The Golden King
Chapter IV: the knight of treachery
It has been some time since Naruto spent so much doing mundane things like shopping in his free time. Ever since he can remember, his life was filled with training in all aspects of battle, especially swordsmanship, tactics, stealth, how to read the battlefield and deal with stress, learning how to run a country and play politics.
Naruto didn't do it because he liked the idea of working every moment of his life. He did this because when he turned four, he had his very first vision, in which he saw that at the age of ten, he would ascend to the throne. This came as a shock to the blond and for some time he didn't believe it, passing it off as a simple dream, not wanting to believe he had the ability to see the future, but also that his mother would die so soon.
However, when he saw the same vision for the second time, more vivid than before, and during a day, when there was no chance he was sleeping, Naruto was crushed inside. After retreating to his chambers and making sure he was alone, the blond let his emotions run wild.
Anger, sadness, despair, fear.
He knew he couldn't save his mother, the cause of her death was the simple fact that her body was unable to live without the Kyuubi' Chakra, that was the effect that awaited all Jinchuriki that had their beasts pulled out of them and there was no cure for it. It was a miracle in itself that Kushina was able to live over ten years without the Kyubi sealed in her, but the moment he was born, all citizens of Uzushio knew that her reign was coming to an end.
But only Naruto knew when she would die and when her duties would become his. An so, knowing that he had limited time in learning as much as possible to become a good ruler for his people, the red-eyed boy focused on his studies and training. It was also somewhere this time around that he had for the first time met Mordred and got his ass handed to him in a spar.
Mordred, for the lack of better words, was wild. Naruto remembered fondly their first meeting, during which to his surprise, the other blond seemed not to realize who she was meeting. Other noble-born children- yes, Mordred was a noble even if her manners didn't indicate so- acted like it was expected of them, they were to make a good impression on him and hopefully forge good relations.
Mordred, on the other hand, not only did not know he was the Prince on the Island she lived on but also bluntly insulted him, calling him an arrogant, pompous jerk. Naruto did not allow this insult to go unpunished and challenged her to a duel, sure of his victory.
The results were not only humiliating but also painful.
It was the first time Naruto had been so defeated and while laying on the floor, bloody and bruised, he couldn't help but think how refreshing this was. This in turn made the blond laugh, calling being beaten up refreshing was something only a madman would say, yet here he was.
And so, after telling Mordred who he was and hearing her say that she would beat him again if they fought and that she was not going to apologize, Naruto came to the decision to befriend this wild girl.
Following his coronation and taking control of the kingdom, Naruto had even less time to call free, since even if he was not working in his study or training with Mordred, he spent a lot of his time in the throne room, sitting, listening to his subjects woes and pleas or simply using his clairvoyance.
Clairvoyance was an interesting ability, it granted the blond a look into the past, present, and future, and while seeing the past and present was rather easy and enjoyable, looking into the future was... tiring.
Because of all the things that are happening in the present, the future is ever-changing, and there are countless possible futures. Looking into them, Naruto was unable to discern which would become the present and which would not. The endless possibilities, anything could happen, all depending on how the present would be played out. During his two-year-old reign as the King of Uzushio, Naruto had used Clairvoyance several times to avoid small disasters that would end in more paperwork for him, but there have been some events he didn't see, and was unprepared to deal with them.
Visions were something else. They came to you randomly and gave only a limited amount of details, usually about events that were still some time away, just like it was with his mother's death or the great prophet's vision about him. Visions were something to be not taken lightly and in light of recent events, Naruto had to make sure to prepare for the last vision he received, this is exactly why he was at the Hyuga Clan manor.
After finishing their Ramen, Naruto spent about two and half hours with Mordred before deciding to head to see what deal Hiashi had to offer. Naruto, still in his causal clothes, hands in his pockets walked towards the gate of the Hyuga estate and saw two guards standing outside.
"Hiashi is expecting me," Naruto stated with a bored expression. Honestly, he would rather stay with Mordred, but his duty called and as such he had to at least hear what the Hyuga wanted to say. Usually, Naruto would scoff at the notion of him having to go meet someone and not the other way around. He was a King, if someone had business with him, they came kneeling in front of his throne and spoke only when he allowed it.
But Naruto knew of the Hyuga's pride, since it the second only to his own, and understood that Hiashi asking for an audience was already a great blow to the Hyuga's pride, one that would take a long time to heal, at least for the Hiashi.
