Chapter 16
Holfort Academy
With the disastrous trip along with surviving a direct attack from Fanoss, Leon Bartfort's odyssey came to an end. However, his worst fears were about to come despite the fact that everyone returned alive. He was going to be promoted!
Although he had hope that his promotion would be cancelled out with the near death experience he caused with the crash. At the same time, he doesn't want to be executed or severely punished.
"Well, this could have gone way better." Leon said with a sigh.
As Leon was thinking about the recent events that stressed him out. He saw the soldiers and princess of Fanoss being escorted out as prisoners. With Titanius' militia of automatons assisting in the escort. He wondered how that business would be handled.
"It's a good thing we landed near hospitable and friendly people." Leon muttered as he saw Naruto and a few other automatons exit their airship.
"I would have preferred not crashing at all." Angelica spoke up. "Then again, we can't control the forces of nature." She said to Leon.
"Well nature hates me." Leon said.
"It wasn't all that bad to be honest. We discovered an entire civilization and a surface." Angelica said with satisfaction. "You might earn more recognition since this is a major discovery." she said, trying to cheer up Leon.
Leon was not happy, "Oh great, yeah sure. That's amazing." he said sarcastically.
While this is a major breakthrough for the kingdom and it's allies. The potential alliance and discovery of an entire continent far below the floating islands are going to put Leon in a slightly better light. It was a dumb accident, but that's how a lot of breakthroughs in science and technology are often discovered. Leon's only concern might be arguments with the families of the students he had begrudgingly invited.
'Queen Mylene is an amazing woman, but I shouldn't have been that desperate to invite her.' Leon thought.
Just then, Queen Mylene arrived, "Sir Leon, while I cannot condone the use of the harsh words you used. I cannot deny merit where it is earned." she said. "You are a brave man for your age, a bit rude, but still courageous. I will see to it that you are awarded and exonerated." she said before leaving with her personal guards.
Leon smiled for a moment before frowning, "Why me?" he asked.
"I think it's obvious." Angelica stated, not fully understanding her friend yet.
Naruto then met up with Titanius as several mechanical animals surrounded them. Both remembering that Momon managed to sneak in this small army into the airship.
"We should work on establishing communication with the surface." Naruto suggested.
"Do we need an antenna? I think we're already high up." Titanius asked.
Naruto looked towards some nearby islands, "Maybe we can attach an antenna at the bottom of these islands. Assuming that we can get the signal to point down." he said.
"I'll get a rope and a hook." Titanius said before preparing a harness.
Naruto watched the reunion of all the passengers with their families and acquaintances. Along with Queen Mylene and her son meeting with other members of her royal court. Most likely planning out an alliance with Mirellia and Makai once they return to their castle.
"There's always a lot of work." Naruto said.
On the surface, Melromarc
With Mylene and her subjects escorted into the sky where the islands and her kingdom are. Mirellia turned her attention back to her duties. Which included administering punishment to her daughter, but only if they can prove that she her actions are her own. Knowing her daughter for so long, despite having given the girl genuine love, Mirellia could tell that Malty would go on a rampage if given the opportunity.
With the black slime or ooze or whatever it is granting her strength beyond a fit human. Mirellia questioned whether or not Malty was actually influenced into doing anything bad. As Mirellia mentioned many times before, Malty is a pathological liar and a troublemaker who is spoiled.
It could be because of stress, but Mirellia gave in and listened to Momon's offer. The offer being a strange method of interrogation to see if Malty actually had any information in regards to her transformation. Such as a benefactor or the origin of where it came from and knowing how her child is, Mirellia was willing to do anything by this point. Also Malty is 20 years old, she's not a child anymore and needs to be treated like an adult in the eyes of the law despite her status.
"Don't worry your majesty, with this free trial. You will receive a perfect demonstration of the Evisceration 4000… name and patent pending." Momon said, secretly hating the ugly and simple name.
"How does this device work exactly?" the queen asked.
"I will show you." Momon said as she presented a wooden box with a handle.
As Momon activated a switch on the box and threw it inside of a prison cell. Instead of a Jack in the Box or anything surprising but subtle like that. A set of fake shark teeth came out and start clicking it's teeth as it ran at the prisoner. Only for Momon to realize that she had thrown it into the wrong cell.
Instead of the first princess, the box attacked the former Spear Hero.
"AHHH!" Motoyasu screamed as the box carrying the shark teeth could be heard biting onto something. "KAMI! THIS HURTS! AHHHHH!" he screamed.
As the demonstration was tested onto the wrong person. One of Mirellia's more loyal guards ran towards the cell and screamed back at Motoyasu.
"AHHH! AHHHH! AHHHH! I'm beating you! AHHH! AHHH!" The guard yelled, thinking this was a screaming contest.
"Walt, mark that as a successful demo but issues on the user's end." Momon told her eldest son.
"Yes mother." Walt said as he marked a piece of paper. "Would you like for me to bring in the second demo device?" he asked.
"Might as well." Momon answered.
Walt then bumped his elbow into Larry's chest. In return, Larry bumped his elbow into Igner's chest who let out a noise of pain. The three idiots then proceeded to run out of the dungeon and come back in with a large box. As they pushed the large box towards the correct cell, Mirellia could hear some violent shaking from within the box. Mirellia started questioning Momon's methods as she saw a strange warning sticker on the box.
Warning: Not allowed in any territory, kingdom or colony managed by any elven race or species living underwater.
"Is this legal?" Mirellia asked.
"It's up to you once the demonstration is over." Momon said as the box was tossed into the cell.
Where a chained up Malty looked hopeful, "Mama, are you willing to let me be a princess again?" she asked.
As the fallen princess tried to stand, ready for Mirellia to forgive her like when she was a small child. Malty was surprised by a shaking crate being shoved into her cell. She felt nervous at first but saw some concern from Mirellia's face. For some reason, Malty thought her mother was actually contemplating whether or not to forgive her daughter.
However, Malty wouldn't be assuming that once the crate opened and some jellyfish-like creature came crawling out of the crate. Before anyone could say anything, the jellyfish stuck it's tentacles onto Malty's temples. Malty gave her mother a scared smile.
"Mama, what is… AHHH!" Malty screamed as the jellyfish shocked her.
At the very least, the voltage looked more painful than it was. Because Malty didn't show any burn marks or anything potentially permanent. At that point, everyone realized that they haven't begun interrogating Malty yet.
"Is there way to stop it so we may obtain answers from my daughter?" Mirellia asked before hearing Malty scream again. "Preferably before her mind is lost forever?" she asked.
Momon sighed as she grabbed something from the crate, "Right, I forgot about that. My ex-husband told me those slimes feel pain from electricity." she said as she grabbed a pole used for wild animals. "Boys, hold back the jellyfish. We need answers before the spoiled princess' brain turns into oatmeal." She said as she hands over the pole.
