Ages:
Naruto - 18
Rafaela - 18
Luciela - 19
Just so it's transparent.
~NRK~
The weeks following that event had been a bit anxiety-filled.
Roxanne hadn't been deterred. If anything, she seemed bolder as she always seemed to be 'watching' Luciela and Rafaela, leaving the three teens to go seeking answers.
"Hmm, you may want to try Yoki Suppression," Sistina said as they sat in the cafeteria that morning. "It's a skill useful for sneaking up on powerful yoma who've increased their senses," she said but her eyes went to them, the truth of those words understood by the teens. "So, you can imagine the kind of uses it can have."
"H-How do you do it? Is it really just suppressing your yoki?" Rafaela asked with a determined frown.
"It's essentially just that but it requires a sound mind and perfect control. You're essentially sealing your own powers, you have to make a 'switch' that you can turn on and off to seal it away."
With that information, the three had taken to training more outside of their designated hours, Naruto sitting on a small stone plate atop a random oval-shaped stone as the girls sat on their own on the ground.
Meditating, the three focused inward.
'Focus on it,' Naruto thought as the world around him fell away, leaving only the energy signatures and presences of the living beings around them. '... there she is,' he thought, finding Roxanne atop the roof of the section by their small training area. 'Ignore her, what you need to do… is figure out yoki,' nothing else mattered.
In the future, he knows he'll need to understand the violent energy in full and wouldn't let his focus fall away.
He 'sank' deeper into his meditation as he looked at the energy signatures around him before locking onto Roxanne's once more.
He observed her energy flow for a couple of seconds before noting the rise in her 'anger' column of her yoki.
'That's what the anger part feels like…' He wasn't unused to how that kinda energy worked, he and Kurama had been on crappy speaking terms for quite a while. '... Should I copy it?' Naruto's eyebrows rose.
Could he copy it? Would that even work? Ignoring that there was still a difference between his spiritual strength and yoki, he'd never willfully called on anger like that.
"Beri for your thoughts?" Someone whispered, gaining his attention as he turned his head to 'see' Sistina in this small meditative world of his. "I can tell, you're trying to synchronize by copying the characteristics of yoki but I don't think it's possible, not for you."
"Why?" Naruto frowned.
"Because, outside of yoki, this 'anger' you feel isn't… natural anger, I've checked," she frowned. "It's not anger that can be synchronized with a human soul, I fear what'd happen to you if you did. You might very well contract yoki like some sort of disease."
"Dammit," the boy groaned. "I need to figure it out, Sis, I can tell I'll need to figure yoki out for the future."
Sistina looked at him, the two of them sitting in the void of his mind and she noticed the odd metallic surroundings, the water beneath feet, the flow of wind through a large set of bars, and the empty space behind those bars.
"Your mind is rather curious, all this metal… it's like a metal passageway."
Naruto chuckled a bit. "Sorry for the water," he smirked as she rolled her eyes.
'His mind's well developed,' this was the kind of mental fortitude he knew the sisters would need, one that's fully in focus and not a bizarre haze. "Hmph, as for your efforts, they're admirable, truly, but I'm not sure if you can, Naruto. It's not like this has happened before, you're a special case and we don't know how this all works."
He rubbed the back of his head with a nod. "Yeah…" Naruto groaned and Sistina sat next to him, the water's 'wetness' not real and so it wasn't much of an inconvenience so much as a curious phenomenon. "Dammit," he uttered as she closed her eyes.
Then the pathways around them seemed to open to her, the boy's sensory skills overlapping with her own, ascending her own.
'What?' When had this been a thing? She'd never had this done before. '...' Sistina peered into the world around them through their combined senses.
The sheer strength in their combined skills made the world open to her, the yoma roaming the lands, the people, the wildlife rather vividly, and… THEM.
"... ah, that's Riful of the West," she said to him as he blinked, perking up. "And that's Isley of the North."
"Huh?" He faced the direction she looked in and blinked. "Oh, that's interesting…" Naruto's eyes widened. "W-Wait, what if that's it!?" He said to her with excitement as the woman blinked.
"What do you mean?"
"If I can figure out how their energy moves around, couldn't I help the girls copy it?!"
Sistina froze, eyes shrinking at the idea of copying an Abyssal One's energy structure… but this was also intriguing.
Could they copy it? Surely, to do so, it was just awakening… or was it different when they were already fully Awakened?
Could she copy the effects of their energy flow without the awakening?
"... hahaha," she laughed a bit as the boy grinned. "Well, it's certainly still doing something. Maybe, possibly, you can help them copy the flow without the anger."
Naruto's eyes widened and she grinned.
'Liking the idea-'
"H-How did I not think about that?" Naruto realized as Sistina blinked, completely confused. "... Emotions, Sis," he grinned kindly and Sistina's eyes slowly widened once more.
At this ridiculously kind soul before her who wanted to…
"Take the negative emotions?"
"It's an idea. The thing is… I believe in accepting every part of yourself, your anger, hate, sadness, a-and I guess lust works?" Naruto blushed. "A-Anyway, the point is, if you accept all of them, your power shouldn't be something you fear. It's yours but yoki isn't theirs, it's not natural, but it has human stuff in it like those emotions… so-"
Her hand ruffled his hair and Naruto blinked before rubbing the back of his head.
"They're some of my most precious people, I want to help them in any way I can," he grinned and Sistina nodded.
"Then we'll need to mix our senses often, the issue is that I do have my duties and you do yourself."
"You're right but I think we could do it in the morning, when do you normally wake up?"
Naruto grinned as he awoke to his girlfriends' prodding.
"You're back," Luciela said with a smirk and raised brow as he chuckled.
"Sorry, I was having a talk," he tapped his noggin. "With Sis, I might have a way to help you guys ease into the project so I'm gonna meet up with her in the morning so we can mix our sensory abilities together."
"Huh? You can do that?" Rafaela looked intrigued. "C-Can we do that?" She asked him, cheeks red.
"W-Well… I mean, I don't mind. We can do it after dinner," he said as she smiled brightly. "For now, any new findings?"
