AN: Chapter Four... Woo-hoo? Okay, in deference to my challenger, I had to make a rather large change to Naruto, and it takes place in this chapter. Don't worry, I didn't have to go back and change anything, more of an addition.
Next, I have been asked if Mikoto will be added to Naruto's "eventual harem". The answer is no. I have a different man in mind for her, and I'm fairly certain it will come as a surprise to all of you.
Now then, you all voted, and our winner for Kushina's Peerage member is... Terumi Mei by a landslide. So I'll be finding a way to work her into the Peerage sometime in the coming chapters.
Thanks still to my Beta, Dreaming of the Moon, and a shout to my fellow Dreamer, Noodlehammer!
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto, Bleach, or High School DxD
Chapter 04: Problems in the Family
"Ginjo to Ginjo?" Naruto asked once he and Kugo were alone, Kushina having retreated to the doorway of the house. "Uncle, despite the fact I call you that, you have never before recognized that I'm related to you. We both put up the facade for Mother's sake, so let's skip the bullshit."
Kugo just laughed, not at all put out by the bluntness of the statement. "Alright, brat. I want the ring your mother left you two years ago. So give it over."
"No." There was no hesitation, and no tremor in Naruto reply. "You want it? You'll have to pry it from my cold, dead, hands. Assuming you got through my Peerage first."
The man narrowed his eyes, his easy demeanor dropping quickly. "You know I can just kill you now, right? There's no need for me to go through your Peerage."
Naruto waved one finger in the air, "Tsk, tsk, Uncle. You should know by now that even if you get past my father's security, you have tripped Unohana's ten times over."
Kugo looked around nervously. He wasn't necessarily scared of Naruto's Queen, but that damned smile was unnerving! Finally his eyes landed on the shadows of a tree behind him a couple dozen yards, and standing by the base was the very woman in question, creepy smile and all. And she wasn't alone, a large man with wild black hair stood just behind her.
Gulping quietly, Kugo asked, "who's the extra thug, kid?"
"Hm?" Naruto glanced in the same direction, "Oh, that's Uchiha Madara, Kushina-chan's Queen. He's taken a rather strong liking to Retsu since last night. Aside from that, shouldn't you be worried about the rest of them as well?"
Naruto's eyes panned around the garden, seemingly at random, stopping frequently, easily finding the other members of his Peerage in the area. It was always like this when Kugo came around, Retsu was alerted somehow, and she alerted everyone else. Naruto was never undefended, and his uncle should know that by this point.
"Dammit, Naruto! You don't even know what that ring can do if you aren't careful with it!" Kugo burst out, a true hint of worry in his tone. He knew of Uchiha Madara, who didn't? The man was a freaking legend! And he had taken a shine to Naruto's Queen? SHIT!
"Enlighten me," the blonde responded. "Go on, tell me how destructive this ring is in the hands of the untrained."
"It's not that, you stupid, contrary-minded brat!" The man exploded, his irritation clear even to Kushina, as far away as she was. "That ring has power you don't know about, because your mother didn't know about it!"
"And you do? The man passed over by Grandfather Koga, for my mother?" Naruto's skepticism was thick enough to cut with a butter knife.
"Yes!" Kugo shouted, pulling his hair in frustration.
He was under no illusion that he could kill Naruto before one of the kid's Peerage got to them, Naruto taught all of his Peerage how to use the Namikaze Soul Sword magic, and with it came the introduction to a number of fun abilities. The main one that Kugo knew of was called "Shunpo", Flash Step, and aside from Zaraki all of Naruto's Peerage mastered the move to a degree. It allowed for near-instantaneous movement of the user, Yoruichi in particular loved the technique, enough that she had earned the nickname "Goddess of Flash".
Naruto sighed, "I suppose you are referring to it's ability to summon a massive, armed fortress? One that reacts only to our Fullbringer power, and fires concentrated blasts of Gray Energy?"
Gray Energy, as it was called, was the rare fusion of Light and Dark. Few even knew such a fusion existed, and those few knew the destructive capability of that energy. Apparently the Ginjo clan's Fullbring magic was based on that very fusion, and thus was the only way to use the fortress's weapons.
