The Foundation's Shadow

by Kratos 57 naruto

An enigmatic boy stranded in a world with a dead hero strives to know more about himself and find peace within the darkness that is life. All he knows is his name and all he has is a mask, a cloak and strange tattoo on his stomach. He arrives in the city of adventurers and his past unravels infront of him. Alternate Universe, Very OOC Naruto, Polyamory

5. Chapter 5

Hi there, I am back with chapter 4 or is it 5? Who cares. It's an update. I swear on my life that I don't for the life of me know what possessed me and forced me to write like what? 20K words? Utterly ridiculous. Do you have any idea how much of a headache correcting this was? I am crying and fuck you Oxford and cambridge . What the hell is with you and commas. I studied English and practiced sentence structures and good lord the fucking commas.

I used Grammarly to assist me in correcting spellings and stuff but I don't like it. It's always trying to change the meaning of my sentences and keeps telling me about tone. It's a bloody story not an essay grammarly like fucking gosh!

Any who, enough bitching from me, I wanted to ask.

Do you prefer Prum or Pallum? I personally don't give a rat's ass but I figured that I could use whichever word people preffered the most.

Also some info, Koine is English. Japanese is far eastern language incase you haven't noticed… Naruto speaks both fluently.

Also I tried my best to make some scenes not forced.

Also sorry about him being too angsty, I tried to tone It down but its still too much, oh well. I'll do better, probably.

If you think I am just throwing random thoughts here, then you probably right. Uhhh, what else I wanna say before I forgot again… Ah yes, I really tried paying attention to sentence structure, thank you for pointing out how my sentences basically had so many loops that they crashed into each other, Mr/Ms Ameterasu.

Lili will very much be a part of the story.

Oh yeah, one more thing. I am very noob at writing and I suck at describing stuff so if you here expecting the next, I don't know, Alan Paton or something then you'd best just go to sleep. I am not good at writing at all but I am trying my best so please be respectful when commenting on my poor grammatical skills. Please and thank you.

You might wanna grab some pop corn, this is going to be a looonngggggg one. I love long chapters but I don't know why I made this one sooo fucking long. Sigh, enjoy. I hope you don't spoon your eyes out from my writing. I'd like to make a correction, Haru definitely in. how the fuck didmmy dumbass forget bout her?

Chapter 5?

The many voices of Orario's warriors waned as sunlight slowly faded, being replaced by the shadow of the great tower. People of both demi-humans and humans coalesced into a large group that slowly entered the first underground floor of the tower.

As the vestiges of the outside world faded, they entered an expansive, circular room. They were greeted by a 10-meter deep hole that led straight to the world's most infamous frontier when they entered. The breath-taking columns that decorated the space were evenly spaced did nothing to shift the pressure dawning upon these adventurers as they all understood that this could be their last adventure.

Above them hung a lovely painting of the sky. The more naive would be swayed by its beauty, while the more seasoned would recognize the irony. The location the adventurers were heading to was rumored to be sentient, as evidenced by the fact that many people would perish as a result of surprise attacks and seemingly rapid increases in spawn rates. This is just one of the many ways the dungeon attacks and traps parties in the hopes of bringing them to a glorious end in a shower of blood and shrieks. The dungeon is an apex predator that guides its prey to where it wants them to go before trapping them and unleashing the horrors that have plagued humanity since the beginning of time.

Most people associate the sky with freedom, so having a painting of a sky in the dungeon's entrance was unsettling because the adventurers were aware of the dangers of entering the dungeon and becoming trapped in its claws. They understood that the painting would be at the forefront of their minds as their souls faded from their eyes. They'd all desire to be free from the darkness and dream to see the sky once more, only for their wishes to be crushed by their heads getting crunched by monsters.

Despite this, however, some exuded confidence and a level of anticipation at what was to come. Some sought out fame and others riches, and some needed a way to make a living due to their individual histories. Perhaps they felt as though the world they lived in was a bit too bland, leading them to believe that prowling the dungeon was the only way to go.

Orario's mightiest marched down the circular stairwell that encircled the hole. This set of stairs gradually changed and deteriorated into a rocky path that was diametrically opposed to the one on the surface. The area was large and open, allowing many people to walk side by side while maintaining a safe distance from the other parties. As the groups made their way down the path, they began to notice openings that led to paths that diverged from the main hallway from which they had entered.

Soon after, the countless adventurers split from the large group that had entered the space, trickling into the various series of networks. The dungeon's nexus was used as a barrier to keep parties from interacting with one another, creating a mini-world for each group that entered.

A goblin failed to wail when Naruto's short sword destroyed its crystal. "This feels a lot better than my old one," he reflected after dispatching the monster. "Its sharpness exceeds my old sword's cutting power when it was under the influence of an enchantment," he explained to himself before casually tossing the blade up and down before snatching it out of the air and swiftly gutting a monster that had jumped his way.

"Wow, seeing you fight for the second time is pretty cool; you almost as good as me," Mord's vanity slipped as he complimented Naruto, who had turned to move further down the hall. Naruto shrugged slightly before moving his head to look for monsters. He then came to a halt and replied to Mord, "They're just goblins. They can be defeated by any competent fighter. Even inept adventurers stand a chance."

"True, but since you are a beginner, you killing them with one strike is amazing," Guile said, seeing three creatures being reduced to ashes with little effort from the lad. What had struck him was Naruto's approach to defeating them quickly. He'd advance slowly enough to fool them into thinking there was a gap in his defences before reducing them to ashes with a well-executed stab to the chest. Monsters with claws, such as goblins and kobolds, used them by raising them to perform vertical and diagonal attacks, and that always left their chests open.

The masked boy, despite his inexperience in the dungeon, exploited this one critical weakness most monsters of this type had. This led to one concluding and trying to imagine the type of training the boy had endured to get to his level. He carried himself like a seasoned warrior and never panicked when presented with a threat; just like when they first met, the boy had successfully thrown two minotaurs in a loop with his tactics. His composure, when faced with a monster that could kill him with ease, was unnatural and terrifying.

People who have been exposed to hunting and monster psychology are more likely to use the tactics he utilized. He took advantage of their sentience and hunting instincts by leaving trails in seemingly random locations, instilling confidence in them that they would find their prey, leading them to commit fully to one path only to discover that they had been duped. That was how they had survived the incident, thanks to the boy's ability to make the monsters dance on his palm. Despite the fact that he was only a new level 1, the men found him to be someone who could not be taken lightly.

"So kid," Mord called out as they descended to the second floor.

"Yes?"

"Who taught ya how to fight?"

"Self-taught…" He gave an unenthusiastic response.

Their eyes all went wide at his statement.

"What about sparring?" Guile brought forward a follow-up question.

"None. I lived in a forest," Naruto responded with half-lies. His body language was so controlled that he showed no signs of deception, and his tone never changed.

His concise answers made the group a little anxious and self-conscious. They recalled the days when they got their first blessings and prowled the dungeon, constantly being in danger and having a dance with death. They lost many allies, gained new ones and eventually cleared the middle floors after years of being heated by the crucible of hope and tampered by the hammer of death. When the hammer drops, it's either you deformed and improved or break and get swallowed by the depths.

They had been in the business for a number of years, but they just couldn't see themselves on Naruto's level of expertise. His blooming potential gave them the impression that the hero the world has been crying for has emerged, but… What about them? Why couldn't it be them instead?

Normally they would have picked on him, assuming that he was some arrogant prick who would boast endlessly about how much better he was than them, but he didn't. People who spoke loudly, bragging about the great size of their brass balls, would be the first to flee when situations go awry. The boy said nothing; he gave no over the top comments about his skills, and instead, he just showed them, using them to dispatch monsters efficiently. Mord, Guile and Scotts felt respect for the boy they had agreed to accompany.

Soldiers in war sometimes form bonds because they face death together. They and the boy did so, and because of that, they felt that they had a bond with him even if he wasn't receptive to them.

Sirens of clashing blades echoed through the dungeon's dimly lit halls. Naruto was again fending off multiple war shadows as his companions spectated from the side. "This is strange. The difference in my speed, strength and endurance is staggering compared to last night. What in the world is going on?" he mulled over his sudden improvement.

The sudden increase in Naruto's movement speed had nearly caused him to compromise his guard, but he had been able to adjust quickly. He and his party were currently on the 6th floor, and he had decided to stay on the floor for a bit longer to fine-tune his senses to his new speed and strength fully. "Could this be the product of my Sage skill? No… I have no skills related to mobility and power. What is going on?"

A war shadow gave a soundless scream as the crystal in its chest was broken. Naruto had secured enough funds to match what he would get in 3 days so he could afford to destroy their crystals. His aim was not making money; it was to get as far into the dungeon as possible and practice his wind magic. That was the reason he requested a party of higher tier adventurers to accompany him. His magic was powerful, but he did not have an unlimited amount of mind, plus he knew that he would be overwhelmed by monsters on the 12th floor because of his low status. Monsters spawns were quicker when he was around for some weird reason.

His exceptional self-awareness allowed him to know how far he'd be able to go in a difficult task based on multiple scenarios. It granted him a form of confidence that most people would see as arrogance when in reality, he simply knows what he can and can't do. His combat prowess is exceptional, especially when compared to people his level, but his low level would hold him back from exploring the lower-upper floors solo.

Naruto desired to enter the lower-upper floors because he believed that battle was the most effective way for him to reach him. Drills and kata got him used to movements, but actually fighting something gave him the opportunity to teach himself how to apply what he had learned. Combat was the only way for him to assess the effectiveness of each move he practised. Combat's benefits did not stop there as they also allowed him to keep his mind sharp by having him perform a large number of evaluations when confronted with a superior enemy. Fighting is more than just brute strength and technique. Tactics also play an essential role.

Tactics allow battles to be offset in favour of the weaker, less talented combatants. A good example would be a tiger vs a human. Humans are incapable of physically defeating a tiger with their bare hands and would barely manage with a weapon if they had the correct technique. However, with tactics, the balance would be offset in favour of the human as they can lead the tiger to where they desire before trapping it and granting themselves an easy kill despite the tigers great power.

This, in turn, led to another reason for Naruto's decision to join this group of adventurers in the dungeon. This is to evaluate them and their combat abilities, as Naruto was looking for sparring partners. Naruto rejected the Takemikazuchi family because they were too honourable even in the face of his anti-social and nearly rude behaviour. There were no rules in actual combat. He desired people who would toss him around and kick him when he was down, encouraging him to fight back.

Because of how they trained, he wanted to create friendly relations with the Freya family if at all possible. Their methods of training that simulated life-or-death fights. In contrast to swinging a sword or throwing fists at the air in his backyard, that sounded like the more appropriate way to train.

To him, monsters were not limited to the creatures in the dungeon, but people who could bleed, cry and laugh like him. People are all capable of their own thoughts, feelings and desires, just like him. If they saw him as a threat to their goals, then they would more than likely try to get rid of him. He mostly saw the world in black and white, two opposing sides clashing for dominance. He wanted to be on top no matter which side he was on; depending on the observer, and he would force the other side to submit to him as another side existing is a threat to him.

If peace is an option, he will take it, but the other side still has its own desires. Should the two sides desires contrast, then war will loom over both of them. He wasn't so naïve as to believe that the option of peace could be held forever. A wise man once said current friends are future enemies.

Naruto leapt over a horizontal slash from a war shadow before snapping his hand at a pink appendage that had been barrelling at him. His fingers wrapped around it, causing him to notice moisture making him tighten his grip and yank the attacker towards him. He swiftly brought his elbow down to its eye, ignoring the frog shooter's shriek as its sole visual organ was compromised. He snatched its writhing body from mid-air and used it as a shield to guard against another slash attack. The slash left a gash that spewed blood onto Naruto, who just shoved his hand into the injury and yanked out its crystal with the assistance of its wind.

The blood-soaked teenager did not allow the momentum to die off and instead directed it into turning his body and bringing his sword up to counter a slash.

Clang!

Naruto's blow was so powerful that it blew the monster's arm back, causing it to raise its other arm to protect its chest prompting Naruto to duck and thrust his sword into its diaphragm, instantly killing it. In a state of fright, the monster tried bringing its collapsing arm down, but its entire body became ash when its claw was inches from Naruto's mask.

The group approached Naruto after dispatching a group of monsters that had attacked them. Mord gave a slight whistle, clearly impressed, and said, "You are quite the nimble one, ain'tcha?" His compliment stemmed from the fact that it was uncommon for adventurers to get their feet off the ground while fighting. Jump tactics in combat, whether against monsters or humans, are difficult to execute because jumping high usually necessitates heavy telegraphing, which even a goblin can exploit.

"Yes… We have made significant progress, but I fear that my patience will dwindle if we do not proceed faster," he spoke softly with a low volume but high enough to be heard by their status enhanced ears. His voice was meek, showing that he felt a little embarrassed because he was not used to receiving genuine compliments from anyone that wasn't in the Flecther family, his grandfather, brother and his goddess.

He did not let his feelings hold him back from decapitating a war shadow with one swing. The group watched its body tumble forward lifelessly before collapsing into dust, leaving its crystal and a single dark bladed item. Naruto moved forward and picked up the drop item before destroying the magic crystal to prevent monsters from consuming it and becoming enhanced species. He had read enough reports about such incidents to know how much damage such species could cause. He is trying to get stronger, not cause genocide. Though he had to admit, facing one would be cool.

"Alright, kiddo, I'll fight alongside ya to speed things up a bit," Guile stepped forward, puffing his chest out confidently. In his right hand was a spear with no ornaments. Its pole was a bland brown, but its head had four blades like a harpoon and was jagged with its canine-like points, each looking particularly sharp. This weapon had both cutting and shredding capabilities meaning that it was made for inflicting as much damage as possible.

"Interesting weapon… Because of the tip's nature, I assume that the pole is a cut above average because constantly replacing spears would be expensive," Naruto concluded after giving the weapon a brief analysis.

"Hey, I'll help too."

"Don't you leave me out of this! You okay with arrangement, right kid?" Mord questioned.

"That would preferrable, yes," he answered before dashing away from the group, rushing down the path that would lead him to the next floor. Auditorial stimuli tickled his ears, alerting him to a group of monsters spawning up ahead of him.

"War Shadows," he reported before blinking when three shadows flew past him. "I can track them, but the difference in our speed is ridiculous," he thought, listening to monsters give dying shrieks. By the time Naruto made it to them, he'd find piles of black dust decorated by dark purple crystals. "Of course, this rowdy bunch forgets to destroy these," he sighed before plucking up individual crystals before pulverizing them with the assistance of his earth magic, Atlas.

Because the group was out of sight, Naruto took out a spare fabric he'd had with him and used Atlas to firmly press the pieces of soil onto the black finger blade he'd picked up before wrapping the cloth around it. People figuring out his capacity to use several magics would lead to him being targeted; therefore, his ability to use numerous magic was still a secret. For the time being, if he were going to make a name for himself, he'd rather it be known that he employed lightning magic. His ace would be his wind, while the rest would be a surprise.

After quickly concealing his spare weapons, he dashed after them and found them breaking past a group of monsters comprised of dungeon lizards, frog shooters, needle rabbits and war shadows.

Mord brought his greatsword down, cleaving a monster in half before ducking to the side and using his superior speed to cut into its abdomen. He noticed a shadow looming over him and turned to meet it, only for it to collapse in mid-air courtesy of a kunai buried into his head. Another shadow flew over his head and landed on a killer ant's gaster before skillfully guiding its blade in between the plates of its exoskeleton, slicing into its neck before stabbing the head, ending its life.

"Finally caught up, haven't, yeah."

"Yes," Naruto delivered a spin kick into a Shadow's temple and turned to stab a frog shooter that had leapt at him. His blade slid into its chest before being pulled up and raised to defend against black blades that had approached from Naruto's side. Before Naruto could respond, Guile appeared beside him and thrust his spear forward, shattering the monster's crystal.

Losing his prey Naruto turned to intercept the frog shooter's tongue, but Scotts had caught it and sliced it off using his dagger. He turned again. Intercepted. Again. Intercepted.

Most people would feel a great deal of irritation, but he himself was far from frustrated; he was quite the opposite. He was enjoying it. Slaying monsters on the way to the eighth floor had devolved into a competition, with Naruto finishing last. Guile had the most kills with 44, Scotts had 29, Mord had 28, and Naruto had 7. His lacklustre results did not deter him but instead fueled the fire within.

While he did not mean to join the competition, he just found himself getting dragged in. These people were just like that, and they had a talent in riling people up and were skilled enough to get to him. If you asked Naruto if they were good people, he'd just say, "No." The men who accompanied him were just a group of delinquents, but that did not disqualify them from gaining his favour.

Naruto is a cynic at heart and believes that everyone that exists is automatically faulty in a way. Most people did things just to benefit themselves, and as such, he saw every person as greedy. With this perspective, he is mainly concerned about a person's redeeming qualities rather than their damning ones and in this context, the men were pretty okay in his books.

At the very least, the task of defeating the dragon, every hostile creature roaming the globe, and whatever fresh tragedy the dungeon and the gods would bring is overwhelming. It felt like he was ascending a sentient mountain that intended to stop him from going any further at any cost. As a helpless human, he would naturally become disheartened, slowing or even stopping his journey.

His solution? Focus on the process, not the goal. Looking at his goal would only result in him getting squashed by the pressure he placed on himself, so he would start small and build up from there instead. He knows what his goal is, but how exactly is he going to get to his goal? What kind of training will he do? What kind of situations will he expose himself to? What tools will he gain along the way that will help him? How will he acquire those tools?

