Disclaimer: I do not own High School DxD. This is a non-profit-based work.

Note: First of all, thank you for the insane support shown on this. Like, I know it's DxD and all but goddamn, many of you seemed to fuck with this idea as much as we did. So, yeah, I hope I'm able to keep it up. Also, credit to those who caught the references/easter eggs in the last chapters, haha.

Once again big thanks to that man Helghy for helping me with this idea, much appreciated.

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-Chapter 2-

Ghosts of the Past.

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The young Gremory heiress let out a worried sigh as she sat sideways on the couch within the Occult Research Club's specified clubroom. In front of her, she looked down, or more specifically, on her lap, where the head of her younger brother was currently resting.

She stared down at his closed eyelids as she tried to remain calm while idly combing his hair with her fingers. Occasionally he'd grunt, or twitch in his sleep as if he was having a nightmare that she couldn't wake him up from even if she tried.

No matter what, she could stare with her blue-green eyes, whilst making sure her beloved brother at least was comfortable until he came back from whatever was haunting him.

Her mind was filled with questions at the same time, she couldn't piece together what had happened to him. As soon as she and Akeno had made sure the peerage was alright and not on the verge of death, she'd rushed after him. And much to her surprise, she had found Naruto passed out in a field of grass with sweat pouring down his forehead.

At the same time, the fallen angels had returned. Not to fight, but merely to retrieve one of their own. Himejima Sayuri, her queen Akeno's younger sister, had also passed out. And she couldn't help but wonder how she and Naruto had come to that state, or what had happened to them.

Rias knew her brother was strong, way stronger than she was. While she'd had other priorities whilst still somewhat trying to remain at a decent enough level of strength, Naruto had prioritized training. She'd often teased him or nursed his wounds, or both, whenever he came back from training. Which was a thing she deeply admired about him, he was a hard worker. In many ways, she thought she could wish that someday she could be like him.

Even when he'd told her that she easily could, it had felt like a distant and impossible task. One which would only shatter the remains of her self-esteem, even if that'd never be his true intention with the suggestion of her training to become like him.

"Rias?" A voice called from her left, making the crimson-haired girl turn her head to meet the tired violet hues of her queen.

She cleared her throat, and forced a small smile onto her face, "You can go home Akeno, I'll wait here for a little while longer… I'd rather not move him anymore until he has woken up."

The dark-haired girl switched her gaze between her king and her younger brother, letting out a soft sigh as she reached down to touch his forehead. Almost cursing out in surprise at how feverish his skin felt, "Do you think he is going to be okay?"

"He doesn't have a choice, if he isn't I'll kick his ass…" She huffed, but Akeno couldn't be fooled by the front Rias put up. She could easily tell that the girl was much more worried than she'd openly admit.

She shook her head, "I wonder what their connection is… Even when they first saw each other, it was like it wasn't the first time. I've never heard him talk about her though."

Rias blinked in surprise at the suggestion of the two being connected, but in the end just shrugged, "Maybe they knew each other, maybe not. We can only play guessing games until this idiot decides his nap time is over… I know he isn't poisoned, and he isn't injured, I just can't fathom why he is still asleep like this. He looks miserable and peaceful at the same time."

With a careful eye roaming down Naruto, Akeno let out a quick breath, "If anything happens, let me know. I can even stay here with you if you want, I can bring a spare change of clothes and spend the night."

The Gremory shook her head, "No, go home Akeno. I'll take care of him, no matter how stupid he can be it's my responsibility."

"Used to say the same once, oh well… Have a good night Rias," Akeno bid farewell, giving the king of their peerage a quick nod before she left through the double doors. The hinges creaked audibly throughout the room until the loud thump signaled that the doors were closed again.

For about half a minute she sat there completely still. She just looked at him, and wiped his sweaty forehead with a piece of cloth, before she pushed him up against the cushions.

With her cheeks turning a faint pink, she scooted down the cushions of the couch to lay down by his side. The lack of space that'd fit two people, forced her to wrap her leg around his, and pull her arm over his torso as she rested her head on his shoulder. Not that she'd complain.

