~NRK~
Naruto spun, transforming into his Divine Spirit state, a ball of wind tossing the incoming lasers and gunfire off target.
"We need to chase him!" The spirit shouted. "They're still on this ship! We can find her!"
"When in doubt, go to their HQ!" Gordon declared with a growl. "The cockpit!"
"Hmph, sounds about right, I'd assume it's the farthest from us," Laharl said as he brandished his sword. "... Still, do these things never run out?! What about turn order?!"
"The Gargantua's cannons, the Astro Cannons, are no joke!" Gordon explained. "They're not locked in by any speed stat, though they're slow, their power is what we should fear!"
Even now, the group could see hisses in Naruto's wind shield, the Spirit looking shocked.
"No way?!"
"Indeed," Gordon said as the cannons kept firing. "We need to get out of this, Laharl."
"You said they were slow, correct?" Clarissa asked with a frown. "What about their tracking?"
"They'll attack anything that moves-Ohhhhh," Gordon nodded with a smirk as she cast Shadow Conjuration.
"Hmph!" Naruto returned to his Prinny form with a grin before crossing his flippers. "If it's bodies we need, I've got thousands! TAJUU KAGE BUNSHIN NO JUTSU!"
The top of the Gargantua was soon full of puffs of smoke, thousands upon thousands of clones running about and filling the space.
They scattered about as a dark shadow formed beneath the group.
They rained down fire, lasers, light spells, and bullets, the Astro Cannons gave their all to destroy as many of those copies as possible, turning on slow swivels every now and then.
"LET'S GO!" Laharl declared as the shadow carpet took off, rushing through the air of attacks and scattered Naruto clones.
When they became the targets on occasion, a bushel of Prinnies would jump in the way, blocking the attacks for them.
"We'll never forget you!" Flonne cried tears of sadness before Laharl smacked her atop the head as Aramis laughed.
"NARUTO'S RIGHT HERE, YOU IDIOT!" The Prince gawked at her.
"O-Oh… a-ahehe~"
"Don't you 'Ahehe~' me!"
"Is it scary that he got her voice down pat?" Etna asked the sweatdropping Prinny.
"Uhh… yes?" He answered.
Circe chuckled.
They flew over the expanse of the Gargantua, the nearly five-mile long ship making their travel not insignificant.
Then there were a series of laser beams from below, the shots clipping the sides of Clarissa's spell.
"W-Whoa?!" She yelped as their ride wobbled. "Naruto?! We're crashing!"
The Prinny nodded before transforming.
Wind formed over the group as they landed safely, the Wind Spirit's eyes narrowing as he floated in the air.
"... Uh, Gordon, question? You did say there were only some of those Battle Suits, right?" Naruto asked as Gordon's head snapped up while Thursday's light flickered.
[BEEP. NO LIFE SIGNATURES FOUND, THE GENERAL HAS RELEASED THE EXPERIMENTAL SUPER ANDROIDS!] The robot said as Enigma perked up.
"Super Androids?" She asked, looking at the Suits before Sardia twirled her fingers by her eyes.
"... YOWZERS! These guys' stats are ridic!" She squeaked, hiding behind Naruto, magical visor shifted with a moving crosshair. "Uh, these guys… t-there's holy energy within their bodies!"
Tramaris's eyes widened. "W-What?! Lord Vulcanus?!" She trembled as Naruto's eyes closed.
They opened once more, glowing bright. "Then there's no time to hesitate. Flonne, this is a fight we'll need you and Tramaris for," the Spirit said to the two angels who blinked. "Aramis, stick with a clone of mine," he said to the boy who nodded, a wind doppelganger and Elemental Protection cast to keep him safe.
"Go kick their asses!" Aramis said.
"O-Oh, there aren't any humans here," the older angel realized slowly. "I-If we can, I only have a series of defensive spells, s-sorry!" Tramaris said as Avarice grinned.
"TIME TO EAT!" She screeched as she spread her wings, an ominous flaming glow forming from them.
Fiery stars shot out in an instant, twenty in total, one for each of these so-called 'Super' Androids-
The machines raised their hands, forming heart shapes that absorbed the attack?
"What?!" The Senator squeaked as she and the others gaped before their eyes widened at the now glowing robots.
"W-Wait, I was of the opinion these ones weren't… he finished them?!" Gordon choked while Circe frowned.
"Gordon?" She asked and nodded with a frown.
"The Super Androids are capable of using Hold space. They were modified to enhance their bodies with whatever's held within and… they can capture with them," he grimaced as Etna frowned.
"Sounds annoying… still, gotta hand to ya humans, that's pretty impressive," she shrugged as he sweatdropped.
"I-Is now the time to be complimenting us?!"
"Hmm," her tail curled. "Not like there are other times."
"U-Ugh?!"
"If we're done pickin' on Gordon."
"Never!"
"Cute," Naruto rolled his eyes as Etna grinned with red cheeks. "So, we need to handle this quickly. Who knows what'll happen to Jennifer in the meantime?"
"... Modification?" Laharl offered as Gordon paled and Etna nodded.
"Modification."
"MODIFICATION!?" Flonne's eyes burned with flames while Enigma and Sardia snorted. "W-Will she have rocket punches now?!"
"Maybe laser beam eyes?"
"Totally gonna have missile boobs, hers are big enough as is."
"IS NOW THE TIME!?" Gordon gawked as Draconis snickered.
"They're still young… though it does interest me as well," the Alternate Overlord said with a hand cupping his chin.
"Glad we're all on the same page!" Flonne said.
A rain of lasers was deflected by a swirling ball of wind as an eyebrow-twitching Wind Spirit tapped his foot.
"Ya done?" Naruto asked.
"Yeah."
The group scattered before attacking the Super Androids.
Circe's Silver Skull was raised along with her Stardust Rod, her newest staff. "Giga Lightning!" She called out as the area above the group began to fill with clouds.
Draconis and Avarice threw flames down from above, the Super Androids jumping away from them as they exploded against the Gargantua's metal plates, the two Fire-Powered demons flying through the sky before coming down onto two of the machines each with their claws and sending them flying sky-high into the clouds.
Thunder rumbled before the clouds exploded into light and electricity.
Sardia raised her hands, Mega- spells forming within both, Ice and Star-types.
"Let's check my hypothesis!" She slammed both her palms together, the energies colliding… but not clashing.
The two spell circles overlaid with one another and she grinned as she widened her hands, the circles growing in size as she did while a pair of Super Androids appeared above her.
Only for the familiar form of Enigma to slam her feet into both of them, sending them flying right into the line of sight of the grinning Sardia, her violet eyes filled with an insane swirl.
"Dual-Element: Star-Ice System Mega!"
The beam slammed into both of them before tearing across the top of the ship with a trail of high-rising ice that showed their mangled bodies, the magical arrays vanishing from her hands as she hummed.