It also caused the Ginjo clan, despite it's member's many military achievements, to become ostracized from the rest of devil society
Kugo stared, stunned. "How'd you-?"
"Mother's diary," the blonde boy said simply. "She was perfectly aware of that particular power. She never wanted to use it though. Can you guess why?"
"Because she was a weak-willed, pathetic excuse for a devil!" Kugo snarled. "With that fortress the ancient ways could be brought back!"
Naruto shook his head. Normally hearing his mother disparaged like that would piss him off, but not this time. "The hollow bark of a defeated dog. She didn't use it, Uncle, because she saw that the ancient ways were ruining our chances of survival! You're not stupid, Ginjo Kugo! So use that gray matter in that thick skull of yours, and think!"
"Wha-" He was interrupted by Naruto's continuing speech.
"Our numbers were decimated in the Great War! Our reproductive abilities are below that of even demons! Then there was the civil war between the Satan and Anti-Satan groups, which dwindled our already small numbers even further! THINK, Uncle, if that fortress is used, even more of us will die for nothing! If you can't see the truth of this, then you don't deserve to wear that amulet, nor wield the power of the sword within it." Naruto declared emphatically, his eyes flashing with his determination, and his tone daring Kugo to deny his words.
And for the life of him, Kugo found he couldn't deny the truth set out before him. Kana had always tried to tell him these same facts, he realized, but she had tried to do so gently. It was that same gentleness that made Kugo ignore what she was saying, and led him to believe that she knew nothing about the ring, but if what Naruto said was true... it wasn't that Kana didn't know, but rather that she knew too well.
Kugo chuckled sadly, and his hand reached for the pendant around his neck. It was a fairly simple thing, a small silver X-shaped thing. However, like the ring he was just arguing about, it held a great deal more power than many would expect. It was, in fact, one half of the equation to Kugo's full power.
Ripping the pendant from the chain it was attached to, Kugo held it in his open palm for a moment, before a full-sized, wide-bladed claymore appeared in his hand. Ignoring the sudden tense atmosphere, Kugo made eye contact with Naruto. "Tell me, nephew... did Kana ever tell you of my unique trick within the Fullbring magic?"
Naruto tilted his head a little to one side, his right hand making a gesture to his Peerage to hold position. "Something about being able to give or take power, but she wasn't very specific or clear."
The man chuckled again, "yeah, that's the gist of it. I can choose to give more power to, or absorb power from, those I cut with this sword. Well, actually, it takes a little more."
He pulled out a strange pentagon-shaped piece of wood with an oddly designed skull on it, then placed it of the crosspiece of the sword. A moment later, and there was now a skull design added to the sword's guard, and a formerly gold section at the base of the blade turned black. Oh, and Kugo now wore what appeared to be a kind of bone-and-cloth armor.
"Okay, yeah, that doesn't look intimidating." Naruto said drily. "Tell me why I shouldn't let Zaraki and Grimmjow at you?"
"Cross of Scaffold, my Fullbring at nearly it's strongest. I want you to have it, Nephew. As thanks for opening my eyes, and I suppose you could call it a delayed gift for all those birthdays I missed." Kugo said, "the only thing is, I'll need to stab you with it while you have your mother's Fullbring active."
"Yeah... That sounds like a bad idea to me." The boy deadpanned. "Besides, it's not just Mother's Fullbring. It's mine. You, of all people, should know that our Fullbring is the power of our magic through an item we are intimately familiar with. Each one of us has their own unique ability, yours apparently being the absorption of power. In it's own way, it's very similar to the Namikaze Soul Sword magic."
"I know that," Kugo said with a grin, "I was joking about the stabbing thing anyway. Besides, if I did stab you, I'd have your Peerage in a race to see who stabbed me first in retaliation."
"Damn right," Naruto muttered, "so what do you really need?"
"From you?" The older man asked, getting a nod, "nothing. Just take the sword."
"That's it?"
"That's it. When you take hold of the hilt, I'll channel the magic into you, and Cross of Scaffold, and all the abilities I've connected to it, such as that power absorption, will be yours." Kugo said seriously. "This is a one-time trick for me, Naruto. After this, I'll be reliant upon you to take care of the Ginjo name."
