ch 46 - escape and tragedy

Naruto frowned as he gazed at Yami in the distance. The world around them was an endless void mixed with iridescent colors that swirled and clashed. In some ways, it reminded him of the swirling nebula of stars he used to look at when he was a kid in Konoha. In other ways, it felt a lot like looking through a kaleidoscope. As the surroundings blurred and meshed together, he felt a vague and fuzzy memory pierce the back of his mind. He knew this place.

"Do you remember this place?" asked Yami as he gestured to the unique space they were floating in. "This is the Dimensional Gap, the void between worlds. During our battle with Kaguya Ootsutsuki, we traveled through this space, which tore apart our body, ravaged us from the inside out, and left you crippled. I was split off from you in that moment and wandered through this endless void of nothing, until one day when I felt power flow into me again."

"It was… the first time I used Sage Mode," Naruto said at last.

Yami gave him a malicious smile. "That's right. The first time you used Sage Mode was the first time I felt power flow into me—along with the hatred and rage of an entire world. The more you used Sage Mode, the more powerful I became, and the more hatred I took in." Vicious red irises surrounded by black sclera glared into Naruto's eyes. "These intense feelings of loathing surging through me are all your fault, you know."

"I know." Naruto neither ran nor hid from this fact. He accepted that this entire situation was his fault. "But that's all the more reason I have to be the one who stops you. I'll take responsibility for what happened with my own two hands."

"Take responsibility?!" Yami threw his head back and laughed. "If you have the means to take responsibility for your shortcomings, then by all means, do so! However…" The laughter died down as Yami's vicious expression of mirth became cold and malevolent. "You should not say something like that so lightly. I'm stronger than you. I have more power than you. You cannot take responsibility for what happened to us. If you really want to repent for what happened, then you can die!"

Yami rushed forward as he made a cross-shaped hand seal. Several Yamis suddenly appeared next to him—three—and they all branched off into groups of two. Two of the Yamis stuck out their hands and created a Rasengan. Then the other two channeled wind chakra into the pair of Rasengans. Before long, a loud ringing sound filled the void as the Rasengans turned pure white with four spinning blades twirling around them.

Naruto did not create a Rasenshuriken to counter Yamis two-pronged attack. He began a series of hand seals. At the same time, a magic circle appeared in front of him. The magic circle rotated clockwise, then released a powerful burst of fire magic just as he finished his hand seals.

"Fuuton: Reppusho (Wind Release: Gale Palm)."

Naruto clasped his hands together, compressing the wind and transforming it into a powerful gale force, which slammed into the fire created by his magic circle. He pumped more chakra into the technique than was necessary. When it hit the burst of fire, the blaze exploded as though someone had tossed gasoline into it.

An enormous cylinder of flame barreled toward the four Yamis. They moved out of the way, but Naruto created several magic circles along the path the cylinder was taking. The cylinder of fire suddenly curved and slammed into two of the Yami clones. Such a weak attack might not have been enough to do any damage to the real Yami, but clones were still just weak creations that became disrupted from a single punch. Both of them dispersed as the cylinder swept over them.

"I see you can use more than just chakra!" Yami roared as the clone beside him dispersed of its own accord.

Naruto sent his dark half a small smile. "Rossweisse has been teaching me a bit more about magic. She thought it would be good if I had more techniques up my sleeve that you can't use."

"Tch! You aren't the only one who has learned a thing or two!"

Yami thrust his Rasenshuriken forward, but Naruto had no intention of letting that thing hit him. He backed away—or he would have. Naruto was startled when he ran into something behind him. Turning his head, he saw a very basic shield made of magic behind him, keeping him from moving forward. There was also one beneath him and on his left and right, meaning he was literally hemmed in.

"I also learned some magic! I knew the day would come when you and me fought like this! Now you have nowhere to run!"

It was true that it looked like his escape routes were blocked off. There also wasn't anything he could use to replace himself with, so the Kawarimi no Jutsu was out. However, that didn't mean Naruto was not without his options.

After all, Naruto had Rossweisse on his side, and she was perhaps the greatest magic user he'd ever met. Thanks to her, he actually knew a lot of about magic, magic circles, and how to counter them.

With the knowledge he acquired from Rossweisse, Naruto analysed the magic blocking his escape route. It was protection magic. The wall put in place was normally one that protected the creator from physical attacks, but Yami was using it to restrain him instead. It wasn't Devil magic either, which relied on imagination. This was the magic circle used by magicians, which were dependant upon complex formulas. Once he figured out what kind of magic it was, creating a counter magic was relatively simple.

The wall dissolved just as Yami reached Naruto and thrust out his hand. Naruto glided backward, out of Yami's reach, and then erected his own shield, which Yami slammed into.

Of course, Yami had that Rasenshuriken in his hand, and no barrier would ever be able to counter such a jutsu. The Rasenshuriken drilled into the wall with a shrill screech and tore it apart like paper. It took a second, however, and Naruto used that second to withdraw to a safe distance. Yami glared viciously at him as he dispersed the Rasenshuriken, which was now useless to him.

"It seems you really have learned a lot of new tricks."

Naruto grinned and shrugged. "As the number one most unpredictable ninja of Kuoh Academy, I have a reputation to keep. I can't have some dark-half upstart of me stealing my thunder." He chuckled and slammed his fists together. "You might be stronger than I am, but that doesn't mean I'm not without my tricks."

It was true that in a straight up battle, Yami would win in terms of sheer power. During their last bout, Naruto had been so shocked that he hadn't been able to come up with a proper strategy for dealing with his other half, but he'd spoken with Rias, Ravel, and Rossweisse at length, and the three beauties—who were far smarter than him—helped him device a plan.

It didn't matter how powerful Yami was if he couldn't hit Naruto with his overbearing ninjutsu attacks.

Trickery and deceit would be his greatest allies here.

However, just as this thought flashed through his mind, Yami suddenly sent him a cold smile. Naruto felt a chill run down his spine before something grabbed his arms and legs. He blinked, then turned his head and found four Yami clones standing behind him, keeping his limbs pinned. When did Yami have time to make them?!

"You aren't the only one who has been working on refining his abilities," Yami said with an ominous chuckle. "I might not be as well-versed in magic as you, but I have learned how to create shadow clones without using hand seals. It looks like this is a skill you don't have."

Naruto clicked his tongue as he realized he wasn't the only one who had created new tricks. Yami had his own bag of tricks that Naruto was unaware of. It seemed like, despite how they were both the same person, the abilities they possessed were not all the same now. The different circumstances they faced upon coming to this world led them to learning different abilities.

This was troublesome.

"Now, let's see you dodge me again." Yami tossed him a dark grin as he created a wind rasengan in his hand and lunged forward.

