Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or High School DXD. All I own is a laptop.
Chapter 3
Information
Archangel Gabriel, the Messenger of God, the most beautiful woman in Heaven, had lived for millennia now.
She could proudly say that she had seen and experienced everything there was to see and experience for an Angel of her station.
From their initial reliance on them to their current independence, she had witnessed the entire evolution of humanity. She had seen humans go from hunting to inventing, so much so that some of their inventions had even surprised the angels up in heaven. She had seen humans discover fire and from there, the evolution of humanity had started.
Since then, humans had come a long way. Not only in terms of technology but also in terms of their strength and weaknesses.
Humans had never been a perfect creature. They were neither peace-loving like the Angels nor driven by the seven deadly sins like the devils. They had always been somewhere in between. That is what her Father said about humans, what he liked so much about humanity. Her Father always liked to point out that unlike them or the devils, humans were not inclined to follow only one way. Rather, they could do as they desired and choose their own way.
Thousands of years ago, she had seen humans wage war on themselves for mere land and disagreements. In that, humans did not differ much from Angels or Devils. She had seen humans commit atrocities of the most heinous kinds, some that would even make the Devil lords puke in disgust. Yet, every time she asked her Father he would calmly say, 'Gabriel, give them a chance.'
And she gave them. Unlike her brothers, who had run out of patience and only looked after the humans because of their father.
And then, he was born. .
Jesus of Nazareth.
Someone, her Father proclaimed to be special. Proclaimed to be his son.
At first, she was wary. Believing that once he would grow up, he would change. Corrupted by this already corrupted world.
But the change never came.
The tiny matchstick that lightened a small room had developed into a blazing sun that would radiate its warmth for those who desired it.
The people beset by sorrow and misery flocked to him like moths to a flame as he became a beacon in the darkness that enveloped this world.
He preached about love and peace. Preached about friendship and comradeship. And wanted to create a world with no war and hatred. He became her Father's most vocal supporter and became his messenger.
God was quite proud of his son's generosity, kindness and caring nature. Jesus had surpassed all of God's expectations and then some more.
However, he was betrayed by his own people. Tried and then crucified and left to die from hunger and pain.
God was infuriated with the humans and was about to deliver the most severe divine punishments when Jesus' last wish before his death reached God's ears.
"O Father, forgive them of their sin, for they do not know what they do."
That one sentence alone had rattled the entire Heaven. Even in his last breath, even when he was betrayed by his own people, Jesus refused to be affected by resentment or vengeance.
Moved by his compassion and forgiving nature, her Father decided to ascend Jesus to heaven as an Angel who would guard the door to all souls in Heaven and judge the souls accordingly.
And thus, with his death, the beacon that shined so brightly was snubbed forever.
The followers of Jesus went on and created the Christian faction. And while her Father did not have much influence before that, Jesus' death and ascension marked the beginning of their influence on humanity.
However, since Jesus' death, no other was born like him. There were some who had a compassionate soul, but none shone as bright as him. And soon, the world once again plunged into darkness.
And then a few centuries later, her Father had left the realm of the mortals at the end of the Second War of Heaven fought between the Angels, Devils and the newly formed army of Fallen Angels.
Her Father's death had caused an imbalance in the world. And soon, the world was overtaken by war, strife and struggle. The two World Wars fought on this planet had to be the two most devastating results of the imbalance caused by the God's death. Something she knew, the other factions must have noticed no matter how hard they tried to hide the death of her Father.
But that was before she had entered the room where the intruder was being kept.
The moment she stepped inside the room with Griselda, she was burst with the same feeling she had when she had met Jesus. The same aura. She realized just how true Griselda was when the latter stated that staring at him was like basking in the glow of a thousand suns. Because that was the exact same feeling she was currently feeling.
It shocked her how bright the aura of the human was. By all means, he seemed like an Archangel, yet she could not find a shred of light energy within him but a different form of energy filled his body.
In contrast to Jesus, who was a demi-god, she felt something different about the blonde-haired boy staring in confusion at the two nuns. She could sense power within him, power that he seemed to be keeping suppressed at the moment.
And it was that power that interested her.
It piqued her curiosity. How could a human possess an energy so similar to the Youkais, yet so different? How could she sense an endless ocean of power within him? How could a human feel so similar to Jesus, yet so different?
In her curiosity, she had completely missed the exit of the other nun and had nearly missed Griselda calling her out.
It had taken all the experience she had gathered over the years to pull herself out of the trance she found herself in.
With the invisibility spell now undone, she stood in front of him. Though she did not reveal her Angel side to him…yet.
"A very good evening, Mr. Uzumaki. It's a pleasure to finally meet you." She said with a smile.
Her smile widened as she saw the young man blush lightly, though it was a surprise that he was not drooling like all the other males she had come in contact with.
Naruto shook his head to recollect himself and gave a smile in return. "Hello. It's nice to meet you too. And please call me Naruto."
For the blonde ninja, the moment the blonde-woman, Griselda if he remembered correctly, had entered the room he could feel there was someone standing beside her.
And just as he had predicted, as soon as Griselda called out the woman's name, whoever it was dropped the invisibility from her and stood in front of him.
Gabriel, that's what Griselda said if he heard her right.
