The day of the Rating Game had finally arrived.
Naruto and the others were sitting on a train owned by the Agares Clan, one of the remaining 33 Devil Clans of the 72 Pillars. They were the second highest-ranking clan amongst the 72 Pillars. Holding the rank of Archduke, they were tasked with being the moderator between the Bael Clan, the Four Great Satans, and the remaining Noble Devil Clans.
"It shouldn't take much longer for us to reach our destination," Rias said from where she sat on the couch. She had taken Naruto's left. Ophis was on his right. She seemed to be trying to drill a hole through his head. At least Koneko and Ravel weren't suffocating him by trying to sit on his lap. Instead, Koneko was playing video games with Gasper while Ravel watched them and tried to understand the mechanics behind the game.
Ravel had never played video games before coming to the human world.
"Isn't Agares a flying city or something?" asked Issei suddenly. He was sitting on another part of the same couch, but surrounding him was Asia, Raynare, and Xenovia. Irina was sitting between their two groups. She looked from one group to another as though unsure of which side to join.
Rossweisse was with Irina in sitting between Naruto's and Issei's group, which Naruto was going to start calling Naruto's Harem and Issei's Harem so he didn't get them mixed up. However, unlike Irina who kept glancing back and forth between the respective harems, the former aid of Odin was staring at Naruto with a complicated expression.
She was probably remembering their conversation in Kyoto.
At one point during their visit to Kyoto, Rossweisse had gotten shit-face wasted, made a fool out of herself, and then lamented her lack of boyfriend. Naruto had told her that he would gladly date her. However, they hadn't been given a chance to go on a date since coming back home. Naruto was too busy dealing with the upcoming culture festival and training for the Rating Game against Sairoarg and his peerage, while Rossweisse had been stuck in teacher meetings.
"It is," Rias said. "The floating island was created using incredibly complex and powerful magic from the Old-Maou Era. Very few people understand how it works, though Brother once informed me that Ajuka Beelzebub understands the intricacies behind it. Due to that, the current Beelzebub has servants working their to maintain the core and keep it from falling to the ground."
"Pretty cool stuff," Issei said.
"It is definitely 'cool'," Kiba greed. He was standing, unlike the rest of them. With his arms crossed over his chest, the princely Knight looked at Issei and smiled. "I've never been there myself, but I've seen it from afar. Just looking at it from a distance is enough to give you chills. I can't imagine how much power must have been required to lift such a thing into the sky, nevermind keep it floating there."
As he listened to Kiba talk, Naruto imagined the Chibaku Tensei technique that Nagato and Madara had been so fond of using. He didn't think this floating island would look like that, though.
"On that note, I should mention that the crystals used to create evil pieces are found in the Agares Clan's territory," Rias added.
"Members of the Agares Clan also possess the unique trait to control time to some degree, and they have the propriety to 'recover fugitives'. This is why their First Head was known as the Devil who made deserters return," Ravel provided a small but informative lesson after hearing what Rias said.
"Now I'm really curious to see this floating city," Naruto admitted. "By the way, how can we get there by train if it's in the sky?"
"There are actually three ways of entering the city," Azazel told them, holding up a hand and listing the ways off them. "The first is to teleport their using a magic circle. This way is only permitted to VIPs or when there is a special matter that needs attention. Because of how important Agares City is, there are many people who might try to use this method to sabotage their operations, which is why we aren't using it. The second way is to use airships. We're going to be using the third method, which is by taking a gondola from the ground and going up."
"That actually sounds pretty neat. I've never gone on a gondola before," Naruto admitted.
"I'm sure it isn't anything special," Raynare mumbled.
"You don't know that," Asia said, soft spoken as always. "I bet it's a really nice place."
Raynare sighed but didn't say anything to dispute the girl. Perhaps this was the reason Asia smiled.
I still find it so odd that these two became friends. Didn't Raynare try to kill her?
"Hmph! How many of your friends tried to kill you?"
"That's... uh... good point..."
Naruto quickly recalled all the friends he knew who, at one point, had tried to kill him, only to become his best friend. There were quite a few.
The rest of the time inside of the train was spent discussing tactics for their upcoming Rating Game, mixed in with the occasional quip from some of the more quiet individuals.
One thing Naruto noticed as time went on was that Akeno had grown increasingly quiet. She kept staring at Raynare with flagrant dislike. He couldn't tell if it was because of her proximity to Issei or those Fallen Angel wings of hers. From what he understood, Issei had already helped her overcome the problems she had with her Fallen Angel half, which meant her reason for staring was probably Raynare's closeness to Issei. At the same time, Akeno had given up all rights to be with Issei, having dumped him over a month prior, so she couldn't tell the other girl not to be near him.
When we finally arrived at the train stop, our group was directed by several Devils in fantasy armor that reminded Naruto of Saint Seiya. They led everyone to a large gondola that we were all asked to board.
It wasn't long after they had boarded that the gondola began to move. Naruto, Issei, Asia, Irina, Xenovia, Rossweisse, and Ophis moved toward the windows and watched as they ascended into the sky. The view was fantastic. The landscape stretched out for miles, eventually shifting into the unique sky color only available in the Underworld.
"This is such an amazing view!" Issei exclaimed.
"It's breathtaking," Asia agreed.
"It's okay," Raynare muttered with a sigh, though she didn't say anything to diminish the other two.
"I've never been to the Underworld before," Xenovia commented as she looked out the window. Her expression contained a complex mixture of emotions. "It isn't at all like what I expected."
"I know!" Irina exclaimed. "I was the same way the first time I visited."
Ravel, who was now standing immediately to Naruto's right, stared not at the scenery that passed them by, but at him. "What do you think of the view, Naruto-sama?"
"I think it's pretty incredible," Naruto admitted. "I've seen a lot of things in my life, including floating islands, but the uniqueness of this island, the color of the sky, and the fact that we're in the Underworld makes it something I've never seen before."
As Naruto spoke, a pleased smile crossed Ravel's face. "It is rather nice, isn't it? I've always wanted to visit Agares City to learn more about the Evil Piece System so I can better utilize my Bishop when I finally join a peerage."
"You mean when you join my peerage, right?" said Naruto with a grin.
"Y-yes!" Ravel admitted, looking down with a blush.
This would normally be the part where Koneko said something snappy, but she had been moody ever since the interview last week. Naruto was sure she knew that he and Ravel had sex in the hot spring. They hadn't told her, and she had never said anything about it, but she'd been very grumpy around them the morning after it happened.
As Naruto and the others were conversing, Azazel was holding his own conversation with Rias.
"I'm surprised they chose a stadium in the Agares Clan's territory for this Rating Game," Rias was saying as she crossed her arms and frowned. "They might be the second most powerfully ranked family, but they don't really take part in Rating Games very often."
"I think that's part of the reason why the stadium here was chosen," Azazel admitted. "You are aware of the dispute between the higher-ups on which stadium to use for this game, right?"
While Rias was nodding, Naruto found himself growing curious and moved over to their conversation. He wanted to know what Azazel meant.
"What's this about a dispute?" he asked.
"The higher-ups from the current Maou Faction wanted the Rating Game to take place in either Gremory territory or the Maou territory, but the Bael Family protested and said it should take place in the Bael territory."
"It's because the current Four Great Satans aren't hereditary titles," Ravel informed Naruto. "The Bael Family places a heavy importance on lineage. What's more, they are the highest ranking family among the 72 Pillars, holding the rank of Great King, which they have held onto since time immemorial."
As Naruto nodded along with Ravel's words, Rias sighed and spoke up. "The Bael Family is also extremely prideful. They look down on other Devils and prefer sticking to the old tradition which states a Devil's demonic power determines everything. They even go so far as to discriminate against their own family if they don't possess any demonic power. Currently, our two families are hostile toward each other because me, Sirzechs, and Millicas have inherited the Powers of Destruction that their family was famous for."
Naruto thought he might get a headache as he listened to Rias speak. There was so much information that he knew he needed to remember, and, well, Naruto hated remembering crap like this. Part of him wished he could beat the Bael Family up and be done with this stupid hostility toward Rias and her family. However, if he had learned one thing, it was that not everything could be solved with his fists.