The idea of just hopping into the dungeon's layer and just slaying it is as anti-climactic as it sounds. He slays it, then what? Sure the world would be safer, but…

He felt that it would be better for himself to create a journey where he would get multiple achievements that would allow him to grow and become an adversary that the reptilian monster would fear. He didn't want to go in guns blazing to destroy the creature; instead, he wanted to grow first and discover new things that could assist him in his battle. The monster is said to have the power to end the world itself, so in order to defeat such, he also has to have the power to destroy the world. Problem?

Pitting two world-ending beasts against each other would not be beneficial to anyone. If he destroyed it while tussling with the beast, there would be no world for his family to enjoy, maybe if he could debuff it or seclude it in another dimension of existence or something. There is a lot to learn and so much possibility for development. Strength is derived from destructive power and the capacity to make use of what is available to you.

Despite being dragged into a competition and losing, Naruto found himself deriving a form of joy from experience. Not the masochistic type, of course, but at the thought that he has encountered his first obstacle to overcome. Back at the village when playing with his peers back when he was a child and Bell was alive, he was plagued with severe boredom as he had never been challenged. The monsters in the dungeon did not challenge him; they wanted to kill him. That is very different.

This was one of his first goals, overcome and outperform them. They were his rivals now. The tempest in his heart roared in elation as it rends the land of the earth of plants, prompting Naruto to dash after them. The group's (Naruto excluded) laughter and monsters' roars echoed through the many nexuses that made up the dungeon.

The group stopped moving when their ears caught something suspicious. Something was very wrong as they spotted a few parties rushing past them. Soon the reason why became apparent when they heard screams nearby and the sounds of what seemed to be a stampede nearby.

A series of footsteps were heard as they were followed by frightful screams as a group of humans dashed in their space from a nearby tunnel, and behind them was a horde of monsters of ridiculous proportions. The stampede behind them picked copious amounts of dust, creating a mist-like effect as they chased after the group.

Rabbits with horns on their heads, giant purple moths, large goblins and giant red ants were the composition the monster party had. Each creature had nasty drool dripping from their mouths as they chased after their would-be victims. Time froze for Naruto, watching every contorted face, some from terror and the rest from sheer, hideous blood lust.

'I'm… Shaking," he thought blankly as the faces of each monster was imprinted into the forefront of his head. He could feel his heart jumping at his throat, ready to explode and propel itself away from the danger. He felt himself turning in the opposite direction and felt his body becoming lighter as if he had gained a level up.

Are you going to run away again?

He froze.

He heard an elderly but heart-stopping voice whisper into his ear, and he turned to see the ghost elderly man with bandages and a cane staring at him. His lone, soulless eye pierced Naruto's soul, judging him and revealing every flaw he possessed. Naruto felt exposed and exploited as if every emotion he had hidden was now on display for all to see.

"I-I'm hallucinating."

He felt a great deal of shame. He couldn't look at himself and feel any semblance of respect. All his past mistakes and most glaring failures were put on display, allowing him to see what he really was. The things he hid from himself to keep his sanity were laid bare in front of him. A throat tearing scream was held in by Naruto, causing him to feel as if a devil was choking him. His mask hid his hot tears from the outside world, but he couldn't hide them from himself.

Are you going to run away again? And allow everything you have to die again? Will you stay the weakling you are and allow yourself to be pushed over constantly?

It repeated and expanded on its statement.

Naruto felt that running away was the best option, but his heart stopped him and interrogated him. Will running from an overwhelming situation always be your solution? Will you just give up just like that? What if there is no place to run to? If you run, then there is nothing stopping it from chasing you. Will you be able to live with yourself when you are weak, unable to defend what you love?

"No."

I will work with you. His logic and will met halfway and shook hands.

With his heart swimming through a sea of flames, he took a step forward. His will was projected through his voice.

The level 2s had their eyes wide at and moved to run when "Bring them this way!" Naruto called out to the group that immediately obeyed. Naruto readied his magic as he studied the group's monster army's composition.

"KID, LOOK AT THAT!? ARE YOU CRAZY, WE ARE GOING TO BE OVERWHELMED!"

"Flee if you wish. Or just… Leave them to me," he responded calmly as he watched the group run in his direction. It had five men and two female supporters, all sporting various degrees of injuries. Each one of them had whatever armour they wore damaged in some way.

Naruto turned his back to them and faced the rushing crowd with fear in his eyes, but despite that, his message to his party was crystal clear. "Don't get in my way."

They were under no obligation to listen to him, and logically, they should have ignored him because if they tried, they could probably defeat the monsters. They weren't going to make it out without injuries because they were completely unprepared for such a situation. All they could do was flex the power of their status, but the sheer number of adversaries was overwhelming even then.

Naruto's aura was felt for the first time, and it was eerie, contrary to what they would expect from someone his size. It encircled their necks, tightening its grip with each step they took. It was a warning. Hundreds of monsters and their bloodlust were entirely outclassed by the aura, demonstrating its superiority. Except for Mord, they all backed down. Even though the air in his lungs was rapidly deteriorating, he took a step forward.

"T-This is crazy, even for you! If we can't take 'em, then you can't! We need to go now!" Naruto batted Mord's hand away. "You are under no obligation to stay. Don't force your weaknesses to be mine. Flee if you wish," he responded softly. The party's begging fell on deaf ears as Naruto lost focus on them. "I can't take your weaknesses because I am losing a war against my own," his voice was lost amid the booming roars of monsters.

By the time they turned to dash the opposite way, Naruto had already dived into the swarm.

"I'm terrified. Fearful of failing, I worked extremely hard for most of my life but never felt like I had made any progress. I'm nothing like the perfect combat machine I see in my dreams. He's incredible, and I don't think I'll ever be like him. I'm afraid I'll die; I don't want to die; I want to see my goddess once more. I promised her I would assist her in forming a family she could be proud of. I can't die, but I can be killed. I'm terrified to death. Is there a limit to my ability to heal? Will it let me down here? What's the state of my sword? How many knives do I have in my possession? How many kunai do I have in my possession? What kind of mind do I have? Is it possible for me to do this?" he questioned, expressing his doubts.

The doubts failed to force him off the stage. He had made a decision, and he would not compromise.

Naruto knew that running away would not save him; he had to face every challenge that came his way so he could be stronger.

He could see the vestiges of Bell running around in an open grassy plain and tackling his goddess whilst he and his grandfather leaned back against a great oak tree and sipped on chilled drinks. Their laughter echoed like a beautiful maiden's distant song.

He could see himself making a parody of a mummy by covering himself in insects, chasing the squirmish Bell around, and eventually tackling him, causing him to squeal as bugged crawled over his body. The fear Bell had would fade, and he'd share a good laugh with him. They were in a quiet, welcoming world that did not reject them and their existence but instead harmonized with them.

The world did not understand words. It understood strength. The goal he had hidden away in fear of being overwhelmed made itself known once more, reminding Naruto of how strong he had to become.

"Fear is… Fear is a reaction, and courage is a choice. I'm afraid I'll fail, but I'll do this and survive because if I don't, my goal will forever be out of reach. This is my stepping stone. A huge risk, so I say… I say roll the dice!"

Twin dice tumbled out of a cup and bounced off the ground before landing their very edges, each revealing one dot at the top. Most would give up at this point, acknowledging that their fate was sealed; however, Naruto said.

"No."

He refused to simply go down because of his misfortune or other factors that ran contrary to the talent he had granted himself through years of hard work. It was his conviction that pushed and inspired him to be more.

To most, it would be seen as something too dangerous to handle and would only get him killed, but his desires had multiple stages and allowed him to overcome.

His conviction drove him to snap out of his trance and force himself to move forward, even in the face of family loss. It was his conviction that drove him to seek to challenge the world-ending calamity on his own. The conviction he carried pursued him as a child who should have been receiving bedtime stories from his grandfather to go into the forest at night and hunt without a falna. Compared to his great desires, the task of smiting the creatures in front of him suddenly shrank in scope. This was the beginning of his journey, and he planned to hit the ground running.

The storm that represented his heart shook the world it occurred in, so how were mere dice going to stand against it? Even if the world denied his chances, he'd create his own because he had decided that his fate was not controlled by anything or anyone. Not even the gods and their divine will could sway him.

What were dice compared to a storm? Nothing.

"I'm tired of losing people; I'm tired of being depressed. I need to get out of here. I want to get out of here. I will get out of here, and nothing will stop me. If something tries, I'll overcome it, I won't run away," his heart spoke simply, displaying a spectrum of feelings that had been hidden away all his life.

The dice's vertices slammed against each other, causing both to fall on their sides and roll before slowing down and stopping, revealing 8-8. The conviction was not enough, but Naruto understood that he had the strength and understood his limits. But he could go over them; he knew he could, so he stepped forward to meet the monsters by his lonesome. His light quaking could not overcome the confidence that had started spilling forth like a broken dam. He took a step forward, and it became easier. His grandfather always taught him that if he was afraid, then all he had to do was take the first step, and everything would become easier.

He would have rather died than have his fate control him and his destination, so he took a step against it and looked it in the eye.

His foot shook lightly as he took the next one, then the next, breaking out in a jog. That jog became a sprint that allowed him to jump into the air. He had an aerial view and could decide where he landed, and he found the best spot to fight from before diving in.

Mord's party and the new party couldn't help but pause, all expecting pieces of damp clothing to sail through the air followed by howls for mercy and to be saved, but the reality was far more shocking. The numerous clicks, howls and roars of monsters were dulled by a sound that had no place in the dungeon. A single crackle was soon followed by more, creating a cacophony that vaguely resembled the sound of chirping birds. The crackles soon started harmonizing with alien, buzzing sounds, throwing those who listened into a loop.

"What the hell is that?" questioned Guile with narrowed eyes. He and his party had taken far too long to try to escape allowing monsters to block the surrounding tunnels. They and the other party had already moved to cover each other's back despite being strangers. The party members all looked inexperienced and fear-stricken, but that did not stop them from picking up arms and fighting. They understood that if they succumbed to their feelings, then this would be their end.

The fact that the supporters tucked into the centre of their formation were women was no coincidence. Mord had led them there in an attempt to arouse the other party's male instinct to protect their female party members, and it worked because there was a fire in their eyes. Their bodies were drenched in sweat and quivered like wet dogs in the winter, but their grips on their weapons were firm. That was the power of a male's pride and instincts; even if there was very little of it, it could still persuade the bearer to confront what was endangering their lives.

They all waited with bated breath to be hounded from all sides simultaneously, showing that every person within the formation was a veteran in dungeon-crawling. They were inexperienced, yes, but they had been in the dungeon long enough to be aware of its happenings. Despite their danger, they exercised oppressive control over their flight or fight instincts because they understood that showing their backs to the monsters would get them killed.

The supporters themselves also prepared themselves; one pulled out a bow and adjusted a sword she had in her pack in such a way that their guards could quickly draw it whilst the other prepared potions and had a knife in her hand.

To their surprise, the monsters that had surrounded them had not gone into a frenzy, attempting to overwhelm them with sheer numbers, but had instead paused and turned towards their comrades' death throes. Each creature's head turned toward the centre of the monster army, and there was a brief silence. One goblin flew out from Naruto's entry point and slammed into a nearby monster, knocking it down and causing a domino effect by knocking others down.

From the centre of the monsters' formation, a flash of light erupted. Because the creatures cried out in pain, the flash of light must have had unique properties because its colour overpowered each monster's original colour. The light was blue, and it was followed by a crackle that sounded like a crocodile thrashing at the speed of sound in a pond.

Naruto was on his knee, covered in lacerations and injuries that revealed the whites of his bone. One did not jump into the centre of a horde of monsters and come out unscathed, especially because of his low level. The scream that should have been heard was denied exit; instead, the pain that fuelled it was forced to fuel Naruto's desperate and rapid dodging.

In as much as he dodged, their numbers were far too great, so they scored multiple hits on him. Naruto's blood caked his new outfit, but he ignored it as his wounds closed with wisps of steam. He had prevented himself from being restrained and torn apart by using a wind magic technique he had created the previous night. He compressed multiple streams of wind into blades and made them curl into multiple circles creating a dome similar to a gyroscope or an atom.

Some monsters were able to land a few attacks, injuring the boy, but he did not go down as the wounds closed as if under the effects of an elixir. The dizziness he felt faded as he focused on using his wind to defend himself, giving himself some time to regain his bearings. He was still dizzy, yes, but he was far from defenceless.

You have practised so much that every technique has become second nature to you. Don't overthink it; trust your body

The war hawk instructed the boy with pale blond hair.

Naruto moved quickly between bodies, ducking and weaving as his blade trailed closely behind him. His drowsiness did not affect his ability to predict when an individual would breach his defences, so he minimized damage by reacting to most attacks thrown at him. His wind magic helped to keep the monsters from overwhelming him and mowing him down, allowing him to dispatch them with single, quick slashes.

After rolling away from a killer ant and jumping away from a large goblin, his blood sailed through the air as he regained his footing. A moth saw this as an opportunity and dove to finish him off before being split in half by Naruto's deft swordplay.

Monsters that breached his guard received injuries from the belts of wind that curled around his body. Some's injuries were so severe that they were fatal, killing them instantly.

Naruto toned down the wind to save mind and proceeded to enchant his sword with lightning. It came to life with a light hum as it vibrated, increasing its cutting and piercing power.

Naruto desired to have his lightning be something he was known for to hide his wind, so he cut off the gyroscope. With the loss of his defence, monsters poured in, ignoring the sense of dread they felt when they heard crackling sounds.

Lightning bolts erupted from Naruto's body, charging outward with the ferocity of a badger, piercing through and stunning a slew of monsters. The electric-sheer charge's output compromised the crystals hidden in their chests, causing multiple pillars of dust to take their place. Other monsters tripped over their comrade's corpses and ashes and compromised their formation.

The creatures were so numerous that they were tightly packed, allowing for the slightest of changes to affect a number of them. The ones that had fallen were forgotten as their brethren's stampede ended their lives.

Naruto exploded into a crouch, his eyes darting from left to right, surveying the area around him to determine the next best course of action, like a panther ready to pounce on its prey. His eyes conveyed to his mind the dungeon's plethora of features, allowing it to perform calculations and formulate numerous plans. He took in every detail, from the distant pebbles on the ground to the jagged structures on the walls around him. Regardless of how many monsters surrounded him, he easily memorized each one's position relative to him using extra-sensory perception and enhanced senses.

Naruto resheathed his sword as the humming disappeared, and the monsters eyed him suspiciously. A lone ant moved to catch the human's head between its mandibles.

CLINK!

His sword was drawn from its sheath and began vibrating and penetrating the hard exoskeleton that formed a killer ant's carapace. Parts of the carapace collapsed as Naruto attacked the monster with well-aimed thrusts, jabs and swings, causing its limbs and mandibles to join the pieces on the stone-cold floor of the dungeon. His left hand brought his sword forward with a swing so mighty that it would make a Dwarve blush.

The violence in which its head was separated from its body showered Naruto in a fountain of its blood. Its bodyless head tumbled to the floor as its stagnant compound eyes reflected Naruto's bloodied visage, giving him the impression of a devil. The monsters who were not interested in Naruto and sneaked to attack the group paused and turned, taking an interest in the filth that was drenched in their brethren's blood. Their eyes left the blood-smeared boy and landed on the dozens of crystals beside his feet and howled in a rage, moving to surround him.

The pheromone secreted by dying ants fanned them up, causing them to rush at him in waves. All perceptible angles were covered, enclosing the blond and preventing any possible escape. They abandoned the other humans in favour of the man covered in their comrade's blood and pheromones. The cage was locked, and he couldn't get out, but there was one problem. He had no intention of escaping but rather of destroying the cage down to its molecular structure.

Displaying feats that would make it seem like he had eyes on the back of his, he sidestepped and twisted around what seemed to be a wall of claws and mandibles. He sustained cuts, but he had been able to outmanoeuvre them by turning their numbers advantage against them. One ant got impatient and flared its mandibles before charging straight at him only to get caught in a bluish-silver sweeping arc that caught its abdomen, splitting it in half.

In response to a large purple moth creature sweeping down to attack him, he nimbly flipped backwards before moving his arm, allowing him to relieve it of one of its wings. Because of the sudden loss of a wing, the creature lost its ability to fly, allowing Naruto to pluck it out of the air and shove it into the waiting mandibles of another ant creature.

The moth, showing desperation, released a plume of purple dust that was immediately pushed away by wind not natural in this part of the dungeon. The wind curled and spread the dust through the air causing other monsters to inhale it and immediately exhibit signs of weakness.

Naruto exploded off the ground and tore into a mass of monsters, slashing so quickly that his sword became a silver hurricane. A few monsters scored a hit or two, but the pain did nothing to slow the boy as adrenaline coursed through his veins, granting him enhanced physical abilities.

"Their numbers are a real problem. I need to whittle them down with magic. I need to chant because they would be able to hear me from this distance."

Using the writhing mass as cover, Naruto performed a Gale accelerated jump, used the jagged rocks sticking out of the bluish walls as stepping stones to reach the roof of the tunnel. He twisted mid-air and brought his leg up and brought his heel down on stalactite, compromising its structure and causing it to drop onto the roused up mass below him. He did not stop there as he followed through by pressing the balls of his feet against the stump and jumping toward another one, and performing another kick.

Naruto's shadowy frame zipped from cluster to cluster like a black shooting star, raining shards of death upon his enemies. Some could not give cries as their heads and bodies were crushed by fragments of their mother and those that could give strangled cries. They could not manoeuvre around them because of their numbers, and the objects fell at an unnatural speed as if accelerated by magic.

"Dance, dance, god of thunder, Come, thunder; Come, Lightning! Destroy everything in the blink of an eye! Thunder!" He spoke loudly and clearly as he continued darting around the ceiling, bringing death down on his enemies in the form of stalactites.

