I assume people will probably understand this story's intentions from this chapter. If not, well, you can send me a PM. Also, stop asking me about Naruto and Sasuke. Yes, they are in the main character tags. Yes, they will get their turn to shine. No, you will not know when it will be. Think about the title of this story for a second, let it sink in, and then understand why.

Saji

"We do nothing."

I could not believe my ears. I couldn't believe my eyes either, as the gathered "council" of old decrepit devils made their decision, and worse, all the Satans seemed to be supporting them.

This – this couldn't be happening.

Right?

I turned my attention to my King, doing my best to retain my composure for her. We'd been summoned straight off Kuoh Academy as soon as that giant samurai thing started attacking, and I could barely have believed it myself. Still – I didn't understand why we were even allowed to be in this room right now – with the Satans, listening on this important decision making stuff. Was it because Serafall-sama refused to let Kaicho out of her sight? Did she think Kaicho would try and do something?

"Nothing?" Serafall asked, repeating the word.

"Nothing," Ajuka-sama said. The man who was often called the smartest devil in existence shrugged, and he let out a sigh. "We have nothing – I repeat, absolutely nothing to gain from joining the battle. Except perhaps, to avoid being called cowards by the rest of the supernatural community – but that is hardly substantial enough to risk our lives and the lives of our men on a lost cause."

"So," There was no mirth in Serafall-sama's voice. She steeled her gaze towards him, and then gaze towards Sirzechs-sama, who was eerily silent. "We are cowards then."

I gulped slowly. Beside me, Kaicho seemed to be vibrating uneasily in place.

Man oh man, what in the world where we even doing here? I didn't want to be here if the Satans decided to start duking it out.

"That is enough Leviathan!" One of the 'elders' barked, and Serafall-sama leveled him a glare, making him falter momentarily. I could have sworn the guy went chalk white.

Beelzebub-sama shook his head, not appearing the least bit offended by Serafall-sama's comment.

"The Asgardians were eliminated in one attack. One. Perhaps, Sirzechs and I may be capable of doing the same thing, but not with that level of ease, and not without utilizing significant magical power." He paused. "But – this isn't necessarily about the battle. I'm looking forward – to the future. What the world 'holds' for us after all the dust settles."

He seemed to run some calculations in his head, and I remembered Kaicho telling me about how Ajuka-sama's power was something to do with calculations. That he could calculate anything and everything – and it was damn scary.

"I estimate, that there is a 94% every other pantheon will be dead by the end of the battle and a 100% certainty of any survivors being weakened from the battle. Every pantheon – except us, the devils."

There was a cold chill in the room, and Serafall-sama did not look like she appreciated what Ajuka-sama was insinuating.

"Any consequences of nuclear fallout is irrelevant. I've done significant testing which shows that radioactivity has nigh-unobservable, or, counterintuitively, beneficial effects on our supernatural physiology. Radiation poisoning will be a mild annoyance at worst, and a manner to attain advantageous mutations at best. We are not at risk of dying from the fallout. The same however… cannot be said for the angels."

"In simpler terms?" One of the older devils asked, causing Beelzebub-sama to click his teeth impatiently.

"After the humans launch their nuclear weapons and eliminate most of their species, we, devils, are immune to significant amounts of the negative effects that would kill off any other living thing. The Angels, are not. The Gods are; but there will be too little of them left alive to make a difference."

They began to connect the dots. I wasn't the brightest tool in the shed, but even I could tell where he was going with this.

"That would mean –"

"That all of earth would be ours for the taking, and devils will become the dominant species on the planet." Ajuka said. "Yes."

No fucking way.

Was this really happening? Could this be really fucking happening? What about everyone? They – they were just going to let them die like that?!

"Kaicho –"

"Shut up Saji." Her voice was so sharp, I couldn't help but flinch. "Not now."

It stung, when the girl you were in love with and would do anything for, shut you down so quickly. I ignored the stinging sensation, and settled only for gnashing my teeth together.