As much as he wished otherwise.
"I believe we've gotten a little off topic here," Azazel said. "The point is, with the dispute between the Maou Faction the Bael Family growing heated, it was decided that this Rating Game would take place in Agares territory because they are a neutral family."
"Given the current political upheaval between the two factions, do you think our match is being used in lieu of the war between the Maou Lucifer and the Great-King Bael?" asked Kiba.
"I'm sure a lot of people will look at this Rating Game that way." Azazel stroked his chin thoughtfully. "On the one hand, you've got the Oppai-Dragon, Rias Gremory, and the Legendary Fox God--"
"Legendary what now?" Naruto asked.
"--and they are fighting against the Strongest Youth Sairaorg Bael," Azazel continued. "While a lot of people won't care about the politics behind such a match up, the bigwigs from the various families are definitely going to be politicking over this behind the scenes." He sighed and scratched his head. "Fortunately, it isn't like either side will suffer politically for a loss. If you guys lost, the people from the Bael Family would probably drag Sirzechs' name through the mud, but the same could be said for them if Sairoarg ends up losing."
"How does Sairoarg feel about all this?" asked Rias.
"You know him better than I do." Azazel shrugged. "He's not the kind of guy who cares about the opinions of politicians. That man rose to prominence with nothing but his own physical strength. That said, he does have a lot of political connections who are only siding with him because of his strength. If he loses, I imagine some of the people who currently support him will withdraw that support... but that isn't something you should worry about."
Naruto knew quite a bit about Sairoarg thanks to Rias and Azazel. Regardless of what hardships that man had gone through, of how much he had fought and bleed to get where he was now, Naruto had no intention of going easy on him. Sairaorg was a man who mirrored Naruto in so many ways. Both had been born with a stigma, were hated by the people around them for something they couldn't control, and had worked hard to reach the top. A guy like that would hate it if someone went easy on them.
Of course, Naruto also had his own dreams to fulfill, and he couldn't do that if he lost here.
"Is there any chance of the Hero Faction or other members of the Khaos Brigade from interrupting the Rating Game?" asked Rossweisse.
"No chance." Naruto shook his head. "I've already got Vali and the members of group watching the stadium, which reminds me, I've received a personal message from Vali to you, Ise.
"Me?" Issei blinked stupidly. "What does he want with me?"
"He said, 'I'm looking forward to the fight between the House of Bael and the Gremory Peerage. Fight to your hearts' content and don't hold back'. End message." Naruto grinned when he saw Issei's pale face. "That guy sure loves you a lot, huh?"
"Aaaaahh! Please stop talking like that! Ugh! Hearing a message like that is just creepy!"
As their conversation continued, the gondola arrived in Agares. They stepped outside, where a group of fans, newscaster, and cameramen were waiting for them. Loud cheers and shouts of joy went up. Cameras flashed in their faces as everyone began snapping photos. Naruto heard there was a popular social media site called Heller or something. He was sure their faces would be all over it soon.
A limousine was waiting for them when they arrived. Ravel had made the preparations well in advance so she could stay with Naruto instead of traveling out to Agares City without them. He was impressed by her forethought and dedication to her tasks.
After everyone squeezed into the spacious limousine, which came with a minibar and snacks, they began moving. Naruto glanced out the window and found several other cars following them. It looked like they belonged to the media. There were cameras situated on top of them.
"All of us have become especially popular since fighting against the Greek Pantheon and rescuing Sirzechs and the other Maous," Ravel explained after sensing Naruto's shock. "You'll probably want a manager at some point. You and Issei will definitely want one, actually."
"Do most Devils get a manager?" asked Issei.
Not usually," Rias said with a shake of her head. "Management of a Devil is often left up to either their master or their family, but some Devils become especially popular and end up going on to become sensations in the Underworld like Serafall Leviathan. Actually, she has a manager who handles her daily affairs and sets her schedule."
"Who is that?" asked a curious Naruto.
"Her sister," Rias said with an amused smile.
"Are you nominating yourself for the position of Naruto's manager?" Azazel teased Ravel.
Ravel blushed, but Naruto placed a hand on her back and smiled. He honestly believed she would make a great manager. That said, she was going to be his manager and not Issei's. He wasn't willing to share her.
As Naruto began wondering about who would make a good manager for Issei, the limousine continued heading toward the stadium.
~Devil Ninja~
Naruto sat near the window and gazed outside at the many facilities located within this city in the sky. Among the many amenities located in Agares, there was the giant stadium that hosted various exhibitions for different matches and arts. It was called Agares Dome. The name was quite apt. It looked like a giant domed structure.
That was not their destination.
The place where Naruto and his friends were driven to was a high-class hotel located next to Agares Stadium. It looked like an expensive high-rise, the kind Naruto expected to find in the human world. Xenovia gave an impressed whistle when she saw the massive structure after stepping out of the limousine.
We entered the spacious lobby, which featured a polished floor, extravagant chandelier, and artful decorations. While everyone was admiring the artwork, a bellboy came up to them and said he would lead the group to their rooms. Their match wouldn't start until later that night. Until then, they were essentially free to do whatever they wanted, though they first needed to put away their belongings.
As they were about to begin walking, another group suddenly appeared. They wore large cloaks with hoods that obscured their features and kept Naruto from seeing their faces. A cold atmosphere surrounded this group. Naruto couldn't put his finger on who they were.
Not until he saw the person standing in the center.
Naruto wouldn't call the figure in the center a man so much as... two-thirds of a man. Men were made of blood, flesh, and bones, but this guy was just bones. Literally. He was just a freaking skeleton wearing a priestly outfit. He wore a cap called a Mitre on his head, and he held a staff in his left hand. An aura of power radiated from him, more so than anyone Naruto had seen in quite a while. In fact, this man gave off a similar power to the Greek gods he had fought, which meant...
"This man is definitely a god."
"I figured as much."
Upon seeing their group, the skeleton stopped walking. He glanced in Naruto's direction, the empty sockets of his eyes glowing as he shifted his gaze from Naruto to everyone else.
"If it isn't the Gremory Group and the Governor of the Fallen angels," the skeleton said. However, he wasn't speaking from his mouth. It was like his magic was projecting the words. His mouth didn't move at all.
Azazel gave a sarcastic smile. "If it isn't the god who governs death. It's been a long time, Hades. I never expected a god who hates devils and fallen angels more than anything would come all this way, and to think, you've even brought so many grim reapers with you!"
So this was the Greek Pantheon's God of the Underworld, huh? Naruto filed this information away for later use.
"You certainly know how to talk a big game, you damn crow. It's been so noisy in the upper realms of the Underworld that I decided to take a look and see what was going on."
As Hades spoke, Naruto tilted his head and wondered about something. "So... Hades is a Greek god, right?"
"He is," Rias whispered.
Naruto nodded and didn't bother keeping his voice down as he said, "I wonder where Hades was when I was kicking the asses of the other Greek gods. I get not wanting to have your ass handed to you on a silver platter, but is hiding in the Underworld when your fellow gods are in trouble really the best thing to do?"
The words caused the entire hotel to freeze. Even Azazel looked at Naruto like he was an idiot. However, Naruto wore an innocent smile like he didn't realize he'd just insulted the God of the Underworld.
Hades turned to him, a surge of killing intent spilling from his body, causing many people around them to shiver. Even the other members of the Gremory Peerage were not immune to his potent aura of death. Naruto, however, who was the recipient for this killing intent, merely smiled as if he couldn't feel a thing.
"Che." The killing intent suddenly vanished as Hades made a scoffing noise. "I heard all about how you fought against my younger brothers and their brood, but I don't personally care what happens to those fools. Regardless of how strong you might think you are, I recommend for your own safety that you not try to purposefully displease me, child."
"I'll keep that in mind. You're such a nice skeleton!" Naruto gave the skeleton a cheery smile.
Hades didn't pay anymore attention to Naruto as he turned to look at Issei. His eye sockets became intensely focused, to the point where it looked like they were glowing.
