The First Chapter of A Devil of a Time: Rewound!
Hope you enjoy it as much as you did the previous version!
As per usual, I do not own any of the franchises referenced in this work, only any OCs I create.
Chapter One: A Dream of Freedom
"Why can't you just go meet her? It'll be good for you!" a woman shouted, following after a young man.
"I don't feel like kissing ass today Kuroka! You can tell mom to f-" the man stopped talking as he saw another woman, with vibrant red hair, standing in front of him.
"Tell me to what exactly?" she asked, her hair rising up into nine 'tails'. The boy looked nervously at his companion, who smirked.
"Well Naruto-sama, what did you want me to tell Kushina-sama?" Kuroka said, her cat ears wiggling as she failed to contain her laughter.
"I uh, wanted you to tell her that she can forget it! I'm not meeting another 'fiance'!" Naruto said, quickly recovering. His mother sighed before sitting down in a nearby chair.
"Naruto, it is your duty and honor as the heir of the Namikaze clan to take a bride from a high standing devil family. If you intend to be the head of the clan one day, you must get used to these kinds of things." Kushina then pulled out a document and showed it to Naruto.
"This is Rias Gremory. Believe me when I say it was no easy feat to secure this meeting. The Phenex clan fought tooth and nail to set up a marriage with this young woman, however Lord Gremory so graciously decided to give our clan the honor." Kushina explained, but Naruto wasn't paying attention.
"That's great and all, but I've got other shit I want to do with my life! I don't want to marry some stuck up heiress lady! I wanna go out, see the world, do something outside of stay in this stuffy old castle all day!" Naruto ranted, causing Kushina to grow angry.
"That's enough! You will meet with this girl and you will do your best to impress her! A marriage to a clan of her standing will greatly improve our own standing in society! Have you no sense of duty?" She shouted, causing Kuroka to flinch. Naruto, however, remained unshaken.
"Fuck the clan! All my life I've been doing things I hate "in the name of the clan"! Do you ever think about me? Your own son? What about what I want? Huh?"
"That's enough! I will not be spoken to in such a manner!" Kushina summoned a tendril of crimson energy and swung it at Naruto, who dodged.
"You're gonna have to do better than that you old hag!" Naruto said, summoning his own energy blade. He swiped at Kushina, who dodged out of the way with ease. She then threw several blasts of energy, causing Kuroka to dodge out of the way.
"Hey, I'm just a bystander!" Kuroka shouted, but was ignored by the others. Naruto threw several energy kunai at Kushina, with one cutting her face. She growled, before sending several chains of energy towards Naruto, entrapping him. He struggled against the chains, leaking out his energy to break them down.
"You're a hundred years too early to think you can stand against me Naruto. We will be have a discussion about your behavior after you meet with the Gremory heiress. Luckily enough, I arranged for her to arrive today." Kushina looked over to a clock on the wall, and a look of shock overcame her.
"She should be here soon! Go get changed into something appropriate! Now!" she shouted, releasing Naruto. He got up, rubbing the places where the chains had bound him.
"Fine, I'll meet this Gremory chick, but I won't marry her!" he said to Kushina's retreating form. Kuroka peaked her head back into the room, surveying the damage. Naruto beckoned her to him.
"It's time Kuroka. I cant stand it here a second longer. Are you ready?" Naruto asked her, and she nodded.
"Good. I'll go to this meeting, then after, we vanish."
Ten minutes later
"Announcing the heiress of the honorable Gremory clan, Rias Gremory." A servant said, as the doors burst open. A girl with vibrant red hair walked in through the massive doors, her blue eyes scanning the room. Kushina walked up to her and bowed.
"Thank you for bestowing my family with this honor Gremory-sama." Rias nodded and Kushina looked up, and beckoned her to a table. Several plates were set with exquisite food, and a servant began bringing over some water. As Rias sat down, she looked over to the other chair.
"Does Naruto plan on attending this meeting?" she asked, seemingly uninterested. Kushina nodded, assuring her that he was simply preparing.
'What kind of heir is still preparing minutes before a meeting?' Rias thought, but said nothing.
Suddenly, with great flourish, the doors on the other end of the room burst open, and a blonde haired young man with blue eyes that rivaled her own walked in. He looked over to the table, then to his mother.
"Sorry I took so long. Kuroka kept trying to convince me that the orange tie was a bad idea." Naruto said, then suddenly looked over to Rias.