"Our genetic make-up enables it so that we are weaker during the day, and stronger during the night. In the event of a nuclear winter, we would thrive. We can withstand extremely cold temperatures far better than most races, and significantly better than the average human –"

"A significant concern would be the lack of tillable, farmable land for us to grow agriculture – however, this is where minor applications of our magical abilities will aid us, reverting the land back to normal –"

"The availability of extra land and resources also translates to more wealth and prosperity on an individual and collective level –"

I couldn't believe it. I couldn't believe I was hearing this. Humanity being wiped out. Devils taking over the world. None of this made any sense. It felt like some sort of bad dream – a bad dream I wanted to wake up from. I turned my attention to Kaicho – surely, she wouldn't agree to this plan right? Letting the world get nuked into Armageddon and then taking control of everything afterwards – there was no way…

Right?

Right?

"Then it is decided." A voice called out. "All in favor of Beelzebub-sama's post-humanity agenda?"

I turned my gaze around the room. Nearly every hand went up. Serafall-sama's hand, slowly, reluctantly, went up as well. I couldn't believe it.

"All opposed?"

I turned my gaze to Kaicho. Waiting, waiting, and waiting. And then it occurred to me that her hand was not going to go up.

"Then it is settled."

I swallowed the thick lump in my throat.

"The era of humans is over, and the era of devils shall begin."

XXXX

Arthur

I thought I understood what it meant to have power. I had believed, I knew what strength meant. What power meant. The five letter world which enabled those who possessed it to reign above those who didn't. Often, I felt that Vali was one of such people. Someone who understood the word just as well, if not better than I did.

"Bijudama Rasenshuriken!"

I was wrong.

To call the sight which lay before me a warzone, would be to call a nuclear warhead a water balloon. Supposedly, this was one of the states in America before the invasion – now, I wasn't sure I could recognize it. It was only the decapitated giant head of the woman who had been called Lady Liberty that told me where I was.

I had come in search of a good fight. The pantheons gathered above in the skies, all combining their strengths against this enemy. Greek, Hindu, Shinto, Abrahamic – it mattered little. All of them had decided to join forces to quell the enemy – the enemy that had pierced and broken the universal statute of secrecy like a young man taking his maiden bride. Surely, such an overwhelming force, would possess the necessary strength to quell three mere invaders?

"Tajuu Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Correction. Three Thousand and Three Invaders.

The golden one, the one that was using some indescribable form of Senjutsu, he had the ability to multiply himself in the thousands. I had realized early on, that he seemed to be the most soft-hearted of the invaders. So far, he had not gone out of his way to kill those who were attacking him. Of course, if I could figure it out, so too could the 'gods.' They had focused their attention on taking him out first, and then hopefully eliminating the other two next.

Easier said than done.

The humans were panicking. Chaos was everywhere, pandemonium even more so. The arrival of the angels had been akin to a global televised event, and what could only summarily be called 'The Rapture' had happened. The Abrahamic Religions had claimed their faithful, and sent them to heaven. The number was in the hundreds of millions.

But the world was filled with billions.

Of course, the other religions followed suit. The "Save the faithful" campaign was as brutal as it was swift. If you believed in a pantheon and their tenets, you were saved. If you did not believe, you were left. If you believed, but broke the tenets, you were left.

It was a nightmare to both religious and irreligious alike. I had already seen some people, on their knees and crying out "I believe! God! I believe in you now! PLEASE! SAVE ME!"

It would have been funny, had a stray bolt of light from an angel not streaked down and skewered the man in half. Instead, it was merely ironic.

"Arthur! Get it together!"

I turned my head to the side. White armor, stained red. Blue wings, stained red. I wondered whose red it was, because so far, the enemies we fought had yet to bleed.

"This is pointless."

He turned his attention back to me. Were his armor not on, I could tell that he would be scowling. "What?"

"You cannot beat them." I said simply. "All the gods together can't beat them. You halved the power of the Golden One, and you nearly exploded from having that much energy in you. And he –"

I pointed to the rapidly moving gold streaks. "He didn't even notice."

Divine Dividing. I never thought I would see a day in which one of the Thirteen Longinus became useless. The Golden One was capable of duplicating himself, apparently halving his power each time he did so. He could do this in the thousands and still possess enough power to fight unperturbed. Divine Dividing was useless against a being with that much power to spare. Vali himself could barely contain that much power without exploding – and there was the fact that the power was somehow either corrosive or petrifying.

My eyes flickered over to tip of his wings – cracked and dull grey. Turned to stone. Strange effect for Senjutsu to possess. My sister would be intrigued. The Yokai would also be curious.

"It also makes me wonder what purpose we are fighting for," I added simply. "Significant amounts of the world's population is gone. Even if we win this battle, slay the Golden One, the Titan Samurai, and the Ash Goddess – what is left? What exactly are we fighting for?"

