A/N: Revised as of 4/17/2024.

"Waahhhh! Get it away! Get it away!"

Aqua screamed as she ran for dear life, leaving a trail of dust and tears. Following behind her was a harmless baby toad that hopped on the ground.

Naruto and Kazuma, along with their respective party members, were on their way back to town from a trial run quest to retrieve some baby ice slimes and snow sprites before the winter season officially ended.

Kazuma had designed a miniature fridge that housed a caged ice-type monster to keep food and ingredients cool during the hot summer days, but he wanted to test how compatible each monster would be combined with his product.

"How do you keep doing that? You're not carrying a bag large enough to hide all of those toads."

Kazuma asked Naruto, who was laughing at Aqua's fleeting figure in the short distance.

"Oh, that? Just a simple Storage Scroll. See?"

Naruto replied and pulled out a small scroll from one of his vest pockets, and after opening the paper and revealing the strange markings on the inside, a small plume of smoke was released and a small orange toad hopped down the ground.

"Convenient! Teach me!"

Kazuma's eyes bulged upon seeing how the scroll worked. The possibilities with such a useful skill were endless! At the very least, no more lugging around heavy backpacks.

No… There was something more here. Kazuma could feel it. Naruto had just summoned a live monster from that scroll, which meant that Sealing skill wasn't limited to simple supplies. It would certainly explain how Naruto had snuck a fully grown Giant Toad into town unnoticed.

"What's so crazy about summoning a little guy like this, Kazuma? If you want a familiar, I can teach you how to summon one."

Megumin asked while crouching down next to the baby toad and poking it with her staff.

"Ah! Be nice to him, Megumin! It's just a baby!"

Yunyun exclaimed while pointing at her rival who picked up the amphibian.

"A creature like this will soon grow into a ferocious beast that feasts on human flesh and makes people smell like unspeakable things… We might as well take it out now."

"!?" x2

Yunyun, and now Naruto, stared at Megumin with alarmed expressions.

"Th-that's cruel! Even for Megumin!"

"Put Jerry down!"

. . .

All eyes turned on Naruto who averted his gaze. They all knew the shinobi had a soft spot for toads, what with his absolute refusal to take part in giant toad extermination quests, as well as his refusal to eat fried toad legs at the guild.

But naming one was a little…

Darkness also came to the toad's defense.

"Why don't we keep it as a pet! Then, when it grows bigger we can-"

"We are not keeping this child for one of your weird fantasies, Darkness."

The noblewoman started but was interrupted by Megumin, causing the Crusader to avert her gaze as well.

"We'll just leave it here then! So no one has to get hurt!"

Yunyun said and reached out her hand towards Megumin, and her rival's eyes turned on her.

"Oh? Since you seem to care about this child so much, how about we duel for it! As the number one mage of Axel and the Crimson Demons, I, Megumin, challenge you for the keepsake of this baby toad!"

Megumin declared and flipped her cape before striking a flashy pose, the toad peacefully croaking on the girl's palm. It was surprising how calm it was.

"You're on! A-as the one who will become the next Chief of the Crimson Demons, I will not lose!"

Yunyun said while taking a stance of her own with her silver staff.

Seconds passed as the two stood face to face, as though waiting for the other to make the first strike.

Naruto and Darkness watched from a short distance, both wondering what the outcome would be.

The silence was finally broken when Yunyun shuffled her feet awkwardly.

"U-umm… What are the terms of the-"

"Take this!"

"Ah!?"

The moment Yunyun spoke, Megumin hurled the baby toad in her direction. Completely caught off guard, Yunyun instinctively reached out with her arms in an attempt to catch the critter, but it slipped through her fingers and fell into the exposed part of her shirt.

Yunyun squealed in surprise as the toad kicked out its legs in an attempt to free itself, but that resulted in burying itself deeper into the mage's bosom.

Naruto fell back with blood streaming out of his nose as Darkness put the sack that contained the jars of ice monsters to rush over and help Yunyun retrieve the toad from her shirt.

"Heh… I'll take that as my win."

Megumin said while nodding her head in satisfaction.

Filing away the pleasant sight in his memory for later, Kazuma's inner gamer flared at the thought of being able to summon a monster to fight for him with one of Naruto's scrolls.

That's right! With the power of those seals, he could make that!

