ch 11 - rogue kitty

The afternoon sun beat down on their backs. Naruto stood in a semi-circle with Issei and Kiba. They stood in a small clearing surrounded by forestry; trees and bushes and shrubs covered much of their vision and didn't allow them to see more than several dozen feet. The canopy of branches and leaves above blocked out the sun.

"So what's the plan?" asked Issei. "Do we just go in and bust heads or are we actually going to, like, think this through or something?"

"I'm sure Naruto-san has a plan, Issei," Kiba smiled at the pervert… and then turned to Naruto, his face a mask of skepticism. "You do have a plan, right?"

"Of course I've got a plan," Naruto said, sounding insulted. "Who the hell do you think I am?"

"How about a man who, for all his surprising intellect, tends to come up with the stupidest plans?" Kiba offered.

"Oh, screw you. Every single one of my plans have worked so far, haven't they?"

"Maybe for the last game, yes, but what about the one before that?"

"They just got lucky."

"And the one before that? Or how about—"

"Okay, okay, I get your point," Naruto grumbled. "So my plans are a little out there. They're still good plans."

The Gremory peerage was currently in the middle of a mockup rating game; Rias, Akeno and Koneko versus Naruto, Issei and Kiba. Asia was acting as the healer for after the battle and not allowed to participate because doing so would've given the team she was on an unfair advantage. She'd pouted a bit, but a few whispered words from Akeno had the girl forgetting all about participating.

Naruto would've wondered what was said, but felt he was better off not asking when he saw the blood leaking from Asia's nose.

There are some things a man just isn't meant to know.

These "rating games" had been an idea that Rias had cooked up a few weeks back. She'd been watching their rating game with Rizer, compared it to the other rating games, the ones played professionally, and decided they were lacking. While their strategy had been sound enough, most of it had relied on whether or not Naruto's seal would work against Rizer and seal away his ability to regenerate. While that seal had indeed worked, and worked well, it didn't change how they'd been over reliant upon it working. If it hadn't worked, their victory could've very easily turned into defeat.

The others had agreed. And so every Wednesday and Saturday the group went out into the woods, set up a barrier to keep unwanted guests away, and paired up into threes, so they could have mock rating games. This particular game just happened to be set up so it was men versus women.

"So what's the plan, then?"

"Right, I'm going to act as a distraction for Akeno and Rias. I want you two to gang up on Koneko and take her out of the game as quickly as possible."

"I don't know how I feel about ganging up on someone," Issei said, looking uncertain. "It doesn't feel right to gang up on a girl like that, especially one as cute as Koneko."

"I have to agree with Issei," Kiba added. "Ganging up on someone, not fighting fair and square. It just feels wrong. It isn't honorable."

"Being honorable is for losers, not winners." Naruto dismissed their thoughts. "Remember this, if you're not cheating, you're not trying. I have to be the distraction for Rias and Akeno, so I can't fight her. That means you two will need to take my place. And trust me when I say that neither of you would win if you faced her one-on-one."

Naruto had been training with Koneko just like he had with Issei. At least two days a week for three hours she and he would spar in another clearing several miles from Kuoh city. While Koneko hadn't made much progress in Senjutsu, which Naruto had also taken to instructing her in, her skills in hand-to-hand combat were easily on par with his own. Then again, Naruto was never a taijutsu specialist, preferring close-range ninjutsu attacks like his rasengan as opposed to straight up taijutsu. It was still impressive, though. Naruto might not be Rock Lee or Maito Gai, but he was no slouch either. Koneko really had improved.

"I still don't like the idea of ganging up on a little girl," Issei said, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Even if said little girl can kick your ass six ways to Sunday?" Naruto asked wryly. Issei's cheeks flushed.

"W-whatever."

"Say we do go along with this plan," Kiba interrupted. "How exactly are you going to get Rias and Akeno to follow you? You can't—"

"I know, I know." Naruto waved a hand dismissively. "Don't worry, I know what I'm doing… I think."

Kiba deadpanned. "Your comprehensive answering is inspiring."

"Really?"

"No."

"… Meanie."

~Devil Ninja~

Akeno, Koneko and Rias stood around a clearing, waiting. They could have made a plan, but knowing Naruto, any plan they made would be shit on the moment they actually tried to enact it. The blond-haired devil came up with some of the most insane ideas ever conceived. They didn't always work, but they never failed to make any plans the other team conceived unusable.

"What do you think he's going to do this time?" Akeno asked.

"Probably something insane, stupid and reckless," Rias said.

"I think he's going to rile up Akeno somehow and get her and you to chase after him," Koneko said from where she was crouched on the ground, absentmindedly playing with the grass. "My guess is he'll do something stupid like smack Akeno's ass or even grab her boobs in the hopes it'll anger her and make you jealous."

Akeno and Rias shared a look. Then they looked back at her.

"That was highly specific."

"Ara, ara, what makes you think he'd do something like grab my boobs?" Akeno asked. "Other than the fact that my breasts are way better than Rias's?"

"You think so, huh?" Rias straightened her shoulders and glared. Her breasts bounced with the action. "You wanna put that to the test, Lightning Queen?"

"Ara, ara." Akeno's smile was as devious as they came. "I'll gladly show you why my breasts are better than yours anytime, anywhere." Saying this, she thrust out her own chest, causing her ridiculously-sized bust to bounce and jiggle.

Koneko looked at them both, then looked down at her own flat chest.

She started twitching.

"Boob monsters."

"Ara, don't be so mean, Koneko-chan. There is nothing wrong with being flat."

More twitching.

"Indeed, having large breasts isn't all it's cracked up to be," Rias added, "I often have terrible back pains and need Naruto to work the kinks out before they become overbearing."

Koneko twitched some more.

"How is that a problem?"

Rias huffed and crossed her arms under her chest, which pushed her bust together. Koneko felt like smacking the redhead's boobs with her Rook-given strength.

"It just is, okay?"

And that was when Naruto came onto the scene. He burst out of the treeline from their right, already throwing several ninja stars at them. Rias almost scoffed as she used her powers of destruction to destroy the ninja stars. The only reason she didn't scoff was because she felt wary. Naruto, contrary to the way he acted, wasn't an idiot. If he was committing to a full-frontal assault, then he must be planning something.

Testing the waters, she sent a blast of her powers of destruction at him, only to narrow her eyes when Naruto went up in a puff of smoke.

"Shadow Clone," she muttered. Of course he would use a Shadow Clone as a distraction. It was his favorite jutsu.

"There he is!" Akeno spotted another Naruto, this one running right toward her. Cackling in glee, lightning arcing at her fingertips, she sent a lance of electric power at her foe. That Naruto also went up in smoke, revealing it to be another Shadow Clone. "Oh my, he's quite the tricky one, isn't he?"

"Not as tricky as you might think," a voice said behind her.

Akeno's eyes widened. On reflex she turned around. Amused blue eyes stared into startled purple. Her hand rose to do… what, exactly? Rias didn't know her friends plan, or if her friend even had a plan. For all she knew, the woman was simply so stunned she had acted on instinct.

Honk. Honk.

Rias' right eye twitched.

Akeno looked even more shocked.

"I told you so," Koneko said knowingly.

Rias didn't know how to feel in that moment. Angry at her boyfriend? Stunned by his audacity? Should she applaud that same audacity? She didn't know, couldn't know. However…

"Must not face-palm. Must not face-palm. Must not face-palm."

It was almost interesting to watch as Akeno's face flashed through a variety of emotions. First came shock; her eyes became wide and round, her pupils tiny little pinpricks. She tilted her head down to stare at her chest, and then back up to stare at Naruto.

"You are groping my breasts."

"That I am." Even as he said this, Naruto continued blatantly handling Akeno's breasts. "I must say, these aren't bad. I almost feel jealous of Issei for being able to touch these so often…" He paused to look at Akeno. "He does touch these, right?"

Unable to even think of not answering, all Akeno could say was, "Uh… yes?"

"Right. Just checking." Naruto then went back to his fondling. "However, while I can definitely tell these are actually bigger than Rias's by a fair bit, I'm gonna have to say that Rias has better boobs than you by far. Their fullness of their shape and general perkiness makes her bust superior to yours. Sorry, Akeno, but sometimes, size just isn't everything."

Rias felt slightly vindicated by his words. She'd always known that Akeno had bigger breasts. It had been something her Queen liked to flaunt; the fact that her boobs were bigger. Hearing Naruto say he preferred hers over Akeno's was a big relief, not to mention an ego booster.

On the other hand.

"Must not face-palm. Must not face-palm. Must not face-palm."

"You think Rias's breasts are better than mine?"

"Way better."

"I see."

Akeno got over her shock and smiled. It wasn't a very nice smile. It was a smile that spoke of pain and suffering, of a desire to inflict harm upon others, of taking joy in another's pain. It was the smile of a sadist.

"Fu fu fu… You know I'm going to kill you now, right?"

"You are certainly free to try, Akeno-onee-san."

"Calling me onee-san isn't going to save you this time."

Akeno didn't give Naruto time to respond before shoving a lightning coated fist into his chest. Mere seconds after that, however, the Naruto in front of her disappeared within a cloud of white vapor and a log took his place. Having made a quick, on the spot and seal less replacement, Naruto stood several feet away and clapped his hands together in prayer.

"Oh dear log, I thank thee for your honorable sacrifice. You have always blessed this worthless ninja with your protection, and in repayment, I shall plant one-hundred saplings in this forest to ensure that the log shall never die out." Naruto clapped his hands together twice. "Ame—aaaiiiiii!"

Naruto was unable to finish his prayer, forced as he was to dodge Akeno's lightning blast.

"Oi! Can't you see I'm praying here!" Naruto raised a fist and shook it at Akeno, whose smile only widened.

"Oh Kit-su-ne-kun~" she cooed, more lightning coating her hands. "Please hold still for a moment while serve up your punishment!"

"You'll never take me alive, Sadist-onee-chan!"

"Hold still you!"

"And not make you work for it? Just who the hell do you think I am?! Uzumaki Naruto never lets people just beat the crap out of him… at least not anymore. Either way, I ain't letting you take your sadistic frustrations out on me without a fight!"

"Fu fu fu, very well then. Punishment is always so much more satisfying after the hunt anyway."

Rias resisted the urge to sigh as she watched Naruto lead Akeno into the forest. She noted that he was leading her in the opposite direction he arrived from, which likely meant Kiba and Issei were somewhere over that way as well.

She turned her head.

And found herself staring at a hand.

Koneko's bored yellow eyes looked up at her.

"Pay up."