Naruto reached out, taking firm grasp of the sword's hilt, "no need to tell me that, Uncle. I fully intended to uphold both names anyway."
Power flowed from Kugo to Naruto, appearing as powerful arcs of spiritual electricity. The transfer didn't last long, only a few minutes, but for those minutes Naruto's world was reduced to white-hot agony. If his uncle was feeling the same kind of pain, and the blonde boy was certainly hoping that was the case, then it was no wonder it would be a "one-time trick".
When the arcs of power ceased passing from Kugo, Naruto fell to his knees, but he looked very different than he had a moment before. Now he held Cross of Scaffold tightly in his right hand, and wore the same bone-like armor that Kugo did a few minutes earlier. Kugo, on the other hand, was back to his casual outfit.
"Damn," the man said, cracking his neck, "that was more than a 'little sting'."
"No shit," Naruto snarked in pain.
"Ah, by the way, kid," Kugo said with an irritating smile, "there's still one more level to that sword. You can think of it like your Soul Sword, those 'Zanpakuto'? The sword alone is the 'Sealed' state, sword and armor is 'Shikai', and then there's a 'Bankai' as well. But you'll have to figure that one out for yourself. There's no fun in just giving you all the answers."
"You're a dick, Uncle. I hate you so much right now." Naruto's voice was a little stronger, the pain was slow to leave though.
The man just chuckled, quickly followed by a gasp of pain and clutched his ribs. "Yeah, well, I'm not exactly peachy either, kid. You're going to have to experiment with that sword and it's abilities on your own time, though. You know I can't stick around."
Naruto just fell to his butt and waved Kugo off, "yeah, yeah. Oh, thinking of Mom though. You weren't there for most of her Will reading. She left you something."
The older man looked up a little, "really, Kana left me something?"
Nodding, Naruto dismissed the armor and sword back into the cross pendant and wooden badge, before reaching into his jacket's inside pocket and pulling out a small box. "I don't know what's in it, but it's what she wanted you to have."
Kugo took the box, and gently opened it. Tears began streaming from his eyes as he looked upon whatever was inside, and with shaking fingers he removed the item. A silver broach, handmade from what Naruto could see, with an inscription that he couldn't quite make out on the back.
"I thought she got rid of this. She didn't wear it anymore," Kugo's voice was thick with emotion.
Naruto just shook his head. "She stated in her will, she stopped wearing it because of the rift growing between you two. She wanted her big brother back."
"Thought you said you didn't know what was in there?" The man asked with a sad smile.
Naruto snorted. "I didn't have to look at it to know it was something like a pendant or broach. The box wasn't big enough for much else."
Kushina was suddenly by Naruto's side, pulling his arm over her shoulders and helping him to stand again. "I take it the 'Ginjo to Ginjo' part is done?"
Kugo chuckled, gripping the broach tightly. "Yeah, it's done, little Miss. You take care of him, alright?"
"What will you do now, Uncle? Without Cross of Scaffold you're basically defenseless." Naruto asked, his expression still somewhat pained.
"You really don't know what this is, do you, Gaki?" Kugo grinned, a sudden burst of light and he was holding a wide-bladed katana, decorated with designs of blue dragons. "Sapphire of Dragon Gate. I made this for your mother when we were kids, long before the brouhaha about that damned ring. Aside from that cross pendant, there is no item I could be more intimately familiar with."
"Didn't know you were a jeweler, Uncle. Or a silversmith, for that matter." The boy's curiosity was easy to hear.
"Oh, yes, Kugo was a prodigy at craftsmanship before all that nonsense with that ring." A strident voice called.
Turning their heads, they saw Namikaze Haruo standing there, hands clasped behind his back, and a sad smile on his face. Behind him stood a good half of the mansion's security forces.
"Kugo, despite past disagreements, it's still good to see you. Though I do wish you'd stop sneaking in, you're making my security jumpy." Haruo said with a small frown taking the place of his earlier smile.
Kugo snorted, "then they should do their jobs better."