As she felt the heat of his body warm her up, she placed the palm of her hand against his cheek and dragged her nails caressingly down before they landed on top of the left part of his chest. Feeling the heartbeat in his chest, she closed her eyes, letting the comfort lull her into a gentle sleep.

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Naruto's eyes slowly fluttered open, his blurry gaze repeatedly trying to focus despite how the entirety of his body felt weak and heavy. He couldn't lift a leg even if he tried to, so all that was left was for his eyes to stare up at the dark sky above him.

He slowly tilted his head down to the side, grunting in pain as his blue eyes settled on the form laying beside him. His blurry gaze would look down to the place their arms were meant to be, but all that could be seen were an outline of blood dripping down the rocks.

A sense of worry spread through him as he watched her closed eyes, his eyes drawn to her chest until he saw it slowly rising and falling. He breathed out a sigh of relief before turning his head back to look up at the sky.

"She's still alive… Thank kami." He sighed as the relief spread through, making him relax just a tad bit through all the pain in his body.

He lay there for quite a while. If here to guess, ten minutes went by before she showed any sign of life aside from her steady and soft breathing.

Naruto smiled a bit at that, but didn't turn his head to look at her, "You've finally come to, eh? Sayuri?"

At the sound of his voice, he could see her hurriedly turning her head from the corner of her eye before she winced out in pain. A look of shock and horror spread on her pretty face as she realized the damage their last attacks had done to each other.

He let out a chuckle, "As you can see if either of us moves too much we'll bleed out and die." He stated, in an awfully calm tone as he just stared at the moon.

"Why…" She started in all but a soft whisper, her lone open eye staring at the side of his face, "Why would you go that far? You… You never attempted to cut me off. Not even once. Why do you keep involving yourself with me?" She finished in another soft whisper, the tone of her voice starting to betray her.

Naruto smiled again as he turned his head to watch her with a grunt, his blue eye locked with her onyx one, their faces just a tiny bit apart, "Because you're my friend… " Though that sentence, had felt like a lie for a long time.

A sense of deja vu washed over her as her eye widened at that, "But what exactly does that mean? To you anyway?"

He turned his head back to look away from her, letting himself feel the deepest parts of his mind before speaking freely since this might as well be his last chance to let her know what he really meant, "It's just that… When I see you take on stuff, and you get all messed up… It kinda hurts me too."

Sayuri let out a soft gasp at the proclaim, her remaining hand twitching idly at her side as she felt a hard clench in her chest and something prickling at the corner of her eyes, the number of thoughts running through her head making her feel dizzy in an instant.

Everything they'd been through, and all he'd ever said and done to get her to come back to where she belonged. Come back to him. It made the pain in her chest feel so much worse, as each similarity the two had growing up, came crashing down over her like an avalanche.

Their memories, her own and his playing before her eyes as if the connection… their bond, allowed her to see everything there ever had been. It hurt.

But it wasn't before the last one, that she openly felt the tears begin to drip down her cheeks. The moment she saw herself, in the group with everyone else, the realization of all the time she'd felt alone… with no one to understand her, she had never really been alone.

They had all been right there… But she hadn't been able to see it.

She felt that it became harder to breathe, as she saw the mental image. Everyone and she was right there, standing by his side. Like she'd never left. Because he'd never cut her off… Not even tried to.

As they came too again, Naruto was the first one to open his eyes. His eyes flickered around as he saw the blue sky above them, and heard the gentle sound of birds in the distance, "Don't tell me this is really heaven this time?" He chuckled faintly.

Sayuri let out a faint giggle as she looked back at him, "Looks like we passed out and slept until morning. We've failed to die again." She laughed gently.

The blond tried to sit up, but the pain in his body immediately forced him to lay back down, "Damn, guess it's too soon to move." He sighed "And just when I thought I could punch you to wake you up," He grunted out in disappointment.

Her eyes widened a bit before she burst out into a fit of giggles, despite the pain in her chest she couldn't help it.

"What's so funny?" He asked next.

Sayuri turned her head to watch him again, "You really want to keep fighting?"

He growled out in annoyance, "Of course! I'll fight you as many times as it takes-"

"I accept it:"

"Huh?"

"I lost."

