The Formula Of Life
Chapter 3: Knight Of The Morning Light
Naruto's first impression of Devil society had been underwhelming. The members around his age had been either spoiled beyond belief or simply could not hold a normal conversation. For example, Rias Gremory - the heiress to the Gremory clan - was a total freak when it came to anime as she called it. With his use of the same honorifics, Rias had simply assumed he was a huge fan as well. Honestly, the other devils had their own quirks as well. For one, another one of the numerous heirs, Riser, was a total pervert. Reminding him much of Jiraiya. Though there were clear differences, Riser's love for the female body had given Naruto quite the sense of nostalgia. Till the Hilda punched Riser in the stomach for attempting to flirt with her. Even so, Naruto had hit it off with the young Phenex. Other than Riser, Naruto had managed to befriend another, Sairarog Bael. Other than Sairarog and Riser, Naruto had been unable to befriend the others. Some being too cold - Sona - and others simply being far too creepy. Most prominently his supposed uncle, Diadora Astaroth.
Diodora was quite the devil. Wearing a mask of both kindness and weakness, Diodora gave off no image of a individual who could hurt anyone. Well, that was what his persona gave off anyway. Well, from the thousands of people Naruto had met in his past life, Naruto could easily say Diadora was hiding something behind his persona. Diadora's growing Peerage of Holy Maidens did not help on the matter either. Though Naruto's time as a devil had been short and he lacked knowledge of devil society, it was common fact that anyone associated with the Church or Angel Faction was not welcomed, especially in Peerages. Why and how Diadora had gained two Holy Maidens in his Peerage was truly a mystery. Other than the creepy feeling the young Astaroth gave off, Diadora was quiet and kept to himself, only speaking when a subject of interest was spoken about.
As Ajuka had said, the young devils were the 72 Pillar's future. Future leaders of the clans, necessary connections were needed in order to maintain the political system long established since the civil war. Peace and unity had been hard enough to establish when war broke out, and the older generation wished to maintain the fragile peace for however long they could. One war was enough, but two, it was just ridiculous how much blood was shed during the two wars that had been so closely tied to the reformation of the government. The close relations between the clans had played a major role in the Anti-Satan Faction's victory, and wishes to continue such a relationship had resulted in the early meeting between the heirs and heiresses. A meeting that was considered a success even though it could have gone better.
Riser Phenex was what one would call a full-blown pervert. A young lad who enjoyed the sight of the opposite sex, Naruto simply proclaimed him as the second coming of Jiraiya or perhaps Ebisu was more fitting. Definitely Ebisu. Nevertheless, Naruto found the young Phenex amusing and enjoyed his time spent with his fellow blonde. How riser felt, Naruto was unsure.
"Naruto, we should go to the human world, just imagine what we can find there!" Riser declared.
Naruto, who had been seated beside him, merely raised an eyebrow out of curiosity. Though he had nothing against going to the human world for the first time, how they were going to get there had struck up the real question in his mind. Taking into consideration that the two of them were High-Class Devils, finding a way out of the Underworld would be much harder, considering that no one would be willing to trust the two out in the human world without an excessive amount of protection. Though the concern was unneeded, Naruto acknowledged the concerns. Devils were not as fertile as humans, and thus children were rather precious in the society. Many cultures valued the young, but, Devils were far more extreme on the matter itself. Ever since the two wars, the population decline had been a major issue in the survival of the Devils. To lose more members of the race, especially members of the remaining 72 Pillars would be damaging.
"How exactly are you planning on getting to the human world?" Naruto asked generally curious on his part.
"Well... We could get Sairarog to help us... The guy needs to stop training, anyway..." Riser offered before gaining another thoughtful expression, "Then we could... Umm... Overpower the guards, yeah! Then make a run for it again! Like in Gun-"
"Rias is forcing you to watch Anime again, isn't she?"
"No, shut up!"