Haruo sighed in response and waved his security members back to their posts. "So, what will you do, Kugo? Naruto's right in one aspect. You've given away perhaps your strongest ability, one you are rather infamous for, and are reduced to wielding a blade you made for your sister."
The dark haired man laughed, "come now, Haruo! You know me better than that! Yes, I gave the kid a rather infamous and frowned upon power, but I am hardly defenseless. I suppose I'll just have to disappear again."
"Or you could remain, and train Naruto in the use of that sword," Haruo said lightly.
"Wha-?"
"Despite our differences, you are Kana-chan's elder brother, and she loved you deeply. Finding a way to pardon you for your past crimes is the least I can do in her memory." Haruo said solemnly.
Kugo's mouth worked, but no sound came out, causing him to do a credible imitation of a landed fish. Naruto couldn't help but laugh at the expression on his uncle's face, even as he looped both the silver cross and the wooden badge to his belt with his right hand, his left still around Kushina's shoulders. The blonde was finding the position to be surprisingly comfortable, and he was reluctant to release his hold.
The black-haired man finally managed a smile, "thanks for the offer, Haruo, but we both know Naruto's Peerage would kill me within a week. Or I'd go nuts. Feel free to find a method to pardon me, but we both know I've got the wanderlust."
Haruo snorted, "no shit, really?"
Kugo's eyebrows shot up, "did you just curse?"
"I don't know what you might be referring to," the blonde man replied primly, the very picture of nobility.
"Ri~ght, I think I'll just mosey along... while I'm still reasonably sure the universe isn't ending." Kugo deadpanned.
"Dad... you cursed," Naruto whispered loudly from beside the two men.
"No I didn't, you're imagining things due to power transfer."
"Yeah, no. You cursed." The boy said with finality.
Haruo started sweating, "how much is it going to cost me for you to not mention that to your grandmother?"
Naruto's eyes lit up, "oh, I'll think of something."
"Naruto-sama, Haruo-sama," Retsu's voice cut between the two Namikaze like a knife. "Your guest left."
The two blonde men blinked, and turned in tandem to where Kugo had been standing, only to find the spot empty. The only indications that the man had actually been there was the slight burn scarring on the ground from during the power transfer, and a set of footprints.
"I hate it when he does that," they both muttered.
Kushina just giggled.
XXXXXXXX- Break -XXXXXXXX
Naruto and Kushina sat together with their Peerages in the Great Hall, allowing Naruto to rest from his encounter with his uncle. Kushina's eyes never left his face, and even though she had been in physical contact with him earlier, she felt the desire to hug him close again. So to distract herself, she asked a question that was bugging her.
"Ah, Naruto-kun?" She was rewarded with his gaze shifting to her with a raised eyebrow, "I could hear part of your conversation with your uncle, what did you mean when you said that the Fullbring magic was unique to each person?"
"I meant just that," he said with a small shrug. "No two are ever the same."
"But you said last night, you inherited your mother's..." she said nervously, wondering if she crossing a line she shouldn't.
"Oh. That." Naruto grimaced. She would remember that. He sighed, and let his head flop back against the wall behind him. "I wasn't lying, I did inherit Mother's Fullbring. I just didn't bother to mention how I inherited it, and if it's all the same to you, I'd like to keep it that way for a while longer."
"Then does that mean you have a third Fullbring, your own?" She asked. It made sense, if he obtained his mother's power somehow, and now had his uncle's too, he should have his own as well.
Another sigh, "no. I don't. I lacked the personal item to give enough of a damn about to bring out my own ability. I was always more attached to people, rather than items."
"I see." Kushina did understand, at least somewhat. She came from a clan that valued each member as if they were immediate family, and cared little for the decorations they might have.
He continued, as if she hadn't said anything. "For a time it was thought that I was born without the Fullbring magic, and was forced into focusing on manifesting a Zanpakuto instead. 'The power of the Soul, specifically formed for the purpose of combat'. That is how the Zanpakuto is described. Mine... basically told me to screw off."
Kushina blinked, "but you're called a prodigy of both sides of your family's magics."
Naruto snorted, "prodigy? Me? That's a good one."