"Concurrent casting? What the hell? How is he doing that? That's absurd! That's a really hard thing to learn, and he has only been an adventure for like a week! How is that possible? Some kind of skill? It's not unheard of for people to develop new skills as soon as they gain a falna," Mord openly gaped at Naruto and turned to the people around him, and they too had similar expressions.

Naruto used his chant as cover, activating Omit and creating a cloud above him. Using it as a conduit, he unleashed bolts of lightning that masked the wind blades that descended on the creatures. The magic slammed into the ground, causing the floor to crack. The rumbling thunder overpowered the dying throes of monsters, dispatching them quickly.

The cloud remained above his head as Naruto stopped moving and stared them down, his feet firmly planted onto the ceiling through the use of Atlas, and his fingers had dug into a stump for additional support. His gravity-defying act caused his spectator's eyes to go even wider than they were.

CLICK! CLICK!

The killer ants and their antennae started moving and brushing against each other, communicating as they made a plan. It seemed an agreement was made as they all turned to look at Naruto hanging upside down above them.

Naruto waited patiently as ants began to crawl up the sides of the dungeon's walls in swarms. He closed his eyes and thought to himself, "How simple," before a thunderclap rang out and his body slammed into the ground. His death dance had begun. He had created a suitable environment for him to fight from by dropping human-sized stalactites, as he was used to using obstacles to dispel large groups of monsters. He allowed himself to remain on the ceiling in order to set a trap in which the ants would create space for him to move by crawling up the walls.

Because the monsters were so many, he ran the risk of getting captured as he had no room to manoeuvre. His solution was to force them to divide to give him room to move around easier. Killer Ants made up the highest percentage of bio-mass in the group, so a lot of space was freed up when more than half followed him to the ceiling.

He brandished his sword and slashed a goblin in half before kicking an ant's head back with such force that its head snapped back. He leapt at it, wrapping his hands around its neck and using it as leverage to pull his body behind it. He then backflipped, dragging the monster with him, violently swinging it around, knocking several creatures. He quickly dispatched the ant with a well placed cut to the neck before grabbing another's head, holding it still and driving his blade into its forehead.

His eyes missed nothing, and no move was miscalculated, implying that he had a database of each monster's location. Every creature that entered his domain was instantly slain by his fist, foot, blade, lightning, or wind. Even those who had taken his position on the ceiling and jumped down to catch him off guard were slaughtered as if he had been staring at them the entire time. Those he couldn't get were hurt by the invisible wind blades that encircled his body like a dome made of dozens of thin belts.

Naruto quickly skipped around the pillar that was once a stalactite to outmanoeuvre a pair of killer ants that had remained on the group. He feinted to the right and moved left, one ant got it right, but the other wasn't as intelligent, resulting in it bumping into its partner. Naruto's sword killed them both before it was raised to knock back the head of an ant that had fallen from the ceiling and took position onto the stalactite, and leaned down to comp at him.

He did not get the chance to slay it as he felt claws ripping into his bicep, so he was forced to intercept the offender. When he tried, he felt something cutting into his calf and looked down to see a rabbit.

"I'm relying too much on my sight. My hearing and smell can't be used either. I need to balance between sixth sense and eyes!"

His eyes focused on what was in front of him and his other senses focused on everything else. Naruto's mind was starting to sync well with his body he received multiple sources of stimulus and responded to each appropriately. His mind was no longer riddled with fear and instead focused on supplying the body with information and directing it.

Initially, he had trouble triggering his magic as his mind was dedicated to outmanoeuvring his opponents. That changed quickly as his mind's great processing power identified his magic as an extension of his body, thereby making him use it as instinctually as he slashed, kicked, or punched. It was strange how quickly he adapted as if he was used to it.

That did not matter at the moment; all he had to focus on was surviving.

When he moved to attack in front of him, monsters would come from his flank and would cause him to activate the blades of wind, slowing their advance enough for him to slay what he had given attention to and slay them. Thunderclaps echoed through the dungeon as light illuminated Naruto's ghastly frame and the swirling dust that followed him. This unintentionally created a show that would remain in the hearts of those who witnessed it.

Every drop of blood drawn by the monsters was disproportionately exchanged for dozens of splatters of their own. He avenged his wounds with a scalding fury, mowing down every monster that touched him.

Every purple speck thrown at him, every blood-red claw thrown at him was returned by countless more flashes of steel. His lightning struck down his enemies, shining through every reflective surface, including the monster's eyes that recorded their life flash before their eyes. Their life was overcome by lightning, and their bodies were hacked away by the wind.

He deactivated his wind as he had whittled the creatures enough that his allies could see him and raised his sword instead. The cloud above him flashed and cracked ominously as if signalling that it too was ready to battle, ready to serve its master.

The creatures that had been the bane to low-level adventurers in mere numbers were nothing to a lone rookie who aggressively attacked them and casually evaded their attacks. Naruto paid no heed to the blood staining his cloak and clothes; as he abandoned the space, he denied another group of monsters the chance to taste his blood.

He rushed at another group that he had considered weak due to its low number of ants and hopped in. The purple powder released by purple moths served as a magnum opus for this ridiculous operation. Naruto's wind guided the powder to poison other monsters making it far easier for him to destroy them.

"I'm doing it!" his confidence grew as he fought. His silver blade reflected the light of the many bolts of lightning that worked in conjunction with him. Each time he swung his sword, dozens of bodies fell as if he had traced lines that would guarantee kills.

"I'll use this moment as a reminder that overcoming even the most precarious of situations is possible."

His dance had become a whirlwind of death, blowing away countless limbs and pools of green blood. He moved so quickly and gracefully that the splashes of blood did not sully his body much. Countless killer ants released more pheromones; the dungeon bore more monsters but the under-levelled god of war slew everything.

"Half are down; time to go for the rest!"

A shriek was cut off as the creature collapsed into dust courtesy of a bolt of lightning. It was so bright that it blinded the surrounding monsters creating a window of opportunity for Naruto's blade to claim more victims. Overwhelming numbers dwindled like crops in a locust swarm. By a single boy who had decided to refuse let circumstances seize control of what he did and how it would play out.

The dungeon's small proxy was gone, reduced to nothing but piles of dust and mountains of limbs. The valiant lone victor stood atop the mountain of bodies. His clothes were ripped and bloodied, and his body was crimson and green-splattered. Each line of blood represented a fallen enemy, but none could be seen because there were so many that the lines merged into one massive smear.

His cloak's all-encompassing darkness devoured the dungeon's unnatural light. Light had its limits whilst darkness devoured everything, and Naruto himself, like his cloak, was a darkness. The light was his weakness and the hardships of the road of life, but soon, his darkness like ocean would devour everything.

He had done it; he felt proud. He remembered every individual who had fallen by his blade; each was a stepping stone to greater heights. "1-2-3," his heart shook as numbers made their way into his head. The final result would have had him jumping and screaming in joy had he been someone else.

"392," Naruto's dispassionate voice echoed, sending chills to all that heard it. The dungeon itself was silent, refusing to send any more of its children. Its walls were destroyed, but other sections' walls were just fine so that it could have sent more, but it didn't. It was as if it had enough. It was as if it was afraid

"392?" muttered a starstruck Mord. His gaze shifted from the mask that floated in the darkness of its hood, and he turned his head and took a moment to recognize the insanity that had just occurred. Charred corpses twitched helplessly as their owners left the world they had been born into. Some had only been alive for a few moments before making the mistake of attacking the devil hidden under a hood.

"Previous kills excluded. I have taken the lead in our little bout," Naruto's manner of speaking shifted slightly as if challenging them. A side of him that rattled them, his aloof soft-spoken nature gone, replaced by a more bellicose version of himself. He sounded proud as he stood on the tower of limbs, staring them down.

Naruto jumped down and looked further down the tunnel, "Shall we continue," his voice echoed with a hint of bemusement. His amusement stemmed from the fact that he had more kills than all 3 of them combined. He stumbled slightly as his brain reminded him of the ill effects of healing before quickly regaining his posture before he got noticed. The coolness that wafted off him went uncompromised as his companions gained flames in their eyes.

He sweatdropped slightly, "I don't know why you slipped in high potions but thank you, Miach… If I didn't have them, I wouldn't have survived." Naruto had poured the potions Miach had given him into thin pouches that would go unnoticed if put under a shirt. Monsters stabbing allowed the potion to escape and heal him, thereby lessening the strain of his own body's healing factor.

No matter how small it is, the pride of a man no adventurers is something that should never be trifled with. The men who decided to let the boy have his way with the horde regretted it as they realized how far behind they had fallen in their challenge.

"Yeah. No way am I going to be beaten by a rookie. ."

"Tch! I'm gonna get more kills than you!"

"… Tch! Don't get cocky, you fucking kid! Rah!" Scotts, Guile and Mord voiced.

The other party was wholly forgotten as Naruto, and the group dashed away and continued competing for kills. Each level 2 had been riled up after seeing a level 1 overcome a task that was in the extremes, even for them whilst they were working together. Sure he had magic, but that magic failed to conceal the masked adventurer's prowess. Death throes echoed down the halls before fading away.

"Hey, you are using magic, no fair!"

"You are level 2. Suck it up."

An argument could be heard fading in the distance.

The people left behind were speechless as their saviours had run off, completely forgetting that they had been there. They did not even have a chance to express their gratitude; instead, they were treated as tiresome gimmicks and ignored entirely… Even though they were low level in comparison to the higher echelons of their familia.

Even if the group checked on them before leaving, they doubted they'd be able to speak as the person's feats, they, like everyone else thought were a joke, had made a lasting impression on them. No one knew his name, just his achievements. Some rumours suggested that he was a fraud, had some ridiculous weapon, or was in a familia before he became known.

His techniques looked to be something out of a fantasy, each executed with perfection, leaving nothing desired. The only things really holding him back were the numbers tattooed to his back though his talents overwhelmed them considerably. He was skilled enough to overcome the level gap, and that's without his magic.

The thought of him being a rookie adventurer was put into question when they realized how long it takes to learn concurrent chanting. They were familiar with the concept as their familia often relied on artillery provided by mages, so they naturally put in a lot of effort to train them. The thought of someone mastering such a complex skill in two weeks was dizzying, to say the least.

Thoughts of his magic jumped out of their heads as the stress made them feel very light, so additional stress of thinking wouldn't do them any good.

"L-Level 1 and slaughtering that many monsters without dying… That guy is no joke; he is just like Miss Aiz," one of them spoke after a moment of silence. Their silence and peace was a result of the battle Naruto had had with the monsters. His magic had managed to damage large sections of the dungeon's walls severely, thereby robbing the frontier of its ability to spawn monsters.

Their eyes landed at the foot of the pile of limbs he had left behind. On it was a few vials of citrus coloured fluid, and surrounding them were makeshift black knives with stone handles wrapped in cloth. And there were numerous corpses with untouched magic stones. They couldn't understand why? They had been told he had been distant and heartless, but… They held back their tears.

Their enormous self-doubts waned when they realized that they were not forgotten at all. They should have been used to it by now. Always feeling inferior to the rest and constantly being looked down upon by a certain werewolf. An adventurer of great power had appeared before them, and they expected to be forgotten, but they were not. He recognized they were still there.

Like Mord and his crew, they too gained a fire. A desire to become stronger.

"My pockets are lighter. Oh noooooo," he thought with exaggerated shock as he sheath his tanto. He reached to his belt and pulled out one of his remaining black knives.

"Hmmm. I am still maintaining the lead; it would seem," Naruto spoke up after driving one of his Shadow knives into a goblin. The goblin's cry was cut off as its brain matter spread under Naruto's foot.

"God, fucking, damn it," cursed Mord, "How the hell do you always know where they'll come from? It's getting ridiculous at this point! Like fuck! How are we supposed to cover a 300 point gap if you keep beating to em?"

"That's a good one Mord, even when we first met, he could always tell where monsters would be before they even came," Scotts said, scratching his head. "I get that hearing and smell can tell you a lot, but he doesn't seem to be a demi-human."

"I am human," Naruto called out from another hall. His voice was followed by dull thuds of corpses collapsing into heaps. They ignored him in favor of coming up with ideas to answer the question they all shared. There was no point in asking him because they felt that the boy wouldn't answer them.

"He must have a really good sixth sense," Guile spoke speculatively, also scratching his head at the puzzle that was Naruto's perception.

Squelch!

"466," his voice echoed, causing their hairs to stand on end as he randomly appeared beside them. Naruto ignored the group and dashed further down the path, distancing himself from them. He then used his martial prowess to quickly dispatch creatures rushing at him to have a taste of his blood.

They all sighed in unison before moving to do their job. Their goal was to get their savior to the 12th floor, not drown in their thoughts. They had given up on trying to surpass him, not because it was impossible but because he seemed… Not as aloof, he seemed happy, and they felt that they did not want to take it away from him. They could live with an L. The men all grinned, holding back laughter as they caught a light skip in Naruto's walk. "They saw me," Naruto thought.

Some time passed since the group had begun their journey to the 12th floor. It was by no means grueling as they were all level 2s that could make it to the 18th floor without any real problems if things went right. If no hordes of monsters assailed them from all sides or confined them into a single corner, then they would be very much fine.

Even if that did happen, the person they traveled with was so good at coming up with tactics to defeat hordes of monsters that they kept mistaking him for a heavily debuffed first-class adventurer. His concurrent chanting coupled with his swordsmanship and hand-to-hand combat prowess gave the impression that he was some kind of move fortress as he could fill in every role at once. One of the ways he fought involved leading enemies by the nose before striking them down with overwhelming force.

That was only one of the ways. His flexibility in combat took most people, even the most talented, decades to master, and he, at an age close to 15, had mastered it. It was mind-boggling. Then there was his ability to concurrently chant. The men had long since acknowledged that if they each fought the boy in a one on 1, they would lose and caused them to respect the boy. You don't wake up with skills like that.

After clearing another group of monsters, the group descended down the rocky stairs with wisps of steam crawling up their length before diffusing into nothingness. The deeper they went, the thicker and more present the steam. No calling it mist is far more appropriate. They stopped at an opening. Past that point was a place that resembled a savanna biome covered in morning mist.

The lack of the usual light that lighted the dungeon's passageways gave the area in front of them an eerie atmosphere. That's because the lack of light contrasted sharply with the biome's traditional association with the sun. The lack of orange lighting made it weird and mysterious, giving most people who first visited this floor shivers down their spines.

10th floor. Entering this floor made people feel like they'd lose their way if their attention lapsed for even a moment. In a place where you could lose your life at any moment, getting lost was the last thing that any newbie would want. Some people would play it off as a joke until they saw it. The mist that loosely hung in the air moved in gradients, making some places easier to view and others harder, so determining direction using the fog was a no-go.

In the mist, dark shapes stood still, generating an air of mystery because it was impossible to discern what they were from such a distance. Distant cries and hopping sounds shook the mist, but the figures creating the disturbance could not be seen. Even individuals of the elf race, who are known for their excellent vision, couldn't see the end of the hallway due to the volume of the mist.

"Welcome to da 10th-floor kiddo," Guile moved past Mord and Scotts and made a grandiose gesture. "Here, you'll find creatures that can push any level one except you to their limits. Poor visibility plus agile monsters are sure to throw ya off and make ya question why ya decided to come here, but then again, it's you. You'll be fine," he continued in a cheery voice.

"… Thank you," Naruto responded simply and hesitantly walked past the entrance. "My sight and nose are severely hampered here, but I can hear and sense nearby monsters with ease," he noted as he pulled out a vial of magic potion before smashing it against his mask. The shards fell to the floor whilst the fluid was disappeared as soon as it came into contact with his mask.

"You can gawk later, kiddo. We still have to get to the 12th floor," Mord stated in a near acerbic tone. It seemed as if hours of Naruto outperforming him left him a little sour. No one dared to point this out as them saying anything would be like throwing feces at the wheel of a carriage moving at full speed. The stuff would just spread all over the place leading to everyone's days being spoiled.

"Hey Nar," Scotts called out, drawing Naruto's attention to him. "Yes?" the boy replied, oblivious to the nickname. Scotts had started calling him that out of nowhere, and Naruto simply accepted it because the nickname had no negative connotation for him.

The man pointed in a seemingly random direction, "You calling first dibs?" the man asked, forgetting their competition. "Yeah," Naruto responded as he turned away from the group and stared back in the direction. Naruto's formality had weakened at some point as he became friendlier.

The thing he had called dibs on caused vibrations to be felt at their feet as its gargantuan frame moved the mist. Its corpulent belly wobbled with each step, showing that it was likely a product of excessive gluttony. After a moment, it came close enough for all its features to be seen.

It was about 3 meters tall, with dark skin and a boar's head. A brown hide wrapped around its waist had seen better days. The hide around the creature's waist made Naruto cringe a little, reminding him of a strange god his grandfather had introduced him to. The man bemoaned the fact that orcs were meant to do something to girls but didn't. His grandfather used to say the strangest things, but they did not compare to what the god described... He shivered and averted his gaze at the thought.

The orc's beady yellow eyes fell onto the cloaked and masked boy before quickening its pace, reaching out for a nearby tree. Its fingers wrapped around it and pulled it out, revealing that the tree's roots had coiled up and appeared circular, creating a crude club.

Another one of the dungeon's more irritating gimmicks. Landforms.

Landforms were one of the things that made the creatures that inhabited floor ten and below considerably more dangerous than those that occupied the floors above. Normal monsters that could be killed unarmed could put up more of a fight with the dungeon's assistance.

"Gahhh, ungh…!"

Its heavy breathing got closer to the boy.