"It's not a lot but we did just try to change the flow of our yoki," Luciela grinned. "It's hard to do that to ourselves, Naru… but if we tried to do it to each other," her smile increased tenfold. "There's change."
He nodded.
All parts to a bigger whole, this was all towards their future.
~NRK~
That night, an hour after dinner finished, Naruto saw in a white tunic and brown pants, awaiting his girlfriends' arrival.
"... She's coming," he groaned before steeling his resolve. "I won't let her get in the way," they had a future to ensure!
There was a knock on the door and he grinned brightly, getting up and going over and opening it to reveal the sisters in their favored attire.
"Come on in," he said with a smile as they did, the young man closing the door behind them as the sisters went over and sat on his bed, a book on the end of it gaining Rafaela's attention.
"Hmm? I didn't know you liked books, Naruto," she said as she picked it up and looked at the cover. "Hmm… the Adventurer's Tale?"
"Yep, I don't like too many books but I like adventure ones, lots of good fights in that one," he said as he walked over before sitting in the provided space between the siblings. "So, you trying to do this, too, Luci?"
"Nah, you two can do all that, I'm gonna see what your tastes in books are like," Luciela said as she crawled into his bed, took the book from the amused Rafaela, and leaned against his back. "Ah, comfortable."
He rolled his eyes as Rafaela chuckled a bit before blushing and tapping him on the cheek.
"?" He turned.
Rafaela pressed their lips together, shocking him stupid, before removing them, face aflame and her oldest sister gasping as she shot up with a red face.
"N-No fair!" Was all Naruto's head before hands grabbed his cheeks.
'Oh, this is heaven-' was all he thought before lips pressed powerfully against his own, setting his skin color to 'RED' as she let go with a red face of her own.
"W-We don't do that o-often," she squeaked, turning his head back around and hiding behind his back. "I-It was super nice, though!"
The three teens stewed in their romantic embarrassment before Naruto simply powered through and held Rafaela's hands, the girl gripping his hands back with curious fingers.
"A-Alright, let's start this."
Rafaela blinked as she looked around, Naruto still holding her hands even in… wherever this was.
"Where are we?" She asked him, the lack of echo confusing her. "Naru?"
"We're in my mental space, it's where everything magical happens," he said as he sat down and she did so hesitantly, the water at their feet… oddly warm?
Placing a hand down into it, she noted that, when she took it out, it came out dry?
"T-This is so weird."
"Hehe, sorry, Rafa."
She hummed before Naruto embraced her, sending her cheeks into a red flurry but her heart into a dancing tune as she snuggled back.
"Alright, let's try this, yeah?"
She nodded.
He 'showed' her the powers of their future enemies and the girl paled as she considered his previous assessment of them.
"T-That feels worse than what you said," she choked as she held onto him tightly.
They 'surveyed' all the others within the Organization, going from Claymore to Men-In-Black to the guards and Elders, Rafaela hummed as she noted how different they all mostly were.
"Huh?" She blinked as they locked onto Rubel's signature, Naruto also blinking. "I-It's a bit different," Rafaela realized as they noted it.
"... no, there's something on him, it seems," Naruto said as he pointed at a bit of the man's 'presence', a vague shape of the being he was looking at.
There, on his hip, an odd signature rang out and left them confused.
"Maybe it's a piece of a weird yoma?"
"I guess, I never did sense that on him before."
They kept 'looking around', their senses going out to the Abyssal Ones once more.
He informed her of the idea he got from the talk with Sistina, the girl blushing bright red as he cleared his throat.
"Y-Yeah, all of them, n-not to say that it won't have a downside b-but, you know?!" He grinned nervously as she nodded, head on his chest.
'T-That'd… w-what if he just attacked us?' Her cheeks burned brightly at the thought of Naruto just… h-having his way with them!
As they allowed their embarrassment to ride out, Naruto hummed as he 'looked' into the horizon.
"We've got a lot of stuff ahead of us, Rafa," he said softly as she blinked but reciprocated his firmly grasping hands. "I'm not sure what's gonna happen in the future, ya know? I just want to make sure you guys are alright."
She hugged him and he hugged back, Rafaela sighing in his warmth.
"I know, I'm sorry we kind of just… ran into this… we want to make sure whatever happened to us never happens again," her eyes narrowed and Naruto could feel the heat within her blood, her anger resonating with it.
"It won't, not if we have something to say about it."
They returned to the world of the living, the two blinking as Luciela rested against Naruto's back, thrown over it like a cape with her arms around his neck and soft snores in their ears.
They chuckled a bit and Naruto also noted the lack of Roxanne's presence.
Good things came in pairs, he guessed.
They settled in for the night, the three of them laying down on Naruto's bed with Luciela's closed eyes now cracked open after he lifted her up to put her down.
He shot her a look. "Enjoyed yourself?"
"Definitely," she chuckled as she leaned onto his chest. "What happened?"
They explained it all in detail, the older sibling blinking in surprise as her younger sister nodded.
"The world's weird, isn't it?"
"Yeah."
~NRK~
The following morning, the three were now lacking one notable Roxanne as Rubel spoke to them in Naruto's room.
"Yes, she's been relocated to one of our other bases. It took some shifting around but I think this should keep your contact at a nice minimum. So, good luck with your training, you've been making interesting leaps, no?"
"We're gonna try," Naruto grinned.
~NRK~
Time flew by once that news settled in and the three threw themselves into their training with gusto.
They'd come a long way in the three years since that day, the two girls now being women while Naruto finally got to reach the age past 18 in this life.
Nothing much had changed about him, just being taller and bearing less baby fat, while the girls had seemingly followed the trend but they seemed to mature far faster.
When they asked the others, they'd told them that they reached adulthood around the age of 18 and wouldn't age a day following that.
They'd accepted that and moved on… before reaching the day where they had their Exams.
Their Placement Exams. Said Exams going surprisingly.
~NRK~
Naruto choked along with the sisters as Lmit nodded to them amongst their class.
"Number 19, Luciela, and Number 20, Rafaela," he said with a smile as they all balked.
The lower TENS?
"Sheesh," Neideen chuckled as Uranus nodded, the new 8th and 25th, respectively. "Then again, their Yoki Sync is just that scary."