"Welsh Dragon. How long has it been since I last saw you? This certainly brings back memories. I can still recall the time when you and the Vanishing Dragon rampaged through the depths of Hell."
The words sparked some curiosity within Issei, but the others seemed to know about this incident. Naruto didn't. However, he assumed it was sometime before the great battle between the Angels, Devils, and Fallen Angels. Perhaps the two dragons were rampaging before then and merely got mixed up in that final climactic battle between the forces of heaven and hell.
"You are all very lucky that I'm not here to collect souls today. I merely wish to enjoy myself for now. Doing anything more than observing today's event would be far too much trouble."
The skeleton took one look at Naruto, shifted his gaze to Ophis by his side, and then moved past their group. Naruto turned his head to study the skeleton as he and his entourage of grim reapers left. While Issei and a few others wiped the sweat from their foreheads, Naruto was curious about this particular god. He felt quite a bit stronger than some of the other Greek gods he had come across.
"That was freaky," Koneko muttered.
"I was really startled," Ravel added.
"I remember hearing about Hades from my senior back when I was a Valkyrie, but I never imagined his aura would be so overwhelmingly powerful," Rossweisse muttered as she placed a hand against her chest. "It felt like he had grabbed ahold of my soul just by looking at me."
Naruto glanced down at Rossweisse's left hand. It was shaking. With something of a frown, he reached out and grabbed it. He would have congratulated himself on being so smooth, but Rossweisse squawked the moment he grabbed her hand and jerked out of his grasp. He felt startled, but then shook his head.
"Sorry, I didn't mean to startle you," he said.
"Wha--oh, no! Um, I just wasn't expecting it." Rossweisse's cheeks turned red, and she looked like she was about to say something, but then Ophis and Ravel chose that moment to grab his hands. Naruto wasn't sure if they were jealous. They shouldn't have been. In either event, when this happened, Rossweisse snapped her mouth shut and awkwardly looked away.
"That skeleton guy's pressure was intense!" Issei added, either heedless of what happened or diverting attention from Rossweisse. Naruto was betting on him being heedless. "I've never felt anything like it!"
After Issei finished speaking, Azazel rubbed the back of his neck as if working out a kink and said, "I'm not surprised you feel that way. Hades is ranked among the top most powerful deities in the entire world, after all."
"Are you saying he's stronger than you?" asked Rias.
"He's a lot stronger than me," Azazel admitted with a sigh. "I'm not sure if he could beat Sirzechs, but I know for a fact that I can't win against him. Not only is he powerful, but he and his grim reapers are creepy little bastards. I recommend you guys don't go and try to start any trouble with him, especially you, Naruto." Azazel gave Naruto a serious stare. "Don't think I couldn't tell what you were doing. You might be strong. You might even be strong enough to fight against Hades, but that doesn't mean you should pick fights with gods for no good reason."
Naruto was about to reply with a suitably witty comment about how he never picked fights and only finished them, but someone else suddenly shouted at them.
"You! Strange boy with the whisker marks! So we meet again!"
A pair of men walked up to their group, and Naruto immediately recognized the two. How could he not since he fought them both back when Sirzechs and the other faction leaders had been under the control of Loki. At present, Poseidon was wearing just a pair of pants and no shirt, but Zeus wore a crown and a toga. Both were barefoot.
"It's my two favorite gods!" Naruto crowed in surprise as a wide smile crossed his face. "How are you two doing? It's been so long! We should celebrate our reunion by going out for drinks some time!"
The two gods came up short, perhaps uncertain over how to respond. However, while Zeus looked like he wanted nothing more than to complain to him, Poseidon eventually nodded.
"I'm actually rather curious about you," he admitted. "I wouldn't mind going out for drinks some time."
"Ha ha! We'll have a huge party!" Naruto agree with good cheer.
"My boyfriend is making friendly with gods now," Rias sighed.
Ravel patted her on the back. "There, there."
As the conversation between Naruto and Poseidon continued, having changed from parties in general to what kind of alcohol they should drink, Zeus decided to ignore the boy in favor of needling Azazel about his lack of a significant other. Naruto kept a careful eye on that conversation. It was rather interesting to see Azazel being pushed around. Then again, Zeus might not be as strong as Hades, but was far stronger than Azazel.
Not only did Poseidon and Zeus show up, but the former Dragon King Tannin, who trained Issei during the tournament awhile back, appeared in a miniaturized chibi form.
"Waaa! You're so tiny!" Issei exclaimed.
"Of course," Tannin said. "My true form is too big, so I need to use this miniature form in order to fit through the elevator."
"Oh." Issei blinked. "Yeah, I guess that makes sense."
"I expect you to give this Rating Game your all, Ise! The man you're facing might be called the Strongest Youth, but you are in no way inferior to him! Give him hell!"
"I will!" Issei cheered. "You can count on me!"
While Issei replied with great confidence, Naruto was sure the boy was nervous. As the bearer of the Welsh Dragon, he had a lot of expectations placed on his shoulders, unlike Naruto who was an unknown entity until his battle with Rizer Phenex. Of course, Naruto always did well under pressure anyway. He thrived on pressure. He was a fucking pressure cooker.
"Are you giving yourself a pep talk?"
"No."
As the conversations continued all around, Naruto noticed Rossweisse looking around the lobby floor with a sad frown.
"Something wrong?" he asked.
Rossweisse gave him a sad smile. "Not really. I was just thinking about how I would have normally seen Lord Odin cavorting with a woman right about now."
Naruto reached out and grabbed Rossweisse's hand. This time, she did not jerk her hand out of his. She grabbed it tightly as though he was her lifeline.
After the conversations all ended, their group was guided to a personal waiting room... though Naruto thought it was more like a penthouse suite. There couches, tables, a kitchen, and they even had training equipment, something that Naruto would not have expected.
Some of their members like Xenovia, Issei, Kiba, and Koneko changed into their jerseys and began doing warm up exercises. Naruto joined them for awhile, but he was mostly just making sure his body stayed limber. Since this was an important match. He didn't want to start fighting and get a cramp or something.
However, they didn't do much more than warm up. Exercising right now wouldn't help them increase their strength anymore than their current level. After exercising, the group sat down around the table and began discussing strategy. Naruto sat between Ravel and Ophis, while Issei sat between Xenovia and Asia. Raynare sat beside Asia, but she was bitterly glaring at Xenovia. While Rias sat at what constituted the head of the couch, Akeno stood immediately behind her. Gasper, Kiba, Koneko, Rossweisse, and Irina were spread out between these two groups.
"Sairaorg has always been a very straight forward fighter," Ravel began. "In all honesty, any strategy we could theoretically come up with is likely to be destroyed by his fists. Instead of focusing on strategy, I should tell you about his abilities--namely, his Touki." Pausing, Ravel made sure to look at Naruto when she said this, letting him know how important it was for him to pay attention. "When Sairoarg uses his Touki, his speed, power, and defense are all drastically increased. What's more, he's tamed Regulus, one of the 13 Longinus, and can use its Balance Breaker, Regulus Rey Leather Rex, which augments his power even further."
"So, basically, this dude is a powerhouse and we should probably leave him to Sensei," Issei said.
Most of the people present nodded since the words made sense. Rias, however, shook her head.
"I actually don't want to use Naruto for this match." When everyone stared at her like she was crazy, the redhead smiled and explained her reasons. "Naruto is incredibly powerful, but I feel like if I use him too much in a Rating Game, people will begin to say that I only won because I have Naruto. I'd like people to say I won because I have a great peerage and am a good leader, not because one of my members is stupidly overpowered."
"I resent that comment," Naruto said without any heat, but then he nodded. "But I do agree that I would be better off as a trump card. It's always good to have an ace in the hole."
Nodding several times, the group continued to discuss their strategy when the door suddenly opened and a young woman with silver hair and wearing a maid outfit walked in.
"Good evening, everyone," the woman said.
"Grayfia!" Rias greeted in surprise.
"Lady Rias, I am pleased to see you are well." Grayfia bowed politely. "I apologize for appearing so abruptly, but I wanted to ask if I could have Issei Hyoudou come with me. Sirzechs-sama has asked him to head up to the VIP room. I believe he wants to show you something."