"It wasn't a bad idea, was it?" he asked her, catching her off guard.
"I-I suppose it is fine…" she said, unsure of how to process this event. Naruto smiled, then sat down.
"Well, if you like orange, you cant be that bad." He said, before taking a sip of water. He then studied her, taking note of her crimson hair.
'That picture wasn't wrong, she's quite the looker.' Naruto thought, then focused on her hair.
'Such beautiful hair.' Rias began blushing, causing Naruto to become confused.
"Did I say that out loud?" he asked, and Rias nodded.
"Uh, sorry about that? I'm not really good at this." Naruto said, leaning back in his chair. Rias nodded, composing herself. The air was awkward, with Kushina mentally facepalming at her son.
"So uh, what are you into? I mean, what are your interests, I guess?" Naruto asked.
"I enjoy reading, among other things." Rias answered curtly.
"What kind of things do you read? I read this really interesting mang-" Kushina smacked Naruto on the back of the head.
"Naruto, that is not an appropriate conversation to have at this kind of meeting!" she said, then bowed to Rias. "I apologize for my sons lack of formality." Rias nodded.
"It's no problem Lady Namikaze, truth be told, I very much prefer someone who is honest about who they are." She said, standing up from the table. She nodded at the servant who came with her, who bowed and teleported away.
"Would you like to continue this meeting in a more private environment?" Rias asked, surprising Kushina and Naruto. The boy looked to his mother for a moment before nodding.
"Excellent. I have heard that the Namikaze have a rather beautiful garden, perhaps we should go there?" Rias offered, and Naruto held his arm out. Rias took it, and the two teleported away.
Rome,Italy
"Father Anderson, let me come with you! You need all the help you can get in this kind of situation!" A large man with dull blonde hair and piercing blue eyes was walking towards a plane, and was being followed by a young dark haired girl. She pulled at his long coat, trying to stop him.
"Sayuri, we've been over this. I don't want you anywhere near London if things go bad. You're not ready for this kind of task." The man said, increasing his pace. He adjusted his glasses, then signaled for two men to come.
"But you've taught me so much! Let me show you that I'm ready!" the girl pleaded. The man sighed before turning around to face the girl.
"I know how much you've grown since you came here. You're one of our most promising exorcists, but trust me, with the kind of things that are about to happen, you'll need real battle experience. It's nothing like the low level strays you've been sent out to hunt."
The girl huffed but stopped following him. As he began to turn around, she made one last statement.
"Don't die Father. You're all I have left."
Anderson smiled before stepping on the plane.
"Don't you worry. I'll not die to some heathens pet." He said, as the door closed.
The Namikaze Mansion
"I'm telling you, Ken can't be beat! No one can survive his Hokuto Shinken!" Naruto said, showing Rias a manga he owned.
"And I'm telling YOU that it doesn't work on someone who can blow up an entire planet as if it were nothing!" Rias countered, showing him another manga she had on her.
The two were surprisingly alike in many ways, with an aversion to the fate that their families had placed upon them, with desires to strike out on their own, and make a name for themselves. They also both had an interest in human culture, with anime being at the top of their list. The two had placed the thought of the marriage out of their minds, in favor of finally having someone they can talk to without having to worry about any responsibilities.
"Oh! That reminds me! One of my servants brought me this!" Naruto exclaimed, pulling out a manga. It had a picture of two men, one with vibrant blonde hair holding a mask and dagger, and another looking at a dog fondly.
"I heard it was really good! We should read it!" Naruto said, and Rias, eager to expand her knowledge, sat next to him as he opened the manga.
The two had finished most of the volume when Kuroka entered the room. Neither of them noticed the Nekomata's entrance, which she took advantage up. She smirked as she silently made her way towards the duo, who were entranced by the manga.
"Boo!" she said, shocking them both and causing them to jump away from one another. Kuroka collapsed in a fit of laughter, as Naruto and Rias got up and glared at her.
"Really Kuroka? Can't you be mature for one day!" Naruto exclaimed, with a look of fake outrage on his face. Rias, meanwhile, wracked her brain as to where she heard that name before.
"Kuroka, the S-Class Stray Devil? What is she doing here?" She inquired, causing Kuroka to stand up, a serious expression on her face.
"The Namikaze family saved me from being hunted down. They heard me out when I explained why I did what I did, and were willing to take me in." Kuroka explained, Naruto nodding.