Otie, the newest 30th, nodded.
The sisters' senses, yoki control, and sheer coordination were nothing to scoff at. Their Yoki Manipulation wasn't perfect, they were better at using it on one another, but it wasn't wrong to say, in terms of their Numbers? They were easily in the top ten which made this easier to accept.
"Honestly, we did need those positions filled, too," Sistina admitted from beside them, the three nodding while Cassandra hummed, still the Number 1.
"And, finally, Elizabeth shall be our newest Number 4," the man said and they laughed before cheering for the religious Claymore who smiled brightly.
"I graciously accept," she said as the Elder nodded.
"With this, those who've been assigned a Number for the first time will defer to your handlers about your district. Any who have been removed will be put to work bodyguarding the other institutes of Sutare," Lmit explained as some Claymore sighed. "Dismissed."
As their group left the Council Chambers, Naruto chuckled, voice deeper than three years ago.
"It's crazy to think that the years just flew by," he said with a smile, taller than every one of the Claymore in their group. "Honestly? I expected things to take longer."
"Training and dedication will lead you far," Elizabeth said with a smile. "My newest rendition of my Flowing Blade has finally pushed my skills into the 4th position," she grinned as the others nodded or chuckled.
"We've all gone up in numbers in the past decade," Otie said with a smile as they all nodded. "It's honestly nice to keep up," she grinned.
"There's more training ahead," Luciela said, wearing her brand new Claymore uniform. "Hehe~ This is the first step, we're gonna get stronger, we promise."
Rafaela smiled at that, nodding. "We know where we need to work on our skills and we're still not the best at our yoki reinforcement yet."
"It's good to know where to improve," Sistina said with a nod. "Now, though, we'll be meeting a lot less, you two have districts. I'm glad you got ones next to each other."
"Hmm, true," Naruto said with a nod. "But we'll still see each other, eventually, it's not like we'll all be out forever," he grinned. "It's just a matter of time, bonds are typically good at holding out."
"Goddesses, he just says sappy stuff without any hesitation," Neideen's jaw dropped as the others smirked. "I bet there's not a day these two go unshowered in affection."
Rafaela blushed while Luciela smirked.
"Yep."
~NRK~
The following morning, Naruto stood in his new Man-In-Black uniform.
"..." He looked at his black kimono with long sleeves, metal forearm guards hidden within them, black pants, ninja sandals, and his black cloak with a hood and face mask built-in. 'Did they always know how to make kimonos?' The blonde man thought, confused. "Hmph."
"Looking mysterious," Luciela said as she approached, uniform on, sword attained, and her necessary things in a large backpack. "Morning," she chuckled, pecking him on the lips without much care for who was around.
The relationship parts of their lives had truly come some kinda long way, Naruto felt. The shows of affections weren't always public but they could still happen every now and then.
Hugs were far easier to trade, though, so easily that they could be initiated at any time, much to the amusement of many of their friend group and fellow classmates.
"Hehe, morning," Naruto said as Rafaela rushed into the cafeteria with an embarrassed look. "She woke up late, didn't she?"
Luciela's grin said it all.
So, the moment Rafaela came close, she grinned in embarrassment.
As it turned out, really settling into their 'dynamic', Rafaela was far more expressive than before. Wearing more grins and wide smiles similar to Otie.
Of course, it could also be due to how much time the two spent with their respective Claymore 'mentors' outside of missions. Luciela with Neideen and Rafaela with Uranus and Otie.
He'd simply spent more time with Elizabeth, Cassandra, and Sistina, following their flows of energy and training as much as he could.
To this day, he still couldn't touch Elizabeth without her yoki active but the woman's attacks were easier to counterattack against, it was only a matter of time before he potentially got a hit on the 4th.
"Ah," Rafaela blinked before pecking him on the lips and walking past. "We're ready, right? Where are our districts?" She asked him, barely embarrassed.
Naruto pulled a scroll out of his sleeve with a nod, unfurling it with the two looking over his shoulders as they left.
"Later, Sis," they said in unison.
~NRK~
Sistina snorted from atop the Organization building, rolling her eyes.
Three probes of her sensory ability had the three laughing.
These kids were something else.
~NRK~
They ran towards Alphonse's lands.
Their travel speeds, over the years, had been something to behold. With the large tanks of stamina that they'd become, Naruto could say they could all keep this going for half a day before being tired.
As they passed the six-hour mark, they hummed before smiling at a familiar signature in the lands to their side.
"Cassandra's handling… three yoma," Luciela said as Naruto and Rafaela nodded. "Hmm?" They all came to a stop, blinking at a feeling of a quartet of warriors. "... An Awakened Hunt?"
They felt Neideen, Otie, and three other Claymores in the distance, likely ones in the middle twenties.
"I guess they're fighting… that one in the nearby mountains," Naruto said as Rafaela closed her eyes.
The world around her 'expanded' into darkness before she hummed.
"It's not even half as strong as the Abyssal Ones, much less some of the other Awakened Beings we've felt in the past," she said as they nodded.
Their yearly 're-evaluations' of the two powerful ones had been something they informed the Council on every month.
The men had never been so relieved to have dependable sensory units, it seemed, Dae being the most enthusiastic about their abilities. Naruto had continuously ignored the man's 'nudges' towards… children for the past year of their sensory skills being so compatible. He'd even 'offered' to babysit and throw in fertility-inducing drugs and an incubator.
The scientist was really into the idea of him getting laid.
Back on track, they'd become very valuable and wouldn't let up. Their training would never stop to protect their futures.
"They seem fine," Naruto said with a nod. "Come on, you guys already have an assignment for you in a day or so, I don't want those people to be worried for much longer."
The sisters nodded as they continued, the three now-adults focusing forward.
Four more hours, they'd reach the middle town where both districts met evenly, the town of Dabi.
"Yours is on the left, Rafa," Naruto said. "Luci's is obviously on the right. We can meet up here when you're not doing anything, better warm than cold," he chuckled as the twins nodded. "Now, the first thing for both of you to do, Rafa, is a trio of yoma in one of the six villages around here. That's another thing, your areas are pretty dense and stuff, only a few miles to each village in three directions from here. Down, the left, and the right with smaller places in between. This place is apparently the farthest in Alphonse, Pieta's maybe a day's travel from here and I do mean day."
