On Her Majesty's Secret Service
Chapter 03- A Ball to Die For
Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto or High school Dxd. If I did I would have been one rich and very perverted motherfucker. Sadly, I am only the latter.
They had been traveling for over two days. First via the strange that weird Fūinjutsu circle for what Sirzechs had told him was 'most of the way.' If this was the remainder Naruto didn't want to know what full road was. Mountains, rocks, trees, and black soil were the only things that stood before his eyes for who knows how many miles ahead and who knows how many miles behind them.
At first he was excited at the prospect of seeing the tallest mountain in the Underworld. If nothing else so he can piss of the edge of it and make a dick joke.
However, time could truly curb everybody's enthusiasm. After a full day of being stuck in a carriage an admittingly good carriage, but a carriage none the less- he could say that his legs were feeling numb. He didn't remember the last time he was forced to be seated for such a tortures period of time. Hell, those lame council meeting took mostly around 5 hours.
The company hadn't been the best either; the 'guards' seemed stupid enough to get picked off by a newly minted Jounin, and they were piss poor at keeping their mouths shut…At least before the incident happened. After that they were as gullible as kittens, Naruto thought, smirking
At least the heiress wasn't as bad as he thought she'd be. He had expected a whiny girl with too much power in her mouth rather than on her fists. He was proven incorrect. She wasn't arrogant or snotty to upset his nerves, and she did have a singer's voice. And she sure wasn't hard on the eyes. Anything but actually. With long crimson hair flowing down her shoulders and those unique blue-green eyes she sure was a catch. He could imagine himself, if he was still a Genin being head over heels for her. Alas, that was not the case.
"So you're telling me that these people live on top of the biggest mountain in the world?" Naruto said, still finding it hard to believe. Even with sealing circles and everything, living so high was surely a pain.
"It is their ancestral home, after all." Rias explained, taking a sip from her tea. It was scented with flowers and mixed with fruits to create a truly marvelous taste, if her expression was anything to go by.
Naruto was about to reply hastily until he actually decided to give it some thought. If he was still in the Elemental Nations and the war was over would he want to settle down in Uzu no Kuni? His own ancestors' home, protected by powerful sealing arrays and the everlasting torrents of water. There was truth in her words.
He could feel it in his chest. A certain longing, threatening to burst out of his chest, at the thought of stepping into his mother's old home. The Phenex guys lived on top of a mountain, right? They were bound to have some maps.
"Are you okay?" Rias said warmly. He looked up, only to meet her worried gaze. How long had he been lost in thought? Guess it really was uncharacteristic of him to be quiet for a prolonged period.
"Yea, I was just thinking about home." The blonde said with a cheerful smile. No use bringing down the mood just because one fool thought a place that had been most likely been buried underneath who knows what.
"Where did you grow up? I can only imagine it was somewhere south considering your looks." Rias looked at him, waiting for a confirmation on her hypothesis.
South, she wasn't that far off the point? Hi no Kuni was the second warmest of the great countries, behind only Kaze no Kuni
"You can say that," He confirmed. "I even got the lucky side of the building. The sun always shone when I got up from bed and it always set when I went to sleep."
"It must've been beautiful," Rias declared with a smile of her own.
"Sadly, no," Naruto chuckled. Oh boy would've Sakura-chan hit him hard if he ever thought about bringing her to his apartment. He could clearly remember what a mess it was; clothes everywhere, a dozen dishes in the sink waiting to be washed for weeks, but it did hold a special place in his heart. Always had, always will. "It sucked big time, but at least it was close to the academy. So when I woke up late I could still come to class." He snickered. Now those were the days.
"How did you do in school?" She gave him a quizzical look as she leaned in, blue-green eyes staring at him with interest. "If Brother chose you to my personal guard you must have a great deal of talent."
Naruto blinked a couple of times. "Can't say that I was all that good those days," He chuckled, scratching the back of his head sheepishly.
"Oh, and how good were you exactly?" Rias asked, leaning in even more until their bodies were almost touching. Naruto could feel her soft body almost resting against his chest, her soft ruby lips being at the level of his chin. The worst part about it was the way she held that innocent expression. Like she wasn't even noticing the situation they were in.