Naruto tried to grab a feel of her aura and he was surprised by the amount of power he felt from within her, power that she was definitely keeping suppressed just like him. He guessed that just like him, Gabriel did not want to frighten the opposite party with the display of power.
However, what actually confused him was the weird energy signature that he could sense from within this woman. It was nothing like chakra. It did resonate a little with his Six Path Sage Mode chakra but even that similarity was tiny.
He made a note to investigate this energy later when he could get out of this bed.
For now, he decided to remain patient and see how things go. He was not trying to come off as a threat or offend them. That was Sasuke's job. But if he felt for one moment that they were a danger to his life, he would make a run for it.
And if the two blonde ladies tried to stop him… Oh well, he could always knock them out and get away.
"Naruto." Gabriel began, her voice curious. "If you don't mind, may we ask how you ended up here?"
Naruto blinked and scratched his chin. "Well, it's a long story."
Gabriel smiled. "Well, it's good that we have time than."
Naruto frowned before saying, "Uh. It was actually a giant red lizard that kind of sent me flying here."
Griselda blinked in confusion. "Giant…red…lizard?"
Naruto nodded his head frantically. "Yeah, I know right? I mean, he had red metal-like skin, four giant wings and claws."
Griselda and Gabriel both felt sweat trickle down their brow. They felt like they had an idea who he was talking about.
"Naruto, can you tell us about your encounter with this…lizard?" Gabriel asked.
Naruto scratched his chin in thought. His encounter with…the fearsome dragon, was not of much importance anyway, at least for him. So, he did not see any harm in sharing his encounter with the Great Redwith these ladies.
He tried to recollect all the memories from the void before starting to recount his tell.
(Flashback)
He had tried swimming his way through the void towards the creature and had travelled a good distance when he had remembered that he could actually fly.
With a sweatdrop he decided to use one of his many abilities, that was to fly, to reach the creature.
It was only then that he realized how true he was when he compared the creature to Kurama's size. The lizard was huge! Though compared to the size of the ten-tails, even the lizard did not seem to hold a candle.
"Woah! You are huge!" Naruto exclaimed in awe.
The creature seemed to have heard him as it stopped whatever it was doing and turned to face him. At that moment, Naruto felt like an insignificant ant in front of the lizard.
"HAHA! I am huge, aren't I? Praise me more, puny creature!" The lizard boasted with a haughty look.
"Hehehe! Yeah. I mean you have to be one of the largest creatures I have seen. Hey, can you tell me where I am, right now?"
"You are in the Dimensional Gap. My home." The giant lizard laughed haughtily before looking down curiously at Naruto. "Interesting. So, who are you?"
Naruto smiled cheekily. "Hey! Isn't it proper to introduce yourself first before asking someone's name?"
The red creature looked at him for a moment before bursting out laughing. "I like you, hatchling. You have got guts." He then gave a smirk. "But you see, I don't give my name to just anyone. But seeing as you interest me, if you answer my questions, I may give you, my name."
Naruto got a miffed look on his face. "What? That's so unfair, but… Oh well, I do need your help?"
"So, as I asked before, who are you?"
"I am Naruto Uzumaki. Nice to meet ya."
"And what are you, Naruto Uzumaki?"
At that question, Naruto stared at the giant lizard in confusion. "Um… What I am? I think…human?"
"Hmm… You see Naruto, I don't like when someone lies to me."
Naruto's eyes widened. "Huh? But I am telling the truth. I am a human… Well, I mean I am a Ninja… But I am a human."
"Ninja? Human? Are you kidding me, hatchling? I know for a fact that there are literally no humans who can survive the Dimension Gap. Even amongst the supernatural world that I guard, only a few can survive the harsh nature of the dimensional gap and even then, they would need some form of magic to survive. But you don't seem to be using any spell."
Naruto blinked in confusion. "I…have absolutely no idea what you just said. But believe me, I am a human."
The giant lizard frowned as it narrowed its large eyes at Naruto. "Hm. But now that I try to sense it, I can feel a very familiar power within you… But I can't figure out what."
"Um… Can you point a way out of this place?"
The giant lizard ignored his question as he pondered to himself until his eyes widened slightly as if remembering something he had long forgotten.
"You're one of them, aren't you?"
Naruto once again found himself staring in confusion at the giant red lizard. "What!?"
The red lizard narrowed its eyes as it began hovering around Naruto, as if trying to gauge its prey. "At first, I was unable to grasp what that force inside of you was. But now I am sure, where I had sensed it."
Naruto felt sweat trickle down his forehead. "I seriously have no idea what you're talking about!"
"Don't lie to me, filthy parasite!" The giant lizard roared. "I know of your kind. You are nothing but leeches trying to survive off of a planet's life force."
"No, no, no! Wait! I am telling the truth. I don't know what you're talking about. I am not one of them." 'He must be talking about the Ootsutsuki's that Kaguya mentioned. What the hell is going on here?'
The giant lizard backed up a bit and looking at Naruto with narrowed eyes, filled with suspicion. "You seriously don't have any idea, do you?"
"No, no. I don't."
The creature hummed. "Interesting. I don't know how you have no idea of who you are? Maybe you lost your memories, or something?"
Naruto's eyebrow twitched in annoyance. "No, dammit. I haven't lost my memories or anything. I just don't know who these parasites are."
The creature gave Naruto a skeptically. "I see… I don't care. But believe me, if you try to go after the relic in this world, I will come kill you personally."