Naruto only had a split second to think, but in that split second, he came up with a plan, closed his eyes, and surged both his chakra and demonic power. He wrapped it around himself and one of the clones, quickly replacing himself with the Yami clone. Yami's eyes widened as he slammed into the clone, which exploded upon contact with his wind rasengan. The other clones were blasted apart as well. However, Naruto once again managed to escape.

To add injury to insult, Naruto suddenly jerked his hands, which caused a long twine of ninja wire to suddenly coil around Yami, tightening to the point where he couldn't move his limbs. Before Yami could use his strength the break free, Naruto once again combined fire magic with wind ninjutsu.

A massive blaze raced along the twines of ninja wire in his hand. This fire was not the traditional orange of most flames, but a burning hot blue flame with traces of white. The ninja wire in Naruto's hand quickly melted as the attack flew along it, morphing from a simple flame into eight brilliant blue nine-tailed foxes.

Before Yami had a chance to scream, the foxes slammed into him and detonated, exploding with an incredible force that sent Naruto hurtling backwards through the Dimensional Gap. A shockwave rippled out from where the attacks met, with gouts of flame exploding in every direction. It looked a lot like the birth of a new star.

Naruto stared at the miniature nova and huffed.

"I wonder if that got him."

A snort appeared in his mind.

"Not even close. Yami is still very much alive. In fact, that attack didn't even do any damage to him."

As if to prove Kurama's point, the fire dispersed as if an intense wind had blown it all away, and Yami appeared in its place. His body was surrounded by an intense aura. Dark blackish purple chakra exuded from his body like a thick miasma, protecting him from the harmful flames. Naruto clicked his tongue when he noticed there wasn't a single hair out of place on Yami's head.

However, he did smile when he saw the dark expression on his counterpart's face.

"You really are a troublesome foe to deal with. Even now, when faced against a mirror image of yourself, you still come up with surprising tactics."

"That's because I'm just that awesome." Naruto swiped his nose with his thumb as he thrust out his chest. "I am so amazing that sometimes I even amaze myself with my own ingenuity."

Snorting laughter echoed within his mind. Naruto wore a broad grin as he listened to Kurama's rumbling chuckles. On the other hand, Yami looked like he had swallowed a lemon whole.

"I've always hated that pride of yours," Yami admitted. "Your refusal to give up when faced with impossible odds is more infuriating than anything else. It was that stubborn refusal to give up that caused me to feel a moment of weakness back when you fought me at the Falls of Truth. When you told me I should just join you because you and I were one, I truly believed you could do anything. I thought for sure you could change the world. But I was wrong. This world is nothing but a big ball of hatred and malice. No one can change it. All we can do accept it, embrace it, and use it as fuel to further our own desires and goals."

As he spoke, Yami raised his hands and clenched them into fists. There was a contemplative expression on his face, eyes narrowed slightly, brow furrowed as if he was thinking about everything he'd been through up to this point. Naruto thought about interrupting and attacking, but he was honestly curious to know what his other half was thinking. He remained silent as Yami came out of his thoughts.

"If you think you have what it takes to defeat me, then bring it on. Unlike last time, simply telling me that everything will be okay isn't going to cut it! If you want to truly change my way of thinking, then you should do so with your fists!"

"That was exactly what I intended on doing," Naruto said as he slammed his fists together.

"Kurama?"

"Remember, you can only maintain this state for a little while. Thanks to your slight increase in power, I'd say you can maintain this state for ten minutes now."

"Hopefully, ten minutes will be all I need."

A moment of silence passed before Kurama's infinite and overwhelming chakra rushed through his body with an explosive force that shook his insides. It felt like fire burning his body from the inside out. Chakra exploded from him, erupting through his pores in an overbearing and intensely painful manner. However, Naruto bore through it, gritting his teeth as a shroud appeared around him, as his pupils became slits, as his whiskers thickened to resemble the bagua trigram. His transformation only finished when the shroud took on the appearance of a haori.

Because of how vast Kurama's chakra was now, the colors swirling within the void began distorting. They writhed and jerked as though shying away from this intense power. Ripples spread across the Dimensional Gap.

Naruto pushed his chakra a step further.

Lines appeared on his haori and clothes, Uzumaki swirl designs appeared along his back and front, while ten magatama formed around his neck as ten Truth-Seeking Balls appeared around his body.

"Hmph," Yami snorted as a black cloak wrapped around him. White markings covered his shoulders and white magatama hung around his neck. Nine black orbs condensed around his body, floating around him like satellites. His hair turned into two wisps that resembled fox ears, and his pupils had turned into bars. "It looks like despite all the new tricks you have, you still have to rely on his Kurama Mode and Rikudou Sennin Mode to contend with me. However, you were defeated last time you used this power. What makes you think you'll win this time?"

"Who knows?" Naruto shrugged and smiled. "Maybe I'll lose. Maybe I won't. Weren't you the one who said we should let our fists do the talking? Why don't you just shut up and fight me?"

Yami's lips peeled back in a snarl. "Fine then! Let's do this!"

Naruto and Yami rushed forward at the same time and clashed in the center. A shockwave exploded from their bodies as they slammed their fists together, erupting and sending ripples through the Dimensional Gap. They were pushed back.

Yami was the first one to stabilize himself, and he quickly darted forward again and tried to attack Naruto with a Rasengan. When Naruto saw this, he narrowed his eyes. Instead of meeting the Rasengan with another Rasengan, one of his Truth-Seeking Balls darted forward, transformed into a jagged sword, and tried to slice through the Rasengan. It was intercepted by one of Yami's Truth-Seeking Balls.

Two of the black balls appeared in Naruto's hands and transformed into a pair of short staffs. As Yami thrust the Rasengan in his hand forward, Naruto slammed the tip of one staff into it. An intense detonation pushed them back. However, that wasn't the end of Yami's attack, as six of the nine Truth-Seeking Balls swirling around him darted forward and tried to punch a hole through Naruto's body. They were intercepted by six Truth-Seeking Balls from Naruto.

Explosion after explosion erupted between the two as they bitterly fought against each other, creating shockwaves that caused the very atmosphere around them to distort. Tears began appearing within the Dimensional Gap. These tears did not look like much at first, but when they formed, strange worlds appeared within them. Worlds that looked like earth, worlds of fire, worlds of water, and worlds made of verdant forests surfaced briefly before disappearing. It was like their powerful clash was tearing apart the boundaries between worlds.

Thanks to the orgy Naruto had with Koneko, Ravel, Rias, and Rossweisse, he was a bit more powerful than before. Of course, the majority of his chakra was still with Yami, but that little bit of chakra allowed Naruto to fight with Yami on even ground for a longer period of time. He knew, however, that five extra minutes was not much time in the grand scheme of things.

Naruto realized that if he wanted to win, he would have to do come up with something brilliant.