"I was, um, the Dobe." He admitted, his blue orbs forcefully glued to her own orbs. He couldn't get caught staring at her breasts on his first day, dammit! He was a professional! A real one, not like Ero-sennin.
"You were the Dobe?" Rias raised an eyebrow.. She knew he was an orphan, Brother had told her that much, but he just wasn't fitting into the deadbeat category she had imagined. "How were you the Dead Last? You seem strong and smart, I just don't get it…was the rest your class full of monsters, or something?"
"It's simple, actually," Naruto said evenly, the day he became ashamed of himself was the day the day he would stop being awesome, and that was not happening. "Combine my natural stupidity with a touch of butting heads with every single authority figure, and there you have it; the Dobe."
"Didn't you study at all?" She asked her voice unbelieving. Rias didn't even plan on asking about the second part of his statement.
Naruto looked thoughtful, then he shrugged his shoulders casually. "Nah, I was too busy pulling pranks." He admitted without a shred of shame in his voice, he learned a lot more about stealth by pulling pranks rather than staying in a boring classroom with a dozen other people and a teacher that was as dull as they come.
"It reminds me of one my favorites!" The spiky haired man exclaimed cheerfully, overly cheerfully. "On my graduation day I knew I had to leave a message, y'know? Something people will remember for years to come." His blue eyes shone with unholy glee as he spoke. "So I climbed up the tallest monument in the village…and I drew graffiti all over the stone faces."
Rias laughed out loud, clutching her stomach as she did so. She didn't find his tale all that funny, but the way a man like him can get so hyped over such a juvenile deed? It more than deserved the laugh it got from her.
"I can't believe you can get so worked up over a childish prank." She said in between giggles, her hand gently placed over her lips.
"Hey," Naruto argued, there was no hint of steel in his voice, he just liked playing around. "I'll have you know that it took a great deal of planning and bravery to pull it off." Naruto crossed his arms over his chest, looking out through the window into the pale night, the stars illuminating the sky like tiny little specks of holiness, ironic considering their current whereabouts.
"I'm sure it did." Rias spoke, mirth evident in her voice, too much mirth if you asked him, as she patted him on head. Her soft hand gently brushing over his golden locks, and Naruto didn't want to admit it but…it felt damn good.
He closed his eyes, mulling over his next words. "Um, I need to go for a walk." Naruto said nervously, kicking the carriage door open. He was a moment away from jumping before he felt a pair of graceful arms slid across his shoulders, wrapping themselves around his neck.
"Oh, no you don't!" She exclaimed, inserting her long legs around Naruto's arms, tying them around his gut. "You're not getting away that easily!"
Naruto didn't know what to do. It was the first a client had actually straddled him like a horse! So he did the only thing that made sense at the time. He jumped.
"WHAT ARE YOU DOING!?" Rias shouted in panic as Naruto mimicked a cat, bouncing right off the road. "STOP!"
"Heh, sorry it's too late for that." Naruto said coolly, picking up speed, and leaving nothing a trail of dust behind him. He could barely register what the other guards were yelling about. He honestly didn't care. "Am I going too fast for you?"
"Yes!" She yelled back, clutching onto him for dear life.
"Good."
Riass' blue-green eyes shone with panic as she stared at his feet; cones of wind were subtly forming around his ankles, tearing through the road like an anvil through dirt.
Then he lunged through the sky like an arrow. Rias screamed, burying her face in his hair, tears streaming down her eyes. She could feel the cold night breeze storming through her hair. The exhilarating feeling of the speed coupled with the beautiful sky was going to be etched in her mind until her final moments.
Naruto looked up towards Rias, a grin on his face. Rias' hair contrasted the night's sky so starkly that it seemed to be ablaze, like a shooting star. His mouth agape, Naruto couldn't find it within himself to say a word…her beauty was so ethereal, so dare he say it…divine?
Maybe guard duty wasn't as bad as he thought it.
"Good evening, Lady Rias. We thank you for coming." Brand Wood told her as their horses climbed to pass. "I am very glad you made it here safely."