Rias grumbled as she handed her Rook several coupons for her favorite sweet shop. She didn't understand. How did her Rook know Naruto's habits better than she did? Koneko didn't live with Naruto, didn't sleep with Naruto, and she certainly didn't do ecchi things with Naruto. Rias did. Yet somehow, Koneko sometimes seemed to know her boyfriend better than her. It was frustrating.

Koneko counted the coupons, making sure they were the correct amount. Then she pocketed them and looked at her King once again.

"You should probably go after them. Akeno-senpai is strong, but she can't handle Naruto-senpai on her own."

"Yes, you're right," Rias said, sighing. So this was his plan. Divide and conquer. A sound strategy, and one that worked. Naruto knew Rias couldn't afford to lose Akeno, the strongest piece after her. Koneko, for all her talent, wasn't as powerful and therefore not as important. Expendable. She detested the word, but there was no denying the facts. In a game of outright strategy, Koneko was more expendable than Akeno.

She still didn't like it, but she accepted it.

"Will you be alright on your own?" Rias asked. Koneko nodded and tightened her gloves, the metal bracers Naruto had given her before the rating game with Rizer Phenex creaking.

"I can handle Kiba-senpai and the perv just fine."

Rias nodded at her Rook before taking off into the forest, chasing after her two other servants.

BAM!

"HAHAHAHA! You'll have to do better than that, Sadist-onee-chan!"

"Ara, ara. In that case why don't I try something a little different then?"

CRASH!

Not like it was a hard thing to do.

~Devil Ninja~

Kiba couldn't keep the sweat from dripping down his forehead. "Really, Naruto? You just had to go and grope Akeno's breasts? I thought Issei was supposed to be the perverted one here." He knew that his blond companion could be a tad… eccentric at times, but Kiba was only now beginning to realize something he didn't think the others had figured out yet: Naruto wasn't all there. He was kind and compassionate and friendly to be around, but he was also clearly insane. Only someone without a lick of common sense and no self-regard would possibly do something so stupid.

His straining muscles alerted him to Issei's increased struggling. Kiba grunted as he held the young man back, arms under the other boy's armpits and locked around his chest. The other boy kicked his feet out, trying to find some kind of purchase along the ground. Kiba wouldn't let him, however, and kept his feet firmly in the air, wincing when strong heels struck his shins.

"Let me go, Kiba! I'm gonna kill that bastard!"

"N-now just calm down, Issei. I'm sure he only did this as part of the plan."

"Screw the plan! He just touched Akeno's Oppai! Her Oppai! I'm the only one allowed to touch them!"

"Well, I can kinda understand where you're coming from," Kiba admitted. It was kind of a dick move, groping the oppai of a friend's girlfriend, but he knew that was exactly the reason Naruto did it. Shock factor… and stupidity, but mostly for the shock factor. And it worked well, maybe even a little too well. Even now he could hear explosions and howling laughter off in the distance. "But you've gotta calm down, Issei. You can beat up Naruto-san later. Right now we're in a competition. Don't let your anger cloud your judgment."

Kiba didn't know if it was due to his words or something else, but Issei did calm down.

"You're right," he said. Kiba blinked. "I need to focus on the training now. I'll get back at blond-bastard-sensei after we win. Oh yes. He's gonna regret ever touching Akeno's oppai… kukuku…"

Kiba stared at his friend, his look unfathomable.

"Let's just hurry up and beat Koneko."

Why was he surrounded by crazy people?

~Devil Ninja~

Naruto enjoyed this little game of cat and mouse he and Akeno played—even if he was currently the mouse. Dodging the lightning storm the sadist threw at him was excellent exercise, a great way to train his timing and reflexes. It was made all the more interesting because the lightning seemed capable of seeking him out, almost like it had infrared-sensing or whatever.

The crackling of lightning burning ozone had Naruto tilting his body to the left and springboarding to another branch. The branch he'd been on, along with the tree, exploded in a shower of sparks and woodchips. Naruto offered a silent prayer to the tree whose logs would never see the light of day.

"Amen."

He clapped his hands twice.

And then dodged another blast of lightning.

"Get back here, Kitsune-kun!"

"Nu uh!" Naruto called back, turning around just to toss Akeno an infuriating grin. Then he pulled down his left eyelid and stuck his tongue out at her for good measure. "You want me, you're gonna have to catch me!"

A smile no longer on her face, Akeno snarled at him. "Fine!"

Lightning gathered along her arm, long arcs of electricity jittering off her fingers, striking at the ground and flora around her, igniting several shrubs and trees. Her index and middle finger formed a spear point to which all of the lightning gathered into a tiny ball that hummed and crackled with repressed power. Akeno thrust her entire arm forward, and the lightning, all of that compressed energy in the shape of a sphere, was released in a single conical beam of destructive power.

"Woah!"

Naruto had to make quick use of Kawarimi in order to avoid getting barbequed. The tree he'd been standing on, along much of the surrounding area in a several meter radius around it, exploded in a violent shower of sparks and fire.

"Whew! That was too close!"

Naruto eventually found a spot he deemed appropriate for a confrontation; a semi-large clearing without any trees and only a few bushes. He could feel Rias also closing in from the other side. Smart move, trying to hem him in with a pincer. That would've worked if he hadn't gotten a feel for her devil powers. Her signature was very distinctive and easily recognizable. He stopped in the middle of the clearing, his back to Akeno when he heard her barge out of the sea of trees.

"Finally decided to stop running, I see." Akeno's wings retracted into their back as her feet alighted the ground. "I'm glad to see you're willing to take your punishment like a man now."

"You can think that if you want. Whatever helps you sleep at night." Grinning like a loon, Naruto turned and pointed a finger at her. "But don't think for one second that I'm actually going down easily! It's game time now! And I'm playing to win!"

"Pretty words from a mouth that's about to get roasted!"

Akeno sent another blast of lightning at Naruto, who charged headlong into the arcing danger's path. As the electrical damage washed over him, the blond teenager vanished in more smoke.

"I'm beginning to hate these Shadow Clones," Akeno muttered, looking around. Naruto was no longer visible. He wasn't in front of her, nor to the left or the right. He wasn't behind her or above her. That could only mean…

"Ah ha!"

Akeno's eyes widened as the ground exploded underneath her and a grinning Naruto popped out. Her body jerked backwards, barely managing to avoid the fist set to plant itself under her chin. She stumbled several steps, which allowed Naruto to close the distance fast.

"Tch!"

Akeno realized she was in trouble the moment Naruto moved within hand-to-hand combat range. She wasn't a front-line fighter. Her body might have a Rook's strength and a Knight's speed, but that didn't necessarily mean anything. It just meant she could dodge quicker and take more of a beating. The simple fact was she had no talent in the martial arts.

Naruto's fists whizzed by her head, each strike buffeted her hair, causing it to flutter in her eyes. She blinked, but that proved to be a mistake when, in the time span it took her to blink, his fist was in front of her face. Only her speed, the same speed granted to Knights, saved her from what would have likely been a serious black eye.

"Come on, Sadist-onee-chan!" Naruto's joyous laugh rang through the air, showing quite clearly how much fun he was having. "I thought you were going to fry me!"

A straight jab was dodged by jumping several feet back using her Rook granted strength. Naruto tried to follow, but Akeno sent a blast of lightning at his feet, forcing him to leap back.

The ground exploded between them. Tendrils of electrical discharge burnt the ozone; arcs of energy that skittered across the ground and through the air. Akeno used the moment this granted her to take to the sky. While Naruto could follow her if he desired, she knew he wouldn't. For some reason, he hated flying. Something about not being able to fight properly in the air.

"Now, Kitsune-kun." Cheeks flushed red, breathing heavy, Akeno smiled as more lightning began crackling between her fingers. "Let's see how long you can keep dodging me."

~Devil Ninja~

Naruto knew he was in trouble the moment Rias joined in the fight. While confident that he could take them both at the same time in a real fight, this was a spar, a training session. As such he couldn't use any of his sure-kill techniques—not that he would use those against allies and friends. In either event, this limited his abilities substantially. He had the rasengan, his chakra chains, his ninja supplies, and his ability to manipulate wind chakra… plus a few magic spells, which he didn't like using.

The rasengan was out of the question. He didn't know how damaging it would be on a devil. It might only do a bit of cosmetic damage on their more durable bodies, or it might drill a hole through skin, muscle and bone. He didn't want to find out.

His chakra chains were useful, but only good for restraining people—and they were slow. Like, really slow. Akeno and Rias could dodge them easily enough. They'd done so a number of times already.

His wind manipulation was good, but it required some time to build up the chakra and transform it into wind-based chakra. If he knew the hand signs for jutsu, he'd be able to just let the signs manipulate the shape and transform the chakra for him. Sadly, he'd never really focused on hand sign jutsu. Most of his attention had been on shape and nature manipulation.

What about his magic then? He had a few spells, low level ones. They probably wouldn't even singe the two above him, but maybe they'd make a good distraction—

Instincts warned him of sudden danger and Naruto jumped to the left. Dark red matter struck the spot he'd been standing on, incinerating it and leaving a small, perfectly round crater.

"Ooh boy." Naruto whistled. "These girls are taking this pretty seriously."

He looked up in time to see a combination attack, lightning and destruction swirling around each other like a double-helix heading right for him. He gathered a bit of wind chakra to his fists and thrust them at the ground, launching himself over the attack, which struck the earth with incredible force. Wings popped out of his back, keeping him aloft.

"So you've finally decided to take the fight to us?" asked Rias, smiling at her boyfriend. Naruto sighed.

"Well, I guess I had to get serious some time."

"Ara, ara. What an arrogant thing to say." Akeno's smile, flushed face and heavy breathing showed she'd forgotten all about being angry. She was clearly fully immersed in her S-mode. Naruto could see why it freaked Issei out so much. S-Akeno was kinda freaky. "It looks like I'm going to need to put this little fox in his place.

A snort echoed within his mind.

"Listen to this woman calling you a fox. I feel like I've personally been insulted."

"Don't be like that, Kurama. I can be foxy when I want to be."

"Keep telling yourself that, kid. Maybe one day it'll come true."

Naruto would have pouted at his friend's words, but several blasts and beams of electricity and destruction hurtling his way forced him to put that out of his mind. He spent the next few seconds simply dodging attacks, trying to get used to flying. He didn't do it very often. While the concept of flying appealed to him, putting the idea into practice was hard. His wings just didn't do what he told them to. This meant he spent more time sputtering around and almost crashing than anything else. He did have to be grateful for one thing, though, at least it kept him from getting hit.