"I got it mommy!" Igner said as he grabbed the pole. He then went inside of the cell, "Hang on Mr. Fish, we need to ask the princess some questions." he said.
A few moments later, Igner managed to restrain the jellyfish for a moment. Once he was sure that he could keep the sea creature away from Malty long enough to begin interrogation. Igner came up with questions he should ask, not realizing that it wasn't his duty to interrogate the princess.
"Now princess, how is your day?" Igner asked.
"Igner, you ignoramus. Don't socialize with the prisoner!" Walt yelled.
"I'm having a horrible day!" Malty yelled before being electrocuted.
"Mr. Fish shocked you, so that means your lying." Igner said. "So in reality, you're having a great day!" he said.
"Igner, don't ask her any questions!" Walt yelled.
"I am not having a great day!" Malty yelled before being electrocuted again.
"Lying is bad." Igner said before the jellyfish continued it's job.
Momon nodded, "I guess Igner at least understands the program." she said, almost feeling impressed.
Mirellia just stood back as she watched the jellyfish continue it's work. She also looked at the other prisoners she had set up and wasn't sure if Momon was going to use her strange sea creature on them as well. Even the clones of that penguin, Gunther, were looking quite nervous around the woman with the snakes for hair.
'Does the Spirit of the North fear her that much?' Mirellia wondered.
Outside of the castle
Yasaka and Kushina were on one of the airships in the command room. Where they were speaking with a hologram of Naruto who spoke to them from Titanius' ariship. As of now, the Crimson Emperor was giving them his update on the situation.
"And once again, my luck was against me. I didn't expect an assault of this scale to occur. Let alone an army of flying sea creatures to function under their beckon and call." Naruto explained.
"Naru-chan, are you hurt? How bad was it?" Kushina asked, allowing her maternal instincts kick in.
"I'm fine, okaa-san. Though I feel surprised that Roberto hardly caused any life threatening injuries." Naruto answered with a sigh. "Still, the lives of Holfort's citizens and Queen Mylene are secured. We'll likely begin peace talks before traveling back down to the service by the end of the day." He explained.
"You should worry about your own health husband. While we're on the topic, you said your travel would be temporary." Yasaka said in a stern tone.
Then Titanius stuck his head into the conversation, "That's what he told me too and we're almost out of beer!" He angrily said.
Naruto shoved the robot aside, "I know, but Queen Mylene got a bit eager. We also lack the resources to generate a portal as we did in Konohagakure. So another odyssey would be difficult to attempt as well as take too much time." He explained.
"Excuses, excuses!" Titanius said before being shoved away again.
Yasaka sighed, "Just return before dinner. I swear, these international affairs are becoming more frequent and more troublesome." she said but knew such politics are important.
"But at least that will give Kunou more time to play with Melty. Our daughter deserves this before she's forced into growing up." Naruto said.
"Just finish up and return, husband." Yasaka said.
"And don't let some rich brat make fun of you! One of those brats said something about my hair and I almost sent them to home in a body bag!" Kushina exclaimed.
"Your advice is considered, okaa-san." Naruto replied.
"Only considered!?" Kushina asked before sighing. "Stay safe Naru-chan, do that much more?" she asked.
"Yes ma'am." Naruto said before disconnecting.
"I swear, that boy might be a man now but he makes it sound like he's taking this too lightly." Kushina said.
"That's my husband and your son. Kushina-sama, didn't you say that you wanted to be a part of politics at one point?" Yasaka asked.
"I wanted to be Hokage, but I took it too lightly." Kushina said with a sigh. "Actually, Yasaka-chan do you know if Naru-chan ever had difficulties with his power?" she asked.
"I assume his ample chakra made it difficult for him to control. Otherwise, he seemed fine to me. What brought this up?" Yasaka curiously asked.
Kushina looked a bit anxious, "That power he has, it's not natural. I mentioned Naruto was born as a normal human but I contained a powerful fox within me called the kyuubi." she explained.
Yasaka looked curious, "You may want to ask Momon-sama or even Greyfarn-san. I didn't meet Naruto until his late teen years." she replied.
"I see, thanks anyways." Kushina said.
"Is something the matter Kushina-sama?" Yasaka asked, wondering if there's a family related issue.
"No, at least I don't think so." Kushina said, before hearing some crying. "My grand babies!" she yelled, switching her personality to a protective grandmother.
In Glass' Dimension, at night
Kizuna worked out a plan to get to the Dragon Hourglass and with Grayfarn's appearance. They now had extra resources to help with the break in. Although Naofumi's party had to do most of the work since Grayfarn's ideas involved accidentally destroying the temple that held the hourglass.
It was a good idea to have the old man wait outside with his battalion of orcs. You wouldn't believe what it took to keep some of the guards and local citizens to ignore this strange sight. The reason for this being a good idea is because the group realized that they entered a trap.
For when they opened a door, they found a metal wall, "What is this?" Kizuna asked.
"A trap." Naofumi said as he saw some lights turn on in another room.
"There they are!" Someone from the room.
From there, a whole squadron of guards with wooden staves came rushing at the group. The party made a run for it and only found themselves in a maze of walls blocking their paths. This resulted in the group splitting in half to cover more ground.
"This is getting way too crazy." Naofumi said.
"Is the Dragon Hourglass hidden away?" Raphtalia asked.
"It's probably somewhere in the middle of the temple. They're just keeping it secured." Kizuna answered with her personal theory.
"I'm starting to think we might need that crazy old wizard." Naofumi said as he pulled out a small canister.
Kizuna looked concerned, "Are you sure it's a good idea? He's got an army of monsters at his command." she said.
"They work for this lady with snakes in her hair. Those guys will do whatever their contract says." Naofumi replied. "Hopefully destroying temples is a violation of it." he said.
"Fine then, but wait ten minutes. Just in case we find it in time." Kizuna suggested.
"Alright." Naofumi said.
A few minutes later, Dragon Hourglass room
Only just after releasing the canister, which released a lot of dangerous fireworks which should have been illegal, Naofumi and Kizuna found the Dragon Hourglass. Along with Kazuki who looked smug alongside his two fangirls.
"So you must be the trash that Kyo mentioned." Kazuki said arrogantly. That's when the guards surrounded Naofumi and the girls, "You probably figured out that this was a trap, but I bet you didn't know that I was behind it." he said.
Naofumi feigned surprised, "You're right." he said, making Kazuki look more smug. "I thought a genius was behind it. Good for you." he said sarcastically.
Now Kazuki looked annoyed, "I wouldn't be insulting throwing insults. You're surrounded after all." he said.
"Am I?" Naofumi asked.
Just at Kazuki was about to yell at Naofumi for being an "Annoying and arrogant fool", Grayfarn came in. Actually he came after the wins and Rishia arrived but after that, the orcs shattered several walls. The guards were surprised by the sudden appearance of the orcs to adjust their positions. However, it didn't help as some of the orcs were carrying the injured bodies of their comrades in their arms.