"Alright," Rafaela pecked her man on the cheek before heading off. "W-Wait, what is the saying again?" She blushed as Luciela snickered.
"Remember to give it to the man in black clothing," she recited, her Neideen impression on point as they laughed. "Hehe~ What's my quest?"
"You'll be traveling farther but for fewer hits. There's one yoma in both the village to the right and a small place to the right of it."
"Alright!" She grinned, kissing him a bit deeper than before, leaving with a blush, a grin, and a spark in her eyes. "See you later!"
Luciela's form vanished in a swirl of wind, a wind tussling the laughing Rafaela's hair and a jumping figure leaping into the horizon.
Naruto blushed a bit before turning to Rafaela who smiled a bit more like her younger self, embarrassed and bashful but very willing.
"Alright."
She held his face as their lips met, the woman moaning a bit into it as Naruto hummed pleasantly once she let go.
"You two are spoiling me," he said as she giggled a bit.
"Don't care," she grinned.
She took off, a blur that vanished over the nearby icy hills and cool winds.
"Hehe," Naruto grinned before walking further down towards the town of Dabi. "I hope they don't just auto-drop me due to them being Claymores," he groaned.
That'd happened a few times and he had to use a 'Rubel Method' of upping the price for their rooms on occasion.
He smiled shakily but shook his head as he found himself at the front gates of Dabi.
"H-Huh? Y-You're…" One of the two guards at the gate choked while the other grew nervous at the sight of him. "I-Is there-?"
"No, it's fine, I'm just here for room and board," Naruto said calmly and they blinked. "?"
"We've… I thought you were all old geezers," the first guard said and, now that he was looking at him, Naruto noticed that he was kinda his own age.
"Most of 'em are, I think," he admitted. "But I'm kinda a special case."
"... so, you see all of those Silver-Eyed Witches a lot, right?"
"Are you scared of them?"
"E-Everyone says they're scary! I-I never really look whenever one shows up here if they even come, this place is thankfully not attacked by yoma all that much, rumors say yoma hate the cold," the guy said, getting a hum out of Naruto who sweatdropped.
"Well, those rumors aren't true but it's not great for them up here, either," he said, omitting the gruesome details. 'If an Awakened Being comes through, though…' That'd be different. "And they're not evil, you know? The Claymores are pretty cool," Naruto grinned as the two shot him some weird looks.
"Like… our definitions of cool might be the same but… they're so cold."
Naruto's chuckle got a roll of the eyes out of the young man's senior guard.
"You know what he means," he said.
"I get it but I've known many of them since I was ten," they gaped at his nod. "They're not monsters, they're the ones who protect us despite how the Organization charges everyone, it's not like anyone else could fight them, and anyone who could has to be beyond tip-top shape."
"W-Well…" The guy his age looked embarrassed. "Aren't they part-monster, though? W-What if they take off their skin or something! They'd look horrid!"
Naruto snorted. "Look, do you actually hate them? Or is it only because of what everyone else says?"
"I-It's not that! We know them, they're part-monsters," the older guard huffed. "How do you know if they won't get yoma instincts and just turn on you?!"
"Have you met one?" Naruto asked him with a tilt of the head and the guard flinched. "You guys keep saying stuff but have any of you even spoken to one on good terms?" They looked away. "I bet no one here has even thanked her if she came through, it's the same for lots of places, how in the world would you know anything about them without trying first?"
"..."
"... S-So, they're not witches?" The younger guard asked and Naruto laughed.
"Nope, I'm even dating two," he chuckled a bit as the boy and man's jaws dropped, the former shinobi rubbing the back of his head bashfully. "B-Being honest, I know for a fact that if you ever wanted a wife, be nice to them and you'll find one," Naruto blushed but his chuckle was genuine.
"R-Really?!"
The new Man-In-Black laughed.
He passed through after showing his papers, leaving the gasping young man and groaning older one to their chatty devices.
Going through town, he ignored the gasping and terrified folks before looking at a street sign, following his way to the 'Plain Inn' before going in.
The old man at the counter's expression grew grim as Naruto entered.
"So… it's another one of those, huh?" He asked the disguised blonde who shook his head, surprising him to no end. "H-Huh? T-There ain't… yoma around?" The receptionist asked quietly and Naruto shook his head.
"I'm just looking for a place to lodge us while we're in Alphonse every now and then," Naruto answered.
"O-Oh? Well, I suppose that's doable."
"You don't fear them?"
"... They're scary something crazy, I know the last one that came through fifteen years ago scared the dickens out of me… but she's the only reason I'm even alive, I'm willing to give some leeway. Not a lot but some."
Naruto chuckled.
~NRK~
He waited outside of Dabi the moment he felt them hurrying back, their missions only taking an hour and a half to finish which he was sure was mostly travel time and finding the yomas instead of actually fighting them.
So, he stood by the two guards from earlier, arms crossed, as they shot him looks of sheepishness.
"Y-You're waiting for them, right?" The younger one, Rou, asked. "A-Are they really pretty?"
"Hehe, I'd say so," Naruto chuckled as the old man, Roc, groaned. "Come on, Old Man Roc, it's just chatting."
"Hmph, you youngins are getting involved with so many… unusual individuals," Roc huffed as two forms hurried down the road towards them. "... T-That's obviously yer wives."
"...?!" Naruto burned. "W-Wait, um, okay, hold on, not wives yet!" He hissed quickly as the old man shot him a look and raised brow.
"Yet?"
"I-I haven't thought of marriage yet, you old co-Hey, girls!" Naruto turned on a dime, grin obviously on, as Rou laughed while Roc smirked.
Then the young man blinked at Naruto's two girlfriends who were Claymores.
Honestly, with the other young man helping him look at this differently, h-he kinda got it.
'And these pretty women are looking for husbands?!' He might need to get attacked by a yoma!
"Stupid boy," Roc said with a roll of the eyes, the thoughts in his grandson's head obvious to whoever looked.
