Author's note: Before you start reading, let me say a few things. First, I would like to apologize for not updating in such a long time. I wanted to finish Harry Potter and the Ties that Bind before updating this again. Second, I'd like to apologize once more because it'll be awhile before this is updated again. Most of you probably know, but I am planning to finish all of my fanfics. To that end, I am working on the fanfics that are the closest to being complete. The next fanfic that I plan on working on is Namikaze's Return, which only has about 12 chapters left before being completed. That's also why this chapter is so long. At around 21,600 words, this is my longest chapter so far. I hope you all enjoy it.

Chapter 26

The Tournament Begins

"F-fuck!"

Rias's shout rang out, echoing along the tiled walls of her private bath. Her shout turned into a moan as Naruto leaned forward, pressing his chest against her back, and tweaking her nipples with his finger. Her legs shook as he drove into her from behind. His rhythm was not steady. It increased and decreased with every thrust as he mixed up his pace to keep Rias off her game. The pleasure rocking her body was so intense, she felt like it might tear her apart.

"D-dammit, Naruto! Don't do—aahhhnn!"

"Sorry," Naruto apologized. "I can't help myself."

He took her earlobe between his teeth and nibbled on it, and then gave it a light tug. The nipples that he was playing with stiffened beneath his fingers. More music emerged from Rias's mouth as he assaulted her with several different methods. Her body shook as more than just water leaked down her legs. Her thighs clenched and trembled, as did her butt cheeks. Were they not in the shower, they would've been covered in sweat.

Of course, it wasn't like she was the only one feeling it. Rias was tight. Every movement he made inside of her made him want to burst. Her walls enclosed around him in all the right ways, and the wetness made it so that despite how tight she was, he could still thrust inside of and pull out of her without feeling like he was being squeezed through a really small tube.

"Y-you're a tease, Naruto."

"Ha… I try."

"Faster. Move faster, please!"

"You're wish is my command."

Naruto gritted his teeth as he pumped his hips faster. He had to discard Rias's breasts because he couldn't fully focus on them anymore. He placed his hands on her hips, getting a better grip so he could really get going. He pulled out, and then exploded into a fast paced frenzy.

"Y-yes! Fuck yes!"

"Shit, Rias… are you getting tighter?"

"I-If I am it's because of you!"

"Good to know."

With Rias facing the wall, her body leaning forward and her arms raised to brace herself, Naruto had the perfect view of her back muscles, slender shoulders, and amazing ass. Water rained down onto her from above. Droplets like small streams left glistening trails along her skin. Her red hair was parted like a curtain that shook every time he pushed into her, sending water droplets everywhere, and, even though he couldn't see them as well, Naruto could just imagine how much her large breasts were swaying with every thrust of his hips.

Naruto was glad that he had chakra or this position would have never been possible. Of course, applying chakra to his feet while plowing into his girlfriend from behind was a difficult task. His body quaked with each movement, and his mind was cloudy. Were he not so used to subconsciously sending chakra to his feet during battle, he would've already lost his concentration.

"Rias! I don't think I can hold on much longer!"

"W-wait! Just a bit longer! I'm almost there!"

There was no way Naruto was going to cum without making Rias orgasm first. However, this position was his favorite. Just seeing Rias like this made him feel like busting his load. He needed to do something to make her orgasm before him. Something…

Oh, right.

His breathing heavy, Naruto leaned over as he kept up his high speed pace. The sound of his hips slapping Rias's ass echoed around them. He reached over, pressed his hand against her stomach, and slid down until he reached her clit.

"Oh, fuck!" Rias cried out.

Naruto clenched his teeth as Rias tightened around him, so much so that he could barely move. He held out for a second longer. Then, just as he felt Rias's body relax, he released himself inside of her.

"Aaahhnn!"

Spent, exhausted in ways that he never felt while training, Naruto wrapped his arms around Rias's stomach and pulled her backwards as he fell to the floor. He placed one hand behind him to support his body, though it shook like crazy, and kept the other wrapped around Rias's stomach as she regained control over her breathing.

"It's been too long since we've done that," Rias mumbled as she leaned against him. From this angle, Naruto had a perfect view of Rias's breasts. The way her chest heaved with every breath, her breasts bouncing and jiggling with each action, made him become hard like a rock all over again.

"Hm, with everyone else now living with us, we haven't had as much time to be alone like this," Naruto agreed.

There was also the fact that Rias had been so busy with her devil duties. She'd been working all day and coming home really late at night exhausted. She had often been so tired that she had stopped bothering to kick Koneko out when the neko/devil hybrid snuck into their bed.

"I should kick all of them out."

Laughing, Naruto said, "that wouldn't be a very nice thing to do."

"Then I guess I'm not a nice person."

Still chuckling, Naruto kissed Rias's shoulder. "You're a very nice person. You're always doing things for others. You help Irina with Irina fit in, you help Koneko with her homework. You're even polite to Ophis despite how she sometimes bothers you. I've always admired how kind you are to others."

"Is that so?" Rias mumbled. "Then I guess I'll keep being nice to everyone."

It was early in the morning. Rias had woken Naruto up early because she wanted, well, she mostly just wanted to have sex. Ever since everyone had moved into their home, the time they got to spend with each other was minimal. They still did things together, such as go on dates, train together, study, and everything else that most couples did, but they weren't able to have sex. It didn't help that every time they really got into it, someone would come along and interrupt them. It was definitely frustrating.

"Maybe we should book a hotel to whenever we want to be alone," Naruto suggested.

"We shouldn't have to." Rias pouted. "It's my house. I should be allowed to do whatever I want without people barging in on us."

"Point."

Since everyone would be waking up soon, Naruto and Rias washed themselves and dried off. They had brought a change of clothes with them, so they also changed in the bathroom.

Rias's personal bathroom was massive. It was also opulent. The tiles, sink, toilet, everything was made from polished marble with swirling golden designs that danced along the surface. The shower they had been using for their recreational activities easily spanned five square meters, there were numerous places to sit inside. It was also sealed off from the rest of the bathroom and could second as a steam room. Even the bathtub looked more like a small pool or jacuzzi than an actual tub.

As Naruto put on his black pants, he looked over at Rias, who was sliding her panties up her long legs. She was bent over, so he had a perfect view of everything. He turned back around and shook his head when he felt himself geting aroused.

Not now. You just got clean.

Naruto finished putting on his orange shirt with a black Uzumaki swirl on the front, and then he put his dark orange and black jacket over it. By that point, Rias was already dressed in jean shorts, a black shirt that revealed her navel, and a red leather jacket.

"You're wearing the jacket I bought you," Rias said, smiling.

Naruto looked down at his jacket. It was predominantly orange, a dark burnt variant of the color, but there were several black swirl designs on it. The Uzumaki crest. Rias had it custom made for him to celebrate their one month anniversary some time back.

"Yeah. I figured since the first day of tournament is today, I should wear something that represents me."

"It looks good on you."

"Thanks." Naruto grinned. "You look in hot in that outfit too!" He gave Rias a thumbs up, causing her to giggle.

They left the bathroom together, stepping into the bedroom. Their plan was to wake up everybody else who had been sleeping with them.

They didn't need to.

Everyone was already awake.

They were all in varying states of emotional distress—except for Ophis, who displayed no emotion whatsoever. She was staring at the two of them with a perpetually bored expression. Meanwhile, Koneko and Ravel were in varying states of embarrassment or anger, or both.

"Y-you two…" Ravel was sitting on the bed, her back pressed against the head. The covers were pulled all the way up past her nose, so that only her eyes were visible. Her face was blood red and steam was wafting from her forehead like a sizzling fajita fresh from the frying pan. "You two were…"

"Lewd," Koneko muttered, wearing both a blush and a glare.

"Uh…" Naruto needed a moment to respond. "You three heard that?"

"We heard you moaning," Ophis confirmed in a bland "I don't care" kind of voice. Her expression was blank as she tilted her head. "What were you two doing in there? Were you having that sex thing I've read about in magazines?"

"Erm…"

Awkward didn't quite cover how Naruto felt. He didn't think they would have been able to hear him and Rias through the wall. Rias had assured him that the walls were really thick. That meant they should have been soundproof, at least enough to muffle any noise.

"They were fucking," Koneko answered Ophis.

"K-Koneko!" Ravel gasped. Steam burst from her head like it was overheating. "Y-you shouldn't say that!"

"Don't be such a prude, Cacciatore."

"I-I'm not a prude—and stop calling me that!"

"Look, let's all just get dressed and head down for breakfast," Rias, her face almost as red as her hair, said.

Ophis was already dressed in her strange outfit, which was a lot like a lolita dress with plenty of frills… except it didn't have much of a front. There were just two purple straps that went over her chest. Her nipples were also covered by a pair of black X-shaped things… Naruto had never been sure what they were. He hadn't asked.

"Right," Koneko said, crawling out of bed like a cat. She wasn't wearing a bra, so her small breasts were on display. They didn't have Rias's magnificence, but there was something to be said for their cute shape. Her nipples were a light pink.

"You shouldn't be so immodest," Ravel mumbled as she lowered the covers and stepped onto the carpet. Unlike Koneko, who had only worn panties to bed, the Phenex heiress was decked out in a purple nightgown that flattered her figure. Perhaps it was because she wasn't much taller than Koneko, but her breasts, which would have looked modest on a woman of Rias's height, appeared quite substantial on her.

"I'm not immodest. You're just a prude."

"I am not a prude!" Ravel snapped at Koneko. She sighed, then, and prepared to take off her nightgown. Then she paused. Her gaze turned to Naruto. "Ah… D-do you mind looking away, please? I mean… it's not that I don't want you to see, but…"

"But Cacciatore-chan is a prude so she gets embarrassed easily," Koneko interrupted.

Ravel's face burst with color. "Shut up! I'm not a prude! And I'll prove it to you!"

With almost angry-looking motions, Ravel nearly tore off her dress and threw it to the ground. She only had a pair of cute pink and white panties on. The whites were the frilly parts around the waistband. Perhaps it was because of her movements, but the fabric had become creased into her folds, allowing him to see the outline of her lips. Her breasts, magnificently shaped and capped with light pink nipples, bounced with her actions. They really were large on her. However, they also suited her. Naruto thought their shape and size fit looked stunning on her smaller, thinner figure. That her ass, which her panties conformed to like they had been painted on, was so round and perfect only made her figure look more incredible.

A moment of silence followed her stripping process. Ravel stood there with her hands on her hips, as though she were proud of what she had done. Yet as the seconds ticked by, her face became more and more red. She looked at Naruto. Her face became redder. Then she looked at Rias and Koneko. Steam burst from her ears. Then she looked at Ophis, whose blank stare caused her embarrassment to reach its peak. With a squawk that sounded like a frightened parrot, she threw herself back into the bed and pulled the covers over her entire body.

There was another moment of silence.

"Let's go down to breakfast," Rias said. "We should give Ravel some time to recover."

"Uh… right. Breakfast." Naruto nodded.

Koneko just shook her head. "What a disappointment."

~Devil Ninja~

After breakfast, Naruto and the others were directed toward the carriages by Grayfia and Azazel. Rias was given a hearty goodbye from her father and mother. They were going to be attending the tournament, but they would arrive separately. Milicas had said goodbye to Naruto. He would apparently be going to the tournament with Rias's parents and Grayfia. Sirzechs had already left.

"Milicas has taken quite a shine to you," Rias said as the carriages started up.

Naruto leaned back in his seat. "Yeah. Your mom's been tutoring us. I guess we both bonded over the torture."

Rias raised an eyebrow. "Torture?"

"I meant lessons! Lessons!"

The look that Rias gave him said she didn't believe a word he had just said. "Right."

The coach had two seats facing each other. Naruto sat on one side with Ravel and Koneko. He was in the middle. Rias sat on the other with Ophis and Irina. Originally, Ophis had tried to sit on Naruto's lap, but Rias, Koneko, and Ravel had put a stop to that. The Infinite Dragon God had been pouting ever since.

The others had gotten onto another carriage; he hoped they were okay. Considering the tension that still existed between Akeno, Asia, and Issei, the carriage itself was probably intense. He felt sorry for Kiba and Gasper.

"What kind of things is Lady Gremory teaching you?" asked Irina.

"Mostly politics and stuff," Naruto said, leaning back and crossing his arms. "She's been doing her best to pound everything about the Seventy-Two Pillars and how the devil hierarchy operates. She said it would be important to know later on down the road."

"She's right," Rias said. "Since you and I are dating, you'll need to know about our culture and politics for future events that you might have to attend." She looked at Ravel, then back at him. "It's even more imperative since you're also dating Ravel. With two heiresses on your arm, I don't doubt that you'll become the center of attention once it's made public."

While Ravel and Irina became beet red, Naruto frowned. "I didn't think about that? Is it okay for me to be dating two heiresses?"

"It's not unheard of," Rias told him. "But it's still pretty rare. I don't think a polygamous relationship like this has happened in a couple hundred years."

"T-this has happened before?" Irina asked.

Rias nodded. "Polygamy isn't unusual in devil society, though most devils prefer monogamous relationships. About two-hundred and fifty years ago, a powerful devil heiress called Felicia Andrealphus gained great fame as a powerful devil who had subjected several other high class devil families. She had then forged numerous alliances by having the first male of each family marry her."

