Chapter 26: Assigned Spaces
"This is an outrage!"
Izumi Higa was not very happy. Not at all.
Everything had been going so perfectly for him in the beginning. After he had become a part of the Sekirei Plan, he had begun using his vast wealth to acquire both knowledge and power. It was his intention to use the Sekirei Plan to increase the power, wealth and reputation of his pharmaceutical company above that of MBI.
He found great irony in the fact that it was Minaka's own little game that would elevate the status of his company above the one created by none other than Minaka himself. Truly, there would be nothing sweeter when he won this Sekirei Plan and stole all of the technology used by Minaka to put MBI on the map.
It had always bothered him how MBI had just come onto the medical scene less than twenty years ago and managed to become the top company in the world. Their new technology had put them on the map, allowing them to outpace Higa's own company, which at the time had been in the hands of his father. In less than a year, MBI had become the world's largest and most powerful company, and Izumi Pharmaceuticals was more or less left in the dust.
Truly, that man was a fool for starting this Sekirei Plan for his own entertainment. It was clear Minaka had lost his what was left of his mind. This game of his was not only a gross waste of money but also time.
Well, as they say, one man's lunacy was another man's gain, or something like that. He would get as much information as he could on this Sekirei Plan and amass as many Sekirei for himself as he could. Those he could not wing because they had already gained their wings, he would acquire the allegiance of through bribery and blackmail.
He had managed to gather a sizable task force of Sekirei under his direct command and an even more sizable task force of Sekirei and Ashikabi. Everything had been going according to plan.
At least it had.
Until he had appeared. Uzumaki Naruto. The man who ruined almost all of his most recent plans. Not only had he gotten the number ten's Ashikabi out from under his nose, he had now managed to steal the Lead Adjustor's daughter in the same manner. Worse still, it had happened in this very building while he and his Sekirei were still there!
How had that man even managed to infiltrate this place? His security had been top notch. The most advanced and powerful that money could buy. Yet it had all amounted to nothing. Naruto had managed to sneak in, avoiding both his security system and his Sekirei that had been guarding Yukari and leave right out the front door.
It was truly vexing.
"You let them escape! You let them escape with one of my most valuable pieces and you didn't even chase after them!"
"We tried, Higa-sama," one of his Sekirei had the gall to defend herself. He couldn't remember her name. Oriho? Maybe. It wasn't like her name mattered. She was just another pawn to be used and tossed aside when she was no longer valuable. "But by the time we managed to get outside they were already gone."
"I don't want to hear any of your excuses!" Oriha flinched. Good. She should feel ashamed over her failure. "Had you not all gone to confront those two Sekirei in the lobby, none of this would have happened."
"But one of them was a single ―"
"I don't want to hear it!"
Higa ignored the way his Sekirei flinched at his words and ran a hand through his hair. He was beginning to lose his composure. Clearly, this Uzumaki Naruto was becoming a larger problem than he was worth. That would not do at all.
"All of you leave," he gestured to his Sekirei. They all looked unsurely at each other for a moment, but in the end they left. They knew their place. What they had with Higa was nothing more than a business agreement, at least that's what he told them.
When they had all disappeared, the only people left in the room was his aid, Kakizaki, Koucho, and himself.
"This Naruto character is becoming a problem," Kakizaki stated the obvious as he pushed his glasses further up his nose. "We will need to take care of him soon."
"I know," Higa leaned back in his chair and thought about the problem for a moment. Really, the solution was simple, but he did not want to waste so many resources on a single Ashikabi.
Still, it wasn't like he had much choice.
"I want you to put an alert to all of our Ashikabi that they have withstanding orders to defeat Uzumaki Naruto and his Sekirei. They are to use any means necessary including the killing of Uzumaki himself."
"Minaka is not going to be pleased about that," Kakizaki commented.
"Minaka is a fool and his opinions do not matter," Higa said irritably. "I want Uzumaki out of this game for good."
"Very well."
Higa closed his eyes and sighed as he leaned back in his chair. The Sekirei Plan was starting to become nothing more than a headache for him. It had been ever since Naruto had come into the picture and he had tried to acquire his allegiance.
Hopefully, those under his command could deal with him, but if not, they should at least weaken him to the point where he not be a problem anymore.
Neither Higa nor Kakizaki nor Koucho noticed the extra potted plant sitting by the door as it's ;eaves lightly shook in the small breeze generated by the air conditioning.
XoX
"Naruto-kun, are you almost done with those vegetables?"
"Just about. Thank you, Akitsu."
"Ah."
A pause.
"You're welcome."
Within the kitchen at Maison Izumo, several people were working with quiet diligence and surprisingly efficient teamwork. There was very little noise as the group worked to make dinner except for the chopping of vegetables, the sound of the tap running, and the boiling of the stew in the pot.
Naruto found himself cutting up numerous vegetables with the stainless steel Chef's knife. As he sliced and diced the vegetables, wielding his knife with all the expertise of a Samurai, the act of his knife continuously hitting the cutting board made a staccato 'tut, tut, tut, tut' noise that echoed within the mostly silent kitchen.
Over to his left was Akitsu, who was, as always, standing at her place by his side. She was methodically washing the vegetables that Naruto would cut... and taking at least a minute too long for each one, but Naruto didn't let that bother him. There were not many things in this world that he could not deny anything to. Akitsu was one of these things.
"Ku-chan can cut the veg veg! Let Ku-chan cut the veg veg!"
Kusano was another.
At least most of the time.
"Sorry, Ku-chan," Naruto said, moving his hand with the knife away from Kusano's outstretched ones as she tried to grab the knife. The tiny girl was sitting on his shoulders, so it was very easy to do. It helped that she didn't have a very long reach because her arms were so short. Ah, the benefit of being an adult compared to a child. "But young girls shouldn't be playing with sharp objects. You could get hurt."
"Jiiiiii~! Onii-chan's being a meanie," even though Naruto could not see it, he knew that Kusano had one of the most adorable pouts on her face. "I should bite you."
Naruto blinked.
"What?"
"Ufufufu," Miya giggled, one hand raised so that the sleeve of her kimono adequately covered her mouth in the most demure of fashions. The other was calmly stirring the pot she was using to make dinner. "It seems like little Ku-chan likes playing with dangerous and sharp objects. I hope you're not responsible for this, Naruto-kun. Why, if you were, I would have to punish you. Ufufufu."
Naruto rolled his eyes.
"Don't look at me. I have no idea why Kusano loves sharp, pointy objects. Although," Naruto eyed the beautiful, purple haired woman standing just a few feet away from him. "It may have something to do with how our landlady seems to enjoy threatening people with that katana of hers so much."
"Miya has a sword!" Kusano said, as if trying to emphasize Naruto's point. "Mu~ Ku-chan wants a sword too."
"Sorry, Ku. You're a bit too young to be using a sword right now. Maybe when you're older."
"Jiiiii!"
"Hmph!" Miya huffed as her words were turned against her. She went back to stirring the pot as Naruto came over and dumped the chopped vegetables in. Naruto just chuckled as he went over to the kitchen and gave the board to Akitsu so she could wash it.
"Now, now," he teased the landlady. She looked like she was close to actually pouting. It was actually kind of cute. "It's not very becoming of a lady to huff in such a manner. Really Miya," he shook his head in mock disappointment, "you should learn to be a bit more ladylike, like Akitsu here."
"Ah!" Akitsu blushed. Miya's right eye gained a slight twitch.
"More ladlylike, hmm?" she muttered a tad harshly. It was completely out of contrast with her beatifically smiling face.
