I do not own the Persona series or Akame ga Kill. Everything belongs to their respected owners.

Impressive.

Thos were the words that ran through Minato's mind as he watched the Jaegers slaughter the bandit camp.

The battle started when Seryu smashed through the first ranks of the people that went against the Empire's laws. It turned into a war when Stylish sent in his enhanced troops to do the fighting for him with disturbing grace. It became a wholesale butchery when a certain female ran through the side entrance.

Despite their small chances at survival, the bandits still fought on with admirable courage. They reacted to the sudden attack in circumstances that not many could fight against. They surrounded the new arrivals with their superior numbers, flaking with practiced precision, and ran forward into the gaps of their enemy. More than that, they fought with desperation, knowing the odds were stacked hopelessly against them.

All of it was futile.

The bone of Bols' fist was hard. He used bare knuckles to smash his opposition down, pounding their forms in, crushing limbs, breaking heads with loud cracks. When the sought to surround him, the Jaeger grabbed his weapon and pointed the hole towards them that had a look of eyes glaring at the opposition. From the opening, hot flames spewed, belched out in a continuous stream, covering bandits in killing heat, entwining around them like the coils of a fiery viper. Bols guided it like a amateur artist would a brush and created tornadoes of fire that sucked in his enemies and scorched them to the bone.

Wave surged into the pockets of resistance and ended lives with great, clean sweeps of his sword. The blade was a simple short sword that looked like anyone could wield it. Yet Wave wielded it with merciless ease. He split bandits as effortlessly as a man would chop firewood, cutting twisted people from heat to feet. It only helped him look more deadly.

Kurome was shrouded in an aura of terrible beauty. She was an assassin of arguable unparalleled skill. An innocent girl clad in murderous blood. A puppet master, she was known among those closest to her. The earned the title well. Her smile seemed to grow with every enemy slain. It seemed to become more radiant for every drop of bloodshed. She left behind mangled, disarticulated corpses behind her like devastated wreckage after a hurricane. Such was the speed of her slashes that her foes did not bleed until well after they hit the ground.

Seryu fought with a mad woman's grin bright upon her lips. Unlike most of her comrades who waged fights in concentrated silence, the female piled her trade with loud declarations of justice on her tongue. She exchanged insults with the foe, hurling her words at them in between gunfire from her vast arsenal. Not a blade master like Kurome, not possession of strength like Bols, Seryus method of battle was bullets. Righteous delivering bullets. Waves of it she summoned with a pull of a trigger. Her Teigu was a potential threat as well, devouring those who dared inch close to the gunner.

Run looked like an angel, almost shining like a newly born star. The blonde fired feathers. Like a rain o f needles, they fell onto his enemies, descending on corrupted heads and twisted people in a killing storm. Those not immediately cut to pieces were pinned to the ground like grotesque specimen on a mad biologist's cutting table.

Stylish was taking it all in. The dark red smears against the ground and walls. The outcrop of debris. Each of his soldiers held flair in their battles. There was so much flowery elegance and stylish grace. Yet they slew bandit with clockwork precision, killed them with machine-like efficiency. "Stylish," He said softly as he watched Kurome carve her way through a thong of criminals. "Stylish," he repeated as he saw Bols effortlessly lift a bandit and break their back across his knee. "STYLISHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" He screamed dropping to his knees in complete fascination.

PXA

Minato blinked at the choice of his battle cry. He just stared as he had just heard the sheer passion behind it. "Hmm…" He hummed slowly before craning his head over towards Tatsumi and Esdeath. He continued to remain quiet however.

His sister held a blush, a sight that the fellow blue-haired person had never seen before through his entire life. Despite her eyes being glued to the display of brutality among the fight, her gaze was facing away from him and the male brunette.

Tatsumi too was blushing as he too had his face looking away. But his eyes was set on Minato rather than the fight or his sister. The pair of eyes met with one another as the boy saw that he had the blue-haired male's attention. "Help me." Tatsumi mouthed with desperation and great plea in his face.

Leaning forward and craning his head a little more, Minato finally noticed why. The brown haired-boy's hand was connected to the ground. Esdeath's on the other hand was… well… on Tatsumi's hand.

Now it made a lot more sense. The boy seemed to be a lot more innocent than Minato expected. Was it perhaps of the brunette's age? Then again, it was the appropriate time for puberty to kick it. Already going through such a process was an odd experience for the blue-haired boy.

Would he do anything about it though? No.

Esdeath said so herself that she wanted to experience love for herself. It was within his power to help her out, and so he decided to. He did care for his sister after all. Such an emotion was meant to be explored as it is supposed to be experienced different by every pair of people.