"I see! I see!" The seemingly growing mad scientist grinned widely, her mouth growing inhumanely big, concerning Enigma. "Hahahahah! I see! That's it! I just need to craft more! Find the Truth of magic itself-!"
Feeling the rise in demonic energy, the Android huffed.
Sardia yelped as she crouched down low, holding her head from the chop the 'split-up' woman had delivered. "YEOWCH!" She shouted as she whined, tears on the edges of her eyes as she looked back at the Android with normal eyes once more. "THE HELL WAS THAT FOR?!"
"Hmph, you're back to normal," the cyborg said as the recent Professor blinked. "That was weird… I didn't like it," Enigma said with crossed arms and a frown.
"H-Huh? What do ya mean?"
"Ya went mad, you get that, right?"
"I-I kinda do? I mean, I was really enjoying my magic for a second there."
'Did she get lost in the flow of magic?' Was that a thing Professors did? "How ya feelin'?"
"Is that a trick question?" Sardia whined as she stood up. "You hit me!"
"Once again, you were being weird."
"WEIRD'S FINE!"
Gordon grimaced as he jumped back from a pair of Super Androids, the two lunging at him with two long axes that cross-chopped where he'd just been, the man flipping over the two and taking aim upside-down.
His gun let off two shots for the backs of their heads but they turned unnaturally and looked at him.
"All that is holy!" He landed and jumped away from beams of light shooting out of their visors. "What in the world is this!?"
[LASERS!]
Two beams of light slammed into the enemy robots as Thursday landed by his boss.
[TRUE HEROES KILL WITH THEIR EYES!] He declared with rotating fingers that glowed before forming together into a big ass cannon! [ROBO-BAZOOKA!]
The transformed equipment shot out a large beam of red and yellow destruction that trailed into the horizon before exploding in the distance.
"I-I see!" Gordon sweatdropped. 'We never did test out just how powerful we'd become,' he looked down at his forearm.
50%.
He was only running at half-power? 'In the case of emergencies,' he thought seriously, looking out towards the cockpit of the Gargantua far off in the horizon. "Jennifer…"
Two half-melted robots came running back, his eyes narrowing.
"HAVE AT YOU, YOU VILE MACHINES!"
Tramaris squealed as she flew away from two flying Battle Suits, eyes wide as she swallowed.
"T-They're chasing me!" She cried again, speed impossibly high. "A-Away!"
"I'm coming, Maris!" Flonne shouted as she flew up towards the older angel shakily, her speed not even close to the crybaby angel's. 'S-She's really fast!' She didn't think the Celestial Host could be so fast.
Like, seriously, this was kind of ridiculous!
'Still,' she looked at the Battle Suits before focusing inward. 'Holy energy?' Flonne could kinda feel it.
The bright white within the 'voids' those machines had but she needed something to track them.
"... That's it!" She realized a moment later, holding out her arms. "Holy Arrows!"
The skill activated, ten shining white lights forming around her as a magical array expanded.
Circe had explained to her how magic could be altered in small ways on the fly by using buff spells.
"Target Lock."
Just like with Gallen, apply the targets to the Battle Suits not just in front of her but all around her!
The crosshairs that usually upped their Hit stat appeared on the two flying after Tramaris barely.
"I-I guess this is as good as I'll get," she pouted but held an Archer's stance, the 'invisible' bow and arrow in her hands locked in mentally. "GO!" Flonne 'released' them.
And the white lights flew true, their speed faster than anything she could muster physically.
Tramaris yelped as she kept looking behind her at the gaining machines only to notice the light projectiles coming after them.
"H-Hmph!" She flew backward, speed still unmatched as she raised her hands. "Divine T-Target Lock!"
The shimmering marks on the bots solidified before spreading out on the enemy's bodies at key points.
The 'arrows' hit their literal marks, sending the machines tilting off to the side in the air as Tramaris smiled, continuing to fly away as Flonne let loose more and more Holy Arrows.
Etna sliced one of her two opponents in half after a bit of back and forth, a grin on her face as she flexed her hand. 'Thank Satan for puberty!' She lunged at her other opponent who raised a familiar rifle towards her face.
She slipped out of view of the machine before kicking it into another flying back machine, Laharl laughing as he slammed down on the two.
Two other Battle Suits took shots at them with their Down Unders, the sniper rifle rounds evaded and dodged to the best of the teens' abilities.
… which was a lot, prince and vassal weaving in and out of fire as they closed in on their next two opponents.
"Go low!" Laharl ordered as he flew high, his scarf's tails flapping as he vanished from sight.
"Hmph!" Etna did as told, though, longer legs more under control now than ever before, and sent her, feet-first, into the two opponents, the girl's dropkick catching them on their shoulders.
The floor cratered beneath them, the divot large enough to hold a school bus, before she jumped off as red light filled the immediate area, Laharl's laughter ringing out even in the expanse of space.
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
The meteor he'd rode in on exploded in a magnificent display of destruction and grandeur, the young man landing next to a snickering Etna.
For the first time, they fistbumped.
~NRK~
"Ahh?!" Carter struggled to keep his balance while Kurtis floated in the air of the cockpit thanks to some rocket boots. "D-Dammit! What's going on out there?!"
"Hmph, it is the Overlord's party, can you really say we expected less?" The floating moss head asked as the general grimaced, their technicians working to stabilize the Gargantua. "Right now, we're basically battling with the devil, it'd kind of ridiculous for us to defeat them so easily!"
"Kurtis! For the love of all that is HOLY! Why are you excited about this?!"
"Hmph… I wish I could tell you, I don't really get it myself."
"Grrrr! Why are these pests still persisting?! Surely, our cannons should have dealt with them by now!" Carter shouted as the screens of the cockpit showed the state of their Astro Cannons. "...?!" He held his heart as he trembled.
The destroyed states of their greatest weapons were the reason, the only hint of a cause being a bunch of hi-5ing penguin demons?!
He paled.
~NRK~
Naruto crushed the tops of two Battle Suits by slamming them together, in Frog-Oni form now.
"Hmph," he tilted his head back as a bullet from a Down Under came whizzing by. "Too slow," the man vanished, the plating of the Gargantua crinkling beneath his feet.
He slammed his leg through one of the Battle Suits before swinging around at another, slicing through it as he transitioned into Divine Spirit form.
"Hmph, too slow," he said from behind another, slamming his feet into its back and sending it flying into a rotating black mantle.
"Rip and tear!" Clarissa commanded her Shadow Conjuration, the mantle becoming a rippling ball of darkness that descended on the Super Android without hesitation and ground the metal of its body down to half its being. "Hmph," she smiled before jumping as a laser beam whizzed right behind her.
