CHAPTER TWENTY ONE= All will be one (Nazarick is ready for war. The ninja nations tremble!)
Shalltear, as soon as she found out where to go, headed toward her master as fast as she could. Several ninja guards sent word of "something moving too fast to see is headed toward the Forest of Death" and alarms were going off by the time she had made her way to his door.
"LORD AINZ!" The office doors of Ainzes office nearly exploded open from her voice alone. Yet as she entered his room in her classic dress and umbrella combo she walked in with dignified grace. She casually had the umbrella over her shoulder but her trembling betrayed her excitement.
"E...EH!?" Ainz sat up in near shock. He was still only briefly informed about the fight that had happened, to see Shalltear before him in the flesh was like getting a drink of leondeade when you were parched… or the mental equivalent to it anyway.
"S-Shalltear? What… How…" She blushed and smiled shyly.
"Lord Ainz is so happy to see me he cannot speak!" Shalltear squealed. In truth Ainz was getting several refreshing emotion stabilizing waves, he was so overcome with joy and shock it was true that talking currently escaped him.
"Imagine my surprise when I hear a weird voice in my head asking for your help, I knew immediately I had to go to it, that it would lead me to you and… at long last it has!" She ran to him and fell to her knees.
"Oh but it really is you… yes… only the real you could stir up these emotions in me!" She shuddered as she touched the hem of his cloak. While he could understand her missing him, it had not been really THAT long since he'd come to this place.
"In the many years you've been gone we've been worried sick that you…"
"Years… many?" He stopped her. Shalltear blinked and looked up with shock.
"Why… why, yes my Lord… nearly 55 years have passed since you've left us…" She shook her head with grief and sorrow. Ainz shook his head. None of this made any sense! Her [GATE] spell worked when he had failed… and time being so… different, he had no idea.
"So, you mean… Nazarick has been without me for over five decades?" Ainz said in a soft tone. Shalltear nodded, still a little confused. Ainz put his hand to his face and shook his head. He was no longer working on an acceptable time table. Then the flood of other questions hit him, about the recent attack. Danzo stood in silence, cut off from Shalltear's entrance.
"I'm sorry Danzo… um, you said everyone is alive?"
"Everyone that means us harm. Yes, your… future bride killed all the attackers as I was saying, Sakura and Neji are safe, Tanya was hurt but is already recovering and will come to speak with you in person when she is able." Danzo informed Ainz.
"Eh? Tanya? She? Who is this Tanya that can report to Lord Ainz when it suits her?" Shalltear asked, frowning.
"Uh, Well she… is Lord Ainz Ooal Gowns second in command and his top floor guardian."
Shalltear felt as if she were suddenly falling in a deep black pit of despair as Danzo's words echoed all around her.
"His Top floor Guardian…" Over and over. In her absence he had promoted this… Tanya to such a rank… had he forgotten her?
"Oh, and Tanya was the young blonde girl you rescued upon your very timely arrival, Lady Shalltear. Shalltear was still in shock when Ainz realized something else he had said.
"You said she was my future bride?" Ainz asked. Danzo looked at Neji and Sakura's field report and nodded.
"Yes, this was how she announced herself My Lord." Danzo said looking back and forth between the two. Shalltear was snapped out of her stupor and blushed with another bashful smile.
"Apologies My Lord… I may have been a little over excited upon hearing your name so unexpectedly in my mind and…" Ainz raised his hand in understanding.
"It's okay Shalltear… I understand it must have been hard for you all without me…" The familiar faces of his beloved members of Nazarick all flooded his memory.
"Should I…" Danzo looked at his unfinished report. Ainz nodded. Shalltear showed she understood and bounced happily to her lord's side.
"As I was saying… The female ninja is named Konan, upon resurrecting her, Tanya has learned she was sent here to infiltrate our town, or at least learn how loyal the ninja she encountered were as we are finding guards who were questioned by her all over the outer rims of our territories." Danzo bowed showing he had finished.
"This was a bold and obvious move… what about the 6 others, what did they say when brought back?" Danzo frowned.