"You shall address Hiashi-sama with respect!" One of the two guards, who looked to be in his teens, stated with a frown. His fellow Clanmate froze and looked at the blond in not a small amount of fear.
"Who allowed you to address me, you Mongrel?" The red-eyed king asked with a scowl, crossing his hand and peering straight into the Hyuga's Byakugan. The guard, angry at the way he was being called was about to resort until an otherworldly amount of Killing Intent filled the area. For a moment, his vision became blurry and the world around him spun, the Hyuga guard blinked once and the Killing Intent vanished like it was never there.
A moment later, said guard realized he was no longer standing but kneeling, his hands holding his from hitting the ground. He looked up and a pair of slit crimson eyes were glaring at him, pinning him in place.
"Know your place, worm," Without another word, Naruto scoffed before walking into the compound, the other guard quickly called a Branch member to lead the blond to Hiashi's room.
Naruto was led to a room in the main building of the compound before being left alone by the servant. He knocked twice before sliding the door and entering the room.
The room was big, at least by normal standards, filled to the brim with scrolls and books. In the middle of the room was a single large desk behind which Hiashi sat, doing what seemed like paperwork before lifting his gaze. When their eyes met, Hiashi put his work away and focused on the blond.
"Your Majesty," Hiashi greeted, giving a bow if it could be called that. For most, it would be merely a nod, but slightly lower. For a Hyuga, this was the lowest their pride would allow them to be.
"Hiashi," Naruto greeted back and sat down in front of the Clan head. The black-haired man clapped twice and a servant walked in, pouring tea for the two before leaving without a word. For the whole time, the two sat in silence, one with his eyes closed and the other watching the servant pour the tea, looking for any mistake that might need to be corrected in the future.
Blood-red red opened and stared at the Hyuga clan head for a moment before Naruto sighed and started talking.
"Speak your mind, Hiashi. I neither have time nor patience for your usual political talk," While yes, the blond was taught how politics works and how to discuss with other important people, that was before he became the King and the vaults of his ancestors opened to him. Since then, he had no equal, his word was the law and the law was his whim.
"Very well, I shall get straight to the point. The Hyuga Clan is in dire need of help. As it is known, the Hyuga is currently the strongest Clan in Konoha, no other Clan can rival our numbers or might, not one ever since the Uchiha Clan massacre. And with this position comes the inherent risk of being the Village's first line of defense. As it is shown in Konoha's history, the strongest Clan is always the one that suffers the most during wars,"
"Get to the point, I grow tired of listening to your ramble. I was told you have a deal to offer and that is the reason I came here," Naruto proclaimed with a slight frown, his cheek resting on his left fist, his gaze holding the pale eyes of Hiashi, daring him to waste more of his time. The older man coughed to clear his throat before straightening back and starting to speak again.
"I propose a deal, an alliance between the Hyuga Clan and the Kingdom of Uzushio," Silence followed the statement. Naruto's eyes never left Hiashi's, rooting the man in place. When Naruto still did not give an answer, the Hyuga began to sweat slightly under the pressure. He was a politician, he was taught how to deal with stress and other emotions ever since he could talk. Yet, he couldn't help but fiddle under the watchful eyes of the young King, looking for even the smallest hints of weakness, like a predator watching its prey.
Naruto closed his eyes for a moment before chuckling lightly. The black-haired shinobi looked at him uncertainly, not sure if this was the reaction he was hoping for.
"Your deal has caught my interest, I shall allow you to explain whatever you need to explain," Naruto said with an amused smirk on his face, he leaned back and let the man speak his mind.
"The current generation of Konoha Shinobi is frankly a disappointment and embarrassment. They are all twelve, an age where they should at the latest become Genin and start to amass experience. Yet, they are still just in the middle of the academy curriculum, even if the Clan children are trained, it still doesn't change the fact that by the time Konoha's generation starts their careers, our enemies have already four years of experience and personal training,"
"I understand your dilemma, yet I do not see how this ties back to our deal,"
"With the current generation being unprepared for war, it will be the duty of the Hyuga, as the strongest Clan, to be on the front line in the next war. But I am afraid this would be the end of my Clan. Konoha, as you might know, has the second lowest amount of Shinobi among the five great Villages, but we always made up the difference with very skilled prodigies that rose during the crisis. This generation doesn't have anyone like this. There are two prodigies in this generation, Uchiha Sasuke and our Hyuga Neji, yet neither of them is a Shinobi or could be compared to a real prodigy like Hatake, Yondaime-sama, or the Sannin,"
"I see, so you want me to assure Hyuga Clan's survival should a war break out?" Naruto asked with a small scoff, yet the amusement from earlier did not fade. He rose an eyebrow when Hiashi shook his head.