"Ara, look at that. Kitsune-kun can't fly very well." Akeno took much pleasure in this fact. If Naruto didn't know any better, he'd say she was holding a grudge. "It looks like foxes really are meant to be bottom feeders."

"Now that's just rude."

"Agreed."

"She shouldn't lump foxes in with you."

"Ugh… Kurama… so mean."

Naruto eventually got the hang of flying and soon found himself weaving between blasts of lightning and waves of destruction far more easily. He juked and jinked, moving left and right, drawing inexorably closer to the two.

"Akeno!"

"Right!"

The two launched a simultaneous attack at Naruto. Red energy and blue lightning combined. The energy turned into a cylinder of sheer destruction while the lightning skittered along the outside, enhancing the already devastating power.

Naruto pulled out a kunai and enhanced it with wind chakra.

"Wind chakra is used in order to increase the sharpness of bladed weapons, so much so that in the hands of an experienced user even small blades are capable of piercing substantial rocks easily. This chakra is unparalleled offensively in close and mid-ranged fights. This effect is achieved by utilizing two opposing chakra currents, which are ground against each other in such a manner that they sharpen one another into fine pieces."

Naruto remembered Asuma's lessons from way back when. How to increase the sharpness of bladed weapons using wind-natured chakra flow, creating two opposing currents of chakra that ground against each other, sharpening one another until his wind became so sharp it could slice through just about anything.

Including demonic energy.

Releasing a wordless battle cry, Naruto swung his wind-enhanced kunai at the upcoming storm of energy. The wind sliced the beam of crackling destruction in half, causing it to split apart and flow on either side of him. Earth rumbled as the attacks struck groundside, creating a small seismic quake, leaving two large craters about four meters wide in the shape of perfect circles upon dispersing.

Naruto clicked his tongue as he looked what was left of his kunai. Everything except the handle had been reduced to slag. He discarded the handle with a sigh. Kunai just weren't cutting it these days. With the enemies he faced a mere kunai simply wasn't enough anymore. He'd have to find a weapon that could withstand the power people of this world seemed to possess.

"Patience, brat," Kyuubi growled. "Once your chakra has had the chance to synchronize with my new chakra, we'll be able to replicate those Truth Balls of yours. You'll be able to make pretty much whatever you want then."

"Yeah, I know. I just hated waiting."

"Impatient brat."

"Scruffy old fox."

Naruto was forced to suspend further conversation when the battle began anew. Rather than rely on easily destroyed tools, he focused on drawing wind chakra into his fists and launching them out in powerful burst of hammer-strength gusts. They didn't do as well. The Power of Deconstruction was too strong to be beaten by blunt force trau,a, but at least the lightning was negated by his wind.

"It seems we're at a bit of a stalemate," Rias said after her seventh unsuccessful attack.

"So it would appear," Akeno agreed.

"I hope that doesn't mean you two are giving up," Naruto said, grinning, hardly winded. While he was being given quite the workout, his energy levels kept him fresh and raring for more. "I'm still ready to keep going."

Rias crossed her arms under her chest. "You're having way too much fun with this."

"And she's not?"

Rias looked to where Naruto was pointing… and then promptly felt a small trickle of sweat run down her face. She looked away from the disturbing sight of Akeno's flushed, sweaty face, and the way her friend's bosom shook with every heaving breath taken.

"Okay… so maybe you're not enjoying it as much as her."

"Enough talking…" Akeno muttered, her sadistic grin coming on full-force. Lightning crackled and ozone burned as her arms became covered in blue arcs of energy. "Let's continue this. I wanna have some more fun…"

"Heh, I'm ready whenever you are, sadist-chan."

"My, my, such big words from a little lech who gropes a taken woman's boobs."

"I don't wanna hear that from someone dating the king of lechers."

"Ah. Touche."

Before the battle or banter could progress any further, Koneko walked into the clearing. Her clothing was torn and her body a bit scuffed up, but she didn't look too injured. On the other hand, the unconscious Kiba and Issei slung over her shoulders looked like they'd been put through the ringer.

Koneko dropped the two on the ground and looked at the trio in the air.

"I've beaten them," she said unnecessarily.

"Damn, looks like we lost." Naruto sighed, and then pouted. "That girl is getting way too strong for her own good. I'm almost beginning to regret training with her now."

"No, you're not," Rias said, snorting. "We all know how much you love teaching Koneko." Her eyebrows twitched at Naruto's sheepish grin. "Now come on, let's get the barrier down and head back home. All this exercise has made me hungry."

"Amen to that!"

~Devil Ninja~

Ravel Phenex stood in the kitchen, an apron tied adorning her front, tied around her waist. Her blond locks had been tied back into a single bun instead of her usual drills. She didn't really like the hairstyle, but didn't want her drills getting in the batter.

She'd already mixed the batter, poured it into the pan, and it was now cooking in the oven. The timer said 15-minutes were left until it finished baking. Ravel turned away from the oven and focused back on the mixer currently mixing her ingredients for the frosting. It looked about ready; just a few more seconds.

While waiting, Ravel thought of her the past week. Living in the same house as the person she admired was an amazing experience. Naruto-sama always maintained an attitude of good cheer, which she couldn't help but feel drawn toward. That he treated her with kindness and respect only made him more desirable.

Rias-sama didn't seem to like her, though. That kind of hurt, but Ravel figured the other devil just didn't like her encroaching on what could be considered the redhead's territory.

Just as she put the finishing touches on the cake, spreading the frosting across its surface, that she heard the mansion's front door open.

"We're home!"

Hurrying out of the kitchen and walking down the hall, Ravel tried everything she could think of to calm herself down. She couldn't allow herself to get worked up or overly excited. She needed to keep her regal bearing and calm demeanor if she wanted to impress Naruto-sama with her lady-like charm.

She stepped into the entrance hall wearing what she hoped was a graceful smile. Naruto and Rias were taking off their shoes, and Ravel could tell they'd been working hard. Their bodies were covered in a light layer of sweat; Naruto more so than Rias.

"G-good afternoon, Naruto-sama, Rias-sama." Ravel cursed. A stutter? Really? She was stuttering? That was not going to help her get into Naruto's good graces—and it definitely wouldn't help her with Rias. Calm. She needed to be calm and composed and show them what an amazing companion she would make. "I-I hope your training went well."

Dammit.

"Um!" Naruto graced her with the brightest smile she'd ever seen. Ravel felt her cheeks grow warm. "We had an excellent practice session, I think. We're learning a lot more about each other by working together, and it's definitely helping the teams cohesiveness." His smile turned to Rias. "This really was a great idea, Rias."

Ravel frowned while Rias smiled.

"Thank you, Naruto, but I can't really take all the credit. I only got the idea after hearing about how you were training with Koneko and Issei. It made me want us to get stronger as a group, to grow and become closer, like family."

Before the two could get lost in each other's eyes, Ravel interrupted with a small stutter. "U-um, Naruto-sama." She tried not to flush when he looked at her, his head tilted quizzically. She tried not to cower when Rias glared at her. "I-I baked some cake today and I… was wondering if you'd like to try some?"

"Cake?"

Feeling bashful under his gaze, Ravel nodded. "Y-yes."

Naruto didn't even seem to contemplate the offer before giving her a wide smile that caused her heart to race. "I would love some!"

~Devil Ninja~

"H-here you go," Ravel muttered as she set down a small plate with a slice of cake on it. Naruto gave her a thankful smile—and absently wondered about her change in facial color—before turning his attention to the cake.

It was truly a masterpiece, and he meant that in a literal sense. The cake wasn't a standard square or circle, but shaped like a leaf—which he realized she must have gotten from his headband. Forest green frosting covered the top, which had been artistically designed to look like the skin of a leaf. Starting at the center and expanding outward in orange frosting was the Uzumaki swirl, the symbol of his clan. He couldn't tell what kind of cake it was, but Ravel had clearly put her heart and soul into baking it.

"Wow…" Naruto whispered. "This looks absolutely incredible."

"T-thank you," the blond Ojou-sama devil muttered, seemingly wanting to duck her head into her clothes. Naruto thought Ravel's blushing face was one of the most adorable things conceived by man—or devils.

Naruto's first bite of cake strangely reminded him of the first time he'd ever eaten ramen. They tasted absolutely nothing alike. Ramen was salty and robust; this tasted of sugar, lemons and strawberries. There was no correlation between the two. And yet, for reasons he didn't quite understand, he couldn't help but think of that first time he'd walked into Ichiraku Ramen and old man Tuechi gave him a free bowl of ramen.

Weird.

He finished his first bite and turned to Ravel. "This is really, really good."

Ravel's cheeks couldn't have possibly gotten any redder. "D-do you think so?"

Naruto found it odd to see Ravel playing with the hem of her apron. She seemed so embarrassed, and not at all like how she acted when they first met. He would have wondered about it, but it seemed like a natural shift, so he guessed she was just acting this way now because she'd grown more comfortable around him. He was glad. Ravel didn't belong to Rias's peerage, but he really wanted to be friends with her. Hopefully, they would become close in the coming days.

"Of course I do!" Giving her his most enthusiastic grin, he thumped his chest. "I've never been really into sweets, but your cake is incredible! Amazing even! I would've never guessed that such a pretty Ojou-sama would be able to make such awesome tasting cake."

"T-t-thank you," Ravel stuttered. The girl seemed very shy about accepting praise. He guessed her family didn't do it very often. It made sense. She was an Ojou-sama, so her maids probably did most of the cooking. He doubted her family ever had a chance to taste her cooking—or if they did, they probably attributed her amazing cakes to the maid, or something.

Naruto made a promise to compliment her some more. Everybody enjoys compliments, especially girls.

"I do have to admit, this is delicious," Rias added. She had an odd look on her face that Naruto recognized as jealousy. Rias was also an excellent cook, but her skills lent themselves more toward traditional Japanese cuisine, not sweets. She was also competitive and didn't like people being better than her at something. She also seemed possessive of him for some reason. He didn't get it. They were already dating. It wasn't like he planned on getting another girlfriend or something. He loved Rias and wouldn't dare cheat on her.

"Thank you," Ravel said, bowing to Rias. Naruto noticed that she didn't seem to react as strongly to his girlfriend's compliment; no blushing, no stuttering, just a smile and a bow. Was it because Rias was also a pureblood devil and Ravel was used to accepting compliments from her peers? How strange.

Naruto finished off his slice of cake and was about to ask for another when Ravel beat him to the punch.

"Here, let me get you another slice," she said, hurrying to turn words into action.