"Huh, so female devils also form harems," Naruto said. He didn't know why this surprised him.

"Of course they do. Devil society isn't patriarchal like human society tends to be. We're an egalitarian society. That's why devil families have both a patriarch and a matriarch, each of whom are in charge of running the day to day affairs of the house." Rias paused, and then added. "Of course, there are cases where the male or female will hold more power within the house, but that comes down to a matter of in-house principles instead of societal laws. In the eyes of society, men and women are equal."

"That makes," Irina said, nodding.

Naruto frowned. "But if that's the case, then why is Grayfia a maid? Isn't she also Sirzechs wife?"

"That? Grayfia just likes being a maid." Rias shrugged as though to say "that's how it goes."

"H-huh… I see."

The carriage took them to the train station, where the Gremory peerage plus friends were forced through a sea of Rias Gremory fans. There was a large horde of them. They carried signs, screamed Rias's name, and proclaimed their undying love for her. Naruto supposed they were lucky that the family had prepared for this. Both Venelana and Zeoticus's peerages were their in full force, keeping the crowd at bay and allowing them space to walk.

Naruto hadn't personally met with the peerages of Rias's mother and father. He didn't really know them. However, he'd seen them around the mansion occasionally. They had only been glimpses, but Naruto thought he recognized a few of them.

"I still can't believe how popular Buchou is," Issei mumbled as they entered the train. The doors slid closed behind them and everyone made themselves comfortable somewhere. Naruto sat with Issei and Kiba while the girls took the circular couch in the center and began chatting.

"Rias is something of a special case," Kiba admitted. "Most devils don't get that kind of treatment unless they're famous like one of the four maous or a popular Rating Game player."

"What makes her so special?" asked Issei.

"Rias helped care for the cities located within her clans domain," Naruto answered before Kiba could. "Before coming to the human world, she was well-known for traveling to various cities and doing community service acts, or playing with the local children. She also helped all of the reincarnated devils adjust to life in the underworld."

"So she's popular because she's nice and helpful?"

"Yes."

"Sounds like our Buchou."

"Definitely." Naruto smiled. "That's my Rias."

"Heh… your Rias?" Kiba teased.

Instead of getting embarrassed, Naruto puffed out his chest. "Of course. Rias and I are dating. That's why she's my Rias."

"Hmph!" Kiba snorted with laughter. "You're really something else."

"I'm so jealous that you get to fondle those ginormous juggle bags," Issei said with a sigh, lying his face on the table. "So not fair."

"Don't let Asia catch you saying that," Kiba said.

"I-I didn't mean that I don't like Asia's oppai! I just meant…"

Naruto tuned the two out and looked out the window as the train sped along the tracks, watching the passing scenery roll by. It looked like they were in a mostly forested area. He could see nothing except trees up close and mountain ranges in the distance.

While he let his mind wander, Issei continued to ask Kiba questions. "So, where are these Rating Games taking place?"

"At the Maou Colosseum," Kiba answered. "It's located in the capital. The colosseum was created about forty years ago to host the Rating Game Championships. Since this tournament is such a big deal, they've decided to host it there."

"Oh, that makes sense, I guess," Issei said.

Kiba grinned. "Just wait until you see it. The colosseum is quite impressive."

It turned out that Kiba's words of "quite impressive" was something of an understatement. The colosseum was massive, gargantuan on a scale that Naruto—and probably everyone who hadn't already seen it—couldn't fathom. It was on the opposite side from where the party had been held, which explained why they hadn't been able to see it the first time they'd arrived. Now, standing before it as it loomed over them, Naruto couldn't help but be in awe by the immensity of it.

"This is where Rating Games take place?" Naruto asked.

"Just the championships," Rias answered. "The rest of this time, the colosseum is used for other events that are often hosted annually."

"I see."

Grayfia was waiting for them when they arrived. She lead them to an entrance near the back, away from the crowds gathering by the front gate. This allowed them to slip inside and take a hallway that lead to a large and opulent room where all of the other members who would be taking part in the tournament had gathered.

"Sirzechs and the other alliance leaders will be along shortly to explain how this tournament will work," Grayfia informed them. "Please wait here."

After Grayfia wandered out of the room and shut the door, Naruto looked at all of the people already there. Several of them had turned their heads to see who had entered. However, once they realized who it was, most went back to what they'd been doing. The only ones who greeted them were Angelus, Gomory, Lix, Reuel, and Sairaorg, each of whom tossed them a smile or waved.

Naruto waved back before turning to the others. "Should we greet the competition?"

"Let's," Rias said, smiling.

Since there were only two peerages mixing—Angelus and Sairaorg—the Gremory peerage went up to them. Angelus greeted them with her kind smile. Meanwhile, Sairaorg stared at Naruto with a grin.

"You seem a little stronger than the last time we met," he said.

"So do you." Naruto returned the grin. "I can tell you've been training. Were you that worried about me kicking your ass?"

"Ha! I just want to make sure everyone sees me at my best."

While Naruto traded good-natured shots with Sairorg, Rias spoke to Angelus.

"That's a lovely outfit," she complimented. "But are you sure it's appropriate for the tournament? I'd hate to see it get ruined."

Angelus was wearing a pure white gown that flattered her feminine figure. It was a simple outfit, with none of the ostentatiousness that a devil would have added were they wearing the same thing. It suited a girl like her.

"It will be okay," Angelus said. "I'm not a close range fighter, so I don't expect to be in the thick of battle during the tournament."

"Lady Angelus won't get anywhere near the fight because I'm going to protect her," Kazuma said. "I won't let anyone lay a hand on her."

"Yes." Angelus smiled at Kazuma. "I'll be counting on you, Kazuma-kun."

Kazuma blushed as Rias giggled, which just caused him to blush more. The other members of the Gremory peerage tried to chat with the people in Sairaorg's peerage and Angelus's ace's. Sadly, they weren't quite as successful. They didn't have Naruto's uncaring attitude toward rank, status, and race, nor did they have Rias's poise while dealing with others. About the only two who successfully made conversation with anyone else was Asia and Issei—and it was mostly Asia doing all the talking.

"It's so wonderful that you were able to be reincarnated as an angel," Asia said to a young woman who looked several years older than the others. "You must have been truly blessed during your life. I'm actually a little jealous."

"I don't know if I would call myself 'blessed'," the woman who introduced herself as Saria Steelix said. "Fortunate might be a better word."

"Is that so? Still, it must be amazing to become an angel."

"It is a pretty neat experience," Saria admitted. "And? How about you? Do you think becoming a devil was a sign of fortune?"

"Oh, yes." Asia nodded. "I've met so many wonderful people since I've become a devil, and I have a wonderful boyfriend, and there's also—"

"Also?" Saria queried.

Asia shook her head. "Erm, no. Nevermind that. Please forget I said anything."

"Well, all right."

During the midst of the several conversations taking place between them, someone else walked up to their group. He was a handsome young man. With a gentle-looking face, blond hair, and an outfit befitting royalty, he held an appearance reminiscent to a fairytale prince. He reminded Naruto of Kiba, except he felt Kiba pulled off the princely look better. The vile aura radiating from him, which Naruto felt thanks to his ability to sense the darkness in others, helped shatter the illusion that he was anything but cruel.

"Excuse me," he said, bowing politely to the group. "I apologize for interrupting your conversation, but could I ask, might you be Asia Argento?"

Asia blinked. "Um, yes? That's me."

The smile that the man wore widened. "I thought so. Please allow me to introduce myself: My name is Diodora Astaroth… and I wanted to confess my love for you."

"Eh?"

There was no telling whether that came from Asia or Issei. Naruto glanced at his friend. The look on Issei's face, which could have best been described as flabbergasted, was amusing—would have been amusing had the situation not been so odd. A tension had enveloped the area. Naruto felt something thick in the air.

What will you do now, Ise?

"T-that's very kind of you," Asia said. "However, um, I already have someone that I like, so…"

"I see." For just a moment, Diodora's face darkened. "In that case, all I need to do is make you love me more than him." His smile returned. "I think you'll find that I'm determined to make you mine."

Asia didn't seem like she knew how to respond; she remained silent, a look of befuddlement crossing her face. It was perhaps fortunate, then, that Issei finally snapped out of his shock and stepped in front of her.

"Sorry, bud, but Asia's my girlfriend. I don't care if you like her. I get that she's adorable and all, but it's rude to try and steal someone else's girl."

"Is that so?" Diodora narrowed his eyes. Naruto felt a moment of bloodlust that went unnoticed by everyone save perhaps Rias, Sairoarg, and Angelus. Then the smile returned. "I see. So that would make you my rival, wouldn't it? Be prepared, dragon. I will make Asia mine."

Diodora turned around and went back to his peerage, which Naruto noticed was made up entirely of nuns. He didn't get a chance to ask Rias about that. Seconds after the confrontation ended, the doors opened and several people walked in. Sirzechs, Michael, and Azazel were easily recognizable. So was Metatron, but there were others that he wasn't as familiar with. A woman whose beauty transcended human comprehension and a handsome man with raven-colored hair and green eyes.

"Hello, everyone," Michael said, stepping forward and greeting everyone present with a smile. "We would like to welcome all of you to the first annual Three-Factions Tournament. Since this is the first time we're doing this, there are a number of rules that we'll need to explain before determining who fights who."

At this point, Sirzechs took a step forward and began to speak. "The only real rules that we have should be obvious: there is no killing and we can end the fight at any time should it become clear that one side will be the victor. Those who do not follow these two rules will be disqualified and barred from taking part in future tournaments."

"There are some other factors about this tournament that you should also be aware of," Azazel added. "All the battles will be fought in a dimension that has been created by us. You can pretty much go crazy in there. Each arena is the exact same size as the colosseum's interior, mostly because the dimension created is using the colosseum as an anchor to maintain its reality. Battles will be determined by a random drawing. After that, they will go forward in a typical tournament fashion." He sighed. "Well, that about covers it. Are there any questions?"

"I've got one," Naruto said, raising a hand. He felt a grin split his face. "When do we get this party started?"

Azazel laughed. "Right now." The blonde female angel stepped forward. There was a box in her hand, and there was a hole on the top portion. "Will each of the leaders please step forward and grab a slip of paper? Once you have it, show your number to Shemhazai."

One by one, those who were the king of their respective groups walked toward the blonde woman and drew a card. The card was then shown to the fallen with dark hair, Shemhazai, and then they walked back to their group.

"What number did you draw?" Naruto asked Rias as she stopped beside him.

"Eight," Rias said.

After the last person drew a number, Shemhazai took several steps forward and spoke in a clear tone. "The battles will be happening as follows: Bael versus Mestama. Buer versus Lix. Gremory versus Reuel. Astaroth versus Sitri. Gomory versus Glasya-Labolas. And Angelus versus Agares. Will the first two contestants please follow us. You will be lead to your respective starting points."

"All right! It looks like we're going first," Mestama crowed. "Come on, losers! It's time to show these bitches who's top dog around here."

"Have fun, Sairaorg," Naruto said as the large teen walked off with his peerage. Sairaorg said nothing, but he did raise a hand as if to say farewell.

~Devil Ninja~

Sairoarg Bael looked at his surroundings with a consternated frown. The strangely made gray walls, numerous unusual shops, and large steel poles that went from the ground to the ceiling were unknown to him. He'd never been to a place like this before.

The arena they stood in was large, massive on a scale that he couldn't quite describe. Of course, it wasn't big in comparison to a city, but when compared to the inside of, say, a mansion, it was ridiculous. The ceiling was nearly fifty meters above his head, and the interior extended for miles, with staircases and elevators and fountains. It also looked like their were multiple stores inside of this building, which meant it was a shopping district of some kind.

"Kuisha, what sort of playing field is this?" he asked.

His queen, a girl around his age with blond hair tied into a ponytail, studied the interior with a keen eye. "If I am not mistaken, I believe our current playing field is a mall, the kind you would find in the human world."

"None of us have any experience with human malls," Sairoarg muttered, frowning.

"I believe this was done to even the playing field," Kuisha admitted. "Mestama has no experience in a Rating Game, but he probably knows more about the human world than we do. They've given him a terrain advantage in order to counter our experience advantage."

"Yeah, that makes sense."

"What should we do?" asked Coriana Andrealphus, one of his bishops.

"I don't particularly like the way Mestama treated Angelus during the party, so I kind of want to pound his entire peerage into the ground myself," Sairoarg admitted.

Kuisha coughed into her hand. "While you may not like him or the way he acts, please remember that if you were to humiliate him during a live spectacle like this, it could result in serious political consequences between devils and the fallen angels."

"I do not believe the Governor General would mind," Beruka said whilst sitting atop Altobrau, a devil horse from Cocytus, the lowest part of the underworld. "He struck me as the kind of guy who would laugh at someone who's been humiliated rather than get upset on their behalf."

"That may be the case, but Azazel is not the only fallen angel we have to worry about," Kuisha reprimanded Sairoarg's knight. "We would have to worry about much more than just the fallen's Governor General. Metama might have friends in high places."

"Hmm…" Sairoarg thought about the problem for a moment… before grinning. "All right, everyone. Here's what we're going to do…"

~Devil Ninja~

Because the Rating Game was taking place in a separate dimension, all battles were watched on several monitors arrayed throughout the arena. These monitors were massive contraptions that hovered over the arena floor. Each one was large enough that it put any theater in the human world to shame.

