Chapter 3 – The Perverted Pawn
"Man, what was a pain that was…" Naruto grumbled as he walked along the path towards the Occult Club Building. He had just gotten back from handing out flyers, according to Rias he had to set up his own contracts to boost his ranking.
"Maybe so, Naruto-sama. But Rias did say that it was something that you would need to get used to doing."
'Haaaaa~! Yeah, I know. I'm just glad the jobs are so diverse.'
So far he has made several in the past three weeks since he became a Devil, some of them were pretty simple like baby-sitting for couple's children while they went out for a date night, helping men out with construction, and even helping cooking meals for a housewife and her family while she took care of the house work. But there were others that were weird, like that one college student who wanted him to do several poses while shirtless for a few paintings she had been doing… okay so maybe that doesn't sound too bad, but she kept drooling (and having a nosebleed) whenever she looked at him, so it had taken her a bit longer to finish her work.
Shaking his head he continued walking, mentally tossing out the images in his head. Anyway, he didn't have to worry about his sister since Mito had already made it home by the time he had already started passing out flyers. Maybe one day she could enjoy her time after school with a friend or maybe a club of her own, hopefully not as dangerous as his was though. As he passed one of the buildings to reach the woods, the sound of giggling was heard, perverted giggling. Narrowing his eyes a bit he followed the sound and found three familiar boys peeking through the window each giggling rather perversely and wiping away small trails of blood from their noses, well only two were looking while the third was trying to move them to see.
He didn't need to see what they were looking at, already knowing that this was the Female Kendo Club's changing room. After the match he and Kiba had, a few of the girls would ask them to show them some pointers, so Naruto could recognize some of the voices that were coming from inside the room. Silently sneaking up on the three, he stopped as soon as he was standing directly behind them. Raising a fist to his open hand he began to crack his knuckles, the sounds were heard by the three, now frozen, perverts. They slowly turned around in fear, which only grew as they saw Naruto's smiling face, this however was not what scared them as a dark aura seemed to flow around him.
"So, tell me, what's a good reason to not pound you three into the ground?" Naruto had said this loud enough for the girl inside to hear. They quickly got change and headed outside in time to see Naruto standing over Perverted Trio, who were lying on the ground with giant lumps on each of their heads.
"Seriously, it's almost every day with you three!"
"Shut up, like you can talk! You have a girlfriend so you wouldn't understand!" The one with glasses, Motohama, shouted as he pointed at Naruto.
"G-Girlfriend? I don't have a girlfriend." Naruto replied.
"Don't lie!" The nearly bald-headed one, Matsuda, exclaimed. "Everyone is talking about how you and Rias Gremory are dating! I've even seen you walking with her while holding her bag!"
Naruto's eyebrow began to twitch, 'Just what does that have to do with it?!' Shaking his head Naruto shook his head before speaking, "Listen, I don't-"
"You three be quiet!" One of the Kendo girls shouted as she and the others ran up to Naruto's side. "Don't try to turn this on Naruto-kun, just because he isn't a pervert like you three!"
"YEAH!" The other girls shouted at them and started beating the three with their kendo sticks, making Naruto sweatdropped a little at the scene.
With a sigh the blond turned around and started walking away, listening in on the screams of pain the trio was shouting from their punishment, 'It's times like this that I'm glad I was raised how I was.' Naruto scratched the side of his head as he once again continued his way towards the Old Building. "… I hope I get some time to relax before I'm requested again."
"Oh, Naruto-sempai." Naruto turned around to see Kiba walking up to him, "Are you going to the clubroom as well?"
The older blond nodded his head, "Yeah, I just finished handing out flyers for today so I'm just going to relax a bit before someone summons me."
"I'm surprised you didn't just teleport back to the club." Kiba said.
"Well, it was a nice day, so I figured I'd just enjoy the walk," Naruto replied as he gave a shrug. Unlike most Devils, while the daylight annoyed Naruto a little, it didn't bother him as much as the others. Rias suspected it was thanks to Saber and the additions she had talked about, somehow he didn't receive any of the weaknesses that Devils had when it came to light. But they still needed to see if things like crosses and other holy items had an effect on him. "Besides, you're walking there too."
"True, but I just figured it was a waste since I was so close to it anyway." Kiba said with a smile, the two made their way towards the building and started to walk inside. They walked up the stairs and arrived at the door, but as Naruto reached for the doorknob and grabbed it, Kiba's symbol began to glow. "Looks like someone is summoning me, I'll be back in a bit."
"Alright, see ya." With a nod in response, a seal appeared below Kiba and teleported him away. Naruto turned back to the door and opened it before going inside, "I'm back."
"Oh, welcome back Naruto-kun." Akeno greeted the blonde as she looked away from the chess board that was on the table. "I take it you finished handing out flyers?"
"Yeah, it's a major pain in the ass." Naruto grunted as he started walking over to one of the couches. Hearing the sound of running water, the blond devil turned his head in the direction of the shower. "So, I'm guessing Rias-chan is in the showers?"
"That's right, she should be out in a little bit." Akeno brought a hand to her mouth as she grew a small smile. "… If you want to take a peek, I don't think she'll mind."
Naruto looked back at her for a second before shrugging his shoulders. "Nah, I'll just wait for her out here." As he sat down and rested against the couch's soft cushions, a whistling sound could be heard throughout the room.
"It's interesting how much control you have." Akeno smiled before she walked away, making her way towards the steaming teapot. "Tell me Naruto-kun… do you go for the other team?"
Naruto's face went pale white at that, before turning to look at the buxom devil's back and shouting out, "WHY DO YOU INSTANTLY JUMP TO THAT?! I'M ATTRACTED TO WOMEN!"