"Meteor Shield!" Naofumi yelled as he released a powerful force to knock back the guards.
Kazuki gritted his teeth in anger at how quickly his plan fell apart. Even worse now that the guards proved to be useless to him. Even with the remaining guards now arriving, Kazuki was surrounded and outnumbered by Naofumi's faction. Even his fangirls were put on edge as they tried to defend Kazuki from the incoming horde.
"Looks like you're just a Kyo wannabe." Naofumi said as he further angered Kazuki.
Kyo then drew his sword, "Kyo said that I have to bring him to you, but he said dead or alive didn't matter" he said.
"You relied on help from guys with wooden sticks and two girls with spears. I wouldn't be surprised if you got that sword from the flee market." Naofumi said, mocking him even more.
If the guards were better equipped or maybe the numbers were higher, then maybe Naofumi would have been screwed. However, they were lucky to have a party full of strong individuals and an emergency orc army on standby.
"You guys hold him off, I'll get to the Dragon Hourglass." Kizuna said as she raised her fishing rod.
Kazuki looked at his two fan girls, "Kill the little! I'll kill the Shield Hero!" he yelled as they split up.
"Hai Kazuki-sama!" the girls said as they chased after Kizuna.
Kizuna used her fishing rod as a grapple as she flew over the girls, "Don't call me little!" she yelled.
Meanwhile Kazuki was about to attack Naofumi when he was blasted by a bolt of lightning from Grayfarn. Kazuki quickly got up and glared at the senile wizard. When suddenly, Grayfarn's staff suddenly started to glow like a laser weapon from a science fantasy show.
"Run boy! I'll hold him off!" Grayfarn said as Naofumi and the rest ran to Kizuna.
As the remaining guards attempted to fight back against the orcs. Naofumi's group approached the hourglass just as Kizuna touched it. At that moment, everyone but Raphtalia started to glow.
"What the? Raphtalia!" Naofumi yelled.
"What is happening?" Raphtalia asked.
"This shouldn't be happening! You're in my party, so you should be coming with us!" Kizuna said.
That's when everyone suddenly heard some obnoxious laughter, "HAHAHA! I bet you didn't expect to hear from me again, Shield Ass!' a familiar voice exclaimed.
"Kyo!" Naofumi angrily yelled. "Kizuna, stop the warp!" he ordered.
"I can't stop it once it starts!" Kizuna replied.
"Why else do you think I sent her to the Infinite Labyrnth? Why do you think I let you keep the racoon demi human? Why? Why? WHY!?" Kyo asked like a madman.
"You planned this from the start." Naofumi said with a shocked face.
"Yes! All to see that dumb look on your face!" Kyo said gleefully. "That anger and despair! I love it" Kyo yelled.
While Kazuki was losing his fight, he enjoyed seeing the looks of anger that Naofumi was feeling. Only to end up falling once Grayfarn hit him on the side of the head with the staff.
"BASTARD!" Naofumi screamed with all his rage.
Suddenly, the medallion that Gunther gifted to Naofumi had activated. The accessory started to glow with lightning sparking around it. Before long, the energy spread throughout Naofumi's body for a whole moment. However, instead of activating a power, Kyo became more loud than ever. Not to further agitate Naofumi, but because he was in pain.
"AUGH! YOU LITTLE SHIT THAT HURT! WHAT DID YOU DO!?" Kyo screamed with rage. "YOU SHIELD BASTARD, WHEN I… NO! NO! NOOOO!" he further screamed.
Raphtalia suddenly began to glow, "I think Kyo lost control over me." she said.
"NO! THAT IS NOT HOW IT WORKS! I'M IN CONTROL! EVERYTHING WORKS FOR…. AHHHH!" Kyo screamed.
"Master Naofumi, your medallion." Raphtalia pointed out.
"What? Did the penguin do this?" Naofumi asked before disappearing with his party.
Meanwhile at the castle
Gunther was sitting on the floor of the throne room with a pile of squares with letters carved into them. He was frequently moving them around as a holographic screen appeared. After a few more minutes of shuffling, the screen showed him something.
"Grant User: Kyo Ethnina (Defense Against Light)?"
Gunther nodded, "Fwap." He said.
"Warning: This Skill is S-Rank. Are you sure you wish to continue?"
"Fwap." Gunther said before confirming granting Kyo the skill
Defense Against Light - User will automatically block 10 points of damage regardless of other skills and 1% reaction speed.
Costs: Five random skills that can no longer be obtained.
Gunther started to laugh, "Fwap fwap fwap!" he said.
It is embarrassing and ironic for Kyo who is an obnoxious individual. He was just trolled and hacked by a penguin.
With Kizuna's Group
Everyone including Raphtalia arrived at another temple with Naofumi grabbing Raphtalia's shoulders to make sure she was alright. As everyone made a head count to double check. A pair of men arrived at the temple and were immediately happy to see Kizuna.
"Kizuna, you have returned!" one of them said.
"We should tell the palace of your arrival!" the other said.
"It's about time we made it somewhere more friendly." Arashi said with a sigh.
"Yeah, that Kyo brat is really annoying. His laugh gave me a real headache." Tanya said.
"Headache? I think his voice alone gave me a skin rash." Tomoe said as she scratched her arm. "I think he also gave me hives." she said as she shivered.
"We can worry about your hives later. We still have to deal with Kyo before he screws with us again." Mito said.
"The kid is right. e don't have a lot of time." Naofumi said, not wanting to lose a party member.
At the palace
The many nobles and church members of Sikul were furious. They believed that the nation of Mikakage was behind Kizuna's disappearance and their cardinal hero proved those theories to be accurate. As Kizuna explained her situation in the Infinite Labyrinth and later the incident with Kazuki plotting for their potential captures and/or executions.
"This is unforgivable! Mikakage will get away with this!" one man said.
"Yes! Repartitions must be made!" Another man said.
"But let us not forget Kizuna. How did you escape the Infinite Labyrinth? It was said to be impossible." a third man said.
Kizuna just smiled, "It was thanks to them. I couldn't have done it on my own." she said while gesturing to Naofumi's party.
Everyone was delighted to hear that. They all immediately thanked Naofumi and the others for saving their cardinal hero.
"Such heroics to go out of your way like that!" one of them said.
"Your actions are worthy of praise!" another said.
"Yeah, we're just naturally awesome!" Arashi said.
"It wasn't a challenge really, but we're happy to help." Tomoe said as she flexed her strength.
Kizuna then introduced them, "Allow me to introduce everybody. We have Rishia, Arashi, Mito, Tomoe, Tanya, Raphtalia and Naofumi Iwatani." she said. "Also, you won't believe this, but Naofumi is the cardinal hero of another world." he said.