Naruto blinked slowly, before a tickmark formed on his forehead, "You idiot, this has nothing to do with winning or losing. My friend was sulking as usual, and I just wanted to punch her to wake her up!"

She gave him a soft smile before she closed her eyes and turned her head back, "Hey, Naruto… I accept you. If I die here, the chain of war will end. The battles since the Sage of Six Paths. This is another type of revolution… I'll decide this issue myself, once and for all…"

The blond gave her an outraged look as he fought with all the strength he could find in his body to move a little closer, the blood still dripping from the place his arm used to be until his face was just beside hers "How can you decide anything by dying? You might as well live and help me instead if you're just gonna do that!"

He paused quickly, before he started again, "What I want to do is cooperate with all of the Shinobi! And that includes you of course…."

"Who says everyone else will agree to that?" She whispered softly.

Naruto let out a snort, "Oh come on, do it again, let out some more crap like that."

"There is no telling when I may stand up to defy you again in the future…" Sayuri continued as she eyed her eyes to stare at him. Surprised at how close his face was, their noses just inches from touching.

He shook his head, "You won't do this kind of thing anymore." Was his reply, filled with confidence.

"How… can you be sure of that?" She asked next, her lower lip slightly trembling.

At this, Naruto decided that enough was enough. He could keep giving her half the truth, or he could say what he meant all along. What that had been the actual feeling in his heart, throughout all this time they'd been chasing each other.

"It's… Quite simple, for something that's felt so complicated for such a long time." He chuckled and gave her a small smile, "I love you, Sayuri, and I would've chased you in the next life too if that's what it'll take for you to finally open your eyes."

The look of surprise on her face spread like a wildfire, as her cheeks began to heat up to turn a considerable red despite the bloodless she'd undergone. She fumbled a bit with her words until she felt the clenching in her chest slowly begin to unravel… And a surge of happiness began to fill her up instead.

"Shut up you loser… I… I love you too. And, thank you, for everything."

She expected some kind of reply from him, but when she looked toward his eyes. She noticed they were closed again, "Naruto? That's not funny…"

With a loud grunt, she rolled onto her stomach. Panting heavily as she raised her shaky hand to feel his face. It felt cold and sticky, but as she moved her fingers down to push them against his throat… Her eyes slowly widened.

At the lack of a pulse, tears began to drip down her face again. As her cheek slumped down against his arm, no words were able to leave her mouth. Not that anyone could hear them…

He was dead.

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The youngest Gremory sat up with a loud gasp as his eyes hurriedly flickered around the room to figure out where he was. His chest rose and fell as he held a hand over his heart, feeling the rapid heartbeat inside his chest as he tried his hardest to catch his breath.

'Those last memories… I've never dreamt of them before, but how? I was dead, wasn't I?' He thought to himself, the panic spreading throughout his being until he felt a pair of warm arms wrap around his torso. And something soft and squishy pressed against his stomach.

"You're finally awake, I was worried…" He heard someone say, and he slowly lowered his gaze to see the sleepy face of Rias laying up against his side. Slowly sitting up, but not unwrapping her arm from the grasp she had on him.

Naruto scratched the back of his head, "I'm sorry… I didn't mean to make you worry about me. I guess I'm an idiot, telling you I'll handle things and then you had to take care of me."

Rias shook her head and flicked his nose, "Nonsense, we're siblings. We take care of each other, got it?"

The younger redhead just had to nod in defeat, allowing Rias to give him a relaxed yet victorious smile as she gave him a quick and tight squeeze, "Did you have a nightmare? You were restless, I almost thought you were poisoned or sick."

"Kind of…" Naruto admitted as he scratched the back of his head, "I can't remember it too much though, y'know how it is with dreams."

The red-haired girl shook her head and sat up straight, though she leaned in against his side so she wouldn't fall off the couch, "You always were a lousy liar. So why don't you just get to the point, and tell your big sis what is wrong?"

Part of him felt a bit unsure of what to do next, but he decided he might as well give her at least some of the truth. Even if it wasn't the complete one, "It was somewhat a nightmare… And I died, I guess. Felt very real."

"Did it have something to do with the girl from today?" Rias asked next, reaching up to slightly play around with his hair, just tidying it up a bit.