While Issei was confused, Rias told him to go on up. As he and Grayfia left, the door closing shut behind them, everyone once more began discussing strategy.
~Devil Ninja~
Ravel, Irina, and Ophis were not present as the Gremory Peerage waited in the corridor connected to the entrance of Agares Stadium. From what Naruto understood, they would be watching the match via the VIP booths where Sirzechs and other high-ranking officials were.
They had changed into their Kuoh Academy uniforms like always, but according to Rias, these uniforms were different than their usual ones.
"I had these specially made for this game," Rias admitted with a shrug. "They're made from a material that's resistant to heat, cold, bullets, and even magic to some degree. They won't protect you from a strong attack, but they should at least reduce the amount of damage we take."
The ones not wearing a school uniform was Asia, Xenovia, and Rossweisse. Xenovia was in her old Catholic Church battle uniform, which was a formfitting leather outfit that showed off every curve and crevice of power body. On the other hand, Rossweisse was wearing her Valkyrie armor, while Asia wore her nun's habit.
As Naruto stood there with his arms crossed, he paid attention to what the others were doing. Kiba was actually posing similarly to him, but Issei was pacing with restless energy, while Gasper was looking nervous because he didn't have a paper bag over his head. Koneko seemed pretty chill. On the other hand, Akeno was standing beside Rias and fidgeting ever so slightly, though Naruto had a hard time believing she was nervous about the upcoming match.
"Everyone," Rias suddenly said. "The match that's about to begin isn't a real fight. It's a Rating Game. That said, just because it isn't real doesn't give you an excuse to not take this seriously. Everyone is going to be watching this match, so be sure to give it your all."
Rias' words had their intended effect, making everyone relax while simultaneously motivating them. Issei stopped pacing, Gasper was no longer sweating, and Kiba wore a small smile. Asia's shoulders slumped, Xenovia relaxed, and Rossweisse took a deep breath and placed a hand over her chest. Koneko merely scootched closer to Naruto. He placed a hand on her head and began caressing her hair. Naruto hoped this meant she was no longer angry at him.
Just then, an announcement went up: "Ladies and gentleman! The battle of the century is about to begin! From the east gate, we have Team Bael led by the Strongest Youth! Sairaorg Bael!!!"
Cheers, screams, and cries of joy came from beyond the corridor, easily heard by everyone here. The entire dome was shaking from the sound. Naruto could feel the floor vibrating underneath his feet.
"This guy sounds like one of those commentators who work for the WWF," Koneko muttered blandly. Naruto chuckled as he rubbed her cat ears.
"Okay," Issei began pacing. "Now I'm getting nervous again."
"I-I don't think I can doooo this!" Gasper cried.
"Don't worry, Gaspie," Koneko said seriously. "If you think of everyone as a pumpkin, the crowd won't bother you."
Naruto shook his head as he listened to their conversation, but then he straightened his back when the announcer spoke up again.
"And coming from the west gate, it's Team Gremory led by none other than Rias Gremory, the Ruin Princess!"
At this announcement, the crowd became even more rambunctious. The ground shook as everyone traveled down the corridor and exited through the gate.
As they emerged from the gate, Naruto looked around and immediately spotted the floating island that sat above the spacious circular stadium. It looked like a floating stadium composed of numerous rocks. Some of the smaller rocks were orbiting a single large rock, which he could only assume was where the battles would take place.
Team Bael was standing on one of those rocks. It was larger than some of the ones orbiting the battlefield, but smaller than the battlefield itself.
"Will Team Gremory please head to their base?" asked the announcer.
Following Rias' lead, the members of the Gremory Peerage walked up the snake-like staircase that connected to a floating boulder on the opposite side of the stadium. As they arrived at the top, Naruto looked across the field, toward Sairoarg and his peerage. Their eyes locked. However, while Sairaorg was burning with fighting spirit, Naruto merely shook his head. Rias did not intend to use him for this battle.
Naruto wondered what sort of battle this Rating Game would be. They hadn't been told about what the fight would entail. According to Azazel, they were randomizing the fights in order to make them more exciting.
Located on the floating island that was their base, a chair for each person in their group was situated at evenly-spaced intervals. About a meter from the chairs was a mysterious-looking stand. The only other object to note was the transfer magic circle, which was located on the next floor above them.
Wandering up to the edge, Naruto peered down at the floating boulder between the Bael and Gremory Teams and frowned when he saw that it was just a rock with no extraneous or unique features. This didn't look like any kind of battlefield. Were they planning on having them do something else?
At that moment, a man wearing gaudy clothing with a microphone on his ear appeared on a giant monitor positioned above the stadium.
"Good evening, everyone! My name is Naud Gamigin from the House of Gamigim, and I will be your announcer today! I shall be commenting on the Rating Game as the battles take place, so be sure to listen closely," Naud announced. "With me is the arbiter for this game, Rudiger Rosenkruetz!"
A magic circle appeared in mid-air, and a handsome man with silver-hair longer even than Rias' red locks appeared. He was dressed in a uniform that made Naruto think of someone from the military. It was crisp and neat. The many people inside of the stadium, and especially the women, cheered the moment he appeared.
"That man is a reincarnated devil who used to be a human," Koneko told me. "Now he's an Ultimate-class Devil and holds the 7th rank as one of the top competitors in the Rating Games."
"In other words, he's hot stuff." Naruto nodded as he looked at the man. "I kinda want to fight him instead of Sairoarg."
"Me too! I wanna kick his ass!" Issei muttered. "Damn pretty boy!"
While everyone rolled their eyes at Issei, Naruto understood that having someone ranked so high up on the Rating Game totem pole merely showed how important this match was.
"And now it is time to unveil our special guests!" Naud exclaimed. "With us here as a commentator today is none other than Lord Azazel, the Governor of the Fallen Angels. I hope all of you will give a big round of applause to welcome him!"
As these words were spoken, another figure suddenly appeared on the screen. His blond and black hair, slightly rugged appearance, and satisfied smirk was all very familiar to them. Azazel looked at all the people present as he grinned and waved.
"Hello, everyone! It's great to be here today!"
"W-what is Azazel-sensei doing as a commentator?!" asked a shocked Issei. No one had an answer for him. Not even Naruto saw this coming, though he wasn't going to make a big deal out of it like some people were.
"Lord Azazel, you're rather famous in the Underworld for having a good relationship with Lord Sirzechs Lucifer and various faction leaders, as well as your Sacred Gear research. I've even heard that you've been helping personally coach the Gremory Team. From your personal and professional standpoint, how do you think this game will go?"
"That's a good question," Azazel said with a smile. "Both teams are incredibly powerful. Sairoarg Bael isn't called the Strongest Youth for no reason. However, the Gremory Team aren't slouches either. Both sides are fairly well-rounded, but the Gremory Team has two trump cards in their mix. The Red Dragon Emperor and Naruto Uzumaki. That said, the Red Dragon Emperor is currently unable to use his full power without touching a girl's breasts, and I don't think Rias Gremory wants to rely on Naruto's power, which is often a game changer on its own."
"You bring up some very good points, and I'm excited to hear more of your insights!" Naud said before switching topics. "Of course, Azazel is not the only one commentating with us today! There are two other people here for this match! With us are the Voice of God Metatron and the current 1st ranker of the Rating Game! The reigning champion! Emperor Diehauser Belial!!!"
"Metatron is commentating too?!" Now it was Naruto's turn to be shocked as the familiar face of Metatron appeared alongside an unfamiliar face. Naruto only glanced briefly at the man with white hair, olive-colored skin, and an ostentatious outfit with a high-collar worthy of any douchebag.
"Looks like it," Koneko said in a bland voice as she patted Naruto's arm like she was trying to console him, though he was anything but consoled.
"It is great to be here today, de-gozaru!" Metatron said in a bright voice. He looked so out of place among the Devils. "I am very excited to see how Ninja-sama does in the Rating Game today!"
"Ninja-sama?" Naud looked at Azazel.
"That's what he called Naruto Uzumaki," Azazel answered.