"Thank you very much." Naruto eyed his next slice with delight. He was almost positive he was drooling. He cast his gaze off the slice long enough to pay Ravel another compliment, complete with sparkling grin and a thumbs up. "You're going to make a really great wife some day!"

"W-w-w-wife?! W-w-w-what the heck are you saying?!"

Naruto laughed heartily as Ravel slumped into a chair, her face steaming. The smile left when Rias grabbed Naruto's cheek before he could dig into the amazing cake.

"Owch! Riaf, whaf ah yuu foing?"

"What Naruto means to say is that you're going to grow into an amazing young woman," Rias said, smiling at Naruto. "Isn't that right?"

"Uh… More or weff. Han yuu wet go now, pwease?"

Rias let go and Naruto began eating his cake (it was almost as good as Ramen!). Meanwhile, Ravel recovered from what appeared to be a minor slip of her Phenex powers over fire.

"So how's your group training going?" she asked, "you mentioned it was going well, but you weren't really specific about it."

"We've been making great breakthroughs with our teamwork," Rias said, setting aside the now empty plate and placing her forearms on the table. "By training together like this we've learned a lot about each other—even some things we'd never realized despite how long we've known each other. This has helped us phenomenally, and I believe will be one of our strong points in the future."

"Of course, some of us need a bit more work than others."

When Rias looked at Naruto, the blond devil had the decency to appear sheepish. While he worked well with everybody else, it was also true that he tended to go his own way at times. It had nothing do with his inability to work as a team and everything to do with his desire to take on the heavy-lifting for himself. It was a problem he'd always had, but only recently discovered.

"I imagine that by working in smaller groups, you've also made great strides in learning small unit tactics," Ravel added, even as she served Naruto another piece of cake before he could ask for thirds. Rias seemed surprised.

"Yes, that is true."

"That will probably be your greatest strength," Ravel said, almost to herself. "Most people who play Rating Games tend to play either one of two ways: focusing on strengthening one or two individuals and using the rest as canon fodder, or focusing on strengthening the team to fight against threats by overwhelming them as a team. I believe your brother is the latter case, while mine is the former."

"Y-yes, that is correct."

This will actually do you a lot of credit." Ravel was off in her own world now, eyes gazing at something only she could see. "By focusing on small unit tactics, you'll be able to form a combination of hit and runs—blitz tactics, I think they're called. This will allow you to whittle away at an enemy before combining forces for one final push. It's a rather brilliant idea."

Rias looked at the girl in stunned silence. Naruto was impressed, too. He'd never been one for well-thought out strategies; preferring on-the-fly tactics over strategies thought of in advance. But even he could see how beneficial Ravel's strategy was.

"I actually hadn't thought of that." Rias looked put-out and Naruto realized it was because Ravel thought of something she hadn't. Thinking on it, Ravel actually kind of reminded Naruto of a less lazy and really pretty version of Shikamaru. She was wickedly intelligent, like his lazy friend, but didn't lack motivation.

"You're not only good at baking cakes, but also strategizing." Naruto gave the girl a grin. "You're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

Ravel squeaked.

After cake, Rias and Naruto adjourned to the living room. It was a really big living room. Gigantic even. Dark red carpet covered much of the floor. Naruto would've preferred orange, but didn't complain. Several sofas and couches centered around a coffee table and a large, flat-screen tv complete with surround sound hung on the wall at the far end. It would probably be more accurate to call it a media room instead of a living room.

Ravel had gone off to change. Naruto had mentioned how she had some stains on her apron and clothes. The girl had let out a sound he could've sworn he'd heard from someone else long ago, before scurrying from the room. She'd entered the living minutes later dressed in a pair of very princess-y pajamas: pink bottoms and a pink t-shirt with frills. Naruto thought it suited her.

Ravel blushed when he mentioned this.

"Come on, sit down, sit down."

A grinning Naruto patted the spot on his left. Rias sat on his right, snuggled firmly into his side. He in turn had wrapped an arm around her waist, deriving great pleasure from feeling her glorious and beautiful body pressed against his.

"Ah, um…" Ravel looked unsure for a second, however, upon Rias' smile, seemed to settle down. "Okay."

She sat on the same sofa as Naruto and Rias, though did not join in the cuddling—for obvious reasons. The lights soon dimmed and the TV turned on. Rias's eyes began to sparkle as the opening theme to her newest favorite anime, Fate/Stay Night Unlimited Blade Works, began playing. Naruto also focused his attention on the animated series about a teenage boy their age with ideals of becoming a hero.

~Devil Ninja~

The next morning was Monday, the start of the school week. Naruto didn't particularly enjoys these days—mainly because he didn't enjoy school—but today was special. Ravel would be joining them at school. It would be her first day there.

That morning Naruto and Rias did everything they normally did; wake up, shower, cook breakfast, etc. Ravel joined them at the table. Like most mornings, her hair was in a bit of disarray and it was clear she was still half-asleep. The blond Oujo-sama wasn't much of a morning person, that's for sure. After breakfast, the group finished getting ready, Ravel woke up enough to do her hair, and together they set off for school.

While they walked, Naruto spoke with Rias about what he planned on doing after school.

"I plan on taking Koneko-chan up to the mountains for some training."

"That far?" Rias frowned. "Why do you need to head all the way up there?"

"We're doing Senjutsu training," Naruto explained. "I understand that the basics of Senjutsu in this world is a lot different than my own. There is a huge risk of the person using it turning into a raging berserker." He paused. "Koneko mentioned something about taking in the world's hatred. I'm not too sure on this, but I think she's actually speaking of the taint of hatred left over from the hundreds of wars and various atrocities that have taken place in this world. War and greed and other negative emotions are breeding grounds for hatred. It stands to reason that this world has gone through so much war and suffering that the hatred of the people has literally stained the earth—something like that. Anyway, I believe the best thing to do is take her as far from humanity as possible. It's just a theory, but I think if she's surrounded by nature, gathering senjutsu chakra will be easier and cause less strain."

"That does make sense." Rias nodded slowly. "Alright then. I'll allow that. Just promise me you'll be careful."

Naruto gave her a lopsided grin. "Hey, this is me we're talking about."

Rias's flat look spoke volumes about her lack of reassurance. "And that is exactly what worries me."

Naruto pouted.

As they continued walking, Naruto noticed that Ravel appeared to get more and more nervous. After thinking about it for a moment he realized why, and he felt like smacking himself. Ravel was the Ojou-sama to a powerful devil clan. She'd probably never been to school before. Did most devils even go to school? Rias, Sona and their respective peerage seemed to be the only ones who went to school. Granted, he knew little about other young devils, but this seemed to be the case from what he'd seen thus far.

Knowing what it's like to be nervous about something and not wanting her to suffer alone, Naruto grabbed Ravel's hand with his free hand. The girl looked startled. She stared at her hand in his, then up at him.

Her face broke out into flames.

"W-w-w-what do you think you're doing?!" She shouted, jerking her hand out of his grasp. Naruto just caught it again, however, and stroked the back of her hand with his thumb.

"It's okay to be nervous," he told her, grinning, "but try not to worry too much, ne? I might not share any classes with you, but I'll be around if you need anything. We also have you sharing classes with Koneko-chan, so you'll have someone you're familiar with."

"Ah…" The girl's cheeks turned red and steam began pouring from her ears. It was an impressive feat, to be sure. He wondered if all Phenex's were capable of that. "I-I… see… I-in that case, I t-t-thank… thank you," she mumbled, then glared. "B-but don't think I'm doing this because I like holding hands, got it? I-I'm only letting you hold my hand because I recognize your good intentions, understand?"

"I gotcha," Naruto said. Ravel just huffed and looked away. What an odd girl.

"What are you doing, Naruto?"

Naruto froze. Something about Rias's tone set him on edge, though he did not know what. Turning, he noticed that she looked annoyed by something.

"Doing what?"

"That." Rias gestured towards the hand holding Ravel's. "Why are you holding her hand?"

While Ravel blushed, Naruto just felt confused. "Um, moral support," he said, though it sounded almost like a question.

"Moral support?" Rias's face was deadpanned.

"Yeah, haven't you ever been nervous and wished someone was there to support you?" Naruto asked. "To make you feel better and more confident? I can't tell you the number of times I used to wish I had someone who'd supported me when I was younger and going to the ninja academy. I remember watching all the other students coming to school with their parents holding their hands, and I kept thinking to myself 'I really wish someone would do that for me.'"

Naruto smiled as sadness seeped into his heart.

"It's a little late for someone to do that with me now, but I thought I could be someone else's support, you know? This is Ravel's first time at school, and her family isn't here to support her. That means we should support her in their stead."

He looked down at Ravel, squeezing her hand in comforting gesture. The girl's still red cheeks gained even more color, but she squeezed back.

Rias sighed. "Fine, I guess that's okay…"

Naruto frowned. He knew that voice. She was jealous. It looked like he'd have to find some way to let her know that she had no reason to be jealous. Just because he was holding someone's hand didn't mean he planned on seducing them or something. Really, sometimes this girl overreacted from the simplest of things…

As they walked through the gates of Kouh Academy, the other students noticed them and stopped what they were doing.

"Who is that?"

"Who cares, she's cute."

"What's she doing with Naruto and Rias-onee-sama?"

"Why is Naruto holding her hand like that?"

"Gasp! Do you think he's two-timing Rias-onee-sama?!"

"Two-timing?! That jerk! I should kill him for cheating on our beautiful onee-sama!

Naruto frowned at the idiots speaking. Really? Two-timing? Who the hell would be stupid enough to two-time their girlfriend when said girlfriend was standing right next to them? Never mind the fact that he had the best girlfriend ever. It seemed stupidity ran rampant in this school. And to think, this place was supposed to make you less stupid.

He shook his head. This was why he didn't like school. It killed brain cells faster than an eroge.

They stopped in the hallway. Rias turned to face them. Being a senior, she had a different schedule than either of them.

"So…" She eyed Naruto's hand still holding Ravel's. The frown grew. "I guess I'll see you two later, then."

She turned around to leave.

Naruto wouldn't let her.

Before she even had a chance to make a single step, Naruto grabbed her by the hand and pulled her back him. Rias spun angrily, but before she had time to do much more than open her mouth Naruto was kissing her.

A gasp of surprise escaped her muffled lips. More gasps came from those around them, including Ravel. Naruto ignored them and focused on putting his emotions into his kiss. He needed to let Rias know that she didn't have any reason to be jealous.

They didn't come up for air for several long seconds that seemed to stretch into minutes. When they did, Rias gasped as her oxygen deprived lungs heaved in several gulps of air. She barely had time to do more than take a single breath before Naruto kissed her again, and again, and then a fourth time for good measure. By the time he was finished, Rias's face was flushed the same color as her hair.