She turned to find a hole in the head of an ax-wielding Battle Suit, Corrin grinning from atop another as she blew away the smoke of her gun.
"Gotcha covered!" The Thief grinned like the Cheshire Cat. "That should be all of 'em," she said as the others finished up, the group coming together at 'Naruto's battlefield'. "Man, Prince, this entire thing is huge. It's amazing that it could handle all of our battles and only dip."
"Yeah…" Laharl cupped his chin. "I've decided, we're taking this ship," he grinned wickedly as the group grew intrigued. "We're going to need one, yeah? It's only a matter of time before we'll need to go to space," the boy looked more excited the more he spoke of it.
"Well… he's got a point," Circe said as Draconis nodded.
"If you're to find Baal, you'll need it," he said as the group hummed.
"That's right, he closed off the portal to himself when the King found him, didn't he?" Clarissa frowned as Corrin blinked. "How hard do you think it'd be to find him, again, Draconis?"
"Honestly? Not hard. Baal's well-known, there are bound to be planets where he's nearby and/or energy signatures he'll leave behind."
"So, we'll need this ship!" Flonne grinned brightly. "I WANNA DRIVE IT!"
"Whoa now!" Laharl and Etna began to sweat. "L-Let's not get too hasty."
"But I wanna~"
"I-I believe I'm not caught up," Tramaris said as Avarice tilted her head before she grinned.
"Baal, BIG BAD GUY," she explained as the angel woman's eyebrow began to tick while Gordon frowned.
"I don't think I've heard of this individual before. Is he that powerful?" The Hero asked and the group nodded.
"He's basically the strongest being in the universe, Gordon," Naruto explained, in Prinny form, as the man gasped while Enigma frowned.
"Baal's no joke, Gordon, Thursday, Tramaris. He's a real bit of trouble if you catch a whiff," she explained.
"Yep, he's basically a master of the universe," Sardia explained. "It's a real trip and a half if you know his legends and stuff."
"Hmph, we'll see. For now, let's head to the cockpit!" Gordon declared as the group nodded.
Naruto transformed into his spiritual form before the group was soon shooting down the expanse of the Gargantua within a wind bubble.
As they devoured the distance between there and the cockpit, Naruto's eyebrows rose as he brought their flight to an end, maybe one mile away from their destination.
Down below, a familiar green-haired man stood with his arms crossed, his eyes locked onto them.
"Kurtis," the Spirit said as he looked around. "... I guess we're fighting him."
"Huh? Why?" Etna asked as Tramaris looked around.
"I-I believe there's some sort of barrier around," the fidgety angel said as the group blinked at the two as Naruto nodded.
"I guess since you're in tune with defensive spells, this would be obvious."
They floated down to the floor… before Naruto left them floating on a widespread cover of wind.
"Hmph, I guess it wouldn't be that easy," Kurtis chuckled as Laharl hummed before floating in the air on his own power, the others following suit on their own forms of flight.
"Kurtis, why are you doing this?" Gordon asked as he floated in the air with his rocket boots. "Jennifer, the invasion of the Netherworld, working with Carter's traitorously BALD HEAD?! This is all beneath you and yet here we are."
"Hmph, beneath me, huh?" The scientist's eyes narrowed. "Just like my dead family, right?"
The air grew silent as Gordon's eyes widened. "K-Kurtis?" He looked alarmed, horrified. "I don't… what?"
"I'm sure a man like yourself wouldn't get," the other human said with a frown. "You go around, fight the bad guys, and defeat global threats, The Defender of Earth, the greatest so far… so why is it that my family is dead and the villains aren't?" A light burst from Kurtis's back.
"... w-what? Wait, no, you're…" Flonne's eyes widened as Tramaris flinched. "A-An angel?"
The two pairs of white wings coming out of Kurtis's back flapped once, dispelling the metal braces on the tips and the circuit-like patterns on the feathers, all glowing a bright green.
"Not even close," Kurtis shook his head. "Science… it's an unimaginable power… but it's not good enough alone," he said. "That's why I used more. Magic, technology, holy power, and melted [Legendary] weapons."
Eight lights split off his wings, feathers, which quickly became eight car-sized swords that floated at his command.
"I'll see what a so-called Defender you are," his hand raised into the air before white mist shot into the air and quickly began to spread over the area.
"Huh?" Tramaris blinked as she looked up, confused. "What is… i-it's all holy energy!" She realized before hearing groaning all around her.
Avarice wobbled in the air as Draconis held his head, Clarissa trembled on her flickering black power as Corrin groaned atop three boxes.
Sardia and Enigma leaned on one another's shoulders as they kept huffing, sweat on their faces, while Circe grimaced and Etna gripped her body with her arms.
"T-The fuck?" Her eyes shook a bit as she looked up. 'This is bad.'
Finally, Laharl's forehead became covered in throbbing veins, the boy growling in reaction to the blessed energy.
"K-Kurtis, you bastard!" He roared as pain filled his body. "A-Arggghhh!"
Gordon, Thursday, Naruto in Divine Wind Form, Flonne, and Tramaris grimaced at the hurting demons.
"T-This isn't good! Please, stop, you're hurting them!" Flonne begged the frowning Kurtis.
"I guess not all of you were demons," he sighed but shot her a look of sympathy. "I have no issue with you, it's Gordon who I'm here for."
The Defender of Earth's fists clenched. "If I'm who you want, Kurtis," blue eyes narrowed. "I'm right here."
The scientist smirked. "Of course, you are."
He vanished as Gordon pressed a button on his forearm.
"Release 100%," he declared as the tech-angel appeared behind him.
The Hero tackled his former comrade as the scientist flipped his hand.
The eight swords shot towards the two of them before being knocked off-target by a growling Wind Spirit.
"I'll move the others! Don't let him get away!" Naruto said to Gordon who nodded before the Spirit cast Elemental Protection on him. "Tramaris, Flonne, support Gordon! Thursday, give backup fire!"
The man nodded before shooting after Kurtis, Gordon slamming into him once more and sending the both of them flying before they crashed into a part of the Gargantua.
"Dammit, Kurtis! Why are you working with Carter?!" Gordon shouted before jumping back as more light swords appeared above them, crossing over Kurtis, the tech-angel vanishing from beneath his constructs to float in the air once more.
"I fight for humanity, Gordon!" Kurtis countered as he raised his hands above his head before widening the space between them, lightning crackling between his palms. "YOU'RE the one who's mixed up!" He threw his lightning down, the white energy shooting out like a roaring train.
"Tsk!"
Gordon skipped to the side only to pull off three shots of his laser gun, the three large swords shooting towards him erupting into light.
'He got significantly stronger,' how? Gordon had been impressive before, that was the truth, but to destroy his Machina Blades with his measure stats… Actually. 'Did he do intense training?' Or had he sold his soul for power?