Suddenly, the entire crowd's faces turned sour. They looked at Naofumi with contempt as if his very presence had just committed a massive disaster. Naofumi could already tell that he was being unfairly judged and it filled him with anger. That's when the medallion started to spark again and started calming him down.
"Kizuna, you must distance yourself from that man. He is plotting to destroy this world." one of them said. "In fact, all of these cohorts
"Someone contact the guards!" another man yelled.
Now Kizuna was angry, "Hey! Naofumi saved my life! I would be dead without his party's help!" she said.
Raphtalia glared at the crowd before looking up at Naofumi. She briefly saw his angry face before seeing him calm down. Almost as if this peaceful aura had entered him. His mind immediately feeling as if the men in this room have no purpose.
"This man is a danger Kizuna. You are making a grave mistake." the same man from earlier said. "Would you really be willing to side with this stranger?" he asked.
Naofumi then smirked as an idea came into his mind.
"He's right Kizuna. I've been secretly decreasing everyone's brain cell count and turning them into angry hostile old men." Naofumi said as the men behind Kizuna looked furious. "I guess, I should go before they blame me for the local divorce rates or why kids drop out from school." he said.
The things Naofumi mentioned are usually topics that loudmouth cable television hosts bring up with bashing on some individual. Usually by pointing their flaws and suddenly inserting random blemishes in society as if a common evil was the result of them. The medallion was really helping Naofumi in keeping calm as the men now looked like fools.
Raphtalia only added salt to the wound.
"Master Naofumi isn't dangerous either! He's helped in another world and he's even a local celebrity!" she said as she brought out a magazine.
"Wait, you carried that here?" Naofumi asked.
"What the heck? He's a male model!?" Kizuna asked as she took the magazine.
Once again, Naofumi sighed as he no longer had anymore fun. Now everyone could see the promotional fashion magazine he was forced to participate in again. He regretted not being able to exchange the contract to small reoccurring royalties instead of a large one time payment.
Then Arashi chimed in, "And you guys are accusing him of horrible stuff without proof. That's defamation and a crime!" he said.
"You don't know anything child! You are merely deceiving us!" one of them said.
"Nope, he even has an army of lawyers ready to sue your asses!" Arashi yelled as he pointed at them.
"We'll see you jerks in court!" Tanya added.
Suddenly an albino man on a floating device came in, "I'm sorry, but I think we've all gotten onto the wrong foot." he said.
"Who's this guy?" Arashi asked.
"I don't know. Let's ask him." Tanya said.
A few minutes later
The group moved their meeting place to avoid anymore arguments and potential yet legal threats of a lawsuit. With Grayfarn around somewhere, it's a matter of time before Mikakage is consumed by Momon's business conglomerate. Then they'll come to Sikul and advertise her products and then charge those jerks with defamation against her model (Naofumi).
But before that craziness, Kizuna introduced everyone to her albino friend.
"I am Ethnobalt and wielder of the Vassal Boat, I believe you are looking for someone. Is this correct?" Ethnobalt asked.
"Yeah, Filo and the other twins." Naofumi answered.
"I will help you to the best of my ability, but first." Ethnobalt paused as he handed a charm to Kizuna. "I believe he has missed you for quite a while now." he said.
Kizuna looked ecstatic, "Thank you for holding onto him!" she said.
"It was no problem, of course it was Glass who held onto her first. Although she has been busy lately." Ethnobalt said.
At that moment, Kizuna's charm started to glow and exploded. Among the smoke came out a penguin who Kizuna hugged tightly.
"Another penguin?" Naofumi asked.
"Eh? Oh, this? This is my Shikigami, Chris." Kizuna answered.
"A shiki-gami?" Rishia asked, sounding confused.
"So it's like a summon? A contracted animal who works with you?" Mito asked.
Kizuna shook her head, "Not exactly, Glass helped me create him." she answered.
"Chris started going crazy four days ago. Which was around the time you should have escaped the Infinite Labyrinth, wasn't it?" Ethnobalt asked.
Kizuna nodded, "Yeah, but now I'm back and we can find Glass now." she said.
"But how is that going to help us find Filo and the others?" Naofumi asked.
"Unless, all three of them were abducted by that Glass lady!" Arashi said.
"Glass would never kidnap someone!" Kizuna said defensively.
"She said she wanted the cardinal heroes dead so Raphtalia's world could be destroyed." Naofumi replied.
Kizuna blushed, "Okay, Glass is a bit absent minded, but child abduction isn't something she would do." she said.
"If I may interrupt, you may be able to locate your friend by making a shikigami." Ethnobalt said, interrupting the argument. "All you need is your blood and a catalyst. A piece of the individual, such as strands of hair." he said.
Naofumi sighed, "I have some of Raphtalia's hair, but nothing from Filo." he said.
"I have a feather." Mito said as she pulled it out.
"Why is that?" Rishia asked.
Mito shrugged, "I thought it would be good luck or something." She said.
"Wait, so we can make animal familiars from hair samples and blood?" Arashi asked excitedly.
"I did say that in basic detail." Ethnobalt answered.
A few more minutes later
Mito stood at the center of a magic circle that Ethnobalt casted with the feather in hand and blood dripping from her other hand. Naofumi did the same with Raphtalia in case Kyo or someone else attempted to abduct her again. For some reason, Tomoe was onboard with Arashi's plan and gave him some of her hair. Tomoe did it thinking she train a chibi dragon into being her apprentice.
Funny enough, she had an ability to make a chibi clone of herself. Except the chibi clone shares physical pain with Tomoe so it was a bigger risk.
"Let us begin, present your catalysts and pour your blood to begin the pact." Ethnobalt said.
As everyone did as they were instructed. Ethnobalt proceeded with his chant, resulting in the magic circle shining brightly as the strands of hair and Filo's feather started to come to life. Moments later, the entire room was filled with smoke.
"This is quite powerful! I should have realized using a catalyst from a demi human would be this powerful, but why is Tomoe-san's catalyst so powerful?" the Boat Hero asked.
"Because I'm a badass dragon is why!" Tomoe happily answered.
"Eh!?" Ethnobalt asked with wide eyes as the smoke cleared up.
Naofumi was suddenly tackled in a hug by a chibi raccoon mascot. Mito received four baby ducks who nodded at her. Leaving Arashi with a small child with bright green hair who looked at him with curious eyes.
"Hey Boat guy, I think you screwed up." Arashi said.
Ethnobalt shook his head, "No, I did as with Glass and Kizuna. Even Naofumi-san and Mito-san have successfully generated shikigami. Although it could be the fact that your shikigami is far more powerful that it appears human." he explained.
Mito snorted, "Kaa-san is going to going to go insane when she hears this." she said.
"Why would she?" Arashi asked, sounding obvlious.
"Like a summoning contract, we have to use blood but since we got animals. You got a child." Mito said, further confusing her brother. Mito sighed as she explained some more, "You and Tomoe created a child with your respective DNA. That thing is your daughter, baka." she said.