Tatsumi made the perfect scapegoat in the end as well since he filled out every bit of requirement the blue-haired sister had created…

Yes… Esdeath actually had a list of what she wanted in a man… It was quite a perplexing thing to be honest. The General of the Empire had always been a battle fanatic, dreaming for the greatest battle of her life. The only time he had known of her getting a single bit of that dream becoming a reality was when she broke his arm and him her leg.

But now with the desire of chasing after a man… Well in this case pretty much keeping them on a short leash rather than running after them at the moment, but that didn't matter right now. Perhaps it was just one of the very urges of humanity. Something that people desire after a given point of time.

What he thinking about before that little ran? Ah, yes, the list of what his sister wanted in a man.

First of all, the male must possess a deep well of untapped ability. Esdeath wished to mold that person into a person of General class ability. Second, they must be fearless; a person who could hunt the most dangerous species of the world with her. Third, they could not have been raised near the Capital. Just like her and him, must have been raised on the outskirts of the Empire. Four, will be under her direct control so they had to be younger. The fifth one, and probably one of the more questionable ones, one who had a pure and innocent smiling face… although it could be countered with the 'would be nice' bit to show that it may not exactly be required.

Although Minato could understand why Esdeath wanted these things.

The first was thanks to her partially bloodthirsty personality and beliefs. The weak perish while the strong survive. It was a shame that she lived by those rules. But perhaps it was so that if she would ever find the person that male would be unable to die and she would have no need to mourn.

Being able to hunt the most dangerous species? It was the way to go by for survival back where he and Esdeath came from. Maybe he should present an offer for the two of them to go hunting together soon. It could bring back some nostalgia while stalking their prey like they would do when they were children. Plus, it had been forever since they had done such an activity.

Third was also pretty understandable. When the two of them first arrived to the capital, Esdeath nearly had second thoughts about joining the Empire's army. Nearly everyone was considered weak, being ripe livestock for a slaughtering if someone were to go on a killing spree. Those outside the Capital on the other hand knew the hardships of survival, a trait she wanted to share.

Fourth… Well Esdeath was always the one who wanted to be more dominant in the end. It was her personality. It was in her nature.

Fifth… He already talked about this.

Perhaps he should retract the scapegoat comment he made about the brunette earlier. Tatsumi was a rather brave and strong boy for not being able to crack under all of this pressure already.

Tatsumi was also strong for not having his bones crushed by General Esdeath's tight grip yet.

PXA

"Sir, the Emperor as requested for your presence."

Minato did not show any sort of reaction other than a straight face just as soon as he came back with the Jaegers. He just settled for staring at the servant that had been sent to bear such news for the blue-haired male who was the brother of the Empire's Strongest.

"…Very well." Minato nodded slowly. His sluggish reaction was due to the fact that Emperor Makoto had called him 'daddy' in his sleep. "Please lead the way."

"A personal audience with the Emperor, Brother?" Esdeath mused with a smile, feeling proud of her sibling. She always felt like he never felt like achieving anything over the years. "You are certainly climbing up in the ranks."

"Is that what you think?" He turned his head around and his eyes met his sister's. His were plain but Esdeath held a different emotion. A hand landed on his head and eyes slightly diverted up to see the female General placing the palm on top of his crown. He only nodded once which made the hand slide off, but he knew that his sister understood what that one action meant. Turning to the rest of the Jaegers and Tatsumi, he bowed. "Until we meet again."

With the exchange of farewells, he followed the servant as they both continued on at a normal pace. Rather than the throne room he had expected, Minato was lead to Makoto's bedroom. The blue-haired boy raised an eyebrow. The bedroom? This late at night? Usually it was better for children to sleep earlier for their health.

With a quiet knock, the servant leaned towards the door. "Your majesty," The person in the suit whispered quietly yet loud enough for someone to hear. "Sir Minato, brother of General Esdeath, is here."

It was as if his name were a signal. A word that one always looked forward to. Within seconds, the door opened to reveal the green-haired child in smooth, clean pajamas. "Ah, Mister Minato," Right after the fortune-teller said there was no need to call him 'mister'. "Come on in. Thank you so much for bringing him here." Makoto directed that second sentence to the servant that bowed before leaving.

"If I may be so curious," Minato began as he gently shut the door and Makoto was standing right in front of the older male. "Why did you want to see me?"

"You are nice." Makoto answered softly, turning around and walking over to a table where two chairs waited. Climbing into one of the seats, he shifted his bottom around to make his own person comfortable before continuing. "I don't know why, but I'm able to talk to you without people… umm… treating me like an Emperor."

"But you are." Minato stated.