"Sup, Naru!" Luciela said with a grin while Rafaela smiled brightly. "Oh, hiya, sirs," she greeted the human guards who blinked before Roc huffed and Rou chuckled.
"Hi," the younger guard said. "Honestly… I was talking with your hus-boyfriend!" He corrected quickly at Naruto's stare of death. "A-And I was just curious about Claymores in general?" Rou quickly saved himself while the women raised a brow.
"I hope it's all been good," Rafaela giggled.
"He wouldn't shut up about you two," Roc smirked as Naruto flinched before mechanically turning with glowing red skin showing as the sisters grinned. "Hmph."
"T-Thanks a lot, old man," he groaned before being pat on the back by his significant others. "Let's just go in, I'm sure you'll like the inn I found, and the old man there is NICER."
"Blow it out ya bum."
"Classy."
~NRK~
Sitting in their room for the next two weeks, Rafaela grinned as she sat on the bed, knees tucked beneath her bottom, as her armor and plates sat with her sword off to the side.
"I don't get why they like sleeping on their swords so much," she said as Naruto sat down on the edge, lacking his cloak and kimono, leaving him in a black tunic. "It's weird to me, Naru."
"I guess it's to be prepared for battle?" He wasn't sure. "What'd ya think, Luci?"
"I think it's just so they can get up super fast for anything, battle, morning, bathroom," Luciela said as she combed her hair in front of a vanity dresser. "Now, what else is there? Naru?"
"From what I've seen on how this works? Usually, I'd go back and forth between here and the locations. I need to go and check up on them tomorrow," he explained. "Then, I'm gonna have to take that back to the Org and get more requests and stuff for our area. Honestly? From what I remember, it's usually a couple of days between requests for you guys."
"Awww, when are you going back?" Rafaela asked as she pulled him into a hug, head on his shoulder as he chuckled.
"I can take the fastest ways to get around," he smirked as she blinked while Luciela hummed.
"What are you talking about?" She asked as she finished her now free hair.
"There are fast ways between all five sectors of this place meant for Men-In-Black, they're how we get information going fast."
"Seriously?" They asked, confused.
"Yeah, it's a whole secret, though, so shhh."
~NRK~
The following evening, Naruto, Luciela, and Rafaela, ate in the tavern-level of the inn, Naruto wearing only his cloak so he could eat with his hood up.
"Hmm, is there anything to do here?" Luciela asked as Rafaela ate with gusto. "Like, any fighting matches?"
"Sadly, none of that but there's a band playing in the central square so we can go and see that," he said.
~NRK~
The following morning, bright and early, Naruto gave the sleeping Claymore sisters kisses on the forehead goodbye before heading off, the Man-In-Black leaving the settlement before disappearing into the forests.
Naruto went to both villages the sisters had gone to and nabbed the payment from the chiefs before heading off.
After that, his increased speed allowed him to reach a 'deposit' in the ground on a small map from within his pouch. The money in a backpack he had on.
'Every one of these holes is covered,' he thought as he went into a large number of bushes before lifting a wooden lid to find a ladder going down into a hole. 'And they're well-built and hidden.'
He dropped down, ignoring the ladder while closing the lid behind him with a flick of the wrist.
Landing on a neatly-packed and cement-reinforced pathway, the paths of water streams next to him led down into more and more neatly-made tunnels and pathways.
Naruto nodded before he ran, his form a blur.
Running down pathways, jumping over streams of water, and skidding around corners, the man ran for over five hours before reaching a familiar 'hub' of tunnels where most of the waterways held boats with a small number of guards in the space.
They looked at him in confusion before he chuckled, revealing his face, getting a groan out of the group of 'em.
"I'm back," he said as they nodded before gesturing to the large pillar in the middle of the room with a stairway going up. "Hehe."
He hurried over and up the stairs, reaching a door at the end that opened up into the chamber of the Council after he listened in for any Claymores within the area.
'It's a bit weird to hide these from Claymore…' but since learning of the Abyssal Ones, the blonde knew why now.
If this got found out, it'd be an unprecedented massacre that they couldn't predict or prevent. It was, sadly, not meant to be known and was likely an emergency escape.
Entering the room, he walked around the Elders' chairs before Lmit nodded at the sight of him.
"You've returned rather quickly," the man's stamina simply couldn't be understated.
Surely he'd have wished to enjoy his time with his 'lovers' more but he'd spent, at most, a day away.
Honestly, making him a warrior would have been so key if it wasn't for their previous experience with the idea… for now.
"I figured I'd get this back as soon as possible," Naruto said as he pulled off his pack and took out the payments, one of the guards in the room coming over and taking them away. "Anything else in that region?"
"Ah, you probably need to be informed that you should also be checking while the warriors are navigating the region," one of the Council said. "Most villages know the amount and your job is also to inform them if they don't. The information between here and most districts simply isn't passed along fast enough."
Dae nodded. "For now, there are no requests," he chuckled. "Return to your station and come back, at best, every three days while keeping an eye out for more yoma. With your abilities, it's bound to be much easier to just stay in Dabi."
"Gotcha. I'll grab something to eat first before heading out," Naruto said as he walked back behind the Council's chairs before slipping into another door, one meant to make it easy for them to return to the Organization without being suspected.
As he left, the Elders murmured.
"So, have there been any breakthroughs, Dae?" Lmit asked the scientist who hummed.
"The Abyss Eaters Project is simply not sufficient enough. We have, at best, five full ones but I don't know if they share their minds or not," he shrugged. "We need more material and that's certainly not easy to come by."
"I see," it was sadly true, it's not like Awakened Hunts were that common, and trying to snatch pieces of the creatures was always full of danger. "Anything else?"
"I've been examining more yoma flesh, as usual, I'm trying to see if I can't find the right bits to change for an attempt but they've never been more confusing. Looking over my old notes, the bits and pieces of yoma flesh, some of our current warriors' blood and tissue samples, and even the Abyss Eaters' existence. I don't know what it is, it's like they're always 'hungry' in all the ways," he clarified. "Sexually, in a metaphysically, cellularly, and literally. Every example has kept trying to eat my blood… for the most part. The Abyss Eaters have been doing their jobs on the Awakened Beings we could steal some material off of but we need more, as I said. Honestly, knowing what we do about it, I question if the Dragonkin's 'emptiness' to nothing but instincts is to blame?"