Tier spoke up before he could dig himself any further, "Naruto-sama truthfully has no talent for either magic. Everything he has accomplished so far has been through training harder than anyone."
"What she said," he responded with a wave of his hand. "I'm not talented, I just work harder, and make it look easy. I can do that second part because I worked so hard, and practiced so much that it's very much like muscle memory. Tier, how many times did I collapse from all that work?"
"One-thousand, nine-hundred, and fourteen times since I joined your Peerage, Naruto-sama." The blonde woman replied without hesitation.
Naruto chuckled, "if I didn't know better, Tia, I'd think you memorized that number just to poke my pride every now and then."
"That was Unohana-san." She replied stoically.
Naruto just sweatdropped. Of course Retsu would do that. The woman practically lived to keep him humble. And damned if she wasn't good at it.
And there was Kushina's giggle again. "I like her," the redhead said. "ne, ne, Tier-chan, right?"
Receiving a nod, "I think I'm going to host a Girl's Night, in my room. You definitely have to come, alright?"
Another silent nod was the only answer Tier gave, but Retsu already had a glint in her eye that told Kushina that she knew what the young girl was up to. She didn't mind though, a "Girl's Night" hadn't been done since Yoruichi's birthday a few years prior, when the black Nekomatta managed to get them all drunk.
"Huh," Naruto grunted, a grin forming, "if you're calling a Girl's Night, I'm grabbing the others for a Guy's Night, and calling the use of the Rec Room. Besides, it's a good idea to get to know each other's Peerage, since we're all gonna be living together."
"Hm," Kushina put one finger to her chin in a cute thinking pose, "you have a point. And did you know that married Kings are never matched up in Rating Games? So it's not like we can ever use the information against each other... well, unless one of us goes rogue."
Both Peerages had a good laugh at the thought. The very idea of either King going rogue was just too funny. They were both consummate pranksters, and enjoyed a good, or not-so-good, joke, but ultimately they liked the current state of peace their society had. Even if it was only termed a ceasefire, it resulted in a prosperous time for devil kind, and allowed the two of them to meet.
Yeah, going rogue wasn't really an option in either of their minds.
XXXXXXXX- Break - Girl's Night - Kushina's Room -XXXXXXXX
Kushina bounced a little on her bed, a wide grin on her face. "So, Tier-chan, how long have you had a crush on Naruto-kun?"
The blonde woman's face lit up in an uncharacteristic blush, which made her glad for the high collar of her jacket, but her voice remained even, "I don't know what you mean, Kushina-sama."
"Ufufu, I believe it was from day one, Kushina-sama," Retsu said from her place on a large couch that decorated the room. "Dear Tier-chan was just smitten by his boyish charm."
"Unohana-san!" Tier protested. "It was no such thing! It was-!" She stopped suddenly, realizing she had been played. Her face sank even further behind the protection of her raised collar as she heard snickers from the other women in the room.
"Ho~, so you do have a crush on him, Tier-chan." Kushina said knowingly, "or, is it something more? Come on, you can me, it's only us girl's here."
"Yes," the blonde woman replied quietly, "day one."
Retsu and Kushina blinked. "Really?" She asked, "I was just kidding about that."
"It's true, though it wasn't that 'boyish charm', as you put it," Tier said softly, "if anything, I think it may have been his words when he accepted me. They were powerful and sincere, especially for one as young as he was at the time."
Unohana smiled gently, "I remember; 'You are a strong woman, Tier Harribel, and those who refused you before are fools for not seeing this. I would be proud to have you by my side, and share all our trials together'." The woman quoted solemnly, "yes, those are strong words for a child to wield."
Tier merely nodded, having heard the echoes of those words in her mind and heart ever since the day they were first spoken to her. Those words, and his actions over the years, had cemented her allegiance to him as nothing else could, for he never went back upon them. Naruto never called her loyalty into question, never blamed her for things that were out of her control, never disparaged her for her gender, and was always willing to share the burdens alongside his Peerage.
Kushina held a look of wonder, "he said those words? There are few men who would openly admit to a woman's strength."