Naruto gulped before nodding. "Of course."
"Now, go. That portal should take you to my world." But before Great Red could open a portal, Naruto interrupted him.
"Hey, you haven't introduced yourself yet."
"Hmm… I guess I can tell you. I am the Great Red – the True Dragon, the Dragon of Dreams, the God of Dreams, the True Red Dragon."
Naruto's eyes widened in amazement. "Woah! You're a real dragon?"
Great Red smirked. "Heh, that I am, hatchling."
"Hey, hey. Can I ask you another question?"
"Hm… I usually don't allow it, but let see what you have to ask?"
"These 'parasites' you talked about? Can you tell me something about them?"
"…" Great Red seemed to contemplate what he wanted to say. "So, you seriously have no idea, huh? I guess I can tell you. But these days, they are pretty much a shadow of their glorious days."
'Shadow of their glorious days…' Naruto thought as he felt a sweat trickle down his brow. 'Does he mean Ootsutsukis like Kaguya are weak?'
"There was a time when those fucking parasites used to terrorize universes and what not. I remember how their leaders assigned their soldiers to hunt down dragon gods like me to keep them as pets. Fuckers, if I could find one of them alive, I would tear them to pieces!"
"They had leaders?" Naruto asked apprehensively. 'What the hell? Did Ootsutsukis really hunt down dragons like this guy? Just how strong were they supposed to be?'
"Ah yes, their leaders. Bastards! All of them! If only I could get a hand on one of those motherfuckers, I would torture them for eternity!"
Naruto whistled in amazement. "Man, you really hate them, don't you?"
"Hate them!? Bah! That's a really nice way to put how I feel about those scumbags!"
Naruto sweatdropped at his words. "So, anyway. How many of them were there?"
"Who? The leaders? If I remember correctly, a dozen of them."
"W-What? D-Dozen of them?" Naruto said, as apprehension sat it.
Great Red shrugged or that was what Naruto thought he did anyway. "Yes, might have been more. But fortunately, they are not alive anymore. Good riddance, if you ask me."
"O-Oh… That's good." 'Yeah, at least I don't have to worry about a dozen of overpowered beings coming after my ass.' "But what happened to them?"
"War. A fight that nearly destroyed our universe with a few others."
"I-I see…" Naruto said, not knowing whether to be frightened or relieved.
"It's a good thing that the remnants of those fuckers are nothing more than pests now."
'If Kaguya is like a pest to him, I don't think I want to fight him ever.' Naruto thought with a sweatdrop. "Heh, I guess it's a good thing that I am not one of them, huh?" Naruto said scratching the back of his neck.
"Indeed. Otherwise, I would have killed you by now." Great Red spoke in such a relaxed manner that sounded like he was mentioning the weather.
Naruto gulped at that. "I guess I should leave right now."
"Hm. Oh yes, you would need a portal to leave." He then flicked his finger and a purple portal appeared behind Naruto.
Naruto stared at the portal skeptically. "This portal is not going to turn me into puss if I pass through it, right?"
Great Red burst out into fits of laughter. "Don't kid me brat. For a being of my caliber to make such a mistake, it is unacceptable!" He announced proudly.
"I guess it is safe for me then." Naruto said to himself, eyeing the portal once again.
"Yes, yes. It is completely safe. You should go now, brat. I have far more important things to do."
That made Naruto chuckle, but he quickly tried to control it.
Alas, it was too late.
"What, for the sake of Ophis' tits, are you laughing at brat?"
Naruto shook his head frantically. "No, no! It's nothing, really."
Great Red narrowed his eyes at the blond-haired boy that was turning into a menace in his eyes quite quickly. "You know brat, I don't like it when people hide something from me."
Naruto chuckled and rubbed the back of his head. "It's just that I once knew a giant fox who was always grumpy and filled with hatred. But turns out, he was just a giant mushy fox. And you kind of remind me of him. A giant mushy lizard"
Great Red, however, did not take his comment lightly. 'Fox… Mushy… Lizard!'
Great Red roared with a roar that unleashed a massive gust of wind towards Naruto. "You foolish brat! Don't show me your face if you don't want to die!"
"Woah!" Naruto exclaimed as he flew backwards and out of the portal, which immediately closed off.
Great Red huffed in exasperation but looked on in interest at the spot where Naruto had disappeared. "Naruto Uzumaki, huh? What an interesting creature you are! I might as well keep a close eye on you."
(Flashback end)
"And that's how I ended up here." Naruto said finishing his tale. Though he decided to omit all the details about the discussion he had about the 'Ootsutsukis'.
It was then that he noticed that both Gabriel and Griselda were staring at him wide-eyed and open-mouthed. Their faces held a combination of awe, surprise and disbelief… Though he had not mentioned the Ootsutsuki thing the dragon had said.
Gabriel inhaled sharply. "So, let me get this straight Naruto. You were inside the Dimension gap where you met THE Great Red."
"Yes."
"And then, you had a conversation with him."
"Uh-huh."
"And then, you called him a mushy lizard?"
"Yes. But now that I think about it, it may not have been the right thing to say."
"…"
"…"
"And then, he threw you out of that portal."
"Yup."
Gabriel released a sigh. "At least you are alive…somehow. That in itself is saying something."
Gabriel pinched the bridge of her nose. "I need a nice sleep after this." She said. "Naruto, do you have any idea what you have done?"