"Yeah, I have a pretty good eye for people, and Kuroka seemed fine to me. Her master was a real piece of work." Rias frowned at this and turned to Naruto.
"Even so, that's no grounds to murder them. What if she does the same to you and your family?" Naruto thought about this before laughing.
"Nah, not possible! Kuroka loves it here! Plus, and please don't tell my mom this, she agreed to be the first member of my peerage!" Naruto smiled, and Kuroka nodded.
"You'd trust her to be in your peerage, knowing her track record? Either you're overly confident in your judging ability, or you truly believe she wont betray you. Either way, be careful. There's a reason strays aren't so readily re-accepted into our society." Kuroka frowned at this assessment.
"Hey, I'm right here!" she said, looking pointedly at Rias.
"I know." Rias deadpanned.
Suddenly, a loud chime went off in Naruto's room. The trio looked at the clock, indicating that it was much later in the day.
"I should probably head back to the estate. It was great meeting you Naruto, I do hope we can do it again." Rias said, smiling. She waved to Naruto, and nodded at Kuroka, who turned away from her. Naruto gave a small wave in return, and Rias walked out of his room.
"So Master, are we still on for tonight?" Kuroka said as Rias left. Naruto shook his head, surprising Kuroka.
"Not just yet, I wanna see how this-" he points to himself and the door that Rias had just left through- "plays out. Besides, I have a feeling that mother will be extra stringent on the security tonight."
Kuroka sighed before walking towards the door.
"Well now I have to go unpack my bags. When will you finally be ready to get outa here Naruto?" she asked, turning around to face him.
"When the time's right Kuroka, you'll be the first to know." He said, sitting down on his bed. She left the room, leaving him to think about his future.
YEARS LATER
"So Koneko and Kuroka are sisters? That's pretty neat. Maybe we could reunite them? From what Kuroka told me, Koneko took the whole thing very hard…" Naruto was speaking to Rias over the phone in his room, while Kuroka was nearby, packing a suitcase. She looked over to him then nodded, causing Naruto to smile.
"I'm not sure she's ready for that yet. She's still trying to come to terms with what happened with their former master. But if you think that's the best call, then I'll ask her."
"Thanks Rias. So anyways, is Riser still trying to get you to marry him? I thought our display at the last ball would've put him off, but you never know.." Naruto thought of the last time he met the Phenex heir.
After the first meeting, Naruto and Rias un-officially dissolved the marriage contract. They had found that while they were good friends, they both balked at the idea of being forced to marry someone they didn't love. However, in order to maintain a proper image, the marriage alliance was not dissolved. Rumors from servants, however, had caused the information to leak out.
The opportunistic Riser Phenex had heard from one of his servants about the situation and had been trying to gain Rias to dissolve the marriage contract with Naruto formally and instead marry him. Rias declined his offer, and ever since Riser has been petitioning both her and her parents for her hand. Naruto agreed to maintain the marriage in order to protect her from the claws of the Phenex clan.
"Y'know, I could always just beat his ass. It'll be fun." Naruto offered, causing Rias to laugh.
"As entertaining as that would be, you wouldn't be able to do it. You don't have a large enough peerage. Kuroka wont be enough, as powerful as she is. There are rules about these things you know." Naruto sighed at Rias' words. He looked over to Kuroka, who had finished packing the case.
"Well, I think I'll be able to solve that peerage problem pretty quickly. You know what I told you about, my plan? Today's the day." Rias gasped at his words.
"Are you sure? I know we've been practicing, but I don't think you're ready to take on Lady Kushina…" Naruto laughed at this.
"Don't you worry Rias. I'll get out of here, assemble a kickass peerage, and then I'll be able to help you!" Naruto exclaimed, causing Kuroka to jump. He apologized to her before going back to his phone call.
"I'd honestly prefer to handle this myself, but I do appreciate the sentiment. I-"Naruto could hear a voice shouting for Rias over the phone. "I'm sorry, I have to go Naruto. Good luck on your plan." Rias abruptly hung up, leaving no room for Naruto to respond. 'Must have been something pretty important.' He thought, hanging up the phone.
Kuroka walked over to Naruto and handed him his suitcase. "Are you ready, my master?" she said teasingly, causing Naruto to blush.