The scientist formed a blade in his hand before lunging at his old comrade, the hero bringing out a second laser gun and locking their weapons together.
The floor beneath Gordon's feet cracked but he simply leveled his other gun at Kurtis's head.
…
…
"Shoot, I know you want to," the moss head said.
"I'd never go for a kill shot for selfish reasons, that's one of the many ideals I've abided by ever since I was a soldier, Kurtis, you know that," the brunette said simply.
They shot back, feet skidding against the top of the Gargantua.
"... why? Why the hell are you with the Overlord?! Huh?! Were you always some suck-up to demons?! Huh?!" Kurtis growled as his form floated in the sky, eyes glowing. "Great Tech Soul!" The scientist's form glowed as he was covered by three magical arrays. "ARRRHHHHHHHH!"
The light flashed, taking over the top of the Gargantua for a moment.
Naruto grimaced as he placed the others by Tramaris a mile away on the Gargantua, Flonne by his side with Laharl in her arms.
"Tsk, I'm going back. You guys need to keep these guys safe, alright?" Naruto said to them as the two angels nodded, Aramis blinking at his body as he flexed his fingers. "Invigorate."
The cast spell seemed to relieve the downed group's pains, Laharl groaning for a bit as Flonne lowered him to the floor, the prince's eyes open as the throbbing in his head died down.
"Thanks, I'm coming," he said as Naruto frowned. "Don't. The last thing we need right now is infighting," Laharl said seriously as Naruto kept up the frown before sighing.
"Fine," he formed a sphere of wind over him and Laharl. "We're coming, Gordon!"
They shot off as Tramaris frowned at the entire situation.
'What is going on?' She thought as she cast the highest healing spell she knew. "Omega Heal."
Flonne shivered at the rise in holy energy before looking up at the shining cherub that had formed.
She spread out her arms and green filled the space, the healing energy allowing Flonne to sigh in relief.
~NRK~
Kurtis grimaced as he looked down at Gordon in his new form.
The metal of the Gargantua raised around him as his arms became covered by glowing white metal gauntlets that sparked with electricity that formed another set of wings on their sides as he gained boots of a similar nature.
"... Kurtis?" Gordon grimaced as the tech-angel's eyes flashed as their gazes locked.
"Hermes Processor," the scientist clenched his fist.
Lightning ran rampant for a mere moment, carving, melting, and tearing through the Gargantua's surface.
"Hmph!" Gordon covered his face as his old comrade glowed with a ferocious light. 'He's serious,' he thought with a sad frown. 'Kurtis, have I truly wronged you so much?' The hero felt some guilt as he closed his eyes. 'Lives I couldn't save… I'm truly sorry, Kurtis, truly… but I can't allow this to pass!' His eyes opened, resolution within their depths.
He pressed a button on his collar and it shone brightly as Kurtis's eyes widened before wind exploded out from Gordon's location.
'Finally decided to take me seriously?' The scientist grinned with grim satisfaction as the frosty wind died down, allowing him to see Gordon and his new Battle Suit. '... technology like that?' His eyes widened.
The form of the hero had been garbed from head to toe in metallic armor he was sure was supposed to be the Battle Suit, right? But… it was different.
Powerful white greaves, gauntlets, a chest plate, and a visor-like knight-like helmet with metal at its back. The Defender of Earth's body beneath it was covered by dark blue spandex while, from his back, a large astral cape blazed in a thruster-like fashion.
"Battle Suit Beta," Gordon explained as he crossed his arms before throwing them out. "I'M RIGHT HERE, KURTIS!"
The tech-angel covered his face with an arm as powerful winds tossed his clothes and hair back.
When the winds died down, they looked at one another, eyes locked even with a visor in the way.
And the area erupted with wind and lightning, the elements tearing up the metal of the Gargantua as blows rocked the air of even space.
"Ugh!" Kurtis grimaced as he shot back from an exchange before raising his arm and allowing it to move in a clockwise fashion. "Giga Machina Swords!"
Three bus-sized swords with magical arrays around their handles formed before shooting out at the charging Gordon.
"Target Lock!" Gordon's visor formed several crosshairs. "Tri-Burst!"
Three impossible to see, laser-thin, shots cleared the sword projectiles as Kurtis cursed before flying around.
"Bring them back, you bastard!" He roared, hands alight with lightning as he slammed down onto Gordon. "You dare show your face with beings like the Overlord?! Give me my admiration, my hope, my trust, BACK!" He allowed the lightning to build. "Holy Machina!"
The two shot down across the surface of the Gargantua before a robotic spirit formed over Kurtis's shoulder.
Then it was crushed as a familiar Wind Spirit slammed through it. "YOU?!"
Naruto's eyes narrowed and Kurtis choked as he was kicked away by a growling Laharl.
"Take that fucking spell down, you dipshit!" The prince roared before rotating in the air, sword slamming into the raised forearms of Kurtis who growled as he was tossed back. "Dammit!"
"Laharl! Naruto! Please, let me handle this," Gordon said as he floated in the air by the two.
"Huh? Gordon?" Laharl tilted his head at the chuckling hero who put his hands on his hips. "Is that a new machine?"
"It's the Battle Suit Beta, the one we made from the parts of my old one," Gordon said as Naruto floated by them.
"How's it holding up?" He asked and the man nodded to him.
"Thanks, it was due to your energy sensing and Circe's magical know-how that this was possible," he said as he clenched his fist. "It's not as strong as five-fold power but I can get three and it's instant," he frowned. "Now, please, let me handle this… Kurtis is hurting and I'm part of the problem."
"... fine," Laharl frowned but put away his weapon, crossing his arms as they looked at the charging Kurtis whose body crackled with electricity, four 'Giga' swords around him. "Don't lose, as your prince, you're not allowed to."
The hero laughed. 'I've just accepted it?' Well… it didn't feel that bad. "Very well, Prince Laharl."
Naruto chuckled before he and Laharl shot high into the sky as Gordon 'pulled out' two laser guns.
"Battle Suit Enhance!" Gordon said as the cape around him grew before becoming a trailing light as he lunged at Kurtis. "KUURRTTTIISSSSS!"
"GOOORDDDOOONNN!"\
The two humans crashed into one another, lightning and powerful forces slamming into the air and battleship around them.
They fought for a time, Laharl and Naruto floating in the air above.
"He's like some kinda battle god, a real warrior," the prince noted with a smirk as Naruto chuckled.
"When we truly pour our powers together, we can reach amazing heights, ya know?" He said as Laharl nodded.
"I do."
Then things came to a head as a large symbol formed in the air, being maybe 50-feet tall and burning with electricity, Naruto whistled.
"THAT'S impressive. He really melded technology and holy power together. Are normal people really so amazing?" He said Laharl hummed.
Then a shining light shot towards the construct, the green energy of it burning blue as wings expanded.