"Rias," Naruto said in a serious tone. Rias blinked before her eyes focused on him. "I love you." Her eyes widened. "You know that, right?"

She stared at him for several seconds, cheeks still red, and then her eyes softened.

"I know," she said softly.

"So you know there's no reason to feel insecure, right?"

She looked away.

"I know. Sorry."

"There's no need to apologize." Naruto chuckled. "I just wanted to know that you have nothing to feel insecure about. Our relationship is rock-solid." On instinct, Naruto grabbed a strand of Rias's hair and brought it between their faces. "Connected by the red-threads of fate."

Rias snorted.

"Red-threads of fate? Really, Naruto?"

"Hey, it worked with my parents." A grinning Naruto winked. "I'm sure it'll work with us, too."

"I guess," Rias said, smiling. "So, I'll see you later then?" She looked at Ravel, who appeared slightly insecure by the display she had just witnessed. "Both of you." The blond girl looked at her in surprise.

"Um!" Naruto nodded. "See you after class."

Rias walked away and Naruto tugged on Ravel's hand, getting her to follow him. As they walked down the hall, Ravel looked up at Naruto. "Um… Naruto-sama?"

"Hmm?"

"Um, about… back there… I was just wondering…"

"Oh, that?" Naruto grinned at her reassuringly. "Don't worry too much. Rias can be a bit, uh, possessive of me. I guess she felt threatened since you're living with us now."

"O-oh."

"Don't worry about her right now," Naruto said, "for now, just focus on school and making as many friends as possible."

They soon arrived at Ravel's classroom. The place was already filled with a number of students. Most of them stopped talking when Naruto and Ravel entered.

Naruto ignored the students who stared at them and the whispering that started up. He searched the room and soon spotted the familiar white hair of Koneko. The 15-year old neko/devil hybrid was sitting at her desk, munching on some sweets. Warmth spread through his chest. Same old Koneko-chan.

He walked up to her, Ravel in tow.

"Morning, Koneko-chan!" He greeted, reaching out and rubbing the girl's hair. Koneko paused in her eating to enjoy the head petting. She closed her eyes and leaned into his hand.

"Naruto-senpai." Even though her voice sounded emotionless, Naruto could tell she was happy to see him through her chakra.

"Are you ready for our training after school?" he asked.

"Mmm." Yellow eyes cracked open to stare at him. "You're bringing snacks, right?"

"Of course. I'll have your favorites all ready for you, and if you do really well, I'll take you to that sweet shop you love so much this weekend."

Koneko didn't say anything, but she did crack a small smile.

"Anyway, I was hoping to ask for a favor."

"What is it?"

"Today is Ravel's first day," he said, pulling the blond beauty forward. Ravel looked confused. She blinked at Koneko, who merely stared back with a blank look. "She's gonna be in your class, so I was hoping you'd help her out by showing her the ropes."

"Uh…"

"I can do that," Koneko said.

"Great!" Naruto rubbed her head some more, making a promise to give her some extra head petting later on. "In that case, I'll take my leave." He smiled at Ravel. "If you need anything, don't be afraid to ask Koneko-chan. Oh! And be sure to drop by the Occult club room during lunch break. That's where I always have my lunches."

"Ah, um, okay…"

Ravel seemed a bit confused, or maybe overwhelmed. Naruto felt for her, but was sure she'd get used to how things worked in school quickly. She was pretty perceptive, from what he'd seen thus far.

He soon left the room and began walking down the hall. It wasn't until he was halfway to his own classroom that he heard a loud shout that could've only come from Ravel.

"DID YOU JUST CALL ME YAKITORI?!"

He smiled. "It's so nice to see those two becoming such great friends already."

~Devil Ninja~

Naruto and Koneko were surrounded by nature; a beautiful spring located deep within a forested region several miles outside of Kuoah academy. Trees and other types of flora surrounded them; grass and a multitude of colorful flowers. Nought seven meters away, several fish leapt out of the waters to a crystal clear lake that glittered in the afternoon sun.

Naruto and Koneko sat on the ground. They sat in seiza, their knees touching. Koneko looked frightened and nervous, while Naruto exuded a calming aura.

"Having listened to what you and aniki know about Senjutsu, I have come to the conclusion that your sister and everyone else who've ever managed to use it in this world have been learning it the hard way," Naruto said. "As I understand it, you're not taught to clear your mind while using senjutsu and all you do is gather it around a limb, usually your fist, and push it outside of your body."

Koneko nodded, but didn't say anything.

"The first and most important thing you need to understand about controlling Senjutsu is that you can't just gather it. Doing so is not only dangerous but foolish. This is probably why people who try using it are overtaken by the malice and hatred of the world. You're not just taking in the hatred and malice of the world, the hatred and malice of the world is mixing with your own negative emotions: avarice, envy, greed, lust… all these negative thoughts and emotions you feel mix in with the world's own negativity, making it impossible to distinguish which feelings are yours and which are the world's."

Koneko frowned, her lips curving down in thought. "So you're saying that my sister and everyone else have been learning it wrong?"

"Not wrong, just more difficult," Naruto said, "the way I am going to teach you will allow you to take in the world's energy more easily. You'll still have to deal with the malice and hatred, but you'll at least be able to distinguish between your feelings and the world's feelings. This will make it easier to ignore the world and gather senjutsu chakra."

Koneko nodded. "What do I need to do first?"

"The first step toward learning Senjutsu is learning to sit completely still," Naruto explained. "You must become a part of nature. By clearing your mind and learning to still your body you can mimic nature. Allow me to show you."

Naruto closed his eyes and took in several slow, deep breaths. Koneko watched as his body suddenly stilled so completely that, for a single second, she almost thought he'd died.

She blinked.

And Naruto vanished.

She blinked again.

Naruto appeared before her, completely fine, still breathing, his eyes open and staring at her.

Koneko rubbed her eyes. When she saw Naruto still sitting there, grinning at her, she blinked again.

"What just happened?" she asked, not bothering to hide her shock. "One minute you were so still you looked dead and the next you…"

"Disappeared?" Naruto said, grinning.

"Mm."

"It's because I became a part of nature. Do you see the rocks on the ground? Or the trees when you walk past?" Naruto asked rhetorically. "Barely, right? You see them, but only in that abstract sense of knowing they're there. Your mind fills in the image with what it already knows from memory, but you don't really see them as anything more than indistinct shapes."

"When you still your body and mind completely, you become a part of nature, your presence all but disappears. Only skilled sensors and other Senjutsu users can sense someone who's become one with nature."

"That sounds like it would be very useful," Koneko said. Naruto shook his head.

"Not really. In order to become one with nature you must still your body and mind, so really, all you can do is sit in one place. Sure, it might be a good way to hide from others, but that'll only work if you're surrounded by nature. Try gathering it in a city and you'll stick out like an Udon addict in a ramen bar."

Koneko sweatdropped.

"Oh…"

"Now, now," Naruto said, amiably putting his hand on Koneko's head and rubbing. "No need to look so depressed. Truthfully, it's not a bad idea. The problem is it's impossible to use Senjutsu to hide without finding a way around the need to stay still… which is actually impossible. Believe me, I've tried." He shuddered. "It wasn't pleasant."

The two spent a moment in silence. Naruto continued to rub Koneko's head while the neko/devil hybrid purred.

"Right," Naruto started again, removing his hand from Koneko's head, much to her disappointment. "Let's begin by doing some basic meditation. This will help clear your mind, which is key to becoming still. You can't be still if your mind is filled with thoughts, after all."

The two soon got to work. They would stay in that clearing for several hours, with Naruto helping Koneko reach stillness and Koneko trying her hardest to become one with nature. She would soon realize it was more difficult than it sounded.

~Devil Ninja~

The hour was late. The sun had gone down. Day became night. This would normally be a time when everyone slept, snuggling in their beds and dreaming whatever it is people dreamed about. A few were not sleeping: Issei was likely still out completing jobs. Despite growing stronger each and every day, the young pervert still had yet to complete a single job. It was kind of pathetic, but that's just how Issei was.

Naruto also remained awake, though not necessarily by choice. He'd been sleeping peacefully, lying on his bed, a fully naked Rias cuddling with him. He would have loved to just stay there and enjoy the feel of her warm body pressed against his, her breasts pushing into his chest and her nipples tickling his skin. Alas, there are some things that one simply can't ignore.

The call of nature was one of those things.

After relieving himself, Naruto left the bathroom and ambled back toward his bedroom. The long walkway was empty, as expected since only three people lived there. Naruto's feet lightly padded along the wooden tile, and while he walked, he also grumbled, "stupid aniki, who the hell builds a frickin mansion for three people?"

The Japanese-style mansion that Sirzechs had built for him, Rias and Ravel reminded him of the Hyūga compound. It consisted of several structures in various sizes, connected via a series of roofed walkways with wooden floorboards done in a highly lacquered finish that gleamed in the light. No matter which walkway you were on or where you looked all you'd see were trees and plants arrayed together in a plethora of color, beautiful flowers and sakura trees and all manner of gorgeous plant life. This place was like an oasis in a desert—only instead of being in a desert it was in a city. It even had several streams running through it and koi ponds dotting the landscape.

As he walked along the walkway, something near one of the sakura trees caught his attention. A beautiful girl with long blond hair dressed in a white nightgown that went down to her ankles, revealing her bare feet. Ravel Phenex stared up at the night sky, an oddly solemn or maybe introspective expression holding sway over her features. Her hair wasn't in done up in its usual drill-style. While he thought her drills were pretty, Naruto couldn't deny that she looked beautiful with her hair down.

"Ravel," Naruto greeted the girl as he walked up to her.

"Kya!"

Naruto stopped when Ravel squeaked and spun around. She lost her footing on the rock she'd been standing on and nearly fell into the small pond beside the sakura tree.

Naruto moved before she could fall. An arm slid around her waist. With chakra keeping him from falling with her, the blond teen pulled Ravel back up.

"N-Naruto?" Ravel stuttered, staring up at him in surprise. Naruto gave her a bright smile. His arm remained wrapped around her waist.

"That was a close one, eh?" Naruto said, chuckling.

"Eh? W-w-w-what are you—ah—what are you doing?!" Ravel's face began to steam as she roughly pushed him off her.

"Doing?" Naruto blinked, his hand coming up to scratch the back of his head. "I'm not sure I understand the question. I just saw you standing here and wanted to talk to you." He paused as a thought suddenly occurred to him. "Ah, I'm sorry. You probably wanna be alone, huh? In that case, I'll leave you alone."