"Um!" Naruto nodded his head, gracing the landlady with his own wide, innocent smile. Not that it was fooling anyone. "Yes, it seems Miya-san is having trouble acting like a demure and proper woman. She definitely needs some help." His eyes looked up at the ceiling as he got into a 'thinking pose'. "Maybe I should ask Tsukiumi if she can help Miya-san act like a proper housewife."
Miya's right eye began to twitch a bit more. He had her beat and they both knew it. Naruto wondered if she would bring out her hanya mask now that she had lost in their little game today.
"HOW DARE YOU TOUCH ME LIKE THAT YOU MONKEY!"
Whether Miya would or would not have retaliated in the only way she could became moot when Tsukiumi shriek of outraged reached their ears. The two blinked several times, then turned their gaze towards the closed door that led into the dining room.
"Hehehe... it's your own fault for having such large knockers on you!" Came the sounds of a very familiar perverted young woman.
"Kn-KNOCKERS! WHAT KIND OF TERM IS THAT! AND HOW DARE YOU USE IT ON ME! MISCREANT! HEATHEN!"
"Oh my," Miya mumbled, "it sounds like something's happened to Tsukiumi-san."
"Judging what I'm hearing of the conversation, she's not arguing with Musubi or Homura," Naruto added with a tilt of his head. Had she been arguing with one of those two it would have either been about who was Naruto's 'true wife' or 'why Homura had no room to talk about Tsukiumi's apparent need to wear a high, panty flashing skirt'. "There is also the other person talking. At a guess, I would have to say Yukari is the one behind this." If the monkey commented had not made it obvious, then the perverted giggling and words spoken did.
"Perhaps you should go see what the problem is," Miya suggested with a pleasant smile. "I'll need help setting the table and it looks like someone just volunteered."
"Right," Naruto could have argued that since it was her house, she should be the one to go deal with this new problem, but since they were his Sekirei, it really was a problem he should probably solve on his own.
Entering the dining room showed him about what he had expected to see. Tsukiumi was standing on one side of the room, her eyebrows twitching dangerously, a large vein pulsing on her forehead and her face flushed a bright red as she held her shaking and clenched fist near her face in what he guessed was supposed to be a menacing pose but really just made her look silly. On the opposite side was Yukari, who was grinning deviously as she hid behind a clueless Musubi, her hands already groping the Shrine Maiden Sekirei's breasts.
Shiina and Kazehana were also in the room. The white haired boy looked very worried for his Ashikabi and apologetic towards Naruto's Sekirei. Meanwhile, Kazehana was lounging against the wall with a bottle of sake in her hand as she enjoyed the show.
Naruto sighed.
"Can anyone explain what happened here to me?" he asked in a voice loud enough to gather everyone's attention to him.
"Husband!" Tsukiumi snapped as she pointed over to Yukari. "That foul, loathsome monkey has tried to take my chastity!"
"Take your chastity?" Yukari grinned from her place behind Musubi. "All I did was grab those large melons of yours." Almost as if the mention of 'melons' triggered some kind of instinctive reaction in her, the young Ashikabi's hands began groping Musubi's chest with increasing roughness. "Although, these babies are much better than yours. Maybe I should just stick with Musubi-nee-chan."
"Better than mine!?" Naturally, the only thing Tsukiumi heard in that entire speech was about how inadequate her breasts were compared to those of her rival's. "I'll have you know that my breasts are not only large, but they are also perfectly firm!"
This proud declaration was followed by several seconds of silence in which Tsukiumi went over the words she had just spoken in her head. Judging by the way her face began to grow red, she had realized just how bad her statement sounded.
"I-I mean... not like it should matter to you! Monkey! Insolent! O-Only my h-husband is allowed to... to... ah..." It was an interesting experience, watching Tsukiumi devolve into a fit of blushing and stuttering. It was even more amusing because of what Naruto knew would come after.
Tsundere protocols activated.
"You shouldn't be touching other people's breasts anyways!" Mount Tsukiumi exploded with tsun tsun wrath. "It isn't proper for a flat chested little girl to go around touching another women's bosoms! Now you shall pay for trying to taint me with your perversion!"
"Flat chest little girl, am I?" Yukari's face darkened. Then she began to laugh. "Kukukuku..."
Yeah, like that.
Not that Tsukiumi noticed, busy as she was gather water and chakra to the tip of her ring finger, which she had pointed in Yukari's direction to unleash her primary attack. Nothing would stop her from unleashing all her righteous, female fury on this perverse monkey ―
"Ufufufu..."
― Nothing. Except for Miya.
Heads turned towards the doorway to the kitchen, where one Asama Miya stood wearing her patented smile. The area around her seemed to darken as a mass of hatred and malevolence built up around her in the form of a strange pressure that made the other Sekirei shake where they stood.
"... Yelling while you are indoors," the pressure increased as the darkness behind Miya began to take shape. "Blatantly inappropriate and lewd acts." The hanya mask formed behind her, it's eyes bleeding as a loud hissing began to emit from it's mouth. "And Violence are not permitted within Maison Izumo. I believe I have already told you two this."
Naruto watched on with growing amusement as the members of the household began to get increasingly frightened. Kusano was gripping handfuls of his hair as she buried her face into his head in order to escape the scene that looked like it had been taken straight from an eldritch horror in front of her. Tsukiumi had long since collapsed to her knees, her arms hugging her torso as she shook uncontrollably. Yukari and Musubi were holding onto each other for dear life, both looking scared out of their wits. Even Kazehana had stopped drinking and was staring at the hanya mask with wide eyed horror.
THUMP!
Matsu also dropped from the ceiling when the hanya was unleashed, her fear such that she was unable to keep a good grip on her secret hiding spot on top of the rafters.
"Now, Tsukiumi, Yukari, you two will help me set the table," Miya continued in a tone that was so pleasant it would make people think she wasn't even aware of the hanya mask behind her or it's effects on her tenants. "Is that acceptable?"
The two gave very quick nods. Neither were able to speak at the moment, it seemed.
"Good," with those words, the darkness vanished, the stars all realigned and the hanya mask disappeared as if it had never existed. Everyone except Naruto gave a sigh of relief. "Now come with me. You two have work to do."
"Yes Miya-san," Tsukiumi and Yukari almost spoke in unison, their fear being so great it actually gave them a level of empathy with each other. Naruto thought it was one of the most amusing things he had ever seen. Right up there with that time Artemis and Athena had been arguing about who got to sleep with him up when Aphrodite decided to sex him up right in front of them while they were still arguing.
That particular incident had eventually degraded into a foursome.
Ah. Good times.
XoX
Dinner that night was eaten in relative silence, the only sound being the clinking of chopsticks and the chewing and swallowing of food. This probably had something to do with the two who Naruto was sure would have made the most ruckus being surprisingly silent.
Or maybe not so surprisingly, given what Miya had done to them. Naruto didn't actually know what it was Miya had said or done when they were helping her set the table, but whatever it was, it had shut them up good. Neither Tsukiumi nor Yukari had said so much as a single word since dinner started.
With the two characters who would have caused the most ruckus being completely silent, Naruto was left with nothing but his own thoughts to entertain him.
Naturally, his mind was thinking on Minaka's latest move. The man in question had finally decided to move onto the next phase of the Sekirei plan. He did this by locking down all exit points leading out of Shinto Teito. Hundreds of soldiers were now stationed at the airports and along the roadsides that led out of the city. In order for anyone to leave, they would now be subjected to extensive screening by MBI's soldiers.
This was done with the intention of ensuring that none of the Sekirei could leave Shinto Teito. It looked like Minaka wanted all of the Sekirei to remain within MBI's grasp. Or more like he wanted to force all of the Sekirei and their Ashikabi to participate in the Sekirei Plan.