"DAE MACHINA!"
"WINGED METEORITE!"
The two attacks collided and the space above the Gargantua erupted, coloring the space around them and causing the holy energy in the air to drop, allowing Laharl to sigh in relief as Naruto nodded, the two of them flying towards the epicenter of the conclusion.
Seconds later, they found a kneeling Kurtis before a standing Gordon.
"W-Why?! I fight for justice! I-I fight for them so why…" Kurtis grit his teeth as he hit both knees. "Why am I so weak?"
"You're not, Kurtis," Gordon said as Battle Suit Beta fell away. "You're hurt and I want to know what happened. Why? You say I failed?" The hero said with a down expression.
"Tsk…" Kurtis's head fell. "Years ago… do you remember those anti-space terrorists? It wasn't a big deal, I'd bet-"
"Of course, I do," Gordon said as Kurtis's head snapped up to see his pained expression. "It was probably the most stressful moment of my career."
"Huh? G-Gordon, you won that day."
"And so many lives, Kurtis… I had so many lives in the balance and I didn't know if I saved all of them… and it seems I didn't."
The scientist flinched, looking away. "... I realize it now… your burning spirit, your strength, your truth, I know… you tried, Gordon, and I needed the shit beaten out of me to figure that out," he said before collapsing against the molten crater they were in.
"Kurtis?!" Gordon lifted the scientist onto his shoulder as he chuckled weakly.
"I-I'm drained, God, where does your strength come from? You weren't like this before you left."
"Hehehe, I can't say I wasn't training while I was away."
"... heh, clueless like always," Kurtis grinned. "Not like that's so bad," he said as his eyes closed. "Be careful… of Jennifer…"
"Huh?" Etna said as she and the others landed. "Be careful…"
"Of?" Flonne added with burning eyes.
"Jennifer?" Laharl finished with a sweatdrop at the image that formed in their minds.
"Stop all the blasted crazy talk!" Gordon said with a worried expression. "Kurtis?! Kurtis, explain!"
The knocked-out scientist smirked even in his current state.
"Hmph, it's time we got Jennifer back," Gordon said as he lifted Kurtis onto his back while the others nodded. "Let's go."
They flew at high speeds via Naruto's wind energy, the group reaching the cockpit in no time flat to find a single woman there.
"Jennifer," Gordon said as he set Kurtis down gently before walking over to his comrade, her hidden face, behind her hair, not deterring him in the least. "... Now, I'm sure even you'd say that Kurtis was right, I should be careful-" He began to say.
And then collapsed holding his family jewels as the others sweatdropped at the dull-eyed Jennifer.
"She just hit him in the jewels!" Aramis laughed while Laharl snorted.
"I, Jennifer, shall be your undoing, Defender of Earth, Gordon," Jennifer said monotonously as Gordon groaned. "Destruction Technique 1 has been established, moving onto stage two."
She put both her fingers in her mouth before taking them out and descending on Gordon.
"AIYYEEEE!? No, Jennifer! No! Not wet-YYYYYYEEEEEEEE?!"
"Destruction Techniques?" Etna sweatdropped. "T-That's just a wet willy!"
"I think our idea of destruction techniques are different," Draconis said with a tilt of the head. "I was right, the humans of this world are weird."
"Yes, um… yes," Clarissa said.
"Administering Destruction Technique three," Jennifer stated as she undid her bra-
"THAT'S ENOUGH!" Circe, Clarissa, Etna, and Flonne shouted as they tackled her.
"I-Interference!"
Naruto, back in Werefox form, blushed a bit as he walked over and healed Gordon, the man groaning as he shakily stood up.
"M-My thanks," he said in a higher pitch than he likely wanted. "T-These devastating techniques will be the end of me!"
"H-Hmph, I figured," Kurtis said as he hobbled past him, the injured scientist's look of determination on display. "I-I've got this, Gordon, she's been brainwashed."
"I-I see, no wonder Jennifer would use such wicked techniques against me!"
"I know."
"Are human guys just weird?" Enigma asked. "How are those nefarious?"
"Bullying is a very serious problem."
"See? Gordon gets it."
The Android facepalmed. "Yep, you're both weird. Go and save Jennifer so I don't need to listen to this madness, please?"
Thursday beeped and booped. [AFFIRMATIVE, GET BACK, JENNIFER.]
The two nodded, hobbling together through arms-over-shoulders unity that was more dramatic than necessary.
When they reached the tangled-up women, the two chuckled nervously at the red clouds binding Jennifer to the ground.
"Solve this, please," Circe said with a huff.
Kurtis came around to Jennifer's head before kneeling and holding out his hands.
Lightning sparked and zapped her in the forehead, the woman jumping a bit as her dull eyes gained life.
"H-Huh?" Jennifer blinked rapidly, sitting up as her bindings were undone. "K-Kurtis? Gordon? W-What happened?!" She squeaked as the group sighed in relief.
"Well, we saved you and the day? I think?" Naruto said unsurely as he looked around. "They left here real fast, you guys, I don't feel a hint of life on this ship."
"Well, we're keeping it anyway!" Flonne said with bright eyes as Kurtis huffed before Tramaris raised her hands. "Though… Tramaris, can you heal us? It's time to talk."
Giga Heal was cast and the collective group sighed in relief.
"What is it, Flonne?" Etna asked with a raised brow. "You look uncharacteristically serious."
"We need to go and talk to the Seraph," Flonne said simply as the group balked. "Y-Yeah, we need to go to the Holy Gate."
"... I see," Naruto nodded. "Alright, I'm down."
"Hmph, finally getting to meet this weird-ass Seraph," Laharl said with crossed arms. "Let's do it."
"Thanks, you guys!" She grinned. "Still… I know we should do it soon but when?"
"A week to rest, maybe?" Draconis offered. "Well, it's not like a day won't do us the same amount of relaxation but if you all want this ship, you're going to need a big place to put it."
"Hmmm," Enigma tilted her head. "I think me and Kurt over there could probably move this thing," she said as Kurtis nodded.
"I can remotely control multiple functions of machinery with my powers," the scientist explained. "Still, the dragon's right, where would we put this?"
"You're joining us?" Jennifer asked with a grin as Kurtis rubbed the back of his head.
"I want to learn how things got the way they are as well, especially with that angel with the mustache."
"So… it really was him," Tramaris's head fell before Naruto pat her shoulder.
"We'll find out what's actually going on when we get up there," he said as she looked at him and then nodded. "So, for now, why don't we leave this thing in space?" Naruto offered as the group hummed.
"Well, it'd certainly be safest up here… but we'd need to do repairs," Gordon said before Enigma grinned. "... Oh, right! We have the perfect workers for that!" He realized with a grin as the group remembered the Androids.