"Uh… I may have angered the wrong creature."
Gabriel's smile was tight. "You have no idea, Naruto. It is a good thing that he is not here, trying to kill you. It would have surely destroyed our planet otherwise."
Gabriel's statement made Naruto gulp.
Great Red had actually reminded Naruto a lot of the Ten-tails. The only difference being the Ten-tails was a mindless beast whereas Great Red was intelligent. This simple fact made Great Red far more dangerous than the Ten-tails.
That much was clear to Naruto.
"Say, Naruto?"
Naruto blinked and said, "Yes."
"Would you mind telling me what you are?" Gabriel asked.
Naruto deadpanned at Gabriel. "You too…"
Gabriel smiled and said, "Well, you see, Great Red was not wrong when he said that no human can survive the Dimensional Gap. Yet, here you are, proclaiming to be a human, who has spent who knows how long in the dimensional gap. I am sorry to say this, Naruto, but that in itself is unbelievable."
Naruto face turned painful.
Something then clicked in his mind. "Wait! You actually believe me about the Giant lizard?"
"There is not much we can do but believe you, for now. But if what you said was true, then it is really lucky that both you and this planet have not been destroyed already."
"I am sorry. But I don't know what to say, lady. All I know is that I am a human."
Gabriel shook her head. From the corner of her eyes, she noticed Griselda had completely frozen. Most probably trying to process all that Naruto had said. She turned towards the bright, blonde-haired boy. "Naruto, how did you even end up in the Dimensional Void."
That question caused Naruto's expression to turn melancholic. It brought back memories that he did not want to deal with yet. "There was a…situation back home that made me take some drastic measures to solve. Hence, why I was there."
Gabriel noticed the depressed expression on the young man's face and smiled lightly. "I am sorry if it brought back some unwanted memories." 'This young man. To end up this way, he must have endured some incredibly terrible experiences.'
Naruto smiled softly at her. "No, no. It's alright. I understand you're curious how I ended up here."
Gabriel eyed Naruto. It was rare to find young people with even a small amount of understanding as this young man. "Yes, I am indeed curious. But I don't want to make it unfair. So, how about I make a deal?"
Naruto raised an eyebrow at her. "A deal?"
"Yes. How about I tell you about this world and in return, you tell me about yours? Does that sound fair?"
Naruto considered her for a moment before chuckling. "Yes, it does. But before that, I have a question."
Gabriel raised an eyebrow at that. "A question?"
Naruto gave a nod. "Yes. How exactly do you know about the dimensional gap and about the Giant Lizard?"
"I guess you can say both of these are quite common amongst the supernatural beings."
"Supernatural beings?"
"You will understand once I explain to you about our world."
"Oh. Ok."
"Well, then I guess I should begin. Naruto, this world by no means is an ordinary one."
Naruto chuckled at that. "I noticed that much when those two girls pounced on me. I mean, my world had some weird swords too. So, I guess I should not have been that surprised."
Gabriel smiled a little. "I guess, somethings are quite common between our worlds. But tell me Naruto, does your world have gods, devils and dragons?"
Naruto's eyes widened a bit. "Gods? Devils? Dragons? I don't know about devils and dragons, but I guess there were a few who came very close to being called God in our world."
"I see", Gabriel muttered before saying, "Well you see Naruto our world seems to be a little different from yours. You see, in our world there exists Gods, Devils, Fallen Angels, Angels and dragons. And these beings together form the Supernatural world."
For the next couple of hours, Gabriel explained everything about their world in a brief and easier to follow manner. She explained to him about the existence of Gods, the different Pantheons, the existence of Angels, Devils and Fallen Angels, the treaties between various factions and Pantheons, and finally the humans and how they were kept negligent of the existence of the supernatural world for their own safety. She did omit her father's death though, after all it was not something to be shared with anyone. She explained to him that the building he was currently residing in was called a Church and explained to him some of the basic principles of Christianity.
And as Gabriel explained each and everything to Naruto, the blonde-haired boy did his best to keep up with her. But only managed to understand only a few things which mostly consisted of 'This world has Gods, Dragons and Devils' and 'They are powerful'.
Don't get him wrong, he had never been good in retaining knowledge. That was not his specialty anyway.
While Gabriel was explaining these things to Naruto, Griselda had managed to come out of her stance and had left to bring some snacks for the discussing pair. She had returned by the time Gabriel had finished explaining her world.
After Gabriel finished her explanation, it was time for Naruto to explain about his world. After pondering for a moment, he decided to explain about the Ninja system in his world and how one became Ninjas; the five major Ninja Nations and smaller Ninja villages; he explained in brief about the wars in his world, though he decided to omit the Fourth Ninja War for obvious reasons. He had also omitted mentioning the Ootsutsukis, Hagaromo and some other things that he did not feel safe to explain.
By the end, both Gabriel and Griselda seemed to be in deep thought.
"It seems your world is quite interesting, Naruto", Gabriel said.
"But child soldiers, Lady Gabriel? Does not that seem excessive?" Griselda chimed in.
"Child Soldiers?" Naruto asked in confusion.
"To each their own", Gabriel muttered with a frown. Seemed like she too was displeased with the idea of child soldiers. "We can't change what they do in their world Griselda."
"Of course, milady."