He raised a brow at her but didn't comment on it. She'd always been very… touchy, with him, she liked to just sit around and mess with his hair, and since she found it so humoring he'd never decided to comment on it or ask her why she was doing it, "No, it was someone else. It was just weird, there had been a battle but it wasn't really part of the dream, it was just like the last moments. Y'know, that time where your life flashes before your eyes?"

She gave him a quick nod and a smile as she leaned up to place a small peck against his forehead, "I know what you think of, but you're safe and alive. So don't worry about things like that."

Naruto chuckled and returned the nod, "Alright, so what happened with that girl? The… blonde one, I think?"

Rias let out a tired sigh, "In short, the fallen angels that came wanted to steal her sacred gear, Twilight Healing. And they succeeded, so she unfortunately died. My new pawn, Issei, is quite down in the dumps about it because they'd become good friends. The fallen called Raynare is the one that got it now."

"Couldn't you just have revived her with the evil pieces?" Naruto asked curiously.

She nodded her head with a small shrug following, "I could've, but it didn't seem right. She was a holy sister and all that. And while I'd love to save everyone, I only have so many pieces… I can't save everyone that gets caught in the crossfire between rebellious faction groups."

Naruto let out a soft hum, "I think you should still do it. She is a healer, and she is probably kind if she didn't care if Issei was a devil. I don't know him, but he seemed to care for her the brief few seconds I saw him in the church. It'd also make him happy."

"Do you really think so? Isn't it a gamble? It's not that I don't want to, I'm just a bit unsure, like… What would you or Sirzechs do it?"

He let out a few chuckles and tapped his index and middle finger against her forehead, "You don't always have to compare yourself to us, you're your own person Rias. And life is all about taking chances, sometimes they work, sometimes they don't. What matters is what you decide to do with them afterward. Even if she doesn't get the gear back, she can still become strong and a precious person to your peerage."

"You make it all sound so simple, but you don't even have a peerage yet." She teased idly and rubbed her forehead.

Naruto shrugged with a sheepish smile, "Do it Rias. Before it's too late. I got a good feeling in my gut about it, I don't want to force you to do anything of course, but I got a feeling that it's going to work out great."

She shook her head a bit at his antics and slowly crept down from the couch and stood up to her feet, doing a small stretch that put her chest a bit more on display, "Fine, I'll take your advice. Thank you… It's nice to have someone to ask advice from once in a while."

While he caught himself staring a bit too much at the slight jiggle, he quickly turned his head away and inwardly cursed his former godfather for the occasional thoughts he got in situations like these, "Don't you have Akeno for that?" Naruto asked next.

Rias gave an immediate nod of her head, "Of course, she is my queen and second in command. It's just a matter of perspective, and with things like this, while I without a doubt appreciate her help, it just helps a bit that another one with evil pieces can give me their thoughts as well."

A look of understanding crept onto his face as he swung his legs over the couch and stood up himself, "That makes sense. Oh well, I'll go out and take a bit of air while you do all of that. I guess I need to clear my head a bit after that weird dream."

Before he could wander off, she reached forward and grasped onto his wrist, "Come to my place after, please."

"Hm, why? Is something wrong?" Naruto questioned with a raised eyebrow.

Rias chewed on the corner of her lip as if she was looking for the right words to use, "Let's just say I'm still worried. And I don't want to leave you out of my sight because then you might find yourself in trouble again."

"Uh huh, and you sure it isn't just you wanting to sleep together in the same bed like when we were kids?" He teased her with a small smirk.

A pout formed on her lips as she elbowed him in the side, "Fine, go find a bench to sleep on then."

"I'll be there, don't worry. Now go on, and tell her I said hi. Or don't… She doesn't know who I am," He realized with a deadpan expression.

Rias rolled her eyes a bit, but smiled nonetheless, "I'll let her know while I inform her of what happened. I'll have to take her to see Issei after, it'll help both her and him through this… experience. So, it might take a bit before I'm home, you sure you can stay entertained for that long?"

Naruto let out a small snort as he crossed his arms over his chest, "Oh I'm sure I'll be fine."

"If you say so, I'll be there in a little bit. Have fun," She smirked and started to leave through another door in the school building.