"Wait, you do? What-"
~NRK~
"Gordon, there are well over four hundred Androids in this hub."
"Yep!" Gordon said to the sweatdropping Kurtis.
"So, that's the situation," Laharl said to the vassals in the castle. "Tomorrow, we're heading to Celestia so you guys need to make sure you defend the castle and dad," he declared to the murmuring vassals.
"Seems like things went well," Kana said with a smile as her brother grinned next to her, Nakano currently drinking himself into a coma at a table.
"Guh, dammit, why'd I stay?!" The Warrior whined on the table, ten large liquor bottles around him.
"Alright so, for now, we just need to rest," Laharl said as Etna nodded.
"Hmph, actually, how much money do we have?" She asked before smirking. "Correction, how much money does NARUTO have?"
The currently-a-Prinny human sighed. "Enough…"
Three hours later, Naruto whined on the ground, Plenair, Etna, Sardia, Avarice, Clarissa, Enigma, and Tramaris eating that EXPENSIVE ASS PUDDING!
"I'm never gonna recover from this," the Prinny whined as Laharl's cheek twitched at the sheer expenditure that had occurred.
"Mom, I never want to have a girl eat me out of house and home," he said to Circe who chuckled nervously.
"Um, yes, well… pick well," she said shakily at the seven who were eating. "Come on, Naruto did buy us food, too, so let's just eat."
With the entire castle eating in the two levels of the hub, they simply chattered.
"Hmm, that's a lot of robotic women," Kurtis noted as Jennifer chuckled.
"They're actually still alive, bits and all," she admitted with a bit of red on her face, the scientist looking confused.
"Then why not call them Cyborgs?"
"I didn't name the Class, Gordon."
"Hmm, all things considered, there's something I want to ask, Flonne, Tramaris," Gordon spoke up, the two angels in question looking at him. "If we go to Celestia… would it be possible to sneak towards the 'heaven' sector?" He asked as Kurtis's head snapped around to see the hero's grin. "If we can, maybe Kurtis could see his family again."
"Hmm, I think so but Tramaris would know more than I do," Flonne smiled as the older angel tilted her head.
"W-Well… I think so?" She said unsurely. "The sector to heaven isn't exactly tapered off, it's just in a whole different section to the second half of Celestia."
"Hmph, then we know what we're doing," Gordon said as Laharl nodded.
"See if you can't find that Sicily girl," he said to him as he nodded, Circe chuckling at the boy's interest. "Wait, would she be in that sector?" Laharl asked her and then Tramaris who shook her head.
"She should be in the Angel Academy, she's still young, you know, she's almost 1000 years old," she said as Laharl nodded.
"Hehe, way older than her," he smirked as the Dimensional Transporter Prinny came over. "Huh?"
"Box for you, dood," he said as the group looked at the box. "It's weird, though, it's from Celestia!"
"Huh?" Naruto perked up with a blink before getting up and walking over and looking at the box all around. "... huh? There's a holy signature inside," he said as he tapped on the box before looking to Laharl.
"Open it, might as well find out what it is," the prince said as Naruto nodded.
As he tore off the tape and stuff before it bulged before something… no, someone, shot out of it.
"I MADE IT!" Came the shout of a young girl with a squeal as she looked at Naruto. "... I DIDN'T?!" She wailed at him as Laharl tilted his head at her small stature while Tramaris's mouth fell.
"S-S-Sicily?!" She squealed as the group tilted in disbelief.
"WHAT?!" They all shouted but none more so than Laharl, Naruto, and Circe.
Sicily turned around and balked.
"The Overlord?!" She squeaked before hiding behind Naruto.
The one known as Sicily was short, as stated before, with fair skin, light brown hair that was chin-length but held two long loop-like cowlicks atop her head. Wearing a white shoulderless frilly dress with a blue-ribbon-like strap that held it to her neck and formed a bit of bow by her collar. She had detachable frilly sleeves with blue ribbons on the biceps, a pair of frilly white shorts with blue ribbons on the sides, and a pair of red sandals.
The most notable feature about this little angel, whose tiny angel wings fluttered in horror and shock, was her eyes.
Familiar big red eyes peeked out from behind Naruto's back, the Prinny huffing.
"Come on, Sicily, you're not gonna get hurt," he said to the little girl who looked at him oddly.
Then she lifted him up and scuttled to the side, using him like some kinda protection teddy bear.
"Ya know, I should have known she'd have some strength in her," Naruto said without missing a beat, not even bothered, as Laharl and Circe sweatdropped.
"He got used to it," well, Naruto had always been adaptable.
"Huh," Etna leaned on her fist as her tail curled randomly. "So, this is the Prince's sis?" She asked them as they observed 'Sicily'. "She's about as short as I'd expect, which is kinda weird when you think about how tall her parents are."
Circe blushed a bit as Laharl blinked.
"Wait, hold on, why am I short?!" He asked in disbelief.
"You'll hit a growth spurt… eventually," Circe said vaguely. "I know I did," she muttered as he sighed in relief. "Now, Sicily, right?" She said kindly to the girl who blinked from behind Naruto.
"Huh? How do you know my name?!" She asked in shock as the group looked on with flat expressions.
"U-Um, well, I told them, Sicily," Tramaris explained as her charge blinked.
"H-Huh?! Why?!"
"I-It's an entire situation," the oldest angel in the room explained quickly.
"Hmm," Naruto nodded.
A quick flash of gold and swipe had Sicily sitting in his furry arms, the Werefox bringing her over to the conscious family of now-three.
"Hmph, you came here for a reason, didn't you?" Naruto asked her as she looked up at him before tilting her head.
"W-Where'd your Prinny Suit go?" Sicily asked, confused. "And… uuhhh… I-I came a bit early," she grinned nervously as Naruto kneeled in front of Laharl and placed the girl down. "... y-you're not going to eat me, right?"
"Why does everyone think Overlords do that?" Laharl asked her and the girl rubbed the back of her head. "You're, like, the fourth person who's said it!"
"W-Well, demons are supposed to be scary," she said with her arms raised like claws. "Rwar-Rwar, you know?"
"... yes?" Laharl said unsurely as Naruto, Etna, and Clarissa snickered.
"So, they say all the time that demons eat people. Well, my classmates do, they always say that if you find a demon alone, they're stalking to eat a person!"
"Well, one, that's not true… 95% of the time," Circe explained with a chuckle. "Demons eat normal… relatively normal things," she explained before correcting herself, Sicily blinking before pulling out a book.
"Hmm," she scribbled into it, Naruto chuckling at the sight of childish renditions of demons and monsters being crossed out before she put it away. "Alright, um, so I came early but the Seraph wanted to talk to the Overlord and his party. It was weird," Sicily said as the group blinked. "He said the pseudo-Overlord but that's not a thing."