The peerage and saint members were not within the arena proper, where all of the other guests were watching the battle. They were still in the waiting room. However, they could watch the battle play out on a large monitor attached to the southernmost wall.

Naruto was sitting on one of several couches, with his girlfriend and queen sitting on his left, holding his hand, their fingers laced. Koneko was on his other side. She was using his lap as her pillow. Irina, Ravel, and Ophis were nowhere to be found. Since they weren't members of Rias's peerage, they had been asked to leave. While Irina and Ravel had gone off with Grayfia, Ophis had just disappeared. He didn't know where she was.

Everyone, including Naruto, was watching the battle play out on the monitor. It looked like Sairoarg and his team were moving into a full out attack despite not knowing where Mestama was. Meanwhile, the fallen was having his "peerage" plant traps around the mall. His members had split up, moving to various keypoints and intersections. It looked like they were setting spells that would go off when they detected motion near them.

"It looks like Sairoarg is splitting up his forces," Rias commented with a small frown. She had even placed a hand under her chin. Naruto recognized her expression and posture as the "I wonder what he's up to?" position, which was the name he had given to it.

"Do you think that was a bad move?" Naruto asked, using his free hand to run his fingers through Koneko's hair.

"If this were any other peerage, I would probably say yes," Rias said. The frown on her face grew deeper. "But Sairoarg and his peerage are hailed as one of the strongest peerages among the younger devils. Sairoarg in particular. He's called the Strongest Youth. That's not a title he came by lightly."

Naruto nodded. "I agree. Mestama was smart to set traps, but something tells me those traps aren't going to work on Sairoarg or his peerage."

~Devil Ninja~

Kuisha walked through the mall with confident strides. Her dress ruffled about her ankles. The slit on her right side caused her leg to occasionally reveal itself, all the while her blonde ponytail swished as she looked left and right. No traps had presented themselves yet, but—

"Hm?"

The ground underneath her suddenly exploded, plumes of crimson flame erupting and causing chunks of concrete to fly everywhere. Kuisha had no interest in being consumed by the fire. Seconds before the explosion actually happened, she was leaping through the air. While the heat from the flames still washed over her face, no damage had been sustained.

She landed on the ground. Kneeling on the tiled floor, she held out her left hand and created a magic circle. It was an elemental circle that represented water. Mass amounts of blue liquid shot from the circle and slammed into a wall several meters away. It drilled straight through the wall seconds later, and Kuisha held out her other hand, from which lightning poured forth. It combined with the water, creating a beam of almost pure white light. The beam slammed into the room on the other side. An explosion of electricity sent light tendrils skittering out of the hole in the wall like spiders.

Along with the attack's after math, a figure leapt out of the hole. They were young, but appeared older than her by a few years. His dark hair hung from his head and swayed in the breeze left over by the discharges of her attack. She noticed the twitching in his arm. He must have been feeling the aftermath of her attacks.

"I applaud you on your trap building skills," Kuisha complimented the man. "You are quite talented. It looks like I can't afford to hold back with you."

"I'm afraid you have me mixed up with Liz," the fallen angel said. "I'm not the one who created these traps. That achievement goes to Laureli, the ace of our little group. She was the one who created the traps. Myself and the others just placed them in locations that she chose."

"So I see," Kuisha said. She shrugged. "Well, I suppose it doesn't matter. After all, you've already lost."

"What?"

The fallen angel barely had time to comprehend what was happening before the ground underneath him disappeared. He screamed. Before he could disappear into the hole, the ground closed up around him, trapping him from the neck up.

"W-what the hell is this?!" the fallen asked frantically. He moved his head around as though trying to escape, but nothing happened. Discharges of energy caused the ground to rumble. Nothing happened. "Why can't I get out of here?! My powers aren't working!"

"It's because I won't let you," Kuisha said. "The House of Abaddon has the Power of Hole, which is the ability create holes that expand and contract according to the user's will. It can also absorb and reflect attacks."

"Da-damn it!" the fallen screamed before disappearing in a burst of red light particles.

"Fallen angel Licius has been retired," a voice announced.

Kuisha nodded and walked away.

~Devil Ninja~

One by one, all of Mestama's "peerage" followed Licius. It seemed that just knowing more about the general layout of human malls was not enough to defeat more experienced players. There were a few among Mestama's "peerage" who stood out, such as the only female member who could turn her light spear into various forms like whips and swords, but by and large, they weren't very impressive.

"Didn't all of the people participating in this tournament undergo special training?" Naruto asked Rias.

"Yes, they did."

"Then why are Mestama's peerage so weak."

"It's because Mestama chose not to let any devils or angels train his group," a voice said behind them. Naruto looked up to see Lix standing behind their couch. She was looking down at him with her no nonsense eyes. "Mestama is an extremely headstrong person, and he hates the fact that he wasn't able to make a name for himself during the war between the three factions. I guess he feels cheated out of his rightful glory, or something like that. Because he's so proud, he doesn't want to interact with angels or devils."

"And what do you think about the alliance?" asked Rias.

"I think it's a good idea," Lix said, tilting her head to the left. "I don't much care for war, so forming an alliance with the people we were fighting against for mutual benefit makes more sense to me. That said…" Lix looked around at all of the people participating in the tournament. Her expression remained unchanged, but a sense of annoyance appeared to come from her. "I could do without this tournament. It's a waste of time."

"You don't think having a tournament to foster understanding and friendship is a worthwhile endeavor?" Rias asked. Naruto winced at the tone in her voice. She had been the one who had proposed the tournament idea to Sirzechs.

Lix shrugged. "I believe that the party was fine, but this tournament is taking time away from all of the things I could have been doing."

"Such as?"

"Such as finishing my doujin."

"You create doujin?" And just like that, Rias no longer appeared angry. The frown left to be replaced by a smile. Naruto could practically see the stars in her eyes. "What kind of doujin to you make?"

"The best kind," Lix said, and finally, Naruto watched as a smile graced her face. "I'll show it to you once I'm finished."

He turned back to the Rating Game as Rias and Lix began to talk in earnest. Koneko purred underneath his gentle ministrations.

~Devil Ninja~

Sairoarg found Mestama, though it might have been more accurate to say that Mestama found Sairoarg. He had been walking through the mall without a clear destination in mind. Numerous traps had detonated around him, but he weathered them all. Small explosions like that would not be able to break past his durable body. At some point, Mestama must have become desperate and launched an all-out attack in the form of several dozen light spears.

Wearing a large grin, Sairoarg watched as the spears rained down on him. He didn't move. Each spear came and struck him head on—then shattered against his skin. The only sign that he had been attacked were the small black scorch marks on his body.

"I was wondering when you'd finally decide to face me in person," Sairoarg said, looking at the area where the attacks had come from. There didn't appear to be anything there at first, but then, like the wavering form of a ghost, Mestama appeared.

He must be able to bend light around his body.

That was a pretty high level skill; bending light around something wasn't as simple as creating a light spear. The fact that he could do such a concentration intensive technique spoke well of Mestama's abilities.

Not that it will help him here.

"You…" Mestama scowled at him, his face distorted with inhuman anger. "You destroyed my peerage."

Sairoarg shrugged. "Technically, my own peerage destroyed your peerage, but you should have expected that. You didn't come at us with any real plan. You just set a bunch of traps and a few ambushes in the hopes that it would finish us off. Do you even know of tactics?"

"Shut up!" Mestama howled. Several light spears appeared from the ether and shot forward. Sairoarg took each one head on without flinching, letting them break off his body like they were simple paper projectiles.

If this is the level of power behind his attacks, I won't even need to use Regulus.

"I'm going to give you a chance to surrender now," Sairoarg said. "If you don't, I'll defeat you with my next attack."

"That's not going to happen! I'm going to defeat you! I will!"

Sairoarg sighed as more light spears broke against his skin. They stung a little, which couldn't be helped since they were made of light, a devil's natural enemy. Even so, these attacks were so weak they did little more than sting.

"Useless."

Sairoarg slid his feet apart, reared his fist back, and, expelling a deep breath, threw a punch. The air in front of him was rent. Fierce, howling winds exploded, the very atmosphere seeming to distort. Mestama, his desperation showing on his face, created several shields to defend against the attack. They were for naught. The power of Sairoarg's punch smashed through every shield put up before plowing into Mestama. The fallen angel was thrown backwards. He crashed into a wall, through the wall, and disappeared in a cloud of dust.

Sairoarg waited several seconds to see if Mestama would emerge.

"Mestama has been retired. Victory goes to Sairoarg Bael."

~Devil Ninja~

"Okay," Naruto spoke into the silence after the battle's conclusion. "That was pretty badass."

"Of course you would think that," Rias said, smiling. "Men like you think anything that's all power and no precision is awesome."

"I don't want to hear that from you Ms. Powers of Destruction."

Rias leaned into him, her head close to his ear, her body pressed against his arm. He could feel her breasts. It was hard not to. They were quite large.

"If you'd like, I can show you how precise I am later tonight."

Naruto's arm was pinned, but that didn't mean he could just let her get away with teasing him. "I might just take you up on that."

They were so close now. A mere centimeter or two was between them. Naruto was just about ready to lean down and claim her lips in a kiss.

"You two might want to stop before you start making out on the couch," Koneko interrupted them. "You're making everyone else uncomfortable."

Naruto and Rias jerked apart. They looked down at Koneko, whose head still rested on Naruto's lap. Then they looked at everyone else. The other people present were staring at them. Some, like Angelus and Irina, were blushing up a storm, while others, such as Issei and, well, just Issei, were bleeding from the nose.

"Don't you people have something better to look at?" Naruto asked.

"Not really," Lix said from behind him.

"So me flirting with my girlfriend is interesting to you?"

"More interesting than anything else going on. The Rating Game is over, in case you forgot."

As if emphasizing her point, the doors opened and Sairaorg and his peerage walked in. They weren't alone. Along with them were the four satans, Michael and the blonde woman, and Azazel, Samhehzai, and a face that Naruto vaguely recognised but needed a moment to place.

The man walking alongside Azazel and Samhehzai looked like an older man in his mid to late forties. His dark hair seemed to compliment his tan, leathery skin. He also had a full beard. The outfit that he wore looked almost like a military uniform, a black bodysuit with occasional gold highlights, and it was covered by a cloak.

That's Baraqiel, if I'm not mistaken… so, Akeno's father?

Naruto didn't have much to do with Akeno, so he only knew of Baraqiel thanks to Issei. He and Akeno were apparently on bad terms. Naruto didn't know why this was, and it wasn't really something he could solve without appearing nosy. Aside from that, he believed that if anyone should help Akeno get over her daddy issues, it was Issei—even if the two of them were no longer dating.

"The first battle has concluded," Michael said. "It was a lot shorter than we had expected it to be, so we plan on having one more match before concluding the first day of the tournament. Will Beur and Lix please follow us to their starting points?"

Beur and Lix, along with their respective "peerage" members, left with the entourage of high class supernatural beings.

"Well," Naruto mumbled to himself, "I wonder how this battle will play out?"

~Devil Ninja~

Lix won. Naruto didn't know how surprised he was by that, but he had been pretty astonished by her sense of tactics and prowess in battle. Beur had been no joke either. He had used a combination of feints and blitzkrieg tactics to try and whittle away at Lix's peerage. It probably would have worked, but Lix had only feigned being pushed back, giving away ground until the very last second when she unleashed a trap that defeated Beur and his entire peerage in a single stroke.

Rias had been taking notes on the battle; she had even put on her glasses, which she now kept in a carrying case in her left breast pocket. Naruto figured she was studying up on potential opponents should the time come for her to fight them. That was what he would have done—if he cared enough to do such a thing.

That battle had taken up most of the day. Everyone who had attended had been sent back home with the knowledge that the next fight would begin again tomorrow. Since it would have been a waste to head back to the Gremory estate, the members of Rias's peerage plus their friends were given accommodations within Lilith.

Seeing how it was his first time staying in Lilith, Naruto had decided to go exploring. Rias was busy. She had told him that she wanted to compile the data that she had collected during the battles, to see if there was anything useful that she could use. Naruto had respected her wish. That was also why he was traveling through the city with Koneko.

Her tails and ears were no longer visible. Nekousho like her were hated in the underworld, thanks to what her sister had done, so she needed to hide her feline features. Naruto thought it was a shame. He liked her neko appendages. Still, he knew there would be trouble if she walked around with cat ears and a tail.

"There's a sweetshop around here that I wanted to show you," Koneko told him as she led Naruto by the hand.

The streets were pretty crowded. There must have been thousands of people wandering the streets, chatting and shopping and eating at local cafes and restaurants. Everyone was wearing smiles. It wasn't exactly what Naruto had expected from the underworld's denizens, but he knew from experience that hell and it's residence were nothing like what humans thought.

"So, basically, you want me to buy you sweets and be your personal golfer, right?" Naruto asked.

Koneko smiled and held his arm to her chest. "It's rare that I get you all to myself, so I'd like to make the most of our time together. Besides, Rias-Buchou has been hogging you all to herself. It's not fair."

"She is letting you and the others sleep with us," Naruto pointed out.

"But whenever we're awake and out doing things, she's with you," Koneko countered. "I'd like to spend some time with you without anyone else."