Makoto folded him arms and seemed to pout. "But you're the only person to treat me like how my mother and father did. No one else around here does. When I was a small child, I learned that because of their position they were treated as such. Despite how close everyone would be, it felt like they actually were far away. At the other end of a chasm where I could not see the opposite side."

Hmm, so that's how it was. That does explain a lot about that… 'daddy' situation. But Minato could not blame Makoto. The Emperor was just s small child after all. The young man was not even a teenager was already was forced to carry the burdens and sins of the Empire. No child should have to do that. "That can' t be all. There has to be more that you want."

"…Why is the Empire like this?" Makoto asked.

Now that was a question he never expected from the Emperor. The young man, judging by the rumors and actually seeing it himself, was easily manipulated by the Prime Minister Honest. As stated by the colorful description the blue-haired man gave to the brunette, the fortune-teller was not exactly the fondest of the porky-adult.

"Just… why is there so much happening that is making people scared?" The tiny child continued on, taking Minato's silence as a gesture to continue on. "It never happened when father and mother were still alive and occupying the throne. People loved my parents. That made me want to be like them. But now… Everyone hates me. Why is it that people are killing each other? What is the cause of the Empire falling apart?"

"…There was once a tower," He finally said, "And within that tower, a boy sought to climb up the winding stairs." Makoto tilted his head, frowning with confusion and curiosity. "When he finally reached the top of the tower, a great power awaited him. Her name was Nyx and her purpose was the destruction of all mankind."

Obviously the young Emperor put some thought into this within a couple of seconds as Minato let it all sink in for the child's mind. "That… seems impossible. Something that unrealistic couldn't possibly exist… could it?"

"Impossible… unrealistic… The boy thought the same thing when he first learned of her existence." Minato nodded his head slowly. "Still, she existed, no matter how insane the issue may have sounded. With the help of his friends, he fought her. And when his friends could no longer aid him, he fought her alone. He defeated her. That was when he learned a terrible truth."

"A terrible truth?" Makoto repeated, engrossed with the tale. "What was it?"

"Nyx herself was neither hostile nor malevolent. She was a neutral entity. Something was making her initiate the Fall. Something was making her want to end humanity. His name was Erebus."

"Erebus…" The young Emperor whispered.

"He was the action, process, the result of a combination that was created by humanity's darkest thoughts, mankind's most negative emotions. When in contact with Nyx, his presence would awaken her, and she would resume her descent to end all creation." An unreadable expression made its way onto the speaker's voice. "In the end, it was not a foreign, malevolent deity that wanted to destroy humanity as the boy as his friends first thought. It was humanity that wanted to destroy humanity. It did not sit well with him, you understand. He had gone into battle armed with the belief that humanity's courage, loyalty, and compassion would be the reason for his victory and discovered that it was humanity's fear, treachery, and hatred that nearly brought about the end in the first place."

His sole audience watched the fortune-teller tap his fingers in thought. "…What are you trying to tell me?" Makoto asked.

"To protect courage, you would have to save fear. To guard loyalty, you would have to shelter treachery. To shield compassion, you would have to defend hatred." Minato looked towards the young man's eyes. "All the negative emotions of humanity are the cause of their owners' deaths. But you cannot rid one element without forcing the other out of balance. You, Emperor Makoto, have to realize that it is by your voice and mind that has to make the decisions. Not the council that stand in your chambers. Not the Prime Minister who stand by your throne. It is you alone."

"…Am I like Nyx then?" The child asked, leaning forward onto the table with his chin resting on his hands. His legs kicked back and forth as his feet didn't reach the ground. "You know… Just not being a person that is hostile or have bad intentions?"

"Perhaps." Minato answered with a straight face before changing the subject. "It is late. You have a big day ahead of you."

Makoto took some thought into those words and nodded in agreement. Scooting off the chair, the young Emperor waddled over to his bed and began to drag himself under the covers. "Minato… Do you think I'll ever be a good Emperor? People already hate me as I am now."

"Your past cannot be changed, forgotten, edited, or erased. It can only be accepted." Minato said slowly, causing Makoto's face to fall significantly. "But you can certainly change the future. I think you can grow up to be a great man. You just need to show independence."

The young boy's face brightened up as much as it could on an exhausted face. "Thank you, Minato." Makoto said quietly. "…What happened to the boy in that story you were telling me?"

Minato placed a hand to his chin to think. "He sacrificed himself. He gave up his life to become the seal that would prevent Erebus from reaching Nyx. And in that moment, as he breathed his last, he understood that saving the aspects of humanity he so admired would also mean saving the aspects of humanity he despised."

Once more, silence stretched out between the two and it was neither awkward nor strained. "I wish I could meet that boy." Makoto drawled out slowly, almost losing conscious due to fatigue. "He seems like… a nice… person…"

"…Yes…" Minato said quietly as the young Emperor fell asleep. "He was a nice person."