"Um, it kinda is," Sardia explained as the girl blinked.
"Huh? I-It is? Why?"
"Because the Boss is down," Naruto explained to the chin-cupping Sicily. "Hehe," he said, back in Prinny form as she gasped.
"Y-You can change?!" She squealed as she held the Prinny up in her arms. "And you're fluffier than a normal Prinny!" Sicily said as Jennifer grinned.
"Yep! He is! It's a bit weird but he's so comfy!" The woman said as Kurtis raised a brow at the madness around him.
"The Netherworld is weirder than I expected," he said as he ate some food. "I'm pretty sure this beef isn't supposed to be blue but it tastes amazing," Kurtis said in shock.
"Yes, the world down here is odder than odd," Gordon said as Thursday beeped.
"Hehe~ So, the Seraph wants to talk with you," Sicily explained as Aramis tilted his head with a huff before getting up and going over. "It's really-hey!" She whined as he pulled Naruto away.
"Stop lifting up my friend, nyeh!" He lounged out his tongue as she gasped before pulling back, much to his shock. "H-Huh?! Give him back!"
They tugged on the flat-faced Prinny while Tramaris tilted her head.
"It's like children fighting over a toy," she said to Clarissa who chuckled.
"Or someone fighting for their brother's time," she said with a twitch of the ears as the angel gasped with a nod.
"T-That's true!"
"Alright, chill, chill," Naruto said as he slipped out of their grip. "Kage Bunshin no Jutsu."
In seconds, both children held a Naruto Prinny, the original huffing in the middle of the floor.
"Explain, please, Sicily," he said as the girl grinned.
"At the end of the week! He said I could be the messenger!" Sicily explained as she cuddled her Prinny clone who shrugged in her grip.
"Life's about as weird as usual, dood," the copy said as Flonne snickered.
"Alright, glad that's cleared up," Laharl said with a huff as the girl grinned widely, familiar red eyes really getting to him. "... so, she does know who her family is, right?" He asked Tramaris who smiled sadly.
"Yes, well, she's never seen you before," Tramaris explained as Sicily tilted her head. "But many know her… heritage," she said vaguely even as Circe and Naruto's eyes narrowed.
"Right," they said in unison before the red Prinny came over.
"Hmm?" Sicily tilted her head.
"Pleased to finally meet you," Circe said with a smile as the angel girl blinked.
"What do you mean? Do I know you?"
"Probably not," the woman explained with a chuckle as Sicily blinked again before the clone in her grasp chuckled.
"Though she's very familiar with you," he said as Sicily blinked.
"Why?"
"Well, duh, she's your mom."
"... WHAT?!" Sicily jumped as Circe rubbed the back of her head. "W-What do you mean?! I thought… w-well, I expected her to be human," she said unsurely.
"I'm a human soul, Sicily, I'd become a Prinny," Circe explained.
"R-Really?! So, um, I heard my brother was down here… where is he?" She asked as Circe chuckled before pointing at the huffing Laharl. "... BRO'S THE OVERLORD?!"
"Surprising, isn't it?" Etna smirked as she ate some more of her pudding. "Yes," she'd be enjoying this for weeks even after it was done.
"S-So, um, I came here in a box," she said as Aramis huffed with his Naruto clone before they left.
"Yes, you did come here in a box," the clone in her arms said as she put him down but held his flipper. "Why? Why did you come here in a box? Hell, I didn't think we could get mail from Celestia… no, wait, that's not true."
"I got my action figure set from the human world!" Flonne said with a grin as Draconis tilted his head.
"Action… figure?" He asked and she grinned wider.
"They're amazing figurines, Draconis!"
"I see."
"Well, we have room in the castle, it's all remodeled and stuff," Laharl said to Sicily who grinned. "Still, why send you?" He wondered and she tilted her head before shaking it.
"I don't know but it's nice to spread my wings!" She said before pulling her Naruto clone along. "Show me everything!" Sicily asked with stars in her eyes as the copy chuckled.
"Come on, awake family of three, let's do a tour," the clone said as Laharl followed with a huff while Circe chuckled and joined without hesitation.
As they left the hub, the original Naruto transformed into his oni form. "Tramaris, give it to me straight, the angels really aren't nice to Sicily, are they?" He asked with a huff.
"Was it obvious?" The angel woman said sadly as Flonne blinked.
"H-Huh?! Why?!" She asked.
"They know she's not a naturally-born angel, most likely," Etna explained but Tramaris shook her head.
"It's because she's the daughter of the literal Overlord," she explained as Naruto nodded.
"No doubt, someone's gonna get stupid about that," he frowned as Draconis nodded.
"I'm surprised, still, I've fought Krichevskoy multiple times, he's not demonlike in the least when you interact with him," the Alternate Overlord explained. "So why?"
"Well, for one, it's not like most angels have met him," Tramaris explained rather succinctly without her usual stutter. "And you heard from Sicily, didn't you? Even children have a view of the Overlord from their young age till adulthood. No one speaks well of demons as is, what do you think they'll teach them? I… I-It's not like I was much better," she admitted with some guilt.
"It's not any of your faults, I can't really blame you for being told such things constantly as you grew up," Naruto said with a nod of affirmation. "It's sadly something that happens but they clearly don't like Sicily. I get the feeling that she wasn't sent here to just send this, she was sent here to get away from Celestia," he frowned as Tramaris's eyes widened.
"I… I see," she frowned before sighing. "All things considered, the Seraph does know her heritage so I think what you said is right," Tramaris smiled. "I hope that the Seraph really is just confused about the entire situation."
He nodded. "So, we've got until the end of the week, huh? That means we can get some training in," Naruto said to the group who nodded. "It's still Monday so we'll rest tomorrow and then train for the next two days to be ready for anything," he suggested as Corrin hummed.
"Sounds nice and simple. Time to lounge in the sun in the morning," the Thief Senator said while stretching her shoulders and finishing her food. "Thanks for the eats, I'll see you guys on Wednesday," Corrin said before leaving.
"Hmph, same regards, Uzumaki, we can spar on Wednesday," Draconis said as he peaced-out like always. "Later."
"Hmph, dragons just peace out, do they?" Kagami hummed with a smile. "Hm, hm, Kana, we'll be going shopping tomorrow!" He declared as his sibling grinned.
"Perfect! I need new accessory tools!" She cheered.
"Why, what else would we be shopping for?! Nakano, clear your schedule!"
"God-fucking-dammit!" The Warrior groaned from his place. "Stop doing this to me!"
Naruto chuckled in Werefox form, gaining Tramaris's attention.
"Naruto? I-I'm curious," she said to him and he hummed. "Why do you keep flipping through your forms so often?"
"Training," he said in wind form as she giggled a bit. "The more I use the Transformations, they gain more proficiency like normal Skills."