"Damn that Kurama." Yami scowled as he glared at Naruto. "The only reason you can even keep up with me is because of that blasted fox in your gut!"

"I rather resent being called a blasted fox by a being who isn't even half a man," Kurama grumbled.

"So? The only reason you can keep up with me is because you have most of my chakra." Naruto shrugged. "Personally, I don't think you have any room to bitch and moan like some pathetic grade schooler. Stop complaining and let me kick your ass."

Yami snarled as he surged forward. It looked like he was intending to rip Naruto apart with his bare hands.

Just before Naruto's dark half could attack, however, a massive object suddenly flew between them. Naruto gawked when giant red scales appeared in his vision. He glanced at the four massive wings spreading from this gigantic creature's back. Each one was about twenty times larger than Naruto himself—no, maybe they were even fifty times larger. Segmented scales like armor plating ran along this monstrosity's back, all the way to its incredibly long tail. It had white scales on the underside of its body. Two powerful hind legs and shorter but no less impressive front arms gave this massive creature a western dragon appearance. A single blood red horn jutted from the front of its head.

Naruto knew what this creature was.

Great Red. The Apocalypse Dragon, the True Red Dragon God Emperor, the Dragon of Dragons, and the person Ophis wanted to kick out of her home.

"I wish her luck in trying to kick this thing out." Kurama snorted. "Even I wouldn't mess with this creature if I didn't have to."

"Agreed."

Naruto was not sure what to expect when he finally met with Great Red, but the dragon before him blew pretty much every expectation out of the water. Not only was this creature gigantic, but the power fluctuations pouring off it was enough that Naruto realized even Kurama might have trouble contending with it. Of course, Kurama also had an infinite supply of chakra, but that just meant the battle between them would be truly epic if they were to fight.

As the great dragon soared past them, it performed a pretty slick aerial maneuver and turned back around again to confront them.

"The fuck is going on here?! You punks battling in my backyard without my fucking permission?! Huh?!" The dragon roared. It sounded a lot like a delinquent belonging to a biker gang.

"Oh, boy." Naruto could feel the sweat trickling down his scalp.

"Who would have guessed the most powerful creature in this world would be a delinquent."

Naruto wasn't sure what to say, so he glanced at Yami, though doing so might have been a mistake. The gobsmacked expression on his counterparts face almost caused him to snicker. That wouldn't have been good. However, it also gave Naruto some valuable information. Yami clearly knew who this great being was and didn't want to contend with him.

"Well?!" The dragon roared again. "You punks got anything to say for yourselves?! Do ya?!"

"I actually do have something to say." Naruto raised his hand, causing Great Red to turn his eyes on him. With a foxy grin, he looked at the massive dragon and gave him a thumbs up. "That was a pretty slick move you did just then. It was a Split S, right?"

"Oh ho." Great Red suddenly seemed a bit more interested in Naruto. He came closer to him with a mighty flap of his wings. "It seems you know a bit about aerial maneuvers. Not bad. It's good to know there are people out there who can appreciate my mad skillz."

"Definitely. It's gotta be hard doing such a crazy move when you're so big." Naruto nodded his head and studiously ignored the angry and savage look on Yami's face as he conversed with Great Red. "The amount of strength you have to use must be intense. I imagine just getting lift would be hard, but you do it effortlessly."

"Ha ha! That is because I'm Great Red! Any other half-bit dragon would never be able to do the crazy stunts I do."

And thus, Naruto began talking about aerial maneuvers with the most powerful dragon in existence, while Yami was forced to stand on the sidelines with an expression that made it look like someone had shoved a dead skunk up his ass. As the minutes passed, that expression grew increasingly fierce.

"So what exactly are you doing here?" asked Naruto after a few minutes of casual conversation.

"Hmph. I sensed a really powerful aura creating spatial cracks in the Dimensional Gap. Of course I came over to see what the fuck was going on. And what do I find but a couple of mirrors beating the crap out of each other. You two have some guts to start fighting in my backyard. I oughta kick your asses from here to the underworld for mucking up my place."

"I do apologize for that." Naruto rubbed the back of his head as if he was embarrassed. "You see, that guy over there pulled me into the Dimensional Gap against my will and picked a fight with me. Can you believe it? This dude is a complete asshat! What kind of guy drags someone into another person's home to fight? It's completely disrespectful."

At Naruto's words, Great Red turned to look at Yami with a glare so vicious even Naruto's dark half paled. He sent his fellow blond the most spiteful look he could muster under the circumstance. Naruto, however, tossed him the smuggest, most brilliantly evil smile in the entire world. He felt like one of those super villains in an anime when they successfully pulled off their plans and finally beat the main protagonist.

"Is that how it is?" Great Red snorted, which released a powerful gust of wind that knocked Yami back. "You've got some nerve, punk. I'm gonna teach you a fucking lesson!" Yami opened his mouth, perhaps to try and dispute Naruto's claim, but Great Red wasn't even willing to listen. "Get lost, punk!"

And then, Great Red flicked Yami with a single finger. It was just one finger. However, an explosive force erupted from the finger when it struck Yami, who flew backward so fast he completely disappeared into the distance at supersonic speeds. Naruto watched as Yami vanished, but then he turned back to Great Red as the massive dragon flipped around to look at him again.

"I sense an incredible amount of power coming from inside of you," Great Red said at last.

Naruto smiled as he dismissed Kurama's chakra shroud and his Rikudou Sennin Mode.

"What you sense isn't my power. My friend is currently sealed inside of me. It's his power you're sensing."

Great Red's neck muscles rippled as he nodded. "That's what I thought. The power is inside of you but separate from you. Hmph. It's quite powerful. Even I wouldn't want to mess with that power unless I had to. That's the only reason I haven't flicked your ass out of here too."

"I figured as much." Naruto shrugged. "Actually, I'd like to get back to my friends in the underworld, but I can't open a gate. That man I was fighting pulled me in here against my will."

Great Red was silent for a moment, but then he nodded his massive head.

"I'll open a gate back to where you were originally. It's not too hard for someone as awesome as myself. Hang on just a moment."

The massive dragon raised one of its comparatively stubby arms and extended a single claw, which tapped the empty space in front of it. Swirls of color spread outward in a ripple before a black tear opened in the center. As the tear solidified, Naruto found that what appeared on the other side was the city of Lucifaad. He could see the outside of the city, including the explosions as members of Sona's peerage fought against the Old Satan Faction.

However, what really shocked him was when he noticed Ravel fighting what appeared to be her older brother.

"There. I've opened the gate. Now get out of here."

"Will do. Thanks, Great Red. Keep pulling those crazy awesome stunts."

"Hmph. You know I will."

With a quick salute to the giant red dragon, Naruto flew head first into the tear, which closed up behind him.

~Devil Ninja~

Ravel shook as Rizer smiled at her. Her pupils dilated as the man floated before her on wings of fire. That dark gaze was enough to completely unsettle her.