"We… do not understand why but those six do not respond… they are like lifeless dolls... Tanya has said she has never seen the spell fail like this before." Ainz tapped his desk.
"Well it shows they are still not convinced they can take us in a fight… or are still preparing for one."
"But… Shalltear… how exactly did you end up here?" Ainz asked, hoping she could repeat whatever she had done.
"Um… well, I just received a [MESSAGE] from a voice I did not recognize, but it used your name my Lord so I opened up a [GATE] spell and found myself here. Ainz scratched his chin in thought.
"For whatever reason it seems sometimes spells work… oddly here at times… at least when [MESSAGE] is concerned…" This gave Ainz some new ideas on how to possibly get home, but that would have to be put on the back burner for now when he had time to experiment with Shalltear's spells and his own.
"But my Lord what…" Shalltear began but was interrupted.
The door opened and a roughed up Tanya entered, though she seemed to be on the mend and bandaged up. Her blue eyes immediately fell on the new arrival. Despite that she remained professional.
"Oh, Tanya, good." Ainz waved to her and motioned for her to join them. Shalltear looked at the little girl and frowned. So this was the… "highest ranked floor guardian?" How could this pipsqueek command such a title… even if it wasn't the "real" Nazarick.
"Their target is the tailed beasts Naruto and Gaara as we were told. As far as our attacker knows… that's still their only objective." Tanya said as she limped in. She and Shalltear exchanged another quick glance before breaking and looking back to Ainz..
"Ah, Tanya, this is my… original first Floor Guardian, Shalltear…" Ainz was explaining. Tanya stopped him.
"Yes, she introduced herself… " Business first.
"Right… well, then that is good news I guess…" Danzo said looking at some more papers.
"Well, not really, she said the remaining members of the Akatsuki have gone to the Lightning nation… which we suspected was already planning to move against us…"
"I see… Then they will incite them further to this point in hopes of getting the tailed beasts then… as well as theirs to boot…"
"Yes, that seems to be their goal… all our intelligence makes more sense with this known."
"Oh right… you had reported the Lightning nation was acting suspicious…. Well uh, more suspicious than usual." Ainz said, recalling the last report. Back when he was allowed to read reports at his own leisure thing got missed, but with Danzo spending half the day reading them off… no such luck on slacking off.
"Yes, it seems we now know why…" Ainz thought for a second.
"Thank you all for your hard work. Tanya, I have made up my mind. Get yourself healed up… we have work to do." She saluted him and left the room, a bit odd she did not bow like the others, but he understood it still entailed respect. Danzo and Shalltear both awaited to see what he would say next.
"With Shalltear added to my power… this campaign has grown almost too easy…" Ainz chuckled, she blushed at the open compliment. Danzo looked at her stunned.
"Is she so strong my Lord?" Ainz nodded.
"She once fought me to a near draw long ago… you can consider her to be mostly on my level." Danzo's jaw fell open. Shalltear now looked flustered. Clearly mentioning her betrayal still was not a pleasant experience, but he had also heaped even more praise on her by saying she was his near equal… her mind and body were conflicted on how to feel.
"I am confident she alone could take out the Lightning nations strongest fighters." Ainz concluded. Shalltear remained silent, awaiting her orders and to happy to be of such high use to her Lord.
"Then do you mean…"
"Yes! We will not wait for them any longer. We will be attacking the Lightning Nation… and then some." Ainz said with a confident nod. Danzo looked less than pleased, but still very curious...
"While You and Lady Shalltear are no doubt strong… The Lead ninja forces that do not have you two as backup will suffer…" Ainz shook his head.
"Worry not. The units I create will provide an easy path for our troops." Danzo still did not look sold.
"While impressive, your Death Knights may still be no match for…"
"No… Not Death Knights…" Shalltear now had a large grin on her face. While she had no idea what was going on, the marching steps of war never changed their beat, and she knew this song well.
"I've been saving something… for this very moment… meet me in the basement of this tower." Ainz got up and walked with Shalltear behind him. Danzo blinked in surprise.
"There's... a basement?"
In the room Danzo did not know about stood a sight that froze him upon witnessing it. The room was tremendous in size… it must be a good portion of the forest of deaths underground. The room had been made using earth jutsu, but what stood in the room was not of this earth.