"Alright then~" Akeno called back as she poured tea into several cups, picking up two and bringing them back to the table. "Here you go."
"Thank you…" Naruto took one of the cups from Akeno with a slow nod before taking a sip of the tea, "This is pretty good, where did you get it?"
"I made it actually." Akeno said as she sat down next to him, "Sometimes this is good for most requests I do."
"Really? Like what?"
The blond looked at his classmate with a curious expression. He already knew that Rias only worked with the more high-class jobs like removing curses or destroying monsters, Kiba's requests usual involved older or working women who needed someone to talk and vent to or cook for them, and Koneko's ranged from playing cards to posing in cosplay. But he never really found out what Akeno did for her requests, he wondered what she did.
"I mostly help my clients relieve their stress using different methods, such as preparing tea and listening to their troubles are just a few of them." Akeno explained with a smile.
"Relieving stress huh?" Naruto took another sip of his tea, thinking about what Akeno had said. "Sounds kind of nice, helping people with their worries."
"Yes, it can be." A sly smile appeared on Akeno's face as she suddenly leaned closer to Naruto, pressing her very impressive bust into Naruto's arm, making the blond grow a small blush. "So, tell me Naruto-kun… do you have any stress you want me to help you with."
"That's enough of that!" Saber called out as she ejected Naruto's body and appeared in front of Akeno's face, "I won't allow you to go any further!"
"Ara ara~! Saber-san, how are you?" Akeno asked, acting like nothing had happened. "Would you like a snack?"
"Don't try to change the-" The tiny spirit was cut off by a growling sound, Saber's face gained a small red line as she stared at Akeno with a straight face. "… Yes please… After all, hunger is one of the biggest enemies to fight." Akeno let out a little giggle before standing up from the couch and making her way to get Saber something to eat.
Naruto let out a soft sigh before looking at his little friend with an amused look, "You can such a glutton sometimes, Saber."
A small tick mark formed on the red-faced Saber, and she quickly flew in front of Naruto's face, "Even if you're my master, I refuse to ignore what you just said!" Naruto only laughed as the tiny girl waved her hands in a cartoonish manner. "Don't laugh, it's a good thing I stopped Akeno-san or else." Once again Saber was interrupted from continuing, but it wasn't by her stomach this time.
"Or else what?" The two froze for a second before turning to see Rias looking at them while drying her hair with a towel.
"Hey there Rias-chan, done with your shower already?" Naruto blinked a few times before smiling at the girl, "No you didn't miss anything, Akeno was just telling me about some of the requests she does."
Giving Naruto a suspicious look as she walked towards the couch, but she walked right passed it and made her way to the window. Rias lowered her towel from her hair and seemed to stare outside for a moment, before slowly opening the window.
"Rias-chan?" Naruto watched with curiosity as the redhead turned from the window and made her way to the couches again, this time sitting in the seat across from him. "Are you okay?"
"Yes, I'm fine…" Rias replied, a calculative look on her face as she looked at the chess board that Akeno had been messing with earlier. "So, Akeno set up a new puzzle while I was in the shower…"
"Was that what she was doing?" Naruto tilted his head as he looked down at the board and noticed some of its pieces were set up in various locations. "You really like these things, huh?"
"They can be entertaining at times, however…" Rias reached out and moved a few pieces, "Some of these problems are too easy with finding the solution. Checkmate."
At that moment Akeno was walking back, "Oh Buchou, you're back… and I see you finished the puzzle." She handed her King a cup of tea before she placed a small plate with a few strawberries in front of Saber. "Here you go Saber-san."
"Thank you Akeno-san." Saber bowed her head in gratitude before floating down to the table and grabbing one of the strawberries, eating it at her usual pace. Naruto smiled down at Saber before looking back at Rias, who still had that look on her face while she stared down at the tea in her hands. Akeno had moved over to her usual spot, standing behind Rias as she sat in her seat.
"… Okay Rias-chan, what's up?" The redhead looked up from her drink at Naruto, "Something is bothering you, what is it?"
Rias stared at Naruto for a few seconds before placing her teacup down, "I've been doing a bit of research on that Fallen Angel we met a few weeks ago, Abazeth." The image of the blue-haired man with his weapons of light flashed through Naruto's mind. "From what I've gotten so far, he's actually high-up in the rankings when it comes to Fallen Angels, not as high as one of the Leaders but a powerful member."
"Yeah I figured that when during our fight," Naruto said as he recalled the numerous weapons the man had been able to summon so easily. Thinking back on it now, he could remember seeing something off about the man's wings. "Now that I think about it, his wings seemed a little weird, like they were… layered?"
Rias nodded her head, "That's because he was keeping his wings closed together, he actually had more than one set. As a Fallen Angel grows stronger and raises up through the ranks, they get a new set of wings added on to theirs. It's from this knowledge that I believe he is the one leading the Fallen Angel group that's in town."
"So, you're saying that there's more of them here?" Naruto questioned as he narrowed his eyes, "Do you know what they're after?"
"From what I've found out from my Familiar, they seemed to be targeting a second year that goes to our school." Rias lifted one of her glowing pieces, "His name is Issei Hyoudou, I'm sure you both are aware of who he is."
"Wait, wait, wait… Issei Hyoudou? As in one of the Perverted Trio, the brunette with the big-boob fetish? You are telling me that little pervert has somehow gained the attention of a Fallen Angel?" Naruto asked as he recalled what happened less than thirty minutes ago while Rias nodded her head. "And you are sure about this?"
"I am. In fact, I believe she is going to go after him today, most likely to make him drop his guard by asking him to be her boyfriend."