"Ah, that's what that was about," Kurtis said with a blink. "I'd assumed that you were preparing for the situations at hand."
"I do," Prinny Naruto said. "But it's also for training. Originally, I could transform into one and it'd have a cooldown of 1 hour if I used up the energy in form but now they're all at thirty minutes," he said. "All that in three months. If I can get this to, like, a five-minute cooldown, I'll be golden," Naruto said as he clenched his flipper.
"Hmm, well, if we're on Skills, let's go to the Skill Shop," Enigma said as she got up with a grin. "Thanks for the food, come on."
She, Naruto, Etna, Sardia, and Avarice moved to the Skill Shop which was manned by one of the Androids, the young woman there with white hair, a purple visor, sandy-green attire over her robot form, and a floating orb by her head.
"Welcome, welcome~," She said to them with a pleasant smile as the five reached her. "Here to try it out now? A few of the others have already, Kana most notably."
"Huh, so, how does it work?" The Professor asked as Enigma grinned.
"You can pay Mana for upgrades to your skills to '+9'," she explained as their eyes widened. "Well, not all Skills can be buffed like that but all Skill/Spells can be buffed one way or another. Naruto, you go first."
"Alright," the Prinny said as he walked forward and the Android shop owner grinned.
"So, sir, it works like this," she explained as she held her hands up by his head.
Sparks flew before Naruto's eyes glowed and a list floated in the air with all his Skills, each one in a list-like format and had their levels, stamina drain, and ranks next to them.
"Huh," Etna and the others looked at it. "You've damn near maxed out that Kage Bunshin skill," she said as they saw the level for that skill was already in its 90s. "Three more away."
Naruto nodded. "I've used the Kage Bunshin for damn near most of my combat lifetime, I'd be surprised if it was low," he said as he clicked on one, his most notable one. "Let's see… whoa, that'd be kinda awesome," he said as he looked at the three options for his Kage Bunshin Skill.
Enhance Skill - Increase clone power
Lower Stamina - Lowers stamina cost of cloning
Weaken Skill - Lower clone power
The last one was grayed-out, leaving him curious.
"That sounds awesome," he said as he flipped between the top two. "Oh, they're different?" Naruto asked and Harra nodded.
"Increasing the power and lowering stamina drain is kinda a 'you' thing but, yeah, they are."
"Hmm."
"Power up the clones!" Sardia grinned. "If you do, what if their level increases?!" She squealed with excitement he was a bit surprised by.
Enigma raised a brow at that. 'I'll keep an eye on her,' best to do that before something happened.
"I get it, I get it," the Prinny said before tapping 'Enhance Skill' and blinking as the Rank for the jutsu went up from a powerful B+ to A. "Uh, I wonder how big that is," he said. "Let's see, I've got, what, twenty thousand Mana?"
"Seriously, you're making bank on those gains and you don't have any decent Managers yet. We could abuse till the cows come home!" Etna said with a grin. "Now, hmm…" she looked at his Skills. "Oh, you got Giga Wind," she saw as he nodded.
"Haven't needed to use it since I'm perfectly fine with Wind Creation and Wind Manipulation Plus. Honestly, if I get the next tier, it'll be kinda ridonks," he said as he enhanced his Kage Bunshin Skill three more times, putting it at the 'S+' rank. "Alright, next, Invigorate."
"Why not your Tags? It's even a general application thanks to it all being under 'Tags'," Enigma asked him and Naruto looked at that.
Yes, his tags were all under one enhanceable 'Tags' Skill. "Hmm," he clicked on it.
Lower Stamina
Weaken Skill
"Let's see, the Tags, generally, are already 'SSS'," Naruto said as Sardia whistled.
"... I wonder… hey, Naru, ya think I could study your Tags?" She asked as he blinked while Enigma grimaced mentally.
"Sure, I don't mind. After we're done."
The former Magic Knight grinned widely. "Nice!"
He buffed the Tags Skill five times, nodding to near negligible costs on most of his Tags save for this Hiraishin Tag, his latest one, which still had a decent drain. "Alright, eight thousand left."
He pumped up Invigorate as much as he could before the former blonde was left with a meager amount only to blink as he looked at the first-ever skill he had.
Angelic Language.
"Huh…" He clicked it and blinked at what he found. 'What?'
Enhance Understanding
That was the only option there, no weakening power or anything.
"..." He buffed it and the screen vanished while Angelic Language became Angelic Language II. "That's gonna be interesting," Naruto said as Avarice tilted her head at it.
"II?" She asked.
"Yup and the screen vanished instead of just having the box gray out its options, I think Angelic Language is gonna be different in more ways than I can imagine."
"Maybe it just raised the 'holiness' of your Celestia-based stuff," Etna offered.
"Maybe, it's not like we check if my forms are more dangerous depending on the opponent… probably should but that's dangerous, ya know?"
"What happened?" Clarissa asked as she came over.
Explaining the situation to her, the Dark Apostle hummed before pulling out her tome.
"Then use it on the 'knife'," she said as the book opened, the woman pulling out the presented handle of that wicked weapon and not looking at it. "H-Here."
Naruto held it only to blink at the slow drain on his reserves. "So, it does drain my power but it's, like, gonna get a few percent a minute," he explained as she frowned but he waved it off. "It's fine, let's try this out," the Prinny said before he closed his eyes.
White energy began to form at the tips of his flippers before the knife grew more heated in response.
"It certainly doesn't like it," Sardia said as her familiar visor formed over her eyes, a single crosshair in the center of it. "... a-and its energy is rising."
Naruto could tell but he focused inward, more and more.
That bright white Authority in his being responded and his eyes opened with a holy glow-
His form was sucked into Clarissa's book, those in the vicinity's mouths dropping as he did.
"W-What-?!" Clarissa began to say only for her, Sardia, Enigma, Etna, and Avarice to be pulled in.
Harra' mouth remained dropped as the others scrambled to the balcony.
"WHAT THE HELL JUST HAPPENED?!" The entirety of the hub shouted.
~NRK~
That's a wrap and we get several things out of this.
One, Kurtis is alive and on the team.
Two, they've got their potential ship for traversing Netherworlds. With their Android army, Kurtis, and Enigma, they've got their pilots, crew, workers, and never-ending service.
Three, Gordon and Kurtis's tech improvements for the power creep. Inspiration just hits at the weirdest of times but Pinterest armors are always fun to draw from.
Four, Carter is going back with what crew was left, meaning we might have an altercation with Disgaea's Earth eventually.
Fifth, we finally got to use the Skill Shop and Naruto improved on the Angelic Language Skill, leading him to new questions about it.
Finally, we're entering Clarissa's tome for one of her 'Class-ups' of sorts.
We'll be getting her first 'Mural Battle' in the next chapter.
Ciao.
~NRK Out~