"No, should a war break out, I want the Hyuga Clan to be allowed to join your Kingdom as a subject,"
"You would betray your Village during their hardest times to assure your own survival?" Now, this was it, Naruto always loved to see how low humans were able to go to protect themselves, holding onto their dear lives like cockroaches.
"If betraying Konoha means the survival of the Hyuga Clan, I will not hesitate!" The older man said with steel resolution and the blond couldn't help but laugh loudly. Naruto clutched his sides, trying to calm himself down, still giggling under his nose.
"Ah, now I see," He calmed his breathing down. "Well, I will see what can be done, but tell me, what do I and my Kingdom get from this?"
Negotiations took some time, around two hours, before the two came to an agreement. In exchange for giving the Hyuga Clan asylum should a war break out, the Clan would open trade with the kingdom at very good prices for Naruto's merchants as well as paying a percent of the Clan earnings to Uzushio, discreetly of course. Hiashi also offered a tribute of gold and silver to the blond in exchange for tutoring one of his daughters, which was an offer the blond considered declining for a moment before changing his decision, having heard Hiashi's reasoning.
"Why would you ask me for this? Surely, you can teach your heir yourself?" Naruto asked, truly puzzled why the older Ninja would be so desperate to ask for his help on this matter. The Hyuga sighed and massaged his temples.
"My older daughter and heir, Hinata, is very shy, to the point of being barely able of speaking with people. She is meek and lacks resolve, if nothing changes, she will not be able to lead the Clan in the future. I tried to help her, to teach her, but her lack of talent in the Hyuga style and her shy nature made it impossible,"
Naruto listened to what the Hyuga had to say, playing around with the cup filled with now cold tea. Once the man finished, the blond scoffed and shook his head.
"I have neither the time nor desire to take care of a child of that nature. If she truly is as you described her, I would start looking for a new heir," Naruto answered making Hiashi sigh in defeat.
"That is something I and the elders have considered for some time already. Hinata's younger sister, Hanabi is the complete opposite. She is confident and learns quickly, I daresay she might even rival Neji in talent, but it's too soon to say this yet. If you are not willing to teach Hinata, then maybe you would consider her younger sister?"
"How old is she?"
"She will be eight this summer," There was silence for a few moments before Naruto started laughing, confusing the Hyuga. After a few moments, the blond calmed down and sighed.
"How amusing, never have I thought I would see the Hyuga have their heir trained by someone outside their Clan. Very well, from today on, I shall mold Hanabi into a worthy Clan head, you may feel honored," Hiashi bowed his head slightly, thanking the blond. "Call her in, I wish to see what I am working with,"
The Hyuga clan head sent a servant to fetch Hanabi, meanwhile, the two sat in silence. They didn't have to wait long, after about four minutes, there was a knock on the door.
"Enter!" Hiashi ordered and the door slid open, revealing a young girl. She had brown hair, reaching her shoulders, and was wearing a simple white kimono with the Hyuga Clan's crest on the back and held by a dark-blue obi-sash. She looked from her father to Naruto, recognition flashing through her pale eyes before she bowed.
"Tou-sama, Uzumaki-sama,"
"Hanabi, good to see that you know who this is. From now on, he will be your tutor. You will follow and learn from him about the responsibilities of a leader, learn about politics, and train with him and anyone he deems as good training partners,"
"Hmph, so you want me to prepare her? Very well, from now on, you will be honored to be under my tutelage," the blond-haired boy said with an arrogant smirk. The brown-haired girl looked with wide eyes between her father and the young boy before swallowing hard and bowing her head.
"I shall give you a single piece of advice, I do not tolerate failure and disobedience," The red-eyed King stated before standing up and walking out of the room. As he passed the girl, he stopped for a moment and spoke without turning. "You will appear from Monday to Friday at the Namikaze household at five in the afternoon,"
Without another word, Naruto walked out, leaving the two Hyuga alone. He headed for the gate, wanting to get back home already, idly he noticed that the sun had already set.