Tomoe and Arashi looked at the child with scared faces. The child smiled at them and giggled.
"Mama, papa." she said.
"EH!?" The two asked.
Mito groaned, "And now I'm aunt yet again." she said.
She loved Ichigo and Kairi and even Kunou has a special place in her heart. But now Mito didn't expect her brother to create a child. The dragon girl might be a shikigami, but she's essentially the equivalent to a newborn child in her eyes. Kushina is definitely going to lose her mind if she hears that Arashi gave her a fourth grandchild.
"Don't tell kaa-san." Arashi pleaded.
With Kushina
Kushina suddenly felt a jolt of electricity go to her hair, "My other children did something. I don't know what they did, but they're hiding secrets from me." she said with a serious face.
Like any good mother, Kushina developed the sensory ability to know when her children are in danger or up to something. Just like how a stereotypical father automatically knows when the thermostat in their own home has changed by one whole degree. Kushina didn't know what was going on, but she didn't know if it was good or bad but it was related to Arashi or Mito.
Kushina's thoughts were obscured by the sounds of the babies trying to get her attention. She looked at Ichigo and Kairi and saw that they were wide awake.
"Hold on babies, grandma is here." Kushina said as she gently picks soothes them.
A few minutes later, she heard some crewmen moving towards the outside. Where they saw Titanius' airship, The Glorious, descending towards the surface. Kushina smiled as she quickly picked up the babies and ran towards the crew as they started greeting the airship's inhabitants. However, as she went to greet her son after a long day of mishaps in the flying islands. She saw that Naruto looked tired and was carrying around a rabid looking short man in his hands.
"Boys, take care of Skee-Ball. He bit King Roland in the knee for giving him a dirty look." Naruto said as he gave the short man to one of the crewmen. "Although that doesn't mean that King Roland didn't deserve it. There's incompetence and then there's being rude and inactive." he said as Skee-Ball was taken away.
"Naru-chan? What is that?" Kushina asked.
"That is Skee-Ball, he's a gnome. I always keep a gnome in my shadow along with Shiraori." Naruto said as the white haired woman poked her head out his shadow.
"Oh… I see." Kushina said before Shiraori went back into hiding.
"She's quite shy. So I tend to feed her snacks while she's living in there." Naruto said as he dropped a bag of chips into his shadow. "Anyways, how have things been here?" Naruto asked.
"Ah!" the babies squealed.
Naruto smiled as he rubbed his finger across the cheeks of his babies. Both giggling as they extended their arms, wishing for their father to pick them up. Naruto did so as to satisfy the two but with Kushina's help as to avoid dropping either of them.
"Did you two behave? Were you nice to your grandmother? I will know if you are lying." Naruto said, causing them to pause in silence for a moment.
Kushina laughed as her grandchildren acted as if they were caught in and about to be punished. Only for both to start giggling once Naruto kissed them both on the top of their heads. She enjoyed the little sight of her son and his own children. Although, she didn't expect to be a grandmother in her young age. Then again, Uzumaki clan members have great longevity so even if Minato had gray hairs by the average age of a grandparent. Kushina would look relatively the same by her fifties and maybe sixties if she took care of herself.
Even Tsunade wouldn't need to hide behind a genjutsu if she didn't have to use that seal on her forehead. Perhaps Doctor Kureha can offer them both the solution to a youthful body for a good price. The woman had the face of a sixty year old, but the body of a healthy twenty year old.
"They behaved themselves this time, don't worry." Kushina said.
"And your sister? Where's your sister?" Naruto asked his children. "Where's Kunou? Where's Kunou onee-sama?" she asked.
Suddenly, the babies looked around for their onee-sama. By this point in their lives, they had some level of understanding who is who. Even if they were barely able to react to their own names.
"I take it things went well here while Skee-Ball misbehaved up there?" Naruto asked.
"Things were quiet, mostly because of the penguins keeping the kingdom under martial law." Kushina said as she saw a squadron of penguins dragging a cage with highwaymen inside.
"The Spirit of the North may seem cute and naive, but it's one of the most cunning and powerful creatures." Naruto told his mother.
"I know the penguin is smart, but it can't be that dangerous. Can it?" Kushina asked.
"I will not repeat myself." Naruto said seriously.
Kushina got the message that Naruto is cautious around Gunther and his clones. She didn't know if Naruto had a fear of penguins or if he just had troublesome experiences with spirits. Then again, Yasaka briefly mentioned that she developed a disliking of giraffes around the same time she fell in love with Naruto.
Maybe her whole family had issues with animals.
Back in Glass' world
After receiving transport from Ethnobalt who revealed himself to be a rabbit-like species and the possible equivalent of the filolial race. Naofumi and everyone else were making their way across another while keeping a low profile. With the shikigami that Mito made using one of Filo's feathers. They scanned around the town in attempt to locate the girl when Naofumi nearly blew a blood vessel.
"Ah guys, since when do they sell angels?" Arashi asked.
Everyone looked to see some Japanese style painting of a little girl with angel wings. Then they heard a carnival barker yelling at the crowd to see his show. Naofumi shoved a few people out of the way and instantly became furious when he finally found Filo who was being abused by some middle aged man.
"Let me go! Let me go!" Filo screamed as the barker kept dragging her.
Once again, Naofumi's medallion started to charge up again. The accessory was using all of the energy it could muster as Naofumi's rage built up. For a brief moment, Raphtalia noticed the Wrath Shield forming. Only for the medallion to strike it and revert it back to base form.
"Master Naofumi, I'm angry too but you have to calm down." Raphtalia said.
"Yeah, we can't expose ourselves when there's so many people out here." Kizuna said.
Naofumi relented, "Fine, but we're not leaving Filo here any longer." He said.
"Don't worry, we'll break in there tonight and if that guy shows up. We'll knock his ass out." Arashi said, getting everyone's attention. "We'll be like "Step off!" and kick his ass." he said while doing hand chopping motions.
Suddenly, Mito's shikigami started to copy Arashi as he made stupid fighting poses. As they copied him, the shikigami started fighting each other as if they were sparring.
"Look what you did baka." Mito said as she pointed at the ducks. "Now they're hitting each other." she said.
Arashi chuckled, "Yeah they are! Follow sensei Arashi!" he said as he made the baby ducks chase after him.
Mito sighed, "Sorry guys, but at least we found Filo." she said.
A couple of hours later
The group made it to the back door where the animals were being held by the barker. Once in, they found the whole room to be filled with caged animals locked behind talismans. As they tried to look for Filo, they were surprised to find another pair of familiar faces.
"Guys!" a pair of voices called out.
It was the fairies, Sora and Luna. Mito ran up to the cage where the two were being held and looked at the talismans.
"Thank kami, you two are here too." Mito said as she tampered with the talismans.
"Where's Filo?" Naofumi asked.