It was a very sound strategy all things considered. Naruto had to applaud the man for his resourceful thinking. By creating blockades around all exit points, it not only kept all the Sekirei in, but all the unwanted quantities out. No doubt this was done as much to keep foreign forces from trying something like acquiring a Sekirei of their own as much as it was to keep those involved in the Sekirei Plan confined to a central area.
This wouldn't stop most of the Sekirei who were determined not to participate. Naruto projected there would be at least some who tried to escape anyways, but that's what the Discipline Squad was for. He doubted anyone short of Miya and maybe one or two others would be capable of evading much less defeating the Discipline squad. And only Miya would be able to defeat Karasuba if they decided to send her.
Not that they would be able to stop Naruto if he wanted to escape. It wouldn't be that hard, especially since he had several Hiraishin points located throughout the world in case he needed to make a quick getaway. But both Musubi and Tsukiumi desired to participate in the Sekirei Plan and he would not be a very good Ashikabi if he denied them this chance.
Besides, it wasn't like he had anything better to do. It was either participate in this plan or wander the world again.
It had been fourteen hundred years since the last time he truly settled down in one area. Needless to say, the idea of being a wanderer had lost it's appeal several centuries ago.
"Naruto..."
A blink. Naruto looked up at the sound of his name being called and saw Homura staring at him oddly. How long had the fire user been staring at him?
"Yes? Were you saying something?"
"I was asking if you were alright?" Homura sounded exasperated. "You've been staring at your food for over ten minutes now."
"Ah..." Naruto had not realized he'd been so lost in thought. Wow. He really was an old man. "I'm fine. I was just thinking about something."
"Like?" asked Uzume, who had paused in her attempts to convince Chiho why she should let her feed the girl via mouth to mouth, much to said blushing girl's eternal embarrassment.
"Just thinking about Minaka's latest move," Naruto admitted. The atmosphere became slightly tense at the mention of what Minaka had done. The only two who didn't seem effected were Musubi and Kusano. The Shrine Maiden was smiling her wide, innocent smile as she fed the green girl who had somehow managed to get food all over her face and dress.
Wait. Kazehana was looking pretty relaxed too, sitting there as she chugged her sake straight from the bottle. At least she was paying attention, unlike the other two.
Homura narrowed his eyes.
"What about it?"
"Hmm?" Naruto tilted his head. "What do you mean?"
Homura scowled at the blond.
"I mean, what do you think about his latest move?"
"Well, as far as strategic maneuvering goes it's not bad. A little on the unimaginative side, but still a decent strategy." Naruto ignored the way Homura glared at him, as if complimenting Minaka in any way was the worst sin he could commit. "He's managed to not only keep all Sekirei locked inside of the city without any means of escape, but also managed to find a legal way of keeping any foreign forces out, including the JSDF."
The JSDF or Japanese Self-Defense Force was the unified military force of Japan that had been established after the post-World War II Allied occupation of Japan. They were divided into three forces; the Japanese Ground Self-Defense Force (Army), the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force (Navy), and the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force (Air Force).
Due to his position as an immortal that was essentially trying to keep his existence hidden from the rest of the world, Naruto had the logistics of each force within the JSDF along with a list of the top ranking officers and several thousand pages worth of blackmail/threat material to use should someone go snooping where they didn't belong.
Just like he did for every other Nations military and government.
"How could you compliment anything that madman does!?" asked Homura. If glares could be transformed into physical attacks, Naruto was sure he would have been reduced to ash by now. "Nothing that bastard does can ever be a good thing! He's just playing his sick games and using us Sekirei for his own amusement!"
Several people stared at Homura in stunned silence, namely Tsukiumi and Musubi who were not aware of the shemales intense hatred of Minaka.
"Be quiet, Homura," of course, there was someone among them who was not affected by the white haired Sekirei's rage. Kazehana was still leaning back as she sat at the table, a bottle of sake in front of her. Despite her voice not changing from it's lackadaisical tone, there was a hint of steal to her voice. "You don't know what you're talking about."
Tsukiumi blinked. "Homura?"
"And I suppose you do?" Homura asked scathingly.
"More than you," Kazehana replied before taking a deep swig of her sake. She finished with a loud 'pah' of satisfaction. "I know more about the Sekirei plan and Minaka than you ever could. There are things at play that you know nothing about. So don't go talking like you're some hero whose protecting everyone from the evil villain."
"Che," Homura looked very annoyed by the wind user's comments, but didn't say anything. He obviously knew that there wasn't much he could do about someone of Kazehana's caliber.
Sitting beside him, Yukari and Shiina were looking back and forth between the two, one with worry and the other wondering if she would get to see some clothes ripped off.
Throughout the small argument, Tsukiumi was looking at the white haired fire user with increasingly wide eyes as she finally connected the dots.
"Homura!?"
She stood up rather abruptly, almost knocking over her food as she did so.
"Oh my..." Miya muttered, covering her mouth with a hand as Tsukiumi got food all over her clothes.
"Yes?" asked a still annoyed Homura.
"Y-You – but that's – there's no way you can be Homura!" Tsukiumi pointed a finger at Homura as she shouted. "Homura doesn't have breasts!"
A vein began pulsing on Homura's forehead as his face began to burn. The young gender bent male looked like he might end up catching fire any second now.
"Yeah, well, I do now," he muttered bitterly. "And don't talk about my breasts!" He snapped off as an after thought.
"But that's – it's not – how could –" Tsukiumi seemed to have trouble comprehending what she had just learned. Her mind was stuck in a constant loop as she tried to put the image of the person before her with Homura. Unfortunately, her mind wasn't able to properly compute this information, thus all she could do was stare at the fire user with a slack jawed expression.
"Wait," Uzume sat up, "You mean to tell me you didn't know this was Homura." She snickered. "Oh wow, talk about sad. Hey bro," she looked at Naruto with a grin, "why didn't you tell her that the person she knew had a sex change?"
"I did not have a sex change!?" Homura growled out. Tried to growl out. His voice ended up squeaking in the process.
"Sure you didn't," Uzume chuckled, "And I haven't been trying to convince Chiho-baby to help me seduce the bro here so we can reenact the threesome from chapter five of Icha Icha Schooldays."
"U-Uzume-chan!" Chiho flushed with embarrassment. Uzume gave her Ashikabi an amused grin, which vanished the moment she felt the malevolent presence begin to suffocate her.
"U-zu-me," Miya smiled ominously at the brunnette cloth user. Uzume paled.
"Gah! I'm sorry! I forgot! It will never happen again, Miya-sama!"
"Uhuhuhu, this is just like a soap opera!"
As tensions were broken and the dining table became a riot of activity, Tsukiumi, who had been standing around looking like an idiot, finally managed to comprehend that Homura and the breasted Sekirei before her were, in fact, one and the same.
It was too much for her mind to handle.
The water user's eyes rolled up in the back of her head and she fell backwards in a dead faint. As her body hit the floor, Naruto sighed and just ignored the general chaos around him. Same as Musubi and Kusano, though he suspected they were ignoring it because they didn't really know what was going on.
Or maybe they had just gotten used to the insanity found at Maison Izumo like he had.
XoX
"Now that dinner is done and all of you are here, I have decided it's time to inform you about your new sleeping arrangements." Those were the words Miya used to start what sounded like it was going to be a long combination of lecture and orders.
It was about an hour after dinner and Naruto's Sekirei plus Kazehana, Yukari, Shiina, Uzume and Chiho and minus Kusano and Akitsu had all been ordered ― by Miya of course ― to gather and wash the dirty dishes.
Tsukiumi had protested, claiming she wanted to be with her husband to ensure that no one tried seducing him while she was away. Given that she was glaring at Yukari and Miya when she said this, it was clear to everyone who she was talking about.