Its mouth salivated, and its eyes glistened with sadistic excitement as it approached its prey. It gave a heart-shaking roar as it raised its hand and sent its club barrelling forward to smash the human. "Slow and sluggish but boasts incredible power. Its large frame makes it harder for it to get killed… Going for legs is recommended by most. No need," he thought as he simply jumped to the side, avoiding the heavily telegraphed overhead arcing striking.

The Orc committing to its attack left it vulnerable as it could not properly attack unless its club was raised again. Naruto, wasting no time, jumped onto the club, rushed up its arm, and thrust his tanto into its eye, ignoring its screeching roar. The creature swung its free arm at him to bat him off, prompting him to respond by maneuvering around its neck and driving the blade into an artery in its neck.

Green goop exploded from its neck, gushing out like a fountain on a warm day. With its lone eye wide, the creature moved its other hand away from the club and used it to attempt to apply pressure to the wound. Naruto walked to it casually and disemboweled it with a single horizontal slash with a pace unbefitting for someone whose life was in danger. The magic stone situated in its chest could no longer maintain its owner's form, forcing the creature to crumble to ash.

"It's weak," Naruto said with his dry voice that had a pouty tone to it.

"Of course, it is," Mord responded dryly, used to the insanity that was Naruto, before sighing and walking past him. Mord reached for his long sword and approached another orc before slicing its leg off and stabbing its chest before it could let out a sound. The monster's corpse quietly dissolved into ash, revealing a severely damaged crystal.

"GWIII!"

Small, demonic monsters, imps, flew straight at Naruto, who had not been facing their direction. The entirety of their bodies was black, from here to tail. Their heads were large for their tiny frames, making them look like lollipops. Their tiny frames allowed them to make fast and sharp moves, and when combined with their forked tails and sharp claws, a deadly combo was created.

Naruto sidestepped one and raised his sword to fend off attacks coming from a trio on his left. The creatures on the left retreated, and Naruto dove forward and performed a roll before moving to fend off the group that had moved to attack his back.

"Hit and run tactics. Not bad, they are better than the orcs for sure," he commented as the creatures retreated and others took their place by attacking him from the side.

The mist shook from the movement of giant creatures, and the sound of trees being yanked out of the ground permeated through the field.

"Kyaaa!"

Naruto winced slightly, and he flicked his eyes to the source of the noise; it was a dark bat-like monster soaring above him. His lapse in concentration allowed an imp to slip into his guard and move to slide its tail into his throat, but Naruto's body responded immediately by splitting the critter in half.

The momentum from his tanto's slash transferred over to his body, allowing him to spin and flutter his cloak, hiding his hands. The bat creature fell when a black object embedded itself into its forehead, and three imps joined it in the grave when Naruto redrew his blade and slit their throats when they thought that they could kill him with ease.

A large hand shot through the mist latched onto the cloak, and tugged, instantly overpowering Naruto's firm footing and yanking him. With his neck receiving trauma, Naruto watched the grassy floor speed u, becoming a dull green river.

Before the creature could slam him onto the ground, Naruto unclasped the cloak and twisted mid-air, killing the momentum generated by the creature's arcing swing. He then pushed his hand onto the monster's wrist and balanced his body off of it. The orc snorted loudly before jerking its arm up, hoping to throw the boy off, but to its surprise, he dropped to his side and rolled off it.

A combination of Naruto's excellent swordsmanship and the tanto's sharpness allowed the boy to remove the monster's fingers with one cut quickly. The boy did not stop there, he linked his initial attack to a dozen others, and within an instant, the orc was covered in deep grooves. Naruto had taken advantage of his superior agility to attack, pull out, change direction, and attack once more. The creature being slow and clumsy, let Naruto run around it, jump over it and rush it from multiple angles and score multiple consecutive hits, lacerating its flesh more and more.

Before it could roar in pain, a black knife had embedded itself deep into its windpipe, converting the potential roar into gurgles. The boy caught his cloak and donned it once more, hiding his white hair from the world as the creature fell forward and joined the many others that had become the boy's target.

Guile expertly spun his spear between his fingers before jabbing its butt into an orc's face, crushing its face instantly before casually swiping the bladed side to his right, beheading multiple imps simultaneously.

Scotts jumped onto Guile's shoulders and used them as footing to leap deep into mist before reaching to his back and pulling out a pair of knives. For most people, having their comrade use them in this manner would be disgruntling, and a subject for frustration, but this trio was a little different. They had a dynamic of sorts.

Mord rushed past Guile and mowed down large goblin monsters with a single powerful swing before jumping to meet an orc head-on. The club in the monster's hand made its way towards him but was split in half mid-journey. Mord carried his longswords momentum and sliced into the monster's foot.

Scotts taking some inspiration from one of Naruto's earlier feats stepped onto the dungeon ceiling, launched himself down, and brought his knives down, decapitating the monster. The man landed in a kneeling position before smirking while tossing his knife as if taunting the monsters. Imps exploded from his blindside only to be skewered by Guiles spear who let out a primal roar as he swung his spear in a diagonal arc and brought it down to catch a bad bat moving to attack him.

Their dynamic was something to be admired. Mord used his superior strength and physique to draw heavy-hitting monsters to him and either keep them at bay or rout them. He usually plays the vanguard role in his party, and it was apparent why. His skill in close quarters combat against monsters far surpassed that of his party members, but he was not adept at dealing with multiple opponents. He excelled at taking on fewer but more powerful opponents, but he was also capable of eradicating large groups, albeit with many injuries.

Guile supported Mord with his spear to conceal this flaw. Guile's spearmanship allowed him to land jabs on multiple opponents simultaneously, assisting Mord by injuring enemies who attacked him, making it easier for the man to defeat them. His spears were also capable of pinning down enemies, allowing Mord to dispatch them easily. The two were roughly equal in terms of combat ability, though Mord had the upper hand due to his superior strength. The difference between Guile and Mord is that Guile is a technique fighter, and Mord is a power-type fighter.

Scotts, the last member of their team, boasted the highest agility out of any of them. His smaller frame made it far easier to evade attacks as he could manipulate his pivot, allowing him to change directions at will suddenly. His agility was great that if he had a hood, he'd easily be mistaken for a highly talented cat person.

He specialized in hit and run tactics as he should have, and through such attacks, he became a vital member of the squad as he could disrupt enemy ranks when he attacked. His amazing speed and agility, however costed him strength and defense. He wasn't very good against large, tankier opponents, and that's where Mord came in.

Mord took on stronger enemies whilst Guile assisted him, then Scotts would cause a disruption.

Then there was Naruto, who was seated atop a throne of 6 slain orcs. Decorating the throne's foot was a variety of monster parts from legs to tails to head. Whatever limb could be imagined was there. Some corpses had already collapsed due to their crystals being destroyed, whilst others slowly crumbled away.

"What?"

"…"

"…"

"…"

Mord gave an audible sigh and spoke loud enough for all the party members to hear.

"Let's just go further," he said with a small smile, finding himself no longer being able to remain frustrated. "Yes," Naruto said. At some point during his many battles, he had conjured up his cloud once more and said cloud was vibrating, and while it did that, it sent out flashes of blue light, giving the impression it was unstable. Thunder boomed on the misty plains before a great flash of light illuminated nearby corridors.

Naruto threw his feet up off the footrest that once served as an arm and leisurely hopped off the pile. Without sparring a glance, he gave clearance to the lightning desperately seeking to be released from its cage.

A second, a much brighter flash of light struck the ground, creating a resounding boom that reverberated for a great distance. The grassy plains caught fire and gave the bland, white mist an orange hue as the flame spread quickly over the area. Pyres of smoke rose as the field crackled with flames.

"Oops," Naruto said whilst scratching his cheek slightly before shrugging. The fire wasn't something that would threaten someone with a falna, even if they were injured, so he left it as a gift of sorts. To help expose the creatures that hid in the mist's depths. He and his party walked past a group of startled animal people, showing no concern for them.

"That spell of yours is pretty neat, man," Guile slapped Naruto's back, nearly causing him to stumble forward.

"Thanks."

Soon, large piles of dust were left in their wake as they traveled further into the dungeon. The men's level 2 status allowed them to operate longer without breaks, and while Naruto could get tired if he overexerted himself or healed fatal wounds, his stamina recovery was as abnormal as his healing factor. He'd let his party wipe out monsters in his stead as he gave himself a minute to recuperate.

When they entered the 11th floor, Naruto noticed that people from a familia he was very familia with were prowling it. Takemizuchi familia. Naruto convinced his party to take a different route before they noticed and obliged without a fuss.

Taking a different path had consequences, such as the fact that there were numerous parties on the path they took, meaning that they could not do battle with monsters. The 11th floor was rather uneventful, and so they made it to their destination without trouble.

"4 imps nine o-clock! Mord, Armadillo monster, and Orc at your 6, 9, and 25 meters, respectively!"

"They're called Hard Armoreds!" Mord called out before dashing into the mist. "I got the orc!" Scotts' youthful voice called out as he leaped in the fog. Naruto ducked under a club and moved his sword around with great speed, swatting away multiple slashes and bite attacks from imps with ease. His sword technique was exemplary as it simultaneously allowed him to guard himself and strike at his enemy's blind spots. If there were none, then he simply created his own.

Naruto pulled out a purple wing and shredded it through the use of his fingers assisted by his wind before using his wind to allow it to drift towards the dozens of imps zipping through the air. Naruto sensed one emerging from behind and was about to turn to meet it but.

"Leave it to me!" Guile called out, his voice followed by a yelp of pain and the crumbling of a crystal. "We a party Nar, even if it's temporary, so leave your back to us," he said, smiling as another party of imps in his spear's twirl. Naruto nodded and moved to engage his next adversary.

"GYI! NYA!"

Clang! Clang!

Naruto brought his blade up to block a tail, stabbing at him before quickly moving it to meet another monster that had brought its claw down. The mist exploded open as rabbits with horns on their foreheads rushed at him. Naruto hesitated briefly before ducking under one that had jumped at his head.

This compromised some imps' attacks as the rabbit got in the way, so by taking advantage of that gap, Naruto rushed towards the remaining rabbits, stabbed one of them through the neck, and picked it up by the blade before hurling it at an imp.

"GI!?'

The devil monster gave a cry of surprise as it was knocked out of the air. Naruto jumped back as half a dozen knives skewered the rabbits that had been attacking him. Scotts landed beside him and collected his knives before dashing into the mist.

"RAH!" Mord cleaved an orc in half with one powerful strike, ending its life quickly.

"OHHHHH!"

A roar shook the mist as the party made quick work of the monsters that made the mistake of attacking them. "What's that?" Naruto questioned after decapitating another one of the annoying dark devil monsters.

"That would be a silverback. You got dibs?" Guile moved to Naruto's side after answering. "It's a large monkey monster with white and silver fur. Watch its arms!" he warned before stepping back. "Mord! Scotts! Keep the monsters away from Nar, " he called out before receiving a resounding "Right!"

"Yo, catch," despite the sword coming from a seemingly random direction in the mist, Naruto caught it with ease. It was a dagger that had roughly the same length as his tanto. "That sword of yours is decent, but it ain't doing jack shit to that bugger. Their hide is tough. That lightning of yours can add an enchantment, but I see that ya don't wanna use it, so I'll lend ya one of my weapons," Scotts' voice echoed amid the paroxysm and roars of pain and agony.

As soon as his statement was made, a large fist barrelled its way through the mist, arcing as it flew horizontally towards the boy whose body had already started reacting to the change in speed.

Naruto's eyes widened slightly, "Fast!" he thought, recognizing the monster as a formidable foe. The mist was blown back as the creature's brown fist flew inches above his mask. The boy forced the blade he had been borrowed up to meet its forearm about to his surprise, although its large size managed to shift its arms vector, causing it to slam on the ground next to Naruto.

Its long, muscular fingers compromised the hard dungeon floor that Naruto could not hope to destroy with his strength. It used its fingers as leverage to launch itself at the boy, moving its other hand to swipe at him, but Naruto ducked and rolled under it before stopping and forcing a sharp turn allowing him to push off the balls of his feet to attack it whilst its back was turned to him.

When the monster realized what it was up against, it raised both of its mighty arms into the air and slammed them down like a divine hammer. The group exploded, hurling rocks at Naruto, forcing him to duck, dodge, and weave his way through them. While they were unable to stop him, they were able to delay him long enough for the silverback to return to face him directly. Showing something as dangerous as that human its back was a horrible idea.

Its mouth's top half flapped back, revealing countless jagged glinting teeth before closing before being followed by huffing sounds. The silverback stood on its hindquarters and brought its arms up to its chest, and beat at it like a drum before slamming its fists down onto the ground. It snarled and let out brain-rattling roars before accelerating towards him to turn him into a bloody paste.

"Getting hit by those arms would be a problem," he concluded as he forced himself to jump side to side and duck. Naruto used his smaller size to his advantage and made use of the rocks that would spring up out of the ground because of its wild rampage. Its overwhelming power was projected not only through its attacks but through its violent roars and huffs, but despite it washing over Naruto in waves, it did nothing to disrupt his peace of mind.

Instead, he slowly decelerated his lateral jumps and started running around the monster, leaping forward or suddenly stopping to evade its attack. The 12th floor's ground was hard enough to be considered a rock, so breaking it could result in large jagged shards sticking out the ground. Utilizing the power of his foe against it, Naruto had created a circular perimeter around it without the use of magic instead used his great critical thinking and highly agile body.

With the perimeter now established, Naruto jumped from dungeon fragment to dungeon fragment, moving side to side as if attacking the creature from every angle. With its nose flared and eyes red, the silverback brought both its fists down to where Naruto was in unison, but it hit nothing as the boy was on top of another rock sticking out of the ground.

This exchange continued until the creature's breathing started becoming labored, forcing it to realize that its opponent was attempting to tire it out. It then realized the reason it struggled to hit him so much was that the boy had established a territory around it.

In response, the creature howled used its other "hand" to gorge a tree out of the ground and used its arms as a pivot to allow it to spin with the tree, bashing its unnaturally hard trunk against the jagged structures. It slammed its hands into the ground and used its incredible strength to launch itself away from the boy before using its prehensile foot to swing at other trees, hoping to destroy any potential obstacles the boy could use.

Naruto was in the air above it, watching pieces of bark and chunks of earth careening towards him. He simply kicked every single object back at the creature, surrounding it like a kraal.

The silverback eyes were wide in shock before the creature attempted the same spinning maneuver again to destroy the territory once more. A maneuver that Naruto had already seen. Big mistake.

"…" Naruto exploited its blunder by calculating the speed at which it spun and before performing a backflip and pushing his hand down onto its leg and using it as a stepping stone as it passed by to launch himself above the owner's head. His hand snapped forward and caught its shoulders fur in a tight grip before yanking himself forward and bringing his blade down. It was a feat similar to touching the flat side of a fan as it moved at full speed.

Fortunately for it, it was able to tilt its head before Naruto's blade could perforate its eyeball, and so its ear was sacrificed. It did not let the burn coming from the side of its head distract it from the boy, but he was gone.

The pain had briefly overpowered the silverback, forcing it to take its eyes off the boy for a moment. An unfortunate biological response as it the toes of its prehensile feet get severed. It turned towards the source of its pain then felt something gorging into its right arm. It turned to its right arm and immediately lost its left thumb.

Naruto had started to use the full extent of his upgraded status; he hadn't done so before because he wasn't used to it, but now he was. Even though the silverback was still significantly faster than him, Naruto continued to move too quickly for it to react. Naruto timed when it would turn its head towards the source of its pain, then moved accordingly. He dashed around the monster like a ninja, his movements extremely quiet as he attacked it from all sides.

The gorilla couldn't keep a shriek from rattling its vocal cords any longer. Its roar was taken away by a series of sharp and terrifying pains, and instead, a loud, high-pitched sound erupted from its vocals. Its baritone, coarse sound, louder than anything a Bad Bat could produce, would shake the ears of most who heard it, but Naruto was not one of them.

His initial attack forced its eyes off him, allowing him to use his stealth abilities to shave off the parts of its body that made it an extremely dangerous monster. The blade's sharpness allowed him to not commit to attacks which opened opportunities for him to strike and retreat under the monster before striking it once more and jumping over it and repeating, and then coming from its sides. He was no match for it physically, so he used to hit and run tactics to weaken it considerably.

The monster quickly plucked a rock the size of a man's head and hurled it at Naruto, who gracefully sidestepped it before spinning as if he was performing in an opera. The sword his hand chirped against the rock, breaking a tiny piece off. Naruto flipped the sword and let go of it, and as it spun mid-air, he casually plucked the fragment and flicked his wrist, hurling it at the monster.

"Right back at ya," his hand made a gesture that his grandfather had taught him. One that looked like a slightly curled-up finger gun. The monster moved its arms in a cross to block the pebble as it now considered anything from the boy to be a threat, but Naruto's accuracy surpassed its reflexes. The stone replaced its left eye with enough force to turn its head to the side. Before a scream could explode from its throat, a black, makeshift knife had embedded itself into its other eye.

He caught the sword and lept at the creature, and stabbed it through the chest before it could let out even the most minuscule of cries. The creature quietly turned to ash as its crystal was destroyed.

"Thank you, Scotts," Naruto tossed the blade back to its own before stretching. No monsters were in the vicinity, as his party had done an excellent job in clearing them out.

"No prob. You good? Need a potion?" the man approached Naruto and took a stood next to him, lightly tossing the weapon returned to him by the masked adventurer. Naruto shook his head; while he had sustained significant damage during their journey, his healing factor had made quick work of it. He had some injuries from diving into the horde of monsters earlier, including his arm being mangled and being stabbed through the chest by an ant, but nothing that his healing assisted by Miachs potion couldn't fix. He felt dizzy for a brief moment, but he gave himself time to recover with Gale and Absolute Zero. While no ice appeared, he reduced the temperature around him to such an extent that the movement of the creatures around him was hampered.