"That dumb jerk was abusing her and put her inside of that tiny cage." Luna said as she pointed at a random bird.
Naofumi approached and was met with cries of pain from the bird. He studied the bird and his hud immediately recognized it as Filo. Despite the fact that the bird looked nothing like Filo's Filolial transformation.
"But that one doesn't look like a filolial." Raphtalia said.
"And she's very small too." Rishia added.
"No, this is definitely Filo. I know it is." Naofumi said with desperation in his voice.
"Move over, these seal tags are basically padlocks." Arashi said as she broke the cage with his sword.
After breaking open the cage without harming the bird inside. Filo suddenly appeared and immediately clings to him for dear life.
"Master! I knew you would come for me!" Filo said as she cried into his chest.
"That's right Filo, I'm not abandoning you or anyone else." Naofumi said.
As they reunited, Mito also broke off the talismans holding Sora and Luna. Once everyone was secure, the group prepared to leave. Only to be caught by the barker who unjustly held the girls against their will. Naofumi already glared at the man as if he wanted him to burst into flames.
"Who are you? A bunch of thieves right? Thieves trying to steal my property?" the man asked.
"Step off old man! You were holding our friends hostage!" Arashi yelled as he aimed his sword at him.
"Hostage? These aren't people! These are my meal tickets! My fortune!" the man yelled.
Suddenly the baby ducks started to sound angry as they saw Filo crying even more. Maybe it was because of their kinship, but these ducks were angry. So angry that their eyes turned bright red and started to vibrate before combining into a tall muscular man with the head of a bird.
"What the heck!?" Arashi asked.
"STEP OFF!" the bird hybrid yelled as he smashed his face across the man's face.
The man who abused Filo suddenly found himself crashing into the ground. Where he spit out some blood along with a tooth. Before he could stand up, the bird hybrid proceeded to lift him up by the back of his robe. Where the hybrid proceeded to repeatedly punch him until his face was covered in bruises.
"Step off!" the hybrid yelled before tossing the man aside.
Everyone was stunned into silence before Naofumi got angry again. He gently placed Filo into Raphtalia's hands before approaching the man who was abusing her.
"You have a lot to answer for!" he yelled.
"Step off?" the hybrid asked Naofumi.
"Not yet." Naofmui answered as the bird headed man nodded while cracking his knuckles.
The next day
Filo looked at the different shikigami with odd eyes along with Raphtalia who didn't like being stared at. She can imagine how curious Filo felt about Raphtalia now.
"Master, why is Raphtalia tiny? Also, why is there a racooon on your head?" Filo asked.
"Raphtalia lost her levels, but I think her problem is that she isn't eating enough food with vitamins." Naofumi quipped, making Raphtalia blush. "As for the raccoon, she's a shikigami made with Raphtalia's hair." He said.
That's when Arashi stopped, "Wait a minute, if you made that shikigami with your blood. Doesn't that mean that it yours and Raphtalia's child?" he asked.
Raphtalia suddenly turned bright red, "Our child?" she asked.
"Raph!" the shikigami chirped.
"We're not like you. Besides, Raphtalia's like my daughter. Don't you know how weird you sound?" Naofumi asked.
Arashi groaned, "Hey, if that's not your kid then this isn't my kid either." he said, pointing at his own shikigami.
"You are a special case Arashi. Naofumi just spawned a mascot, you spawned an entire child." Mito said.
"We did already name her." Tomoe said as the child in her arms giggled. "Hopefully your mom doesn't get mad when she sees Komoe-chan." She said.
Mito sighed, "She'll either strangle Arashi for having a child with an older woman or spoil Komoe." she replied.
"Hey, I'm not old. I'm "mature", I'm just under 700 years old as a matter of fact." Tomoe said.
"And how old is Tio?" Arashi asked.
"I think she said she was 500 and something years old." Tomoe answered with a vague memory.
Rishia felt curious when she heard that, "Tanya-san, how old are you by chance?" she asked.
"15." Tanya answered.
"Eh?" Rishia asked.
Tomoe snorted, "Aw, you're still a baby." she said.
"Shut up you old hag." Tanya said. "I can still beat you up, but I don't want your back to break." she said.
"You little brat!" Tomoe said.
"Mama, no fighting!" Komoe pleaded.
"Raph!" the racoon shikigami said.
"I wanna name her, Raph-chan." Filo said.
"Raph-chan?" Naofumi asked.
"Raph!" Raph-chan said with a nod.
"Raph-chan it is." Naofumi said, settling with her name.
As the group continued to walk through town. They made their way through the town. They stopped and saw wanted posters referring to the "theft" of Filo, Sora and Luna. It made the girls angry that they were being referred to as stolen property. At least there was a good thing that came from it as the posters didn't have good descriptions of the group. Most likely because of how dark it was and the fact that the baby ducks combined to beat up the slave master.
There was also another poster involving a vassal weapon.
"The Katana Vassal weapon wielder was found but somehow escaped. Now the whole city is looking for them." Kizuna read out loud.
"The Katana Vassal weapon?" Naofumi asked.
"Oh hell no, these guys are looking for someone else to lock up aren't they?" Arashi asked angrily.
"Considering that these people are so shady that they give the color black a whole new name. That's probably the truth." Naofumi answered.
Later, at the Katana Vassal
Apparently it was the user that escaped or something. The vassal weapon itself was embedded in a temple where there were guards. As if the weapon was the sword of the stone in Arthurian Mythology, it waited for someone worthy to claim it.
"Step right up if you believe you can wield the Vassal Katana. Only those deemed worthy may wield such a weapon." the guard announced.
The group watched as a crowd formed but almost all of them were standing there just to witness the event. It appeared that no civilian among the crowd was brave enough to try and remove the sword. However, there was one cocky looking man who stepped out from the crowd.
"It's the bastard." Arashi whispered as he saw Kazuki appear.
"Can we "put the hurt" on him?" a baby duck asked.
"Not yet." Arashi answered.
"Stop teaching them to be violent." Mito said. "It's bad enough that you already corrupted the other shikigami." she said.
Everyone looked at Komoe who was practicing her karate chops. They also looked at Tomoe who looked sheepish.
"Hey, my kid or not. She's literally a part of me so she needs to be tough." Tomoe said proudly.
Kizuna then shushed everyone, "Keep it down, we don't need any attention on us." she said.
"Is that trash going to going to take the sword?" Naofumi bitterly asked.
"It depends, Vassal Weapons pick their wielders. The same happened to Glass when she took the Vassal Fan." Kizuna said, surprising them.
"Glass has a Vassal weapon?" Naofumi asked.
"You didn't know?" Kizuna asked with a confused face.
Before anyone could say anything, Kazuki came out sounding frustrated. Only to wipe his face and look composed despite his apparent failure.
"Kazuki-sama failed?" someone in the crowd asked.