"Ah..." Naud looked confused still but nodded anyway.
"I hope everyone is doing well this evening," the white-haired man who appeared with Metatron spoke in a bright, cheerful voice. "I'm Diehauser Belial, and I'll be doing the commentary for the match between Team Gremory and Team Bael alongside Azazel and Metatron."
Naruto really didn't know how to think about all this. However, he was trying not to let Metatron's sudden appearance bother him. They were about to fight in a Rating Game against Sairoarg Bael, and even though he was being used only as a trump card, the idea of going up against such a strong team was just too exciting!
"I know this might seem a bit sudden, but I was wondering if I could ask you three a question regarding the two teams," Naud began. "Namely, is there anything we need to watch out for or pay attention to during this match?"
"Something you should definitely pay attention to is Ninja-sama during battles," Metatron said immediately. "Just like any great shinobi, Ninja-sama is incredibly deceptive. He acts loud and brash, but it's a smokescreen to hide his true abilities, de-gozaru. You go in thinking he is nothing but a fool, and then he hits you with a surprise attack you weren't expecting, like BAM, and BLAM, and KABLOOEY... de-gozaru."
Naruto couldn't facepalm fast enough.
"It isn't just Naruto that you'll need to watch out for on Team Gremory," Azazel said. "While all of them are talented, the second big hitter is definitely Issei Hyoudou, the legendary Oppai Dragon. He has the ability to enter his Balance Breaker the moment he touches a pair of tits. What's more, he's become a lot more proficient at using the Pawn's ability of Promotion to change his fighting style, which has turned him into a highly versatile powerhouse."
As Azazel spoke of Issei's abilities, the young pervert in question was crying over how the Fallen Angel talked about his ability to enter Balance Breaker by touching breasts. It seemed he was ashamed by this fact. Well, Naruto thought it was amusing, but he understood that everyone had their shameful side. Personally, he felt Issei should embrace his perv. Actually, he was surprised his friend wasn't already embracing it, or maybe he just got embarrassed when other people talked about it.
When it got to Diehauser's turn, the man spoke in the same cheerful voice as before. "While Sairoarg Bael makes an excellent king, his real talent lies in the incredible power he possess, which makes him easily one of the strongest people among the younger generation. He has several power abilities that..."
As the man spoke, Rias Gremory stared at the screen with a determined gaze. One of Rias' dreams was to attain the Champion title of the Rating Games. Doing so would bring her one step closer to stepping out of her family's and older brother's shadow. Of course, Naruto planned to be there for her every step of the way since his goal was to become the strongest Devil in the history of ever.
"That's going to be me one day," Rias said as she continued staring at the screen, her hands clenched. "However, right now we need to defeat the person standing before us. Everyone—" she turned to face the group. "—please lend me your strength! Let's show everyone why you shouldn't mess with Team Gremory!"
Everyone in their peerage cheered, even Xenovia--who was still new to Devilhood--and Rossweisse--who looked like she was going to die from embarrassment.
As Rias finished giving her small pep talk, the comments from the four on the screen continued.
"As you all know, because of the recent activities by the terrorist group known as the Khaos Brigade, the importance and price of Phoenix Tears has rapidly risen. Preparing Phoenix Tears for the Rating Games has been difficult thanks to that. However!" Naud pointed to a huge monitor, where two small bottles sitting against a velvety cushion inside of a box appeared. "Thanks to the kindness of the current Head of Phenex, it was decided that each team would be given Phoenix Tears for this game."
The stadium erupted with cheers. Naruto could only shake his head. It sounded like they were excited because having Phoenix Tears meant the battles could last longer.
Naruto placed a hand against his chest, where a necklace filled with Ravel's tears rested. He wasn't planning to use them. According to Rias, receiving the personal tears from a member of the House of Phenex was essentially the same as a man or woman stating their intentions to court someone. To him, these tears were a symbol of his relationship with Ravel.
"Now then, there is a special rule for this particular Rating Game," Naud said, which caused everyone to settle down. "Before I explain what this rule is, I would like to explain how this Rating Game will work. This isn't the typical game where all the team members will be playing at the same time. It will be done in a one-on-one tournament-style match up."
Rias perked up when she heard this, her eyes widening in surprise. However, she quickly hardened her gaze and cast a glance at Sairoarg and his team.
"Now to explain the special rule, which will determine the lineup for the matches. Will each King move toward the stand located in their bases?" asked Naud.
Rias and Sairoarg walked forward until they were standing in front of their respective stand. Once they stopped in front of them, something fell out. Naruto stared at the dice, then looked at the monitor, which was also displaying the dice from both sides. They looked like standard 6-sided dice.
"The Dice in front of you is the key to this special rule, which is called Dice Figure."
Naruto, Issei, Asia, and Xenovia looked confused as they heard of this Dice Figure rule. None of them had taken part in or seen a professional Rating Game.
"Dice Figure is a special rule that's actually quite common in Rating Games," Kiba explained to the confused members. "The ones we've been in up until now have all been standard matches. There are some games like this that rely on dice, while there are others where you have to take as many flags on the field as you can. That one is called Scramble Flag. Dice Figure, as you can probably figure out, relies on dice to impose special rules and restriction that make the Rating Game more exciting."
"Ah," Naruto said while Issei and Xenovia smacked their left fists into the palms of their respective right hands.
"Let me explain how Dice Figure works, so those who do not know about this rule will understand. The dice prepared has six-sides like a standard dice, and you can roll a number from one to six. The numbers rolled will determine which pieces can be sent for that particular match based on their value!"
"I see," Naruto muttered as he cupped his chin. "So the dice essentially determines the fate of our match."
That meant even if Rias didn't want to use him, there was a chance he'd end up fighting against someone anyway, didn't it? No, wait. She could still choose not to send him out even if she rolled the amount needed, couldn't she?.
"Chess in the human world has set values for their chess pieces. The standard value for the Pawn is one, the Knight and Bishop is three, the Rook is five, and the Queen is nine. The Evil Pieces for the Rating Game also use this value standard. While there are times when specific pieces can surpass the value set by their evil piece, we'll be using the standard values for this particular game."
Naruto paid especially close attention this time, since he would need to know all this if he wanted to support Rias. As he did, he noted what Naud said about the evil pieces and surpassing limitations. All of them were pieces that could do that. Kiba, Issei, and Gasper had their Balance Breaker; Xenovia was a powerful holy sword user; Rossweisse was a former Valkyrie of incredible talent; Akeno was the daughter of Baraqiel; Asia had Twilight Healing; and Koneko was a nekousho/devil hybrid with the ability to enter Sage Mode.
"For this match, both kings will roll the dice, and the total value rolled will determine which combatants can be sent to battle. For example, if the total value rolled is eight, then the kings can send a servant who will fit within that value like a Rook or a Bishop. If they decide to send out a Pawn, then eight Pawns can be sent out. Of course, you can also mix up this value by sending out a Rook and a Knight. Also, servants who have consumed several Evil Pieces will have the value of their total values, so a servant like Issei Hyoudou who has consumed eight pieces will have a value of eight."
As the man explained how the game will work, Naruto found a small hole in their logic. However, Naud quickly explained what he was thinking about.
"Since both Rias Gremory and Sairaorg Bael's teams don't have a piece with a standard value of one or two, any time the total values rolled turns out to be smaller than the smallest value of two, both kings will have to roll again." As Naruto nodded in appreciation of learning this, Naud continued. "The participation of the Kings in the match will depend on the value which has been given to them by the people from the judging committee's estimation of their worth beforehand. Of course, just like every Rating Game, the game ends when one team's king is defeated."
So depending on an arbitrary value that had been decided beforehand by a committee, it was possible that Sairoarg would be allowed to come out? While that sounded potentially problematic, Rias could always send out Naruto, who was only worth a value of one because he was a Fairy Piece.
"I wonder what value the Judging Committee has estimated Rias and Sairoarg to be," Naruto asked of no one in particular.
"No one will know that until they announce it," Akeno decided to explain. "However, the value they are given is likely to be calculated based on the strength of the Kings themselves, the value of their servants, and possibly even by comparing them with the strength of their opponents. That value changes depending on the game and the King's reputation."