"… Seriously?" Naruto raised his eyebrow. "This might sound rude, but who would actually go out with that little perverted of their own free will?" His words got a positive reaction from the devil girls as Rias grew a small smile and Akeno giggled into her hand. "There must be more to it than that."
"I must agree with Naruto-sama,"Saber said as she finished her last strawberry. "Is there any specific reason that they are after him?"
"I have my suspicions as to why, however there is only one that would make the most sense in this situation. Fallen Angels don't normally target humans unless it is for good reasons." Rias replied as she began to explain while crossing her arms under her chest. "Angels are their usual targets so they can try and corrupt them into becoming Fallen Angels themselves and they only go after Devils to kill them."
"That explains why Abazeth would go out of his way when he said that he had picked up the presence of Devil nearby," Naruto said as he recalled more of the fight, how the Fallen Angel had tried that sneak attack as he was leaving. "So why do you think they're after him?"
"I suspect the reason Issei Hyoudou is their target is because of the strong possibility that he could be carrying a Sacred Gear inside him." Rias answered, "They most likely want to kill him because they believe he will become a threat."
"Sacred Gears, huh..." Saber crossed her own arms as she closed her eyes in thought, "If I recall correctly, almost all the humans that acquire a Sacred Gear have no knowledge of such things being inside them in the first place."
"That doesn't really make much sense, I mean why attack someone for a possible threat that may never happen." Naruto pointed out with a confused look.
"Sometimes fear can get to people, make them afraid of what 'could be' instead of what is." Akeno said from her spot, her gaze went down to look at Rias. "Who knows if Hyoudou-san will stay ignorant to his power forever, or if someone might want to take advantage of his Sacred Gear later on."
Naruto look back and forth between the two before letting out a sigh, "…You're thinking of turning Issei into a devil, aren't you Rias-chan?" He asked to which Rias hesitantly nodded her head. "Well, I can't really say you can't, after all, I'm not a member of your peerage."
"I know Issei may be an odd choice and will no doubt cause a bit of issues later on because of his perverted tendencies, but he'll be a very valuable member of my peerage. Having a Sacred Gear user would be very beneficial to my plans and to my future battles." Riasted, leaning back onto the Victorian couch. "The leader of the Fallen Angels, the Governor, Azazel, has a strange obsession with Sacred Gears and has been collecting users to be a part of his Faction. So, since this Fallen Angel seems to be targeting Issei to eliminate him, it must be a likely scenario that she has something else planned in the future."
"So, in short terms, get rid of a potential Sacred Gear user before having to fight him/her in the future." Naruto had an annoyed look on his face as he scratched the back of his head. "Man… these guys are afraid of human potential that much?"
"Well, they have good reason." Rias said with amusement in her voice, "After all, you certainly were high in potential for a human. Having both Saber and her power, as well as your skills at hand-to-hand combat."
"Yeah, I guess you're right about that…" Naruto looked away from the smiling girl and noticed a certain white-haired girl wasn't in the room yet. "So where is Koneko-chan, I would have figured she be here eating her snacks by now."
"I have her monitoring Issei and the Fallen Angel, that way I can predict the possible day she's planning on going go through with her plan."
"That makes sense." Naruto noticed the seal on his arm started glowing, meaning someone was summoning him. "Well, I suppose that's my cue." The blond stood up with a stretch, "I just hope it's not a weirdo again."
"It couldn't have been that bad Naruto-kun." Rias said before she noticed the look of disgust on his face, Saber was no different as she shook her head as it to get rid of her thoughts.
"One guy wanted me to turn all the girls he created on his computer into real-life people so he could have his own personal harem. Another was a muscular man wearing a dress that wanted me to turn him into a woman." Naruto grunted before crossing his arms, "Are you sure there isn't any other way for me to quickly raise my class?"
"Like I told you before, unless you were born a pure-blood High-Class Devil blood like I was or have the blood inside you from a very powerful ancestor, there are only three real ways to raise your class. You don't have a peerage yet nor are you that experienced, so Rating Games are out of the question at the moment." Rias explained as she closed her eyes, "The second is the quickest but most dangerous, defeating high-ranking members of the other two Factions. And finally, what you are doing right now, taking requests and boosting your rank at an even pace."
Naruto let out a sigh as he picked Saber up and placed her on his shoulders, "I know… but it's still a major pain in the ass." After creating a seal underneath, him, he gave the girls a wave. "I'll see you guys later, keep me updated on the pervert."
"Alright, will do," As he disappeared, the girls stared at the area he had been in silence. Rias turned back to look at Akeno, "So were you able to get a reading?"
Akeno nodded her head, "… Yes, it's just as you suspected. Naruto-kun's powers are much higher than a normal human that was turned into a Devil should be. Given how hard he trains, the rate of his growth, and how much you said he had when he was reincarnated… He should already be close to High-class level, but it's strange…"
"I thought as much…" Rias reached out and grabbed a king chess piece of the board and held it close to her face. "During the short time Naruto had been unconscious, I had found that he had somehow absorbed all the power that had been inside the Mutation Piece that I was going to use on him. And when I was checking his power level, it first started out very high before somehow lowering itself."
"Is it because of Saber-san and her powers? Could her presence limit his own power?" Akeno asked in confusion.
"No, I don't think so…" Rias answered as she continued to look at the king, "You said it yourself Akeno… fear is a power thing."
"Fear? What could Naruto-kun be afraid of?"
"When I saw him with his family, it was heart-warming just seeing how much they cared about each other." Rias lowered the king back onto the board, placing it in the center square. "Remember, unlike everyone in my Peerage so far, Naruto-kun was a human with no knowledge of our world and has a normal family."