Ashes and remains were not worth entering the whirlwind of battle for. I sought strong opponents to test my blade, but I knew when an opponent was far beyond my abilities.

"Does it matter?" Vali asked, his voice morphed through the armor "This is the greatest war ever fought. This might as well be the last war ever fought. A war of the best – the greatest – every god and every being in existence, fighting, in one place, at the same time. This is a once in a lifetime, once in ever battle. As long as I get to fight in it – I'm satisfied."

I scoffed. "Not all of us are battle maniacs Vali. I did not sign up to waste my life in the name of false glory."

"I never took you for a coward Arthur."

I adjusted my glasses. Slowly.

"And I never took you for a fool, Vali."

The raging sounds of explosions rang behind us. The horizon, a sky of lights and attacks. Bodies fell from the sky in a weather that perfectly befitted the apocalypse. Then, it made sense: the blood on Vali's armor, and the people it belonged to.

In the mind of the White Dragon Emperor, this was a free-for-all.

"You know, I always wanted to test you at your best. The world's greatest swordsman."

She hummed for his blood, and for once, I did not try to temper her. In a movement, she was in front of me. Excalibur Ruler.

"And likewise, White Dragon Emperor. Quite the grand title you have, for borrowing the power of a lizard."

It seemed, the end of the world brought out the worst in everyone.

I rose my blade, ready to intercept Vali's first attack, only to stop when I realized he was not attacking. No – rather, he was merely staring up into the sky. I would have believed this a trick, but I knew Vali. He would not be satisfied with attaining victory via any form of tricks.

So, I turned my attention skywards.

The world was raining missiles.

XXXX

The end of the world was not the rapture. It was not ragnarok. It was not in the manner or method anticipated by anyone, across anywhere. Historicists later on, would go on to write about what was eventually dubbed The Divine War. The proceedings of events were not certain, considering how the battle had taken place over the course of eight hours.

First Hour: Varying reports reach the globe of supposed otherworld beings arriving from the sky, breaking sound barriers as they raced across the world.

Second Hour: Reports of otherworldly beings confirmed. Identified are three humanoid creatures, eventually dubbed The Golden One, The Titan Samurai and The Ash Goddess, for their most identifiable traits.

Third Hour: Battle between the Outsider Trio cumulates into worldwide damage. The Ash Goddess (TAG) telekinetically severs the head of the Statue of Liberty and launches it deep into the streets of Manhattan. The Eiffle Tower is removed by TAG once more and utilized as a projectile.

Fourth Hour: Battle Races to Japan. Mt. Fuji is severed in half by The Titan Samurai (TTS)

Fifth Hour: Worldwide Panic has set in and the death toll reaches three hundred thousand. The damage wrought immediately breaks the record of the Battle of the Somme for the bloodiest battle in human history. It further simultaneously surpasses the death toll of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. Significant causes of death are attributed to TAG and TTS.

Sixth Hour: Angels spotted in the Vatican City. "The Rapture" occurs. Hundreds of millions are enveloped by pillars of light and vanish. Hundreds of millions remain behind. The Norse Pantheon attacks TAG. They are immediately defeated. The Gods come for their faithful.

Seventh Hour: The Divine War rages over New York. The parties involved include: The Hindu faction, Yokai, Fallen Angel Faction, Angel Faction, Greek Faction, Roman Faction, Buddhist Faction and African Tribal Gods factions. The White Dragon Emperor is present, as are numerous descendants of heroes. The Devil Faction is absent.

Final Hour: An estimated ten thousand nuclear warheads converge on New York.

The events of the final hour, however – changed hope for humanity.

First Defense: The Titan Samurai creates an artificial moon and encases three thousand warheads within it, launching it into earth's exosphere.

Second Defense: The pantheons combine their power to create a barrier to withhold the blast.

Third Defense: Georg of the Hero faction utilizes his Longinus Sacred Gear, Dimension Lost, to transport six thousand nuclear warheads into the dimensional gap – along with several gods, factions, and the Outsider Trio.

Despite their best efforts, however –

Event X: The artificial moon explodes and shatters in the exosphere – raining radioactive meteors and debris on the planet.

Event Zero: One Thousand Nuclear Warheads impact with the Quarantined New York City.