"W-wait!"

Naruto had scarcely turned around before Ravel called out to him. He turned back around to see the younger girl staring at her feet, thumbs twiddling together. Her actions seemed vaguely familiar, though he couldn't for the life of him remember where he'd seen it before.

"I-I didn't say you had to leave," she mumbled lowly, and Naruto's ears twitched. "I just didn't want you getting all, like, um, huggy and stuff."

"Huggy and stuff?"

"That's right." Ravel nodded her head, seemingly getting back in her groove. "I-it's not like, you know, I don't really like your strong, warm body holding me so tenderly—ah!—I-I mean I don't want you holding me like that! It's weird." She turned her head and huffed. "Especially since you have a girlfriend."

"Um, but all I did was make sure you wouldn't fall into the water," Naruto said, pointing at the small pond. Ravel followed his finger. "I didn't want you getting wet, especially since it's kind of chilly outside."

"Oh…"

Ravel seemed embarrassed and a little… disappointed? That couldn't be it, could it? Maybe she thought his words meant he didn't want to hold her because he didn't find her attractive or something. Was that it? Yes, that must be it. She must think he wasn't attracted to her, which just wasn't true. It looked like he needed to clear the air some more.

"Oi, oi, come on now. There's no need to look so depressed," Naruto said, giving the girl a kind smile. "It's not like I'm refusing to hold you close because I don't like you or don't think you're attractive. You're a very beautiful young woman. Honestly, if I wasn't so in love with Rias and we weren't dating, I'd probably ask you out on a date."

Critical hit.

"Ah-ah-ah—uuuu—I—no that's—ahh…"

"Um," Naruto started, looking slightly worried. "Are you alright? You look like you're burning up."

"S-s-s-shut up! D-d-d-don't think you can just go around saying things like that!" A red-faced Ravel pointed an accusing finger at him. "And d-don't think saying something like that will make me happy. It does—I mean it doesn't!"

"Uh, okay…" Naruto said slowly. Had he said something wrong again? Maybe he should change the subject. "So, how has your first week of school been so far?"

Ravel blinked, startled by the change of subject. Her face returned to its normal fair color and her pointing finger dropped back to her side.

"School has been… alright," she said, frowning. "Most of the people in class are nice, if a bit simple-minded. I haven't really made any friends, but everyone's treated me well, so that's good I guess."

Naruto frowned. "You have no friends? But what about Koneko-chan? I thought you two were friends."

Ravel's face took on an angry expression that was, well, it was actually kind of adorable, really. Her cheeks turned all red and swelled like a balloon, and her eyes narrowed. Naruto felt the temptation to squeal like a fanboy who'd just caught a glimpse of his favorite Seiyuu.

"What makes you think she and I could possibly be friends? I'd never be friends with someone like her! She always acts so cute and innocent when she's got a really vicious tongue, always making fun of me and calling me yakitori! Worse still, she's always taunting me by sitting on your lap! Ga! It makes me so frustrated!"

Ravel stopped ranting, her breathing heavy and her face flushed red with anger. Her shoulders heaved up and down as she caught her breath. It was only several seconds after speaking that Ravel realized what she'd said.

"N-not that I want to sit on your lap or anything! I don't! So don't get any funny ideas, got it?!"

Naruto could see that this subject bothered her, so he did the smart thing and decided to change the subject again. "How about everything else, then? Are you enjoying your experience in the human world so far?"

Ravel regained control over her emotions and, having suddenly realized she'd just had a very unladylike outburst, became very demure, almost timid even. It was utterly adorable.

"I… it's been alright," she said softly. "It's a lot different than I first expected it to be."

"What were you expecting it to be like?" Naruto asked.

"I… you know, just, not like this." Ravel tried emphasizing her point with her hands, but it didn't work out too well, and she seemed to realize that. "I guess I just didn't think it would be this… nice." Her cheeks turned pink. "I've always been told such bad things about the human world by my brother that it made me never want to go there, but so far it's been a mostly enjoyable experience. I really like spending time here."

"I'm glad to hear that," Naruto said, "still, you seem a little worried about something."

Ravel fidgeted. "I wouldn't say I'm worried, per say. It's just…" She turned around to look up at the moon, her expression almost melancholy. "I came here for, well, reasons. But now that I'm actually here, I'm beginning to realize how impossible my goal seems to be. It just feels like I'll never be able to accomplish what I set out to do here."

Her sad smile caused minor ache to well up inside Naruto's chest. Someone so pretty should not look so sad.

He placed a hand on her shoulder, startling the poor girl. She looked up at him, about to snap, but he smiled before she could.

"You shouldn't be so pessimistic. I didn't get as far as I have by thinking about how impossible my situation seemed or how far away my goal was. The only way to ever accomplish anything in life is through hard work, perseverance and grit. If this goal is important enough, then all you need to do is keep at it and I'm sure you'll reach your goal eventually." Naruto gave her a gentle, warm smile. "And if you ever need any help, don't hesitate to come to me. I don't know how much help I'll be, but I'll do whatever I can to help you reach your goal."

Ravel stared at him for about a second, then looked away. Yet in that second, Naruto had seen it, her smile. She had a very beautiful smile, he thought to himself.

"Idiot," Ravel whispered softly, yet still loud enough for him to hear.

Naruto pouted. "That's not very nice."

~Devil Ninja~

"Alright, Issei, let's take a break."

"Hai… uh, sensei."

Naruto, or rather, a clone of Naruto, sat down with Issei in the clearing they'd been using for training. The clearing had certainly seen better days. Covered in pockmarks, scorch marks and craters, it looked like a meteor shower had hit the area.

Issei didn't look much better. His face, chest and back was covered in bruises, making him look like he'd gone several rounds with a Maou, but it wasn't as bad as it used to be. Once upon a time, Issei would have passed by this point. That he was still conscious showed marked improvement.

Issei ate some sandwiches that Asia had made for him. They were really good. Asia was such an extraordinary cook, and she cooked it for him! To think he'd have such a lovely and pretty girl like Asia cooking him food. It was a dream come true!

"Are you crying, Issei?" asked an amused Naruto. "Honestly, it's just a sandwich."

"I can't help it!" Issei cried, tears streaming down his face as he ate the sandwich. "I'm just so blessed to have someone like Asia in my life! Ah, she's my panacea!"

Naruto chuckled a bit. "Speaking of relationships, how is yours with Asia and Akeno?"

At the mention of Akeno, Issei began shaking horribly. His face paled and his hands became clammy. He liked Akeno, he really did, but sometimes—all the time—that woman just scared the crap out of him.

Naruto sweatdropped when Issei curled into the fetal position and began muttering something about chains and whips. "Okay… forget I asked."

Issei eventually finished his sandwich.

"Are we going another round, sensei?" Issei asked. It still felt a little odd calling someone his age sensei, but he'd grown used to it. "Or are we going to work on boosting?"

"Neither," clone Naruto said, "sit back down, Issei. I've got something important to talk about."

"Okay." Issei sat back down. "What do you wanna talk about?"

"To start, I want to tell you that you've improved remarkably over the past few weeks. While I wouldn't call you a hardcore badass yet, you're definitely on the right track to hardcore badassery."

Issei felt himself swell with pride. Times like these made him forget that Naruto could be a right bastard when the mood struck.

"However, I also wanted to bring up a problem you're about to face."

Well, that just did not sound good at all.

"What kind of problem?" asked Issei.

"Thus far, all of your strength is derived from your lust," Naruto started, "the stronger your lust is the more power your boosted gear gains, the stronger you become. And that's fine. It works well, and it gives you a remarkable boost in power. But it's only a temporary boost."

"What do you mean?"

Naruto sighed and scratched at his head. "If there's one thing I've learned it's that powers derived from emotions like anger, greed, envy and lust aren't enduring. They grant short-term boosts in strength but never last long. This would be fine if you were strong enough to destroy an enemy in a single shot, but there are many powerful enemies out there that you won't be able to one-hit KO."

Issei became worried. "So you're saying that my lust isn't enough?" This was not good. What would he do if his lust wasn't good enough? That was all he had!

"Right now your goal is to become a Harem King. It is your current driving forc,e however, what happens after you reach that goal? Having completed your goal you'll have nothing left, no great goal to help you gain strength, no driving force to push you forward. Your progress will stagnate and you'll eventually grow weaker. This is why you need to think about finding another emotion aside from just lust to rely upon, something that will endure regardless of the hardships you may face."

"B-but I don't have anything like that!" Issei cried. "All I've got is my perversion! Oppai are my life!"

"You do have something else," Naruto told the crying pervert, who stopped crying upon hearing those words. "You just haven't realized it yet."

"I do?" Issei blinked. "What is it?"

Naruto shook his head. "I can't tell you that. If there is one thing I've learned in life it's that the lessons that stick with us the most are the ones we learn for ourselves. This is one of those things you'll have to discover yourself."

Issei pouted. He knew Naruto was just doing this to be a cryptic bastard. Stupid, blond-bastard-sensei!

"Can't you at least give me a hint."

"Hmm." Naruto thought about it. "I guess I can give you a hint." He gave Issei a mysterious smile. "It's something that is different for all of us. Each person has something precious that they're willing to give their lives to protect, and it is this precious something that gives us the strength to break our limits and become truly strong."

Issei thought about what Naruto said, but thinking about it gave him a headache, so he had to stop. He didn't get it.

"What's your precious something, sensei?"

Naruto smiled. "Isn't it obvious? My precious somethings are the people I've surrounded myself with; my most cherished friends in the Occult Research Club."

~Devil Ninja~

While clone Naruto and Issei sparred and conversed some distance away, the real Naruto stood with Koneko. They were once more in the clearing he'd found. Light hit the small pond and several fish swam around. This place presented a calm and peaceful atmosphere, which was needed for what they were trying to accomplish.

Trying being the keyword.

Koneko fell to her knees, her body shaking uncontrollably. Tears fell down her eyes as she hugged herself.

"Koneko-chan!"

Naruto rushed to her side and knelt down. He didn't touch her because he wasn't sure what was wrong.

She looked up at Naruto and he almost reeled back as if struck. An icy fist clenched his heart when he saw red, puffy and swollen eyes gazing at him. He could see the fear and self-loathing they contained; fear of the power he was trying to teach her and self-loathing because she believed her inability to learn—or rather, her desire to not learn Senjutsu—disappointed him.

"I can't do this," she murmured, "I'm sorry, Naruto-senpai, but I… I just can't do this." She looked down at the ground and the shaking increased.