"It seems you have been giving the Old Satan Faction a lot of trouble." The expression on Rizer's face grew increasingly dark. "You always were a brilliant strategist. Those strategies of yours have helped Rizer any number of times during a Rating Game. It is… most infuriating to have those same tactics used against Rizer now."

It didn't take a genius to figure out what Rizer's words meant.

"You've… joined the Chaos Brigade," Ravel choked out. "Why?"

"It should be obvious." The already dark expression became even more dense and volatile. Even his flame-like wings began surging as though expressing their master's rage. "Rizer was completely humiliated during his Rating Game with Rias Gremory. Some no name little shit not only dared to stand up to him, but he even beat the snot out of him. As if that was not enough, that bastard became hailed as one of the strongest young devils in the Underworld, snatched Rias away from Rizer, and even sunk his claws into Rizer's own little sister. This is an affront. Our parents might have allowed and even encouraged this, but Rizer will not stand for it!"

Ravel felt hot tears prick her eyes as she listened to Rizer speak.

Rizer had always been a prideful man. When they were younger, he would often boast to others and pick fights to prove his superiority. Whenever someone said something bad about him, he would use this Phenex name and his strength as a member of their clan to thoroughly humiliate that person. His pride was something that she'd always found a little annoying, to be honest, but Rizer had also always treated her well.

And now…

"What are you… planning to do?" asked Ravel.

"That should be obvious." Rizer lost the dark look and replaced it with a smile, though that only made Ravel even more fearful of him. "Rizer cannot allow you to just do as you please. Therefore, he will capture you and bring you back to our base. Do not worry. You will not be harmed."

Ravel took a step back and shook her head. "I'm not going."

The darkness in Rizer's eyes returned. "Do not do anything foolish, Ravel. You are no match for Rizer. You never were."

Ravel gritted her teeth as she listened to and acknowledged his words. As an immature Phenex, Ravel did not have the power her brother did, but that also didn't mean she could give up. If nothing else, she needed to at least try and stall for time. That said, she didn't know what sort of miracle she was expecting.

"I'm not abandoning my friends," she said adamantly.

"You mean you are not abandoning that bastard who defeated Rizer." He flew forward as Ravel flew back. "Fine. This will be unpleasant for both of us, but if you will not listen to reason, then Rizer will just force you to come with him."

It happened in an instant. Rizer appeared in front of Ravel. Flames ignited from his hands, an intense burning orange that looked molten, like it might melt the entire world into slag. He threw those fists at Ravel, who only had a moment to react.

Ravel had expected this. She knew Rizer well.

The wings on Ravel's back disappeared as she dropped, allowing the intense flame-coated fists to flash over her head. A magic circle appeared in her left hand as she swiped it at Rizer. Flames burst from it and slammed into his face. It didn't do any damage, but it did blind him for a moment.

Ravel's wings appeared again as she flew away quickly, darting through several buildings, doing everything she possibly could to get away from her older brother. She understood her own strengths and weaknesses very well. At present, she could not defeat her brother, who seemed even more powerful now than he had been back then.

"That wasn't very nice, Ravel," a voice said above her.

Ravel gasped when she turned her head and saw Rizer descending from the sky. She barrel rolled out of the way, which caused him to soar past her, but he quickly recovered with a flap of his wings. More flames appeared in his hand, which he threw at her. Ravel could do little more than grit her teeth as she created a barrier in front of her body.

Flames blasted against her shield, which shattered under Rizer's intense assault, sending her spiraling out of control through the air. Ravel was able to regain her flight, however. She flapped her wings and descended quickly, then ignited her Phenex powers over fire and struck the ground. A massive explosion went up behind her. She used the intense pillar of flames to mask her movement as she darted behind a building.

"You might be incredibly smart, dear sister, but Rizer can see through your every move." At the sound of her brother's voice, Ravel looked up to see that Rizer had not been tricked by her maneuver at all. He was floating above her. "Tricks like that might work on someone who doesn't know you as well as Rizer does. However, to someone who has watched you since you were little, those cheap parlor tricks will never work."

It had been a long time since Ravel felt this frustrated. Rizer was countering her every move. Just like she knew what he would do, he knew what she would do, and he was using his knowledge of her to his advantage.

Thinking about it like this, Ravel realized none of her usual plans would work against someone like Rizer, who knew her so well. In that case, she needed to do something that Ravel Phenex would not do. She needed to do something reckless and stupid. Something… something… yes, she needed to do something that Naruto would do.

"All right," Ravel muttered as flames ignited on her hands. "Let's try this."

"Are you planning to fight Rizer head on?" asked Rizer, looking a little perplexed. "Little sister, Rizer applauds your courage, but you have to know fighting like this is pointless. You cannot win."

"We'll see about that," Ravel said in a surprisingly loud voice.

Ravel rushed at Rizer with a straightforward assault. It was something so idiotic, so moronic, that Ravel would never do this—or so Rizer thought. From the shocked expression on his face, it seemed she had really left him stunned.

She closed the distance before he could recover and used what little she learned of combat from Koneko to sock Rizer right in the face. Her straight jab was simple and lacked the power of the little Rook. However, she had released an incredibly well-timed explosion of fire, which further fueled her punch's destructive power. The attack was enough to knock Rizer back.

"How dare you hit Rizer!"

With a roar, Rizer Phenex charged at her, completely forgetting himself as he unleashed a vicious assault that even she did not expect. Perhaps it was simply because Rizer was already unhinged. However, his attack was merciless.

Something powerful slammed into Ravel's body. She didn't know what it was, but it struck her chest and caused her to gasp in agony as her body was sent soaring backward through the air. Before she could even recover, Rizer appeared behind her. He lashed out with an explosive kick that would have broken her spine, but Ravel unleashed a timely burst of fire that changed her orientation. She was able to dodge the attack by a hair.

She could not dodge the fire-covered fist.

Ravel spat out bile as she flew through the air, struck the ground, and tumbled. Her body jarred from the numerous impacts. She would have screamed when her shoulder was torn from its socket, but her voice was lost to the wind. A yelp escaped her mouth when something sharp cut open her leg. It couldn't be heard over the blood pounding into her ears.

Eventually coming to a stop on the ground, Ravel needed a moment to pick up her bruised and battered body. Her wounds were healing as she tried to stand. She might have succeeded, but then Rizer appeared in front of her. He grabbed her by the head and slammed his knee into her nose. Ravel cried out as she was sent rocketing backward. She landed on the ground in a dazed heap as he walked over to her with cold, meticulous steps.

"Rizer did not want to do this, Ravel, but you have forced his hand." Rizer stopped in front of Ravel and reached out to grab her. "Now, it is time for you to come with—"

No more words came out of Rizer's mouth. At that moment, Rizer suddenly found himself being relieved of his hand. He stared at the now missing stump for a moment, which was all the time he was allowed, before a foot slammed into his face so hard he rocketed off the ground and crashed into a large building.