Naruto conceded her point. He wouldn't have been surprised to learn that Rias had decided not to come with him because she knew this as well. While most devils were greedy, and his girlfriend was no exception to that rule, she had a soft spot for her peerage and those she considered friends. She'd go out of her way to help them, spend time with them despite her busy schedule, and be there when they needed someone to talk to. In that manner, at least, she was quite selfless.

"Do you know where this sweet shop is?" asked Naruto.

"It's on Lucifer street," Koneko replied. "This way."

The sweet shop that Koneko lead him to was known as Sadao's Sweets. Its architecture was different than what he was used to seeing. The roof was circular, like a dome, and the building was made of bricks instead of concrete. Inside of the shop was an enormous selection of sweets. Aisles upon aisles extended all the way to the back. Naruto didn't know if they were human or devil variations, since he couldn't tell the difference between the two.

"Welcome to my—well! If it isn't Koneko!" a man said in greeting. He was a thin man with messy black hair and red eyes. "I haven't seen you since you were a young child. How've you been?"

"Sadao-san," Koneko greeted. "I've been doing okay. How are you?"

"I'm getting by," Sadao said, looking at Naruto. "So, who is this? Your boyfriend?"

"I suppose you could say that," Naruto said. "I'm Naruto Uzumaki."

"I know who you are." Sadao shook Naruto's hand. "You guys are all over the news lately. You and those other groups who are in the tournament."

Naruto was about to respond when Koneko tugged at his sleeve. She looked at him, which Naruto correctly interpreted as "stop talking and let me buy my sweets." Sadao seemed to know that as well.

"Feel free to search my shop for whatever tickles your fancy."

"Will do," Naruto said.

Sadao's Sweets was made up of numerous isles that contained all kinds of candy. Being unknowledgeable in the way of sweets, Naruto couldn't even name a tenth of what they perused. He merely followed Koneko as she grabbed several types of chocolate and some other sugary treats before having Sadao ring them up.

"Be sure to come back some time, Koneko!" Sadao said as they were leaving.

"It sounds like that Sadao guy knows you pretty well," Naruto said as they wandered down the street.

Koneko had already taken out one of her sweets, some manju, and was munching on it. "Kuroka-nee-sama used to take me there before she betrayed her master. Whenever her master went to the capital for business, she and I would travel with him and so I ended up going to the store often."

Naruto wondered if a day would ever come when Koneko realized the truth about her sister? He also wondered if he should really be keeping silent. It was true that he wanted Koneko to come to her own conclusions without him coloring her perceptions, but it was hard to see her think this way when he knew the truth.

"Thank you for taking me to Sadao's," Koneko said suddenly.

Smiling as he placed his hand on the small of her back, Naruto said, "you're welcome. Now, since we still have several hours before we need to get back to the hotel, what do you say we keep traveling around? I'd like to see more of the city."

Koneko nodded, a smile appearing on her face. "Let's."

~Devil Ninja~

Rias sighed as she took off her glasses, set them on the table, and then leaned back and slowly closed her eyes. Her notebook sat on the table in front of her. They contained all of the information she had compiled on the two Rating Games. Between the winners, she had to say that Sairoarg was definitely the most dangerous of the two winners. That said, Lix wasn't someone she could afford to underestimate.

We'll be fighting whoever wins between them.

She wasn't sure who she wanted to win. Logic dictated that Lix would be easier to defeat, but if they fought Sairoarg and won, it would help elevate her peerage's status in society. More than anything else, Rias wanted to prove her worth and those of her peerage. She wanted to make the members of her peerage shine brightly. More than anything else, she wanted people to know how amazing her friends, her family, was.

Rubbing her eyes, Rias turned her head and looked out the window.

I wonder how Naruto and Koneko are doing?

Naruto had asked her if she wanted to travel with him to tour around the city. She had refused, stating that she wanted to compile the information she had, which was true, but the real reason was different. She simply wanted to give Koneko some time alone with him.

The sound of a springs creaking caused her to look at the bed, which Ophis was suddenly and randomly lying stomach down on. How she had gotten there without alerting her, Rias had no idea. The Infinite Dragon God seemed capable of going wherever she pleased at will.

"Ophis, what are you reading?" Rias asked as she stood up and stretched. She blinked when she felt a pair of eyes on her and looked back at Ophis.

Is she staring at my breasts?

"Rias Gremory," Ophis said. "Let me touch your breasts."

"Fweh?"

~Devil Ninja~

Naruto and Koneko were walking down the hallway of the hotel they were staying at. The warm lighting complemented the wooden walls and crimson floor, upon which their feet tread with a light thud that echoed across the hall. Koneko was carrying a bag of sweets in one hand while he held the other.

They were within a meter of their apartment room—

"A-ahn!"

When they both stopped.

"Did you hear that?" Naruto asked.

"I did," Koneko said. "Sounds like someone moaning in ecstasy."

"N-no!" came the voice again.

"That came from our room, right?" Naruto said.

Koneko nodded. "It did."

"I thought so."

Naruto and Koneko stopped in front of their door and pressed an ear to it. Heavy breathing along with several moans reached them from the other side. Already experienced with the pitch and timber of those moans, Naruto knew exactly who was producing them.

"That sounds like Rias-buchou." Koneko did, too, apparently.

Part of Naruto was almost scared to know what was going on behind this door, mostly because while he didn't believe Rias would cheat on him, he couldn't figure out what would cause her to moan like this outside of sex. Was she masturbating? Did she have sex toys that he didn't know about? There were some things that a guy just didn't want to know about his girlfriend. Despite that, he opened the door and walked in.

Fortunately for Naruto's peace of mind, Rias was not masturbating or using any sex toys. However, the scene before them was even stranger. Rias was lying on the bed, in nothing but a pair of black lace panties, and Ophis was on top of her. Snakes bound Rias's arms to the bed, forcing her arms to be raised above her head, which revealed her armpits.

Ophis was sucking on Rias's nipples. She would take one of them into her mouth and swirl her tongue around it, and then pull back and flick Rias's nipple with her tongue. In turn, Rias would squirm and moan, she would squeeze her thighs together, and her panties were becoming drenched as Ophis used some surprisingly masterful techniques to make Rias climax from just playing with her breasts. Light sweat already covered Rias's body. Her thighs and torso were glistening, and her nipples were slick with Ophis's saliva.

"O-oh!"

"I see, so this part right here is sensitive."

"N-not there!"

There must have been something wrong with him, Naruto concluded. He really wanted to join Ophis in making his girlfriend feel good. At the same time, well, he was a little too shocked to do much more than stare.

Koneko didn't have the same issues. "This is lewd."

"N-Naruto?! Kone—ahn!" Rias's surprised words were halted when Ophis suddenly stuck her hand down Rias's panties. "D-don't do that, Ophis! I didn't say you could—ahnnnn!"

"Should we leave these two alone?" Koneko asked Naruto.

"No, we can't do that."

Naruto sighed as he walked into the room, plucked Ophis by the back of her dress, and pulled her off of Rias's nipple. He then sent wind blades at the snakes binding Rias. The blades cut through them with ease, and his girlfriend slumped onto the bed. Naruto had to admit, if only to himself, that seeing Rias like this, exhausted, flushed, and with drool leaking from her mouth, was extraordinarily arousing. If it weren't for his will, he would've been tempted to pick up where Ophis left off.

"What are you doing to my girlfriend?" Naruto asked the dragon god that he was holding like a scolded kitten.

Ophis stared at him. "I was researching."

"Researching?"

"That's right, and you interrupted me."

Naruto needed a moment to make sense of this. "And… what were you researching?"

"Erogenous zones."

If ever there was a time for Naruto to feel one of those "what the fuck?" moments, this would be it. "Huh?"

"It seems that large breasts have different erogenous zones than small breasts. I was cataloging those differences for future reference," Ophis stated. Naruto couldn't tell if she was being serious or not. He wasn't sure he wanted to even know if she was serious or not.

While Naruto was trying—and failing—not to express his disbelief, Koneko had sat on the bed next to Rias and was poking the redhead's breasts. Since Rias was awfully voluptuous, her finger literally sank into the boob as though it was a marshmallow.

"Hey, Buchou. When we have a threesome with Naruto, are you going to let me suck on your breasts, too?"

Rias didn't answer, but that was mostly because she was too exhausted to say anything.

~Devil Ninja~

The next day was the Rating Game between the Gremory Peerage and Reuel's Brave Saints. Rias and her peerage were directed toward their starting point by Michael, while Reuel's group followed Sirzechs.

Naruto could tell when they were transported to that other dimension. The air around them shifted, and the interior changed from a small room to a large, open plain. Blinking several times, Naruto looked at the sky. The swirling vortices that represented this dimension danced around in colorful patterns.

It looked like this dimension was mostly an open plain with monolithic pillars of stone jutting from the surface. There must have been hundreds of them. They rose from the earth like silent, unmoving golems, surrounding him and the others, and casting dark shadows along the ground. He judged the tallest one to be about fifty meters in height.

"These things are going to make finding our enemies difficult," Kiba said, staring up at the nearest pillar.

"But it also means they won't be able to find us as easily," Akeno pointed out. "Aside from that, all of us can fly."

"No." Rias shook her head. "Take a look at how this dimension was set up. The tops of those pillars is the 'ceiling' of this place. I suspect they realized we'd be able to fly off if they made an 'outside' battleground and accounted for that in advance."

"Okay." Akeno shrugged. "So no flying."

"Do you have a plan?" Naruto asked Rias.

"We don't know our enemies capabilities, and we don't know the layout," Rias began. "We can't rectify the first without battling Reuel and his Brave Saints, but we can at least fix the second problem. Naruto, send out as many clones as you can and have them scout the area. I want you to draw a map."

Naruto grinned as he brought up his hands and formed a hand seal with his fingers. "All right! Let's start this game off with a bang! Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

A massive amount of Narutos suddenly appeared before them. There must have been hundreds of them. They didn't waste a second before splitting up and running off, leaving the Gremory Peerage as eight once more.

"Well, that was an unusual sight," Kiba joked.

"I didn't know you could make that many clones," Issei said.

"I usually don't." Naruto shrugged. "The Kage Bunshin no Jutsu takes my chakra and splits it evenly between me and my clones. While this makes them indistinguishable from me, it also means that the more clones I make, the less chakra each one has."

"So the more clones you have, the weaker they are," Koneko said, nodding. Outside of Rias, she knew the most about his cloning technique, since he and Koneko trained together more often than the others.

"Right. When you create so many, they aren't very good in a fight." Which he had discovered the hard way back in his own world. He used to use them a lot in battle, but they would always get massacred. "However, for scouting missions, clones are perfect."

There wasn't much for them to do but wait until Naruto's clones dispelled themselves, so everyone did their best to make themselves comfortable. Naruto waited beside Rias. He glanced at the others. Kiba was leaning against one of the pillars, his arms crossed. Koneko was trying to pull the paper bag Gasper was wearing off of his head.

"Nooooo! Stop it, Konekoooo!"

"Why? We're not in a crowd of people anymore. You should be fine without wearing that."

"But we're outsiiiiiiide!"

"So?"

"Kyaaaaaa!"

Poor kid.

Realizing that he couldn't see Issei, Asia, and Akeno, Naruto stood up and prepared to head out.

"If you're looking for Asia, Akeno, and Ise, they went around that pillar," Rias said, pointing to a specific pillar several meters away. "I'd recommend giving them some time alone. I don't know what they're talking about, but it's probably best if we don't interfere. Isn't that what you told me? That this is their problem?"

"Yeah, I did." Naruto sat back down. "I guess I just can't help but feel worried."

"I'm worried too," Rias admitted. "But you were right when you said we need to let them solve their own problems. I think we should do our best not to interfere."

Naruto agreed with Rias, and so he ignored his inclination to check up on them. He was probably better off not knowing what they were talking about. It might make him want to interfere, which he didn't think they would appreciate.

Just then, a familiar tickling sensation entered his mind. Images flashed before his eyes, like a video being replayed. He shifted.

"It looks like my clones are starting to dispel," Naruto said.

"How long will it take before all of them have dispelled?" asked Rias.

"I don't know." Naruto closed his eyes as a few more clones dispelled. "I created about two-hundred clones, so there should be enough to thoroughly explore this level… but we don't know how big this place is… another clone just dispelled."

"This place will be about the same size as the colosseum," Rias told him.

Nodding, Naruto focused on disseminating all of the information he was now getting. It seemed like Rias was right. His clones were dispelling much faster now, and judging from what he was seeing, many of them had reached the end of the dimension. While most of them only gave Naruto a first-person map of the surrounding area, several of them had given Naruto a good surprise.

"I've found Reuel and his peerage," he said.

"Good. That means we can plan our strategy." Rias stood up and called for the others. Kiba, Koneko, and a frightened Gasper came over to her. Issei, Asia, and Akeno did not.

"Naruto, can you bring them back here for me?" she asked.

"Sure thing."

Naruto wandered around the large pillar. He found the trio easily enough. Asia and Issei were standing on one side and Akeno stood apart from them. She looked uncomfortable. They all did, but Naruto had the sense that Akeno was the most self-conscious person there. While he was loathe to stop what appeared to be such an important discussion, Naruto knew that the Rating Game took precedence right now.

"Hey, you three," Naruto called out to them. "It's time to come up with a plan of action. We need you guys with us."