Row after row of some kind of horse like creature stood in spooky silence. Pale yellow like smoke or breath emanate from their blackened skeletal frames.
"What are…" Danzo could only whisper… as he could feel the killing intent from each and every one of these things they all looked at their new guests in unison.
"Souleaters… each one of these can easily destroy a good sized army by themselves… and the more they kill, the stronger they become… so after culling an army of humans they will become more than strong enough to take on the generals of the army… the elites as it were. No Danzo, the Leaf ninja forces will do nothing more than clean up after the Soul Eaters… I suspect losses will be minimal as I only expect my human soldiers to stay in captured cities to maintain control, I won't need them on the front lines… or any lines for that matter, they simply will be occupying forces.
"Each one… an army… but there are over…" Danzo tried to count, but his answer was given to him before he could reach his final tally.
"200… There are 200 in total."
"Each with the fighting power of an entire army of ninja and it's commander?" Danzo whispered still as the realization was coming to him.
"Surly you didn't think I wasn't doing anything all this time? No, I wanted to make twice this… but with the news Shalltear has told me, I'll have to make do with this many, which will be easy given I have one of my floor guardians back." He still missed seeing the others but knew there would be a day he would be reunited with them as well.
"Make do? But with this many you could…" The other realization just hit him.
"Yes, attack every ninja nation at once… and with Shalltear here, I have yet another commander to lead us to victory." Ainz smiled sinisterly. Shalltear walked over and patted one of the foul beasts on it's… on what used to be its nose.
"But before that… Shalltear, I don't suppose your [GATE] spell could simply take us home?" Ainz didn't figure it would work… and of course he was right. Her [GATE] spell… for whatever reason, no longer could connect back to her and Ainzes home world. She begged for forgiveness but he assured her it was alright.
"It seems things can enter this world., but leaving it proves difficult…. Sadly I was expecting this result. Ainz said as he patted Shalltear on her head.
"We'll continue experimentation till we get it to work." Aizn assured her as he saw she was covering up her sadness of failing him. He decided it was time for a break and a talk.
"But… please tell me what has happened in my absence… how is Nazarick and my Kingdom holding up?" Shallteaar nodded, she had a lot to fill her master in on.
"For the most part Pandora's Actor has been able to cover for you in all official business. Thanks to Project Balrog the world dares not rebel against us…" Ainz remembered a mention of this "Project Balrog" when reading over Demiurges old reports. She must have noticed his confusion.
"Oh! That's right, you were not around when it was launched. Balrog is a floating fortress powered by two Dragon Lords. It can fly over any area of the map and rain down destruction with no cost to our resources!" She explained proudly. It certainly sounded like a project Demiurge would dream up. He motioned for her to continue.
"So, all has been peaceful after a few… examples were made." She smiled brightly. It was a relief to know his home was well taken care of in his absence.
"Mare is doing well as King of the Elves. He and Zesshi had children and…"
"Children? I… I missed the birth of Nazaricks first members…"
"Uh, Yes my Lord, two half elves, a girl named Hitomi and a boy named Jin… they are the pride of Nazarick." She smiled again, she clearly loved these two children he'd never met.
"I see... " Ainz sat back, feeling a forlorn.
"And the rest?" She thought for a few moments.
"Ah, Aura is doing well, she helps Mare and Zesshi train and raise the new twins, she has proven to be a wonderful aunt to them. Ainz smiled at the thought of two little half elves calling Aura "Aunt Aura".
"Cocytus has been doing as you asked and still governs the lizard people and their ilk." It was clear she had not grown any respect for the "adopted" civilizations Nazarick was taking under its wing in the past.
"Demiurge concerns himself with the day to day duties and helps Pandora's Actor when he needs help deciding how you would want things to proceed…
Demiurge knew Ainzes plan better than he did… so that was no surprise Ainz thought with a satisfied nod.
"...while Albedo stays in Nazarick and governs it like she always has." Shalltear waved her hand around as if to dismiss this very important role. The news she gave him was good, everyone was fine and thriving…. But not being there for it, to see his children grow, still hurt.