PXA

Minato sent his fishing reel into the water casually while sitting at the edge of a rather large lake.

The bite came quick as he swiftly pulled on the fishing line and saw the wriggling prey flap around helplessly around in the air. Carefully bringing it over, he deposited the animal into a basket where countless others flopped around with futility.

Her certainly hoped for a great feast. The container was not exactly full and he had been around for at least an hour or so. Either this was a popular fishing spot or he was using bad bait. Perhaps both. It seemed that many wandered out into the mountains despite the fear of being robbed. The person who sold him the fishing supplies as well seemed to be an extremely shady despite their look as well.

Casting his line once more, he embraced the tranquil atmosphere. It was these silent moment in nature that he greatly appreciated. It allowed him to gather a lot more of his thoughts.

That moment was ruined however as he felt a pebble pelt him on the head once. Blinking, he wondered what kind of person would do such a thing. Turning so he could get a better look at who the culprit was, he was partially surprised.

"Yo! Fancy seeing you here, Minato!

Leone had her arm extended, proving that she was the one that threw the small rock. That smirk on her face was certainly a familiar sight despite this being only their third encounter. Yet she acted so familiar around him. Was it just her personality? Most likely.

"Hello to you too, Leone." Minato nodded, still keeping his hands on the pole that was in his grasp.

"So what brings you out here in the middle of nowhere?" The blonde asked as she took a seat right next to the blue-haired male.

Ah... digging, or fishing, for information. Or was it just curiosity? …He had to stop doing that. "I thought I might go fishing." He answered while staring out towards the water. "I haven't been getting many fortunes lately so I've had to resort to other measures for food."

Not really much a lie there. Minato had no recent readings that had him paid. Mainly because he had his attention brought to his sister and the Jaegers. But he still had a lot of money however. The fishing bit was just an activity he had not done for a while.

"Really? Man, that sucks." Leone sighed, nodding her head as if she understood. She also wore some sort of sage-like expression, as if an elder were listening to the troubles of the youth. "You look like you caught a lot already though. How long do you think that'll last?"

"A day at best."

"…Huh." Was all Leone managed before shrugging her shoulders. But then there was a quick change of the subject. "Your fortune came true."

"Is that so?" There was no surprise in his voice.

The blonde nodded. "Yeah. A recent friend of mine… disappeared for a bit. It was just like you said. Don't worry though, he's back and happy." She assured the blue-haired male. "There's one part that I can't get out of my head though… the Devil card you showed me. When will they show up?"

"Who knows?" Minato shrugged. "It could be hours… days… the time the fortune shall fulfill itself is always a mystery." So… it seems that Tatsumi had made his way back to Night Raid. Did that mean he was near their base? If not, then it was a huge coincidence if Leone saw him rather than be aware of his presence around their headquarters.

Leone hummed this time, unsure how to answer. She too settled for just staring out towards the lake. "You ever wonder how these situations just come into play? One moment you're going through your daily life and then the next shit just happens when you least expect it?"

"Perhaps it is just a question that cannot be answered." Minato replied back.

"I guess you're right." Leone breathed, resting her arms against her legs. "But man, life just works in weird ways, huh?"

Minato blinked as he realized that he was holding another full conversation with Leone. That was twice now. He really was being caught off-guard by the blonde's attitude to situations. "It would be boring otherwise, just plain. An empty shell with mindless people wandering its void surface."

"Maybe…" Leone sighed, leaning backwards and just settled for staring at the sky.

The two of them didn't even know how much time passed. Minato was too busy fishing. Leone meanwhile kept listening to the splashing of Minato's line. The day flew by, both of them not minding each other's company as one didn't disturb the other.

Leone turned her head and saw something strapped onto Minato's back. Subtly taking a closer look, she made out the shape to be a book. Now that she thought about it, Minato also had the book on his person as well when she made her appearance in the bar. Add in the fact that he was seen with General Esdeath eating ice-cream and Minato definitely made a person of interest. She would have to report this to Najenda sooner or later.

"Well, it's been nice hanging around with you, Minato. But I've got to go." Leone rolled to her feet. She purposely left out where she was going though. "See you soon!" With a wave of her arm, she ran off through the brush.

…That way led nowhere to the Capital.

He had a feeling dwell inside him. Pulling the rod out of the water, he looked to the basket to see that it was only halfway full. Placing the pole down, Minato rose to his feet and after a backwards, longing look to the fishing equipment and the fruits of his labors still on the ground, he stepped after Leone.

P.S The story that Minato told Makoto is from A Demon Among Devils

No flames please.

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