"All right," Issei called back before turning back to Akeno. "Listen, Akeno-sa—I mean, Akeno. You don't have to answer right now, but I… no, we would really appreciate if you could at least think about it."

Akeno looked like she wanted to draw into herself and hide. She looked away and grasped her elbow as though she was a schoolgirl talking to a guy who made her uncomfortable. "I… can't promise anything."

"We know," Asia said softly. "Just… please think about it."

"I can at least do that," Akeno agreed with a rare smile.

The trio walked up to Naruto and they all traveled back over to Rias, who was waiting patiently for him to return with the others. Her eyes lit up when she saw him. She then gestured for him and the others to join up with Kiba, Koneko, and Gasper, which they did. Once they were all there, she explained their strategy.

"Since we don't know how powerful anyone in Reuel's Brave Saints are, I think we should take them out individually," Rias explained. "We'll have Naruto use his clones to separate each member and lead them into an ambush."

"How many people are we using for these ambushes?" asked Kiba. "Are we going all out, or should we have some people in reserve."

Because neither the Brave Saints of the fallen angel peerages could use promotion, there was no need for them to guard their starting point. The goal was not to get your pawns from one side to the other. This had been a new rule they implemented since only devil peerages used chess-based rules in their fights.

"Since there are eight of us here, I think moving in groups of four would work best," Rias said. "I'll lead one group and Akeno will lead the other. Ise, Asia, and Kiba, you three are going to be with me. Akeno, you'll take Naruto, Gasper, and Koneko. Naruto, can you create a few clones? One of them will go with me. I want the others to keep their eyes on our opponents and dispel whenever they change direction."

"That'll take a lot of clones," Naruto said.

"Is it unfeasible?"

Thinking about Rias's question for a moment, Naruto eventually shook his head. "No… I can create a couple thousand if need be. The problem is that more clones means less places where they can hide."

"Why don't you split your chakra four ways?" suggested Koneko. "One can go with Buchou, and then you can have two that scout ahead. Since your chakra is evenly split, they should have enough to create a clone of their own and dispel."

"That would work in the short term, but not the long term," Naruto said. "When a clone dispels, the chakra is lost. If I created three clones, and one of those clones created another clone that immediately dispelled itself, the clone in question would only have half of its chakra, which is a third of my chakra."

"But you have a lot of that chakra stuff, right?" Issei asked. "It shouldn't matter if you lose some."

"No, Naruto is correct," Rias said. "We don't know how powerful our enemy is. We should conserve our strength as much as possible." She thought for a moment. "Okay. Naruto, give me the general location of our opponents. We'll split into groups of three and attack based off that knowledge. I don't think I need to tell any of you this, but be careful."

Everyone nodded at her words, and with their teams set, the two groups split up.

"Come on, you three," Akeno said. "Let's go."

Kiba, Koneko, and Naruto followed Akeno. As they were leaving, Naruto noticed Akeno glance at Issei and Asia one last time before Rias's group disappeared from sight.

~Devil Ninja~

Reuel had a total of nine Brave Saints: Justine, Augustus, Floa, Octavia, Erica, Lawrence, Phillipe, Michelle, and Katrina. Rias did not know what their powers were, nor how strong they were. She only knew their names and faces. Since they were reincarnated angels, there was also a chance that, like reincarnated devils, some of them were Sacred Gear users. They would need to be cautious.

"We're coming up on the first location you recommended," Rias said as she, Asia, Issei, and Gasper rushed through the pillars. Gasper was currently riding on Issei's shoulder. He didn't have the stamina that everyone else did.

"Chances are they've already moved from that spot," Naruto's voice crackled with static. "Be careful of traps."

"We will."

Rias rounded a corner with the others. They immediately needed to leap away and separate as a massive beam of energy destroyed the area they had been standing on. Rias looked up. There were four members of Reuel's peerage standing together. In front of them was a massive magic circle, which was currently crackling with discharged energy.

It looks like they're combining their power to form some kind of magic attack.

The Brave Saints system was centered around cards, unlike the Evil Pieces of a devil's peerage, which was chess based. Rias knew only a little bit about the Brave Saints. Technically, it was still an experimental system. However, it wouldn't be illogical to assume that the Brave Saints couldn't create special attacks based on specific card games like Blackjack or Poker.

I should have picked Irina's brain about the Brave Saint system more.

She had spoken with Irina a bit because she wanted to understand a little about the Brave Saints system. It was also a way to bond with Irina. However, she hadn't asked for specifics on how the system worked because she didn't want her friend to think she was trying to discover the system's weakness for exploitation. She was beginning to regret her decision.

"It looks like they're charging that bigass magic cannon again!" Issei warned them.

"Ise, move to the back with Asia and charge up your Boosted Gear. Gasper, see if you can stop their time, or at least stop the cannon from firing. I'll cover you!"

Rias raced to the front. The cannon was indeed charging up. A bright white light emitted from the center, and sparks flew from it like electrical discharges.

Because she didn't know how much power was contained in those attacks, Rias decided not to defend. Sometimes offense was the best defense. She channeled great quantities of her Power of Destruction into her hands, which were soon engulfed in ethereal crimson flames. concentrating, Rias forced her Powers of Destruction into a shape: a pair of twin swords that extended from her hands.

The cannon fired off. A massive beam of energy flew at her far faster than she had expected. Rias shouted as she crossed her arms and swung them in an X-pattern just as the cannon attack struck. The massive energy attack was sliced apart. Each part swerved violently and struck one of the pillars, decimating it. The four simultaneously and equally massive explosions created a shockwave that washed over them, yet Rias didn't look away from the four Brave Saints who were standing high above them.

They were frozen.

"R-Rias-sama… I can't keep them frozen like this for long!" Gasper said. Turning her head, Rias saw that Gasper's eyes had changed and he was holding out his hands toward the group on the cliff. They were shaking.

"Ise! Can you perform a Dragon Shot?"

"I'm on it!" Issei sprung forward, a compressed orb of demonic energy hovering in front of him. "It's time to unleash my load on you suckers! Dragon Shot!"

Rias would have facepalmed at Issei's words, but she didn't have the time. Issei punched the compressed ball of energy not even a second later. The attack that erupted from his fist took the form of a gigantic beam that slammed into the pillar that the Brave Saints had been standing on. Not only did it carve a massive chunk right into the pillar, but it blasted through it, destroying the enormous stone structure. The gigantic land formation collapsed.

"Did that get them?" asked Issei.

Rias was about to comment, but at that moment, a black distortion appeared in front of Issei. Thanks to his training, Issei reacted immediately. He jumped away from the distortion. It was a good thing. A large black hole soon appeared there, and it began sucking in everything within a 50 meter radius.

"Waaaaa!" Gasper screamed as he was pulled in. He tried to find purchase along the ground, but there was nothing to grab. He was lifted into the air and sucked toward the black hole.

"Dragon Whip!" Issei shouted as he extended his Boosted Gear. A whip shot out from the gauntlet and wrapped around Gasper. Issei used that whip to pull the half vampire toward him.

While Issei did that, Rias stood protectively in front of Asia. Her arms were spread wide, and there was a large reddish dome surrounding them, which kept them both from being pulled into the black hole. While the drain on her energy was minimal, it took a lot of concentration to keep her and Asia from slipping toward the black hole.

"Gasper!" she shouted over the howling wind. "I need you to stop the time of that Black Hole!"

"I-I caaaan't! I don't have enough power!"

"Then drink some of Ise's blood!"

"Nooooo! I don't want to! I don't like the taste of bloooooodd!"

"Now isn't the time, Gasper!"

"B-but I—"

"Rias is right," Issei shouted. He then bit into his thumb, drawing blood, and stuck it inside of Gasper's mouth. "We need your power, so please lend us a hand. Go ahead and suck on my finger."

That sounded so wrong, Ise. So wrong. Rias shook her head.

Gasper's eyes changed as Issei's blood entered his veins. Forbidden Balor View. The eyes turned into gateways through which the power of Forbidden Balor View could be channeled. It was amazing to watch as the area around them turned partially gray, as though the world was losing its color. Even more remarkable than that was how the black hole was slowly stopping. The air around the black hole stopped howling as darkness spread across the land. Rias nearly jumped when a massive jaw erupted from the ground and chomped down on the black hole, devouring it.

Then the world reverted to normal. Rias sighed as she let the barrier drop.

"Are you okay, Asia?" she asked, helping the girl stand.

"Yes, I'm fine. Thank you for protecting me."

"Of course. Anything for my cute servant."

Rias lead Asia over to Issei and Gasper, who also appeared to be unharmed, though Gasper had tears in his eyes.

"Why did you do that, Ise-senpaiiii! You know I hate bloooood!"

Issei rubbed the back of his head. "I know. I'm sorry about that, but we needed your power. Without you, that black hole might have consumed us."

"Ise is right." Rias placed a hand on Gasper's head and tenderly rubbed it. "We would have been done without you. Thank you, Gasper."

Gasper smiled in spite of what happened. "You're welcooooome!"

"What do we do now?" Issei asked. "It doesn't look like we defeated anyone. There was no announcement."

"You're right," Rias said. "It's unfortunate, but at least we learned something important during this skirmish."

"What's that?" asked Asia.

Rias gave them a grim smile. "There are at least two Sacred Gear users among the four who attacked us."

~Devil Ninja~

"Akeno, you need to be careful. It looks like they've set up ambush points for us," Rias said over their communication device.

Naruto and the others were flying through the towering monoliths when they heard the words. Akeno, who was in the lead, placed a hand against her ear, even as she swerved around a massive stone trunk that jutted from the ground. Naruto, Koneko, and Kiba followed close behind her.

"An ambush, huh?" Akeno murmured.

"Yes, and while I can't confirm it, the Brave Saints seem to have some special abilities that are similar to the Evil Piece system."

"Gotcha. We'll be careful." Akeno turned to Naruto, Kiba, and Koneko. "You heard Rias-sama. It looks like they've set up ambushes for us. Going in with guns blazing isn't going to do us any good."

"In that case, let me go on ahead," Naruto suggested. "I'm strong enough that I can survive whatever ambush they throw at me. I'll let them spring their trap on me, and while I have them distracted, you guys can come in and take them out from behind."

Akeno nodded. "That's a sound plan, and I can't think of a better one without knowing what my opponent's capabilities are. We'll go with it."

"Be careful," Koneko said.

"Don't worry. I won't act recklessly."

"Coming from you, that doesn't mean much," Kiba joked.

"Oh, stuff it. I'm plenty careful. See ya!"

Naruto took off in a burst of speed, leapt off the ground, and landed feet first on one of the pillars. Rather than just remain there, Naruto pumped chakra into his feet and blasted off the pillar. Then he flipped around and landed on the next pillar and did the same thing. He bounced from pillar to pillar, increasing his speed until everything was passing by him in a blur, mere streaks of brown and gray.

As he leapt from one pillar to another, Naruto created several clones. He only managed to create five before it happened. During one of those moments, just as he was about to leap to another pillar, the area around his feet suddenly froze. Naruto blinked.

"Get him now while he's still frozen!"

Several people leapt at him. Most of them were holding light spears, but one of them had what appeared to be a whip, and the other was wielding an element of some sort.

Naruto clicked his tongue and shoved more chakra into his feet, shattering the ice. He leapt off the pillar and onto the ground. He was just in time. The pillar collapsed from the numerous attacks committed upon it.

Dusting himself off, Naruto looked at the five people surrounding him. One was a beautiful blonde woman, her arms crossed underneath her modest chest. The other two women were a brunette and redhead respectively. While the redhead's hands were covered in fire, the brunette had a light spear in her hand. The other two were men; one of them was a spiky-headed ruffian sort of fellow, while the other had an androgynous appearance that most people would have probably found misleading.

"It looks like the whole welcoming committee is here," Naruto said in a bright, cheerful voice. "Hi! I'm Naruto!"

"We know," the blonde woman said, her voice somewhat dry. "You made sure everyone knew your name at the party."

"So I did," Naruto admitted. "What's your name?"

"I'm Erica."

"And I'm Phillipe," said the androgynous male.

"Michelle," the redhead said.

"Katrina," the brunette introduced herself as.

Naruto looked at the ruffian, who noticed this and clicked his tongue. He didn't say anything. This prompted Naruto to ask, "Lawrence?"

"Don't call me that!" Lawrence shouted.

"He hates his name," Erica told Naruto. "We're not sure why. All he said was that a name like 'Lawrence' isn't manly enough for someone like him."

"That's because Lawrence is a sissy's name!"

"I see. So he doesn't like his name. That's too bad," Naruto said. "I think Lawrence is a good name. It suits him."

"Graaa!" Lawrence looked like he was ready to slam his head against a wall. "All of you just shut up! And you!" Lawrence pointed his light spear at Naruto. "You're going down right here! Right now!"

"Oh, I wouldn't be so sure of that." Naruto grinned. "You see, I created a shadow clone some time ago and have already switched places with it."

"What?" Lawrence's words turned into a surprised squawk when the Naruto in front of him disappeared. "What the heck just happened?!"

Having replaced himself with a clone, Naruto leapt out from behind a pillar, a large blue ball of swirling energy already in his hand. It wasn't the size of his palm. It was the size of a basketball.

"Oodama Rasengan!"