Not to mention the injuries he sustained whilst having a kill competition with level 2s…

"Man! Were spawn rates always this high?" Guile complained as he made his way through the mist, moving towards the duo. "I know, right?" Mord affirmed as he to approached them. He then shrugged and turned to Naruto, "This far enough, kiddo? We can go even further if ya want," he grinned slightly.

"Thank you," Naruto said, shaking his head, "but I think it's time for me to go back." I'd like to meet with my patron. "You see, I soured their mood, and mine got soured as well, so I want to apologize as soon as possible," he said, shrinking and scratching the back of his head.

"Hmmm, that's interesting. Do you want to grab a drink with us later at The Hostess of Fertility? On me," he said as he moved closer and wrapped his large arm around Naruto's shoulder like a comrade. The instinctually no that always slipped onto his mouth was not present; instead, there was a tugging within him.

Naruto gave no response as he mulled it over. There was clearly no benefit to him joining them, but he just wanted to. These people were not his friends, and he did nothing for them. They paid their debt to him by accompanying him to the 12th floor, so why would they invite him to drinks?

He wasn't their ally, there was no victory and as such there nothing to celebrate. "? I can't. I'm too busy with formulating new strategies and techniques, and I also have to polish my sword and… And…" Every comprehensible excuse formed in his brain, but he couldn't lie to himself.

"…"

"Heh! Feel free to come by if ya change ya mind, we'll save ya seat," Mord said before lightly slapping Naruto's back. Naruto's manner of speaking shifted back to the way it used to be and always is like, "Understood."

With the threat of death looming around every corner, adventurers become allies.

Later

"Naru, Naru," Hestia giggled, poking Naruto's cheek. "What's got you so gloomy?" Naruto gave no response; instead, he just kept his head on the couch and stared at the ceiling. "Wanna get a status update?" Hestia gave him a soft smile as she knelt beside him, trying to rouse him by poking him. He was just like a hibernating bear that near wanted to wake up. She took a step back when she head movement on the couch

Naruto rose groggily and gave a nod before turning to lie on his stomach. His shirt had been destroyed during his adventure, and he didn't really bother himself by getting another one. His cloak just faded from view, exposing his bareback to his goddess.

"So, what was the worst and best part of your day?" she questioned as she prepared a piece of paper, pen, and needle. She brought her hand up and bit the tip of her glove before pulling it back and exposing her immaculate skin to the world.

"Fighting a monkey… Fighting a monkey. Fighting a monkey. I hate orcs, childhood memories terrifying. I hate orcs; why were goblins so large? I hate orcs. Fighting a monkey. Oh, and I got pass paraded… It was… Fun oh, and did I mention fighting a monkey?" he listlessly gave the highlights of his day. He repeated his encounter with the silverback to help him forget his encounter with orcs that triggered the return of his childhood memories.

Hestia raised an eyebrow but ended up shaking her head slightly, "What's fun about people giving their monsters to you? It's great it wasn't that many, right?" she inquired. "Also, what's this about fighting a monkey?"

"…"

"Right?" Hestia repeated, her voice getting darker.

"…"

"…"

"…"

"Naruto…" The woman nearly growled; her twin tails twitched as if alive. She was on the cusp of entering what Naruto dubbed as "Scold mode Hestia." Naruto didn't need to look at her face to know she was severely displeased, so he shrunk slightly. There was only one thing he could do.

"Yes, mother?" He responded with his usual blank tone, and though he tried to make it more appealing, his attempt fell flat on its face. To most people, him calling them a parent would be like being called that by a brick wall, and no one would be moved... Except for Hestia, who looked as if a puppy had dashed around her legs or the world's cutest yellow duckling had moved up to nuzzle its face against her ankle.

Hestia nearly swooned when he said that but froze when she realized what he was attempting, "Don't get smart with me, young man, your charms may sway me from time to time but sadly for you, this is not one of them, so ha! Not this time, you sly-fox!"

"Well… It's worth a shot... That hurts, goddess," he grumbled, and the goddess puffed up her cheeks and turned her head away from him. The woman had pricked his skin with a needle she had dropped onto his back. It wasn't particularly painful, but he wanted to warn his goddess not to try anything more dangerous because cleaning up would be a headache. Oh, and safety too. Yeah… Safety. He didn't say anything because he knew she was upset.

Hestia sighed, having grown accustomed to Naruto's antics, and returned to work. She knew that scolding him wouldn't help, so she remained silent.

As Hestia made the status on his back visible (She asked Miach about it, and he informed her of how to lock the status), Naruto shifted underneath her.

"Uncomfortable? Should I adjust my seating?" she questioned while moving to stand.

"No… Just…" he couldn't formulate the words necessary to express his thoughts.

"Yeah?" Hestia gave him all her attention.

"Do you remember the adventurers I reported on? The ones I had allied with in hopes of escaping the minotaurs."

"Yeah?" With her interest piqued, she leaned forward, eager to listen to what he had to say next.

"We had a reunion this morning… They wanted to compensate me for saving them… They were all level 2, so I asked them to take me 12th floor as it would be too risky for me to go on my own. Well, I thought it would be, but it would seem that my abilities increased higher than I expected…."

"Don't silverbacks spawn between 11th and 12th floors? Is that what that monkey talk of his wall about?" she questioned internally while keeping her mouth shut on the outside as Naruto hadn't finished talking.

"We came back together after I had concluded my business in Babel and Blue Pharmacy… I was focused on getting to my destination, but they ended up dropping a challenge in front of me… I took it, and… Had fun…"

Hestia was visibly delighted as she shook from the excitement on his back; she had an idea of what he was going to say next but couldn't be certain. She remained silent and gently stroked his white strands of hair, encouraging him to continue. Her feelings of contempt had long since faded, having been overpowered by the sweet nectar spoken by the boy.

"We slaughtered a substantial number of monsters through our cooperation, and they all displayed signs of finding working with me to be pleasant… Despite their humiliating loss to me in a monster-slaying competition… I killed a silverback later… They displayed satisfaction and joy after I completed the task and wanted to celebrate… They want me to go out for drinks as a celebration when there is nothing to celebrate. Their reasoning is beyond me, but… Uh… And… I," his words stumbled as his uncertainty made them trip on themselves.

"Go," Hestia answered; she wasn't too worried, for Naruto was a better judge of character than most gods and isn't impressionable enough to be coerced into doing the wrong thing. His grandfather was an extremely lustful man, but Naruto showed no signs of taking after him. While he did sneak glances at her breasts every now and then, it was natural as he had hit puberty. She would be more worried if he didn't.

"…" Naruto did not answer, knowing that anything that would come out of his mouth from that point would be a barrage of excuses. He did not like lying when it wasn't necessary, and he most certainly did not like lying to himself. He understood even his most basic desires to a T, so he could not lie to himself.

"You want to go, right? Then go. Don't worry about the bad things that could happen; instead, focus on the positive. I know you are on a journey but taking a break and resting is essential. It helps you look back on what you did right and wrong and allows you the opportunity to enjoy the world around you. I have an understanding of how you see yourself but remember that you are still a person. If you never attend to your needs, unnatural abilities or not, you will fall apart.

Besides, nothing wrong with trying to have fun every now and then," she lightly punched his arm and giggled. There was a comfortable silence that settled between the two of them as Hestia gazed over the numbers on his back.

"Over 1 000 points, huh? This is ridiculous… Don't scream; that will alarm him, but he will level up soon! This growth is outlandish; just what did he do to himself? I'm glad he can relax because whatever it is that he is doing or trying may break him mentally," the goddess maintained a calm façade as not to alarm him. She reached for a piece of paper to translate the details on his back from hieroglyphs to Koine, and her hand stopped mid-air, recalling what she had thoughts she had earlier. "He'll figure it out immediately… I need to buy some time," she thought.

"When you reach the end of your journey, I want you to be able to look back fondly at every step you took to get there. I'm sure you don't want your road to be just paved with the blood of those who have fallen by your hand," she broke the silence.

"Dreams, ambitions, goals; every single one is unique to each person that exists. In life, it's either you improve as a person or the person you are dies. When the person you are disappears, then so do your dreams, ambitions, and goals. When those disappear, you essentially just become lost and thoughtless and will descend a spiral of madness that will end with you turning your blade on what you swore you would protect. It's important to sit back, rewind, and remember, to introspect, you know?

There are many ways to evolve, and one of them is the ability to communicate with other people. You know what they say; a different opinion is just another Point of View. Anyways, I'll stop there, for now, think about it," she continued with a gentle and heartwarming voice.

"… I," Naruto paused before continuing, "I understand. Thank you, goddess. I will go, the time to Rendez-Vous is near, so I will have to depart post haste," he slid out from under her and moved to one corner of the room where he kept his clothes and extracted a t-shirt. He then used more than 70% of his mind to conjure up a large bubble of water and then caught soap that Hestia had tossed at him.

The water became misty, hiding his body as his trousers flew out of the bubble dry. After all that, he used a combination of Ifrit and Gale to dry himself before getting dressed again. The bubble of water vaporized into a mist that rushed out the door.

"I didn't know you could do that," Hestia whistled, impressed by his ingenuity. If she wasn't a god, then she would not have understood what he was doing.

"Anyways, status?" she asked slowly, knowing that she couldn't hide it from him any longer.

"… Maybe next time. Not like I experienced a ridiculous level of growth or anything, this should be the point where my status starts to throttle. Though I did experience an unexpected increase in my overall abilities, then again, I suffered significant trauma... Oh well," he responded curtly with a hint of amusement in his voice. His cloak manifested and hid his body like it always did.

"Yeah…" Hestia gave a wry smile at his obliviousness. Naruto looked at her strangely before shrugging and walking towards the door.

"Don't drink too much or stay up too late, understand? I want you back here at 22:30!"
"I don't get drunk, and I still don't need to sleep," he waved her off and simply walked out the tiny room into the church.

"That boy," she thought as she sighed in exasperation as she looked at his status. He hadn't informed her of the range of his hearing, so she thought to herself, "Am I the reason you drive yourself so hard? Am I the reason you are suffering so much?"

Naruto

Level 1(?)

Strength (?): H188 – E305 (117)

Defense (?): I120 – E450 (330)

Utility (?): G265 – E440 (175)

Agility (?): G278 – D580 (302)

Magic (?): G278 – E400 (122)

Total – 1, 046

Magic

(Zenith Tempest)

-powerful storm magic that could produces a large cloud that can create and rain all sorts of natural phenomena on a target

Skills

Omit

-delete two lines from chants

Sage

- Reduces mind usage when existing attributes are utilized

-Automatic mind recovery at a slow rate, effects enhanced significantly when user in precarious situations or feels threatened.

-Derives new effects from existing attributes

Hi no Ishi

-Excelia multiplier affected by the desires to survive, overcome, protect and improve.

-Increases stats slightly when on the verge of death

As the light of day faded, people crawled from the depths of the night. Some were women, all scantily dressed in clothing that would make an amazon feel ashamed. Their voices whispered and call out to the many men that traveled the streets, bringing out some rather interesting responses from those that were inexperienced and disgusted looks from those of the dignified elven race.

Naruto was not one of them, as usual; his cloak fluttered soundlessly as he dashed across the width of a particularly long building's roof before jumping and landing on another. His quick footsteps drew no sound from the material they gently tapped, a product of learning to move through a forest without drawing any sound.

His cloak and body melded seamlessly into the shadows of the well-lit city, flying above oblivious pedestrians

Soon he started hearing the sounds of cheery voices that melded in with the many wind and string instruments playing in the background.

"They are here," As he landed on the roof of a two-story stone building, he muttered softly. He could feel his comrades' signatures in the crowd inside the building from his vantage point. Naruto looked down to see if he could jump down, but there were many people near where he wanted to jump down. He silently turned his head, searching the street for a place to land before entering the bar, but he decided against it when he noticed an open window a few meters away.

Every presence in the building was not facing the window and seemed too distracted by the many hearty tales told by their comrades. He didn't see any faces but judging from the voices below, the place was quite cheery and alive, contrary to what one would expect.

A lot of bars housed people who desired to drown their sorrows and traumas with alcohol, and adventurers typically had it much rougher than the typical person. This bar, on the other hand, had none of that; he hardly caught any traces of negativity as people chattered endlessly inside. Naruto resisted the temptation to slide into the window as that would cause many problems should he be discovered, even if extremely unlikely. After all, he had somewhat confirmed that 1st tier adventurers couldn't detect him on his first day in the city.

He reluctantly jumped from the roof and landed silently beside a couple who had been distracted as their lips had intertwined with each other. His feet betrayed no sound as he landed next to them and walked away.

He walked in through the entrance and was met with the sight of multiple women in green uniforms running around with plates of food in tow. A select group of women caught his eye; one was a black-haired cat person, one was a brown-haired cat person, one was a brown-haired human, and the last was a dignified elf with greenish hair. To most people, it would be green, but Naruto could easily tell that it was dyed.

The human bent over slightly with a notepad and pencil to take notes of a prum's order. The cat-eared waitresses rushed in and out of the kitchen, carrying plates and mugs with them, and elf rejected the advances of a particularly muscled dwarf.

"They are all strong," he noted as his eyes shifted from them and landed on a table in the opposite corner of the main floor. "Loki familia," he thought.

No one would be able to miss the two fine women, one with jade hair and ears longer than the typical elf and a human with golden hair. Besides them sat a dwarf, a blonde child, a handsome white hair werewolf with a tattoo on his face, an elf with orange hair, and two women with wheat-colored skin, one with a large chest and the other who seemed to have gotten the short end of the stick when it came to genetics.

He paid them no mind, using the distraction caused by them to slip in the crowd. People whispered amongst themselves as they allowed themselves to get eyefuls of the members of one of the most powerful familia's in the world.

"I don't really care," he shrugged before willing his cloak to demanifest, leaving its hood. Naruto hesitantly reached for his hood and tugged at it, exposing his white hair to the world. His hood had blended in with his shirt, making it appear like a hoodie.

Without anyone noticing, experienced adventurers and waitresses included, Naruto walked up to a table located on the far side of the room.

When he arrived, he found an empty seat at a table surrounded by the trio that had assisted him in getting to the 12th floor. The men were all distracted by conversation and failed to notice the white-haired adventurer pull the seat in front of them and take a seat.

"And then she sai- Oh, hey, you're here, Nar," Guile stopped midsentence to acknowledge Naruto. It would seem that he, too, had started calling Naruto by that nickname. Had the trio not have interacted with Naruto prior, they would have jumped in surprise at his sudden appearance.

"Good evening," Naruto greeted simply, his voice not giving any shred of emotion, making it appear as if he had come to attend a business meeting. He wasn't one for pleasantries, and anyone who spent some time with him could tell.

"Ya owe 500 bucks Scotty boy, told ya he'd come," Mord grinned and beckoned a free hand at Scotts, who scowled and reluctantly handed the requested amount. The man grinned at his friend's glower and took a gulp at the wooden cup situated in his other hand.

"Order what ya'd like, kiddo, on me," Mord said as he gestured towards the menu that had been left on the table in front of him. The men continued their conversation as Naruto skimmed through the menu, eyes darting from left to right, taking in every well-drawn image, illustrating the great variety of foods served there.

"My days at school sucked; dropping out to be an adventurer was the best choice ever! That guy was really stupid, like god fucking darn. He couldn't tell the difference between foreshadowing and foreplay! Unbelievable!" Scotts complained about someone's idiocy with a pained look on his face. Mord tilted his head in confusion, not understanding the meaning of foreshadowing whilst Guile snickered as he listened to Scotts.

"Well, either way, he knew something was coming," Naruto commented with his face buried in the menu. Scotts and Guile paused, confused for a moment before they both started snickering and breaking down into chuckles.

"Good one, Nar!" Guile laughed and pat the boys back.

"Didn't know ya could joke," Scotts chuckled. Naruto just shrugged in response, not letting his eyes drift off the menu. He found something. Something in him was screaming at him to have it, so the search was over as quickly as it began.

Naruto gently clasped the booklet shut before gently placing it on the table. "So you went to school, Scotts?"

"Yeah, for a little while," the man shrugged, "Picked up a thing or two. How about you, you seem quite literate, what's your background? Didn't you say you grew up in a forest?"

"Yes. I had a caregiver whose home was situated close to a forest. He had a fairly large farm and seemed pretty well established. I was allowed to visit his study whenever I wished, and it contained a plethora of literature and publications. I hardly went out of the house unless it was for training, so I had time to memorize the majority," he informed, to which Scotts nodded.

'Hey Nar," Guile took Naruto's attention.

"Yes?"

"How did you become so good while so young? You manhandled monsters like a king back there," he asked with a giddy tone. The other leaned forward, finding interest in the question as well.

"Well. My caregiver had various manuals that I practiced whenever I wasn't doing any chores or reading or recreational activities with my brother. Because I excel at detecting presences, I have detected nearby monsters and attacked them to prevent them from threatening my brother. Since I was a child, I have been fighting monsters, so I am familiar with how they think… In fact, monsters on the surface are more dangerous than their dungeon counterparts… Especially goblins."

"How come?" Scotts inquired, unable to wrap his head around how monsters on the surface could surpass their dungeon counterparts.

"Goblins on the surface are weak, so they adapted by gaining exceptional intelligence and forming groups with hierarchies," he responded. "Their intelligence has allowed them to become human-like, allowing them to create their own tools and carry out well-planned raids. If left unchecked, they are a threat. A particularly bad infestation of goblins exists in the area where I used to live as it was very secluded," he continued.