That brought a snort of amusement from the other blonde. It was a clear fact that Rias and Riser were both engaged. Having been given the information as children, their minds lacked any real hatred towards one another, aside from the perverse comments Riser would make here and there. Though Rias remained harshly critical of the arranged marriage, she did not resist as much as one had assumed. Showing displeasure over the decision, Rias had not been overly concerned with it. The relationship between Riser and Rias had been kind enough not to push forth a full-blown rejection of the marriage. Other than that, the relationship between thus far had been solely reliant on Rias's love for Anime. Having insisted on watching it with anyone she could, Riser had been kind enough to (in)voluntarily become her partner when watching the shows. Besides the love for anime and everything in between, Rias had shown a great love for challenges. Even though the young heiress was known to be a very sore loser.
"Do you want to go or not!" Riser demanded.
"Fine, fine, let me just get Hilda and we'll go." Naruto said.
Mumbling something inaudible, Riser stalked away from the garden leaving Naruto behind.
Riser's plan had been simple enough, all they needed to do was knock out a number of guards before heading to the train station and sneaking onto a train heading to the human world. The only real issue would be fighting off the guards. That was where everyone else came in. The meeting between heirs and heiresses had been a success. The unique curiosity that all children shared, Naruto and Riser were not the only ones who wished to head to the human world. Sairarog and Diadora both had been willing to participate in their little journey. Sona had been adamant on not going, leaving only Rias to come along with the four boys. That was how the duo had turned into a party of five. Which only made things much harder.
"How are we going to get past those guards!" Rias whispered quietly while she glanced at the two guards posted at the door, "We can't just hurt them out like that... Riser, it would just be mean!"
"Then how are we suppose to get past them, Rias!" Riser argued with a frown, "We can't just ask them to let us out! They'll tell our parents and then we won't be able to go at all!"
As the two argued, Naruto and Sairarog both ignored them in favor of planning their route of escape. Diadora merely remained quiet throughout the entire situation, leaving the four alone. Hilda who had been watching the entire exchange simply ignored them.
"We could simply just sneak around them..." Naruto proposed with a thought.
"Hmm... It would take too long to find another way out. The train leading to the human world would be leaving in an hour. We're already on a time limit, Naruto..." Sairarog replied as he stole another glance at the guards, "Our best option is just to knock them out... Unless you have another idea..."
"Well... The Kankara Formula might work... Aju- Father, has been giving me some help on mastering his technique... If I can modify something I'd be able to use it as an attack against them... Or we-"
"No, Naruto, we are not going to do that..."
"We could simply order them to allow us to pass..." Diadora interrupted with a partial smile.
Naruto and Sairarog both stopped their conversation and turned to Diadora. The idea had merit, being one of the better ideas which got them out of the castle... Possibly. If they succeeded and forced the guards to allow them out, then they would simply tell their parents, ending their plan without even going to the second phase. However, the idea did provide the party of five with more options. Pondering on Diadora's words, Naruto snapped his fingers in realization as he drew everyone's attention onto him. Everyone had been over complicating their plans. Doing so had placed an illusion on their greatest power of all, nobility.
"Here's what we're gonna do..." Naruto muttered.
Naruto had been quite pleased with the human world thus far. The visit had began an hour ago, and Naruto could honestly say he preferred it over the Underworld. Sure, the Underworld provided him with an world of opportunities, the excessive protection and surveillance placed upon him was getting rather annoying. While he understood the actions, it did not mean he liked them. When he had been chosen as Hokage, Naruto had honestly been thrilled beyond belief. His dream had finally came true, but, the amount of protection placed on him by the ANBU was honestly, too much. Having the opportunity to negotiate about the guards in his past life, Naruto could not do it in his current one. Considering that both Ajuka and Kushina would think he was crazy for spouting about reincarnation and being a ninja in his past life. That was why the human world had been so appealing to Naruto. The humans treated him like another child instead of some lord that would kill them if any form of disrespect was shown. The only issue with the world was how easily he had lost contact with the others. Last time he had seen Riser was when Rias had dragged him off to find some merchandise while Sairarog wandered off on his own. Naruto didn't even know what had happened to Diadora.