None of them knew, it was simply not something they could ascertain from those beings.
"... have you considered adjusting direct flesh from them?" One of the Elders asked.
The room went silent in contemplation, Dae cupping his chin with a hum.
"... We know how it usually works," Lmit considered slowly. "The parasites' creation isn't normal, it's altered flesh… So what if we applied the pure flesh of one into him?"
"Won't it just have the same effects?" One of the others asked.
"... no, it shouldn't," Dae hummed. "The reason we don't usually use their pure flesh is because it dies too quickly, there'd be nothing left living in it within 10 minutes. When we mix the two's flesh, it's like reproduction. They're creating something new and so it is given life, the Asarakam are so odd but it's what helped us make it this far."
"Hmm, without flesh that is alive to be transplanted, it'd never take hold," Lmit frowned. "Then we'll focus on the Soul Link Project, for now."
"Hmm… if it did work out… what if we applied the pieces of an Awakened Being to the young man?" Dae grinned viciously as they all perked up. "If he's as good at the control of his spiritual strength and could synchronize with either one of the sisters…"
"... agreed."
"When the Soul Link Project is complete."
"You know what to do, Dae."
Their vocal agreements got a grin out of him.
In time, they may very well make a being beyond even those foolish Dragonkin.
~NRK~
The next two weeks of 'Claymore life' could be summed up as such.
Downtime. Oddly enough, it just wasn't as horrifying as they expected, honestly.
Between the distances they had to travel to reach their desired targets, Naruto's speed, and just the nice room they had, they had more time than before and it was weird.
Currently sitting in a small field down from Dabi, in between there and the first town of Alphonse by the name of 'Pieta', the three rested in their uniforms minus their armor and cloaks, the cooler grass a little wet but not enough to make it unpleasant.
"Hmm," Naruto kept his folded arms behind his head as the sisters rested on his chest or stomach, Rafaela in the latter position while Luciela occupied the first. "One more day and we'll go back," he said as their eyes fluttered open.
"M-Mmmm!" Luciela sat up drowsily before yawning as she stretched, easily laying back down to place her head in the crux of Naruto's neck. "Mmmm, it'll be interesting to see what everyone else is doing."
"Hm, hm," Rafaela giggled a bit as Naruto chuckled, the younger warrior folding her arms below her chin on his stomach. "Hmm?" Her giggling stopped.
Naruto blinked before his chuckling came to an end as he frowned.
Luciela's eyebrows twitched as she grimaced.
"What the hell is that?" They wondered in unison, feeling the energy signature on the horizon.
Near Dabi.
They scrambled to their feet, armor and cloaks quickly thrown onto their persons before they were running towards the settlement.
As they ran, Naruto grimaced at the feeling of this particular yoma.
Because it wasn't a normal yoma.
This was an Awakened Being and it was strong.
"The heck is that, Naru?" Luciela grimaced at the feel of it, the three of them finding the feeling more and more dangerous as they got closer. "It feels so… powerful."
"It's an Awakened Being," Rafaela grimaced. "T-This isn't good, w-we've never even been on an Awakened Hunt before but we're now finding this?"
Naruto kissed his teeth. "I… Wait, stop!" He said as they skidded to a halt. "... Luci, you need to go and grab Cassandra," the blonde man said with a frown as the older sibling flinched. "We can't take any chances, inform the guy with her if you see him that there's a powerful Awakened Being in Dabi."
"W-What?! You two will-!"
"Luciela, we don't have the time," Rafaela said with a steely look as her older sibling grimaced. "... I'm sorry, I didn't-"
"Idiot, I know," Luciela held her close as her younger sister nodded within her embrace. "... Naru's right, you have the better Yoki Sync out of the two of us. If it comes down to it, you'll be more useful if you end up fighting something insane though I think you might be able to do it. That thing is hurt, can't you two feel it?"
They blinked, sharpening their senses but only Rafaela gasped.
"S-She's right, it's so at least half-strength," of course, the fact that this yoma was so strong even at that level meant rough tidings. "... We won't try to make this a fight."
"We'll do our best to lead it away from the town but we can't take chances," Naruto said, coming over before being absorbed into the hug. "We'll be alive, that's a promise."
"Yup," Rafaela grinned as Luciela huffed before nodding as they let go.
A kiss to the forehead and then a kiss on the lips were all that was 'said' before she departed, Rafaela and Naruto, respectively, nodding to one another as they continued on.
"She's faster than both of us, she'll make it," Rafaela said as he nodded, gripping her hand back before they let go. "What should we do, Naru? We know that Awakened Beings have yoki that's usually greater than a warrior in the tens but this one… this male warrior," his eyes widened. "He's comparable to a Number 1 even as weak as he is, at least in yoki."
"Then that means you need to keep your yoki low, Rafa," Naruto frowned. "If we're going to deal with him, we can't let him transform."
In their more humanoid forms, from what the older members of their inner circle said, they were about as strong and fast as they were when they were warriors. If that was the case, they could keep an injured Number 1 busy for at least a while, right?
Their eyes narrowed.
~NRK~
She eclipsed every bit of distance that came her way with growing urgency.
'Control myself! I can't just make another problem!' Luciela growled, the veins popping around her face going away with the extra speed. "Tsk!"
Twenty minutes, she thinks. It'd been that long since she crossed the border of Alphonse and reached Cassandra's sector.
'Why is the Number 1 even so far away from the Abyssal Ones?!' She thought with a grunt before shaking her head. 'Dammit, it's not important right now!' Luciela would not lose two of her most precious people.
She blinked as she was halted, a familiar high-ranking warrior at her side.
"What happened?" Cassandra asked her with a frown as Luciela's eyes widened.
"A-An Awakened Being," the Number 1's eyes widened. "And it's got yoki comparable to you-"
There hadn't been any hesitation, not a hint, as Luciela blinked as she was carried past blurring treelines and harsh winds.
"Lead the way.
~NRK~
They found him, the Awakened Being, and were considering their next move.