Kazuki put on a fake smile, "No need to fear, I'm only mentally preparing myself. The Vassal Katana is just testing me is all." he said.
Everyone in Naofumi's group sweat dropped at the claim despite the crowd agreeing with him.
"So what? The sword requires a pop quiz?" Arashi asked.
"I just need to prepare myself again." Kazuki said as he went back for the sword.
A moment later, the sword literally flew outside of the small building where it was. It went straight for Raphtalia before entering her grasp with the scabbard automatically attaching itself.
"I guess Raphtalia passed the test." Arashi said before clapping.
The ducks, Raph-chan and even Komoe clapped for Raphtalia. At least until the crowd noticed this and the guards along with Kazuki got angry. At this point, Raphtalia just registered what happened to her as she looked between the temple and the katana itself.
"Thief! Get them!" Kazuki yelled.
Naofumi cursed, "Riot Shield II!" He yelled.
As the guards ran towards them, a riot shield squadron spawned. All of them quickly blocked the paths of the guards. The first guard was the most reckless as he bashed his staff against one of the shields. Resulting in the release of tear gas into the area, causing the guards to stumble back as their eyes became watery.
Then another guard used even more force onto another shield. Which resulted in the riot shield user releasing a bright flash of light from the shield. Causing more guards to be blinded before Kazuki was forced to personally intervene.
"I never expected law enforcement to face police brutality." Naofumi said as he lifted up Raphtalia. "But now is a good time to leave." he said before Raphtalia returned to her adult size.
With the situation becoming worse as Raphtalia's clothing was ripped to shreds as her clothes were fit for a child. Now the raccoon girl was blushing as she was half naked and in her master's arms.
"You have to be kidding me!" Naofumi angrily said.
"Raph! Raph!" Raph-chan yelled.
"Run away!" Arashi yelled as the entire group started running. "Bwahahaha!" he began to laugh.
"Why are you laughing!?" Kizuna asked.
"We screwed with that trash bastard twice now! First we ruin his plan and now we stole his sword!" Arashi said as the dragon girls also laughed.
"Okay, we're pretty much ruining his life by this point." Tomoe said.
Suddenly, as the group was making their way towards an alleyway. A pair of white tigers with talismans around their necks appeared. Naofumi and Raphtalia identified them some kind of animal familiars but not like the shikigami. However, before they said anything, the tigers pounced on them. Only for Tanya and Tomoe to jump in the middle.
"Move out of the way!" the two dragon girls yelled as they punched the two tigers into the sky.
"That was like Step Off but a thousand times worse." Arashi said as the baby ducks had stars in their eyes.
"Teach us sensei!" the ducks said as they bow their heads.
Filo looked at the birds strangely, "How come the duckies don't look like me?" she asked.
Before anyone said anything, the guards and Kazuki arrived. Although there were a lot less of them and everyone looked battered and injured. Kazuki looked beyond furious as he glared at Raphtalia who held onto the vassal weapon.
"Give me the Vassal Katana! It belongs to me!" Kazuki demanded.
"You don't get to demand things from her!" Naofumi yelled.
"That's right! The Vassal Katana didn't pick you because you're dishonest, mean, and you smell like rancid meat!" Rishia said with all of the bravery she could muster
"Then I'll just take it!" Kazuki angrily yelled. "Right after I kill the girl with the braids!" he said as he looked at Rishia who belittled him.
While no one wants to defend Kazuki. It should be revealed that he did get caught in the middle of the tear attacks. So he smelled so bad that he could make an entire farm of onions cry. As Kazuki then attempted to slash Rishia, Mito blocked his sword attack and pushed him away with her shoulder.
"Water Breathing! Second Form: Water Wheel!" Mito yelled as she jumped into the air and formed a vertical slash.
Kazuki could barely block the attack and when he was exposed. The guards attempted to protect him with cover only to be caught in Arashi's attack.
"Flame Breathing! First Form: Unknowing Fire!" Arashi yells as he quickly cuts through the guards. "Someone get him now!" he yelled.
At that moment, a random streak of magic came flying through the group and hitting Kazuki. The arrogant man cried out in anger as his entire body turned pale as his entire body went stiff and froze in place. The guards were too busy in the fight to notice before they were also caught in the paralyses beam. The group stopped to see where beam came from and saw Grayfarn arrive with several orcs.
"Oh good there you are!" Grayfarn happily said. "Why am I looking for you all again?" he asked, his possible dementia damaging his mind.
"Old man!" the twins called out.
"Is that the crazy old wizard?" Luna asked.
"Luna!" Sora exclaimed.
"What? He is a crazy old wizard." Luna pointed out.
Grayfarn proved his crazyness as he was stroking a Grell. A Grell is a strange sentient brain with a bird beak and tentacles with the ability to float. Grayfarn was coddling the creature before it bit him and cawed at him.
"Damn, I have failed in domesticating this monster." Grayfarn said before smashing the his staff over the Grell and killing it. "Anyhow, what are we all doing standing around? You still have business in this world don't you?" he asked.
Later, with Kushina
Kushina was staring at the hologram of Grayfarn as she tried to hold back her annoyance and fury at the news. Grayfarn couldn't see it but she was annoyed once he shared the updated status on the twins and the rest of Naofumi's group.
"And the child appears to be sentient. Capable of learning and functioning like an ordinary person." Grayfarn said, referring to the shikigami Arashi made with Tomoe's hair.
"Thank you ji-san. I'm happy to hear that my children are in good health." Kushina said as she was still restraining herself. "Tell my son that I will want to speak to him when I see him." she said.
Grayfarn nodded as he passed the message. Only for Arashi to come running into view and presented his shikigami.
"Look kaa-san! Meet Komoe-chan! Komoe-chan, say hi to baa-chan!" Arashi said, attempting to appease his mother's rage.
"Baba!" Komoe said with a giggle.
Kushina suddenly felt her heart melt, "Ah, is this my granddaughter?" she asked.
"She sure is." Arashi said, thinking his plan worked.
"She's so sweet, so tiny and so lovable. Now I want to meet her mother as well." Kushina said, causing Arashi to be fearful again.
Arashi felt as if a hanya mask appeared behind Kushina. Which was weird because hanya are a type of demon depicting jealous women, but then again anger sometimes stems off of that. No wait, they also represent resentment and anger.
"Anyways, bye Arashi, take care of your sister and Komoe-chan." Kushina said.
"Bye kaa-san." Arashi said nervously.
"Bye baba!" Komoe said before the hologram turned off.
Kushina giggled, "She is so cute… but Arashi and that other woman isn't. Why is my younger son already a father!?" she angrily asked, causing the crew to look at her fearfully. "What are you looking at!?" she asked them.
The crew scurried off towards their scheduled duties.