All he knew as that he was in some unknown village by himself. And to make matters worst, a church was erected just a distance away from them. The amount of trouble they could cause was beyond belief. Coming in contact with the members of the church would lead to disastrous consequences, Naruto just hoped no one approached the building or possibly drew too much attention to themselves. There wasn't really much to do aside from explore. An agreement to rendezvous at the road leading into town had been made and so the party of five did not need to worry too much about their companions. Not that children of their age could worry so much. Nevertheless, Naruto still possessed worry in his heart, but ignored it in favor of satisfying his curiosity that had been plaguing him ever since his arrival into this world. The others couldn't cause too much trouble... Well, he hoped they couldn't. As for himself, he couldn't really say.
Exploring the city had been quite the experience. Though the entire journey left him questioning his own judgement. The people had been kind enough, though they seemed rather tense as if some veil of fear had been placed upon them.
"Help! Please... Anyone, help! Please... Please help!"
The cry of a desperate child was hard to listen too. Perhaps it was the pain that enveloped ones heart when the cry registered. Yet still, not a single head had been turned nor a hand had been raised. The desperate cries only continued as the origins of the voice continued to run across the streets in hopes of finding someone, anyone to help. The villagers were hesitant in offering their service of the young boy. Fear had been a major factor in their decision to remain distant on the issue. Normally, such fears originated from outside sources, yet this one had been from one of their own. The church that had been offering its services since the town's creation had received a new priest, Valper Galiei. That had been a turning point in the serene peace that had once enveloped the town. When Valper had arrived, it had not even been a week before kidnappings had been springing all over the town. Children of all ages went missing, leaving no traces to be found. Though the kidnappings were not formally related to Valper, townsfolk knew he was the source of it. Interfering brought nothing but pain and suffering.
Running through the small streets with two burly man not far behind, was a young boy with wild, flaming red hair and a pair of gentle blue eyes. Chasing him relentlessly were two men garbed in all white, the only signs of their allegiance to any faction were the crosses worn across their necks. Doors were closed and blinds were drawn, leaving no one able to witness the event. Yet, the men working under the church had never expected Naruto to be there. Watching the entire event unfold, the blonde Devil frowned deeply at the lack of action. Clenching his fists, Naruto had made an action that he had hoped to avoid. Jumping right into the chase, Naruto caught the boy's hand and pulled him away. Dragging him away from the two, Naruto ignored the surprised glance sent his way and focused solely on escaping.
"Get back here!"
"Split up! We can corner the two brats this way!"
Naruto scanned his surroundings as he heard the exchange of words. Currently running in a alleyway between two buildings, the only two possible escape routes were going to be blocked if he didn't do something quick. One of them was most likely cutting ahead of the other hoping to capture them by eliminating all possible escape routes. Glancing at the other exit once more, Naruto turned to the man sprinting towards them from behind and charged. The sudden action was definitely unexpected. As seen by the man's lack of preparation when Naruto with the help of the red-haired boy slammed right into him. Normally, plowing into a full-grown man would have ended badly, if not for the man's attempted stop thus lessening the force behind the impact and allowing the momentum driven boys to slam right into him without much of a hindrance.
"You little shits! I'll kill you! Do you hear me! I'll show you what happens when you defy Lord Valper!"
The running had ended when Naruto came to a stop near the town's park. Taking shelter among the trees, Naruto rested against a tree, recovering from his headache caused by the impact not a while ago. The red-haired boy too began recovering from the impact, leaving both boys without much to say until pain stopped swelling in their heads. A little over ten minutes had passed and Naruto began to truly study the boy he had helped escape. Dressed in robes tarnished by dirt and grim, Naruto's surprise had not been left in the shadows. Then came the matter of actually talking to the boy.
"You're a devil, aren't you?" The boy asked as his features scrunched.
"That is one way to start off a conversation." Naruto thought before nodding his head in confirmation.