"You and ya big words. They can't be that bad!" Mord commented.

"You underestimate the severity Mord. Tell me this, have you ever seen a goblin treating a kobold as a pet and using a bloodsaurus as a steed? I think not," Naruto's statement was so shocking that other adventurers turned towards them in curiosity. His statement was so outlandish that people couldn't help but notice even if they were not part of the conversation

"A steed? You mean like, goblins riding bloodsauruses?"

"That is correct, Mord."

"And you frequently battled them… As a kid, without a falna," Guile spoke slowly.

"Don't be silly; I obviously reported those irregulars to the authorities when I spotted them. If not, I made frequent use of traps. But I did fight them when I was older," Naruto explained with a slight wave of his hand.

"That's… Goodness," he placed his on his chin, "I have traveled quite a bit and never seen such an abnormality. And to think that someone without a falna can battle a monster on even grounds with an orc. If it were someone else, I'd call bullshit, but since it's you then..."

"The likely hood of the monsters being wiped by bandits and adventurers before they form groups is very high. That would explain why you are unaware as this is a topic hardly reported on," he shrugged before fiddling with a fork that had been on his table."

'Makes sense."

Mord and Guile had been chugging endlessly at their mugs, full of ale, whilst Scotts sipped some yellow juice from his cup. Naruto had expected to find himself nervous and stiff, but his ability to converse never failed him. It was one he had developed from speaking to the people his grandfather would visit with him in tow whilst Bell went to sleepovers at his friend's houses. It wasn't as bad as usual, and for once in a long time, he found himself to be relaxed.

The upbeat atmosphere of the bar seemed to infect him, and he noticed that it had been some time since he thought about anything related to training. It wasn't as bad as he thought. He did not understand where his anxiety stemmed from, but now that he was in the building, he didn't feel it as much. The men laughed while they conversed endlessly, occasionally drawing Naruto in. Their topics were bizarre that nearby tables had dropped their own conversation and dropped an ear.

"Good evening sirs, our apologies for the late service. This night has been quite busy," a familiar voice called out as its owner approached and bowed slightly. One that Naruto had dodged quite a few times… He did not mind as she wouldn't try anything funny while at work, plus him being rude would probably ruin his companion's moods.

They all leered at the grey hair with drool dripping from their mouths. Naruto ignored them and went straight to the point.

"I would like some ramen with miso-based broth, extra-large bowl—double the eggs. I'd like the chasu to have more of a crust to it. I'd also like green chillies sprinkled on top if possible."

"Would you like soy sauce eggs or regular eggs?"

"Regular," he responded, watching her dotting his order on a notepad with a pencil.

The girl paused for a moment and openly stared Naruto down for a split second, knowing that she could not get past his guard. Their eyes met, and messages were exchanged, primarily from Naruto communicating that he is no one's toy. The witch's got a taste of her own medicine as the boy read her like a book.

The girl shivered slightly as she was outmatched before a smile made its way to her face.

"Will you be having a drink?"

"Two. Apple juice and some ale… Surprise me." Naruto didn't really care about what flavor his ale took. He knew the men at his table would insist he take something more alcoholic.

"Of course, sir, would you like some ice with your drinks?"

"Yes."

"Understood. Your order will be ready soon."

After the girl departed, the men snapped back to their senses and started talking again. At some point, the men had convinced Naruto to share a story of his own.

"After what I said, I was banned from telling the other children bedtime stories because apparently, I was too crass. The women in the village liked me because I displayed maturity superior to that of someone my age, but there was a universal agreement that "whenever Naruto is successfully coerced into coming into a sleepover, he is banned from telling bedtime stories," which is silly because my stories were great," Naruto explained, lamenting over the restriction placed on him when he was young.

"What'cha say? What'cha say? What'cha say?" Mord repeated, holding in a laugh.

"Yeah, tell us," Scotts and Guile requested.

"… It was close to Christmas, so I began my story by saying, "Hello again fellow kids, Merry evening to all of you, Christmas season is upon us as I am sure we all know, so please don't forget to leave out a joint and lighter and a glass of milk for Santa Claus as he wiggles his fat ass down your chimney to deliver your toys," the looks on their faces gave me joy," Naruto said to which to the table burst out in laughter and occupants of other tables snickered.

"Also, maybe telling them about a monster that would haunt them for three days before attacking them, capturing them, and forcing them to watch as the monster tortured their families before it took them far away to make toys was a bad idea. If they couldn't make toys, they became the toys," Naruto thought.

"W-wiggles his… HAHA," One person burst out laughing at the sight of the jolly fat man squeezing himself down a chimney. It was even better to imagine a kid version of Naruto saying it in a nonchalant tone. His dry demeanor added to the hilarity.

"W-why would ya s-say that to kid, bwahaha!" Mord held his stomach as he leaned forward.

"I was still upset about a previous sleepover that got me stuck with the older boys whilst the kids went elsewhere," he said with a tone. His companions leaned in, egging to go on. Naruto hesitated briefly, and his eyes trailed to the clock hung above the pub's entrance.

The young lady returned with the drinks and informed Naruto that someone else would deliver his order before pulling up a chair and sitting beside him, much to everyone's surprise. Naruto's gaze was drawn to the tall dwarfess who served as the pub's hostess, who simply shrugged giving a look that suggested she gave up. Naruto sighed and turned away from the smiling girl who had taken great pains to sit close to him.

When she leaned close to him, her delicious perfume tickled his nose, and he did nothing. He didn't want to find out what the vixen next to him was cooking up. He couldn't say anything negative because the elf had made it a point to keep an eye on him. That, and more than half of the pub's adventurers. He'd be toast if he tried something. The stares irritated him, but he persevered and reflected on his childhood memories.

"Well… It all started when my grandfather decided that I should join the village's older teenage boys' sleepover. I was five by the way though I was more far more self-aware and mature than children my age," he clarified, drawing nods to those who listened.

"Now the reason he wanted me to join them was that he wanted me to be, and I quote cultured. Of course, I reminded him that I was a child and that going to hang with them was a bad idea, but he insisted that it would be fine because grandfather interacted with them frequently and had gotten to know all of them.

Now, there were six people in that sleepover, excluding myself and the host's parents, all boys... Really. Horny. Boys. There were four humans, a dwarf and a half-elf. One of them, a human, let's call him Jack, was a playboy and together with another human, Stacey were the only non-virgins in the group, leaving the rest as virgins… Really horny virgins. The Dwarf and the Half-elf were dating, no one really cared. The Half-elf looked super feminine but was a guy, apparently. I still don't know to this day, but if they are a guy, I have to say he is really cute, no homo. Ahem, I'm getting sidetracked.

I was dropped off at the house where the sleepover would take place mid-afternoon and got to know the rest of the boys. Jack, Jim, Stacey, yes, that's his name and Fresh. I was introduced to the host, Jim's mother, and she was pretty sweet so I expected my experience at that home to be slightly better. But, fate had other plans.

The mother had to go out for the night and all hell broke loose.

I was in the living room, hiding in shadows and listening to the boys revealing all their fantasies. Typical horny teenager stuff, boobies, butts, vaginies, and toes. One commented on the double standard of society where when a woman gets a vibrating magic item, its seen as naughty fun, but when a man orders a Fuckmaster Pro 5000 blow up latex doll with six-speed pulsating pussy, elasticized anus with non-drip semen collecting tray, together with optional built-in life like orgasmic screams with the option of moaners and panters, he's called a pervert."

Naruto ignored the laughter around him and voices of agreement in favor of continuing his story. "To think someone with the ability Mystery would create something so ridiculous…."

"Jack started telling them about an experience he had with four girls at once. Steamy stuff. The virgins couldn't take it, and soon, the boys started making fun of Jim as he was the shiest yet the most perverted of the bunch, and I'm guessing because of the peer pressure, he said he actually had a girl coming over to have sex with him.

The thought of Jim losing his virginity was so outlandish that the loud and rowdy boys all fell into silence. Stacey, the boy who was known for his bullying habits, voiced everyone's thoughts in an offensive way, I don't remember what he said exactly, but it caused everyone to laugh at Jim's expense.

Anyway, Jim pissed, told them all to fuck off, and rushed upstairs to his room and slammed the door. There was silence because Jim was that one quiet kid who no one expected to meltdown. It was… Interesting.

After a few minutes of awkward silence, we started hearing activity coming from the room. We heard him say, "Well, what are you doing here?" We were all confused for a moment before we realized that that was the "woman" he had told us about. Though Stacey did question why he was speaking so loudly that he could be heard from downstairs. They inquired because I was known for knowing whether or not there were other people in the room, and I checked and confirmed that Jim was the only one present in that room.

"Uh-huh. Oh, really? Well, I guess I'd better take my pants off, then, he said," Naruto continued, changing his voice to highlight that someone else was speaking.

"Everyone, me included, was shocked mute, so we maintained our silence and kept listening to Jim and his 'woman'. A few seconds passed, and he spoke again, "So, how about you get naked, too? I'll just lay here and wait for you to be ready."

Stacey, for some reason, couldn't help but giggle like that of a teenage girl before grabbing his crouch and rubbing it whilst squeezing his breast and moaning his own name as if to mock Jim causing the other boys to laugh. Jim was an idiot, by trying to impress them, he had instead unleashed a pack of hyenas that would live off his desperation. As I sat there, frozen by shock, the boys kept laughing and making poor impressions of Jim.

I'm not joking. It was bad. Listening to a teenager masturbate and moan his own name, taking the meaning of self-love to another, was disgusting. So visceral and repulsive that listening to him gave me physical discomfort. I suppose no one's sense of humor is the same as they were all floored by Jim's attempts at fooling them, and that moment was when I asked myself why I was even there. I wanted nothing to do with that as it was very disturbing.

Jim started moaning audibly in a poorly executed female voice, complimenting himself, saying that his penis was gigantic, and she could feel herself getting split in half and puncturing her womb and all that weird nonsense. He was doing it so loudly that everyone laughed at him, starting making even more jokes about him as he screamed. The half-elf's laughter was the loudest as she, I mean he I mean they? They could hear the wet-smacking noises as I could, I was disgusted whilst they were amused.

We heard the bed creaking and sheets loudly getting ruffled rather violently as Jim continued with his violent masturbation. The bed broke, and Jim ignored it and moaned louder, causing the boys to laugh louder. "YES! THRUST HARDER! DEEPER! YES, JIM, YOU SEXY BASTARD, YOUR DICK IS BIGGER THAN OLD MAN CHARLIE'S HORSE'S. YES FUCK ME, TEACH THIS BAD BITCH A LESSON. ARE YOU REALLY A VIRGIN, YOU ARE TOO GOOD AT THIS, MUCH BIGGER THAN THAT TINY PICKLE STACEY HAS! YES, YES!"

Stacey, the boy who normally would take offense to such comments, was having the time of his life. He and his friends found so much amusement in Jim's bad acting that I thought they were drunks who would laugh at anything. Sadly for my pea brain, none of the beers Jack had brought along had been touched.

Soon he ejaculated and said he was getting filled up or something before ripping his door open; well, he tried to open it quietly but failed spectacularly. We were all in earshot, so we listened to him sprint down the hallway to the bathroom as silently as he could. He sucked at stealth. He reached the bathroom and slammed that door too before we heard the sound of flushing before he sprinted down the hallway again, back to his bedroom, and tried to silently close the door but just slammed it again. Clumsy boy," Naruto commented, rubbing his temples as he waited for Mord, Guile's, and Scotts' red faces to clear up as their eyes teared from their guffaws.

"He soon returned, sporting a look of vanity and was expecting to be worshipped; instead, he was met by ridicule. Beating your own meat and moaning your own name, they said. Jim found out it was me who told them, and he was furious," he continued. People who listened were quite impressed with Naruto's voice acting.

"Go figure," multiple voices rang out.

"After that happened, people took their showers; Jim went last because he was outside questioning his life choices or something. I didn't know because to be blunt, I didn't give a fuck. Now I go to the bathroom because the boys had a food fight in the kitchen, and some got into my hair despite me dodging more than half of it. Then Jim walked in with hair in his eyes; it was raining. He walks in and fails to notice me and gets butt-ass naked and gets in the shower; I was by the mirror, so him missing me is understandable because of how the bathroom was structured.

Now, this guy doesn't bother closing the curtain and starts mumbling stuff about how he wishes girls would give him attention and have sex with him. Even oral sex would be fine; then he looked at his penis. The look on his face had so much lust radiating from it that I swear that if he could, he would fuck his own ass. I was terrified, so I stayed silent because I feared that I would die or worse as he was already upset with me. Who knows what he would do in that state of mind. Completely ignoring me, he mutters something about how it feels like to get a blow job, and next thing, his focus on his wiener increased tenfold. He was hard, sailing full mast, and that was really affecting his reasoning.

He proceeded to say one of the most humourous things I have ever heard, "That's my fucking winkle doodle… It's going into my mouth." To summarize my thoughts, I was like "there is no way he is going try that." I cannot even begin to describe how wrong I was. To my horror he bent over like a rusted hinge and opened wide ready to accept himself into his mouth but he got stuck midway as he wasn't flexible enough. I wasn't sure about why he couldn't do it because he was one of the few guys who could do the splits but then again, I am pretty sure he had never tried putting his legs over his shoulders to nibble on his nut sack. I don't even know why I didn't look away, but I kept fucking watching! I was worried that he break his spin half before he managed even to lick himself. He looked like he was in pain, but…

For some reason, he didn't give up, and he got really close but then heard the door of one of the rooms opening and Stacey walking out and mumbling something. The jolt nearly snapped his spine in half as he went through that advanced contourtionous move, locking him in this… Demonic pose looking like a perverted teenager at the peak of his hormones admiring breasts for the first time.

I'm pretty sure he was thinking about if Stacey walked in on him looking like some kind of sexual deviant, his life would be ruined forever or something. My pride as a man prevented me from crying as I witnessed that cursed scene; it was horrific.

Anyways, he started getting inspired by dungeon oratoria; if I believe in myself and work super hard, I'll do it by never giving up, resilience, persistence yata yata. He was talking about this story about this dude called Argonaut; he was pretty much a joke as he fought windmills and stuff. Never gave up and boom, saved a princess from a minotaur," Naruto shrugged.

"He kept trying for what felt like an hour, but in reality, it was a minute. I realized Jim drank a lot of water that day, and he didn't take a piss. He flushed the evidence for his prior activities but didn't take a piss, and he realized it too. I was like, "oh no," watching him stare down the hole of the one-eyed snake. His possession of an erection was a blessing because it delayed his pissing. He managed to dodge the lemonade…

I nervously tried to leave, and he caught sight of me, but it was too late for him to do anything as I exited the room. That night, I didn't go sleep with the boys; instead, I sat on the roof on guard.

He found me and expressed that he thought I would tell everyone. He didn't try to kill me, so I was happy though I was still on guard. After a moment of silence, he asked me how it felt to have sex. I expressed confusion, and he asked me again, reminding me of how girls and women of the village liked taking baths with me. Don't ask what the hell was with those people; just leave it. Apparently, bathing with me for prolonged periods of time dramatically improves the condition of the skin. My grandpa said it as a joke, someone fell for it, and after a few weeks, it was confirmed as the person's wrinkles decreased.

I came under high demand for a time, but of course, I refused to bathe with them and would go into the forest to hide from them… But now that I am in my adolescence… The offer seems far more appealing.

Now, Jim, completely forgetting that I was a 5-year-old, interrogated me on how it feels like to have sex and how to get the girls. I answered that I didn't know, and he interpreted that as me withholding information so he threatened to kill my parents, fuck their corpses, then eat them sauteed in a mixture of his jizz and garlic. I didn't have parents but was too impressed by his creativity to be offended. To reward him, I sarcastically replied that it felt like pie and that look… I think he took it too literally.

Anyway, the next day. We have breakfast, Stacey pokes fun at him, and he informs Stacey that I told him what it feels like to have sex and how to get girls though I didn't tell him anything about the latter. Stacey looks at me, and I gesture that he doesn't want to know. Jim's mom comes back exhausted… To get away from the boys, I washed the dishes for her whilst she baked some pie. She called me a sweetheart and made me a sandwich despite desperately desiring to go to bed. She was nice. She left the pie on the counter, and I sat in a corner, ready to enjoy my sandwich, when Jim walked in.

You know how you can't tell I'm actually here unless you are directly observing me?"

"Yeah?" Mord answered.

"Yeah, so he didn't notice me yet again. He stuck his finger into the pie and stirred it up whilst moaning, saying his name and stuff like the previous night… What happened next? Well… All I wanted to do was eat my sandwich…"

People held back laughs, understanding the boy would not pause for anyone except the people he was talking to. They just happened to catch the news, and they were interested. They were not listening at first but their falna enhanced ears allowed them to catch Naruto's words and curiosity lulled them, drawing them to listen.

As Naruto continued without pause, we are shifted to another table. The occupants were those of Loki familia.

"What has gotten people less interested in us," questioned a large chested Amazonian with long black hair and red clothing that was one step away from being lingerie. Her eyes were green and she had blue earrings.

"Shhhh, Tione!" hushed the other Amazon, she also had black hair, but one difference between her and her sister was her considerably smaller chest. She only wore a strip of cloth around her chest and a pareo around her waist.

Tione listened to her sister and took a moment to observe the occupants of the table. Gareth, Bete, and Tiona looked as if they were ready to explode; Riveria and the orange-haired elf, Lefiya, looked troubled as to how they should feel but looked to be more on the amused side. The prum, Finn, the man she had completely lost her attention to during the majority of their time, also seemed to be paying attention to something she wasn't. Aiz, too was listening; her attention was so captured that she failed to notice that her hand had trailed from her drink and was now in the process of drinking something else.