"…So, then he's-" Akeno started to say before she was cut off by Rias.
"Afraid that he will be rejected by his family. And since he's not a member of my Peerage, he believes that he'll be all alone if that happens. Even when I told him that we would stand by him if that happened…" Rias had a sad look in her eyes, "While he acknowledges and accepts that he's a Devil now, he's subconsciously afraid and is holding himself back from accessing his true power."
"Being alone… can be a truly horrible thing."Akeno had sad smile on her face as she said that. "So, do you think he'll ever harness that power?"
Rias let her body fall back into the couch once again, "Eventually… hopefully soon, but until then he'll just have to grow stronger without his full power."
"… Tell me Buchou, are you saying that because you want him to be safe?" Akeno closed the distance to the couch and leaned over it, "Or is it because you want him to help you with that?"
"…"
"…"
"… I want both," Rias said as she stood up from her seat, moving a few steps away while ignoring the look Akeno was giving her. "I don't want to see Naruto in pain, and truthfully… I feel like he's the only one who can save me from this fate."
"…Buchou… Do you…" Akeno stopped herself before shaking her head, "Never mind, I already know the answer."
Rias was quiet before turning to her Queen, "Let's go Akeno, we have some preparations to do." With a nod of her head, Akeno followed after Rias in silence.
-NULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRG-
"So let me get this straight… You were summoned by the pervert after he was fatally wounded by the Fallen Angel, turned him into a Devil servant that required ALL of your Pawn Pieces, teleported him home before he could wake up, and DIDN'T tell him he was now a Devil." Naruto was with Rias a few days later, it was their lunch break between classes, listening to her as she explained the situation to him as promised. "Did I get everything right?"
"Yes, that's right." Rias nodded her head as she and Naruto watched over the stairs as Issei seemed to be freaking out about how no one seemed to remember his 'girlfriend' and information about her disappeared as well.
"… I don't know if you're doing out of curiosity or whatever, but I have to say…" Naruto smirked in amusement as he leaned on the railing, "This is pretty funny to watch."
"I figured you might say that." Rias smiled at him before looking back down again, "So how is training with Koneko and Kiba?"
"Well with Koneko-chan it is mostly hand to hand combat, so we help each other out, with her strength and my technique it goes on for a while. It's been fun, I think I've even seen her crack a very small smile to show she's enjoying it as well, but I can never get her to admit it."
"Good luck trying to." Rias replied as she shook her head before looking at him with a serious look, "And what about Kiba?"
"He's a nice guy, dedicated to his training. Fighting someone who focuses on speed rather than Koneko and her strength is a nice change sometimes." Naruto explained before his eyes narrowed a little. "But I've noticed he's been eyeing Saber with a suspicious look, he's trying to figure out the truth about her."
"… I see." Rias nodded her head, she figured Kiba would be more cautious about Saber and her power over light, especially since she can give huge amounts of it to her wielder at any time. "Speaking of Saber, how is our little friend?"
"Enjoying her new freedom, right now she's relaxing after training so much last night and eating all that food after." Naruto let out a sigh, "… I swear that girl has no stomach, it's just a small black hole in her gut."
"Interesting." Rias let out a laugh into her hand, knowing both how much the tiny girl could eat and how much the two trained at night. She had been there to coach Naruto a bit on using magic, and while she couldn't be there for most of his training, she was still there to see him use Saber's power from a distance. If Naruto were to unlock his true potential and use Saber's power, then there's no doubt he could go far. Her thoughts were halted when she noticed Naruto standing up straight and moving to the stairs, "Naruto-kun, where are you going?"
He looked back at her with a smile, "I promised Mito-chan I'd have lunch with her today, since the two of us haven't done it in a while." As he was about to continue down the stairs he called out to her, "Want to join?"
"Are you sure, I wouldn't want to interrupt." Rias placed a hand on the railing as she looked at him, while she wanted to talk to him more she didn't want to hold Naruto up.
"Nah, I doubt she'll have a problem." Naruto shrugged his shoulders, before continuing down. "She actually is quite fond of you."
"Alright then, if you're sure." Rias smiled as she began following him. As the two of them caught the attention of a few students as they walked down the stairs, especially from Issei and his friends as they drew closer to them.
"It's Rias-sempai and Naruto-sempai!"
"She's so beautiful!"
"And Naruto-sempai is as good looking as ever."
"Are they really dating then?"
The two ignored what was being said as they made their way down the stairs, making their way passed Issei. The brunette stared at the redheaded girl in a small daze as his thoughts going back to the strange dream he had where he was dying, he could remember the color red… and a girl's voice. He snapped out of his thoughts when he noticed Rias looked at him with a side glance before she continued her way with a smirk. Soon she and Naruto reached the bottom of the stairs and turned the corner.
"Wow, she's really beautiful." Matsuda said putting his arms behind his head as he leaned back against the wall.
"Mm-hmm. There's something about her unapproachable elegance." Motohama agreed as he raised a hand to his glasses. "I wonder how that guy was able to do it."
Issei continued to stare at where the two disappeared, not really paying attention to his friends as they talked about a new Gentleman's DVD that Matsuda had gotten. '…What was that?'
(Meanwhile)
"Hey Mito-chan!" Naruto waved to his sister as he and Rias got closer to where his sister was sitting and noticed that she wasn't alone. "And… Koneko-chan?"
"… Hello Naruto-sempai, Buchou…" The white-haired greeted before going back to her chocolate bar.
"I hope you didn't mind, but I saw Koneko-sempai by herself and invited her to join us." Mito gave her brother a sheepish grin.