One hanya mask later and Tsukiumi and the others were all washing dishes in the kitchen. Naruto had noticed that the landlady had become much more liberal with her use of the hanya mask. He had pleasantly informed her that if she used it so much everyone would eventually become desensitized to it.
Naturally, she had just smiled and told him that she had no idea what he was talking about.
After the dishes had been clean, Yukari and Shiina left. They did not live in Maison Izumo and had their own things to do. Yukari had seemed very disappointed by this fact.
Before they left, however, a blushing and slightly stuttering Yukari had given Naruto her number and told him it would be okay if he called her. Since they were friends and all.
He totally did not believe her.
And maybe it was just him, but he could have sworn Shiina had given him a borderline dirty look when he was saying goodbye to Kusano.
Must be a Sekirei thing.
Were Sekirei territorial over their mates? Probably. At least, so long as the one mating to their Ashikabi was not another Sekirei. Then they seemed to be all for it.
"Sleeping arrangements?" Tsukiumi's voice was questioning as she looked at the large board sitting on the tripod that Miya had brought out. Just where she had gotten it no one knew. It was better not to question where she got something in any case. Asking questions the beautiful, purple haired landlady had no intention of answering often led to a serious migraine. "Why would I need to learn about a new sleeping arrangement. Naturally, I will be sharing a bed with my husband."
"And Musubi will be sharing a bed with her husband too!" Ever the enthusiastic one, Musubi had to add her own input.
Tsukiumi scowled and turned to look at the Shrine Maiden. "You will not be sleeping with Naruto because you are not his wife! You are a concubine! And concubines do not get to sleep with the husband when their wives are around!"
"Hey!" Musubi puffed up her cheeks. "Musubi is Naruto-sama's wife too!"
"Are not!"
"Are too!"
"Are not!"
"Are too!"
As Musubi and Tsukiumi glared at each other, sparks almost literally flying from their eyes as a physical manifestation of their rivalry, Homura sighed.
"This argument is beginning to get a little old."
"Oh, I don't know about that," Uzume said with a grin as she leaned back on her arms, unknowingly thrusting her chest out. Or perhaps not, Naruto corrected his own thoughts when he saw Chiho casting discreet glances at her Sekirei's chest, her own face doing an impressive imitation of a tomato. "I think it's pretty amusing."
"I second that," Naruto added with a raised hand.
"Ah." A pause. "Me too."
"Uhuhuhu, it's just like a soap opera!"
Homura rubbed his face with the palm of his hand. "Whatever, I don't care anymore. I don't."
"While you might not care, Homura, I do," Miya said with a frown. "I still have to give you all your new sleeping arrangements."
"That reminds me," Naruto blinked as he looked at Uzume, Chiho and Kazehana. "Why are you three still here? As far as I know, these sleeping arrangements don't affect you girls?"
In response to his question, Uzume grinned and pointed at the glaring Tsundere water user and incredibly naive Shrine Maiden.
"Fair enough," Naruto conceded, before looking at Kazehana.
"What?" she gave him a sultry, if slightly drunken smile. "Do you not want me here?"
"I don't really care if you stick around or not," Naruto informed her with a shrug. "I just wanted to know why? Call it idle curiosity."
"Well," Kazehana looked thoughtful as she took another swig of sake. "I guess I'm just here because you guys seem interesting. I haven't had much entertainment for a while now, and it looks like Maison Izumo has gotten very entertaining while I've been away."
"So you're here for the same reason Uzume is," it was a logical conclusion. "That's fine with me."
"Excuse me."
Naruto turned back to look at Miya, whose pleasant smile was beginning to look a tad... strained.
"Yes, Miya-chan?" Naruto gave her a blindingly brilliant smile. It was so blinding and so brilliant anyone with a single brain cell would have been able to tell it was fake.
Miya certainly did, if the slight vein on her forehead were any indication. Still, she kept up her pleasant demeanor, even though dark purple miasma began leaking off her body like a cracked sieve.
"As I was saying," she continued in a voice that was far too pleasant to be real. "I need to give you and your Sekirei your new sleeping arrangements."
"Alright, alright," Naruto looked over at the glaring pair of Sekirei and decided it was time to break them up. "Okay, you two! Enough arguing. Sit back down and listen to what Miya has to say."
"Yes husband/Okay Naruto-sama!"
Tossing one quick glare at each other one more time for good measure, Tsukiumi and Musubi sat back down. It was actually kind of impressive how the two actually listened to Naruto despite him not using any kind of hanya reinforcement like Miya often had too.
The landlady in question probably would have wondered why Naruto was so capable of controlling his Sekirei with a simple command ― as well as why he never decided to control his Sekirei until now ― but did not have much inclination to do so when she still had yet to give out the new sleeping arrangements.
Naruto gave a nod, satisfied that they were done for now, then turned his attention back to Miya. "Better?"
"Much," Miya smiled pleasantly. "Thank you, Naruto." Turning her attention to the table at large, Miya began what was obviously a prepared speech. "Now then, because of how many people we now have sharing a single room, I decided to divide you into separate rooms." Before any of the Sekirei could protest, Miya continued. "Homura has her own room..."
"I'm not a female dammit!"
"...So she won't need to worry about this," Miya continued as if Homura had not shouted. "Matsu also has her own room. Kusano will be sleeping with me, same as usual. That means you three, Akitsu, Musubi and Tsukiumi, are the ones this will affect."
Miya pointed towards the board, which showed a map of the second floor of the house. On it was the number of each room with the name of the person sleeping in it, though only Naruto, Uzume, Chiho and Matsu had their names on the board right now. Naruto's name was located inside of room 202, Chiho and Uzume were in 203 and Matsu was in 201. Below the map of the second floor Miya had written each day of the week vertically across the board. Room 204 was empty.
"As you can see, there is only one extra room in Maison Izumo. Rooms traditionally house up to two people, so two of you will be sharing one room while the other gets to sleep with Naruto."
At this, all the Sekirei minus Homura and those who did not belong to Naruto's ever increasing harem perked up.
"As Naruto's proper wife, it is only right that I be the one to sleep with him," that was, of course, Tsukiumi, who was glaring at everyone around the room, daring them to contradict her.
"Musubi is Naruto-sama's proper wife too! She should get to sleep with Naruto-sama!"
"You are not his proper wife, wench!" Tsukiumi stood up and got into one of her more common poses, the one where she spreads her legs wide, places one hand on her hip while the other was pointing at whoever had earned her ire. In this case, Musubi. "I am his proper, legal wife, therefore I am the only one who can sleep with Naruto!"
"Settle down you two," Naruto butted into the argument before it could become worse. As funny as it was too watch these two fight over something as mundane as who his proper wife was, he was not in the mood anymore. This whole situation had already taken too long as it was. "Miya and I came up with a plan that should satisfy everyone."
Miya nodded her head in concurrence. "Because all of you are Naruto's Sekirei, and therefore all deserve an equal amount of time with him, we have decided it would be in the best interest of everyone if you took turns sleeping in his room." Her countenance darkened. "Frankly, you girls are lucky that I am even allowing you to sleep with him at all. I do not generally condone members of the opposite sex from sleeping in the same room, but as you are all his Sekirei and all share a connection, I feel it is your right to be allowed in the same room as your Ashikabi."
"However," all of Naruto's Sekirei gulped as the area around Miya became increasingly dark. "This is not just a right, but a privilege. Should I find that any of you have abused this privilege, I will no longer allow you to sleep in the same room as Naruto. Furthermore, all of your rights shall be taken away and you will be forced to watch while the others get to decide who should get your day with him. Is that understood?"