Ravel cracked her eyes open as she saw a tall and broad-shouldered figure standing in front of her. She coughed once as blood stained her lips. Her wounds were healing rapidly, but they were still a little slower than Rizer's own regenerative abilities.

"N-Naruto…"

"I'm sorry for arriving late," Naruto said, though he did not turn his eyes back to her. His gaze was locked onto the destroyed building Rizer had plowed through. "I was only just able to return from the Dimensional Gap. Please forgive me. Because of me…"

"It's… okay…" Ravel took a deep breath as she stood up. "I'm already feeling better. Do not worry about me."

Naruto didn't say anything, but that was likely because Rizer emerged from the building at that moment. He had a furious and insane look in his eyes as he stared at Naruto.

"YOU BASTARD! I SHOULD HAVE KNOWN YOU WOULD TRY TO INTERFERE IN MY BUSINESS!"

"You're damn right I would," Naruto said as he shifted his feet against the ground. "You're hurting one of the women I love. You should have seen this coming from a kilometer away."

While Ravel felt her cheeks become hot when Naruto said he loved her, she knew now wasn't the time. She moved to stand beside Naruto. The man she had given herself to was glaring at Rizer with a look of such intense loathing that even she was taken aback.

Rizer looked like he was about to have a conniption. Yet just before he could rush over and try to kill them, Shalba Beelzebub appeared. He looked at Naruto and Ravel, then turned his gaze to Rizer.

"We're leaving, Rizer. It is time to pull out."

"What?! I can't! I have to get back at that bastard and take Ravel with us!" Rizer said, looking aghast.

"Rizevim has already accomplished his goal. It is likely he will be leaving soon as well. We are leaving."

Rizer looked like he wanted to argue, but then Shalba glared at him and he shut his mouth. He took a deep breath. Then he threw a malicious glare at Ravel and Naruto. While she was shocked to the core by his look, Naruto was relatively impassive, though she could see the way his hands were twitching.

"I will remember this!" Rizer spat before he and Shalba disappeared within a magic circle. It looked like they had teleportation magic.

Naruto waited until he was sure the two were gone before turning to Ravel.

"Are you okay?" he asked. The concern in his eyes warmed her heart.

"I'm…" She was about to say she was fine, but then she shook her head. "I am not okay, but I know I can't afford to let my emotions get the better of me right now. We still have a job to do."

"You're right." Naruto smiled at her. "That man said Rizevim has accomplished his goal, which means he has likely succeeded in stealing Ophis's power. That means we should hurry. If we don't make it in time to save her…"

Naruto left his sentence unfinished, but Ravel didn't need to know what he meant. She knew. If they failed to save Ophis in time, then they would be in a lot of trouble.

~Devil Ninja~

"Dragon Shot!"

A bright orb of energy appeared in front of Euclid. It was not the traditional color that Rias was used to seeing, but a red and silver mixture. Euclid punched it with his fist, clad in an artificially made Sacred Gear. The energy orb exploded with an incredible amount of power and raced toward Rias, turning into a beam of energy that threatened to consume them.

"Scatter, everyone!"

Knowing better than to remain where they were, the members of Rias's peerage who were fighting against Euclid separated from each other and moved, presenting harder to hit targets. That was the intention at least.

"Dragon Shot!"

Their opponent seemed to know how to use the Dragon Shot, one of Issei's signature moves, quite well. He didn't aim at where they were, but where they were going to be. Rias almost found herself being blasted in the face with a beam of intense red and silver energy when it flashed by her head. She stopped just seconds before it could hit her. The beam tore past her nose and continued on, slamming into the wall and drilling a massive hole right through it.

At the same time, Rossweisse created a magic circle in front of her. It rotated before unleashing a torrent of holy magic at Euclid. The devil was smart enough to not let himself get struck by her attacks. He moved backward like a ghost as the bright beam of white light slammed into the ground. No damage was done since this attack was one that only damaged people, but Euclid still narrowed his eyes when he saw the attack hit where he'd been standing.

"That magic of yours is very dangerous," Euclid said with a growl.

"If you think that's dangerous, you should see my angel magic!" Irina shouted as she descended from above and swung her light sword.

Euclid raised a single hand. A magic circle appeared in front of it just as her weapon slammed into him. The magic circle was obviously a shield of some kind, and it looked like it was specifically meant to protect against holy attacks. It sizzled and hissed. However, the sword of light in Irina's hand did not break through.

"Gasper!" Rias shouted.

I-I'm on iiiiiiit!"

Gasper narrowed his eyes and activated Forbidden Balor View, which he used to quickly freeze the area around Euclid's arm. That was about all he could do. However, it gave Rias enough time to launch her own attack.

Dark red energy gathered in front of her. It crackled and hissed before turning from an unwieldy blob into a long spear. The spear itself did not look like anything special. If a weapon maker were to ever lay eyes on it, they probably would have gaped in horror at how un-aesthetically appealing it was, but Rias did not care about its looks as she chopped her hand down at Euclid.

The dark red spear shot forward faster than a bullet from a gun. Euclid, who had been trying to move his hand without success, suddenly narrowed his eyes when the intense wave of crackling energy neared him. He raised his free hand and created another barrier. He was just in time. Rias's spear slammed into the barrier and detonated. Reddish black energy howled as it tried to break through the barrier. Despite how much power she put into this attack, the barrier did not shatter.

While the barrier didn't break, Euclid now had both hands full and no hands to deal with Rossweisse, who held out her hands and created another magic circle. This one was a lot more complex than any she'd created so far. White light swirled inside of it before exploding outward in a powerful bolt of energy that finally slammed into Euclid's body. The attack sent him hurtling backward, Gasper's power shattering around his hand. However, even with this, the man was able to regain his balance and skidded across on the floor on his feet instead of tumbling like a ragdoll. When he stopped, a hideous look appeared on his face as he gazed at the wound Rossweisse's attack had inflicted.

A large hole had been burnt into Euclid's clothing, and Rias could see the burnt flesh underneath it. Oddly enough, the attack didn't seem to have penetrated his flesh. There was a large black mark where the attack hit, but there was no blood.

"I guess fighting against four of you at the same time really is too much even for someone like me," he admitted with a frown. He glanced at his Sacred Gear. "It's just like I thought. This Sacred Gear can't stand up to the original either. It's just a cheap imitation. In order to make it truly work, I need to use the remains of a Boosted Gear holder and the souls of powerful Dragons."

"If you know you won't win in a fight against us, then just give up," Rias said as Gasper, Irina, and Rossweisse landed on the ground next to her.