"Anyways", Gabriel said standing up, "We have stayed here for far too long, Naruto. It would be best to leave, so that you can take some rest."
"Rest?" Naruto asked in panic. "Wait! Are you suggesting that I stay in this bed for…for who knows how long."
Griselda narrowed her eyes at Naruto. "Yes, yes you will." She said in a commanding voice.
"B-But, you can't do that. I will just escape from here." Naruto protested.
Griselda put her arms on her hips and smiled a very sweet smile. "I am telling you to stay put here until you have recovered completely. Am I understood?"
Naruto felt a shiver run down his spine. Griselda right now was not the sweet, angelic woman he had met. Instead, she reminded him too much of Granny Tsunade when the latter went full Mother-hen mode on him. Her face held an expression that promised thousand years of pain if he disagreed with her.
So, just like with Tsunade, he nodded his head in acceptance.
He could always escape when no one was there.
Griselda's face returned to her normal angelic self and she smiled kindly at Naruto.
Gabriel smiled at the duo, happy that they were getting close. She had a feeling that Griselda would play a very major role in Naruto's path. Though she had no justification for that just yet.
"Griselda", Gabriel called-out, "It seems we must leave now."
Griselda bowed her head. "Alright, milady."
Gabriel gave the blonde a bright smile that brought a smile on the latter's face. "Rest for now Naruto. Griselda will come to meet you tomorrow."
And with that the two blondes walked out of the hospital room.
With their exit, two more nuns entered to take care of Naruto.
Once both Gabriel and Griselda were out of the hospital room, they made their way to Griselda's quarters.
Once there, Griselda turned towards Gabriel.
"How should we proceed from here milady?" Griselda asked.
Gabriel hummed while she deliberated. "For now, it would be best if we keep the boy close to us." She spoke.
Griselda tensed, her brows furrowing. "Do you think he might be a threat to us?"
"Hm. Not really." Gabriel said. "But there is something about him that intrigues me. Not to mention, my brothers would want him observed at least until they are satisfied that he is not a threat."
"I see." Griselda nodded her head.
"So we let him stay here for the time being. To decide what to do with the young man, I will need to talk about the matter with my brothers in more detail." Gabriel then turned towards Griselda. "Until then, I want you to look after him Griselda. Can you do that for me?"
"Me? Why me, milady?"
"If not you, then who Griselda? Who is more suitable for this job if not you? You have the experience in both battle and dealing with teenagers. So, yes. To me you are the best option."
"Alright, I will do it." Griselda said bowing her head in reverence.
Gabriel smiled at Griselda and disappeared in a burst of white feathers.
Just as Gabriel left, Griselda released a sigh and thought to herself, "What did I get myself into?"
In a whirlwind of white feathers, Gabriel appeared in front of a large silver gate with golden patterns on it. High above there was a white ceiling. Behind Gabriel there were fountains, plants and trees. The place looked heavenly. But it was something that Gabriel had become familiar with over the years.
This was the Sixth Heaven. The place where Seraphs like her and her brothers resided. And where they met occasionally to discuss current affairs and how to govern heaven more effectively.
She started walking towards the gigantic doors and as she approached near it, the doors slowly swung open without any assistance allowing Gabriel to walk inside.
The interior of the Sixth Heaven was even more beautiful than the exterior. Covered in snow like cloud and a warm feeling. Trees and plants on the sides with a white illuminated ceiling supported by just as white and gold pillars.
On the sides, there were several doors that led to the individual rooms of each seraph and also to other rooms like libraries and such.
But currently, her destination was the meeting room located right in front of her.
Approaching the door, she opened it and stepped inside.
The interior of the room was exactly as similar to what was outside. White ceilings and walls with golden patterns. However, at the centre of the room was a round table with a red top and four golden chairs separated at equal distances from each other.
She slowly walked towards the only empty chair and sat down in it, while looking at the other occupants of the table.
There sitting right across her was her oldest living brother Michael. On her right was Uriel and on her left was Raphael.
"A good evening sister." Michael greeted in his usual deep yet kind tone. Uriel and Raphael nodded their heads.
"Good evening to you too brothers." Gabriel greeted in return.
"So, what is the situation on Earth?" Uriel asked. While he was known as one of the most patient angels in heaven, when something piqued his interest, he could become quite impatient.
"Come now, brother", Raphael interrupted, "Gabriel just arrived. Let her breathe."
"The faster we solve this issue, the better for us." Uriel countered with a serious face. "We are already in a precarious situation thanks to so many unfortunate circumstances. We are not in a position to make delays regarding such dangerous issues."
Michael released a sigh. "Raphael, as much as I would like to agree with you, Uriel has a point. We need to resolve this issue as soon as possible." He then looked at his sister. "Gabriel, please forgive me, but I would need you to give us a brief overview of the situation on Earth."
Gabriel smiled and said, "No need to apologize brother. But the situation on Earth is quite…confusing but at the same time very interesting."
Uriel raised an eyebrow in interest. "What do you mean, Gabriel?"
"I am quite sure you remember our sensors picked a weird energy signature enter the Earth's atmosphere out of nowhere, right?"
Gabriel paused for her brothers who nodded their heads.
Gabriel then continued. "It seems the energy signature belongs to a young man."
"A young man, you say?" Raphael repeated after her.
"Yes, a young man." Gabriel replied.