Tier nodded again, "yes, those were his words. Naruto-sama willingly bears the hopes and dreams of his Peerage on his shoulders. In return we carry his future."
Yoruichi placed one hand on Tier's shoulder from behind, "right you are, Tier-chan. And together, we can do anything. Now enough of this serious talk! Retsu-chan! Was I imagining things, or are you getting interested in Madara-san?"
"Ufufu, now, now," Retsu said with an unnerving smile, "ladies don't kiss and tell, right?"
The dark-skinned woman nodded her head from her new hiding place behind Tier. How she hated that damned smile! And Maou forfend if Unohana had to repeat herself. The woman had scared the current Leviathan with that smile! And that woman was said to be irrepressible.
"I have an idea!" Kushina said suddenly, an evil grin on her face, "makeover on Tier-chan!"
Yoruichi instantly pounced on the idea, the blonde woman as well. Soon clothes were flying every which way as more of the women got into the play. Several minutes of pushing, shoving, and arguing later, the others stood back to see the fruits of their labors, and many were feeling somewhat inadequate.
Tier was still in white, that much hadn't changed, but now her outfit practically flaunted a sex appeal that a man would have be both gay and blind not to take notices of. And even then, Kushina was certain they'd still get a hard on.
Replacing Tier's usual tabi and sandal were knee-high heeled boots, the hakama was now a pleated short skirt with black accents that barely came down to the middle of her thigh, elbow-length white gloves, and a deep-necked halter-style white shirt covered her upper chest, leaving her toned stomach still visible. Her hair was the same messy style it was before, but now it had two braided lengths, one to each temple. The biggest change was that her face was now fully visible, allowing for a view of slightly pouting lips, and softly-angular features.
Kushina whistled in appreciation, "damn, Tier-chan. If you'd dressed like this, Naruto-kun might already have married you."
The blonde blushed heavily, but her voice was filled with a gentle despair, "it doesn't really matter now, does it? He's yours."
The redhead wagged one finger in the air, "tut-tut, Tier-chan. Don't you remember the rules about multi-house heirs? Those who are to carry on the lines for two or more families?"
Tier's eyes widened, "b-but! Naruto-sama is a Namikaze! He doesn't carry the Ginjo name."
"Ah, that might have been true yesterday, " Kushina replied with a smile, "but did you forget what happened earlier? Ginjo Kugo gave up his unique trait to Naruto-kun, and told him to 'take care of the family name'. That made Naruto-kun eligible for multiple wives, at least one for each name."
The other women's eyes widened to the same proportions as Tier's. Really? That young King could have more than one wife?
"Though there is something more to that law," Retsu said as she regained herself quickly, "the second bride must be approved by the first, and a third must be approved by both the first and second. And so on down the line, each one must be approved by all the ones preceding them. The husband can bring in a nominee, but the final decision lays with the wives."
"That's true, Retsu-chan," Kushina said, "and in this case, the first wife would be me. So I literally have control over Naruto-kun's future harem, such as I allow it to become."
A snort came from the far corner of the room, and heads turned to see the one woman who hadn't joined in on the makeover; Soifon. Seeing she had their attention, she said scathingly, "as much as I'm not fond of men in general, even I know that Naruto-sama isn't one to contemplate multiple partners. If you want him to yourself, all you have to do is keep your mouth shut, Kushina-sama."
The red-haired girl tilted her head a little, "but you, as his Knight, Soi-chan, should know that I, alone, will not be able to restrain his antics. I'll need help, and I believe that Tier-chan would be perfect for that."
Kushina was no stranger to the concept of a harem, and while she realized the truth about Naruto probably needing one, she wanted to limit her interaction in it to the barest minimum. Two women still counted as a harem, right?
Another snort from the petite Knight was her answer, "don't call me that."
XXXXXXXX - Break - Guy's Night - Rec Room -XXXXXXXX
Pizza boxes, pop bottles, water jugs, juice containers, even the odd beer keg, were on a table against one wall. The Rec Room of the Namikaze estate was a large affair, with it's own complete theater, multiple pool tables, bumper pool, poker tables, and damn near everything else needed for a stereotypical "Man Cave".