The five Brave Saints scattered as Naruto slammed his rasengan into the ground. A massive explosion went up. Naruto used it to propel him back into the air and toward the blonde woman, Erica, who wore a shocked face.

"You're wide open!" Naruto shouted.

"That's what you think," she said back. "Element Zero!"

Naruto's forward momentum was halted when he slammed face first into something. It felt like he'd struck a wall. Erica shouted, and suddenly, the wall exploded and sent Naruto blasting back toward the ground, where Michelle was waiting for him.

"Blazer!" the girl shouted as she threw a punch at him. Her fist was on fire.

Since Naruto had no desire to get it, he used the replacement technique on a boulder from the destroyed pillar. Michelle's fist struck the boulder. The explosion that followed was impressive. Massive gusts of searing hot wind flew outward from the center of impact. Numerous molten rock fragments also soared through the air, striking the ground like small meteorites.

Naruto wasn't given a moment's rest. Katrina and Lawrence had appeared on either side of him and were coming in fast. Both of them were wielding a light spear. While Naruto was confident in his durability, he didn't want to test it either. He leapt backward—right into the waiting attack of Phillipe.

"Gravity Error," Phillipe shouted. A large black orb shot forward and slammed into Naruto. True to the attack's name Naruto, it felt a lot like gravity had experienced a sudden massive increase. Sadly for Phillipe, however many times more than earth's normal gravity this was, it wasn't enough to slow Naruto down.

Pumping even more chakra into his feet, Naruto threw himself at Phillipe, who didn't even have a moment to realize that his attack hadn't worked. Naruto's foot met the angel's face. Phillipe was blasted backward, into a pillar, which exploded from the force of his impact.

"D-dang it! How is this guy so strong?" Lawrence asked as he and the others regrouped.

"I'll be happy to answer your question!" Naruto bellowed as he struck a pose that wouldn't have looked out of place on a chuunibyo. "I am the most amazing, incredible, and strongest ninja in the entire universe! Now bow before the impeccable might of the great Uzumaki Naruto-sama!"

Silence met his declaration. Dead silence. Naruto watched as everyone stared at him, and then he watched as a tumbleweed blew between him and his opponents. The silence continued.

"You guys are a tougher crowd than I thought," Naruto mumbled as he noticed several shadows peeking out from behind a pillar. He grinned. "But at least my distraction was a success. Now's your chance!"

The group of angels barely had time to move before a massive bolt of lightning shot between them. As the five angels were forced to separate, two shadows darted out from behind the pillar, revealing themselves to be Koneko and Kiba. They quickly tackled an angel and forced them away from their comrades.

This fight had just become one on one.

Except for Naruto, who had to fight two on one.

He was lucky like that.

~Devil Ninja~

Koneko frowned at her opponent. Katrina had brown hair and a lithe figure, similar to Koneko herself except she was taller. It made her appear lanky instead of proportionate like her. Unlike the high level angels who wore white robes, this one wore regular human clothes, jean shorts and a white sleeveless shirt. She also had several wristbands of varying color.

"Don't feel too bad about losing to me," Koneko said, cracking her knuckles.

"I don't know how you can say that when you haven't won." Katrina brandished her light spear with two hands. From her stance, Koneko determined that she was well-versed in combat.

"You will," Koneko told her.

Without waiting for an opening, Koneko threw herself at Katrina. Her attack, a powerful left jab, was blocked by the light spear in Katrina's hand. Thanks to her durability as a Rook, the attack didn't hurt. Even so, steam rose from her hand as her opponent was sent flying backwards.

"So this is the strength of a Rook," Katrina mumbled. "I can see how that would be troublesome to deal with."

"That was only a taste of what I can do," Koneko said before leaping into the air. She descended toward Katrina, who decided not to defend herself again and threw her spear at Koneko instead. Sadly, the spear shattered as Koneko, twisting her body around like an acrobat, landed a heel drop on the weapon. She then descended the rest of the way.

Katrina leapt back as Koneko slammed into the ground. The earth shook as large cracks spread across the surface. Perhaps sensing an opening, Katrina tossed the spear at Koneko again, but it broke upon her fist when she punched it. Koneko then launched herself into a sprint and threw another punch that was dodged.

Her fist plowed into the pillar that Katrina had been standing behind, causing the entire thing to shake. Grunting, Koneko yanked her arm out of the hole it had made and slammed a kick into the pillar's surface. Cracks spread before the entire base shattered.

Several fragments nearly hit Katrina, but she spread her wings and took to the sky. So did Koneko. She followed the angel. Her ears popped out of her hair, twitching as the cool air hit them. A tail extended from behind her. With a "nya" of concentration, Koneko created several dozen orbs that surrounded Katrina.

She closed her fist.

As though the action was some kind of signal, all of the orbs enclosed around Katrina. She tried to cut them apart, but every orb she sliced into exploded, sending her into another one, which also exploded. Koneko landed back on the ground and watched as explosion after explosion engulfed Katrina. When the attacks finally ceased, her angelic foe was nowhere to be found.

"Katrina has been retired."

"Boo ya," Koneko said, pumping her fist into the air.

~Devil Ninja~

"Gravity Error!"

Kiba grimaced as his forward rush was halted. His opponent was a young man of Italian descent. With olive colored skin, brown hair, brown eyes, and… highly eccentric fashion choice, he reminded Kiba a lot of a bull rider. His matador outfit looked kind of ridiculous.

His powers were not.

"I see," Kiba grunted as he dodged a light spear. His body felt heavy. "You have a Sacred Gear that lets you manipulate gravity."

"I do indeed," Phillipe said in a thick Italian accent. "Gravity Error allows me to manipulate gravity within a limited area. I can make gravity lighter or heavier, and there's no real limit to the area affected beyond how much power I put into my attack."

"That's a pretty neat power," Kiba admitted.

While Phillipe had said that his power had no limited, Kiba knew that his words weren't necessarily true. He didn't think the angel was lying. Angels couldn't lie or they became fallen angels. Still, Phillipe probably didn't realize that his Sacred Gear had some kind of downside. It made sense. Most people who possessed a Sacred Gear didn't know everything there was to know about their power.

Kiba planned on finding out what that weakness was.

"I see that a Knight's speed allows you to keep ahead of my gravity," Phillipe said. "That won't save you in the end."

Kiba darted across the battlefield, his enhanced speed letting him to keep from being squashed by the increased gravity field. He moved in close to Phillipe and created a sword of darkness. His idea was to attack Phillipe while he was busy manipulating gravity. That plan didn't work out as he expected. The moment Kiba got within a few feet of his opponent, the gravity around him suddenly increased and his sword stabbed into the ground.

"I forgot to mention that I can also create a gravity field around myself for protection," Phillipe said. He launched a kick at Kiba, but it was avoided when Kiba leapt backward. The darkness sword disappeared and reappeared in Kiba's hand.

"You're a troublesome opponent, I'll give you that," Kiba said. "But I think you'll find that I can also be pretty troublesome."

"Undoubtedly."

Rather than rely on close-range sword skills, Kiba created several dozen swords that jutted from the ground beneath Phillipe's feet. The attack was dodged. Pinions spread from Phillipe's back, and with a flap of his wings, he soared into the sky, avoiding the spiky death. Kiba clicked his tongue and threw several swords at Phillipe, but none of them reached the angel, who manipulated the gravity to make the swords fall back to the ground.

Undeterred, Kiba flew upward, high over the head of Phillipe, There he attacked with even more vigor than before. Dozens of swords appeared all around Phillipe. They attacked in mass, flying forward with unerring accuracy. Kiba watched carefully to see if he could discover anything about Phillipe's power that might be useful to him.

Is that…? It is!

When several small cuts appeared on Phillipe arms, legs, and face after several swords flew down at him from above, Kiba knew what Gravitor Error's weakness was.

All right. Here we go!

With a plan forming in his mind, Kiba landed back on the ground, bent his knees, and kicked off the dirt. He flew high into the air again and attacked Phillipe with a relentless pace. His first attack came in from the front. Nothing happened. The blades dropped to the ground. Landing back on the ground, Kiba disappeared as he put on another burst of speed and attacked from behind. Then he attacked from the left. Next the right. The left again. The right. Front. He kept disappearing and reappearing, only to attack Phillipe from another angle. Phillipe tried to keep up, but he didn't have a Knight's speed. All he could even see were after images.

"Above you!" Kiba shouted as he reappeared above Phillipe. He could feel the gravity from the Phillipe's Sacred Gear taking effect. It dragged him down, toward Phillipe, who only had enough time to look up before Kiba sliced into his back. Phillipe's scream disappeared along with him as he evaporated into particles.

"Phillipe has been retired."

Kiba landed on the ground. Dusting himself off, he wandered off in search of his comrades.

~Devil Ninja~

"Ara, ara," Akeno giggled as she and Erica danced through the air, trading strikes like a pair of bitter enemies. Every bolt of lightning she sent at her angelic foe, the attack would splash off of what appeared to be an invisible wall. "You're quite talented. I hadn't realized the angels had such a unique Sacred Gear user on their side."

The Sacred Gear that Erica used was not exactly rare, but it wasn't what she would have considered common either. Element Zero allowed its wielder to create invisible barriers and attacks. The barriers could block just about anything, which meant Akeno's lightning did next to nothing, since it never came close to hitting her opponent.

"And you… I've heard that you were a hybrid between devil and fallen angel," Erica said. "That's next to unheard of."

"Don't mention that to me," Akeno said, her smiling face morphing into a scowl.

"I see that you do not like your fallen angel blood," Erica murmured. "I do not know why this is, but it means little to me."

Lightning sliced the air, but it was blocked by a large, invisible wall. Akeno quickly swerved away from her previous position. Seconds later, an invisible attack slammed into the pillar that had been behind her, toppling the entire thing like a house of cards being kicked by an angry child. Akeno grimaced. It was hard dodging an attack when she didn't even know when, where, or which direction it was coming from.

Akeno randomly flew through the air as several more attacks crashed into the ground below her, denting the earth as though a giant, invisible fist was punching the ground. So long as she kept this up, Akeno was sure she'd be fine. Unfortunately, this meant she had no chances to counterattack.

Her flight must not have been as random as she thought. Pain exploded in her skull a second later when she smacked into something. That wouldn't have been so bad, but then something akin to a sledgehammer crashed into her stomach. Akeno could do nothing but release a soundless scream as she hit the ground hard.

Gritting her teeth and ignoring the blood trailing down her mouth, Akeno rolled along the ground as something slammed into the spot where she'd been lying. She scrambled to her feet and launched a lightning bolt at Erica. It was blocked. Again.

"That sort of straightforward assault won't work on me," Erica said, and Akeno moved out of the way as several more attacks came at her. This woman was easily the worst opponent a person could have. How was Akeno expected to defeat this woman if she could use attacks and defenses that were invisible?

Since it was clear that she couldn't win in a straight out fight, Akeno rushed behind the nearest pillar. Her cover didn't last long. Something slammed into the pillar with the force of a hurricane, which sent the entire thing crumbling. This just forced Akeno to run to another pillar.

Keeping up the game of cat and mouse, Akeno tried to think of a way out of this mess. If Erica could block any attack she sent, then it meant she either needed to overwhelm her defense with a massive offense, or she needed to attack her when Erica wasn't looking. There was also…

I wonder if she can block attacks coming from more than one direction?

Akeno wanted to test that theory. To that end, as she stepped out from behind her pillar, she created several magic circle that surrounded Erica on all sides. The angel stopped whatever she'd been doing and looked at the circles. For perhaps the first time since this fight, Akeno thought she saw apprehension on her opponent's face.

For some reason, that look wasn't as delicious as it normally was.

"I don't know if you can block this, but I hope for your sake that you can," Akeno said right before she unleashed several dozen lightning attacks.

The air was split with a thunderous roar.

~Devil Ninja~

"Erica has been retired."

Naruto backflipped away from his opponents as they each launched their respective attacks. The heat from Michelle's Sacred Gear washed over Naruto, though her attack was too far away to hurt him. Likewise, Lawrence's light spears kept missing their mark as Naruto continued backflipping until his feet met the pillar behind him.

With chakra at the bottom of his feet, Naruto burst forward. The two angels leapt away as he struck the ground. A cloud of dust rose all around him like plumes of smoke from a fire. Like the ninja that he was, Naruto darted out of the cloud seconds before the area became perforated with holes. He shook his head when Michelle set the cloud on fire for good measure.

He pondered the best way to defeat these two. Naruto was sure that he could do so easily, but he didn't want to just destroy them like they were a couple of newbs. This goal was to foster friendship. If he defeated them without putting any effort in, their pride would be hurt. Of course, if he made it look like he wasn't trying, then they would probably get upset too.

What to do. What to—ah!

"Found you!" Michelle shouted as she flew down from above like a, well, like an avenging angel. "Take this! Blazer!"

Naruto's wings spread wide as he flapped them, soaring above Michelle as she crashed into the pillar. The area where her fist struck disappeared as her fire-coated fist melted the rock. Her attack had actually created a large hole, which she flew straight through. That was some impressive power. It might have actually hurt Naruto if it hit.

"You've got to be packing some serious heat to melt through stone like that," Naruto said.

Michelle came back through the hole that she had blasted into the pillar. She landed on the ground several meters from Naruto. "My Sacred Gear, Blazer, can produce heat up to four-thousand degrees celsius. Just so you know, that's the same level of heat required to melt diamonds."