Upon arriving back home, Naruto was greeted by a particular sight. Mordred, one of the most respected and feared Knights in his kingdom, was fighting with a cat. The blond blinked when he heard his friend hiss at the black feline, making it jump and ran away before the knight launched in pursuit on all four. Naruto smiled seeing her act so carefree and wondered what the other knight of the round table would say once they heard about this.
'Hm, no one would believe it,' That was true, there was probably not a single person in his kingdom who would believe that. During her carrier as a knight, however short it was, Mordred had established herself as a powerful and loyal subject, just like the rest of the Kingsguard. She was widely considered as dangerous and proud, often even arrogant.
'Maybe I was a bad influence on her?' Naruto shrugged, her arrogance was well warranted in his opinion.
After all, the five current members were not only the strongest but also the most respected warriors in Uzushio. All knew their name and exploits, they were the role models for new and old knights alike. Only a few could ever hope to be even considered for the position. While becoming a regular knight was easy, just like becoming a Shinobi, to advance in ranks, one had to have a natural talent and work harder than anyone else.
And that was only for rising through the regular ranks, in hopes of becoming a Lieutenant, Captain, or General. These were the ranks in the army of Uzushio and compared to the Shinboi system, there were fixed amounts of positions for the higher ranks.
The structure of Uzushio's army was as follows:
There were 5 Generals, each having about a thousand knights under them.
These one thousand knights were split into ten groups, each led by a Captain, making it about 100 soldiers for a Captain.
Each Captain had five Lieutenants, each of them leading a squad of twenty regular knights.
General had seniority over the Captains, who in turn commanded the Lieutenants. All three ranks had different responsibilities in the army. The Lieutenants led their squads in the battle and trained them during peace. The Captains gave general orders to their Lieutenants, making sure there was no discontent in the army as well as providing logistics for their underlings. The Generals were the main battle strategists, making the calls during battle about when to advance and when to retreat as well as keeping everything running smoothly.
The knights of the round table were not a part of the main army. They were the personal guard of the King, but oftentimes joined the battlefield and when they did, they had seniority over the General. Usually, the Kingsguard acted more like advisors to the General before joining the frontlines, but there were exceptions, like Mordred, who merely ordered the General to not get in her way before rushing headfirst into the fights.
How one advanced through the ranks, was an easy affair. Each officer designed their successor in the case should they die or retire. For example, an general designed one of his ten Captains as his successor, and said Captain chooses a Lieutenant, who in turn chooses a regular knight. Should the General die, the Captain becomes the new General and the Lieutenant becomes a Captain, and the regular knight takes a position as Lieutenant.
The king of course could always give or take the positions himself, but Naruto so far had deemed it unnecessary and let his officers do it themselves. Becoming a knight of the round table, however, was far different.
In theory, anyone could become a Knight of the round table, just like Mordred who didn't hold any position in the army before. Usually, all members of the Kingsguard are recommended by a Captain, General, or another member. It became a norm that any knight that is powerful or does a great feat is considered and if the current ruler deems them worthy, they are given the honor of joining the round table.
Naruto smiled fondly remembering how Mordred got recommended about three years ago.
It was quite the day in the Royal Capital for Naruto. Not only was he woken to the news of his mother being absent, having gone on some diplomatic meeting on the mainland with the three of the Knights of the round table, but he was entrusted with her duties for the day.
Now, the morning had been fairly peaceful, having done some paperwork, leaving the important ones for when Kushina was back, and meeting with a few of his future subjects, Naruto thought the day would stay this way.
That all changed when the doors to his study where burst open. Naruto tensed, the gates of Babylon opening instantly, ready to shred the intruder into pieces should he be hostile. Naruto blinked however when a young man fell to his knees in front of him. He was wearing the standard grey armor of the knights of Uzushio, but with the distinct blue markings around indicating his allegiance to the third army.
The man was on his knees, gasping for air and sweating, trying to cough up words, of which the blond understood none. Fed up with the man wasting his time, Naruto narrowed his eyes and spiked his killing intent for an instant, making the knight stop speaking.
"Calm down and take a breath," The man did as commanded, taking a few moments to control his breathing before straightening up and kneeling in front of the blond. "Now, speak your reason for taking up my time,"
"I-I was sent by my Lieutenant to deliver a message. A revolt of unruly peasants led by a few deserting knights has risen up on the south Island. The Garrison has been overwhelmed and I was sent to ask for backup," Naruto sat silent for a few moments, before clenching his fist and standing up, a scowl marring his face.