Naruto's Sekirei all gulped as they nodded along with fear in their eyes. They weren't sure what frightened them more; possibly not being allowed to sleep with their Ashikabi, or being subject to Miya's incredible evilness.
"Good," Miya smiled, her eyes crinkling pleasantly as the aura of sheer dread disappeared. "Now, this means that each of you will have a different day to sleep with Naruto," the landlady continued. "Because there are six of you, that leaves one free day for Naruto. I have decided that whoever is on the best behavior each week will be the one who gets to spend the Sunday night with him."
Almost as one, Musubi and Tsukiumi turned to each other. Sparks of rivalry began to fly as their competitive side came out. Both were determined to be the one who would get to sleep with Naruto on Sunday, and they had no intention of letting the other come out on top.
On the other end of the spectrum, little Kusano was simply imagining what it would be like to have her onii-chan all to herself. Thankfully, she was still very much a child, and all of the images in her head were completely G-rated.
There shall be no mention of what Matsu was thinking about doing with her free time with Naruto. It would be in the best interest of everyone if they never saw what was in her head.
The only one amongst the flock that was not satisfied with the sleeping arrangements was no Homura.
"I refuse to sleep with Naruto," he declared, crossing his arms under his decently sized bust. "No way, no how. Someone else can take my night as well, because I have no intention of spending the night with him."
"Wow," Uzume snickered, "You just got burned bro."
"I can't tell you how depressed that makes me," Naruto responded dryly.
"Homura!" Tsukiumi scowled at her one-time rival. "You would deny your Ashikabi's attention? After all the times you harped on me about finding my own Ashikabi? Are you really that much of a hypocrite?"
"Oh my," Miya muttered, holding a hand to her cheek as she watched Homura's face turn a shade of red that had yet to be discovered. It looked like his entire face had been lit on fire.
Well, he was the Sekirei of fire. It only made sense.
"Hypocrite!?" Homura hissed angrily, his face burning with a mixture of anger, humiliation and shame. Naruto was surprised steam hadn't begun pouring out of his ears. "How dare you call me a hypocrite!"
"Well," Tsukiumi sniffed in a haughty fashion, "what else am I supposed to call you? You, who always made sure that all Sekirei got to be with their Ashikabi and is now denying the chance to be with her own Ashikabi."
"For the last time, I am not a girl!" Homura shouted. "I'm a man! A MAN!"
"Oh my." Miya sighed. "It seems emotions are running hot today."
"Bad pun, Miya," Naruto said, chuckling a bit in spite of himself, "really bad pun."
Miya let out a lovely giggle as she demurely hid her lips behind the sleeve of her kimono. "I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself."
Naruto rolled his eyes. "Anyways, it's fine, Tsukiumi. Homura doesn't have to sleep with me." A grin made it's way to the blond's face, though he masked it quickly. "To be honest, I'd actually prefer not sharing a room with him. I mean, sure, he's got a pretty decent rack and everything, but I would much rather sleep with someone who didn't have all that junk down in their trunk."
While Homura went completely red at Naruto's words ― whether from anger of humiliation had yet to be determined ― Uzume began laughing hysterically. "Hehehehe! All that junk in their trunk! Hahahaha! That's a good one bro!" She quickly fell onto her back, her arms wrapping around her stomach as her legs kicked into the air. "Hehehehe! Oh! I think I need to pee!"
"Uzume/U-Uzume-chan!" The shout came from more than just Chiho this time. Miya had also spoken out loud, looking honestly disbelieving at the young woman's lack of mouth filter when it came to her bodily functions. Likewise, Homura had shouted as well, though whether his was from Uzume's comment on her need to release bodily fluids or her amusement at Naruto's crass joke was unknown.
"Sorry, sorry!" Uzume snorted as she tried to regain control of her giggling. It didn't work and a second later, the brunette Sekirei was laying on her back, laughing.
"I don't see what's so funny!" Homura scowled, the red from his face having now expanded dowto his torso and arms.
"O-Of course you don't... hehe hahaha!" Uzume raged on, causing Homura's scowl to deepen and his blush to spread further across his skin. Naruto worried that his powers might actually be damaging the fire user's body.
Considering Homura nearly killed himself via self immolation, he would not be surprised if the same thing happened again.
"So with Homura not taking a day, that leaves two days that the other Sekirei get free, right?" said Naruto, trying to get things back on track. Which was ironic considering it was his words that had caused Uzume's outburst in the first place.
"I suppose it does," Miya frowned in thought. "I guess this means we'll need another way to determine who gets Homura's day, though I suppose I could just say whoever is on their best behavior will get both days..."
"We could do it this way, whoever is more helpful around the house will get the time Homura would have gotten," Naruto offered. This would give his Sekirei more incentive to help Miya around the house, giving her some time to herself that she would have otherwise used cleaning or taking care of the laundry. As far as Naruto could see it was a win-win situation for her.
It was actually a rather ingenious idea, if he did say so himself.
All of his Sekirei perked up at his idea. Minus Homura, for obvious reasons. They looked even more inflamed when Miya said, "It does sound like a good idea. Very well, whoever is on the best behavior will get to sleep in Naruto-kun's room on Sundays, and whoever helps out the most around the house will get Saturdays, as that was going to be Homura's night with him."
"In that case, I, Tsukiumi, shall prove to you that I am not only the strongest Sekirei in the game, but also the most deserving to be with Naruto." It was not a surprise to anyone, except maybe Musubi, when Tsukiumi made this declaration. She even went into a pose for it and everything.
"Ah! Musubi will prove that she should be with Naruto-sama too!"
Tsukiumi turned to the bouncing busty Shrine Maiden with a scowl. "No you will not! I am the only one who will get to be with Naruto!"
"Ku-chan too! Ku-chan will prove herself to onii-chan!"
"Can it, brat!" Tsukiumi turned on the green girl, pointing a finger at the much smaller blond. "You are but a child! You will not be taking away my time with my husband!"
"Grrrrr~!" A surprisingly loud growl escaped Kusano's throat as she glared at Tsukiumi, who returned the glare just as fiercely.
Naruto couldn't help but feel amused that Tsukiumi was actually having a glaring contest with a child. Did she actually feel threatened by the tiny girl? Or was her competitive nature simply not allowing her to back down from a challenge no matter who made it?
He didn't know, but it was funny to see nonetheless.
"Ufufufu! A soap opera I'm telling you!"
Naturally, Matsu was enjoying watching the scene unfold before her far too joyfully. Though this too was expected.
Naruto assumed the red haired, perverted hacker was just doing what she could to remain entertained. From what he understood about the woman, she had been cooped up in that hidden room for several months (maybe even over a year) before he had even arrived in Shinto Teito. Remaining hidden in one place for so long had to be grating on the nerves.
He made a mental note to create a disguise so Matsu could get out more.
"Ah..."
The quiet sound emitting from Akitsu's voice had everyone pause. This was the first time she had spoken in a while, so it was not surprising that most of those present was actually startled enough to hear her speak that all conversation ceased.
Slowly, the heads of all those in the room turned to look at the white haired snow woman, who was seated very demurely directly behind Naruto ― she had moved there after she finished eating, though even Naruto was at a loss as to when. He hadn't even noticed her move! While her face was just as impassive as always, there was something in her eyes that caused Naruto's other Sekirei to straighten up.
It was steel. There was a determination in her eyes that was not usually visible when not in combat. It was pretty intimidating.
"I will be sleeping with Ashikabi-sama."
The declaration was met with a moment of silence. A moment which truly only lasted for a moment because Tsukiumi apparently did not like Akitsu's words.
"You will do no such thing! The only person going to be sleeping with my husband is me!"
"I'm his husband too, you know!"
"You shut up!"