Kushina took a few deep breaths and a few other quick exercises that her childhood therapists taught her. Once calm and not plotting to throttle the life out of the older woman who mothered her fourth grandchild. Albeit, Komoe is just a spirit generated from the essence of Tomoe and Arashi with the original idea of Komoe being a little pet. Kushina was able to stay calm without terrifying any of the crewmen on the airship she was on.
The aircraft was heading straight back to Konoha through the portal that was made in Melromarc. As Kushina made her way to the deck of the airship, she could see her son was getting some physical training in. Kushina smiled as she could see a few of the soldiers were also training alongside him as well. Ironically, she can Kunou trying to copy her father's poses from a distance.
Kushina giggled as she approached Kunou, "Do you want to train too Kunou-chan?" she asked.
Kunou blushed as she realized she was spotted, "I can't train, obaa-sama. Not in my kimono." she said.
While Kunou is allowed to learn to fight and learn to use her powers. It's frowned upon if she were to engage in combat while in hakama kimono. Kushina knew this right away as the outfit was too elegantly designed to handle exercise. It could be adjusted for archery and less mobile actions, but she doubted that it wouldn't tear during some real training.
So Kushina thought of something as she kneeled to meet Kunou's eye level.
"That's okay dear, here let's try something simple." Kushina said as she raised her palms. "Hit my hands. Hit them as hard as possible." she said.
Kunou looked contemplative before Kushina gave her a reassuring look.
"Kunou-chan, I'm not old yet. Don't hold back." Kushina said.
Kunou stared at Kushina in silence before throwing a fist. Which Kushina quickly parried, surprising Kunou in the process. Kunou carefully took her time with her punches with Kushina parrying each blow quickly. By the end, Kunou started to pout as she felt frustrated. Kunou threw a few more punches before faking her last attack.
At that moment, Kunou jumped onto Kushina's back and tried pulling her into a headlock.
"Hey! That's cheating!" Kushina cried out.
"No, I win. Ninjas play tricks and kitsunes are naturally tricksters, obaa-sama." Kunou said making Kushina pout back.
Kushina then reached for Kunou, "Kunou-chan, I said to hit my palms. Not crawl on me like a little monkey." she said.
Kunou then transformed into a chibi kyuubi. Making it nearly impossible for Kushina to grab Kunou as the woman is forced to stumble around in an attempt to catch Kunou who climbed all over her body. Kushina continued to move around like a clumsy woman as Kunou further prevented her grandmother from grabbing her.
"Magomusume, you're starting to get on my nerves." Kushina warned as Kunou continued to climb around her.
At this point, Naruto stopped training and saw his mother and daughter playing. He could see that Kushina was becoming annoyed as Kunou continued to mess with her. At least until Kushina had enough and released her chakra chains to catch Kunou. When she did, Kushina gripped the chibi kyuubi and proceeded to tickle her sides. Causing Kunou to let out several yips before reverting to human form and laughing as she struggled in Kushina's grip.
"No obaa-sama, you're cheating! HAHAHA!" Kunou said as Kushina tickled her.
"What was that you said about kitsune's earlier?" Kushina asked as she kept tickling.
Naruto laughed as he saw his daughter and mother enjoy themselves. By then, Yasaka arrived and witnessed the scene unfold. Bringing a smile to her lips as she raised her infants to watch as well. Naruto wrapped an arm around his wife's shoulder as he kissed her on cheek.
"They seem happy." Naruto said.
"Of course dear, your mother and our daughter deserve this much." Yasaka said as they watched the two continue playing.
At that moment, no one noticed Skee-Ball making his escape and jumping overboard. There's a good chance Naruto would never see his gnome ever again. It's a good thing these creatures come in packs when you purchase them.
Kingdom of Holfort
Queen Mylene sighed as she spoke with the doctor in regards to her husband, Roland. After a seemingly good transition into obtaining a treaty with the surface and Makai. Roland decided to be rude instead of lazy which resulted in Naruto's gnome, Skee-Ball, breaking free and biting him right on the leg. It was thanks to Roland's sitting position that the gnome didn't bite him anywhere else.
"He should be fine your majesty. King Roland is still strong for his age and luckily the gnome wasn't rabid." the doctor said.
"That's good to hear, but why was my husband still foaming at the mouth?" Mylene asked.
"My queen, I believe the king might be taking in certain escapades that damage his health." The doctor answered.
Mylene's eye twitched, "I see, are there any specific issues he has?" she asked.
"I'll prepare the mass pile of medical records." the doctor said.
Roland Rapha Halfort is a good man with great charisma, intelligence and a fairly good leader. Most of this is a lie as in private, he's a jealous narcissist and was even angry to hear about Leon stopping a potential war with Fanoss. Even more so that they were assisted by a demi-human emperor (Naruto) who has enough forces and power to crush his empire. While Roland doesn't explicitly look down on demi-humans, it still felt shameful to rely on someone like Naruto.
He actually started to hate the man since he blamed Naruto for keeping an angry gnome with him. Although with him being selfish, there was bound to be a reason for Roland to dislike him even if the gnome wasn't around.
With that said, Roland has spiraled down to partaking in less honorable acts such as cheating on his wife. This resulted in giving birth to his son Jake who he doesn't really much care for. Still, with cheating being partaken among other things that are unknown so far, there's a good chance that Roland became reckless and slept with someone who carried a disease.
"How did things turn out this way?" Mylene asked.
"Queen Mylene." a messenger called out.
Mylene snapped out of her thoughts, "Yes?" she asked.
"Your majesty, there's a report of strange activity in the grand vault." The messenger said while giving Mylene an envelope. "One of the sacred treasures has been activated." they said, surprising the queen.
"Did someone break in or tamper with them?" Mylene asked.
The grand vault was full of old treasures from the ancient history of the kingdom. It wasn't like they had a mega weapon but some of those treasures were old weapons that cannot lose their luster like a sword or spear. In fact, most of these are practically heirlooms with emotional worth from Mylene's predecessors. Except with ancient history, time has become obscured and it can be noted that some treasures are shrouded in mystery.
"No your majesty. It's as if it has a mind of it's own." the messenger stated.
"Which treasure has become active?" Mylene asked.
"Evansmana, The Sword of Three Races." the messenger answered.
"The Holy Sword Wielded by Kanon?" Mylene asked with wide eyes.
The messenger nodded, "Yes ma'am, it's unknown how it activated. No one in recent history has been wielded the Holy Sword let alone be able to lift it." they explained.
'And the last person to wield it is the Hero Kanon himself.' Mylene thought. 'He was the strongest hero to date. Is someone equally as worthy out there? It would be more likely than Kanon somehow resurrecting.' she thought.
In Glass' World
Arashi sneezed, "I think I feel sick." he said.
"Careful, you'll get Komoe sick!" Mito said.
"Do Shikigami even get sick?" Naofumi asked.
"Raph?" Raph-chan asked.
Kizuna looked at Chris with worried eyes, "I hope not." she answered.
TO BE CONTINUED….