Tione tilted her head, confused until she heard someone saying, "I was pretty sure he had never tried putting his legs over his shoulders and nibbling on his nut sack."

"What?" her confusion was written all over her face, but the members of her familia seemed too interested in the story. Her man seemed interested so she didn't dare disturb him. She turned her head to search for the voice's owner and saw that it appeared to be a boy with white hair and a hoodie. She couldn't tell his facial features as he had been facing the other way, but he seemed to be telling quite the interesting tale as other people who were not involved were listening attentively. The air in the bar remained the same, but its silence was different. A silence that was ruled by a single boy's horrible experience at a sleepover.

With their attention arrested, all failed to see the golden-haired girl slipping away from the table and moving towards the door. Her normally graceful and practiced movement was thrown into the wind as she staggered past the exit and to who knows where.

"If you haven't figured it out by now, yes, our boy Jim was balls deep in the pie, humping it aggressively like a rabbit in heat. His mom came into the kitchen because she forgot something, then boom she saw her pie in a… Interesting state. The image of her son aggressively making love to the food she had placed on the counter made something click, and she collapsed, but I broke her fall because she made me a sandwich.

Stacey walked in…"

And so Naruto's tale continued. No one sans the girl sitting beside him noticed his eyes flicking to the clock and the exit as he spoke. She took note that despite not showing a majority of the signs, he was uncomfortable to a degree but seemed to be enjoying himself at the same time. His character intrigued her because he showed no interest in anything in the room. There were famous people, beautiful girls, great food, etc, but he didn't seem vested in them.

As the one called the witch, she used people's desires to manipulate them. No matter how small or insignificant it was, she would be able to make them dance on the palm of her hand. All except him. He saw through all her tricks and schemes and reacted accordingly to thwart them should they come close to affecting him. Every trick she tried to use to extract more information from him failed as he couldn't be extorted, bribed nor teased.

He was clever. At some point when he was telling his story, she had challenged him to a poker game and offered to let him do as he wishes should he win, after making sure a certain elf was out of earshot, of course. Her intention was to put him at a severe disadvantage as he was focused on telling his story and to her surprise, he actually pressured her despite being distracted. She tried playing the air head mask in order to lull him into a fake sense of security before destroying him.

She thought of him as a very simple-minded person who only had a semblance of intelligence, but he had proven her wrong.

She was intrigued by people and how they behaved. She was intrigued by how they thought and how they reacted to situations. That was why she worked at the pub; she wanted to meet people of different characters and read them before trying to make them dance on the palm of her hands but lately, she had become bored. People, men, and women behaved the same, with similar simplistic and boring desires. A few more interesting ones would come from time to time, but none could compare to him.

His presence itself was a question mark to reality. It was as if his presence challenged her, tested her, and a joy she had not experienced in a long time rushed back to her.

He accepted and only desired money. Not from greed, just to have extra pocket change, and that touched something in her. He lost, but she didn't take anything from him. She didn't want anything but to crack him, to make him show her something interesting.

Her eyes… Her silver eyes could not see anything in him. She was intrigued and desired to investigate, but he stopped her whenever she tried without any effort on his part. He was a mystery, a problem that had to be solved. A childish side of her awakened, like the time she escaped Orario to ride desert ships and ended up sleeping with a prince (If you know, you know. If you don't Danmachi: familia chronicle EP 2).

"And that gentlemen, Jim fucked Stacey's sister, mother, and girlfriend. They begged for more," Naruto concluded the story drawing claps from his companions and some from the listeners.

"That is a man of focus, commitment, and sheer fucking will! To think that the loser who would moan his own name would end up being a fucking beast," Mord said, comical tears running down his cheeks. "Yeah," the other two agreed. Soon Naruto was able to eat in peace.

The clock struck 10 pm, and some people began departing; Naruto was not an exception. Mord and his friends had left a little while ago, but Naruto stayed as he still had a bowl of ramen to finish. No one questioned how he could eat with his mask on; they just rolled with it, including the girl. Just one more mystery to solve.

Naruto gently stirred the noodles in his bowl with his chopsticks before picking them and staring at them with a slight interest.

"Don't you have work to do?" he asked the girl who, after the few hours he had spent in the pub, had not moved away from him, instead watched him inquisitively.

"No, I have sweet co-workers who cover for me; I love you Anya!" she called out, only to be met by a hiss coming from the back room. Probably one of the cat people.

Naruto's patience was exhausted that night, he had been around people for too long, and the effects of anxiety were making themselves known to him. He had enjoyed himself to some extent, but his feelings of social avoidance did not magically disappear. He could leave, but he felt as though he had to talk to the girl who, without fail, always tried approaching him every morning.

"What do you want from me? Don't you have better people to scam?"

"Oh, now don't be like that Mr. Naruto," she replied sweetly, moving closer to press her body against him. The elf had been cleaning the table beside them for far too long.

"I just want to be friends. Oh, how rude, I know your name, but you don't know mine. I'm Syr Flover, nice to meet you," her smile would charm the hearts of countless men, and with that smile, a hand was offered. Naruto looked at it, ignored it, and went back to enjoying the noodly goodness that was on his table.

The girl held the offer for a few moments, her smile failing to maintain itself. It dropped and was followed by a sigh, "Nothing gets past you, does it?"

"Yes."

"But I do want to be friends."

"That's sweet, Miss Flover," his dry, nonchalant voice replied. He gently set his chopsticks in the bowl and stood up before reaching for his hood and pulling it over his head.

"You know I won that little game of ours, right?"

"Yes, I am aware."

"Stop avoiding me," she told him bluntly. Her cutesy took a back seat as she displayed assertiveness.

"Understood, if you will excuse me, I am done with my meal and would like to leave," he said before moving to face the dwarfess that had moved to clean the counter. "Thank you, Miss Mia, for the great service, I had a pleasant experience and may return in the future," he turned toward the window without giving the woman time to respond and gently flicked the curtains to the side before jumping out without leaving any evidence of his presence. Her demands could have been worse. She just said he shouldn't avoid her; she never mentioned anything about refusing to assist her or anything.

The woman stayed silent and shrugged as the boy had taken not to sully any of the linen. "That kid is an odd one, ain't he?" she murmured to herself. Syr smiled at her employer's words before standing and moving to join her co-workers in cleaning the tables.

"You didn't need to be so guarded, Ryu," Syr turned to the elf who had been working close to her and Naruto. "My apologies," she responded, "He was very guarded and looked to be extremely capable, so he could have been a threat to you," she responded as she met her friend's eyes.

"Come on, Ryu, that's literally every adventurer," she whined, to which the stoic elf merely shook her head.

"He was very different. He hid his presence so well that I failed to detect him; he must be a skilled assassin. My apologies Syr but I cannot take matters of your safety lightly," she responded curtly.

"It's not like he would attack me or anything," Syr responded cheerfully, causing Ryu to frown.

"I am sure you have heard rumors of him. A masked boy slaying more monsters a day than the average rookie party does a week despite being a new level one? As an experienced adventurer, I can attest to how difficult such a task would be. The ability to destroy hordes of monsters has been shown to corrolate with violent behavior," she explained, giving a summary of research done by the Dian Cecht familia.

"He can't be that good, even if he is, you are level 4, so you can travelled across the room in an instant," Syr countered.

"While that is true, what you shouldn't forget is that he seems to have exception spatial awareness. He also seems to be able to gauge the strength of people around him with ease. If you recall him explaining how monsters on the surface are more dangerous than their dungeon counterparts. He mentioned going to hide from villagers in a forest, and that forest had the monsters he mentioned. A child cannot survive in such conditions unless they take some time to create plans," she continued but failed to change Syr's mind.

Ryu stopped speaking for a moment and took a look at her friend before giving a small sigh and questioned, "Why is it that you are so interested in him?"

Syr gave a small smile and tilted her head before putting her arms behind her back, "Why wouldn't I be interested? He looks super cool! Like a hero plus he is mysterious. Don't you think he could be really cute under that mask?" she responded cheerfully.

Ryu did not answer, and instead, her stoic features shifted as she smiled wryly before moving to work.

"Ryu," Syr called out.

"Yes?" the elven maiden answered, putting a halt to her present activity.

"Please don't step in, even if he is being really mean to me and calls me names. If he tries to get physical, then please don't take it too far, just do what is required," Syr requested with puppy eyes. Ryu was so taken aback by the request that she froze.

Ryu felt a multitude of emotions coursing through her chest and felt that she should argue but the look on Syr's face stopped her.

"I'll… I'll do my best," she responded. While she wanted to protest, she knew that her friend was a very tough girl, so words would not endanger her, but still, the thought of letting her friend get demeaned was a difficult one for her to compute.

Elsewhere

Naruto didn't head home immediately. Instead, he took a detour towards the center of the city. He did not go there to enter the dungeon, nor did he go there to purchase weapons; he just wanted to walk. The night's cool air licked the tips of his exposed white hair, causing individual strands to move like grassy plains, experiencing a breeze.

"Sit back, rewind, and remember, huh?" he mulled over his goddess' advice as he walked past a number of adventurers who had just returned from the dungeon. His footsteps were not quick like they usually were; instead, they had taken a more relaxed pace giving Naruto more time to himself. More time to think.

He thought back to that one sleepover, one of the few times he interacted with people before Bell's death. It was horrible, but…

"Pfffttt hahaha," he chuckled slightly before shutting his mouth and tilting his head in confusion. "It was bad, but now that I think about it, it was pretty funny," he allowed himself to let out a snicker as no one was in earshot. He was in a park and seated on a bench, staring at the cloudy skies as memory after memory replayed.

"Just how much did I miss when I completely focused on my training?" he questioned, remembering all the moments he had taken a serious approach to. Now that he thought about it, he never really found humor in anything and instead approached every situation with great pragmatism. "Goddess won't mind if I'm gone for another hour, will she?"

Memories crawled into his head, drawing feelings he had hardly felt before out of him. There were fun moments when Bell would dorn a cape and run around with the wooden sword claiming that he was the king of all adventurers, Albert Waldstein. There were sad moments when his brother scalded his leg with a pot of boiling water when he and his grandfather were not paying attention, and then there were the worst.

There were really funny ones his grandfather got jump scared by a goblin outside a fence and fell into a pit of manure, Jake (Jim is Jake, Naruto wanted to protect his identity. Naruto hates Stacey, so he used his real name) going around bragging to girls that he was still a virgin in an attempt to pick them up. Stacey's look when he witnessed Jim going full throttle on his mom.

"Pfffttt," he began snickering again soon; that snickering became light sniffles as tears crawled down his cheeks. The stars twinkled as crickets stopped playing their songs. Everything was quiet, and Naruto was just alone.

"Is fighting really the only thing I can do?" his question was left unanswered by the night as it could not speak. Soon his tears faded as he took time to watch the clouds, feeling a sense of peace enveloping him as, for the first time ever, he appreciated how beautiful the sky was.

"Hehehe," an unfamiliar voice giggled, followed by the sound of uneven footsteps. Naruto was so out of it that he didn't consider hiding before the owner found him; instead, he was entranced by the skies and stars above.

"Oh! You are alive! Yay! Hic," the owner cheered, nearly jumping in joy.

Aiz, also known as the sword princess, was notorious for her extremely low tolerance to alcohol. When she was a child, she had a single sip, and from there on, she was banned from having any alcoholic beverages.

Frustrations had been at an all-time high for her as she had been a person who desired strength to take back what she lost. In desperation, she looked for ways to get power until she was informed of the falna and that going into the dungeon was the surest way to increase her strength, so she committed her life to it.

She was also told excessive practice, and physical conditioning would assist her in her journey, and she made that her life as well. She lost her emotions and became a doll that would autonomously follow the schedule she had created. Wake up, eat what's needed, and train.

Hygiene and self-care did not exist in her mind as she rushed to train then go to the dungeon. She soon learned performing outrageous feats that would impress the gods would increase her strength, so she faught hordes of monsters on her own. Every bit of damage she sustained was forgotten in favor of focusing on gathering more.

She started making progress; she felt happy, but that sense of progress began drying out like a river in a desert. People told her many ways to grow stronger, and some even scammed her with potions claiming that she would progress faster if she consumed them, but they never worked. Nothing worked anymore. Her conviction wasn't enough.

Her feelings went awry, causing her to commit herself more to her training, to the point that her swords guard would tear away at the flesh in her hands. But it wasn't enough. Nothing changed; if she couldn't overcome it, then no one could until she heard of him.

She heard he was a rookie who was confirmed to be a newly minted level 1 and that his number of kills exceeded hers significantly when she first entered the dungeon. It had only been two weeks, and they nearly met on the 5th floor. Then the next day, she heard he was on the 8th floor. It was as if he was a mockery of her progress. He had a way to become stronger, and she had to know how he did it, or else she would be doomed to eternally suffer her feelings of desolation.

She hid these emotions as she usually did, suppressing them in favor of being the combat doll, but there was a limit to what her heart could take.

"Ooo boy," he turned to his side, and to his surprise, it was the sword princess, wasted. Naruto didn't question why someone had left her alone, instead, he was instantly on guard as he heard rumors that the girl in front of him had a violent streak when drunk.

"I wa- wansh to askshhh Youush Something," she plopped herself right next to his and brought her face so close that her nose would touch his mask should there be a slight disturbance. All sense of her usual reservedness was gone, replaced by an assertiveness she normally did not have. She felt as though if she didn't ask him now, he would disappear with her dreams. She couldn't let that happen.

He considered his words carefully, acknowledging that her strength was beyond his. He would not be able to escape should he try to escape even if she was drunk as the gap in their levels was massive. Something in her eyes demanded a believable answer, even if it was lie. Something told him her heart was hot and that she needed the answer to cool it.

"Yes?"

"You!" she suddenly pulled her face back and pushed her finger right where his nose was supposed to be in a dramatic fashion. "Hoow did youuu get shhhooo stronggg so fastttt?" she asked drunkenly, "I knoowwww you wonshhh lie to me becuz you are a good boy! Yeshh you areeee," she giggled before reaching out to him and patting his head.

Heartbreak from all the times she had been lied to and tricked was shown in her eyes. The gallant warrior known to be one of the strongest Orario had to offer showed weakness making Naruto uncomfortable. Her cheery, childish manner of speaking did not match her eyes.

It didn't matter who it was; seeing the normally aloof and taciturn sword princess behaving in this manner was extremely weird.

"I worked hard. I committed my mind, body and soul to training to the point that I'd fall unconscious after each session," he responded honestly, hoping that the simple answer would satisfy her enough to let him. He was wrong. Naruto realized far too late that he had opened a can of unpleasant worms.

"NO! LIAR," her mood suddenly shifted and before he could react, she latched his shoulders and held them in a tight grip causing them to cave in and ooze blood. The alcohol in her system had deprived her of the ability to control her strength, reminding Naruto of how he had a long way to go as first-class adventurers were ants compared to the dragon.

The shards of bone that had departed from his shoulder sockets failed to penetrate her skin and instead were turned into fragments that moved to block Naruto's veins.

"Oh no," he thought, his pain tolerance kicking in. He held in a scream knowing that it would throw her into a panic and that would cause even more harm so he grit his teeth. As his blood gushed out and slid between her fingers, she violently rocked him back and forth like a snow globe, desperately hoping to extract a better answer.

"It is… The truth… I worked hard," he responded haltingly, his speech impeded by the dizziness that came as a result of healing and the speed his head was being thrown back and forth.

"NO!" she hurled him into the grass and rushed to restrain him once more. "I-I- I wooorkkeeddd soooo much! I worked but never like you! NEVER LIKE YOU! I NEVER GO FORWARD I AM WEAK! I WORKED HARD BUT I WASHH NEVA LIKE YOU WHEN I WASHH YOUR LEVEL! 9 MONTHS! 9 MONTHS," Tears spilled from her eyes as she roughly grasped his shoulders again and began thrashing him again, hoping that he would spit out an answer like a crystal ball.

SNAP!

His neck couldn't handle the pressure of being thrown back and forth at speeds it couldn't and just broke. Naruto coughed out blood as he lost the ability to move his limbs. He had already attemped to summon the extent of his lightning magic, but that did not harm the girl; instead, it seemed to irritate her even further. She perceived it as him trying to hide some unknown trick from her.

"Ahhhh, fuck me!" he thought. "If I feign death then… How will I explain that I can heal my wounds without potions? I'll need to hold out a bit longer. Ahhh… She stopped."

The snap served as a wake-up call as Aiz's eyes went wide as information of what she had done was processed despite her brain being drowned in alcohol. "N-No," she quivered and took a step back. She moved her hands to cover her mouth, and a familiar stench raided her nasal canal before she could place her oddly moist and warm hands over her mouth.

Reluctantly, she allowed her eyes to fall to her hands, blood. Blood. Lots of it, she held in a cry as she fully realized what she had done. Her eyes left her hands, and to her surprise, the person she had murdered was standing in front of her as if nothing had happened. There was blood on his shoulders but he looked like nothing had happened to him. And his neck looked as if it had never been compromised.

She froze, watching him go into a state of thought and contemplation.

"They say alcohol loosens the lips and words and actions are a result of feelings… Just how much has she been holding back behind that doll face of hers?" her actions opened a flood gate of questions in the boy's head. "This is familiar… Now that I look at her and how her hands felt…"

He cited the feeling he had right before his shoulders caved. Her hands were calloused, heavily so as if she had exposed herself to excessive amounts of labor. She was called the sword princess so he had an idea of where they came from.