"I'm Naruto Astaroth." Naruto offered a hand.
"Reinhard... Reinhard van Astrea." the newly named Reinhard replied.
"Astrea... Why does that name sound so familiar..."
"Yes, the House of Astrea is a clan of master swordsman..."
Naruto acknowledged the response with a nod before he gave Reinhard a curious gaze. The men chasing him had been fully intent on causing harm to Reinhard, if he had his facts right, the House of Astrea possessed a legendary blade which rivaled that of the greatest Holy Swords. From what he had read, the Astreas had been allied with the Church for centuries. The more Naruto thought on this situation, the more questions came into existence.
"Why did you help me?" Reinhard asked as his features scrunched once again, "Why you, a devil, help me, a member of the opposing Faction?"
"Cause' I wanted to." Naruto replied in a rather nonchalant tone.
If Reinhard had been expecting another answer, he was sure showing it. The pure surprise he had displayed on his visage was enough to showcase what the boy truly thought of Devils to Naruto. That reaction alone had truly showed what many thought of the Devil race as a whole. Reinhard recovered from his shock but continued to press on.
"What do you mean "you wanted to", aren't you going to ask for a payment of some sort? You are a Devil, aren't you?"
"Unless you have some ramen, then no. And yes, I am."
That left Reinhard completely baffled. The stories told of Devils as greedy and manipulating. Yet here was a real life devil, holding no form of interest in anything Reinhard could have deemed important, unless he counted some broth and noodles. Even the Divine Blessing of Mind Reading showed the blonde's lack of interest. That raised a second question in the young Astrea's mind. Had the Devil voluntarily helped him just simply cause he wished to?
"Naruto... I am in need of your assistance." Reinhard said, truly desperate at this point.
Valper Galilei held the image of a kind priest. Adorned in pure white robes the elderly man's aging face only hid behind the false smile. The bespectacled old man was very manipulative. His ultimate desire to crack the code of Holy Swords and their selective wielders, had been what driven him through life. Doing actions that many would considered horrendous, Valper did not care. All he wished for was to finally wield the blades he marveled at when he was a child. Admiration for the few wielders had soon changed to hatred. The jealously that Valper had felt was a major influence in his boiling hatred he now felt. Imagine his surprise when the renowned Astrea family had taken a visit. An opportunity like this came only once in a lifetime. And Valper had taken it. Drugging both father and son, Valper had been quite surprised when he found out Reinhard was immune to the effects. After the blunder, Valper had sent his men to recapture Reinhard as he caged Heinkel.
"Lord Valper, the Astrea brat he got away... Please forgive us, my Lord!"
Valper frowned at the words. Though he felt great displeasure from the results, it did not truly matter. The only other church aside from this one was quite a distance away. Even if Reinhard had decided to travel that far in order to call for help, the travel would not do the child any good. Valper could simply pack up and leave before the boy even reached help. But, if young Reinhard was anything like his family, he would not leave, but fight head on in order to retrieve his father. So, the situation had not been a total loss, and his plans were still on track.
"No matter... Guard Lord Astrea well now, we don't want him getting loose now, do we?" Valper said before chuckling, "Young Reinhard will come to us. There is no need to waste more men looking for him. Call for all the men to return."
"At once, my Lord!"
"Why should we help him!" Riser demanded with a scowl.
The group of Devils were gathered in the park as a furious Riser sent Reinhard a withering glare. Naruto had been insistent on helping the Astrea while a number of other Devils remained uncertain on the matter while others, like Riser, was clearly against it. A discussion had been ignited and Naruto remained adamant on the topic and refused to back down, much to Riser's annoyance. Sairarog remained neutral, only offering his opinion when he deemed necessary. Rias and Diadora had remained quiet the entire discussion. Disagreements between Naruto and Riser would always lead to rowdy shouting while Sairarog was forced to play the middle man.
"Because we can, Riser!" Naruto snapped, "I am not going to just stand here when we can help Reinhard!"