Naruto simply smiled and patted her on the head, much to her annoyance. "It's no trouble, Rias is gonna join us too. So, the more the merrier."
"Stop Onii-chan," Mito whined as she pushed Naruto's hand away. "You know I don't like that! It's embarrassing."
"Gomen, gomen. But I can't help it Mito-chan," The blond smiled down at his sister. "It's part of my job as a big brother."
The siblings stopped when they heard the sound of Rias laughing and turned to look at her. "Sorry, it's just you remind me of me and my brother."
"You have a brother too, Rias-sempai?" Mito questioned as she looked at Rias, "Is he older than you?"
"Yes, his name is Sirzechs. The two of us have always been close when I was growing up." Rias explained with a smile, thinking about some of the times that they spent together.
"But you aren't now?" Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Did you guys get into a fight or something?"
Rias waved her hand in front of her face, "No it's not that, he just gets busy with his responsibilities… But when we do get the chance to talk and such, he can be just so embarrassing sometimes!" Rias brought the hand to her forehead as she shook her head a little.
"Hahaha," Naruto chuckled as he walked over to a tree and sat down against it. "Like I said, one of the jobs of being a big brother."
"Whatever Onii-chan," Mito let out a sigh before turning to Koneko, "How about you Koneko-sempai? Do you have any siblings?"
The first year froze mid bite before turning to look at Mito, "… I'd rather not talk about it…"
"Oh… okay." The younger redhead blinked a few times before slowly and silently moving over to sit with her brother. "… So, Rias-sempai, what is your brother like?"
"My brother? Well, he's laid-back most of the time, and I can't really say I've ever seen him completely serious except for a few times. But he is someone you can count on." Rias smiled as she recalled her brother, "Sirzechs is always kind and caring towards others, and always tries to keep things peaceful is he can. But with those very rare times he gets mad, he can be really scary."
"That reminds me of Onii-chan, he's always kind to people… well except perverts and bullies." Mito remembered one time when she was one time being bullied by a few kids at a playground once and Naruto sent all the kids running with bleeding noses, bruises and broken arms. "He's always been there for me.
"Is that right…?" Rias looked over at the blond, who was resting back against the tree with his eyes closed. Mito was right about the two being similar when it came to how they treated people, and both were very protective as well. "I can definitely see it."
"My Onii-chan can be a pain sometimes, but I'll leave him in your care Rias-sempai." As soon as Mito said that Naruto slipped from his spot and fell on his side.
He quickly raised himself back up and looked at his sister with a red face, "What the hell Mito-chan?!"
"Sure, you can count on me." Rias replied with a smile, a very small dust of red on her cheeks as well.
Naruto turned to Rias and noticed both she and his sister were giving him a mischievous look, letting out a sigh his head dropped a little. "You both are against me…" A small hand holding a small bar of chocolate moved in front of his face, tilting his head to the side he saw the hand belonging to Koneko, who still had a blank look on her face. "Huh?'
"… Here you go."
Naruto stared at the chocolate for a second before taking it from Koneko, "Thanks Koneko-chan." The petite girl nodded her head before going back to her snack, "It's just one of those days." Naruto muttered before taking a bite of the chocolate.
(Later that Night)
The park was quite as Naruto walked along the path, heading towards the meeting place that Rias had told him to meet her. Now that Issei was a Devil, there was no doubt that he would be attacked sooner or later. And with that pervert's luck Naruto was betting on it being the former. If Issei was really as suspicious as they thought he was, then he will mostly go to where he had been supposedly killed.
Getting closer to his destination deeper in the park, he noticed a figure was sitting on one of the benches. Thanks to his enhanced sight that he gained after he became a Devil, he could see it was a woman. She had golden-blond hair like his, though hers was a bit duller. She was wearing a white turtleneck, a violet miniskirt that reached her upper thighs, black pantyhose and long brown boots. She was staring up at the sky with her red eyes, ignoring the world around her as she looked at the stars. But even though she wasn't moving, for some reason Naruto's body was telling him to be cautious of her. He shook his head a few times before continuing his way, keeping his guard up just in case.
As he was walking passed the bench, the girl called out, "…Hello Devil-san." Naruto froze mid-step, slowly turning to look at her with wide eyes. The girl continued to stare up at the sky as Naruto braced himself, "They're so pretty in this town, don't you think?"
"Huh?" Naruto blinked as he stared at the girl with confusion.
"The stars… don't you think they're pretty here?" The girl looked down from the sky and towards Naruto. The blond man lowered his arms before looking up at the sky.
"I guess, I've never really thought about it before…"
The girl smiled before shaking her head, "That's what I thought, no matter how many years passed, people always focus on so many things, and they forget to stop and enjoy life. It's very sad to see."
"… Maybe…" Naruto said, catching the girl's attention, "But when we forget to the things that matter and stop, it makes it harder to accomplish our goals. After all, everyone has a reason for what they do."
"And what about you?" She asked, "Do you have a reason?"
"Of course," Naruto held a fist up in front of him, "If I stop now then I can't protect the people I care about."
She was silent for a moment before hoping off the bench and walking up to him, stopping just a few inches away as she leaned closer to him, studying him. "Hmm… You're different from the other one."
"Other one?" Naruto was confused as he studied the girl's face, she was pretty cute. "… Who are you talking about?"
"It doesn't matter." The red-eyed girl replied as she took a hop back and brought her arms behind her back, "But I will say this, if you want to grow stronger you have to get rid of your fear."
"Wha?"
"I'll see you another time Devil-san, after all you've started to peak my interest." The girl said as she began to turn around, but Naruto called out to her, curious about what she meant.
"Wait, what did y-" Naruto was cut off as she pointed further down the path.