"Sorry, but I still have no intention of giving up." Euclid gave them a graceless smile. "That said, I now understand that using a cheap imitation Sacred Gear that hasn't been truly refined won't work. I guess, in the end, I can only rely on my own power to deal with you four."

As he spoke these words, an intense explosion of demonic energy burst from his body. Rias and the others tensed up when they felt this incredible power. The man took a step forward as he glared at them, the floor cracking beneath his feet.

"You should know that I'm every bit as strong as my sister," Euclid said as waves of power wafted off his body. "You four might be a lot more powerful than I expected, but I highly doubt you can defeat an ultimate-class devil such as myself."

"We'll see about that," Rias said. Despite the overwhelming pressure Euclid was emitting, she wasn't about to give up. They had faced off against several powerful opponents in the past, and while fighting someone as strong as her sister-in-law was certainly a frightening prospect, that didn't mean they would just roll over and die either.

While Rias, Rossweisse, Irina, and Gasper were getting ready to renew their battle with a now charged up Euclid, Arthur, Akeno, Kiba, Koneko, and Xenovia were continuing their battle with Grendel.

As a Dragon whose defense was one of the most formidable in the entire world, Grendel's body had received very few wounds despite being hit with nearly everything the group had. Only Arthur and Koneko were able to deal any real damage to it.

Arthur was holding a sword in his hand that Rias didn't recognize. However, the formidable aura it unleashed let her know it was a holy sword that might be even more powerful than the original Excalibur. It had a grip long enough to be used as a two-handed weapon with a rounded pommel at the end, and a huge cross-shaped guard. The long blade was mostly silver, but the edge was a brilliant golden color.

Before anyone could even blink, Arthur disappeared and appeared again right next to Grendel, slashing his sword down in an overhand stroke. Ripples appeared as the sword descended. It was like he was cutting through space itself.

Even Grendel did not dare let himself be hit with such an attack. He dodged backward, though he was not fast enough to completely avoid the strike. A small cut appeared on his skin. However, even though he received an injury, the dangerous Dragon still laughed joyously as if he found Arthur's ability to hurt him amusing.

It was at this moment that Koneko darted in behind Grendel, her two tails wagging furiously behind her as a bright glow covered her entire body. Before the evil Dragon even had time to notice her presence, she sent several powerful punches into his backside. Each attack left a fist-shaped imprint in Grendel's body. The attacks also lifted the much larger Dragon off the ground. Koneko finished her attack by placing her hands on the ground, lifting her lower body up, and mule kicking Grendel with a force so powerful he was blasted into the air.

"Let's see if you can protect yourself against this!" Xenovia suddenly shouted as she and Kiba leapt into the air and descended on Grendel.

They slashed at the Dragon with their respective swords. However, just like last time, the wounds they left on him were superficial at best. As they landed on the ground, Akeno, who was flying above them, unleashed another intense blast of holy lightning that slammed into Grendel and sent him hurtling back to the floor. He slammed into the floor, causing the room to rumble and shake. A massive crater formed in the floor around him while numerous cracks spread from the point of impact.

Despite how much damage such an attack should have dealt, Grendel stood back up like nothing had happened. He had a few small cuts, some bruises in the shape of Koneko's fist, and black singe marks from Akeno's lightning. However, the amount of wounds on his body was in no way proportional to the amount of times they had attacked him.

"Our attacks are barely doing anything to this monster!" Xenovia growled in frustration.

"It is pretty disheartening to see our attacks doing so little damage," Kiba agreed as he gripped the sword in his hands more tightly.

The five of them had been battling this Dragon for the better part of twenty minutes and had only managed to inflict some superficial wounds on its skin. While they had also managed to avoid suffering injuries themselves, the situation still appeared grim.

"I would normally just be able to cut through someone like this using Caliburn's ability to cut space, but Grendel is more durable than anyone I've fought before. Perhaps it is his powers as a Dragon, but Caliburn cannot fully cut through him like it would someone else," Arthur said.

"What should we do?" asked Koneko.

"What else can we do?" Akeno shrugged as she floated over to them, warily eying the Dragon standing several meters away. "We keep attacking."

While that didn't sound like the greatest plan ever conceived, it wasn't like they could do anything else. The group seemed to understand that and thus renewed their attacks.

At the same time, Rias found that she was no longer able to focus on her other comrades as Euclid unleashed his own attack at them. A magic circle appeared in front of him before a strange light shot from it. Rias's eyes widened as she felt the intense burst of demonic power emitting from that light.

"Everyone move!"

They moved away before the light struck the ground and exploded. The force of the explosion was so intense that Rias, Irina, Gasper, and Rossweisse were lifted off the ground and sent backward. They struck the floor and rolled. Only after tumbling for several meters did they manage to regain their balance and stand up, though all of them were now sporting several burn marks.

Rias could not help but gawk when she saw the crater where they had been standing. It wasn't big, but she could tell from how smooth the ground had become that his powerful explosion magic contained a heat intense enough to melt the floor. If an attack like that hit any of them, they would be destroyed.

"I guess this is the difference between an ultimate-class devil and us," Irina said morosely as she stared at the now calm Euclid.

"None of you have the power to beat me," Euclid said as if he'd heard her. "You might think you have a chance because of our last battle, but the only reason you did so well against me back then was because you had Metatron on your side, and I wasn't fighting against you with all my strength. I just needed to get a measure of your abilities. Now that I know what you are capable of and you have no archangel protecting you, I don't need to hold back."

Rias gritted her teeth. She refused to admit defeat, but she also knew that unless she was willing to unleash her new ultimate attack—which she couldn't do within such a confined space because it was an indiscriminate attack—she had nothing that could really destroy someone of Euclid's caliber.

It seemed they had greatly underestimated their opponent.

~Devil Ninja~

After rescuing Ravel, he and his companion traveled into the underground tunnel and swiftly raced through it, though they had no idea where they were going.

"How are we going to find Rias and the others?" asked Ravel.

"I'm following their scent."

Ravel gave him a strange look. "What are you? A dog?"

"A fox."

When Ravel saw the grin on his face, she attempted to roll her eyes at him, but she was smiling at his joke.

They soon reached a door that had been blasted open and emerged into a large hallway decorated with gaudy purple carpet. Naruto ran through it with Ravel hot on his heels. He wasn't relying on his sense of smell to track Rias, which might have been funny if he could. He was sensing fluctuations of demonic energy. Even at his present location, he could feel the incredible swelling of demonic power from further away.

It was not long after they had traveled through several hallways that Naruto and Ravel burst into a large room, which resembled an entrance hall similar to the one at the Gremory Estate. Two separate battles were taking place there.