As he stood there alone, he let out a tired sigh. He didn't enjoy lying to Rias about his nightmares, or memories, but he was afraid of what she'd come to think of him. For all he know he stole the place of who was supposed to be her actual little brother, so he didn't know whether or not he was some kind of imposter.

Regardless, he couldn't dwell on it. He'd done that enough, no matter what he thought or said wouldn't change the fact that he was her little brother now. And… He quite enjoyed that. Having an older sister like her was amazing.

Even if he caught himself staring at her more often than he should… that had to be Jiraiya's fault. Right?

He shook his head to clear himself of those thoughts as he made his way out of the Occult Research Club, folding out his wings as he leaped into the air and started gliding through the air and over the city. Just tapping his chin as he tried to figure out where he should go.

In all honesty, there was only one place he really wanted to go to. And that was the Grigori's base. He wanted to kick down the doors, and stare Sayuri in the face, and make sure it was really her…

Part of him was still unsure, it felt too good to be true… If she was here as well, then all those times he'd missed, could finally be over. He could be reunited with her once again, one of the things he wanted most in the entire world.

Naruto let out a small sigh as he landed on a nearby water tower on the outskirts of the town, holding out his palm as he summoned the queen piece of his evil pieces set.

He'd often wondered what she should do in regard to his peerage. Because, where he came from, he was just a genin. He had of course wanted to become Hokage and be the leader of their home and everything, but now that he actually stood with the position of the king for a peerage, he wasn't sure what to do.

Even after giving Rias advice about taking chances, he was being hypocritical. Having doubted every idea he'd gotten since he got the set of evil pieces.

Though, there was one thing he wouldn't ever doubt… And that was who this piece truly belonged to.

Letting the white queen piece fade away from the palm of his hand, Naruto sat down on the edge of the water tower. One foot dangling over the ledge, and the other placed firmly on the top to support his arm as he rested his cheek against the palm of his hand.

If it really was her, then she'd probably be here sooner or later. With how they departed from the Elemental Nations, there were so many things left unsaid, so many things they hadn't been able to do.

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Her onyx eyes opened as she stared out over the Nephilim Institute, one of the many bases of the Grigori. After he fight in the human world against some of the devils, she'd passed out after seeing someone she thought had died a long time ago. In fact, she'd seen him die, felt him die at her side as a consequence of her own actions.

A thing that had haunted her for her entire existence afterward. Even once she'd been reborn, the mental image had haunted her in her sleep. Sometimes her imagination would get the better of her, making the image that much more gruesome and terrifying to think about.

To think that he was alive, that he was here and in the same place as her, was a thing that made her feel a thing she hadn't in a long time. Hope. In the time she had spent as a fallen angel, she'd tried to right her wrongs as much as she could, but it never felt enough.

At this point, after seeing his face, she knew there was only one thing left in this world that could make her feel at peace with herself again.

His forgiveness.

In the midst of her train of thought, a knock sounded on her door making her turn around with a small blink of her eyes.

"Come in," She called out, standing near the window in her room as she watched the door creak open, revealing the large form of her father.

Baraqiel gave her a quick nod as a greeting, as he scratched his beard with a thoughtful look on his face, "Pardon the intrusion, I know you said you wanted a bit of alone time. I, however, wanted to hear how you were doing after the mission in Kuoh."

A faint outline of a smile lifted her lips as she returned the nod, "I'm fine father, thank you."

"I see… It was just unusual to hear the report from Raynare's little… group." He continued, trying not to voice too obvious disappointment in regard to the fallen angels his daughter had been sent to apprehend.

Sayuri sighed slightly, "I assure you that I'm fine, however, there was something I wanted to ask you."

With a quick raise of how brow, Baraqiel just nodded, "Ask away."

She crossed her arms under her chest as she leaned in against the wall, her eyes gazing out over the institute, "What can you tell me about those devils? The… Gremory House."

"Hmm… Had it been any other house of the seventy-two pillars, it might've been an issue. The Gremory isn't a specifically high-ranked house, with the exception of Sirzechs Lucifer since he is one of the current Satans. A Bael married into the house long ago, so the three children of the current head of the house all seem to possess their inherent ability," Baraqiel started, rubbing his bear as he tried to sort through all the information he had available.