"Then do it without me, Naruto! I am not helping the enemy!"
After shouting that, Riser stormed off with a huff. Rias and Diadora both shared a look before walking off to follow the enraged Phenex. Though Rias had shown a more apologetic expression, Naruto was left with only Sairarog and Reinhard at the park, both unwilling to speak after the outburst. Naruto honestly could not blame Riser, raised with a biased view of the Church and Angel Faction, the unwillingness to help the clan had been quite the obvious reaction.
"Why didn't you leave, Sairarog?" Naruto asked with a sigh.
"I can't let my rival get himself killed now, can I?" Sairarog responded with a smirk.
Returning the smirk with one of his own, Naruto and the Bael heir shared a fist bump before they turned their attention to Reinhard. The young Astrea had felt rather guilty when the other Devils had left. Riser's angry declaration had meant nothing to him, but, the feeling of causing such trouble for Naruto had been what really brought forth the guilt. The awkward tension had died when the remaining Devils shared a friendly fist bump, leaving the matter to be discussed.
"Reinhard, do you have an idea how we can get your dad back?" Naruto questioned.
Nodding his head in response, Reinhard grabbed hold of a stick and began drawing a rough sketch of the church. Marking significant positions, Reinhard pointed directly to the church's front.
"The front is the least guarded place. Though the locals have an idea of what's happening, Valper wants to keep the opening as normal as possible. But they can spot us from a mile away. The best way would be to attack the side, there would be more guards, but we have the element of surprise."
Riser growled in rage as he stomped away from the park. Rias and Diadora both followed him from closely behind. Though neither of them wished to be caught in his rage induced thrashes, Rias had been quite angry at the blonde to have stopped herself from interfering. Watching Riser burn tree after tree whilst filling the air with unsavory phrases, Rias had had enough. Walking right in front of the enraged Phenex, Rias crossed her arms in a mixture of anger and annoyance as she caught Riser's attention.
"I can't believe you, Riser. You would leave Naruto-" Rias began in hopes of reprimanding the Phenex.
"Me?! You should be scolding Naruto! That bastard always does this! He's always helps people, he never realizes when others might be using him!" Riser yelled just before igniting another tree in a raging inferno.
Unphased by the fire, Rias crossed her arms in annoyance. Honestly, the boys she had to deal with were all so stubborn. Riser for one was never willing to admit anything, even apologizing became a challenge. The pride Riser possessed seemed unwilling to allow him to bow his head and accept himself in the wrong. Then there was Naruto, the blonde Astaroth was adamant on helping others and refused to stop until he succeeded. No matter what stood in his way, Naruto found a way across it.
"Then you're going to let him fight exorcists on his own?" Rias asked, "You're going to let your friends fight them by themselves..."
Clenching his fists, Riser stormed off without completing the conversation.
Reinhard panted heavily as he charged through the mess of guards without stopping for anything. Having ran for quite some time followed by performing a number of jumps and leaps, Reinhard had exhausted his energy rather quickly when dodging the swords and guns that had been targeting him. With the assistance of both Naruto and Sairarog, Reinhard had little trouble reaching the room which held his father prisoner. Mass produced Holy Sword in hand, Reinhard found himself pushed straight into a fight. Mercilessly striking him with quick, decisive blows was one of the more prominent members of the church, Freed Sellzen. How Valper managed to gain the allegiance of the moral less man, Reinhard held no hints of an idea, but, it did present trouble for him.
"Ahahahaha! Hey, Heinkel, your bastard son's here!" Freed declared in a all too cheerful manner, "The shitty old man did say I could have fun when you arrived... Get ready to die!"
