Story Start!
"My Master has been really running me through some drills, though it feels nice to get back to the basics now and again."
Kiba and Xenovia were just sitting together, eating a nice breakfast, and it was becoming something of a morning ritual for the two Knights to do. They were both the swordsmen of the peerage, the only true sword users despite Issei owning a sword. Since Issei had been taken to the mountain to train for the 20 days, and Koneko had been gone for over 2 full days, they pretty much just ate together in the mornings.
Gasper ate in his room.
Asia would join them if she could, but much of her time was spent studying biology to make her Twilight Healing ability grow more efficient. The mental strain on the girl, who was learning a lot about biology through faithful study, was quite intense. She could be seen rubbing her strained eyes.
Akeno had just vanished completely.
"I've got to admit, I didn't think dancing with my sword would be training, but it's a real challenge to keep my balance. I think I understand the point of why Koneko's master adjusted my training for Azazel-sensei." Xenovia admitted to understanding the point behind her training much better. She had always been somewhat clumsy by nature, in battle she stuck to very a very steady style that involved straightforward attacks that didn't need finesse.
To dance with her sword, her large sword, required balance and finesse that she lacked. It was working parts of her muscles that didn't see much use, and she exhausted herself quickly with the training. The slight improvements were there though, and she was slowly becoming able to move quicker and with more skill than before.
"I would like to try wielding Durandal at some point, to see how well I can handle using a Holy Sword since I have an affinity for them. Maybe we can compare our skills with each other's swords?" Kiba asked Xenovia.
She frowned a little.
"I see the value in that, but I'm not too comfortable with the idea right now... Oh, Koneko's Master..." Xenovia stopped talking to Kiba when she noticed that Naruto walked into the dining hall, with a cup of steaming drink in his hand. She blinked when she noticed that he seemed very relaxed, for a human who was in the demon realm. She was on edge a little herself, and she wasn't even human anymore. "Thank you for the advice, I'm starting to understand what the training was about." Xenovia bowed her head to Naruto.
Naruto grinned.
"Naruto Uzumaki, that's my name, seeing as you forgot. Glad to know your thankful, while my preferred weapon isn't a sword, I've got enough experience with them to be a Master of the Basics." Naruto stated to her as he sat down across from the teenagers.
He remembered when he fought Momoshiki, after absorbing the weapon's master, Kinshiki while using Sasuke's sword. A man who could compete with a swordsman like Sasuke, and he had been able to compete with the guy too. That was the think about having your best friend use a sword, you picked up quite a lot simply from being around them and fighting them.
Still, he was more than capable of cutting people to pieces with his bare hands.
"How is Koneko's training going?" Kiba asked Naruto with nothing but politeness.
He seemed a very polite young man.
"Painful, but the results are very satifying. I expected her to take 4 days to master her first lesson, but it only took 2. She's not quite the natural her sister is, but she's got talent and she's willing to work hard. I quite like her as a student." Naruto grinned as he looked down at Kiba. The boy was very concerned about his friend, a quality that made Naruto more fond of him than before.
Kiba sighed.
"We haven't seen her in two days, so we were worried her training was too hard for her. I'm glad that isn't the case." Kiba was relieved she was okay.
Naruto chuckled.
"Well, from my personal experience, there isn't any greater motivation than having your life put on the line. Still, that training doesn't work for everyone. It only works for those who are too stubborn for their own good... the girl reminds me a bit of myself when I was her age." Naruto sighed fondly. He saw a good chunk of himself in Koneko.
Born with a power that came with disasterous side effects if used too much.
Fearing hurting her friends, and refusing to use that power.
Treated with hatred for those who didn't see her for her, and only saw her as the criminal Kuroka's sister.
The desire to protect her friends, even at the cost of her life, and the fierce need to push herself beyond her limits to achieve that.
"I see... well I'm glad you like her... I asked Azazel-sensei yesterday about you. He told me you never leave the secret mountain you live on. Yet here you are... is Koneko really that special to you?" Xenovia was a very nosy person. She had asked Azazel about Naruto, and from what she heard, he was a hermit to the bone.
Naruto's existence wasn't a secret, but so few people knew about Naruto because he never left his island. According to Azazel himself, if Naruto ever chose a side to side with, then that side was the most powerful faction by default. Any side that Naruto was allied with, would forever remain the undisputed strongest faction.
He was the strongest man.
"I trained her mother, and her mother spent her entire life seeking my approval and my training. It's my failure as a master that Fujimai fell in love with a horrible person, and neglected her children. Fujimai was a wonderful woman, but I was blinded by my love for my student, and didn't see how naive the girl was becoming." Naruto felt guilt at Fujimai's death. If he had seen what she was becoming, an adult with the maturity of an adult, the mind of a teenager, but the naivity of a child, then he would have kept her on his island and helped her mature mentally before letting her leave.