"And what was this young man you are talking about Gabriel?" Uriel asked in a serious tone. "Was he a devil? A fallen angel? Or someone associated with some other pantheon?"
"Quite the contrary actually."
"What do you mean? Get to it straight, Gabriel." Uriel said in a frustrated tone.
"The young man is actually a human." Gabriel said with a smile. "Or at least that's what he said, anyway. He is either seventeen or eighteen years old. His name is Naruto Uzumaki."
The whole table went silent. Michael, who had joined his hands and was resting his head on the back of his intertwined hands, raised an eyebrow in curiosity. While both Uriel and Raphael looked at her in disbelief.
"And you just believed him? Just like that?" Raphael asked in shock.
Gabriel shook her head. "No. At first, I did not. But you know, I can sense when someone is lying to me. I did not sense any form of lie from him. Not to mention, he does not seem to have any form of connection with the other pantheons. Except…"
"Except?" Michael repeated.
"Except, he seemed to have some form of weird energy signature that resembled a little with the Youkais' chakra." Gabriel replied.
"Youkai's chakra?" Raphael muttered in thought.
"Could he be a possible spy from the Youkai faction?" Uriel asked. "It would not be far from possibility. Especially after the fiasco they had with the devils not many years ago. It would seem perfect to have a spy on every faction."
Gabriel frowned and answered. "Not possible. As I said, I can detect lies and he did not lie to me. Not to mention, the boy has no idea what the Youkais are either. At least that is what I could conclude from the conversation I had with him."
"But when did humans start having energy signatures like the Youkais?" Uriel asked in disbelief.
"Not exactly like them, brother. It was similar, yes. But the similarity was very tiny." Gabriel said.
"Let's just say, we agree that the boy is a human." Michael interrupted. "Was that loud voice that echoed throughout the city, what we had feared it was?"
Gabriel nodded slowly. "Yes. It was Great Red's voice."
Raphael took a sharp breath as did Uriel.
Michael seemed to be in deep thought before saying. "How did the boy appear over that area, Gabriel?"
"Through a portal." Gabriel answered. "Opened by Great Red himself."
"Hm." Michael hummed in thought. "Do you know anything else?"
Gabriel then proceeded to tell her brothers exactly what Naruto had told her, not leaving anything behind. And as her story progressed, she took some joy seeing the look of disbelief growing on both Uriel and Raphael's faces. Though Michael seemed to tense with each passing moment.
When Gabriel ended her tale on how Naruto had met Great Red and his conversation with the latter, Raphael immediately responded. "And you want us to believe that this boy you talk about is actually human? Either you have grown naïve Gabriel or that boy is obviously lying."
Uriel looked at Michael and said, "Brother, Raphael is right. There is no possible way that this boy is a human. There is no way that he insulted Great Red and returned alive. The boy is obviously lying."
Gabriel's brows furrowed in slight anger. "I know my capabilities, Raphael, Uriel. And I would say for the umpteenth time, that the boy did not lie."
"No one is doubting you Gabriel", Raphael said with softened eyes, "But mistakes can be made by anyone. Not to mention, this boy's tale is too unbelievable to be trusted."
"Indeed", Uriel said, nodding in agreement. He then looked at Michael who was still in deep thought, "Brother I suggest we take care of this boy before he becomes a threat to us." He finished with a grave tone.
"You're going to kill a child, Uriel?" Gabriel asked both disgusted at the thought and outraged. "Isn't that an overkill?"
"While unfortunate", Uriel continued, "It is the most plausible solution. We know nothing about this boy. We don't know what he is capable of. A small drastic measure now can save us from countless atrocities later."
Raphael stayed quiet throughout the exchange with his eyes closed. He was neither agreeing nor disagreeing with Uriel.
"Killing a child is not a solution to our problems, Uriel. It has never been. I thought we were supposed to be better than that." Gabriel argued, ferocity seeping into her voice with each passing second.
"Do you think I want this, Gabriel?" Uriel said, his fists were clenched tightly. "Do you think I want the blood of some child on my hands? No, Gabriel. But sometimes drastic problems call for drastic solutions."
"This problem is not as drastic as you are making it out to be, Uriel." Gabriel argued.
"It may not be drastic now, but it can be in the future." Uriel said, countering Gabriel.
"But-", before Gabriel could argue back, a stern voice interrupted her.
"Enough!"
The whole table quietened down. The three arguing siblings turned to look at their oldest of them who was sitting there in the same position since the beginning of the meeting.
"Why do you argue for this child so much Gabriel?" Michael asked. "I have never seen you defending someone else so fiercely before."
Gabriel hesitated for a moment before confessing her reason. "Because… Because the boy is different."
"Different?" Michael repeated. "Different how, Gabriel?"
Gabriel took a deep breath. "He reminds me of him", she said with a soft voice, barely louder than a whisper. But her voice was carried to all her brothers in the quiet room.
"Him?" Raphael interjected.
"Who are you talking about Gabriel?" Michael asked calmly.
"Father", Gabriel replied in a soft tone.
There was another swift intake of breath all around the table. She looked up and saw all her brothers staring at her with wide open eyes.
In a flash, her oldest brother was beside her and had grabbed her by her shoulders.
"What did you say, Gabriel?" Michael asked, his voice desperate and his wide eyes staring at the blonde woman.