He was a man of tall height with fair skin, smooth-looking short black hair that came down to his nape, and a pair of silver eyes. Wearing a black tunic, brown boots, a pair of black pants, and a cloak, they could see his bandaged biceps, stomach, and right shin, the man looking annoyed.
"T-That dumb oaf," he hissed to himself as they listened in. "Tsk, she's more trouble than she's worth," the yoma grimaced as he began to approach the guards at the gate.
"Are you alright?!" One of the two men at the front asked, hurrying over. "Do you need-"
"!"
"!"
"!"
Silver eyes' pupils elongated as their owner's right claw swung out.
A black-clothed blonde tackled the guard out the way.
And a sword came down on the head of the powerful yoma.
Naruto recovered as he carried the man away, an explosion of force erupting behind him.
"Get inside!" The man shouted as he threw the guard through the gates, the other flinching. "It's a yoma!"
There was a panic from afar as Naruto turned around to see Rafaela chasing the injured Awakened Being into the forest.
"Hurry back, Luci," he muttered as he gave chase, Natural Energy filling his very being and forming a film over his body. 'This is gonna be a fight for our lives.'
The former ninja closed his eyes as the world around him fell away to darkness, leaving only streams of natural energy, the presence of human's spirits, Rafaela's spirit, and that of the yoma's.
As he navigated the energy of the forest, Naruto lunged with his spear raised and slammed it into the attacking arm of the yoma.
It didn't pierce the limb, not even with it hitting the wrist, but he knocked it off target and saved Rafaela from a gash on her side.
"You… you're a human?" The yoma moved back with a speed that alarmed the two. "... a male warrior once more but I don't sense any yoki?" He said curiously.
The two teens simply breathed-
Naruto barely kicked back as claws swiped past where his face would be, his opponent's wide eyes unseen but his shock was felt.
"How?!" The yoma slipped around Rafaela's downward swinging blade before bringing his claw up towards her neck. 'One down-!'
A knife was hastily batted away from his eye, the Awakened Being's hackles rising as he saw the smirking Naruto.
'The human?!' He skidded backward as the Claymore's eyes narrowed, turning on a dime sword held in one hand. 'How is he-?!' The Awakened Being began to think, not worried for the woman's blade.
And he was quickly left shocked as a knife slammed into his injured thigh, eyes wide as she lunged at him once more.
'KNIVES?!' That didn't make sense!
When did the Organization's warriors use knives?!
He growled as Rafaela swung at his chest before he ducked and jumped back, eyes locking onto the black form of the close-eyed blonde.
'Him.'
The yoma growled as he blocked the human's spear before swinging out and missing? What?
How had he missed?! He could see how long the spear was!
But the human didn't care, jumping back with a thrown knife as his retreat's safety measure.
The yoma's eyes narrowed his eyes burned gold-
It spasmed and his eyes widened before he barely blocked Rafaela's blade, the woman's eyes closed, eyebrows furrowed, in concentration.
The floor beneath his feet cratered before he kicked her away, her handler catching her before they both flew out of view.
"Tsk!" What was going on with this 'human'? "He's not normal, he can't be human, can he?" He couldn't think about anything else.
That man wasn't normal. Speed of a lower 30s warrior, reaction speed that outstripped his warrior charge, and an ability to seemingly slip out of his strikes?
No, the Awakened Being was sure of one thing and that was that the blonde male wasn't a normal being.
Curious.
'Isley would want to meet him,' if that was truly not a human, learning more about its body would be important. 'But he's not even that tough, he's not even strong enough to pierce my flesh,' and he wasn't one with that great of a defensive hide.
As the treeline broke, the yoma's eyes lowered in suspicion as Naruto appeared from above, his steps silent and making the male 'demon's' guard raise.
"... how ridiculous," the yoma said as he stood up to his full height, standing taller than Naruto. "You… are you human?" He asked, cut and dry.
"Hmm?" Naruto considered his answer. "Yep."
"... I see," the man's form bristled. 'I can't go all-out,' too many injuries, he thought he could have gotten a meal easily but that didn't work out. 'I can't transform like this.'
Still, he was more than enough to handle some random human and a warrior who couldn't possibly be past the 20s.
He lunged at a speed greater than before and the human jumped back too late.
"Ugh!"
The yoma sent the handler flying through a tree and into the next one with a crack, the man sliding down it with a groan.
"What?" How?
How was he still ALIVE-?
He jumped back as a cleaving blade tore apart the earth, an angry Claymore glaring at him with her golden eyes.
"You bastard!" She lunged and he blocked her, growling in return before his feet began to dig a trough in the ground. "You hurt him!" Rafaela harshly turned her body in the air and sent their clash to the side, bringing her blade back around for a beheading.
The yoma hissed as he shot back with increased speed.
His legs, now transformed, looked oddly furry, more muscular, and tipped by claws with more powerful toes.
Rafaela landed, growling before a hobbling form slipped behind her.
"Naruto!" She jumped back, never taking her eyes off the Awakened Being. "Are you alright?" Her eyes flickered to the hissing human who held his midsection.
"How?" The yoma across from them spoke, standing up with feline-like eyes. "I believe you lied to me, boy, you can't be human," he said, raising one of his arms.
A swipe back crushed the middle of a tree, toppling it with a look like he wasn't even trying.
"You took one of those at full power, no human could survive that, much less still be walking," he said with a curious gleam in his eyes. "So, what are you?"
Naruto wiped some blood off his chin. "... a shinobi," he smirked, golden eyes locking onto golden eyes that widened.
"Oh?" The yoma crouched. "You'll be interesting to hold onto, shinobi."
Rafaela and Naruto grimaced as the Awakened Being crouched.
And they all froze at the feeling on the horizon.
"Shit!" The yoma grimaced, looking more than bothered by the approaching presences. 'I was kept for too long!' How had this happened, he'd never know.
But Isley had to know-
"Ah, here you are," came a calm, soothing, voice from the other direction of the approaching Claymore, Naruto's eyes slowly widening as a smiling man broke through the forest.
He was taller than even the Awakened Being before them, having fair skin, an angular face, silver eyes, and long silver hair. Wearing a pair of black pants that were tucked into a pair of metal greaves and a large feathered cloak, he tilted his head at the three.