"You don't need to worry about us." Rias said with a gentle smile. Sometimes she felt incredibly annoyed at the fact that every guard in the Underworld doubted her safety; she always had at least five strong and brave guards around her, not including Naruto who seemed to be on a whole different level. Add to that her own growing skills with the Power of Destruction, she felt as if she was safest girl in the world. "We only met a couple of dragons on our way, nothing serious." She joked. Truth be told, she started out with six guards, but one of the got into a…squabble with Naruto about his 'attempt to abduct Lady Rias'. One moment he was on his feet, a fire spell in one arm and a sword in the other, next moment he was face first against the Molten road, unconscious. It did go to show just how strong Naruto was, at least in her eyes. The unlucky man was sent off back to the Gremory mansion for treatment.
"Did you encounter any rouge Devils on your way here?" Brand asked. He was bulky young man, around his early twenties with a long face, small nose and short brown hair.
"No, I can't say we have." Rias replied calmly, but there was jolt of worry going up her body. The rogue clans were normally prowling through the larger roads of both The Underworld and the Human world, that's where all the stories of evil devils began.
"If only Lord Ruval had enough time to come and exterminate those vermin." He looked at her anxiously, suddenly remembering who he was speaking to. "I'm sorry for troubling you with my empty banter, my lady"
"No need to be sorry for speaking your mind," Rias said calmly, beckoning for Naruto and her guards to come closer. "I can bring up the issue at tonight's ball, if you think it will help the situation."
"Thank you, my lady."
And so the long climb had begun.
She arched an eyebrow when she saw the battlements ahead, the parapets built into the very mountain itself. The pass was so narrow that no more than six men could move through it at one time. Twin towers showed themselves along the rocky slopes, the only thing joining them being a small bridge made out of old stone. Many men were silently staring at them through the narrow slits of the towers.
Naruto however was anything, but impressed with the site before them. He was sitting half-asleep on his horse, not even mentioning anything about the rogue devils. Last night her brother had told her that Naruto wasn't from around here. When she had asked where he was from, brother only smiled and told her to ask him herself. When she did, he only sent a smirk her way and said. "Konohagakure no Sato." Before dozing off again. If it wasn't for the beautiful site in front of her she would've frowned. If he didn't want to tell her, at least he would've been honest about it.
"How long a ride?" She asked.
"I'm guessing that we will arrive in a few more hours at most." Brand answered dutifully.
"Can't we just fly?" Rias whined, she hadn't flied since last week. Her wings were aching from underage.
"The winds are simply too strong. They will blow us right off the mountain."
"They don't seem so strong right now." Rias argued, looking over the giant mountain.
"The winds are fickle, my lady. There is no telling when they will pick up." Brand warned, he was a cautious man.
Rias frowned, but said nothing more. It was better for her wings to ache rather than her body to become a bloody spot on the ground.
They walked in silence for the next hour or so, the sun was already beginning to set, casting a bronze light all over them. The redhead was forced to shield her eyes, they sun was so much stronger up here compared to back home.
Their path had become narrower, but also finer. Alongside every corner stood a statue of some of the greatest members of the Phenex Clan. It is said that Michael himself had to come down in order to destroy the mountain. And he would've if not for the timely intervention of the Satans.
Rias' face looked divided for a moment as she mulled over whether to ask Brand about Lord Riser. The crimson haired beauty knew she was bound to meet him tonight, but she couldn't contain her excitement. Aside from his feats in the Rating Games and beauty there was nothing more of him that she knew. That was an unnerving fact considering their future marriage. Perhaps it was just fear before the meeting, but she felt a small sliver of doubt. What if he wasn't the gallant she thought he was? Finally deciding to speak, she craned her neck towards Brand, a regal look on her beautiful face. "Can you tell me something about Lord Riser? I have head very little of him beside his undeniably skill in the Rating Games."
Brand looked conflicted for a moment, his face scrunched up in thought. "Well," he began with uncertainty clear in his voice. "Lord Riser is famous for his…pride."
Rias rolled her eyes in light annoyance. All lords are proud, she thought in distaste. It was one of the few static things in life.