"That is pretty hot," Naruto said, grinning as he sensed movement behind him. So she was trying to distract him with idle chitchat? That wouldn't work. He was the master of distraction! "Then I guess it's a good thing I'm not an easy target!"

Naruto spun around and thrust out his hand. There was a rasengan already formed in his palm. When it met the light spear that Lawrence had thrown at him, it exploded. Naruto used the kinetic energy that their clashing attacks caused to launch himself at Michelle, who needed a moment to realize that their plan had failed.

"Blazer!"

She launched her attack at him. It was a powerful blast of fire so hot that Naruto could feel it burn his face despite how far away it was. Not wanting to get hit, Naruto used shunshin, the basic teleportation jutsu, to move far away from the attack. He reappeared barely a meter from Michelle. It was a short distance, a distance that he closed in a split second. Michelle barely had time to realize that he'd already entered her guard and no time to defend herself.

"Sorry, cutie, but I'm gonna have you sleep for a bit!" Naruto shouted as he thrust his palm into her jaw. It was done at a precise angle. The attack rattled Michelle's brain and caused her to immediately lose consciousness. Since he didn't want her getting hurt anymore, he caught her and lowered her to the floor. Not that it was necessary. She disappeared a second later.

"Michelle has been retired."

"You're going to pay for that!" Lawrence shouted as he charged at Naruto. It wasn't a sound move. Since he was the only person left, he wasn't much of a threat. Naruto put on a burst of incredible speed, rushed at Lawrence, and took him out with a swift blow to the temple. The man flew through the air. Then he struck the ground hard and rolled across it like a ragdoll. He only came to a stop after hitting one of the pillars, and then he disappeared.

"Lawrence has been retired."

With the feeling of victory overflowing from him, Naruto cracked his neck several times and grinned.

"I guess I should meet up with the others," he said to himself. As he began walking off, another thought occurred to him. "I wonder how Rias and her team are doing?"

~Devil Ninja~

Rias had finally figured out how to defeat the group that she and her team were fighting. Thanks to Naruto and the others defeating their opponents, Rias had realized why she and her team couldn't defeat their opponents.

"I've figured out how to counter that huge cannon attack they launched at us before," Rias told the others. The angel team had retreated to a safe point far from them after launching their attack. Rias assumed that the cannon attack was their trump card.

"If you've figured out how we can counter that huge attack, I'm all ears," Issei said. He, Gasper, and Asia were crowding around her in a circle.

"That huge attack is similar to the special abilities that our Evil Piece system has," Rias informed them. "Instead of chess moves, their special abilities are based off card games like Blackjack. The Brave Saints system is based off of card hands. There's the King, Queen, Jack, Ace, and the card numbers two through ten. Much like a regular hand of cards, the Brave Saints can acquire special attributes based on what hands they produce."

"Like having a royal flush in poker?" Kiba asked.

Rias nodded. "Yes, though I imagine they'll need their king to unleash that kind of power. More than likely, the power they used on us was based on Blackjack. I'm almost one-hundred percent positive that the four who fought against us would have made twenty-one if you combined the number amount each of their Brave Saint cards are worth."

"So, how are we supposed to counter that attack?" asked Issei.

"Simple." Rias gave him a victorious smile. "You separate them. It's clear that in order to use their power, they have to be close together. If they're spread out, they can't activate their power. Why else would they bother putting themselves so close together when they know that a single shot from your gauntlet can wipe them out?"

"Huh… that makes sense, I guess."

"Do you have a plan?" asked Asia.

"I do."

Rias's plan called for Issei and Gasper to act as a distraction; they would bring the attention of their opponents onto them while Asia would use her new ability to heal from a distance, which was the skill she had learned during her training, to keep them alive. While this was happening, Rias would use her Powers of Destruction to take out as many of their opponents as she could.

She technically only needed to take out one of their foes. That would be enough to keep them from using their special cannon attack. However, if possible, she wanted to decimate all of them in a single attack.

They found the four Brave Saints lying in wait for them several kilometers from their previous position. Like before, they were standing on a ledge. Since the ledge was halfway between the top and bottom, this allowed them a great view of the surrounding area, though much of that view was blocked by more pillars.

Gasper and Issei darted out from their hiding spots. Since they were on opposite sides of a pillar, this meant the Brave Saints's attention was split two ways.

"Hey, you four!" Issei shouted. "I hope you're ready, because Gasper and me are going to double team you!"

Gasper paused upon hearing Issei's words. He blushed several seconds later, his face bright red. "Ah, Ise-senpai! I don't think I'm ready for that kind of commitment, but I guess it's okay if it's you."

"Huh?" Issei just looked confused.

The Brave Saints seemed to decide that Issei was the bigger threat, probably because of his Dragon Shot ability. Its destructive power was second to none among Rias's current team. While Issei did his best to boost his Sacred Gear's power, he was also forced to dodge massive blasts from the cannon attack. Even Rias, who stood about a dozen meters away from the primary battle, could feel the resulting shockwave from each successive attack reverberate through the earth. She could only imagine how that felt up close.

Time was of the essence here. Rias knew that, and so rather than worry about her comrades, she decided to trust in their abilities. While Issei, Gasper, and Asia did their jobs, Rias charged up her magic.

As a high class devil, Rias was blessed with a large well of magic to draw from. Her demonic powers might not have been close to her brother's level, but she also wasn't a fully matured devil. Even so, Rias was quite proud of the power she wielded. When fully unleashed, she probably had enough to destroy an entire city block.

Concentrate. Concentrate. Concentrate. She focused her magic into her hands, drawing out her reserves of power. The idea was to compress all of her magic into a sphere of energy, which she planned to unleash on their opponents. It would be more than enough to retire them.

It was too bad she wouldn't get the chance to use all that power.

Barely a second into her charging, Rias's instincts screamed at her to move. She did. Leaping to the side, Rias almost screamed in surprise when something exploded right next to her. Heat seared her skin and scorched her eyes. It was not the kind of heat that came from fire. She recognized the pain. It was light magic. Angelic magic.

Looking up, Rias saw who had attacked her. It was Reuel. With long hair the color of glimmering silver, blue eyes that were more clear than the sky, and a fragile appearance reminiscent of a glass doll, the angel before her appeared more ethereal than anybody she had ever met. She didn't want to underestimate him because of his appearance. Even so, it was hard when the aura he gave off was so sporadic. His powers flickered in and out as though they were unstable. Rias didn't think that was natural.

"I hadn't expected you to come out yourself," Rias said.

Reuel smiled. "My Brave Saints had convinced me not to fight, but after five of them were retired, I decided that it would be rude of me to remain idle while they were risking themselves for my sake."

"I can accept that." Rias nodded. "A good leader is one who is always there for his or her people."

"On that we can agree."

Since she had never faced an angel in combat before, Rias did not know what to was why she decided to test the waters by sending several small attacks at Reuel. She launched a total of twelve spheres. The dark crimson energy was deflected by a shield that sprang up in front of Reuel. She narrowed her eyes as her own powers bounced off the shield and detonated against numerous pillars.

"That is an automatic defense," she declared.

"It is indeed," Reuel admitted. "I do not have any control over this power. In fact, I'm not very good at using my powers at all."

"Then I was right," Rias muttered to herself. "Your powers are unstable."

Reuel wore a kind smile. "Yes, though not for the reasons you might think—and it's not like I can't use my powers. I just need to be careful."

As though he wanted to emphasize his point, Reuel raised his hand above his head. Light particles gathered in the air, coalescing together, taking shape. Rias gawked as a spear appeared in Reuel's hand. It wasn't shock that he could create a spear. It was shock at the spear's size. She remembered the spears that Kokabiel had created. Those were large, but this… this was massive. It was easily ten times the size of a person.

"I apologize in advance," Reuel said, "but I have no real control over my own power, so this might hurt a bit."

And then he brought the spear down. Rias launched herself to the side, using her wings to gain extra speed. The heat from the massive spear as it was swung down burned her, the light blinded her, and when it struck the ground, it created a massive shockwave that slammed into her with all the force of a raging horde of bulls.

Rias gritted her teeth as she tried to keep herself from being thrown around, but it was so difficult. Fierce, hurricane-like winds slammed into her, pushed her. Dust flew everywhere. It stung her eyes and rubbed her skin raw. She did her best to cover her face with her forearm, but that just meant her arms were taking the brunt of the damage instead. She could feel the skin as it was peeled away by several thousand grains of sand moving at speeds faster than most sports cars. It was unimaginably painful.

The attack finally died down. Rias lowered her arms. She gasped upon seeing the extent of damage done by Reuel's attack. A gigantic trench had been carved out of the ground. While Rias couldn't judge just by looking at it, the trench had to be at least a kilometer long, and it was wide enough that several dozen people could stand lengthwise across it. If that wasn't enough, then the pillars that had been standing in the attacks path were gone. Annihilated.

"What incredible power," she muttered.

"This power is more of a curse than a blessing," Reuel said. He was still floating in the air, though it looked like he'd been thrown backwards by his own attack. With his hair in complete disarray and his eyes drooping, the angel looked worn, as though his last attack had damaged him more than her.

"I could imagine why," Rias muttered. "It looks like you can't control it very well."

"No, I cannot," Reuel agreed. "That is why most of my power has been sealed. What you just saw was the minimum amount of power I have at my disposal. The rest is locked away."

Rias was sure her eyes were bulging. That was the minimum amount of power that he had? What kind of monstrous strength did this angel possess?

"Now then," Reuel began, creating another massive light spear. "Shall we try this again?"

He brought the spear down once more, but this time, Rias didn't know what to do. She could flee, of course, but it wasn't like running would help. That attack had hurt her despite getting out of the way in time. Of course, there was no way she could block it, so fleeing was really her only option, but…

Before she could come to a decision, another massively powerful aura entered the battlefield. It was familiar. She recognized this power.

Appearing seemingly out of nowhere, a giant clawed hand reached out and grabbed onto the spear, stopping it in its tracks. Reuel was so shocked that he nearly dropped his weapon. The clawed hand squeezed down on the spear, shattering it into millions of tiny fragments that rained onto the ground. Some of those fragments would have hit Rias, but another hand flew forward and covered her.

The remnants of Reuel's power slammed into the hand. They didn't ground through. Rather, it was the many light shards that broke, shattering against the clawed appendage as though they were flimsy glass fragments striking a cement wall.

"Damn, that was some power,"a voice said behind her. The hands retracted. "I had no idea there was an angel among the people participating who had that kind of power."

Rias turned her head. A person was walking toward them, Naruto, his orange jacket blowing in the wind, his blond hair swaying as he moved. Sky blue eyes were grinning up at the angel who floated several dozen meters above them.

"Naruto…" Rias muttered.

Grinning with a vibrancy that couldn't be faked, Naruto greeted her. "Hey, Rias. I felt this guy's power skyrocketing and thought you might want a hand."

"I could definitely do with some help," Rias admitted. "I had no idea Reuel would have that kind of power."

"I don't think any of us did," Naruto said. "Go help your team. I'll keep Reuel busy."

"Okay. Thank you, Naruto."

Rias flapped her wings and headed off in the direction that Asia, Gasper, and issei were at. Since no announcement had been made about anyone retiring, it meant they were still fighting. She could only hope they would still be there when she reached them.

~Devil Ninja~

Looking up at the angel floating in the sky, Naruto had a strange sense of deja vu. It wasn't the kind he got from having seen this situation before. Perhaps it was due to the expression on his opponent's face, or maybe it had something to do with the lonely aura surrounding the other boy, but as Naruto looked at Reuel, he felt almost like he was staring into a mirror and seeing his past self.

"Since you've already attacked twice, I think that means it's my turn to take this battle to you," Naruto said, grinning as he knelt down. His muscles bunched together. With a boost of chakra, Naruto launched himself skyward.

Naruto quickly created two clones. One launched him further into the air. The other created a rasengan. As he soared above Reuel, the rasengan Naruto clone tried to slam his jutsu into the angel's sternum. It didn't work. Reuel had been able to see the attack coming and reacted more quickly than the clone. The attack was dodged.

This didn't mean much, though, as the other clone used the rasengan Naruto as a stepping stool. He leapt off of that Naruto's back and flew up to the real Naruto. With a rasengan already formed in one hand, he allowed his clone to grab the other, spin him around, and throw him at Reuel.

Wind swirled around his rasengan. Cutting blades formed the shape of a shuriken, and a loud shrieking emitted from the attack. As he flew toward his adversary, the Naruto clone stretched out his hand as though attempting to thrust his fuuton rasengan into Reuel's chest.

It was dodged.

That was okay.

Spinning around, Naruto threw the rasengan at Reuel. Thanks to his devil magic, he could control it without using sage mode. Once more, the rasengan was avoided when Reuel swerved out of the way. The rasengan flew into the air, only to be caught by the other clone, who had used his wings to fly after it. After catching the rasengan, clone Naruto threw it at Reuel's exposed back.

The angel's ability to detect danger must have been extraordinary indeed. Reuel spun around and thrust out his hand. A massive spear of light emerged from his palm, piercing the fuuton rasengan. Naruto didn't know what Reuel thought that would accomplish, but he doubted the angel would have tried to destroy his attack like that if he'd known what was going to happen.