As all of Naruto's Sekirei once more descended into a large argument over who would get to sleep with the blond Uzumaki, Miya and the male in question shared an amused yet exasperated look while Homura seemed to have drifted into his own world and Uzume simply sat back with a grin on her face as she enjoyed the show.
The only one not watching the show was, surprisingly, Kazehana, who was keeping her eyes on Naruto.
"My oh my..." she knocked back the bottle of sake and finished what was left in a single gulp. Smacking her lips, she felt a smile creeping onto her face. "I was right... what an interesting young man."
XoX
It was late in the evening when Naruto found his way to the veranda to sit down. The day had been quite eventful, what with the rescue of Yukari and Shiina and all the craziness that came after. Things had just now settled down with the eventual assigning of which days his Sekirei would have to sleep with him.
Naruto had to hold back a snort at the thought. Honestly, assigning days to be with him? Even on the rare centuries where he actually acquired his own harem, he had never had to assign women days.
Then again, he usually had a lot more than just six women to please.
It helped that he could be in more than once place at a time. Speaking of which, maybe he should begin showing more of his abilities? At the very least, revealing that he could literally split his body at least six times would prove useful...
Then again, maybe not. If he revealed this ability to one of his Sekirei he would have to reveal it to all of his Sekirei, and he wasn't quite ready to let Musubi know anything more than he had already shown her. Who knows when she would end up revealing that kind of information to a potential enemy?
Probably when it was most inconvenient for him. That was usually how this type of situation worked out.
Yes, it was better to just not reveal anything at the moment. Safer too.
"I thought I might find you here." Naruto did not turn his head as Miya walked up to him and sat down on the veranda just a few inches away. "The girls are nearly done washing up. If you wanted to get cleaned after them I could draw another bath for you?"
"Thank you," Naruto turned his eyes towards the youthful landlady and smiled. "But I actually already took a bath before dinner." He wondered what Miya would say if she found out he had a clone help make dinner half the time before he used the Kawarimi to replace himself with his copy.
She would probably make some comment on how he could use the ability to unleash his beastly urges on her and the other Sekirei.
"Hmmm..." Miya eyed him for a moment, both of her amethyst orbs focused on him. Naruto wondered if she saw things differently when searching his face like that.
A second later, her eyes crinkled and she smiled again.
"That's fine, but next time, please inform me when you want to use the bathhouse. That way I can draw it for you."
"Hmmm..." Naruto hummed thoughtfully, a tiny grin creeping on his face. "You're being awfully thoughtful. I wonder, would you go out of your way like this for any of your other tenants? Or are you offering to do this just for me for some reason?"
In the pale glow of the moon, most people would have missed the light tint of pink that crept onto Miya's cheeks. Naruto, with his enhanced vision, did not.
"I would do this for any of my tenants," Miya declared, turning away from the blond so he could not see her blush. A little too late for that. Then again, she probably didn't know how good Naruto's eyes were.
"And yet, you did not draw the bath for Akitsu, Tsukiumi and Musubi," Naruto pointed out. He was amused to see the color on her cheeks spread down her neck.
How interesting. Was it embarrassment she felt? Or something else? And if so, why?
"I would have done it for them too," Miya defended herself. She was being honest there at least. Naruto could tell that much. "But by the time I had managed to put Ku-chan to bed, they had already drawn the bath."
Naruto let out a soft hum as he turned back to stare out at the moon. It was a full moon, so the light it cast was much brighter than usual.
Hard to believe that thing had once contained the body of a Primordial God.
"Naruto?" Miya's soft voice startled him out of his thoughts. He turned his head to see the woman giving him a curious look. "What do you really think of everything that's happened?"
"You mean with Minaka and the Sekirei Plan?" at Miya's nod, the blond leaned back on his arms and looked up at the moon again, his expression contemplative. "Well, I already knew it was going to happen, so I'm not too surprised by it. Though it did happen sooner than I expected it to."
"As for what I think, as I said, it was a smart move on his part. Not only does he keep all external and foreign forces out, but he keeps all Sekirei in. This means that the Sekirei won't be able to spread the battle outside of Shinto Teito, thereby localizing the battle to a single city. This will ensure that the existence of Sekirei remain a secret. To be honest, it benefits the Sekirei right now more than Minaka."
"You mean from forces that might want to kidnap and experiment on them?" asked Miya. Naruto gave a nod.
"I don't think I need to tell you what would happen if the existence of Sekirei became known to various world governments. You were there when the group of foreign nations tried to invade Kamikura Island, number zero one."
Miya gave him a mild look, a single eyebrow raised. "Dare I ask how you know this?"
Naruto snorted. "Oh please, don't act like you didn't realize I knew who you were. It's not that hard to figure out for anyone who can actually use that organ in their head called a brain. You're the wife of the former head adjustor for all the Sekirei, who just so happened to adjust the first five that were released. You hold both the respect and fear of Matsu and Kazehana. You tend to know a lot more than you should about Sekirei if you were just a normal landlady, wife of Asama Takehito or not. Not to mention all the tenants here aside from myself and Chiho are Sekirei, and that's not saying much since we happen to be Ashikabi.
"And then there is your presence," Naruto continued to the intrigued Miya. "Your presence is something that cannot be masked to those who are sensitive to it. You might be able to hide yourself underneath the guise of an unassuming landlady, but anyone who is sensitive to such things can feel the power inside of you, lurking just beneath the surface."
"Besides," Naruto added with a small grin, "I already knew you were a Sekirei. You've admitted as much to me before. Considering your power, I can't imagine you being anyone but the number zero one, the first and most powerful Sekirei amongst the one hundred and eight that were released in Shinto Teito."
"Hmph," Miya huffed a bit as Naruto categorically destroyed the aura of mystery that surrounded her origins. "You make it very hard to keep things a secret, Naruto-kun."
"You're just upset that you can't pretend to be a humble yet all knowing landlady with me," Naruto teased lightly. "You can't fool me. I know you enjoy playing the omnipotent landlady who teases and berates her tenants as if they were her children." He gave a self-satisfied grin when he saw her blush. "I've already got your personality down to a T."
"You seem to be able to pick up on a lot of things like this," Miya commented, holding the sleeves of her Kimono to her face as she turned away again.
"Learning how to read others is a necessary skill for me," Naruto said. "I wouldn't have survived as long as I have otherwise."
"Really?" Miya looked back, a single eyebrow raised in curiosity. There was an offer in her tone, he knew. She was giving him the chance to tell her more about him.
But he didn't take it.
"So I take it that large landmass up there is where you Sekirei are from?"
Miya frowned at Naruto, clearly recognizing the tactic was being used to divert her attention away from him and onto something else.
Still, there was not much she could do. If Naruto did not want to talk about himself, Miya could not force him to. And even if she could, she would not.
So she looked up at the sky, already knowing exactly what he was talking about. Most people would have missed it, the large landmass with the large wings that was mostly hidden behind the moon. They were highly unusual wings. Each wing had ten feathers, and the largest feather on the top held a ying-yang symbol on it near the base. Coming together, the ten feathers were connected to a light symbol in the general shape of a birds profile. The two birds connected to the feathers were facing each other, the points of their beaks coming together in a kiss.
She was not surprised Naruto could see it. Then again, she was not surprised by much when it came to him these days. As much of an enigma as her blond tenant was, she was beginning to get desensitized to the things he could do.
"Yes," Miya answered, deciding to be more forthcoming with information about her kind. Maybe it would even convince Naruto to open up if she extended the olive branch first. "That is the last piece of the world we Sekirei came from."
"I had always wondered why it was you all came here," Naruto mused softly, almost to himself. "Ostensibly, the Sekirei are supposedly aliens who came here to search for their Ashikabi, the person they are most compatible with. But that would only make sense if you had been forced to leave your home planet for one reason or another."