"Yeah, let's go. I've got to put on a good show…" he said, mostly to himself. He stood up, and grabbed his long coat. It was a dark orange, with a silver collar. Naruto threw the coat on with a flourish, then walked towards the door. He slightly regretted what he was about to do, as he knew that it would cause his family much difficulty in the long run, but he knew that this was the right choice for him.
'Besides, every kid has to leave the house some time, right?' he thought to himself.
Moments later
"That's it! I've had it with your shit!" Naruto shouted, throwing several plates at his mother. He had initiated yet another argument, hoping to provoke her to chase him down. So far, it seemed that his plan was working. His mother was currently barreling down the hallway towards him, so blindly focused on catching her son that she didn't notice the seals he had placed throughout the hallway.
"Don't run away! You'll just make this worse on yourself!" Kushina shouted, as Naruto suddenly stopped. He smiled and turned around to face her.
"You know what, you're right mom." This caused Kushina to stop suddenly. Naruto would never give up so easily, which made her realize that something was wrong. She looked around to see the multitude of seals around her, before Naruto snapped his fingers and she was suddenly slammed against the wall, bound by chains of energy. Kuroka, who had been following Kushina, cheered and walked over to Naruto, high fiving him.
"I can't believe it worked master! You really are brilliant!" Naruto smiled at her praise.
He looked over to his mother, who was currently struggling against the bonds. He estimated that he had only ten minutes before she broke free, so he quickly grabbed his suitcase and made for the door of the mansion. Kuroka followed him, humming a song all the way.
"DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN JUST WALK OUT OF HERE NARUTO? YOU DON'T EVEN HAVE A PEERAGE! WHAT WILL YOU DO ALL BY YOURSELF?" Kushina shouted, causing Naruto to stop.
"That's where you're wrong mom." He said, looking smug. He then pointed to Kuroka, who waved.
"She's my Queen, and I figure I'll pick up some uniquely talented humans or something to fill out the rest of my ranks. I'll come back with a kick ass peerage and then no one can tell me what to do!" As he said this, he pushed several pages of paper deep into a bag he was carrying.
'No need to tell her about Icha Icha just yet, gotta play this right.' He thought to himself.
"And what makes you think I'll support this? One word and you'll be declared rogue devils!" Kushina said, causing Naruto to laugh.
"With how focused you are on 'family image', you won't do shit! It'd be political suicide for you to admit that the heir of the Namikaze family left to do whatever!" Kuroka said, laughing along with her master.
"Tch, I can't believe this. I thought I raised you better than this Naruto." Kushina said, still struggling to escape her bonds. Naruto shrugged, then opened a portal.
"Well, I have been told I take more after dad anyways." Kuroka and he then stepped through the portal, with Naruto waving one last time at his mother.
"See ya!" he exclaimed, closing the portal and releasing the bonds. Kushina fell to the floor, but quickly got up and ran to where the portal was.
"Damnit!" she shouted, slamming her fist on the floor. This was the last thing she had wanted, now her son, her only son, was out in the world with no idea on how things really worked.
'Damnit Naruto, I just wanted you to be safe and happy. Was that so much to ask?' she thought to herself, shedding a tear.
Several servants began rushing into the room after hearing the commotion.
"Lady Kushina?" one asked, bravely approaching the Namikaze matriarch. She stood up and wiped the lone tear away before facing the servant. He backed away in fear, as Kushina was letting out a menacing aura.
"Get me Anko. I have a new mission for her." The servant nodded, rushing to retrieve the woman.
And that's it for the first chapter of A Devil of a Time: Rewound! I'm taking things much slower this time, hopefully for better! Next chapter, The Cool Southern Wind, shows just where Naruto and Kuroka landed, and the recruitment of the first new peerage member!
The peerage underwent some changes from the original draft, but all previously established members will be coming back!
That means Sam, Esdeath and Akame will return! Along with Kuroka, and some new players!
PREVIEW
"I realized that no matter what I do, no matter how many of them I killed, nothing would change. So, I went around the world, testing my skills, while trying to dispense my own brand of justice."
The man pulled a picture off a shelf, wiping the dust off it. He placed the photo back onto the shelf, before turning to the sword mounted on the wall. He took it off its pedestal, placing it in its sheathe. He turned back to the pair, with a grin.
"So, you said this girl's one hell of a fighter? Show me." Naruto smiled and nodded towards Kuroka, who stood up.
"As long as you keep your end of the deal, Mr. Jetstream." Kuroka said, walking towards the door.