Sayuri hummed at that, "I see… What about the children?"

Baraqiuel let out a grunt as he took a seat near the wall, "The oldest is Sirzechs, and the next one in line to the House of Gremory would be his little sister Rias. And then there is the youngest of the bunch, Naruto Gremory."

At the mention of the last name, she felt a small clench in her chest as she grasped the fabric of her shirt, "What can you tell me about… Naruto?" It still felt weird to say his name, but at the same time, it felt good.

"Is there a reason for the sudden interest?" Baraqiel asked.

She shook her head quickly with a small shrug, even if it was a lie, "No… Not aside from that he is the one I supposedly fought against."

While still remaining a bit skeptical, Baraqiel decided to believe her for now, "Well, he is a promising young man. We don't know much about him, since he isn't as public as the rest. Rias resides in Kuoh, and Sirzechs is the current Lucifer, so it's easier to hear information about them. Naruto, however, has seemed to remain in the Underworld most of the time."

"Can you tell me what we do know at least?" She tried again, fidgeting a bit with the sleeve of her shirt.

Still unable to decipher why his daughter was like this, Baraqiel continued nonetheless, "As I said, he is a promising young individual. Reports state that in regard to combat prowess he is very talented. Current rumors spreading around the Underworld call him the second-coming of Sirzechs."

Sayuri's eyes widened a tad bit in surprise, but at the same time, she gave a small smile. No matter where he was… He always strived to work hard, and that made her happy at least, that meant he was most likely still the same knucklehead she remembered… "I see. What's going to happen with Raynare and the others? They did manage to steal a sacred gear…"

"Given that the sacred gear didn't belong to a devil, the major problem lies within that it all happened within Gremory's territory despite the obvious warning from the heiress herself. Azazel is still pondering on what decision to make, though there is a chance that it'll be handed back," He pondered.

She gave him a confused look, "Removing a sacred gear is like a death sentence, and there is no guarantee that the sister is alive. Unless she was reincarnated through one of the evil pieces."

"Regardless, should this become an issue with the devils, the first and most obvious way to fix the problem would be to hand back what was stolen." Baraqiel sighed, not being a big fan of it himself, but it was a suggestion from one of the other fallen in charge, aside from him.

Sayuri fidgetted a bit in place as she turned her gaze back to her father, "What if there could be struck a devil with the Gremory?"

A look of amusement lifted his face, "What would that involve?"

"Unsure, the sacred gear is returned. They most likely have someone in either of their peerage that would benefit from a sacred gear should the sister still be deceased. If they're open to the idea, we could introduce the suggestion of them reincarnating Raynare. She herself would benefit from being in a place where her prejudice for devils wouldn't be tolerated, and her lack of strength wouldn't be tolerated as much as it does here," Sayuri pondered out loud.

Baraqiel let out a grunt at that as a small smile lifted his lips, "While it's an… innovative idea, we can't count on it. No one says they want Raynare as a reincarnated devil, as we all know she isn't the strongest. She herself admitted that as part of the reason she wanted Twilight Healing in the first place. Along with that, she did damage to Rias Gremory's peerage and also mocked them for their race. I'm not sure that she would take that offer that well."

Sayuri nodded in agreement, "Which is why I'd suggest we send the invitation to her brother, Rias gets the gear, and we let Naruto Gremory get the offer in regard to reincarnating her. That way she avoids the death sentence gets to work on her prejudice and will get stronger. Everybody wins."

"Except Raynare," Baraqiel commented.

"Better than being dead," Sayuri countered.

The large man sighed and stood up from his seat, "I'll take it up with Azazel, though we'll need a messenger. And at the moment, we do not know where Naruto Gremory is. Rias is as usual within Kuoh, but the younger brother hasn't been seen since the church incident a couple of days ago."

Sayuri responded quickly as she readjusted her black locks, "Allow me to be the messenger, I'll track him down."

"You seem quite interested in this boy, it makes me wonder why," Baraqiel voiced out loud.

She shrugged, "He is an interesting character."