"I had suspected the reason you all left your home planet was due to a war, or series of wars that had left the planet inhospitable, though I'm beginning to think there was another reason for leaving."
Miya found herself getting more and more intrigued by his words. She wondered how close he could get to the reason her people left their planet.
"And that is?"
"As I understand it, a Sekirei needs their Ashikabi in order to survive and copulate. It's a natural part of your species, and I suspect there is some kind of coding within your DNA that means without an Ashikabi, a Sekirei cannot produce a child, meaning that without Ashikabi, your species would die out."
He looked over to Miya for confirmation. She affirmed his theory with a nod, causing him to continue.
"Going off that, it's reasonable to assume that your planet at one point had Ashikabi living within it. However, something happened, war I suspect, and it caused all of the Ashikabi to be eradicated. Without a means to continue producing offspring, the Sekirei were forced to leave the planet in search of one that had Ashikabi on it." He watched Miya as she fully turned her attention on him. "And you came here."
"Yes," Miya confirmed, "We came here."
"Hmm..." Naruto eyed the giant mass of land floating within the moons shadow with interest. "So what's the story behind that? It doesn't look like your average spaceship."
"It's not," Miya admitted quietly. Naruto's attention turned to her. "That ship, if you wish to call it that, is actually the last surviving piece of the Sekirei home world. I don't know how they managed to remove it from the rest of our world, this was all before my time, but I do know that much."
"I see, your guys' technology must be incredible if you can move pieces of your planet with you."
"I suppose," Miya muttered softly. Naruto grew concerned when she saw her look up into the sky with regret.
"Something wrong?"
"No," Miya shook her head. Naruto's frown grew.
"You can't lie to me, Miya," he told her, making the woman look away from the moon and at him. "You're looking at a man who has lied for most of his adult life. A man whose entire life is one big lie. I can spot a lie miles away, and I can see through yours." Miya flinched at being caught. Strangely, she did not flinch when Naruto rested his hand over hers. "What's wrong?"
A breathy sigh escaped her mouth. She could not lie to him. Maybe it was because he had caught her so easily, or maybe it was because she needed someone to talk to. Either way, she told him.
"While that mass of land used to be my home, it has since been turned into something else," her lips thinned. "Minaka has managed to take control of it and plans on using it in the Sekirei Plan. I do not know what he intends on using it for, or what stage it will be used in, but I do know that all of the defeated Sekirei have been sent up there."
"I see," Naruto looked back to the floating mass of land. He wondered if the level five deactivation of his ― Mitsuki? Or was it Mitsuha? He couldn't remember ― was also up there. From the way everyone spoke of the levels of deactivation and his own investigations via interrogating Matsu, he had learned that most of the defeated Sekirei who had a level four and below deactivation could be reactivated with the proper stimuli. Just what that stimuli was, he didn't know.
Would they bother keeping the corpse of a Sekirei that couldn't be reactivated?
"There you are, Naruto!"
Naruto and Miya quickly jerked their hands away from each other at the sound of the voice. Both turned to see Tsukiumi standing there, her hands on her hips and a scowl on her face. She did not look pleased to see the two of them together.
"Husband," she said in a tone that Naruto actually recognized as belonging to a wife. He was surprised she could make that kind of tone considering she had never wanted an Ashikabi before him. Then again, she was very proper, so maybe it was to be expected. "What are you doing with the landlady?"
"Talking," Naruto answered as he climbed to his feet. "I take it you and the others are done bathing?"
"Yes," Tsukiumi answered, "We just finished a little while ago and I came to come get you."
Naruto's lips twitched slightly as Tsukiumi crossed her arms under her bust ― which did some very pleasant things to her breasts, as he could attest to ― and tapped her foot on the ground. She came to get him because they had managed to work out a schedule and as today was Wednesday, that meant it was her night with him.
"Alright," Naruto looked over at Miya. "You gonna stay here?"
"For a while, yes," Miya replied, her eyes crinkling as she smiled. "I originally came out here so I could have some peace and quiet, but since you were here I didn't get that. Now that you're going to bed, I'll stay out a while longer."
Naruto snorted, knowing a lie when he heard one, but didn't say anything to dispute her.
He turned to Tsukiumi and offered a smile as well as his arm.
The blond haired water user flushed slightly and looked away. Not that this stopped her from taking his proffered arm and snuggling it into the valley of her bosom. She was very possessive of him when she wanted to be.
"What were you and Landlady-san talking about, Naruto?"
Was she fishing for information? Naruto looked over at the woman on his arms and almost chuckled when he saw her looking away from him. She was definitely trying to gather intel from him, probably trying to find out if Miya was going to become a rival for his affection or something.
"Just trivial topics mostly like cooking," Naruto barely restrained a chuckle when he saw Tsukiumi's nose wrinkle in distaste. She did not like doing things like cooking, he had learned early on, feeling that such tasks were beneath her. "She also asked me about my thoughts on the Sekirei plan."
Now that did get Tsukiumi's attention.
"And what are your thoughts on the Sekirei Plan?"
"None, really," Naruto admitted, nearly causing Tsukiumi to trip. "To be honest, the plan doesn't interest me one bit. I'm only really willing to go through with the Sekirei Plan because you and Musubi are interested in it."
"So you are only involving yourself in the Sekirei plan for us, your Sekirei?" asked Tsukiumi, who Naruto was surprised to note was looking a little flush and seemed to be breathing a bit more heavily. Was the knowledge that he was only willing to participate in this plan because she and Musubi wanted to really that big a deal?
Apparently so, if her reaction was anything to go by.
"I wouldn't be a very good Ashikabi if I denied my Sekirei what they wanted." It was kind of a hypocritical statement, he knew. Naruto still refused to give them their 'wedding night' as they had taken to calling it. Still, he would at least give them this, the chance to prove themselves.
"I-I see..." Tsukiumi looked away as they walked up the stairs. The rest of the trip to the room was surprisingly quiet. Or maybe not so surprisingly. Tsukiumi seemed a bit to stunned by his words to say anything. That, or she was embarrassed. And Naruto wasn't really feeling any inclination to break the silence, no matter how uncomfortable it might be.
They entered their room and Naruto shut the door behind them. When he turned around, it was to see Tsukiumi staring at him, her left arm reaching across her torso, under her bust, to grab the elbow of her right arm. As soon as Tsukiumi saw that he had noticed her staring, her cheeks pinkened and she looked away.
It was this act that had Naruto's breath once again stolen from him as he realized just how gorgeous the creature in front of him was. Her long strands of silken blond hair fell, cascading down her back like a blond wave of the elemental she was known for wielding. Her bangs hovered over her expressive and vulnerable blue eyes while two longer strands of shiny, silken hair framed a face that defied the term angelic.
And that was to say nothing about the rest of her. Compared to the likes of Matsu, Akitsu and even Musubi, Tsukiumi's nightgown was very modest, a pale blue gown that went all the way down to her bare feet. Despite this, the material was light, not quite translucent, but light enough that he could make out the curves of her gorgeous figure; those large, firm breasts that had her nipples visible from underneath the fabric that moved into a small waist complete with flat, toned abdominal muscles. The sensual flare of her wide, shapely hips and small, firm rear end that flowed into a pair of long legs that were surprisingly muscular yet did not detract from her feminity. That combined with the glow cast upon her by the pale light of the moon, creating a startling halo effect, she truly looked like some kind of otherworldly creature.
Damn. Tsundere's really were the epitome of adorably erotic.
Just how those two words could ever be used in the same sentence was beyond him.
And on that note, he must be a masochist or something for thinking such things about a tsundere.