"Makes sense," Naruto said with a nod.
"Now that I have explain how this Rating Game is going to work, I'll share with you the value each King has been given." There was a slight pause, which was probably to increase dramatic tension. "Sairoarg Bael has been given a value of 12, while Rias Gremory has a value of 11. It's a pretty close matchup, but it looks like Sairoarg is one value higher than Rias."
Sairoargs high-ranking made since. He'd taken part in a number of Rating Games already and was known as the Strongest Youth. On the other hand, Rias was new to Rating Games, wasn't as well known as Sairoarg because she lived in the human world, and was considered a generally soft-hearted person. However, it seemed her stock had risen thanks to her recent victories at the Rating Games before Loki's attack and perhaps even thanks to the events back in Greece.
"Do you think Sairoarg will appear in the first round if they roll a twelve?" asked Issei.
"I doubt it." Naruto shook his head and explained his thoughts before Issei could ask about them. "Even if Sairoarg comes out and wins the entire Rating Game, his own ranking will drop. A one-man team doesn't get rated very high, since this isn't a tournament but a match that relies on teamwork and utilizing your pieces to the best of your abilities."
"Don't forget that this broadcast is also live," Kiba added. "If he comes out early, even if he decimates our entire team, it will make his estimation in the eyes of the people drop. A King who can't use his servants well isn't a good King. This is also a great opportunity to showcase the talent of his Evil Pieces. That said, he will definitely show up once he's revealed everything his servants can do, you can be sure of that."
Issei nodded to show he understood what Kiba and Naruto told him.
"Even if his estimation and ranking wouldn't drop, I don't think Sairoarg would appear at the start even if we rolled a twelve," Rias said. "Like our team, his went through incredibly tough training so they could fight during this match. He'll want to give his servants a chance to show off what they have learned." Rias looked at Asia. "Saying that, sending out Asia, either by herself or as part of a team, will be a bad idea. They'll aim for her since she's our healer. That's why I want you to remain here and heal everyone after each match. It will give us one more advantage. I hope you understand why I'm doing this, Asia?"
"Of course I do." Asia beamed at Rias. "Don't worry. You can count on me to heal everyone's injuries. I hope you all remember to return safely so I can heal you. Don't go losing, okay?"
"Roger!" everyone shouted together.
As the group responded to Asia's encouraging words, Naruto thought about their situation. Without Asia, they only had eight combatants, but it wasn't like they were lacking in firepower. What's more, they could heal themselves after every battle, something Team Bael couldn't afford to do.
"I hope both sides are ready!" Naud suddenly exclaimed. "Because the Rating Game between Team Bael and Team Gremory is about to begin!!"
And with that announcement, the Rating Game was finally under way.
~Devil Ninja~
"Will both Kings step forward?"
Urged on by Naud, Rias and Sairoarg stood in front of their stands. Naruto felt a sense of tension come over the crowd. It felt like everyone was standing on pins and needles... or maybe fire and brimstone. Yeah. Thinking on it, this was Hell, so fire and brimstone made more sense.
"We will start the first match now. Will both Kings hold the dice?"
Rias grabbed the dice. Naruto felt the tension increase. Issei looked like he was about to bite his nails, Asia was praying, and even Akeno and Kiba seemed unable to stand still. Heck, Koneko was the most unflappable person he knew, and she had just grabbed his pant leg like it was a lifeline.
"And roll!"
At Naud's announcement, Rias and Sairoarg rolled the dice. Naruto watched the monitor as the dice rolled across the stands and then stopped.
"It looks like Rias Gremory has rolled a two, while Sairoarg Bael also rolled a five. That makes a total value of seven, so any servant or servants who are within that value can be called out to battle. Be sure to choose your servants wisely. You have five minutes to make your decision."
Rias turned to look at everyone in peerage. All of them straightened as she gazed at them with a determined appearance.
"Since the total value is seven, that means we have several options open to us. We can either choose to send out two servants who value three, making for a total of six, or we can bring out one servant who values five. This means choosing between a combination of Kiba, Xenovia, and Gasper, or choosing either Koneko or Rossweisse."
"Who does Sairoarg have to send out?" asked Kiba. He crossed his arms and frowned. "I think knowing what servants he has available can help us determine who he'll send out first."
"Sairoarg has seven servants he can send out," Akeno reported. "His two Bishops are Coriana Andrealphus and Misteeta Sabnock. Both of them come from a distinct Devil family. He also has his Knights Liba Crocell and Beruka Furcas, followed by his Rooks, Gandoma Balam and Ladora Bune. All of them have their strengths and weaknesses, so there's no telling who he'll send out."
"He might also send out Regulus," Rias said with an intense sigh. "Regulus is a Pawn who took exactly seven pieces to revive as a Devil. He's incredibly powerful and Sairoarg's trump card."
"Wouldn't that mean he won't use Regulus?" asked Xenovia.
"Possibly, or he might decide to bring out Regulus in the first match to throw us off balance," Rias said.
Everyone grew pensive at her words. None of them really knew what to say, so they didn't say anything. Even Naruto couldn't claim to know what the right choice was in this regard. He didn't know Sairoarg well enough to say who the man would choose to fight.
"I'm going to send out Xenovia and Gasper," Rias decided at last. "Gasper, I want you to take some of Ise's blood to activate your Balance Breaker. Freeze whoever you fight so Xenovia can overwhelm them with Durandal. Even if he decides to send out one of his Rooks, it won't matter how strong their defensive power is in the face of a Holy Sword."
"I-I-I'm really scaaaaaared, but I'll do my best!" Gasper said as he clenched his hands.
"What if he sends out Regulus?" asked Xenovia.
"Then do what you can to defeat him. If you can't defeat him, then do your best to injure him," Rias said.
"Understood."
"The five minutes are almost up," Naud called out. "Will those participating in this round please make their way to the transfer circle! It will transfer you to a battlefield that has been prepared in a different dimension. The battlefield will be picked randomly from several that have been made in advance. Until the combatants are transferred to the battlefield, the bases on both sides will be placed under a barrier so neither side can see who is being selected."
"Okay. I'm going," Xenovia said.
"I-I'm going too!" Gasper added. Issei made a small cut on his finger and let Gasper lick the blood. Naruto would never forget the paleness of Issei's face, nor the confusion he saw there. It was enough to make him want to break out laughing.
Xenovia walked over to the teleportation circle first. The circle on the floor began glowing with a bright light, and then Xenovia vanished.
Naruto looked up at the largest monitor hanging from the stadium, which showed a green prairie filled with grass and other plants. As Xenovia appeared on the monitor, Gasper stepped onto the magic circle next, disappeared, and appeared next to her. Of course, they were not the only two who had shown up.
The other person who had appeared was massive, shirtless, and easily towered over Xenovia and Gasper. In fact, even if Gasper stood on Xenovia's shoulders, Naruto didn't think they could match this guy in height. He had thick arms and legs, a broad chest, and had strange outcroppings along his body that made him look like a rock monster. They made an odd contrast to his blue pants.
"It looks like Sairoarg decided to send Gandoma Balam. He belongs to one of the remaining 72 pillars, a family known for their superhuman strength. However, while he has a high amount of strength and magic resistance, he won't have much immunity to a Holy Sword or Gasper's Forbidden Balor View." Akeno held her hands to her cheek as she looked at Rias. "Did you know Sairoarg would send him out?"
Rias shook her head. "I didn't, but I believed he would be under the assumption that I'd send out a Rook since I'm known for relying on servants with a good deal of attack power instead of finesse to attack." Rias smiled. "Of course, Xenovia is a power fighter, which most people won't realize. They'll think she relies on speed the same as Kiba because she's a Knight, which gives her an inherent advantage, especially if Gsper can stop their opponent from moving long enough to let her strike a finishing blow."
Akeno and everyone else nodded at her words. It was Rias' style to rely on power type attackers to dish out punishment and use finesse fighters like Kiba for defense, back up, and counterattacks.