Dashing to avoid a fatal cut, Reinhard hastily parried a strike aimed for his neck and sent Freed back with a push. The distance did not really do much as Freed charged the very next second. Ducking under another slash, Reinhard easily deflected a sloppy cut and retaliated with a cut of his own. Being the first to draw blood, Reinhard tensed when Freed's crazed smile dropped slightly as he touched the fresh blood oozing from the cut that appeared on his cheek. In a flash Freed's grin widened and his murderous intent flared, pulling out a Exorcist Gun, a barrage of light bullets decorated the wall behind Reinhard as the young Astrea dodged successfully. That was all Reinhard had needed, charging, Reinhard attacked Freed with a series of fluid cuts, managing to draw more blood before Freed retaliated with a kick.
"You're not bad, ya' little shit. The old bastard said you'd be fun!"
"Reinhard, do not allow yourself to be distracted!" Heinkel shouted as he watched the fight behind a set of bars.
Nodding his head in acknowledgement, Reinhard dodged more bullets before he parried a sword slash. Freed snarled just as he pushed his blade forward, forcing Reinhard to backup. Pinning him to a wall, Freed moved his other hand and aimed the Exorcist Gun directly at Reinhard. Smiling wickedly, Freed pulled the trigger without fail. On instinct, Reinhard threw his head back, allowing the bullet to graze the skin around his neck, Reinhard quickly retaliated. Throwing Freed off of him with whatever strength he could muster, the young Astrea swiped a clean cut on he man's shoulder, filling his ears with the annoyed growls of Freed.
"Freed, we must leave now!"
The voice belonged to the one and only Valper Galilei. Standing a distance away with a briefcase in hand, Valper dashed ahead as more of his men fell behind to stop pursuers.
"That shitty gramps!" Freed growled as he sent a glare at Reinhard, "Don't think this is over you little shit!"
Like that, Freed ran. Following Valper out of the church, follower after follower poured out after Freed had left. Soon, the church was left empty aside from the hungry growls of fires consuming the flammable materials with great vigor. Reinhard rushed to free his father. Slicing the locks open and freeing Heinkel from his bindings, Reinhard shared a emotional embrace with his father as the worries of both father and son were released.
"Son, I am so proud of you." Heinkel said.
Reinhard smiled at the comment before it dimmed when his thoughts drifted towards Naruto.
"Father, I wish to repay my debt to another... I owe a Devil a great deal for your rescue... If you approve, then I wish to repay my debt to him... Perhaps he could possibly help cure mother's disease as well... I know we traveled here in order to find a cure-"
Heinkel's smile widened at the words. Clapping his son on the shoulders, Heinkel eyed his son directly in the eyes as he spoke, "Son, a knight must always pay his debts. If you believe this is the right choice then go forth, I shall support you along the way!"
Naruto and company stared at the scene with a mixture of emotions. While Naruto had a smile present, the others had varying emotions. Sairarog hid behind his neutral mask as he crossed his arms and turned to Riser whom had stood a little distance away. The Phenex had came against his own words and helped out with the situation. Though he claimed to have only been here to bail them out of trouble. Sharing a friendly smirk, Naruto and the other two made their way out of the destroyed church in order to regroup with the other two. Never glancing back, Naruto soon stopped when a voice had filled the air.
"Wait!"
Turning around, Naruto came face to face with a smiling Reinhard.
Chapter end
Sorry for the late update guys, I had some trouble piecing this chapter together. Anyways, I have major plans on reworking the relationship between all the Devils so a warning before some changes in personalities are in the future chapters. Moving on, as you guys know, Reinhard is from Re: Zero. As one of the protagonists and possibly one of the more OP characters in the show, I had plans for him to be Naruto's knight for some time. Anyways, I am having a hard choice in deciding who I want to be Naruto's other members. I mean for Fairy Tail I have two options, Invel or Eileen. Other than those two, I am pondering on other characters. Oh yea, I plan on starting canon soon so there will be a skip in time and all that. So, give me suggestions for the harem/Peerage and thanks for reading!
King: Naruto Astaroth (Uzumaki)
Queen: Hildegrade (Beelzebub)
Bishop x2: ?
Knight: Reinhard van Astrea (Re: Zero)
Rook x2: ?
Pawn x8: ?