"You better hurry, or else that Fallen Angel will kill that boy." She said before continuing her way down the path.
Rias was going to be there with Akeno and the others, so he already knew that he didn't need to be there right away. "Hold on!" Naruto called out, but the girl didn't stop walking, even though she turned her head to show she was listening. "Who are you?"
"It's much more polite to introduce yourself first before asking someone else for theirs." Naruto stared at the girl for a few seconds before nodding his head.
"I'm Naruto Uzumaki." The girl nodded her head with a smile.
"My name is Arcueid… Arcueid Brunestud." She turned her head to look at Naruto, a red-purple portal appearing next to her. "Until we meet again Uzumaki-san. Later." With a small wave she walked into the portal and grew a small smile as it closed behind her. 'This descendant is definitely a fascinating one.'
Naruto watched with a raised eyebrow, "Arcueid…?"
"Amazing. To actually see a True Ancestor in this day and age." Saber commented as she took shape next to Naruto, staring at where the girl had disappeared.
"True Ancestor? What's that Saber?" Naruto asked as he looked at his flying companion.
"Hmm… it's a bit hard to explain… I guess you can say they're powerful vampires that-"
"THAT WAS A VAMPIRE?!" Naruto interrupted but was hit on the head by Saber. "OW! Saber that hurt!"
"Then don't interrupt me!" Saber shouted at him before crossing her arms, "As I was saying BEFORE I WAS INTERRUPTED," Naruto had a sheepish smile at that. "Yes that woman's a vampire, a very powerful one, but I didn't think I would ever see a True Ancestor in this day and age."
"Huh, do you mean…?" Naruto asked.
"No more words are needed to explain…" Saber looked at where Arcueid was standing, "She is the last one of her kind."
'She's the last one…' The blond devil looked down at the ground, but before he could think anymore he saw a small glint of light flash deeper in the forest. "…Come on Saber, we have to meet the others."
"Hai, Naruto-sama."
(A Few Minutes Later)
"I had no idea that this city was under the control of the Gremory family." A middle-aged man said as he dusted of his fedora. He had short black hair and dark blue eyes. He was wearing a pale violet trench-coat over a white dress shirt with a matching ascot, black pants and shoes, and a black fedora. "Is that boy a member of your peerage?"
"Yes, so if you harm him then I will show no mercy to you." Rias replied with Koneko and Akeno standing next to her. "And I'm surprised, I would have thought that your friend would have already told you. Abazeth, I believe."
"Abazeth? So, he knew… That man doesn't really like to share information." The man muttered to himself before straightening himself, "I'll apologize for today. But a little warning, you let your slaves out of your sight if you want them to live longer. Someone like me might just kill him."
"I thank you for the warning, in exchange let me warn youto remember that if you try this again and attack someone from the House of Gremory." A cold smile appeared on her face as she stared at the man, "I will eradicate you without hesitation nor mercy."
"Haha, I see. Then I return those words back to you." The man extended his wings outward before shooting off into the sky, "My name is Dohnaseek, pray that we never meet again." A strange pressure suddenly hit the Fallen Angel making him turn his head to see Naruto and Saber standing on one of the trees, staring up at him with blank faces. "You better remember this as well."
Naruto suddenly grew a grin as he looked up at the man, "Sorry, but if you're trying to scare me, then I have to say that you are truly pathetic."
"Oh really, are you a member of her peerage as well?" Dohnaseek asked, a light spear appeared in his hand. Akeno was about to get her lightning ready when Rias raised a hand in front of her. This was Naruto's fight.
"Nope, just an Independent Devil." Naruto's grin grew a little bigger, this was the perfect chance to see how well his control has gotten. "…Saber, let me try this on my own." Saber only nodded as she moved over to where Rias and the others were.
"…Independent huh? Then it won't matter if you DIE!" He declared as the light spear in his right hand lit up. He cocked his hand back and threw the spear straight towards Naruto.
Instead of jumping out the way, Naruto simple raised his hand and caught it just as the tip was about to hit him. "That was just pathetic. I was right about not needing to use Saber's Defense Cloak against him." The blond tightened his grip on the light spear until it shattered into tiny fragments and faded away.
In the air, Dohnaseek gaped in shock at what he just saw. "There's no way Devil can hold a light spear, let alone destroy it like that. It's a light-based weapon; therefore, a Devil should be weak against it." Dohnaseek's eyes hardened as he stared down at Naruto, this was impossible.
"You know… I don't feel like flying right now… so how about we fight on the ground." Naruto raised his arm up and concentrated his power into his hand, forming the energy into a spear of his own, surprising the others. "Energy manipulation is surprisingly easy… Now then, get down here." With a tug of his wrist Naruto threw the spear at Dohnaseek with a powerful throw, the Fallen Angel didn't have time to dodge as the spear came at him fast and tore right through his left side, taking his arm and wing with it. Due to his loss of a wing and the power of the blow, the man came crashing into the ground. "Much better."
The girls were surprised that Naruto could use the power of light like that, especially Akeno and Koneko since they never seen Naruto use his power in person. Rias just smiled as she watched Naruto hope down from the branch he was standing on and made his way over to the Fallen Angel, even after seeing it several times before it never ceased to amaze her at the fact that there was now a Devil that could use light magic.
Dohnaseek slowly raised himself up to see Naruto standing over him, "Just… just what the hell are you?! There's no way you can use light magic; you're a Devil!"
"You're right, I am a Devil." Naruto lifted his hand up and concentrated his power on his hand, covering it with a powerful golden glow. "But as you can see, I have no trouble controlling the power of light."