He just gave a nod at that, figuring that it was about everything his daughter would allow him to know, "If that's all, I'll go have a talk with Azazel. I'm glad to see you had a swift recovery daughter, your condition had me worried."

She raised a curious brow, "I was just passed out, hardly anything to fuss about. Though there was one other thing, a bit of a… side question, I suppose."

"Well ask away, what's on your mind?" Baraqiel asked.

Sayuri looked a bit uncertain at first as she eyed her father, chewing on the inside of her cheek before she let her thoughts be known, "If I were to… Hypothetically, leave the Grigori one day, what would happen?"

Baraqiel looked shocked at the question as he stood up, "What brought this on all of a sudden?"

"Nothing, I just never saw myself living here my whole life. While I know that as a fallen my lifespan is considerably longer than a human's, I didn't think I'd be here to the end of time," She said with a small shrug.

Her father looked beyond skeptical, "Does this have something to do with the Gremory boy that you're all of a sudden so interested in? Do you know him?"

Starting to get a bit annoyed, she shot him a mild glare, "No, and even if I did, it wouldn't be your business. Just answer the question father, what would happen should I decide one day to go out on my own?"

Baraqiel sighed and rubbed his forehead, "Since you don't know any faction secrets that could potentially harm us, nothing would happen. Though you'd be on your own and without the protection of the Grigori, and if you one day were to cross us without it being intended, you would label yourself an enemy in the eyes of the faction. I wouldn't be able to protect you."

"I can take care of myself," She grunted and crossed her arms again.

"... I just don't understand you."

Sayuri ran a hand through her black locks, "It is what it is father, one day I'm not gonna be here anymore. Please don't make it out to be some kind of big deal, if I'm not going to get in trouble it's only really a problem for you."

While that verbal blow hurt, he couldn't deny that she was right, "If that's your decision… I won't stop you."

"Good, I'm not going to leave right now, but in the future, as I've seen myself elsewhere."

Still unable to let the thought go, Baraqiel himself crossed his arms over his armor, "I feel like you at least owe me to know whether or not it has to do with the boy. You don't look me in the eye in regard to him, so I know you aren't being truthful. You're my daughter, and I want to protect you. I feel like you could at least be honest with me because of that."

"I'm not leaving because of Naruto Gremory, so just stop asking about it. See, I'm looking you in the eyes right now," She finished and gave him a blank stare. Technically she wasn't lying. She didn't leave because of a boy whose name was Gremory, in fact… It was a completely different surname.

It was just a coincidence that they shared the same first name.

"Fine… I'll go talk to Azazel about your idea. At least refrain from leaving until that mission has been put down or accepted," Baraqiel finished and walked out of his daughter's room, closing the door behind him in the process.

The raven-haired girl let out a loud and tired sigh as she slumped down in her bed, turning her head to stare out of the window as she fidgetted with the sleeves of her sweater.

Now all she had to figure out was where he was…

Seems like they had one more game of cat and mouse before things could be settled, and for once, the roles seemed to have been reversed with her being the one chasing him.

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The young redhead let out a slow sigh as he stood on top of the water tower looking over Kuoh. The rain dropping from the sky annoyed him a great deal as he folded out his wings and brought them over his head to shield himself from the rain.

Pulling the hood of his jacket over his hair, he crossed his arms over his chest and settled for just staring out over the city for the time being.

He hadn't felt like going back to Rias' place yet. Ever since the incident with the fallen angels, he'd stuck around in Kuoh just to be on the safe side. Plus he'd rather not deal with his father at the moment. While his mother was more understanding of him, he'd rather not get into another argument when his mind was currently elsewhere.

At the same time, he couldn't stop thinking about Rias. It both hurt and angered him that the wedding ceremony was coming closer with each passing day.

There was close to nothing he wouldn't give to be able to just kick down the doors to the Phenex manor and give Riser such an intense beating that they'd been forced to cancel the contract… Even if he were going to be in serious trouble for it.

He chuckled sourly at the thought. Even Rias didn't want that, so he was going to have to stay put… For now at least.

Despite how much annoyance it was, he'd stay put and wait until he could do something.