He didn't understand what was happening. They had been doing so well in her training. Koneko had gotten to the point where Naruto planned on her teaching her Senjutsu. Yet the moment they'd started training to gather senjutsu chakra, Koneko just stopped. No explainable reason why. She'd just stopped and now she was like this, on the ground, crying her eyes out, and shaking like a leaf caught in a hurricane.

Naruto might not know what was happening, but he knew that something had to be done. If Koneko kept crying like this he'd never forgive himself. Girls should never be made to cry unless it was in the bed.

He wrapped his arms around her lithe, trembling frame. He sat down with a plop and pulled the girl onto his lap, heedless of the tears that began staining his shirt. Time become indeterminable as he sat there, holding the girl close, gently caressing her hair as she cried into his chest. Koneko's tears eventually stopped, though the shaking continued for several minutes after that.

"Are you feeling better, Koneko-chan?" Naruto asked, one hand tenderly stroking her hair. Koneko nodded.

"I'm sorry, Naruto-senpai."

"For what?"

"I… failed… I just can't… I can't do this. Learning this power, Senjutsu, I…"

"Shh." Naruto quieted the girl down. "That's enough of that. There is nothing to be ashamed of here. You have nothing to be ashamed of."

Koneko didn't say anything.

"Ne, Koneko-chan," Naruto spoke into the silence. "Do you mind if I ask why you're so afraid of this power?"

Koneko remained silent. Naruto thought he might have said too much when the silence stretched out. Just when he was about to apologize, she spoke.

"I know that you can use it… and I've seen how you've been able to use it and not lose yourself to it, but I just… I'm afraid. That power is so dark, so frightening. My sister used it and lost herself; she became consumed by it and I… I don't want to lose myself the way she did. I don't want to become the monster she became. More importantly, I don't want to use a power that can bring so much misfortune to others."

Naruto felt his heart wavering. Her voice sounded so destitute and fragile, like even the simplest of things might cause her to shatter. He truly felt for this girl. He wanted to hold her and never let go, to wrap her in his arms and protect her from the world that hurt her so much.

He also wanted to beat the crap out of her sister.

"Koneko, I may be out of turn to speak about this, but Senjutsu… it's a part of you. You are a Nekousho, a species of Yokai where Senjutsu comes naturally. It's as much a part of you as your own heart. This isn't something that you can just sweep under the rug and forget about. I know you don't want to, but this isn't something you can avoid. Some day you'll need to face this part of yourself."

"I wish I wasn't Nekousho," Koneko muttered bitterly. "Then I'd never have to deal with this."

"Oh, Koneko," Naruto whispered, resting his cheek on the crown of her head. "You should never wish yourself to be anything other than what you are. If you weren't the Koneko that you are right now, we might have never met, and I'd have never become friends with you. I want you to accept yourself the way I accept you. I don't want you to have to hide yourself out of fear or shame. You have nothing to be afraid or ashamed of."

A hand buried itself in her hair. A minor application of chakra dispelled the genjutsu used to conceal her cat ears. Koneko stiffened, but soon melted when he began gently caressing her ears.

"This is a part of the Koneko that I love, that Rias loves. It's a part that you should love, too. I hope that one day, you can learn to love everything about yourself as much as Rias and I do."

~Devil Ninja~

Naruto whistled a tune as he headed home, several bags in hand. Normally, he'd already be at home by this time, but he'd needed to run few errands—namely, he had to do some shopping; very important shopping. Rias and Ravel had tried going with them, but he couldn't very well have them come along or it would've ruined the surprise.

It was something he'd wanted to do for a while now: buy presents for his friends. He wanted to show them how much he appreciated them. While he wouldn't go so far as to say he would've died a bitter old man without them, it was they who gave him a new purpose, new people to protect.

Throughout his life, Naruto had gained his strength by protecting the people he loved. The bonds he forged lifted him, pushed him, drove him to heights and feats he'd never be able to accomplish without those bonds. Defeating Haku, beating Gaara, fighting Akatsuki, going to war against Madara and then battling Kaguya. He'd only been able to do these things because of his friends, those bonds he'd forged with them, so precious and fragile. They were his greatest strength, and without that strength, he was nothing.

"Hehe," Naruto chuckled to himself, smiling widely. "I bet Rias and the others will love the presents I bought." A pause. "Well, maybe not everyone. I'm not sure if the present I bought for Kiba will be so well-received. I'm sure he'll be thankful, but really, I don't even know if this is something he'll like."

Frowning a bit, Naruto held up the bag containing Kiba's present. Shopping for the others had been easy: the hottest eroge on the market for Issei, bondage equipment for Akeno, a fake cross that wouldn't hurt devils to wear for Asia, a $100 gift card to the best sweet shop for Koneko, several new outfits for Ravel, and the latest not-even-supposed-to-be-on-the-market Archer figurine complete with Kanshou and Bakuya for Rias. All of those had been very easy gifts to acquire—the Archer figurine being an exception and requiring aniki to pull a number of strings.

Kiba's gift had been impossibly difficult, not only because he'd not interacted with Kiba as much (guy's night being the exception), but also because he just didn't know Kiba that well. Though they had all spent a good deal of time together, Kiba was, oddly enough, the most mysterious of the bunch. He was polite and friendly and respectful, but he was also really reserved. Kiba never talked about himself. What little Naruto knew he learned through observation, and that didn't tell him much.

Naruto sucked at observing people.

So yeah, he'd not been sure what to get Kiba. He still hoped his friend would appreciate and use the gift he bought.

As he continued walking down the street Naruto felt something at the edge of his perception, a presence lurking near him. Was he being watched? No, well, maybe, but it felt more like curiosity than negative intent. It reminded him, oddly enough, of a cat.

"Nya."

Ah, that would explain it.

Turning his head, Naruto saw a black cat with yellow eyes sitting on the wall to his right. It was looking right at him, its head tilted with a sort of inquisitiveness only a cat could possess.

Grinning, Naruto went over to the cat.

"Well, hello there," he said, reaching out with a hand. The cat sniffed his hands a few times, before letting him run a hand over its head. He paused for a second, but quickly resumed petting it, his experienced hand finding the cat's special spot behind the ears, causing it to purr and its head to tilt. "Aren't you a beautiful kitty, though you're nowhere near as cute as my Koneko-chan… Kuroka."

The moment he spoke those words, Naruto was forced to jump away as a spike of chakra alerted him to an attack. And not a second too soon.

Naruto watched as the area he'd been standing on went up in an explosion, sending pillars of fire and large chunks of cement sky high. Naruto whistled.

"That's quite the explosion," he said, turning his head to the left. "That could have seriously injured me if it hit."

He stared at the woman before him. She looked young, no older than maybe twenty-something. Her long black hair had split bangs that gave her a sort of just-finished-having-a-wild-night-of-sex kind of look. Yellow eyes with slit pupils stared at him with amusement, glittering like two yellow spinels reflecting the evanescent lights of a glorious sunset. She was beautiful, but it was a dangerous sort of beauty, like the siren that lures sailors to their demise.

Her clothing didn't appear all that unusual: a black kimono and a yellow obi. The kimono hung loosely off her frame, leaving her shoulders bare and exposing ample amounts of cleavage. This woman obviously knew the benefits of using her sex-appeal to distract her opponents. The interior of the kimono shown the color of blood. A set of golden beads hung from her waist and an ornate headband sat upon her head right next to her triangular cat ears. Two black tails swished behind her.

"I'm sure you would have survived, nya," Kuroka retorted, winking at him. "You seem like a durable young man." She tilted her head, yellow eyes peering out from beneath a curtain of black hair with a cat's curiosity. "How did you know who I was?"

"Don't go assuming that you yokai are the only ones capable of using and sensing chakra," Naruto admonished lightly, even as his eyes scanned the still blue sky. "I've been using chakra since I was a brat, and I'm well versed in how it feels. The fact that you've got Senjutsu chakra gathered in your body and that your chakra signature is very similar to Koneko-chan's was just the icing on the cake."

"Nya, I didn't know humans could use and sense chakra, nya." Kuroka seemed surprised by this. "No wonder she wants you so badly, nya."

"She?"

"That's right, nya," Kuroka said, "I'm here on behalf of my benefactor. She wants to meet you."

"This benefactor of yours has a really odd way of asking to meet people, then," Naruto countered. "You show up unannounced and almost take me out with an explosion."

"Nya, that's just because you surprised me. I didn't expect you to know who I was, nya."

"And the barrier?" Naruto asked. "If this was just a friendly invitation, why separate this space from the rest of the world."

"Oh, so you noticed the barrier I put up." Kuroka looked impressed. "I hadn't realized you were so good at sensing the fluctuations in my chakra. In either case, you shouldn't worry about the barrier. I simply put it up so that we wouldn't be interrupted. We're in a very public location, you know, and it wouldn't be very good if some human stumbled on us while we were talking."

Her words rang true; it would indeed be troublesome if a human stumbled on two non-human entities in the middle of a conversation—or a battle. Yet he also knew the other reason she had put the barrier up, the unspoken one: it would be a shame if his friends felt the spikes of energy and came to investigate, which implied this was a conversation she meant for his ears alone, which consequently implied it would probably be something that could potentially harm Rias and the others.

Naruto gave Kuroka a cold smile. "You can tell your benefactor that if she wants to meet me, she can damn well come here and meet me herself. I don't deal with middlemen."

Kuroka's smile turned vicious. "Now that's a shame, nya. I was told to bring you to her using any means necessary, including force."

Naruto's body tensed when Kuroka released a thin, mist-like substance. He could feel the unnaturalness of it. He didn't know what this mist did, but it could not be anything good.

A strong gust of wind blew from Naruto's body as he released wind-natured chakra from his pores. The intense burst forced the mist away and caused it to dissipate before ever reaching him.

Kuroka's eyes lit up with interest. "You can use nature transformation." She appraised him again, as if seeing him in a whole new light. "What else can you do, nya?"

Naruto relaxed his body, muscles loosening, fingers flexing and knees bending as he danced lightly on the balls of his feet. He raised a hand and gestured for her to come at him, smiling confidently. "Why don't you come over here and find out?"

"Ho ho! Look at that, nya. Such confidence." Kuroka, eyes half-lidded and a smile of pure sensualism on her face, winked. "I like that in a man. Very well then, show me what you've got, tough guy, nya."

Naruto jumped out of the way as Kuroka disappeared within a burst of speed. She was even faster than Kiba! Seconds after she vanished, the ground he'd been standing on exploded as her heel smashed into the cement.

Landing on the ground several meters away, Naruto placed his left hand on the surface, fingers splayed. A second later Kuroka moved into a series of backflips as chains broke through the cement and shot at her, attempting to tangle her up.