"…Who are you?" Dohnaseek demanded as he glared up at the blond, knowing this freak was about to kill him.
Naruto ignored his question and look back at Rias, asking her a silent question of his own. "Rias-chan?"
She was quiet for a moment before nodding her head, "You may do with him as you wish Naruto-kun. After all, he is someone that we will most likely cross paths within the near future and have to deal with later on."
Dohnaseek's eyes widened in surprise when he heard her say Naruto's name. "…Naruto? As in Naruto Uzumaki?"
Naruto turned back to the Fallen Angel, "How do you know my name?" The man started to chuckle, before long it started to grow and turned into an uncontrollable laughter. "What the hell's so funny?!"
Dohnaseek calmed down enough to give Naruto an evil grin, "Just enjoying the irony, after all… You're one of our targets as well."
"What? Why would you guys be after me?" Naruto reached down and grabbed the bleeding stump that had been Dohnaseek's arm, making the man let out a grunt in pain. "TELL ME!"
"Now why would I do that? You're about to die here and now!" He summoned another spear with his uninjured hand, before jabbing it forward. Believing that Naruto wouldn't be able to block, let alone dodge an attack that was coming from so close.
To his shock however, Naruto knocked the spear out of his hands and into the air without even looking. The blond created a small orb of light in his hands, "That… was the wrong answer." Naruto said in a frosty tone before slamming the orb into Dohnaseek's body. "Light Grenade!"
The Fallen Angel paused, not moving a muscle. But then his body started to shake and convulse before glowing a gold color, "AAAGGGH-" His body exploded in a bright golden light that covered both him and Naruto from the other sights. After a few seconds the light disappeared and only Naruto came into view, on the ground in front of him was a scorch mark that resembled a body. He turned away from the marking and started walking towards the small group. He raised his hand into the air and caught the spear he had knocked into the air, before destroying it with a twist of his wrist.
"Very impressive Naruto-kun." Rias said as soon as he stopped in front of her, "Your control over your new power is very good for someone who started a few weeks back."
"What can I say, I like to train and push myself." Naruto shrugged before letting out a disappointed grunt, "I just wish I got answers from the guy, why did he say I was a target too?"
"Who knows, but if they were targeting you like they were Issei, something about you must have caught their attention." Akeno said bringing a hand to her face.
Naruto thought back to earlier with Arcueid, "Great, I seemed to be doing that a lot lately… Well never mind about that know, how is the pervert?" He noticed all the girls seemed to have a small look of realization, "… He's still bleeding out, isn't he?"
"It seems so," Rias said as she turned around and walked towards the unconscious boy. "I didn't think he would run into a Fallen Angel so soon, it was careless of me."
"He'll die if we don't do something." Koneko commented as she stared at Issei from a distance.
'So why did you guys try to heal him while I was beating that Fallen Angel?' Naruto thought to himself before looking at Saber, "Is it possible for me to use your healing on him?"
Saber shook her head before speaking, "Unfortunately it wouldn't work on him, seeing as my power is mostly light-based. Maybe when you have more control over it, but for now it would only make things worse."
"I guess I'll take him home and help him heal properly," Rias said with a soft sigh as she placed her hand on Issei's shoulder. "With this kind of wound it will most likely be better to stay the night."
"If you had started healing him sooner, you wouldn't have to worry about it." Naruto gave the girl a look, to which she playfully stuck her tongue out at him. "Just make sure he doesn't do anything to you."
"I think I heard a bit of jealousy there, Naruto-kun. Did you want Buchou to spend the night with you instead?" Akeno commented as she pressed up against him from behind and rubbed her large chest against his back. "If you want I can keep you company for the night."
"Akeno, stop rubbing yourself against Naruto-kun." Rias gave the raven-haired girl a small glare with a look of irritation on her face. "We have more important things to do."
"Fufufu, now you have some jealousy in your voice Buchou." Akeno said in a teasing manner as she hid herself behind Naruto, "Besides I doubt Naruto minds, isn't that right, Naruto-kun?"
"Sure, I won't say that it doesn't feel nice." Naruto replied with a bored expression, making Akeno pout a little and Rias snicker a bit, "But I'd rather get home before my family gets worried." He took a step away from Akeno and stood next to his petite kōhai.
"I hope you're not turning into a pervert Naruto-senpai," Koneko said making Naruto give the white-haired girl an offended look before replying in a deadpanned tone.
"No way Koneko-chan, saying something like that puts me in the same class as this idiot," Naruto said before lightly kicking Issei which made Rias lightly swatted him on the leg. "I just admit that I like beautiful women, and both Rias and Akeno are examples of beautiful women."
Rias pushed down her blush before speaking up, "Anyway you should all head home and we will meet up again tomorrow. After all, we have a new member to properly introduce to everyone." She said as the other members nodded at her words, a seal appeared under her and Issei. "See you tomorrow." With that said the two disappeared, everyone else soon followed her example and went to their respective homes, though Naruto had an annoyed look on his face at the thought of what was going to happen tomorrow morning.
-NULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRGNULRG-
The next day came quickly, and Naruto was now standing on the upper levels above the building's entrance, waiting for Rias to make an appearance. He had already said goodbye to his sister before going over to the railing to keep an eye out for red hair. While he knew Rias could handle herself easily against a weak pervert like Issei, he couldn't help but feel frustrated about the fact she was with the brunette. Naruto didn't know why he was feeling like this, but the blond knew one thing… he didn't like it at all.
"I'm surprised to see you here Naruto-san." He turned towards the voice and saw the voice belong to the second High-class Devil at Kuoh Academy and Student Council President, Sona Sitri. She had black hair styled in a short bob cut and violet eyes which she hid behind a pair of red glasses. She was beautiful, intelligent and was the third most popular girl under Rias and Akeno.