"The south Island?" The man nodded and the red-eyes prince told the man to rest in the main barracks. Leaving his room swiftly and heading towards one of the many gardens around the castle, he couldn't help but grumble under his breath.
There have been some rumors about discontent on said Island for some time now, ever since a disaster struck. A small Tsunami had crashed into the Island, destroying three Villages and killing many people. The reason for their anger was that his mother had assured them that the seals on the coast would protect them from such a thing happening. Feeling betrayed, they must have waited for her to go away to stage their revolt, something Naruto had warned his mother about, but she believed that once she helped them rebuild they would calm down and their blood wouldn't have to be spilled.
Naruto had seen the piece of Fuinjustu with his own eyes and knew that it should have worked and it was proven by the other Islands, of which there were seven in total. There was the main Island, on which the capital was located, and was the largest one of them. There were the south, west, east, and north islands, smaller than the main island but not as small as the north-west and south-east islands.
These seven Islands made the Uzushio Kingdom and were under his mother's and in the future his authority. To hear one of them dared to revolt was not something the blond was willing to let off the hook. And so, if the seal had failed it meant someone must have done something to either destroy or turn it off, most likely the deserters.
Arriving in one of the bigger gardens, Naruto scanned the area and his gaze stopped at a figure sitting under the shadow of a tree.
Upon closer inspection, it was a girl a little on the short side with a slim body figure that is slightly thick around her chest. Something that instantly catches one's eyes are her long black hair that could nearly touch the bottom of her feet, that was straight, and because of its length, it put up in a style that would avoid it from touching the ground. Along the right side, she had a thick ponytail that is kept together by a yellow Indian-looking hairpiece. In the front, her hair lays down in little strips just touching the ends of her eyebrows. The lower you look the longer those strips get.
There were other hairpieces in her hair that are the color black and at first, they looked like her ears, reminding that of a cat's. With this, she has a red headband around the top of her head.
Her outfit was something... special.
It consisted of a revealing samurai outfit, that would gain a lot of attention from both men and women even on the battlefield. Her outfit consists of the colors white, gold, blue, and black. Over this, she wears a white samurai cloak that matches easily with her white and gold top that covers her neck, shoulders, and chest. Around her waist, she wears what looks like a red, black, and gold belt attached to a layer of white clothing.
Her left forearm was covered by a purple sleeve that ended at her biceps and on her other arm, the same garment could be seen but in white. Her right half was also covered in a dark blue glove. This and her white socks and most curious Geta sandals made out of dark fur complimented her look. At her waist was a sheathed Katana and she wore light-blue panties. (AN1)
Naruto always wondered where did her special attire come from and why she would wear such revealing clothing, but never got around to asking her this. Shaking his head, the blond walked over to the girl, who opened her beautiful dark blue eyes and smiled upon seeing him.
"Ushiwakamaru," This was Uzumaki Yoshitsune, more commonly known as Ushiwakamaru, one of the four knights of the round table. "Let's go," Without another word, Naruto spun on his heel and started walking away towards the Palace's entrance, leaving behind a confused knight.
"Wait up, Naruto-sama!" The girl shot to her feet and ran after her prince. "What happened, where are we going?" Naruto scoffed as they walked down the hallways.
"Some mongrels have deemed it save to revolt during mother's absence," The black-haired girl cringed hearing Naruto use the word 'mongrel'. It was a known fact around the kingdom, that the blond had no mercy for people he called this way and only death awaited them. She narrowed her eyes at the motion of people rising against their rules, gritting her teeth.
"Such insolence!" Without another word, they headed south on foot. Usually, Naruto traveled with a horse, since who was he to run around? But this was an important matter and every moment mattered. The revolt had to be crushed before it spread or killed more of his people than just the Garrison.
It was late in the afternoon when the two arrived on the south Island. They had run the whole distance here, not stopping even once. Upon entering the island, golden particles lit around Naruto before his full golden armor appeared on him, the red waist cape billowing in the wind. The two walked through the island towards the small Garrison and upon getting close, they heard the sounds of a fierce battle.
"I was told the Garrison was wiped out, let's go," They rushed towards where the sounds came from. The whole area stank of fresh blood and death. Naruto and Ushiwakamaru landed on the wall surrounding the Garrison and the dark-haired knight whistled upon the sight.
The place was a battlefield, dead bodies covered the area, and blood soaked into the ground in copious amounts. Among the bodies, Naruto saw that most of them were simple civilians that took any weapons they could find, but also some of his soldiers.