"The frustration she showed is… It's just like mine," he recognized himself within the girl and thought that he would likely behave the same way should he get drunk. Her frustration was similar to how he always felt weak because of witnessing the boy in his dreams (His dream self) progressing far faster than he had in 2 days than he had in a decade. It was ridiculous, so much so to the point that any progress he made always felt invalidated by the boy. It felt as if his power was a byproduct of the boy's hard work, nothing more.

Naruto couldn't control his body as he approached her, raised his hand, and placed it on her cheek's soft skin. She no longer had the will to resist as all felt hopeless. She felt doomed and felt that she would forever stagnate. She would never reach her goal no matter how hard she worked. Something within her awoke and lied to her, encouraging her to keep going forward even though she understood that she would fail. She soon felt rage. She wanted to scream, to rampage to the unfairness that was the world, but she knew that it was futile.

It denied the hero her parents assured her would come, and it invalidated her hard work. She put her heart, soul, body, mind, and spirit in her craft, perfecting every swing she practiced. Every technique learned from her father, the strongest adventurer in history was mastered to the point that she could perform them even if her brain had been ejected from her body.

She tried and failed to get stronger; her progress was minimal even if she risked her life far more than most adventurers could. Had elixirs not existed, her scars would be so numerous that they would be able to act armor.

The child in her cried, longing for the touch of her mother. She wanted nothing but to slay the dragon to save her, but she understood how hopeless it was. She was weak, and she couldn't do anything. No matter how much she cried, her hero never appeared, so she took the sword. No matter how hard she worked, strength never appeared.

Her tears failed to convey the desolation she felt as the dark flame in her heart turned everything to ashes. As if… It was as if the black blaze that spurred her on was her enemy's attack. It was like the flame was the dragon's breath, a curse of sorts, aiming to take everything from her and denying her the peace she desperately wanted. The dragon worked to destroy her life even when it wasn't present, causing her to loathe it even more. Her hatred meant nothing to it, though; she could imagine it laughing at her as it held her mother prisoner.

Its fire worked to invalidate the love from her mother that shrouded her in the form of her magic, airiel. Every time her dark emotions slipped out, she would feel the wind fighting against corruption, battling to prevent itself from being devoured. Aiz felt like she was losing everything, and because of that, she did the only thing she could, call for help.

Every time the cursed flame emerged, she found herself drowning in a pool of hatred. She wanted to destroy. Destroy every monster that lived so she could become stronger, but the cost was her sanity, her sense of self. When she entered her avenger state, reasoning with her would be extremely difficult.

All the voices in her heart cried, but no one responded. The girl in her mind was scorched by the searing flames fanned by the alcohol she had consumed. She started expressing the feelings she had hidden away and began recalling the words of a god of death, Thanatos. He told her to lose herself to the flames and become one death but she was scared. If she did she would betray everyone she loved and that loved her. Put at odds with her feelings she started crying .

"Mommy! Daddy!" The little girl cried out, but a silence brutally reminded her that her comforts were not with her. Her father had lost his life and, by doing that, failed to save her and her mother from the dragon. She had no hero, she called for him, but he never appeared; perhaps the monster had taken him too.

But she kept crying despite knowing no one would hear her until…

"It's okay… I hear you," he muttered with comfort. His feelings and thoughts were no longer synchronized, so to adapt, he did what he felt was right. He saw a person in front of him with a broken heart, and he knew he could do something because he was in a similar situation. He understood how she felt. His desires for the first time in all of his existence successfully overpowered the logic created by his brain.

The girl's arms slumped to her sides as her tears met the barrier that was his hand. "Miss Wallenstein, let's sit," he said before reaching to take her hand and successfully grasping it. He gently pulled her to the bench and sat her down. He raised his hand, and it froze mid-air for a moment before it moved to brush her golden locks of hair gently.

"I will do my best to answer your question. But first, let me ask you this, what are you willing to lose?" he asked. Aiz opened her mouth to speak, "I-" no words came out after that.

"I lost everything. I lost my family; the people I once knew now reject me. I lost the warmth that was my brother's smile and the grin plastered on my grandfather's face. All I had left were the physical materials they left, but they could never replace them. I don't eat; I don't sleep, I can't enjoy the simplest of pleasures. I am a prisoner."

I ask you again, Miss Wallenstein, what are you willing to lose?"

"…"

Before Naruto spoke, he held himself back, reminding himself that this was not about him. It was about helping her, so he considered his next words carefully.

"To get anything in this world, something has to be given up or sacrificed. In order to get ice cream, then you have to give up money, in order to train then you have to give up your blade's physical condition or your muscle's comfort, in order to spend time with your friends you have to give up time. Most things in this world are transactions, give and take.

What are you willing to lose? Can you pay the price required to get whatever it is you desire? What if the price comes in the form of other people then what will you do? Are you willing to sacrifice that prum? How about the werewolf and dwarf? The elf and high elf? Are you willing to toss them aside for your goal should they slow you down?" he interrogated, his tone shifting to one filled with menace.

"NO! I- No! But-" she couldn't answer. She knew he was right as she was about to be consumed by her fire, a fire that would burn stronger if she sacrificed her bonds to fuel it. Easy power, but she couldn't do it.

"The world is like a river, and rivers carry all sorts of unpleasant items within them. You have a chance to reach a lake where your goal lies, but the obstacles in front of it, then there is all the debris you have to evade as you swim. You have the option of shedding your friends to swim faster and maneuver better, but in the end, you will wonder, was it worth it? Are willing to throw all the bonds you worked so hard on away?"

Despite her drunken state Aiz managed to gain access to the library of her mind. She remembered everything, from the day she first joined the Loki familia to how she lost her first tooth whilst battling monsters in the dungeon. She remembered always fighting with Riveria. She remembered Finn and Gareth helping her perfect her sword technique. She remembered Riveria telling her she loved her. She remembered all the interactions she had with her family members. She remembered Tiona approaching her despite everyone avoiding her. All these moments were precious to her.

Despite all her rampages in the dungeon, they failed to overpower the warm moments she shared with her family. Was she willing to toss it aside to swim faster? But then… If she is happy, she will stagnate.

"Based on the rumors I have heard about you and your record-breaking level-ups, then I'd say you think that happiness and comfort mean stagnation. Don't be silly; the happiness you feel helps you remember why you are taking that path. My goddess talked to me this morning, and I had time to introspect and think, and she is right. In a journey, you will have to rest at some points to refresh yourself because if you are always in a horrid state of mind, you won't get anywhere as you will lose your way and end up turning on the things you swore to protect.

Let's talk about the river again, and you decide not to shed your bonds. The debris and other fish will always move to attack you and destroy your bonds, but because you love your bonds, you always fight to protect them. Fighting and overcoming will lead to you becoming stronger; that is why I believe that fighting to protect what you love is the key to getting stronger. That and you will take your friends burdens, and they will take yours… You don't have to be alone.

The goal you have, someone else probably has it, and you are human. As a human, one of your greatest strengths is cooperation, so you don't to be alone. There may be differences in the end goal, but you still want to do the same thing on the surface," he paused slightly before continuing.

"The flame that fuels you is rage, and rage blinds you. If you don't get a tight grip on them, they will burn everything and reduce your bonds to nothing but ashes, so why not change the fuel? Protect your friends and your family; let that fuel your advances. Force that hideous fire that only knows death into a golden flame that will serve as solace for those around you, a fire that will reduce the darkest of curses into harmless sparks," he voiced gently.

"I am not saying quit your goal, I am just saying relax and trust the process and adjust, don't let how you progress take your life from you as you are not a doll. Keep working hard and set smaller goals so you don't feel despair because when you feel despair, you feel like giving up and when you give up, it will all be over. Trying to jump the process will slap a heavy fine on you," he ended with an attempt at a joke before cringing slightly.

Aiz listened to him attentively, as if his words had been a magical cure to sobering her up. The pain she felt did not disappear but facing it felt a lot easier. Her desperation for power led to some important aspects of her life.

She was human and had to rest or as Tsubaki said, she was a sword, whichever one preferred; working for too long would break her mind and cause her progress to be all for nothing. She always understood why Finn would scold her for being reckless, but she hardly ever scolded herself as she felt that it was the right thing to do, but now it did not feel so right.

Aiz ignored her allies and solely focused on herself at the moment after listening to Naruto. Her recklessness could have robbed her of everything, the tools required for her journey. She now understood that constantly losing control and thoughtlessly destroying hordes of monsters would not help her much as that hardly ever gave her excelia. Bulldozing hordes of monsters is impressive but incredibly stupid and stupidity is hardly something the gods would praise.

Always training without rest would harm her, that was a fact Aiz found herself ignoring quite often. It was worse when she was a child as she would always train, ignoring the possibility of injury, she suddenly felt more grateful to Riveria.

Now she didn't feel so good about always making people worry about her.

She then thought back to Naruto's words, shedding her bonds would only let her move faster and she would probably reach her goal but when she did then what? She would be filled with regrets. She did not want any form of regrets to sully her reunion with her mother. She wanted her mother to meet all the wonderful people she had grown to love. She had a family and she wanted her mother to be a part of it, especially since she did not want her to feel lonely as her father had perished.

"W-Wash, WASTH?" she focused and tried to suppress her drunken slurs, "What'sh your name?"

"My name…" Naruto contemplated for a moment before nearly slapping himself, remembering that he had mentioned his name when he said mothers no longer wanted him to tell bedtime stories. She would find out eventually.

"Naruto."

"Narutooo? W-what's your goal? What drives you to be strong when you have nothing?"

"Incorrect, my relatives are dead but our bond is not. I have my goddess. As for my goal, the same as the rest of the world. I want to kill the dragon so that when my family comes back, the world will be a better place for them to live," he responded, not noticing that he was still running his hand through Aiz's hair.

Aiz's eyes went wide as their goals nearly aligned. She stopped herself from averting her eyes and forced them to lock into his electric blue ones. The mask he wore stopped her from getting a good read on him bringing her slight discomfort but she didn't let that stop her from asking another question.

"A-are you a hero?"

"Who knows? Maybe, maybe not but I'd rather not be that because as long as there is a concept of winners then there must be losers. If there are heroes then there must be villains and villains are opposition meaning that they are a threat to my loved ones. I'd rather be a protector because if I am a hero then that also makes me a villain. Hmm, interesting paradox. Wait if I'm a protector, that means there is an attacker. Darn," he mused, scratching his chin.

"I am not. If I am, then I am not the type decorated by the gods… I'm a… Hypocrite, I suppose; my apologies; wrapping my thoughts around this is difficult… It depends on your point of view. I don't know what I am. It depends on one's point of view, I suppose," his words fumbled but managed to give a somewhat ambiguous answer.

"You are my hero," the little girl said as she gazed at him in awe. It had nothing to do with fate, that had simply been her decision.

"They would be proud of you. You would definitellyyyy have been a hero in their eyeess," she said, giving him a warm smile. She began thinking of all the things she learned before thinking a certain werewolf and linking what he always says to what Naruto taught her.

Naruto said nothing and instead clasped his hands together and stared at them for a while. Aiz reached out to his hands and placed her hand on top of them. "Despite constant elixir use, they are pretty rough," Naruto commented, finding admiration in the amount of work she had put into developing.

"You have done well princess, now it is time to take your sword in a new direction. Become strong," Naruto spoke in an encouraging way. Aiz nodded, smiling and running her thumb over his fists.

"To be strong means to able to provide great resistance and overpower adversaries. If that's true, then that means that morality can be adverse to the person's goals and that has to be defeated meaning that justice is decided by the victors, the strong. I will make sure that I am one of the strongest so that I can make things better for my family and the people," Aiz began forming more and more goals as moments passed.

"If you don't like your fate change it!" Naruto's words echoed through her head.

"If I am fated to stagnate then I will make sure I'm fated to become stronger. I will decide on what happens in the future, not fate."

"Naruto…"

"Yes?"

"Our goals alignnn. I don't know how much I can do alloooooneeee but… I need you and…" Because she was very socially awkward and drunk, she fumbled her words.

"You have your familia," he pointed out.

"Yes, but they have their own goals, and you… You have similar goals, so let's work together, you and me together. It will make it easier for both of us to take down the dragon."

"Won't I slow you down? I am weak."

Aiz shook her head, "No, you are strong. Very strong, and you have a chance to catch up. I progress slowly because of high level. It will be fine. Just you and me," she stuck her face close to his.

"Make me that offer when you are sober… And choose your words better…."

"Thank you, thank you shooo musssshhhh," she expressed her gratitude before her slur returned. She yawned and pushed herself closer to him, relishing the heat his body gave. Little Aiz had felt so comforted that she was already in the land of dreams.

"I didn't say yes though."

"Leshhh be fwiendsshh," she said to which Naruto responded with a snort. "Make me that offer when you are sober," he repeated dryly.

"I… W..ill."

Aiz's light breathing cut through the parks silence.

"Ah fuck me," he muttered, "goddess will kill me if she finds out I left a sleeping girl on her own in the middle a park. And what would Bell say?"

He begrudgingly used his magic to clean the blood that she had gotten onto herself before sliding his arm under her legs and back and carrying her princess style. "My mind capacity is very high. It will be a problem if I am seen with Miss Wallenstein. I can practice what I haven't practised yet."

As he lifted Aiz in a princess carry, ridiculous amounts of mist rolled out from below his cloak, hiding him and the girl from view. He used wind magic to disperse the sounds of her light snores as he began walking in the direction of Twilight Manor.

As he walked, he felt her hand shifting slightly and clutching onto his cloak. Had she not have been in his arms she would have curled up as her teary face contorted slightly.

"Don't go."

Her whispered tickled his ears. He made no external nor internal comment. He forced everything to remain silent. The only thing that accompanied them was the sound of panicking people who had noticed how abnormal the mist was but it was fine as Naruto and Aiz were not found. They concealed perfected. He unconsiously tightened his grip around the girl, bringing her calmness. Soon her tears stopped and she seemed to be at peace.

He made no comment at her beautiful sleeping face. He just focused on his journey.

"Where could that girl be?" questioned a single elf after dispatching a group of her familia members to find her. Finn and Gareth were doing the same as a first-tier adventurer, and one of the familia's executives disappearing was alarming. As one of the strongest familias in Orario, they had a number of enemies that would just at the chance of capturing one.

And Aiz being a girl beautiful to make gods jealous made it worse. Riveria refused to imagine what would happen to her, so she focused solely on finding her. It took both Finn and Gareth's combined effort to stop her from rushing out on her own, so they had rushed back to their home, the Twilight Manor, whilst protecting their deity whilst the twins went off to search for Aiz.

Now they were in the manor sending out squads to search for the girl.

"L-lady Riveria!" An orange-haired elf rushed to her side, nearly startling the woman as she had been to far engrossed in her thoughts to take heed of her surroundings.

"I-it is misty outside, unnaturally misty. It is so heavy that seeing your own hands is difficult," she said. Without a second thought, Riveria dashed out of the manor with the speed of a first-class adventurer. Her eyes narrowed suspiciously when the mist seemed to be opening a path for her, but her rationale was hanging off a cliff. She followed it until she reached her familia home's gate, and as if her arrival was the trigger, the mist started fading as if it were never there.

"Magic item?" Her thoughts stopped when she saw a familia face by the gate unconscious. She was seated against the gate, and no form of harm seemed to be inflicted, and a great deal of stress had left Riveria. Soon others rushed out of the manor and saw her carrying Aiz in her arms causing great relief.

Unbeknownst to Loki familia, Naruto was seated atop a nearby building's roof and observing them. Naruto's gaze fell and the eyes of the jade-haired elf fell on his. They stared at each other briefly before Naruto decided to escape. Riveria did not see his mask as his hood had cast a shadow over it.

"Who was that?" Riveria didn't let the look of alarm sully her graceful features. "Mhmmm," Aiz nuzzled her face against Riveria bust, smiling as she slept, drawing a warm smile from the elven princess. The smell of alcohol was in Aiz's breath and the girl smiling helped her recall Loki complaining about how the pub hadn't filled her cup. Things were starting to clear up in her head.

She looked at Aiz once more, and to her amazement, there was a smile that she had never seen on Aiz's face. Just what had happened when she had gone missing?

Naruto walked back home with a single ice loli in his hand and, for some reason, was accompanied by thoughts of toads.

"Talking… Is nice."

END

I hope that wasn't too forced and I hope the chapter was enjoyable in general. Man, I am just gonna take a nice long break cuz I just wrote a light novel. I got things to do, games to finish, stuff to plan, you know all that jazz. Keep them detailed reviews coming. I'll prolly start next chap in 2 months, maybe I'll change my mid mid break. I'll see, anyway, ciao. Enjoy NNN. Oh and by the way, what the hell is wrong with justlightnovels? Those gents posted a real saucy LN called "I want to kill the returnee" or something like that. I have gold fish memory. It was posted on the 6th and like has this blonde girl holding her hand up as if she holding a dick.

Why would they post that in november of all times! I didn't fail but still… And another thing, if you check it out, read the comments, they are hilarious. I couldn't stop laughing.

(Incase u wondering .com is a website where u download free light novels) Anyway, statsheet

Naruto

Level 1

Strength - E305

Defense E450

Utility E440

Agility D580

Magic E400

Magic

(Zenith Tempest)

-powerful storm magic that could produces a large cloud that can create and rain all sorts of natural phenomena on a target

Skills

Omit

-delete two lines from chants

Sage

- Reduces mind usage when existing attributes are utilized

-Automatic mind recovery at a slow rate, effects enhanced significantly when user in precarious situations or feels threatened.

-Derives new effects from existing attributes

Hi no Ishi

-Excelia multiplier affected by the desires to survive, overcome, protect and improve.

-Increases stats slightly when on the verge of death

Current worth – 69 000 Valis

Weapons – Unnamed Kusarigama, Kunai, War Shadow Knives