"I should be the one saying that Sona-san," Naruto grinned at her as he shifted to leaning on the rail with one arm. "After all, as the Student Council President, you have a lot of responsibilities correct?"
"True, but I wanted to see something for myself." Sona replied, closing her eyes as she leaned back against one of the pillars. "Rias has gotten a new member to her peerage, and I heard it was Issei Hyoudou."
"Yeah, it's true. Apparently some Fallen Angels were after him and she turned him into her pawn after he was killed." Naruto said before gazing back down at the entrance. He could see some of the students were looking back, as it something shocking was happening behind them. "Looks like they're here."
Sure enough, Rias and Issei were walking through the entrance, "They've certainly caught a lot of attention." Sona commented as the two watched Rias say something to Issei before walking away, and when he tried to stop her he got punched in the face by one of his friends.
"… Yeah." Naruto replied with a dull tone, staring at the three perverts.
Sona smirked before looking towards the stairs where Rias was making her way up. "So, you got yourself a new one, huh?" She called out to get Rias' attention, making the girl look up. "Good day, Rias."
The redheaded Devil smiled back, "Good day, Sona." She turned her head to see Naruto standing there as well before moving up to him, "Good morning Naruto-kun."
"… Good morning Rias-chan." Naruto greeted.
"I'm surprised you took him on a whim…" Sona said as she and the other two looked down at the Perverted Trio, who for some reason seemed to be playing rock-paper-scissors. "That's not like you at all."
"Really?" Rias had a small smile on her face, Sona looked at her with a curious look. "I guess I've gained a stupid little brother to watch over."
"… Is that so…" Sona muttered before looking back at the trio.
"We should probably head to class." Naruto suggested as he moved away from the railing, Rias and Sona turned way as well to see Naruto was already walking away, "See you later Sona-san. Have a nice day."
"You as well Naruto-san." Sona replied before turning to Rias, "I have some duties I need to finish up, I just wanted to see what your new Pawn looked like."
"Hai hai, I understand." Rias nodded to her fellow Devil; she started making her way to the Student Council Room before coming to a stop after a few steps.
"You may want to talk to Naruto-san," S said without looking back, knowing Rias was sending her a confused look. "Not that it's my business. But he was up here for at least ten to fifteen minutes waiting for you to show up and make sure you were okay."
"He was?" Rias blinked and looked to where Naruto had been standing, "But why would he do that? I was perfectly fine."
"My guess is that he was worried that Issei Hyoudou might've tried something…" Sona lifted her hand to her face and pushed her glasses up. "While the three of us all know that you could handle yourself just fine, I do believe it's something to consider. Goodbye Rias."
Rias was silent for a minute or so, thinking about what her friend/rival had said. A small smile came to her face as she closed her eyes, for some reason the thought of Naruto being worried about her made her happy. Shaking her head a few times, the female Devil made her way towards the classroom. She soon made her way into the classroom and saw Naruto was sitting at his desk, leaning on his palm while staring out the window with a blank expression.
"Thank you." He turned his head to see Rias, standing right next to her desk, looking down at him with a smile. "For worrying about me."
"… It's no big deal," Naruto looked away with a small blush. "I know you can handle yourself, but I was annoyed and concerned."
"Really? About what?" Rias asked as she leaned a little closer.
Naruto's blush grew a little more, "Because you were spending the night with someone as perverted as Issei. It just bothered me for some reason."
"I see…" She replied as she brushed her hair behind her ear, "So does that mean… you want me to spend the night with you next time."
"What?!" Naruto snapped his head back to look at her and saw she had an amused grin on her face. "D-Don't joke about things like that."
"Who says I'm joking? Remember Naruto-kun, anyone can just see me…" Rias reached out and grabbed Naruto's hand, holding it tightly. "But I'm still the one, who decides who is allowed to touch me."
"R-Rias-chan…" Naruto muttered as he stared into her eyes, this was one of the things about her that attracted him to her. The first was her beautiful red hair, and the second was her blue-green eyes, which were full of so many different and powerful emotions. "What are you…?"
"Ara ara, you're both so romantic in the morning." Akeno said from right behind them. Rias and Naruto pulled their hands apart in surprise and turned to see a smiling Akeno looking at both with a smile. "You both can be so jumpy."
"Because you keep sneaking up on us." Rias replied while pointing at the ponytailed girl.
"I don't even know how you're able to get passed my senses." Naruto muttered as he looked up at Akeno with a suspicious side-glance.
"Come now Naruto-kun, every woman has her secrets." Akeno laughed in her hand, "Besides class is about to start soon, and we're going to have a new student join us."
"A new student?" Naruto had a curious look, he didn't remember the teacher saying anything about a new student.
Rias was the one to answer next, "That's right, I was told we were getting someone today. She's a transfer student."
"She?" Naruto repeated.
At that moment the teacher walked in, "Alright everyone, get into your seats." After a few seconds everyone was seats. "As some of you know we are getting a new student today, please be polite and make her feel welcome at Kuoh Academy."
"Hai!"
Mrs. Emiya nodded her head with a smile before turning towards the door, "You can come in now." The door slowly opened, and a girl walked into the class. "So why don't you introduce yourself."
"Yes ma'am," The girl replied before she started to write her name on the board.
Rias studied the girl with a calculative stare, there was no doubt that this girl was…? She turned her head and saw Naruto staring at the girl with in shock. "Naruto-kun?"
When the girl finished writing her name she turned to the class with a smile. "Hello everyone! My name is Arcueid Brunestud, I hope we all get along!"