Of course, that was exactly what she was doing here, but no one would know that because Xenovia was a Knight. Not only would this throw them off balance, it would also make them mistake Xenovia for a fighter like Kiba, adding an extra layer of surprise.
"Ho ho! It looks like Rias Gremory has chosen a Knight and a Bishop to battle!" Naud exclaimed. "Meanwhile, Sairoarg Bael has chosen one of his Rooks. What do you three make of this? Is there anything you can tell us about these servants?"
"I only know about Ninja-sama and Koneko-chan, de-gozaru... so I can't say much about these two," Metatron said. "About the only thing I know is that Gasper Vladi, the Bishop, has the Sacred Gear, Forbidden Balor View, de-gozario."
"Not only does Gasper have a powerful Sacred Gear, but Xenovia is a newly acquired servant," Azazel added his own commentary. "Being brand new, she's never fought in a Rating Game before, and no one is sure exactly what kind of abilities she has. That said, she used to be a member of the Church, so it is safe to assume she has sword fighting experience like Kiba Yuuto."
"As a Rook, Gandoma has incredible defense and physical strength," Diehauser exclaimed. "As a member to the House of Balam, his strength is already incredible, but when you combine that strength with the powers of a Rook, it increases to an incredible degree. His magic resistance is so high he's immune to almost all types of magic. Even outnumbered two-to-one, I believe he'll be able to hold his own."
"Well, I suppose we'll find out soon!" Naud said. "Let the match begin!"
Once Naud said the match had begun, everyone paid attention to the monitor, where they could see Xenovia, Gasper, and Gandoma. Not only could they see the three perfectly, but they could hear everything that was being said.
"Gasper, I'd like you to let me test out this guy's power before you do anything," Xenovia said.
"Huh? Uh... um... okay!" Gasper nodded several times.
Xenovia reached out with her hand as strange distortions filled the air at her side. Something appeared in mid air. It was... a handle. A bright blue hand that Xenovia wrapped her fingers around. She pulled on the handle, bringing forth a massive sword with a blue blade and gold edges. Naruto recognized Durandal, which she had used to fight Irina with during their time in Kyoto.
"So you're a Holy Sword user, are you?" Gandoma said as he shifted his feet across the ground. "I had not expected Rias Gremory to have another person capable of wielding Holy Swords on her side. It seems I'll have to be cautious."
"You can be as cautious as you want," Xenovia said. "It still won't make a difference!"
Launching herself off the ground, Xenovia rushed forward and swung Durandal at Gandoma, who seemed to think better of blocking her attack and dodged it instead. Her downward slash struck the ground and caused it to crack. Despite dodging, the shockwave was enough to make Gandoma stumble. Xenovia tried to capitulate on this by attacking him with another powerful swing.
"It seems you're a power fighter," Gandoma said calmly. "I had not expected that. However, this makes us even."
"Does it?"
Xenovia swung Durandal several more times, and each time she came closer to hitting Gandoma, who was eventually forced to block one of her attacks. Black steam rose from the back of his hand. He had used it to reflect her last swing, but even just touching Durandal caused damage. A Holy Sword was a Devil's weakness, after all.
Gandoma stomped on the ground. A large chunk of rock rose between him and Xenovia. He kicked the rock, which launched it at his foe, but Xenovia unleashed a battle cry and cut the rock in half. That was all well and good, but it became clear that he'd only done this to distract her. While she cut the rock, he went after Gasper.
"When in battle, it is always important to take out the weakest links first," Gandoma said.
However, while it was clear that he assumed Gasper was weak because of his appearance, he soon learned otherwise when his body suddenly froze. Gandoma's eyes widened as he tried to move his muscles. However, it was like he'd been frozen in time. That said, Naruto could actually see him struggling, so his high magical resistance was actually trying to help him against Gasper's Forbidden Balor View.
"Now, Xenovia!" Gasper said in a strangled voice. "I can't... hold him much longer!!"
"Don't worry, Gasper! I've got this!"
Xenovia unleashed a massive war cry as she swung Durandal once more, and this time, she unleashed an explosion of power that swept over Gandoma. The man's body might have been hard. He might have had incredible magical resistance. However, against the power of a Holy Sword like Durandal, he had absolutely no resistance. Gandoma released a loud yell before his body dispersed.
"The match between Gandoma and Xenovia and Gasper is over! Xenovia and Gasper are the winners, while Gandoma has retired!"
"That was pretty easy," Issei muttered. "I was expecting the battle to last a lot longer."
"It was only easy because no one knows how Xenovia fights," Rias said. "Now that they've seen her powers for themselves, Sairoarg and his peerage will be more cautious around her. This is only the opening salvo, and we're going to have to step up our game if we want to keep our winning streak going."
"Yes!" everyone said in response to her words.
The first battle may have been won, but they still had several more battles to go.
~Devil Ninja~
Xenovia looked up at the camera as the crowd cheered. Xenovia sent everyone a wave while Gasper hid behind her, and then they both made it back to the transfer circle. The pair vanished from the battlefield and reappeared inside of the Gremory base.
"Welcome back, you two." Rias went up to the pair and pulled them both into a hug. "You did a good job."
"Thank you, Rias," Xenovia said with an awkward smile.
"I'm glad my best was enough!" Gasper added.
After Rias let the pair go, Xenovia and Gasper were congratulated by the rest of their team. Naruto and Issei bumped fists with him, Kiba patted them on the back, Asia clapped her hands in prayer, and Koneko gave them a thumbs up, while Akeno gave her usual "ara ara, good job you too" spiel.
"What a heart pounding battle!" Naud exclaimed. "What an upset! Xenovia and Gasper Vladi dominated the battlefield from start to finish. Do you commentators have anything to say regarding this fight?"
"On the matter of Gandoma being retired so quickly, I think it is from a combination of not knowing his opponent's strength," Diehauser commented. "That Holy Sword was quite the trump card they pulled out. When you combine that with the power of Forbidden Balor View, it's little wonder he didn't stand a chance, especially since they nearly went all out from the beginning."
"It helps that Gasper and Xenovia are both strong and incredibly hard workers," Azazel added. "Xenovia was always pretty powerful, but Gasper has been working his butt off to master his Sacred Gear. I should know since I trained him."
"The Forbidden Balor View is indeed a Sacred Gear worthy of a ninja, de-gozaru."
Azazel and Diehauser stared at Metatron, who stared right back at them with a completely straight face. Naruto, who watched the awkward scene play out, could only facepalm at the archangel's ridiculousness.
Since the battle was over, it was time for Rias and Sairoarg to roll again. Naruto narrowed his eyes as he paid attention to the monitor. Both dice struck the stand at the same time, rolled, and landed on five and six respectively.
"Oh ho! It looks like they rolled a total value of eleven! This gives both teams a lot more options!" Naud said. "As always, you have five minutes to select your combatants!"
Rias turned to her peerage.
"With a total value of eleven, Sairoarg has a lot more options to choose from, and he can choose two people. If he decides on using the maximum value he can, he can select Regulus and a Knight or a Bishop," she said.
"Do you think he's gonna do that?" asked Koneko.
"I do." Rias nodded. "His first match was a disastrous mismatch. He'll want to prove that he has what it takes to win and that his servants are no weaker than my own. He also knows that I will be thinking along these lines as well and plan to send one of my strongest servants."
"You mean...?" Issei began.
"That's right." Rias smiled at the young pervert. "Ise, I am sending out you and Kiba. Your job will be to deal with Regulus. Kiba, I want you to take on whoever else he decides to send out. If he ends up sending out a Bishop with strong long-range attacks, then do your best to hold out until Issei can finish off Regulus." Here, Rias winked. "That said, don't feel the need to wait for him. If you can finish your opponent first, then all the better."
"Right." Kiba nodded and placed a hand on his chest. "I won't let you down."
"Me too!" Issei cheered. "I'm gonna do my best!"
Everyone wished the pair luck, and then they stepped onto the transfer circle, immediately disappearing from the base and showing up on the battlefield that was viewable on the monitor.