Naruto turned his head and watched as Koneko darted between the legs of a giant humanoid dragon. She kicked its legs hard enough that he fell to the ground. When this happened, Arthur, Kiba, and Xenovia rushed forward and attempted to impale it. They weren't successful. The creature blocked Kiba and Xenovia before scrambling away from Arthur. As the Dragon got to his feet, Akeno blasted the creature with holy lightning. Once again, the attack didn't seem to do much more than stagger the dragon creature back.

"That must be Grendel," Ravel murmured as she bit her lip.

Nodding, Naruto looked from the fight with Grendel to Rias Gremory's fight with Euclid. Rossweisse and Rias were bombarding him with magic from a distance, while Irina tried to get in and attack close with her light swords. Gasper, in the meantime, was hanging back and using Forbidden Balor View to break up Euclid's rhythm. Even as he watched, Rias sent an incredibly fierce blast of demonic reddish black energy that slammed into a barrier their opponent created. Rossweisse also used her Norse magic to blast the devil with lightning. However, both attacks met a barrier before Euclid unleashed a number of bursts of light, which detonated all around the Gremory group and forced them to move.

"Is this all the great Rias Gremory has to offer?! Pathetic!" Euclid spat. "You're just as pathetic as your naive brother!"

The look on Rias's face was fierce as she surged forward. "Says the man who hasn't killed any of us yet. Don't talk down to me like you're better than the rest of us when you also haven't succeeded in doing anything."

Euclid was actually scowling now, but he didn't remain that way for long and created several more bursts of explosion magic. He tried surrounding the group with explosions. However, Rias was not stupid, and she used her Powers of Destruction to blast a hole in the formation that allowed her and the others to escape.

From this distance, Naruto could feel the heat from Euclid's explosion magic, a searing hot wind that burned his face. It was pretty intense, though Naruto thought the black flames of Amaterasu were more powerful.

"We're missing a few people," Ravel announced before looked at Naruto. "Issei and several others aren't here."

Naruto gazed around and noticed that Issei, Raynare, Asia, Le Fay, and Vali were indeed not present. "They have probably gone on ahead. Our goal is to rescue Kunou and Ophis, so we can't afford to have all our people tangled up here." Naruto turned to Ravel. "Come on. I have a feeling I'm going to need your strategies to save Kunou and Ophis."

Ravel bit her lip as she looked at the battle between Grendel and the others—more specifically, she looked at Koneko, who had just dodged one of Grendel's stupidly powerful fists. The punch had created a two foot crater in the floor. She returned fire with a touki enhanced kick to the face, but aside from a little blood gushing from the humanoid dragon's nose, the attack didn't do much.

"Koneko will be fine." Naruto placed a hand on Ravel's head. "You know how powerful she is and how hard she has been training."

"I do." Ravel took a deep breath before her eyes gained a determined glint. "Let's go save Ophis and Kunou."

While the battle was taking place, Naruto and Ravel skirted around the edge of the two battlefields. Euclid saw them and scowled, but he was unable to even try and stop him because Rias had created two brilliant reddish black swords in her hand and nearly hacked off his arm with one of them. The redhead then flapped her wings and moved back, throwing her sword at him, and while Euclid did knock it aside, he received a face full of lightning from Rossweisse.

Naruto and Ravel disappeared through the door on the other side. They eventually reached a staircase, which seemed to go down forever, or until Naruto got pissed off and destroyed the stairs. After the stairs were blown to smithereens, they passed through a hall that looked like a classic dungeon from a fantasy game or tabletop DnD. Before long, they reached the end, where an already open door was waiting for them.

What they found on the other side caused them to freeze. It was so bizarre that even Naruto, who almost always had a quip ready, did not quite know what to say.

Issei, Le Fay, Raynare, and Vali were battling against… well, Naruto wasn't sure what it was. It had the upper body of a Fallen Angel and the lower body of an Asian Dragon. This creature had been nailed to a large cross and its eyes were covered with a blindfold. Blood dripped beneath the blindfold. However, the thing that caught Naruto's attention the most was the glowing black tentacle-like thing protruding from its mouth. Not only was it long, but it had extended to several dozen meters in length and was wiggling around.

Issei, Vali, Le Fay, and Raynare were doing their best to cut that tongue off, but it was not going well for them, especially since Rizevim had decided to join in on the action. He fought alongside the Fallen Angel/Dragon hybrid thing, taking on both Issei and Vali at the same time. Naruto frowned when Vali tried to attack Rizevim using his Sacred Gear, but then the old Devil dodged Vali's attack and touched the Sacred Gear. The Divine Dividing, the Sacred Gear that made Vali so powerful, grew dim as if Rizevim had nullified it.

"Ha ha ha ha! You don't really think you can beat me, do you? Did you forget about my Sacred Gear Canceller?"

Vali gritted his teeth as Rizevim laughed in his face. At the same time, Issei fired off a Dragon Shot, but Rizevim saw it come and simply raised his hand. Just like what happened with Vali's attack, this one quickly dispersed as though it had been completely nullified.

While they were being pushed back by Rizevim, Le Fay and Raynare were unable to even launch an attack at the strange creature they were fighting. The odd thing about that battle was the creature didn't seem to be doing anything. It wasn't really attacking them, but none of their attacks seemed capable of defeating it. Raynare's light spears struck the strange tongue tentacle and bounced off it. Le Fay had summoned Fenrir, which was attacking the tentacle alongside her. All sorts of magic circles appeared around the girl, launching numerous types of magic that struck the thing to little affect. Even Fenrir's claws and fangs were not doing any damage.

"What the heck is going on here?" asked Naruto, still gawking.

"N-Naruto?"

At the sound of the small voice, Naruto turned to find Asia and Kunou kneeling on the ground some distance away. It looked like Asia was trying to protect Kunou while also casting heal on Naruto and Vali as they fought against Rizevim.

"Kunou." Naruto sighed in relief. "I'm glad you are okay."

"Naruto… I…" Kunou looked like she was on the verge of tears. Her eyes were red and puffy.

Naruto reached out and placed his hand on her head, gently rubbing it. Her fox ears twitched.

"It's okay," he murmured as he looked at Asia. "What's going on? Can you explain what happened to me?"

Asia was fairly wide eyed, but she nodded. "Y-yes. That thing… that thing is Samael. It… he swallowed Ophis. Ise and the others are trying to rescue her, but…"

"Gotcha. I think I understand."

While Asia wasn't really explaining what happened very well, likely because she was in shock, Naruto was able to piece everything together based on what he was seeing. That strange Angel/Dragon creature was Samael. It had swallowed Ophis, meaning she was probably inside of that tongue thing… or maybe she was inside of Samael's stomach. Naruto couldn't be sure on that, but he understood enough. He needed to get Ophis out.