"I said", Gabriel began, "He reminds me too much of Father and Jesus. He has the same bright and compassionate aura as both of them."
"Could it be…", Michael muttered in shock.
"Not possible, Michael", Uriel interjected, breaking Michael out of his musings. "Remember Michael, Father swore to never have another child with a human after what happened to Jesus. Not to mention, the boy is way too young to be Father's child."
"You are right brother." Michael agreed with a sigh. He turned towards Gabriel. "Gabriel, do you trust this boy?"
Gabriel gave a confident nod. "I do, brother."
Michael nodded. "Very well, we will trust your judgement." He then moved back to his position at the table, and looked at all of his siblings. "Very well, for now, we observe the boy and his actions. The moment he betrays us, we will take necessary actions against the boy." He then looked straight at Gabriel. "What do you suggest we do from here, Gabriel?"
Gabriel stood up and said, "For now, I have asked my contact Griselda to keep an eye on him. If you wish, I can instruct her to start educating the child properly about our world and its ways. Maybe have him join our forces for some time."
"Will he even agree to join our forces?" Michael asked skeptically.
"I do not know. But we can give it a try. If anyone can convince him to work for us, it is Griselda." Gabriel said confidently.
Michael hummed in thought. "Very well. Have Griselda look after Naruto's education and if he decides to join then have her start his training." He finished.
"Are you sure about this brother?" Uriel asked. "Having him join our forces might as well give him the biggest opportunity to spy on us."
"I do not know if I am right or not, brother. I am not Father", Michael said, "But I will trust Gabriel just like Father once did. Also, isn't there that human saying: Keep your friends close and your enemies closer."
Uriel sighed and nodded. "Very well brother. I just hope we are not making a mistake this time."
"But what if he decides not to join us?" Raphael asked looking at his siblings.
Michael's face hardened. "Then we go with plan B."
"We have a plan B?" Uriel asked in confusion.
"Yes." Michael replied. "Plan B is to capture him and imprison him here in heaven until we have decided that he is not a threat." He nodded at his siblings. "Let's end the discussion here. We have other things to do."
With that the meeting was concluded. Uriel and Raphael got up and exited the room leaving only Michael and Gabriel. Michael started walking towards the door. Just as he was a few feet away from the door, Gabriel spoke up.
"Is imprisoning him really necessary, brother?"
Michael stopped in his tracks before saying, "I understand that you are quite taken with this boy Gabriel-"
"But the boy has potential, Michael. He can be the new beacon of light, this world needs. The beacon of hope and strength that once Jesus was. He could be Fat-"
"Gabriel!" Michael interfered with a stern voice. "Father is dead. And so is Jesus. Humanity has become way too corrupted and you know it too. I know it hurts, but we must face reality. There is and will never be someone like either of them. For yours and that boy's sake, I hope he agrees to join our forces. Otherwise, we can't let him wander around the world freely without making sure he is not a threat not only to us but the world itself."
And with that, he walked out of the room leaving Gabriel all alone in the room. The blonde woman sighed in frustration. She just hoped that Naruto would accept their offer and join Heaven's forces. At least until her brothers had confirmed that he was not a threat to Heaven and the world.
Three days later…
It had been three days since Naruto had met Gabriel and since then, the blonde ninja was reminded how boring it was to be confined in a hospital.
On the very first day, he had tried to escape through the main gate thinking that no one would know. But alas, Griselda was there, standing outside the hospital door with a sickeningly sweet smile on her face. That day, Naruto received a lump on his head and was confined in the hospital room with the door locked.
The next day at midnight, Naruto had tried to escape through the window. He had employed all of his stealth skills that he had developed while running away from chunins and sometimes Anbu members. But alas, Griselda was there in the garden that the window looked over. That day Naruto received two lumps on his head and was confined to the hospital bed with chains wrapped everywhere on his body.
While chained, Naruto cursed whatever deity up there for torturing him like this. Though he never stopped wondering how Griselda found out that he was escaping. Was that her superpower? To find out when someone was breaking free of her control? Or was it just pure luck?
But he did not need to suffer anymore as the very next day, Griselda had come into his room with Amanda who then informed him that he was allowed to leave.
Oh, how happy he had been. He had jumped in joy for fifteen minutes straight that he could leave this terrible confinement.
Currently, Naruto was being led by Griselda to somewhere he had no idea about. As he was walking by, he noticed that the building, church if he remembered correctly, was majorly filled with female priests. Or were they nuns? Or sisters? Naruto did not care anyway. He could always ask later. Occasionally, he would find some males in the building.
But it was really weird to have the females eyeing him and whispering to each other. 'I mean, if you want to insult someone do it a little more discreetly, ya'know.' Naruto wondered depressingly. Seemed like the stares were not going to leave him in this world either.
After climbing three floors, the pair stopped near a fancy door. Griselda brought out a key from her robe's pocket and opened the door, calling Naruto inside.
As Naruto entered through the door, he was amazed at what he saw. The room was huge with a very high ceiling. From the centre of the ceiling some form of layered furniture was hanging that seemed to glow with light. There was a large bed, that seemed like it could easily hold five people in it, in the corner of the room. There was a fancy centre table and instruments he had no idea about. There was a book shelf filled to the brim with books. On the floor there was a fancy carpet. The windows had fancy curtains.