The redhead let out a grunt as he kicked a small pebble down the water tower, and thought about it being time to fly home. However, the second he folded his wings out from above his head and was prepared to jump down from the ledge, his blood ran cold in his veins.

A presence appeared behind him, which made him turn around in a heartbeat with his sword summoned to his hand. His blue-green eyes stared at the person who'd just arrived.

In front of him stood a tall man with black hair, golden bangs, and a black goatee. Though the most eye-catching feature, and the thing that was also making him feel almost scared… were the twelve jet-black feathered wings sprouted from the man's back. Looking like a never-fading black.

"What do you want?" Naruto asked as he took a step back, feeling his heel dangerously close to the edge of the water tower as his eyes stared into the man's violet ones.

A sound chuckle traveled through the air as he put a hand on his hip, "Am I to assume you know who I am?"

"Given the number of wings you have I have my guess. Though I'm starting to feel like this is some kind of joke with how many fallen angels seem to be trespassing around here," Naruto commented and tightened his fingers around the blade's handle.

The man rolled his eyes, "Come on, put the pointy thing away, and let's talk. We both know if this were a fight you'd already be dead, you didn't even see me coming before I let you."

With an uncertain gaze, Naruto relaxed a bit and let his sword disappear into a magic circle, "What do you want?" He asked again.

"In case your guess was wrong, my name is Azazel. Governor General of the Grigori, in all honesty, it's a pleasure to meet you. I hear many great things about you," Azazel revealed, grinning a bit as he crossed his arms.

The redhead nodded his head, "Likewise, ain't every day I get to talk to a faction leader I'm not related to." He chuckled a bit.

Azazel mimicked the small laugh, "I can imagine. So, I know my little subordinates have caused some trouble… And I'm here to work out a solution. They were out of line, and that's what that is, but I'd rather not have it become a trouble I can't solve without getting involved with Sirzechs."

"I assume you got an offer coming or something, wouldn't make sense for you to come in person otherwise," Naruto said with a raised brow.

The fallen angel nodded, "I most certainly do. You see, we have something in our possession that doesn't quite belong to us. Which is apparently the whole objective of what caused this… issue."

He let out a slight snort, "Yeah, your crows stole sacred gear from a nun here in our territory. And continued to disrespect my sister and her peerage. Almost killed some of them too."

"Look, I'm a man of my word and I don't particularly like hostility. I'm prepared to return the gear to the girl if she is somehow still alive. Either that or I'll let someone in your peerage or your sister's peerage take it. Sound good?" Azazel said simply, wiping some rain drops from the fabric of his maroon-colored coat.

Naruto narrowed his eyes a bit, "I'm not buying it."

"Oh? Why's that?" Azazel wondered.

The young man shrugged with a skeptical gaze, "I'm not overly convinced that you're gonna sacrifice one of your own people just to give a girl of the church her sacred gear back."

Azazel sighed, "Look, as cold and cruel as it may sound if this issue had been only about the girl we could've cared less about it. This is an issue I'd rather stay between the small groups and not the factions as a whole. Who knows what could potentially happen from stepping on the toes of not just one of Lucifer's siblings, but both? Rumor does say that he is quite fond of the two of you."

"So what offer is it that you're proposing?" Naruto tried again, seeing a bit of logic in what the man was saying.

A small grin lifted Azazel's lips as he spoke calmly.

"What would you say to have a new member in your peerage?"

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So that's all for chapter 2, thanks for reading. Once again, thank you for all the support. While I did ask for something pairing-related, I never expected to have almost 70 mostly positive reviews on the first chapter.

I got a few questions for y'all that I'm curious about.

1) What do you think Akeno's reaction is going to be? I think we all have a pretty good idea of where Sayuri wants to go, and why.

2) And even after that, what do you think Rias is going to say? It is, after all, in their blood to care a little bit too much about their siblings compared to normal standards. Just take a look at Sirzechs haha.

3) What would you potentially like to see updated next? So far all the updates I've been working on are finished and ready to upload, so now I need to figure out what's next.

I'll try to get to work on my next chapter soon enough, but I'm enjoying Overwatch 2 too much at the moment. Well, sometimes. At other times I'm more tempted to punch my screen but it is what it is lol. Anyhow, until next time.