They got closer to the center of the camp and found a single knight in a suit of bulky armor covered in red decorations and markings. The armor came with a horned helmet that hid the person's face and the knight held a single regular broadsword. Even though the armor and sword looked heavy, the masked knight moved with speed and agility like it weighed nothing. (AN2)
Across the knight were what must have remained from the rebellion. A few dozen civilians with weapons, had faces like they saw a demon, and rightfully so. The knight that fought against them was covered in fresh blood, that shone in the afternoon sun, and the broadsword that took many lives of their comrades, even though it was cracked already, probably didn't help their fear. Among the people were six knights, all of them still wearing their army armor with green markings, signs of wear and battle showing on them
'The deserters from the second army, was it squad six or seven? No matter, they will die,' Naruto saw the knight in red was about to lung forward the battle and he decided to finally make his presence known.
A single gate opened above his right shoulder before a beautiful golden spear shot out, hitting the ground in front of the knight in red, stopping him in his tracks. Both parties jumped, the knight of red because of how close and fast the weapon appeared and the rebels because they realized it was reinforcement for the demon in front of them.
However, what none of them expected was to find the prince himself standing in all his glory a short distance away. His crimson eyes displayed his rage at the rebels as his presence started to overtake the battlefield, striking even deeper fear into them for at that moment, all of them saw their death.
"Ho? What do I have here? A few mongrels daring to rise against my mother's rule?" Naruto shook his head as a small smirk found its way on his face before he turned to the knight.
"You have done well, my loyal subject. Rejoice, as you shall witness the treasury of your king!" Naruto swung his right hand before dozens of portals opened and only what one could call a massacre started. Weapons of all shapes and forms shot from the golden portals, and aimed at the civilian rebels, killing them all in seconds.
It took only 10 seconds before the few dozen civilian rebels were nothing more than a massacred pile of corpses. The six knights stood frozen, they all heard about the prince's power, but hearing about it and seeing it used against yourself were two different things.
"Ushiwakamaru, I left these six for you as payment for taking you with me. Crush them! Show them no mercy!" The knight of the round table was more than happy to slaughter the traitor that dared to rise against her queen.
"Understood, Naruto-sama!" The crazy, bloodthirsty grin on her face struck the fear of god into the remaining six knights that were forced to defend themselves or die when the dark-haired knight crossed the battlefield, intent on not letting a single one of the alive.
It ended swiftly, with all of their heads rolling on the ground and Ushiwakamaru at his side in about a minute. It was a testament to their skill that they managed to last this long, Naruto had seen the female knight bulldoze through twice this many knights in seconds. It was a shame they decided to revolt, they had some potential.
With this done, the red-eyed prince turned to the last knight and frowned, crossing his hands across his chest. The knight kneeled in front of him and they stood so for a moment before Naruto sighed.
"So..." He dragged the word long enough to show his displeasure. "Why are you here, Mordred?" The helmet of the knight retracted to reveal the blond hair pulled in a ponytail and the green eyes of his best friend.
She didn't look at him, afraid of what his reaction would be. If there was thing Mordred had learned about her fellow blond, is that he expected his subjects to obey him and not take any actions without his permission. Even though he was still only the prince, he held a lot of influence and only his mother could overrule his decisions.
And that was exactly what she did.
She had been on the main island near the port city on an errand when she saw the messenger. She instantly knew something was wrong, the fear and anger visible on his face showed her that something wrong has happened. As she was close to Naruto, he often told her about some information that was supposed to be only for the higher-ranking officers, such as the fears of a revolution on the south island.
Upon noticing his blue markings that showed he was from the third army that was stationed on the south island, she pieced it all together before rushing towards the battlefield in hopes of putting the revolt down. And she did this, without saying a word to another person, not only abandoning her current duty but also taking a major decision without Naruto's permission.
"I..." She scowled at the ground, clenching her fist that rested on the ground. "I saw the messenger and knew the people of this island rebelled, so I decided to put it down," There was silence for a few moments during which Ushiwakamaru walked over to stand behind Naruto.
"I see now," Mordred couldn't discern the emotions in his voice, but before she could think more about it, he spoke again. "To think the one person I trust the most do something like this," His voice was soft and she closed her eyes, ashamed of her actions, no matter how noble the intentions were. "I think you deserve to be punished, don't you think, Ushiwakamaru?"