Overall, to Naruto, the room seemed like it belonged to some royalty.
"This used to be a priest's residence but the priest was transferred to another church and this room has been empty since. From now on, this room is yours."
"Wait! Wait! This room is mine?" Naruto asked in confusion.
"Did I say it in Chinese?" Griselda asked sarcastically.
"What?"
Griselda shook her head exasperatedly. "Nothing. And yes, this room is yours from now Naruto."
"Wow!" Naruto exclaimed as he looked around the room. He walked towards the bed and sat on it and was fairly surprised when the cushion sank down a bit. He touched the covers and was amazed by their softness. He had never thought that he would ever get to sleep in such a nice bed in his life. He wondered if even such a luxurious bed was available to the Daimyos in his world.
He got up and walked towards Griselda who was looking at him with a gentle smile. He rubbed the back of his head and said awkwardly. "I-I don't know what to say, Griselda. I-I never thought I would ever be-"
"It's alright Naruto." Griselda interrupted. "You don't need to thank me. It is just a small help from our part. At least until you are healed completely."
Naruto chuckled and flexed his muscles. "Ah! Don't worry Griselda. I am completely fine. I can run a mile if you want. I can leave soon too."
Griselda shook her finger. "Not so fast Naruto. Remember, Amanda may have released you from the hospital bed. But she still said to rest for a week at least. To make sure you are healed fully."
"You do realize I heal almost instantly? I think Amanda informed you that much." Naruto said with a deadpan.
Griselda gave a bright smile in return. "She did. And I ignored it. You are under my care Naruto. And I want you to remember something, my word is the law."
"You know I can always escape."
"You are welcome to try." Griselda replied menacingly, making Naruto sigh in annoyance.
"Oh well, I might as well train in my free time." Naruto thought aloud.
"Nope, no training." Griselda interjected.
"Just tell me to die already!" Naruto yelled at her in frustration.
"Fufufu." Griselda giggled. "But you are too young to die, Naruto."
"Ugh!" Naruto screamed in frustration at the heavens. What had he done to receive such torture?
"In the meantime, I suggest you finish those books." Griselda said stopping Naruto from screaming.
"What books?" The blonde-boy asked in confusion.
"Those books." Griselda said pointing at the bookshelf behind her.
Naruto brought up a shaking hand as he pointed at the bookshelf filled to the brim with books. "You want me to read those books?"
"Yup, all of them." Griselda replied with a smile.
"NO WAY! ARE YOU TRYING TO KILL ME, LADY?"
"Fufufu. It is just the beginning of your tor- I mean your education Naruto." Griselda said laughing evilly while Naruto screamed for any deity to just save him from this demon.
What an interesting predicament our blonde-protagonist finds himself in.
XXX
Author's Notes:
I am extremely sorry for how late I was on updating the story. Believe me, I had planned to update the story twice a month but the last five months have been way too hectic for me what with me having to do my University assignments, term papers and also we had our semester exams that were finished just last month and I have another two months later. Lovely, isn't it?
Any ways, as for the story, this is the third chapter of the story. There will be another chapter and then I will be done with the prologue and we can finally move on to the canon story of High School DxD. For now, I want to establish Naruto in the DxD world before having him take on the big bad villains of this world.
As for the previous chapter, a lot of readers expressed their disappointment with Naruto's performance against Xenovia and Irina and some even felt that I had nerfed Naruto hard. To all those who think that, worry not. I am a big Naruto fanboy and I am in no means going to portray a character I love so much as weak. It was just that both Xenovia and Irina took Naruto by surprise and believe it or not, Naruto would have kicked their asses had Griselda not interfered in time. I king of took the inspiration of this fight from a filler episode in Naruto Shipudden where Naruto is forced to fight a kunoichi named Shizuka from the Nadeshiko Village. In that filler, it showed how reluctant Naruto was to a challenge. But he still won against Shizuka. He would have won here too, but alas Griselda interfered before that could happen.
I can assure you Naruto is going to be strong. Not Mary Sue level strong. But he is going to be strong. I can't reveal much about the story but I hope Naruto's conversation with Great Red in this chapter gives you a hint as to how I am going to scale his powers.
Another thing I would like to apologize is about the conversation Naruto has with Great Red. I am quite sure a lot of you guys had expected Naruto to have a big fight with Great Red. But I did not want Naruto to start fighting someone as strong as Great Red from the very beginning of the story, especially when it is just the prologue of the story. To fight someone like Great Red, Naruto would have to go all out, and that meant USING HIS FULL POWER. Then that would just make Naruto another Mary Sue character just like hundreds of other DxD fanfictions. I want Naruto to struggle for his powers just like he did in his own canon story. After all nothing comes for free.
Another thing I would like to ask, is whether you want Naruto to wield some form of weapon. I just recently finished playing God of War Ragnarök and I absolutely fell in love with the "Leviathan Axe". So, I was wondering if you guys wanted Naruto to wield any form of weapon. If you guys have any suggestions, then let me know.
Another thing is about the pairings. Currently I have a few girls in mind that I could pair Naruto with. Them being:
Akeno
Kuroka
Xenovia
Irina
Rossweisse
My choice is Naruto x Akeno pairing. But if you guys want anyone else from the above list to be paired with, then of course let me know.
Anyways, this is it for now. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave a review and let me know, if I can make any improvements.
Bye Bye…