"A little much, don't you think, Naruto-sama?" Madara asked from a plush recliner he was currently occupying. He may have thought it too much, but damn if that chair wasn't comfortable.
"Maybe, but I was given a budget and told to make something that would keep me out of pranks for at least a year," the blonde replied easily from his own chair, waving his hand at the room, "this was what I came up with."
Madara chuckled, "does Kushina-sama even know about this room?"
"Of course, I covered it in the Grand Tour yesterday night," Naruto said, sounding vaguely offended. "She was rather interested in just how much all of this cost."
"How much did this cost, Naruto-sama?" Byakuya asked, finally tearing his eyes away from the movie choice that was playing.
"Hm?" Naruto thought about it for a minute, obviously trying to recall, before shrugging, "several hundred thousand of that, what was it called now? Ah yes, 'U.S. Dollars'. I think there are mansions that cost less to build than this one room."
"Hyah-hah! Yeah, that's probably true, Naruto!" Grimmjow laughed, his tankard of beer waving in the air in a sloppy kind of salute.
Naruto stared at the drunk Panther yokai, a rare variety of the Nekomata race, more attuned to stealth and physical combat that any of the other sub-types. "Grimmjow, I thought we had an agreement. You don't drink alcohol, and I don't let Yoruichi use you for a scratching post. So why do you have a mug of beer?"
"Aw, don't be like that, Boss!" Grimmjow laughed, "It's just a little cup! Hah-hah!"
"Grimmjow. Tomorrow your ass is Yoruichi's. Got it?" Naruto said with a fake smile, a strange red mist appearing behind him with a demonic fox mask within it.
The panther started sweating, inadvertently causing his hand to shake and drop the tankard. "Y-yeah," he gulped hard, suddenly sober, "got it, Boss."
The mask and miasma vanished, and Naruto's smile was once again genuine, "that's good, Grimmjow. It's always good to be honest and understanding. Now, I believe you have a mess to clean up."
"R-right, I'll do that," Grimmjow said as he quickly moved to find a towel to clean the spilled beer.
"That was an interesting technique, Naruto-sama, just what is it?" Madara asked, clearly intrigued.
Naruto returned his attention to the elder man, and his smile widened, "I'm afraid I don't know what you're talking about, Madara-san. What technique? I simply helped my Rook understand that he made a mistake."
The older devil laughed. "Yes, you are quite right, Naruto-sama. I'm sure that my mind was merely playing tricks on me."
Every other person in the room had a shiver run up their spine. 'If only it was only you, Madara!' was the collective thought.
"I wonder what the girls are talking about?" Naruto mused.
Madara shrugged, and settled into his chair a bit more. "If there is one thing I learned in my previous marriage, it is to leave women's thoughts, to the women. Because it's far above my comprehension."
The others in the room could only chuckle in agreement.
XXXXXXXX- Ending Notes -XXXXXXXX
Alright, standing Peerages at this time. I'm also going to give you the races I'm giving the characters, you know, before some of them became devils... or at least the ones I've figured out.
KING: Namikaze Naruto (Devil)
QUEEN: Unohana Retsu (Devil)
BISHOP: Ulquiorra Cifer (Bat Yokai), Coyote Starrk (Coyote Yokai)
KNIGHT: Tier Harribel (Devil). Soifon (?)
ROOK: Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez (Panther Yokai), Shihoin Yoruichi (Nekomata)
PAWN: Zaraki Kenpachi (?), Kuchiki Byakuya (Devil), Hitsugaya Toushiro (Ice Apparition), Kurosaki Ichigo (Human-Devil-Fallen Hybrid)
KING: Kushina (Devil)
QUEEN: Uchiha Madara (Devil)
BISHOP: Sarutobi Hiruzen (Human/Magic Knight), Hatake Kakashi (Devil)
KNIGHT: Uchiha Mikoto (Devil), Momochi Zabuza (Half-Oni)
ROOK: Senju Tsunade (Half-Demon/Medicine Woman), Inuzuka Tsume (Human/Beast Tamer)
PAWN: Maito Gai (?), Konan (Fallen Angel), Mitarashi Anko (Lamia), (two unused Pieces)