Later that night in the war room, after Shalltear had been introduced to the rest of the new Nazaricks inner circle of Gaara and a healed Tanya… the business of world domination commenced.
"So you see, with Tanya's ability to enslave the dead… the more we conquer, the stronger our forces become... Making an army of unkillable… semi-powerful foot soldiers in our assault on the 8th floor." Shalltear nodded as she was filled in on the whole plan.
"Fair enough, but… My Lord, would it not be easier to kill this village and use it's members toward the same ends?" Danzo's face went pale. Tanya simply smirked. Ainz nodded.
"That would be a fast way of doing things, and with you now in my forces we have a very real chance of getting through the 8th floor… but… even if it was by force, I am still these people's ruler… I'd rather not think of them as so little…" He said this with a heavy heart for he now understood that every minute in this world equated to days passed in his own… but everyone in Nazarick was immortal by nature… he'd have to take solace in that fact for now.
"Now…" Ainz turned his attention to a large "war map" that was a map of the world with markers on it like the game it was.
"Tomorrow night we will unleash the Soul Eaters in all directions. They are not stupid creatures so will understand all with this signet on their heads are safe." He pointed to the Leaf symbol on the ninja leaf headband that he held.
"We'll send 50 souleaters and Tanya to the Nation of Wind. 50 Souleaters and Shalltear will attack the Earth Nation… then Ice. I will personally lead 50 Soul Eaters to attack the Lightning Nation… obviously we crush the smaller nations on the way to the bigger ones, bolstering our numbers further. After that, there are no other nations that could hope to threaten us once we mop up the rest of the smaller nations. The remaining Soul Eaters will remain here as guards, should any other rogue nations attack us while we're out… they will be halted immediately." Ainz finished explaining the broad strokes of the plan.
"And the human units of the Leaf?" Danzo tentatively asked.
"As I said, just follow in the wake of the Soul Eaters and pick off anyone that they miss, no need to put them in harm's way, I just need them to hold cities and bases we topple on the way to the capitals." This put Danzo at easy, even as Shalltear scoffed a bit.
"We'll of course assign our strongest ninjas as bodyguards for our commanders in this… once the power of the Soul Eaters becomes apparent they will resort to commander assassination most liklely." Ainz explained, looking at Danzo who smiled with a nod.
"And… what do we do if or when villages or nations surrender?" Danzo asked as he looked at a list of villages he figured would not fight.
"No good… I need strong bodies that can be resurrected and weak ones to make more fodder... ignore any surrender attempts and leave no one who looks capable in a fight alive." Ainz said coldly. Danzo's tone grew darker.
"...and the women and children?" Ainz shook his head.
"Undead women are just as capable as their undead counterparts… and I've seen how strong kids can be in this world… no, kill everyone that lives, no exceptions. Everyone is excused until further notice." Danzo only nodded and walked out. Tanya smiled as she passed Ainz and Shalltear, giving Ainz a polite nod as she passed. While it irked Shalltear how casual this Tanya was with her lord, he seemed to tolerate it so she would as well.
"So, now that is all taken care of… Tell me what's been going on in my absence… in more detail please." Ainz said, turning to Shalltear when they were alone. She took a seat and thought what to say..
"Just start at the beginning…" Ainz said, taking a seat across from her…
Tanya walked down the halls, with her summoned guardian close behind her."
"Some help you were in that attack!" She muttered to the hunched figure. The dark guardian looked lazily at her.
"You did not…"
"Yeah yeah I know… you can only take action when commanded too... " she shook her head in frustration, but decided to let it go at that.
"Anyway, just go back to guard mode and help me if I am attacked!" It bowed its head in understanding. She knew that order would only stand for about an hour or so… and she'd probably forget to reissue it every hour… she sighed.
But this war just got put on the fast track. And even better she was being given her own force to command… and no tactics were considered "dirty or unfair". A wicked smile crossed her face. This would be fun… not the hell scapes she used to be sent to under stupid or inept orders. Now she had the superior force and was free to use them to their fullest capabilities! The gears in her mind turned on how to do this as fast as possible.