Also… he was the one who dominated the lands of Alphonse.
This was Isley.
Naruto reacted before the Abyssal One could finish his sentence, latching onto Rafaela and jumping back despite his wounds.
'How didn't we notice him?!' This was bad.
Were they too absorbed into their fight? Naruto would need to kick himself in the pants because that was gonna get them killed if the others didn't come in time!
"... oh?" Isley blinked at them, looking very intrigued at the pair of Claymore and Man-In-Black. "I understand now, Rigaldo," he chuckled as the Awakened Being they were fighting, 'Rigaldo', huffed.
"I was caught unaware and they seem… different," the weaker yoma said as Isley hummed.
"Is that right, I guess even you would have trouble in the state you're in."
"..." Rigaldo's eyebrows twitched, mouth set in a snarl, as he read the backhanded compliment. "..." He grunted.
"Now, as for you two," Isley stated as he focused on the surprising sight of Naruto covering Rafaela's form. "... that's curious," he said, intrigued. "You're not human, are you?"
"I get that a lot," Naruto said nervously, sweat dripping down his brow. 'How do we get out of here?' If Cassandra, Luciela, and the surprising Neideen got there, they might have a chance… at getting out of there.
No way they'd be able to beat Isley, it wasn't doable right then, that the former ninja knew.
"Hmm, be at ease, young man, I'm not here for you. If anything, you'd be happy to note that I'm being rather generous," Isley smiled as Rafaela felt his yoki.
And came away with… the truth? What?
"W-What are you talking about?" She asked him, arm around Naruto's waist. 'He could kill us from there,' it was in the Organization's books, a special book meant only for those in the single digits and they who were a part of the Soul Link Project.
The observed abilities of the Abyssal Ones were horribly versatile and covered nearly every range from humanoid form to their fully Awakened states. Isley had the 'worst' for their situation as he had literal projectiles that could likely rip her in two.
Even as a defensive type, Rafaela didn't like her odds.
"Hmm? Oh, well, you'll notice that Riful's a bit antsy and she's been teetering on our territory. She's, what? Four towns away from here? She could reach us in several minutes if she so pleases and I doubt she'd just leave you two be. So, let's call this fight a close draw," he grinned as Rigaldo growled vocally. "And let sleeping dogs lie, yes? Your comrades are here regardless."
The forms of Neideen, Cassandra, and Luciela appeared in front of the injured two, looking ready to kill.
"Ah, you're the current Number 1, correct?" Isley asked Cassandra who frowned. "Be glad, we're not here to stay and you all shouldn't either, a 'storm' is heading towards me and you wouldn't want to get involved with Her. Come, Rigaldo, let's leave."
The weaker injured Awakened Being frowned before jumping back into the forest, vanishing from sight seconds later, as Isley walked out calmly.
"... you guys have some shitty luck," Neideen said as a bead of sweat fell down her cheek. "And he's supposed to be injured?" She hissed a bit. 'I didn't like our chances even if we had all the top digits.'
Were the previous generations that ridiculous?
They stayed on guard for a few more seconds before Luciela hurried towards her most precious people.
"Are you two alright?!" She asked, looking them over with a look of pale concern on her face.
"I-I'm fine, Naruto needs medical attention," Rafaela said as their boyfriend groaned.
"I-I didn't get stabbed, promise, but I've got through some trees by this point," Naruto huffed as his midsection flared up. "T-That stings."
"Haa, you literally survived, that's all that matters," Neideen said with a frown. "I'm guessing Rigaldo came for a snack and left with nothing but wounds and an empty stomach," she added with a sigh. "Dammit, what is your luck?"
"For now, let's get Naruto medical attention," Cassandra said as Luciela lifted the man's top to reveal the damage. 'If he didn't have Sage Mode…'
Blood leaked out of a large purple bruise that covered damn near all his torso and puncture marks on his abdomen, the man's pain tolerance had to be pretty high to just let that soak into his clothes without showing it.
"Come on," Luciela lifted him up with a pale face. "L-Let's go!" She ran ahead with her sister on her tail, the two not even waiting for their nods.
"I don't like this, Cassandra," Neideen said. "They know about him now."
"They do but they're still injured, they won't do anything, especially if what we heard is true," Cassandra said with a deep frown. 'But we need to inform the Organization,' this would need their attention.
~NRK~
A day later, the five plus Uranus, Otie, and Elizabeth stood in the Council chambers, the Elders looking grim.
"I see," Lmit grimaced. 'That's not good,' if Isley and Rigaldo knew of Naruto, who was to say they wouldn't tell Riful about him? Or, better yet, why'd they leave? 'Odd, it's becoming concerning,' what are they planning?
Why would Riful push past her territory? Why did Isley leave Naruto alive? How injured were they and Rigaldo the Silver Lion King really?
"Hmm, you'll come by my facilities to ensure you get appropriate medicine, can't let you go to waste," Dae said with a grin. 'And I'll finally be able to see if your body can handle it.'
Another project with possibilities if he could do it in small enough doses… Dae wanted to see what kind of being would come of this.
"Y-Yeah," Naruto groaned a bit. 'Pathetic,' had the difference between them and an injured former number 2 really been so large?
The man hadn't even fully transformed and he left them for dead, basically.
"Tsk," there had to be something he could do, Naruto was sure.
"You're all dismissed," Lmit said even as one thought rang throughout the room.
'This isn't over, is it?'
~NRK~
So, that's a wrap on that part of the story. After this, we'll be doing a few more timeskips to a very special event that will likely take place in the next chapter or the one after. The famed creation of a third Abyssal One.
So, for now, you guys get to see the real difference between Naruto and even someone like Rigaldo who was injured from fighting Dauf. It was a one-sided massacre once the 'novelty' wore off for Lion King. Naruto may have the speed of a lower thirties warrior but he's not got the strength of one and his durability isn't exactly doing much comparatively.
The power to beat Awakened Beings, much less Abyssal Ones, isn't within those three's reach and that brings out the determination and desperation. We'll see how our main trio gets through this roadblock.
~NRK Out~