"What about Lady Ravel? I heard she was a beautiful young girl." Rias didn't press anymore about Riser, but she thought that some information could be gained about him by finding out what his siblings were like.
A warm smile appeared on the guard's face. "Ah, Lady Raves is truly a great girl. She both her parents' looks and wits."
"That's good to hear," Rias said with a gentle smile of her own; for some reason being reminded of herself when she was around that age. Before all the responsibilities were being dumped on her.
She most certainly didn't expect the young man's to darken a moment later. "If only those greedy old dogs had decided to wait a few more years."
"Greedy old dogs?" Rias parroted, interested in the currents dilemma.
"Suitors, Lady Rias." Brand said curtly, disgust evident in voice.
What kind of a sick phreak would fancy a little girl?, Rias thought in both disgust and anger. She sure was lucky that for most of her childhood was spent under her brother's watchful eyes.
"I've had enough of this!" Naruto screamed from behind them, throwing his hands up in exasperation. Patience clearly wasn't his strong suit.
But what he did next shocked everyone present. He suddenly stood up from his black stallion, and began…running up the mountain. Literally.
Rias wasn't even going to try and chase him. She knew better.
"You can at least act like you're enjoying yourself." Rias chided her voice faint as a whisper. Naruto merely bristled at her comment, opting to fix his burnt orange tie. Thankfully, he at least knew he had to look good, and look good he did. With a coal black suit, which contrasted with his silver shirt, the only the only thing sticking out was that pesky orange tie, but no matter what she said, nothing was able to convince her blonde guard to change it. However, even with the tie he looked stunning; his messy golden locks appeared to be tamed, even if a little.
"I'm not a liar." He countered, his mint fresh breath washing over her. Good thing she forced him to brush his teeth five minutes before entering the hall. As much as Rias liked his ramen flavored breath, she was a realist; odds are the lords and ladies of all the greatest clans in the Underworld won't like it.
"Allow me to put the finishing touch," The crimson haired beauty suggested, and he nodded solemnly. She took out a single rose, its crimson petals almost glowing due to being showered with a false luminescence as she neatly placed it into the opening of his suit. "See, you look dashing." A smile graced her beautiful face.
Naruto only grumbled.
When they reached the gates to the hall, Rias could only admire the beauty of gates themselves. Each of them were gigantic, made of wood, its branches were littered with all manners of precious stones; rubies, emeralds, sapphires, it had it all.
A tall and lean butler opened the gates, his eyes respectfully glued to the floor, but even the floor was beautiful to look at.
When they entered the great hall of the Phenexs' she breathed in sharply, having trouble taking it all in. Soft music was caressing her eardrums from a live band. When one of the many waitresses strode past her, she noted that woman was carrying a boiled egg, enclose in golden leafs. It looked positively delicious.
When she finally got her bearings back and began walking through the hall, admiring all the beautiful painting adorning the walls, all the different noble men and women were conversing around her. Each with their own tale to tell.
She felt a familiar presence coming her way, turning around, she smiled. „It's good to see you are here, Rias," Sona's words came out as they normally did; cold, it was quite funny that she was wearing a passionate red gown. "And I'm glad that you have dressed appropriately for the evening."
Rias smirked at her comment, she was wearing a strapless violet dress that hugged to her body and showed off her impressive curves, but did not reveal too much skin. She was a lady, after all.
"Thanks you," Rias took the compliment with a small smile dancing across her lips. "You look nice too, Sona."
Sona took the compliment with the same icy demeanor as before, giving away only a nod of her head, her pearls shining when the rays of light hit them. "I plan on calling the rest of our little group in due time."
"Little group?" Rias beckoned, a thoughtful look on her face
"Sona Sitri, Rias Gremory, Sairaorg Bael, Seekvaira Agares,"Sona droned out with brisk pace, her visage unchanged. "We are the cream of the crop, big things are expected of us. Some of the veterans have even names us the 'The Four Young Kings.'" The slim young woman explained her violet eyes calculative.
"Rias, have I ever told you about the title me and my friends got when we graduated?" Naruto said suddenly, looking directly at Rias. His loud and obnoxious voice echoing through the hall, and quite a few of the various lords and ladies shot him a dirty look, but he didn't seem to mind at all.