At that moment, Vali and Issei were driven into a corner. Issei tried to use his Sonic Boost Knight ability to blitze Rizevim, but the powerful Devil avoided his attack with ease and slammed a knee into the boy's gut. Issei was launched backward. At the same time, Vali began attempting to divide his grandfather's power, but Rizevim once more used that strange canceling ability. He then created a glowing magic circle in his hand, slammed it into Vali's face, and sent the man flying backward like a rocket. Vali crashed into the wall, which dented but didn't break. That wall must have been made from sturdy stuff.

"Rizevim Lucifer lives up to his reputation has a super Devil like Sirzechs and Beelzebub," Ravel murmured. "Even Isei and Vali aren't able to beat him."

"He certainly does," Naruto said with a nod. "It looks like I'll need to step in. Go join Fay-chan and the others. See what you can do about freeing Ophis."

"I will," Ravel said with a nod.

"You two are trying so hard, but it just isn't working out for you, is it?" asked Rizevim with a laugh. He then glanced at Le Fay and Raynare as they futilely tried to defeat Samael. "You two are also getting annoying. Why don't you get lost?"

Rizevim waved his hand and created a powerful magic circle that crackled. A large sphere of demonic power exploded from it and raced toward Le Fay, Raynare, and Fenrir, who all sensed the attack and turned to look at it in shock. An attack of that level would kill them if they were struck, but they didn't have time to move.

So Naruto finally made his move.

He appeared in front of them in a burst of speed, created a Rasengan in his hand, then added wind chakra to the Rasengan. Since this attack was more powerful than anything he had blocked before, Naruto channeled even more chakra into the Rasengan to create an Oodama Fuuton Rasengan, which he thrust forward. The swirling white ball of chakra slammed into the sphere of demonic power. The two attacks exploded and canceled each other out. However, the backlash was powerful enough that Naruto skidded backward.

"Oh ho?" Rizevim raised an eyebrow. "I see you somehow managed to escape from Yami. I was certain he would kill you."

"Let's just say I had a friend help me out and leave it at that." Naruto shrugged before his eyes narrowed. "You've been doing a number on my friends. I'm not really happy about that."

"Hmph. As if I care about what makes you happy." Rizevim snorted, then smiled. "I'd much rather see you writhing in anger and agony than joy."

"What a foul man, you are."

"Thank you for the compliment."

As Naruto traded wits with Rizevim, Issei and Vali were able to recover. They quickly moved over to stand beside Naruto. While Issei looked happy to see him, Vali was mostly focused on his grandfather. His eyes were narrowed in a look of hatred that Naruto had never seen on the young man before.

"It seems fighting against you really is too hard without going all out," Vali muttered with a dark glare. "In that case, I can only use my strongest techniques!"

"Then I will also show you! I, the one who is about to awaken! The Two-Heavenly Dragons that…"

"Uh uh." Rizevim shook his head and raised his hand, creating a magic circle. "You can't really believe I'd let you enter your Juggernaut Drive, do you? Dream on."

When Rizevim created the magic circle, the restraint on Samael's right hand came off. An odd cry escaped the creature's mouth before the right hand shot toward Vali. A black block similar to the one that had enveloped Ophis charged toward him. Naruto, however, appeared in front of this and entered his Rikudou Sennin Mode. He quickly sent one of his Truth-Seeking Balls toward the black object, transforming it into a spinning sword that cut through Samael's attack.

Rizevim narrowed his eyes. "That attack of yours is nearly identical to Yami's. I see you two really are the same people. However, even if you have the ability to block these attacks, do you really think you can block them all?"

Before Naruto had a chance to respond, the strange black thing… whatever it was, appeared again, and enveloped Vali before Naruto could actually respond. Samael released a demonic howl before the black block burst apart. Vali was released, but his armor was destroyed along with the block. Blood splattered against the floor as he fell to his knees.

"Damn it! Vali!" Issei shouted in shock.

"Ha ha ha! The greatest weakness of you Dragons is Samael. His curse is powerful enough to even affect Ophis and Great Red. What hope do the two Heavenly Dragons have?"

Issei glared at Rizevim, but the man just chuckled as if that expression of his amused him.

Naruto decided to ignore Rizevim for the moment. He spun around, grabbing two of his Truth-Seeking Balls, and changed their shape into a pair of short swords. Using his incredible speed, he rushed toward the block containing Ophis.

"Oh, no you don't!"

Rizevim saw what Naruto was doing and tried to fire several demonic spheres at him, but Naruto made the remaining Truth-Seeking Balls appear in their path and intercept them. The Truth-Seeking Balls had a unique composition that allowed them to slice through Rizevim's attacks. What's more, Issei also appeared in front of Naruto wearing his Blaster Bishop Armor and fired several intense bursts of power at Rizevim, forcing the man to block his attacks.

"Tch! You are actually beginning to annoy me now. Blasted Dragon!"

With a scowl on his face, Rizevim prepared to attack Issei again, but Ravel joined forces with Le Fey. Two magic circles appeared in front of them. Fire exploded from Ravel's magic circle and wind from Le Fay's. The two attacks combined and slammed into Rizevim before he could do anything.

With a wave of his hand, the attacks dispersed. Rizevim was unharmed. However, the attack had distracted him long enough that Naruto was able to reach the black thing containing Ophis.

He sliced the black object apart with a swing of his Truth-Seeking Balls. While Samael was incredibly durable and strong against Dragons, it only offered a little resistance against the Truth-Seeking Balls. Truth-Seeking Balls were a combination of all five basic elements, and Naruto had imbued his with Yin-Yang Release, which allowed them to neutralize ninjutsu. Because of the nature of the orbs, they didn't just neutralize ninjutsu but all types of magical abilities, including Samael's powers.

Ophis was released from the power. She didn't look injured. However, her eyes were narrowed as she glanced at Samael, then at Rizevim.

"You have taken a lot of my power, but what are you going to use it for?"

Rizevim smiled at Ophis's question. "Isn't that obvious? I need the power of the Ouroboros Dragon. However, you are far too willful and would never listen to me. That is why I took your power. I am going to pour that power into Lilith, who is only an empty vessel right now. After that? Well, I don't know. Maybe I'll use her as a toy while imagining she is you?"

Once more, Rizevim smiled at his own crass joke. Naruto shifted as a small burst of killing intent flared up inside of him. He suppressed it. Right now was not the time to get into a fight.

"In either event, while it looks like I only managed to take half of Ophis's power, that should be enough for my purposes—and I can always try and take all of it later. Unlike that idiot Cao Cao, Hades and I have come to an understanding, so I can summon Samael whenever I please. Isn't that nice?" As he spoke, a magic circle appeared underneath him. "Oh. Before I forget, I should mention that part of my deal with Hades was that he would be allowed to take Ophis. He should be sending his Grim Reapers over to capture her." A cruel smile appeared on his face. "I'm sure he'll have a hard time taking her when she still has half her powers, but I wonder if the rest of you will be able to make it out of here alive."

With those words, Rizevim disappeared.