"Naruto," was it wrong that he felt the way she spoke his name to be far more intimate then when she called him husband?
"Yes?"
"Are you ― what I mean to say is, do you worry for me?"
That was a very loaded question. And random. To him at least. Most would have felt such a question easy to answer, but not him.
The truth was, Naruto didn't know how to answer such a question. If he were honest, there were moments when he felt it would be better if she and the other Sekirei he had winged were deactivated in this game. The sooner it happened the better because that would mean he wouldn't have enough time to grow too attached.
As if that hadn't already happened. In truth, that moment had, in some ways, passed ever since he first winged Musubi. While Naruto had, on occasion, entertained the thought, his heart would clench with a fear he had lived with for most of his immortal life whenever the idea of his Sekirei being taken from him cropped into his head. It was enough to make him sick.
"In my own way," Naruto said after a seconds pause. "I worry about all of you, but I also have confidence in your strength and abilities."
Apparently, this was the right answer because Tsukiumi soon became a blushing, stuttering mess. It was always amusing to see how women like Tsukiumi reacted to even simple compliments.
"I ― well― well! Of course you should have confidence in me," Tsukiumi managed to get herself back on track. She even took one of her infamous poses, the one where she stood with her feet spread shoulder width apart and her hands on her hips. "I am the strongest, after all."
"Of course," Naruto grinned in amusement. He became even more amused when Tsukiumi seemed to take his words as agreeing with her.
Not that he did or didn't. Tsukiumi, like almost all Sekirei, had the potential for incredible power. The ability to become one of the strongest Sekirei in existence was there, but it would need coaxing before that potential could be turned into true strength and ability. As she was right now, Naruto judged Tsukiumi to be one of the more powerful players in the Sekirei Plan, but any of the first five Sekirei and Akitsu were stronger than she was currently.
Hopefully not for much longer. Naruto planned to eventually begin training his Sekirei personally, but there were some things he was waiting on first.
Like that project his clones were working on. Every morning for the past two weeks he had sent his clones off to work on something he had assigned them to do. With luck, they would be finished within the next one or two weeks.
They would have been done much sooner had the need for discretion not been paramount. He didn't want anyone finding out about what they were doing quite yet, especially those who were not his Sekirei or did not live here. That meant keeping his project a secret.
"Come on, Tsukiumi," Naruto walked further into the room. "Let's go to bed."
As he made his way to the bed, he began absently shedding his clothes; first his shirt, then his jeans, until he was left in nothing but a pair of orange ramen themed boxers.
Not even five thousand years could change Naruto's love for ramen.
"O-Oh, of course. Y-yes," Tsukiumi flushed as she realized that this was her moment. She was finally alone with her husband and none of those other strumpets, especially her rival, could get in her way now.
Naturally, this left the blond woman a blushing mess as she realized it was just her and her husband.
Even Tsukiumi was a bit of a pervert.
It didn't help that Naruto had a body that was generally considered perfect. He was not too small nor too large. His muscles had the perfect amount of tone and definition. There was no fat on his body, allowing those muscles to be seen more clearly, yet he did not have the veiny look that most muscle builders had from lack of body fat. The light tan he had made the perfectly defined muscles seem even more toned than they already were. Top this off with his spiky blond hair, bright blue eyes, masculine features and those whisker marks and you had someone the majority of woman would consider worthy of their most erotic fantasies.
And yes, Tsukiumi was included in this group of women.
"Tsukiumi?" Naruto turned around after pulling the bed sheets back to see that Tsukiumi had not moved from her spot. She was still standing there, stalk still, her eyes staring at his naked torso with equally naked desire. She was even drooling and the blond Uzumaki thought he actually saw some blood leaking out of her nose.
Wow. He would have expected something like that from Matsu, not Tsukiumi.
"Tsukiumi!"
"Ah!" Tsukiumi jerked, startled by the noise. Her cheeks flushed hot pink as she saw Naruto staring at her.
"Come on," Naruto decided to grant the woman some reprieve and not tease her for her blatant stripping of him with her eyes.
He held out his hand to the blond water user. Tsukiumi looked at the hand, flushed an even brighter shade of pink, then turned her head to the side in an effort to hide her blush as she laid her hand against Naruto's open palm.
Naruto's fingers curled around Tsukiumi's hand as he pulled her towards the bed. He crawled in and moved over to the side so Tsukiumi could crawl in as well.
"How do you normally sleep when you're alone?" Tsukiumi blinked at the question, confusion written clear in her eyes. Still, she answered him nonetheless.
"On my side."
"Lay on your side then, back facing me," Naruto ordered.
Normally, Tsukiumi would have rebuked his attempts at ordering her around, but the close proximity between her and her Ashikabi, and the fact that they were alone left her momentarily speechless. All she could do was do as she was told.
She laid down on her side, facing away from Naruto. Her legs curled up slightly and the arm resting against the bed found itself buried under the pillow Tsukiumi was using to rest her head on.
She heard shuffling from behind her. For a moment, she wondered what Naruto was doing. Was he going to take advantage of her? Was she finally going to get her wedding night?
Was she even ready for her wedding night?
Stupid question. Of course she was! It... it wasn't like she was embarrassed or anything. She was just ― a little of unsure of what she should do when Naruto finally made her a true woman.
Yes, that was it. This was going to be her first time being intimate with her husband. It was only natural to feel some trepidation. It was nothing for her to worry about. Just like she was the strongest Sekirei, she would show Naruto that she was also the best suited to... to...
Tsukiumi's mind promptly shut down when images that were not meant for minors flashed across her mind. Had she been, well, not partially brain dead from the erotic imagery in her head, she would have blamed Matsu on the fact that she was having such thoughts in the first place.
Damn that loquacious witch!
Her mind came back online just a few seconds later when she felt an arm slide across her torso. The act had her shivering and caused goosebumps to appear on her flesh, yet it also brought with it an incredible warmth that was both familiar and foreign. It was the same warmth she felt whenever she was thinking about her Ashikabi, or when she was close to him. Yet this was the first time he had been intimate with her in such a way.
At least, intimate with her and her alone. She couldn't really count all those other times they slept together because those concubines kept butting into her time with her husband.
"What the―?"
"Shh..." Naruto hushed her. Tsukiumi shivered. Not because he spoke to her, but because his voice was so close, close enough that his hot breath was hitting her neck and it was leaving chills in it's wake.
The feeling of his breath on her neck was followed by that of a muscular body being pressed against her back. Naruto muscular torso found itself snugly pressing against her back until there was not even enough space for oxygen to pass through.
His legs followed suit as well, curling slightly just under her own. And with Naruto's arm wrapped around her torso so tightly, it was clear there would be no escape for her.
Not that she wanted to escape. Even though she felt incredibly embarrassed by the proximity and equally aroused by it, the water user could not find it in herself to complain. Rather, the heat Naruto's body emitted was beginning to take it's toll, zapping her of her strength.
It felt very nice, this heat. Tsukiumi felt like she had been wrapped in a fleas blanket and it was making her eyelids very heavy.
"Good night, Tsukiumi."
The words did not reach Tsukiumi, who had already fallen asleep in her Ashikabi's arms.
I would like to thank Arthain for letting me use his idea of the floating landmass where the final battle in the Sekirei Plan takes place actually being a piece of the Sekirei's homeworld. For those who have not read his story, I would suggest reading The Ninth Sekirei Pillar. It's a much better written story than my own. More original too. He doesn't follow the canon plot like I do.
Now with that out of the way, please let me know what you think of this chapter. Good, bad, do you want to take a pitch fork and gank me in the stomach? All reviews both critical and ego boosting are welcome.
Also, do not forget to check out my blog. The link is on my profile.