"Rias, teach your serv-" Sona never got the chance to finish her sentence as the blonde continued.
"So don't let it get to you. These old geezers just jump at the possibility of playing poets." Naruto explained, beaming as he did so. While he imparted his 'wisdom' Sona's eyebrow was twitching dangerously.
"Ri-"
Naruto looked away from her and glared at Sona as if she just broke some taboo. "Can't you see that we are trying to have a conversation here?" He snapped at the Sitri, her frown only deepened upon hearing his words.
"You are a classic example of the inverse ratio between the size of the mouth and the size of the brain."
"Rias…" Naruto tilted his head, looking genuinely confused. "Is your weird friend hitting on me?"
Rias took an audible gulp; she had to defuse the situation before her friend drowned Naruto. "Can you please excuse us for a moment, Naruto?" She said calmly, it was the first time in her life that one of her people had acted so…weird.
"Sure," He replied cheerfully, his eyes going towards the bar. "Do you want something to drink?"
"Um, no."
Like a kid in a candy store Naruto dashed towards the bar.
This was going to be a long night.
"Sake, please," Naruto said with a smile etched on his face. There was nothing like drinking some good ol' sake to keep your mind of the bloodthirsty sharks around you. Mhm, nothing at all.
"I'm very sorry to inform you, sir, but we do not have sake." The barman said, his long face scrunched up into an awkward smile and his numerous locks of blonde hair fell across his head.
"Wh-what?" Naruto said silently, a dangerous look on his whiskered face. His fingers jerking through the bar.
"But we do have whiskey!" The barman quickly interjected. His voice full of worry and fear. It was kind of funny, actually.
"Fine, fill a cup of this…whiskey."
And so he did. He took the best looking bottle from the highest shelf, sweating as he did so. The blonde haired barman took a large, round cup with the Phenex sigil on it, and placed in front of the Uzumaki. Naruto's eyes were solely focused on the bronze liquid that was flowing down the bottle. His blue eyes scanned the bottle and found the title 'The Forgotten Angel'. It looked to be of fine quality, but he wasn't certain. Naruto lifted the cup cautiously, his eyes staring at the foul, chestnut-colored liquid as if it was some kind of enemy. He carefully moved the cup towards his lips, uncertain on whether or not he should even drink it at all, until he finally drank it, ever so slowly. He could feel it going down his throat; it had an irresistible and seamless blend of different flavors.
Naruto carefully placed the now empty cup down, and looked at the barman whose entire face screamed of fear.
"Another!" He yelled for all to hear. Proudly shoving the cup in his fellow blonde's chest.
After that he couldn't even remember just how much he had drank. All he could remember were the words 'Forgotten Angel' and 'Another'. The world around him seemed to lose focus as he sluggishly moved his limbs in a vain attempt to walk towards Rias, who was chatting with the annoying girl from earlier and some guy.
"Do you need any help, sir?" A feminine, voice called out from behind him. He slowly turned around, his unfocused blue eyes meeting a pair of orange eyes. He liked orange.
"Yea," He slurred as he felt himself getting lifted from the floor and before he knew what happened the woman was dragging him towards the balcony. However, he was having far too much fun in staring at her cleavage to worry about such bothersome things. A single stray raven lock fell into his face, before it was gently pushed away.
"Here." The raven haired woman said as she leaned him against the stone railing. He could barely keep himself on his feet, but he managed.
"What's your name, handsome?" The woman whispered huskily into his ear, her soft hands going through his chest, before pulling out the crimson rose, Rias' rose, he reminded himself.
"Uzumaki Naruto." Naruto raised an eyebrow; the woman sure was beginning to act strange. Her orange eyes went visceral as she shoved.
He could feel himself slipping from the railing, and suddenly he was falling. Naruto shot out a hand, gripping the ledge with everything he had in him. He swung against the building, crashing into it, stealing the breath right out of his lungs.
He saw the woman's visage, emotionless. She said something, but the sound of the wind was deafening. A gleaming blade appeared in her hand as she ran it through his hand.
Yelling, Naruto went backward out of the balcony and into the emptiness of the night.