"How kinky, nya," Kuroka said, "I didn't know you were into that kind of stuff."

"I'm not really into the S&M scene," Naruto admitted. "That's more Akeno-onee-san's style, but I have been thinking about using these with Rias during our bedroom play." He paused, cupping a hand to his chin. "Thinking on it, maybe we can find some use for this when we're roleplaying."

That actually sounded like a very good idea. They could do something like Gilgamesh capturing Saber and Shiro coming to rescue her. Or maybe Rin getting captured by Shinji and her getting rescued by Archer, since Rias seemed to like Archer better than Shiro. He would have to think about this more once he beat Koneko-chan's sister.

She came at him again, faster this time. Naruto reacted with nothing more than instinct. His body moved to the left, feet shuffling along the ground. He dodged her strike, a double-palm thrust to the chest, and then countered with a high kick that she pillowed with her left forearm before pushing his leg wide and hitting him in the nose quicker than he could react. Naruto was sent flying backwards to hit a wall where then disappeared in a burst of smoke a log appearing in his place.

"What sort of jutsu is this?" Kuroka wondered out loud, turning her head. Naruto stood behind her, crouched down on the wall like some kind of jungle cat readying to pounce on his prey.

"Substitution jutsu," Naruto answered. "I simply replaced myself with a log seconds before you hit me."

"What an interesting technique, nya." Kuroka tilted her head. "And where did you get the log?"

"No one knows where the log comes from," Naruto answered in a solemn tone. "Neither do we question it, for the log merely is, and it is the duty of those under the protection of the log to give thanks for its blessing, nothing more."

Kuroka blinked, and in that time Naruto shoved himself off the wall and shot forward like a cannonball. The black-haired neko jumped out of the way just in time to avoid getting a face full of rasengan, which hit the ground instead.

Naruto burst from within the expanding smokescreen his jutsu created and chased after Kuroka. The woman in question raised her hands and shot what appeared to be magic bullets from her palm. Six bullets came at him and Naruto went low, getting onto his knees and sliding under the attack. He came back up and thrust out his hand from which another chain emerged and shot forward. It was avoided, but he yanked on the chain and it flew back to strike Kuroka in the back of the head.

Or so he thought.

"Genjutsu," Naruto muttered as Kuroka disappeared. He clicked his tongue. He hated genjutsu.

"That's right, creating illusions is easy for someone like me," Kuroka said. Naruto leapt several feet to his left, avoiding another blast of magic that struck the ground and gouged out a large trench. "I'm not only skilled in Senjutsu, but Youjutsu as well."

Naruto "tsked." He knew what Youjutsu was, the yokai's form of spellcraft. It wasn't as powerful as light magic or devil magic, but it was versatile and, in some ways, had more potential than either of those types of magic, which were limited in what they could accomplish.

A flicker to his left had Naruto swerving around to avoid a powerful blast of magic that ended up striking a wall. The wall exploded and the magic continued onward, destroying several houses as well. Naruto was thankful they were in a space separated from reality. He didn't want to be the cause of so much death and destruction.

He spun around. From his left hand, a chain emerged, which he threw at Kuroka. Rather than dodge the chain she swatted it away with her hand, sending it careening to strike a wall. Naruto realized she was channeling Senjutsu chakra to her hands.

She came at him again, and Naruto moved backwards to avoid her strikes. He kept his distance and made sure to dodge fully and not just minimize his movements. He didn't know if she could extend her attack range like him, but he didn't want to chance it.

"It seems you've gotten yourself into quite the pickle."

"Kurama, where have you been?"

"Sleeping."

"Tch, I should have guessed. Lazy fox."

"Insolent brat." Kurama paused, and Naruto could almost see his friend moving to sit on his haunches. "You're facing another senjutsu user? I knew it was possible for people aside from yourself to use Senjutsu in this world, but I had not realized we'd be running into another one so soon."

"Me neither. Think you can lend a hand? I'm confident I could beat her without Senjutsu, but I'd rather not chance it. This woman is on par with Ultimate-class devils, after all."

"Sure, though I won't be able to lend you my power yet. Your body is still adjusting to the overwhelming chakra flowing through you. It'll be at least another week before we can begin synchronizing our chakras."

"I figured as much."

"You shouldn't allow yourself to get distracted so easily, nya!" Kuroka said, coming in hot. Naruto dodged a strike to his chest by jumping to the right. A blast of energy shooting from the closed fist destroyed another house.

"Who said I was distracted," Naruto shot back, "I'm perfectly capable of multi-tasking in the middle of a battle, thank you very much."

"Nya. Looks like someone's a little cocky, nya. Let's see if you can back those words up."

Kuroka rushed in and renewed their taijutsu battle. Naruto soon discovered through experience that she could not, in fact, extend the range of her attacks like he could. Her Senjutsu ability was different, perhaps due to her learning how to use it differently, like the difference between Gama Senjutsu and Hebi Senjutsu. Some things remained the same however, like all of her base physical stats getting a monumental boost. Her dexterity, speed, strength and reflexes were all enhanced to levels beyond what a mere devil could accomplish. Then there were those magic bullets she could shoot from her hands. Naruto could not do that with his Senjutsu.

He grit his teeth as Kuroka's left leg swung at him. Already knowing that he couldn't hope to block that in his base state even with chakra enhancement, Naruto dodged, leaning his body backwards and allowing the lovely leg to pass by overhead. He could feel the first epidermal layer of skin scraping off as her foot grazed his nose.

Coming back up he launched his own attack, a rasengan to the gut that she avoided. But that was merely a distraction. Naruto stomped on the ground at the same time he thrust his jutsu forward. Kuroka dodged the blue sphere of spinning destruction, but could not avoid the chain that shot from the ground and wrapped around her—or so Naruto thought.

"Tch!"

Naruto clicked his tongue when Kuroka disappeared. Another genjutsu. How annoying.

"You're quite skilled to have lasted this long against me, nya," Kuroka said, now standing several feet away. "I'm amazed. Even high-class devils cannot defeat me, yet here you are, a newly reincarnated low-class devil fighting on par with someone like myself, nya." She licked her lips and Naruto felt a shiver run up his spine. "You're quite strong, nya."

"Somehow, hearing you say that fills me with dread," Naruto said dryly.

"Now don't be like that, nya." Kuroka winked at him. "It was a compliment."

Kuroka rushed him again. Naruto moved, once more avoiding her blow, or so he thought. Instincts warned him of the danger and not a second too soon. His arms came up in a cross guard, blocking the sudden surprise punch to his chest.

Pain exploded in his arms as the bones snapped. His body skid backwards along the blacktop. He winced, feeling the searing heat as his leftover healing factor kicked in and the bones snapped back into place and healed.

"Truly impressive, nya. To be able to block a punch when I'm using Senjutsu isn't something most people can do, nya." Naruto did not like the way Kuroka looked at him. Not at all. "Oh yes, you are very strong, nya. I think I might even have to keep you all to myself."

"Please don't."

"Here I come, nya!"

As Kuroka shot forward like a magic bullet, Kurama spoke within his mind. "I'm done. Get ready brat."

Naruto closed his eyes as he felt the Senjutsu chakra enter his body. It felt different than it did back home. He could feel the malice within this world, the hatred. It coursed through his body, unhindered and uninhibited. Yet it did not touch him, merely passing through. He could feel the hatred, but it was separate from himself.

He opened his eyes to see a foot filling his vision.

He blocked it with one hand.

Kuroka's eyes widened.

"What?!"

"My turn!"

Naruto yanked the foot in his grasp, pulling Kuroka to him. The black-haired neko stumbled right into Naruto's powerful right hook.

Unfortunately, the neko turned out to be another illusion. This didn't matter, though. He could sense where she was easily now. With Sage-mode boosting his sensing abilities to abnormal levels, finding her was a simple matter.

"You can't hide from me now!"

Naruto channeled his Senjutsu chakra into his fist and then combined it with wind-natured chakra. The air around his fist distorted the atmosphere before it was catapulted toward the direction he sensed Kuroka at. The distortion, a whirling cyclonic ball of Senjutsu infused wind rushed forward, striking a building several meters away. An explosion went off, not one of fire but wind instead, a fierce torrential storm of unbelievable devastation. The building was engulfed in a hurricane-like force that took the shape of a gigantic sphere.

The house disappeared and still the sphere continued expanding. It grew in size, enveloping several more houses in its destructive energy. Oddly enough, none of the devastating power from the jutsu extended beyond the sphere. It remained within the dome-like shape, a concentrated ball of mass destruction.

When the jutsu ended and the sphere faded, Naruto caught his first glimpse of the damage his jutsu caused. He whistled. What once consisted of a dozen houses had become nothing but a large crater. He could not judge how wide or deep it was, but it at to be at least several dozen meters in diameter.

"Holy crap," Naruto muttered, his eyes wide. "I didn't realize my new attack would be so damn destructive. I didn't even put that much chakra into it!"

"It is definitely impressive," Kurama agreed, "I'd say it's destructive capability is even greater than your rasenshuriken—at least in terms of property damage. It can't sever things at the molecular level, but if you want to level a mountain or something, this jutsu could get the job done easily if you added more chakra. Hmm. Thinking on it, I wonder if you becoming a devil has somehow increased the power of your jutsu?"

"Could be. It's something to think about later. For now, let's focus on this battle."

Naruto cut his connection with Kurama and turned to face Kuroka. She'd managed to avoid getting swept up in the blast, but not completely, he noticed. Her kimono had several tears in it and she was bleeding from a number of cuts on her arms and legs.

"So it's true, you really can use Senjutsu," Kuroka said, her smile gone. She looked irritated, but Naruto knew it wasn't irritation. It was fear. She was scared of him, of what he could do. "How is it that a former human can do Senjutsu?"

"How is it that a former human can use nature transformation?" Naruto asked rhetorically. "Because I'm fucking awesome, that's how." Grinning, the blond Uzumaki pointed at himself with a thumb. "You're looking at the biggest badass of the century; the one who will become so powerful that he'll surpass everybody else. The maous, ultimate-class devils, gods, even the Orouboros dragon. I'll become stronger than all of them!"

Kuroka took a step back, her eyes wide, though Naruto could not tell if it was from fear or something else.

"You can't beat me," Naruto declared, still grinning. "Why don't you just give up."

Kuroka clenched her hands into fists. Her arms shook and her knuckles turned white.

"Looks like you're having some trouble, Kuroka," a voice spoke up from somewhere. Naruto frowned. He couldn't sense this person's location.