Because the fuuton rasengan was nothing but a ball of swirling energy combined with wind chakra, it was extremely volatile. Even the lightest touch would cause it to explode. The light spear was another volatile attack. When the two forces collided, it created an explosion so massive that Naruto worried about the dimension this Rating Game was taking place in breaking.

Howling winds pushed everyone back. Naruto and Reuel were sent soaring backwards like pieces of toilet paper trapped in a fierce wind. The world around him spun. Everything blurred past his eyes in streaks of brown and gray. He felt more than saw his body as it plowed into and then went straight through one of the large pillars, and it wasn't just one. His back soon slammed into another pillar, went through that one, and then slammed into another pillar and another.

His momentum eventually slowed enough for him to flip his body around. The next pillar that he hit, it was with his feet, and he used chakra not only to cushion the blow, but also to keep himself from falling off. He surveyed the area in front of him. It looked like he'd been sent flying for at least a couple dozen meters. Numerous monolithic towers of stone were now nothing but rubble. They must have collapsed after he had struck them.

Launching himself forward, Naruto quickly searched out his foe. Reuel was buried in a crater about ten meters wide and six deep. Unlike Naruto, whose body was sturdy enough to withstand such punishment, Reuel seemed to be having trouble getting up.

This was a good chance to end the Rating Game. Jumping into the crater, Naruto walked over to his opponent, pulled out a kunai, and placed it against the struggling Reuel's jugular.

"That… wasn't the best move you could have made," Naruto told him as Reuel froze. "It would have been better if you'd dodged that last attack. The explosion would have still been quite a sight, but it wouldn't have been that destructive. Combining two such volatile and powerful attacks is the only reason you're in this position right now."

Reuel looked at the kunai against his neck, and then he peered up at Naruto. "I guess this is the part where you tell me to surrender."

"You can keep fighting if you want, but I wouldn't recommend it."

"Justine, Augusta, Floa, and Octavia have been retired," a voice announced.

"It seems I have no choice," Reuel said, sighing. "I didn't really want to battle anyway. I'm more than willing to give you this victory."

~Devil Ninja~

When Rias arrived at the place where Asia, Issei, and Gasper had been distracting Reuel's Brave Saints, it was to discover that Issei and Gasper had already split the group up. Each of them was battling against two of the Brave Saints at a time.

Her pawn was fighting against a woman with long blonde hair and a large bust.

"Come on! I just want to touch them! Let me fondle those titanic tatas of yours! Let me touch your tumbling titties!"

"Noooo!" the girl screamed as she covered her chest and ran in the opposite direction. "Get away from me, you pervert!"

"How can I get away when those massive mammaries are sucking me in?" Issei asked, his hands outstretched and his fingers making creepy grasping motions.

Rias almost sighed at her idiot pawn. While his "pervy" act did an excellent job of throwing the women he fought off balance, it wasn't always the best strategy to take. Though it seemed to be working well against this female. Unfortunately, the girl—Justine, Rias thought her name was—wasn't his only opponent.

"Get away from Justine, perverted trash!" the male, who was flying overhead, shouted. He threw several light spears at Issei, but most of them were dodged by her pawn quickly leaping backwards from one foot to the other.

"I resent being called trash," Issei said. "I am merely carrying on the legacy of a great man."

"What kind of man tries to grope a woman's b-b-b-b—"

"What's the matter? Can't say breasts?" Issei taunted. "Well, I can. Breast. Boobs. Oppai."

"You're shameless!" the man shouted. Rias thought his name was Octavia.

"Damn right I am!"

Coming up behind Issei was Justine. Equipped on her hand were a pair of gauntlets. Rias at first thought they were a dragon Sacred Gear like Twice Critical, but she soon learned otherwise when a pair of swords jutted from her knuckles.

"I finally have you!" she shouted, thrusting both hands out to skewer Issei. It was too bad she shouted that. If she hadn't, Issei might not have realized he was in danger and therefore not reacted as he did.

Rias almost winced when Issei suddenly went down on his hands. What made her wince wasn't the action. It was how he kicked his legs up and mule kicked the poor woman in the chest. He must have already boosted himself quite a bit, because the woman went flying.

"Justine!" Octavia shouted, taking his eyes off of Issei. That would prove to be his downfall.

"Dragon Shot!"

Just like before, Issei created a tiny ball of energy in front of him, and then punched it. A massive beam of crimson energy was discharged. It slammed into Octavia, who was engulfed in a fiery explosion and disappeared.

"Octavia!" Justine shouted.

"Dress Break!"

"Kyaaa!"

Her shout turned into a squeal as, quite suddenly, all of her clothes flew off. She went down to her knees and tried to cover herself as much as possible. In that time, Issei went up to her and pressed Ascalon, embedded into the Boosted Gear, to her neck.

"Please surrender," he said seriously. Despite the poor girl being butt naked, there was, surprisingly, no lust in his eyes. "It may sound sexist of me, but I'd rather not hurt a girl if I can help it."

Justine glared at him, but with a holy sword pointed at her neck, she really didn't have much of a choice.

"I… I surrender." As she spoke those words, Justine suddenly disappeared in a glimmer of light particles.

Ascalon receded back into his gauntlet, and Issei, releasing a massive sigh, sank to the ground. "Man, I'm so tired. Shit, this is worse than that time when Akeno—" he stopped, a grimace appearing on his face.

Seconds later, a voice announced, "Justine and Octavia have been retired."

Since Issei didn't need her help, Rias flew over to Gasper, who was struggling with his opponents. The two, Floa and Augusta were firing light spears at the screaming Gasper. Her Bishop was trying his best to stop their time, but he couldn't concentrate. Unlike her other peerage members, Gasper did not have any experience with battle, even if he was abnormally powerful.

"Get back here!" Augusta screamed.

"Nooooo!" Gasper screamed.

Rias sighed. She had hoped Gasper would be ready for a rating game, but it looked like he was still not at the stage where he could fight against opponents.

Shooting forward on her devil wings, Rias charged the Powers of Destruction into her hand. She had to give the two angels credit. They reacted to her presence the moment she started channeling energy. It wasn't enough.

Rias sent several disc-shaped projectiles at the two. They dodged, of course, swerving out of the way, but her intention hadn't been to hit them. It had been to lure them into a surprise attack. While the pair of angels did what they could to avoid the projectiles that she continually sent at them, Rias manipulated the Powers of Destruction that hit the ground, making them combine into a single entity. Then she drove the two angels into position above the giant circular shaped sleet of energy.

She snapped her fingers.

It erupted from the ground like a crimson tower, engulfing the two in its radiant light, burning them before they had a chance to scream. The towering mass of Rias's power rose into the sky. It dispersed, but not before slamming into the ceiling of this dimension.

"Floa and Augusta have been retired," a voice announced.

Rias flew down and landed next to Gasper, offering him a hand. "Are you okay, Gasper?"

"Rias-Buchou…" Gasper sniffled. "RIAS-BUCHOU!"

Not quite sighing as Gasper buried his face in her chest, Rias wrapped her arms around his head and held him. Her Bishop really was quite the fraidy cat. While she didn't mind him like this, she did hope he would eventually grow mentally stronger. She wanted him to overcome the scars that had made him like this.

While she was hugging Gasper, Asia and Issei walked up to them.

"It looks like we won somehow," Asia said.

"Yeah," Issei muttered. "Big whoop. I just want to go home and sleep now."

"We'll be able to get some rest soon," Rias said. "Good work, you two. I'm sorry I wasn't much help."

"What are you talking about?" asked Issei. "You were fighting that Reuel dude, right? It's thanks to that battle that we were able to separate those four and take them on."

Rias blinked. "Really?"

"Yes," Asia said, nodding several times. "They had pinned Ise-san and Gasper down. We couldn't get past their strange cannon fire. Then there was this massive explosion that knocked everyone off balance. That was when everyone saw you fighting against Reuel. Those four were so distracted that it allowed us to separate them."

"I still don't feel like I did much," Rias confessed. Even if they were correct, they had done more during this battle than she had, and Naruto had taken on the lion's share of the fight. It made her feel slightly useless.

"At least you did something," Asia said, trying to cheer her up no doubt. "All I did was heal Gasper and Ise-san, and I didn't get to heal them much since they didn't need it."

"You shouldn't say things like that," Issei countered. "I would've been a goner if you hadn't healed my shoulder when it became dislodged. I couldn't have won with only one arm."

"Ise is correct on that," Rias said. "Besides, the healer is the most important person in a Rating Game. We need you to stay safe. If you're not around to heal our wounds, then our chances of victory drops significantly."

"I guess…"

It didn't look like Asia was convinced, and unfortunately, Rias wouldn't get a chance to convince her. Mere seconds later, the same announcer voice spoke up. It said, "Reuel has surrendered. Winner by surrender is Rias Gremory."

"Wait. We won?" Issei asked.

"Seems like it," Kiba muttered.

"But how? Who made Reuel surrender?"

"That would be me," Naruto said as he landed on the ground next to them. His clothing looked a little singed, but there didn't seem to be so much as a scratch on him. "I took on Reuel so Rias could back you two up. After you guys defeated the remaining four members of Reuel's Brave Saints, he surrendered."

"Oh…" Issei needed a moment to think about that. "I can't believe we won."

"Try not to think too hard about it," Naruto said.

Rias smiled. "Well, regardless of anything else, we won, and since we survived without a single loss, it can be considered a great victory on our part. Thank you, all of you. I couldn't ask for a better peerage."

"Hey, Rias, since we did so well, can I get a reward?" asked Naruto.

Giving him a suspicious look, Rias asked, "what kind of reward?"

"The kind that involves you, me, and a bed."

"Perv."

"Are you saying you don't want to?"

"I didn't say that."

"If Nyaruto wants a reward, then I'll give it to him," Koneko, speaking in a very odd accent, said as she ran up to them. Rias barely had a moment to realize what was going to happen. She used that moment wisely.

She stepped out of the way.

"What the—brrggleee!"

Rias watched as Koneko, who looked like she was suffering from an overdose of catnip, tackled Naruto to the ground and liberally shoved her tongue down his throat. Asia gasped and covered her eyes, though she peeked out between her fingers. Issei had no such compunctions. He stared at the scene with blood dripping down his nose. Gasper looked like he wanted to look away, but much like a train wreck, his eyes remained glued to the pair as Koneko played tonsil hockey in Naruto's mouth.

"Ara, ara." A giggling Akeno flew in through the air and landed on the ground. She hid her smiling mouth with her hand. Kiba was also with her. "It looks like those two are having fun."

"She's raping his mouth," Rias stated, her tone deadpan.

"She's totally raping his mouth," Issei murmured in a lustful voice. "Ouch!" At least, it was lustful until Asia grabbed him by the cheek and pulled.

"I-it's not right to watch these two while their kissing, Ise! If you want someone to rape your mouth, then I can do that too!"

"Dat nah someshing a hun shoof be faying," Issei said—tried to say. Rias couldn't actually tell what he was trying to say. His cheek was stretched so obscenely it looked like his skin was made of rubber.

"Shouldn't you stop them?" Kiba asked.

Rias looked at Naruto and Koneko for a bit longer. This was happening on live TV, so she probably should stop them…

"Let's allow Koneko to get it out of her system first," Rias said. "I don't want her trying to have sex with Naruto in public."

"Uh…" Kiba had no words for that.

Still on the floor, Koneko continued making out with Naruto, who was too surprised to do anything.

I hope you all enjoyed the chapter. I tried giving some of the side characters a chance to shine, and also introduce a few new aspects to the story. The next chapter won't be coming for awhile, but I plan on kicking things up a notch. I hope you're all looking forward to it.

This might seem like blatant self-advertising, but since it's been so long, I wanted to let everyone know that I have two new books. One of them came out on October 7th, and the other is up for pre-order. If anyone is interested in supporting my writing career, I'd love it if you could grab a copy of my books and give them a read. All of my books can be bought on Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and Books a Million.

A Fox's Vacation (Available on paperback and kindle)

Hot springs, nude scenes, and fan service galore!

Spring break has finally come. Kevin and Lilian are traveling to California with their friends and family, where they plan to enjoy a week at the beach and attend the San Diego Comic-Con.

Of course, with this mixed bag of yōkai and humans involved, disaster waits around every corner. Between getting caught in the middle of a war involving kappa and kitsune, a mysterious assassin who's trying to kill Lilian, and the spandex-clad Sons and Daughters of Humanity, Kevin is going to have his hands full.

He really should have seen this coming. Whoever said that hindsight is fifty-fifty deserves to be punched in the face.

Succubus (Pre-order on paperback, hardcover, and ebook)

Christian is the Catholic Church's best executioner. Dedicated. Devout. Deadly. Ever since the Church saved him from the decimated ruins of his hometown, his commitment to their cause has been unshakable.

Then he's sent to execute Lilith, who lives in Seal Beach, California. He's baffled. Lilith is afraid of men. The Church believes she's a succubus, but he just can't see it. Yet the way men—both human and monster alike—act as if they've been possessed whenever she's near is disturbing.

With lustful men attacking Lilith and monsters attacking him for being near Lilith, Christian must uncover what's really going on, and soon, or innocent blood will run through the streets—as will his own.

Love. It can kill a man.

Let me thank everyone who buys a copy of my books in advance. I really do appreciate your help. Thank you so much!