XXXX

She had escaped by a hairs breath. A rather short hairs breath – but it had been enough to leave that strange dimension. She had failed to pay attention to those flying missile like objects – and it had nearly cost her. Not even her regeneration would have been enough to bring her back if she had been vaporized completely. But – she survived, as a head – her head was all that she had managed to send out of that dimension in time before the massive explosions. Such strange, yet, immensely powerful weapons the people of this world possessed. They had no chakra, save for the strange animal-like ones that had kept attacking – but even then, they weren't 'normal' for this world.

A shame this world seemed to have completely been destroyed.

However, they'd helped her – helped her in getting rid of her two troublesome children. The reincarnations of Indra and Asura – there was no way they had escaped that explosion in time.

Still – she couldn't risk it.

There was the possibility that they were still alive. However slim. So… she needed to wait until she was certain that they weren't.

They were mortal after all, and she was not. Time would dull their skills, their abilities, make them weaker and slower – until eventually, death would creep at them normally. In contrast – she would only grow stronger as years passed – gaining more experience and learning how to truly master her powers. She was not, after all, a shinobi or kunoichi. She had the powers, but did not know how to use them effectively – it was only due to her overwhelming power that she'd kept them at bay for so long. All they needed to do to seal her was to touch her – and she could not risk that happening.

A hundred years would be enough – give or take. A hundred years, and she would be in the clear.

First, she needed to heal. To recuperate. To regenerate the rest of her body. Once that was complete – she would need to regain her chakra reserves. Then, perhaps –

She would learn more about this strange world, and how some of its people could use chakra.

XXXX

Issei

So much noise. So much – I couldn't even begin to understand where all of it was coming from. It sounded like an earthquake or something – it disturbed my sleep more than I felt it had any right to.

Wait… sleep? Why… why was I sleeping?

And what… ugh … what the hell is what that horrible stench?

I opened my eyes, fluttering my eyelids slightly. I was in some sort of ruins – no – underground? The subway? When did the subway get a skylight… and how the hell did I get here? All I could remember was that nightmare about the apocalypse and then –

The stench came back, and I nearly coughed from the overwhelming odor. What in the world was –

My eyes caught it immediately. My stomach wished it hadn't.

Bodies – bodies everywhere – bodies all around me. The closest ones were wearing what looked like prison outfits, and they'd all – god – they'd all been hacked to pieces. It looked like some sort of wild animal had torn into them, as I saw bloody intestines sprawled out all over the railway. One had his ribcage and lungs open – the other had his head seemingly ripped in half – both hemispheres of his brain hung open and surrounded by flies –

I lost my lunch immediately. Vomit nearly choked in my throat at the sight of this… massacre. What in the world had done this? There was no way it could have been an accident.

Wait… prison clothes… Akashima… Penitentiary?

The name sounded familiar, but I couldn't place it. There was this nagging voice in my head, trying to draw some sort of connection. I think… these guys… gave me a ride somewhere?

Wait, that made no sense! Why would escaped prisoners give me a ride anywhere?

The more I tried to think about it, the more my head hurt, clouded by haze.

I needed to leave this place – to get out of here and get back to my house. I think – that was my goal… wasn't it?

Everything felt so fuzzy – nothing was making sense.

I climbed my way out of the subway, peaking through the giant hole, and eventually forcing my way back up to the street. It was daytime, making me wonder just how long I'd been out… but, though it was daytime…

Everywhere – everywhere was pitch black. No electricity – anywhere. The sky seemed to be burning – thick, overwhelming smoke as far as I could see – and absolutely no direct sunlight.

And as far as I could see – there was no one around me.

Everywhere was… silent. Eerily, eerily silent. I couldn't hear sirens, I couldn't hear cars, and I couldn't even hear the fighter jets or helicopters anymore. Buildings seemed to have been crushed by meteorites – roads were completely unrecognizable, and several cars looked like they'd caught on fire and burned till nothing but a dry husk.

"Hello…?"

My voice echoed. My tiny whisper, soft as it had been, travelled as though I'd yelled it.

"Is anyone here?"

I could feel the panic in my voice grow as the echo travelled louder, travelled faster.

"ANYONE?!"

No answer.

I was… alone.

"You're not alone."

The voice sent a shock throughout my body. It also made me realize, that somehow, someway –

"What the hell?!"

There was a red gauntlet on my arm.

And it wasn't coming off.

End Arc I