-san can look past my mistake, then Naruto-san can look past yours." the blond insisted, her big green eyes beseeching her. "Trust him."
Trust him.
Was that what this was about?
Did she, deep inside, not trust him as much as she should?
She trusted him with her life, but...
'...I'm willing to bet that you don't even know your 'onii-chan' that well anyway.'
"...What if he...?" she questioned, whispering to herself in her confusion, wondering if those words, so casually thrown out, were more true than she cared to admit.
Did she actually know him that well?
She knew that he was loyal and protective over those he cared about, as well as some of his strange quirks, but...that was about it.
She truly had no idea how he'd react to the fact that her presence placed everyone in great danger.
Why did he go so far to protect those he cared about?
How did he reconcile the conflicts between those that he cared about?
What drove him to do what he does?
Never mind his motivations, she didn't even know where or when he was born.
So how could she tell...?
"...How could I tell...when I don't even know you as well as I thought I did?" she whispered solemnly, inexplicably sad that she had to make such an admission.
He seemed so open, but now that she thought about it...he never did tell her anything about his origins.
Maybe if she knew him better, then she'd be more willing to tell him everything...but as it was now...
"Why not talk to him then?"
Mio blinked, eyes regaining focus and locking onto the nun in front of her. "Huh?"
Asia tilted her head, having heard everything that the red-head was whispering to herself. "If you don't know him as well as you thought, then maybe you two can go and eat somewhere and...talk. That's what Issei-san and I do sometimes too!"
Pink eyes fluttered, just a bit, taken out-of-left-field by the sound reasoning provided to her.
Talk to him. Over a meal. Just the two of them.
"You know..." Mio spoke up, scratching her chin. "I think that's a great idea, actually."
Peering down at the shorter female, she had to offer her a small appreciative smile. "...Thank you for your words, they've...made me think about some things."
Asia beamed. "I'm glad that I helped! I hope that you're not as stressed as before now!"
She wasn't, strangely enough.
Maybe it was the prospect that she was, hopefully, going to venture to learn more about the mysterious blond that she called her 'brother' that cooled her off, or Asia's insistence that he wouldn't turn on her, but the end result was the same.
While still uncomfortable with the young man not being around her physically, it was brought down to...manageable levels.
Her fear of that possible future coming to pass remained in the back of her mind, but now it had taken a back burner, hopefully where it could disappear.
Now, all she really had to do was invite Naruto to eat dinner with her privately somewhere...
...
...
...
"Wait...isn't that a date!?"
"So, what did you want to talk to me about?"
Akeno, a woman that prided herself on her 'onee-sama' behavior and demeanor, was currently looking at anywhere that was not the blond's eyes.
Instead of pushing her, as he was apt to do when he was impatient, he decided to wait it out, letting her gather her thoughts.
It wasn't like he forgot that they were in the midst of a bonding moment before a foul-mouthed bastard interrupted them.
Not that he was really complaining, beating the shit out of a piece of shit like that was actually a good stress reliever.
"I wanted to apologize. To you." the young woman finally managed to get out, aiming for an apologetic expression that came out as a tiny grimace. "I'm sure that everyone's getting a bit...tired of my attitude recently. I've heard as much from Buchou, at least."
Raising his arm to scratch the back of his head, the shinobi seemed to be more embarrassed than serious about her apology. "Uh...ya know, you don't have to apologize to me, right? As long as you try to stay cordial, it's all good. And...you have been trying., so..."
Unbidden, Akeno's lips stretched into a smirk. "You've noticed that, have you?"
And here she thought that she was being discreet about her...'new' attitude towards the sole fallen angel.
"I didn't hear any screaming or shouting, so I'm assuming that that's the case." the blond admitted bluntly. "And if I've got you pegged right, then that must've been quite the pill to swallow, eh?"
Understatements abound. "You could say that. Which is why I wanted to...apologize, actually. Not just for the distress that I might've caused, but also..."
She trailed off there, frowning, visibly uncomfortable.
It took a moment for her to recollect herself, until she spoke again. "...Because I can't apologize to the fall- 'person' that I should be."
Naruto, more bemused than anything else, tilted his head to the side. "...Now that I think about it, you never did tell me why you had such a problem with Raynare."
Not that it was her fault though, since a certain insane stab-happy priest was responsible for the interruption.
Possibly following his lead in recalling who had interrupted their talk last time, Akeno chuckled. "Ah, I didn't, did I? Well...I suppose you're due an answer, hm? But before I do so, may I ask you a question?"
Raising a brow while staying silent, the shinobi inclined his head in allowance, ready for whatever she had to say.
He wasn't really prepared for it. "Have you ever...hated someone before? And I don't mean hated, as in; severely disliked. No...I mean hated."
The young woman who asked such a thing to the whiskered teen wasn't sure what she expected as an answer, but she did know one thing.
And that was; there was no way that this happy and positive teen could've ever hated someone in the way that she was referring to.
Not him.
To hate someone in the way that she was referring to...one had to absolutely loathe the very fact that they were standing before you, perfectly alright.
Or, if someone really had it bad, then it was possible for someone to truly loathe the idea of their enemy's continued existence.
And, once upon a time, she had contained such a dangerous emotion within the depths of her heat, but that feeling had later simmered down into a cool hate; one of incredible disdain and barely contained anger.
That being said; that feeling was burned into her now, and it wouldn't be going away any time soon.
So how did one explain such an emotion to someone that hasn't experienced it?
It couldn't really, like all other powerful emotions.
Which was why Akeno wasn't really expecting anything out of her question.
Really, it was only asked on a whim.
So she'd be excused, if the answer she received had actually managed to catch her completely off guard.
"...Yeah. Yeah, I have."
If Naruto was paying attention to Akeno, he might've found her completely broken composure to be hilarious.
Except, he wasn't.
No. All he was paying attention to was the flash of steel-grey eyes that held a trio of concentric circles within it.
As well as the accompanying words that came with that memory that still sometimes haunted him.
'Know pain.'
You should have killed him.
"Maybe..." Naruto murmured without realizing it, his eyes clouded over.
"Maybe what?"