Her death was her own fault, he wasn't taking credit for that exactly. He was still guilty in that he could have helped to prevent it at least partially.
"So you're only training her out of guilt."
"Xenovia, that's rude to say." Kiba quickly looked at Xenovia, who was sending Naruto a judgemental stare.
Naruto laughed.
"Actually, no, it's not because of guilt. Thanks to Fujimai, and her influence on my family, my daughter's eyes have regained some of their shine. I owe my daughter's life to Fujimai... I used to wake up every morning afraid that I would find my daughter's corpse in the room next door, but not anymore." Naruto felt no need to hide any of that.
Yes, Himawari still wanted to die.
Himawari's eyes used to be half-dead though, before Fujimai arrived on the island and started to struggle. Himawari had loved going off the mountain and watching Fujimai as she struggled and learned, and as the woman trained, Himawari helped the girl train and become even more of a woman along the way.
Himawari had the body of a child, a mature child, but still a child.
She never experienced motherhood, and through her bond with helping to raise Fujimai into a fine woman, Himawari had gotten a portion of that motherhood experience that she had missed from her life.
Fujimai brought the light back into Himawari's eyes.
"I see, so it's about honor."
"I've got a lot of reasons to help Koneko, but I was never able to. I had no method of coming down here to help her. I think she knew about that, and this was her way of helping me." Naruto stated with a small smirk.
Ophis.
Ophis knew he was training Kuroka, and while Ophis didn't show her emotions a lot, she still had all the same emotions as a human. Sometimes, they went on dates and just talked. When Kuroka's training was put on pause, Ophis must have figured this would be a great time to get him introduced to Koneko. She told him about Azazel, fully knowing that Azazel was a selfish and greedy man, and would introduce him to Koneko in order to get his hands on some tech.
"She?" Both teens said in unison.
"We're closer than boyfriend and girlfriend, but not quite close enough to be husband and wife. You could call us lovers I guess. My lover isn't good at displaying her affection with words, so she did it with her actions." Naruto laughed a little as he finished the last of his cup. He didn't need a breakfast, since he was going to be training Koneko again today.
She was going to be hunting for their breakfast before the training started, but he could never say no to such a well brewed latte like this one.
That Grayfia woman was an amazing maid.
"Azazel-sensei was under the impression you hated Fallen Angels and Devils." Xenovia lied to Naruto.
Kiba blinked.
"That Lord Seventh, he's like an open book. If you didn't like you, he wouldn't hide it. Five minutes with the guy, and you will know if he likes you or not. He does not discrimate based on species though. He's quite a guy."
Those were Azazel's exact words.
"I see... you're lying to try and get some information out of me." Naruto told Xenovia with a sly smile.
He was good at reading people.
"... I see the direct approach is needed. Azazel said that you are the world's absolute strongest... and it is my desire to have the strongest child I could possibly have. I first considered Issei to be the Father of my children, but his powers aren't genetic. You're the strongest, and unmarried, so I would be honored to carry your children." Xenovia stood up and she bowed to Naruto.
Naruto blinked as his jaw dropped.
"Oh... makes sense." Kiba sighed in relief.
Xenovia had switched targets from Issei to Naruto, since Naruto was the strongest man, and his genetic powers could be passed down. Since Naruto wasn't married, though he had a lover, Xenovia saw him as a perfect target for her desires.
"Why?"
"You see, I'm a proud Christian... still am even after being turned into a devil. Rias helped my find a purpose though, after I lost hope when I discovered God was dea-"
"Coma."
"Huh?" Kiba and Xenovia were confused when Naruto interrupted.
"Christian, God of the Bible right? He's not dead, he's just in a really deep coma. I've got him connected to... a form of life support you could say, back at my island. I check on his condition every dozen years or so, his condition has been improving." Naruto blinked in confusion.
He owed God a solid for helping to create the barrier around his island, so when he sensed the good man was going to die, he rushed in to save the man. He restored the man's lifeforce, but his injuries had been so severe and his power so drained that he naturally slipped into a coma. Naruto hooked him up to the roots of the Shinju, and the man's life was saved.
Xenovia dropped her fork and knife, and tears started to well up in her eyes.
Kiba dropped his jaw, because he couldn't hear an ounce of deception in the older male's tone in the slightest.
Naruto had just spoken in a matter of fact tone.
"... and nobody knows?"
"Nobody knew?" Naruto asked with some confusion of his own. He hadn't been hiding it like a secret or anything. He never had any Angels or Fallen Angels ever visit his island before Azazel visited, and for the longest time, he had no method of contacting the other species. He had just assumed that the Angels knew that he was keeping God on his island to heal. "Are you sure nobody knew?" Naruto asked to make sure.
Xenovia and Kiba were just left in stunned silence.
What.
What?
What!?
WHAT!?
Chapter End!