Like last time, they weren't alone. This time, Sairoarg had chosen two people for this match, and just as Rias suspected, Regulus was one of them. Known as the Nemean Lion, Regulus was the spirit residing within the Longinus Regulus Nemea. He appeared to be a young boy with spiky golden hair, golden eyes, and strange markings on his face. Naruto felt an immediate sense of kinship with him.
The other person was a Knight riding a horse. He was wearing what appeared to be armor worn by knights during the early 1500s in Europe. His horse was also wearing armor like that. Unlike most Knights who wielded swords, this one was fiercely gripping a jousting lance. What's more, the horse was emitting bright blue flames from its body.
Creepy.
"So he chose Beruka," Rias said with some misgivings. "I think Kiba can defeat him, but he will be at a disadvantage."
"Who is this Beruka?" asked Naruto.
"Beruka Furcas," Koneko answered instead of Rias. "He's a Knight from the House of Furcas, who are known for their ability to tame horses. I hear he's a pretty strong guy, though I don't know how strong."
"That so..."
Naruto turned back to the monitor just as Naud was announcing the beginning of the battle.
"I hope you're all ready because this battle is beginning... now!"
Naruto wasn't sure how this battle would go, but he knew that Rias planned on having Issei and Kiba take on their opponents separately. However, he didn't think any of them had expected Beruka to charge at Issei!
"What the shit balls?!" Issei screamed as he leapt backward just in the nick of time. Beruka's spear impaled the ground he'd been standing on. His speed was nothing to laugh at. Even Naruto felt himself growing shocked by how fast this man was.
"BOOST!"
The Boosted Gear's voice echoed across the battlefield, letting everyone know that Issei's strength had doubled, but that hardly meant a thing right now. Beruka was bearing down on Issei with his lance once more. He thrust it out so quickly it was nothing but a blur. Issei dodged in time by twisting his body out of the way, but then the horse bucked forward and slammed into the young pervert with its head.
"Ugwack!"
"BOOST!"
Issei endured the attack, but it was clear he was hurting. Even so, he began backpedalling to gain some distance--not that it did him much good. Beruka was way faster than he was. The man kept up the pressure, kept hitting him, and while Issei was a tough guy who could take some punishment, all those attacks would eventually wear him down.
"Promotion to Knight!"
Issei quickly promoted himself to Knight, which granted him the speed of a Knight, though it was clear from how he was still being pressured that Beruka was far faster than him.
"BOOST!"
While Issei tried to use his newfound speed to keep up with Beruka, Kiba was doing everything in his power to keep away from Regulus.
It wasn't easy.
"It's just like Master said!" Regulus grinned as he swung his foot in a powerful heel drop. Kiba dodged. The ground exploded. "He said Rias would send out Issei Hyoudou and her remaining Knight. That's why he made this plan to defeat you by having Beruka distract Hyoudou while I took you out of the picture quickly and then team up on him."
Despite the situation, Kiba managed to give his opponent a grin. "It's a good strategy, but doesn't it rely on Ise not being able to defeat Beruka more quickly than you can beat me?"
"You are very right," Regulus said with a shrug. "It does rely on me beating you before Issei beats Beruka. However, the Boosted Gear has one major flaw that gives us an advantage. It grants peerless strength, but it requires time to unleash that strength. Even his Balance Breaker can't be activated at the beginning of a battle. Right now, Hyoudou is no more than an average Devil with average strength. If I can defeat you before he gains the true power he needs to beat Beruka, then we'll have an advantage when we team up on him two-to-one."
"BOOST!"
Naruto actually thought Sairoarg's strategy was pretty damn sound. He knew Rias would choose Issei to battle, just as Rias knew Sairaorg would have no choice but to choose Regulus. Both had planned for this. However, Rias had only thought about how to defeat Regulus, not what to do if Regulus and Beruka switched opponents.
That was showing now.
Kiba tried his best to keep away from Regulus, but then the Nemean Lion who resided within the powerful Longinus promoted himself to Rook. While this seemed like an odd promotion to make at first, the reason became clear when Regulus slammed a fist into the ground, creating a massive earthquake. While this affected Issei's and Beruka's battle, it affected Kiba far more. He lost his balance and nearly fell to a knee.
"Promotion to Knight!" Regulus shouted.
"Oh, no..." Rias murmured.
Naruto didn't need to know what she was saying that about. With his increased speed, Regulus was on Kiba before the Knight could fully recover. Of course, Kiba tried to use his Sword Birth to keep the Pawn from approaching him, but Regulus showed his strength by crashing straight through the massive wall of swords Kiba formed. The wall of swords broke apart and Regulus, now right next to Kiba, promoted himself to Queen and struck the princely Knight in the chest.
"BOOST!"
The blow was intense. A massive shockwave spread across the battlefield as Kiba was sent flying back. Not only that, but the attack must have been even more powerful than anyone could have expected because, even before he could hit the ground, Kiba vanished into particles of light.
"Kiba Yuuto has been retired!" Naud exclaimed. "What a powerful offense! Regulus defeated Rias Gremory's Knight before he could even put up a fight!"
Rias clenched her fists so tightly her arms shook. The conflict she felt was clear as day on her face. Naruto reached out and grabbed one of her hands. She didn't resist, instead lacing her fingers through his and clutching his hand so hard that it actually kind of hurt.
"BOOST!"
"I should have realized it wouldn't be that easy," Rias said at last. "Ise is powerful, but he has a major weakness. I should have known Sairoarg would capitalize on it."
"There's nothing we can do now but hope Ise can pull through," Naruto said.
Rias didn't say anything as she stared at the screen with furrowed brows.
"BOOST!"
"Kiba!" Issei shouted in shock when the Knight vanished. His teeth were gnashed together in anger as he glared at Beruka. "Damn you! You annoying horseman! I'm going to blow my load all over your face!"
The words were actually so unusual and insinuating that not only did the entire crowd go silent, but Beruka actually stopped moving for a second.
"What?" the man said as though he hadn't heard Issei right.
"Dragon Whip!"
Before Beruka could move, a whip emerged from Issei's Boosted Gear and wrapped around the man. It wasn't until he was caught that Beruka tried to escape. However, it just wasn't possible. The Boosted Gear was the pinnacle of Sacred Gears, and Issei had been boosting his powers this entire time.
"Now eat this!!! Dragon Shot!"
A sphere appeared in front of the Boosted Gear, which Issei punched while still holding the whip. A powerful beam launched from the struck sphere of energy. It exploded and washed over Beruka like he was made of tinfoil, engulfing the man in a wave of energy so ferocious that ripples appeared inside the barrier containing the dimension. Naruto almost worried that the dimension would break, but the ripples fortunately dissolved into nothing seconds later.
"In an incredible display of rage and power, Issei Hyoudou has defeated Beruka and his steed with one shot!" Naud announced. "What an incredible amount of power! It is no wonder the Red Dragon Emperor is so feared!"
"You mean the Oppai Dragon," Azazel corrected.
"Oppai Dragon indeed, de-gozaru," Metatron added.
"I also thought he was called the Oppai Dragon," Diehauser suddenly announced.
"Oh, come on, you three!" Issei shouted at the camera, though that was all he could do before Regulus appeared before him.
He leapt back as Regulus slammed into the ground, shaking the earth so much that Issei was almost knocked off balance. He took to the skies quickly. Of course, Regulus could have followed him, but just then, Issei let loose with a massive amount of energy that caused the area around him to ripple. Not even the famed Nemean Lion was willing to get struck with that.
"Welsh Dragon: Balance Breaker!!!"
Bright red flames engulfed Issei before crimson armor appeared on his body. The armor greatly resembled the scales of a dragon. A pair of massive wings flapped on his back. His feet became encased in tri-tipped clawed boots. A tail grew from his spine. Meanwhile, five gems appeared on his body, the chest, back of his hands, and knees.
Now clad from head to toe in armor, Issei pointed a finger at Regulus.
"I hope you're ready because this red dragon emperor is going to kick your ass from here to the moon!"
Regulus stood on the ground and looked up. Issei floated high above him and looked down. A palpable tension so thick Naruto worried the people watching might choke on it filled the air.
The second round of the second match was about to heat up.