"I agree," The mentioned black-haired girl had her eyes narrowed at the girl in front of her. For her, it was unthinkable to do anything like this without the Queen's or the Prince's permission, their word was the law and she would rather commit Seppuku than do something without their blessing, especially something as important as rushing toward the battlefield.
"Very well, for your treachery and disobedience from this day on-," There was something else in his voice now that Mordred heard. Wait. Was it-? "You shall be known as the knight of treachery! I think this is a fitting title," This blond idiot! She looked up only to see him giving her an amused smile, his eyes filled with mirth. Of course! He promises to get her back for annoying him a week back when he was studying!
Ushiwakamaru blinked once and then a second time, confused as she expected a more grave punishment. She looked at the prince's smiling expression and sighed. 'Well, what was I expecting, it is his precious Mo-chan after all,' The knight thought with a light smirk. It was a well-known fact in the court that the Pendragon heir had a special place in the blond's heart, being the only person he ever called a friend and comrade.
"Y-You! I can't believe you!" Mordred yelped, with a glare and a red face. She shot to her feet pointing her finger at the prince. "You scared me there to death, you blond moron!" Naruto only laughed at her embarrassed face before calming down.
"So, how many did you kill?" He asked, genuinely curious about his friend's achievement. Mordred scratched her head before shrugging with a grin.
"Dunno! Stopped counting after 200. Oh! And I killed three of two knights!" She said with a proud smirk. The red-eyed prince was surprised and honestly happy before an idea struck his head. Turning to the blue-eyed knight he looked at her with a knowing look.
"A feat worthy of the round table?" Mordred sputtered in shock while Ushiwakamaru hummed, looking over the countless bodies littering the place. Honestly, this was nothing compared to what Byakuya and Ichigo had done to be granted the position, yet it was something that was on par with what gave herself and Rukia the title.
"I think it might be," Ushiwakamaru nodded her head with a broad smile. Mordred, still shocked was unable to muster any answer, making Naruto laugh once again at seeing the ever-confident and proud Mordred in such a flustered and shocked state.
"Very well then! Once we get back to Uruk, I shall make it official!" Naruto stated proudly spreading his arms with a smirk. "By Ushiwakamaru's recommendation and by my authority from today on, you, Mordred Pendragon, the knight of treachery, shall be granted the position at the round table. Rejoice!"
"I... thank you," She muttered before kneeling in front of her friend with a single tear in her eye, that eluded the two others. "I shall do my best to serve you as a loyal subject!"
"Come on, let's head back to Uruk and have someone clean this up," As they walked towards the nearest port city, as they were not being in any particular rush and Naruto decided to take a ship, Mordred couldn't help but ask one question.
"Soo... about my sword?" Naruto chuckled and shook his head.
"We will wait until mother comes back with the other knight of the round table for the proper ceremony," Mordred pouted at this and he couldn't fault her. It was a custom that each member of the round table was gifted with a special sword from the vault of Uzushio. Well, that was the case until he was born and opened the gates of Babylon.
Naruto decided that any new members would be given a single treasure from his personal vault as a show of the blond's appreciation of their loyalty and strength. As it stands, Mordred would be the first one and the green-eyed knight would lie if she would say she wasn't excited. She had seen with her own eyes the amount of overpowered and amazing weapons Naruto had at his beck and call and couldn't wait to see which one he would give her.
Now, if she only could make him change her title everything would be perfect. Yet, her last wish would not be granted and before long, her title would be spread among the army and then the rest of the kingdom, making many wonders the reason for such a title.
Yo! Been some time, *cough* almost two years *cough*, but I decided to drop another chapter, hope you enjoyed it! I wonder if anyone still remembers what this story is about. Well, we will see.
AN1: Describing ushiwakamaru's outfit really is difficult, so if you want to see how she looks, search up 'Ushiwakamaru stage 2', that's the look we going with.
AN2: Same as with Ushiwaka, look up Mordred from fate to see her armor if you are curious about how exactly it looks.
Now, for future reference, I will be doing a list of Characters that are from other anime so if you don't know them you will at least know what anime they originated from.
Fate series: Gilgamesh, Mordred, Ushiwakamaru
Bleach: Byakua, Rukia, Ichigo
Of course, as the story progresses there will be more characters and I will keep the list updated at the ned of future chapters. Hope you enjoyed the read, if so, remember to leave a follow, a favorite, and a review.
If you have any questions, be sure to write them in the reviews and I will answer then in the next chapter.
Thanks for reading, see ya!