"Pocket monster? But the jutsu already has a name. It's a Storage Seal."

Naruto questioned with a tilted head.

"Ah, that's right. I forget that you might actually be from another world than me. It's from a game that was made in my home country where you capture monsters with capsules and keep them in your pocket and battle with them! With your Sealing skill, and my design, we could make one!"

Kazuma exclaimed and slammed his hands on the counter.

They were now back at the mansion, and Naruto offered to make them ramen for lunch. Seeing as everyone was now super eager to try the stuff, they were all waiting patiently in the dining room.

Even Aqua stopped complaining about Naruto's continuous harassment with the toads and had obediently gathered the ingredients from the market for the shinobi upon his request.

All except Kazuma, who was still going on about this 'monster capsule' idea of his. He was curious about that ramen, and wouldn't mind eating the popular dish from his home country again. But this idea was a gamer's romance!

"Just imagine it. Being able to carry around a ball that holds a powerful monster that listens to your every command! All in your pocket!"

Kazuma continued while wrapping his arm around Naruto's shoulder and gesturing towards an imaginary picture he was envisioning.

Naruto's response was pulling out a small scroll from his pocket and wagging it at his friend with a deadpan expression.

"Gah! You just don't see it yet! I'll make one and then you'll see!"

Kazuma barked before storming out of the kitchen and into the dining room before sitting down at the table with a huff. He then began to scribble furiously with a pencil and paper.

"He still isn't going for it?"

Darkness asked while leaning over and glancing at the paper that was covered in various circles and descriptions.

"Not yet, but I'm sure he'll change his mind after seeing my beta design."

Kazuma absentmindedly replied as he scribbled.

"Sounds like a waste of time to me. You can just summon a familiar, like me."

Megumin chimed in and held up a small black cat with yellow eyes and a red marking on its forehead.

"No one would win any battles with a… Hey. Where did you get that?"

Kazuma began to retort when he realized his party member was actually holding a cat.

"Like I said, this is my familiar. Chomusuke."

Megumin replied, and Darkness scratched the cat's chin while cooing at it.

"Bless you."

Kazuma said upon hearing the strange noise come out of Megumin's mouth, prompting the girl to glare at him. But he didn't have time for such things. If his party member wanted to keep a cat, then that was fine. He wouldn't be changing its litter box though.

"I-I actually think the capsule is a very good idea, Kazuma-san. Summoning a familiar requires skill points to learn the technique, a lot of mana, and a blood contract. Which means you would only be able to command one at a time. With your magic item, you could theoretically have as many familiars as you wanted. If you can tame the monster, that is…"

Yunyun commented while muttering the last bit, but all Kazuma heard was praise as his eyes filled with tears.

"Finally! Someone who gets it! I almost forget you're here sometimes, Yunyun! But you actually have some decent common sense!"

Kazuma said while smiling broadly at the timid mage.

"I don't know whether to be happy or sad by that…"

Yunyun said with a crooked smile.

In the midst of his joy, Kazuma's head suddenly snapped towards a certain loud-mouthed goddess who had been a little too quiet.

"...You don't have anything to say, Aqua? Normally this is when you call me a gamer-NEET for wanting to make my fantasies a reality."

Kazuma asked with narrowed eyes, and he was about to ask her another question when she suddenly raised a hand.

"Shh… It's begun."

Aqua whispered and the room was suddenly filled with the most wonderous aroma.

The scent filled each person's nose with a potency that they, aside from Yunyun and Aqua, had never experienced before.

"That smells… Wonderful."

Darkness breathed her words out. Nothing in the noble world could compare to this scent.

The rest agreed and soon found their stomachs grumbling rather angrily.

After what felt like an eternity of waiting, five Naruto's entered the room. Each held a platter with a dome covering its cargo.

The clones lowered the plates in front of each person.

"This… Appointed by me, the goddess of water, is the Food of the Gods."

Aqua announced with her hands raised as if to present the meals as the Shadow Clones lifted the domes and moved them to the side.

The added aroma hit the group like a wind spell as they leaned back from the steam that had been released, revealing a beautifully crafted bowl of noodles with various cut vegetables. Four delicate slices of meat and a soft boiled egg lay at opposite ends of the soup.

Gulp!

The group swallowed the saliva that they'd unknowingly built up. Because the food seemed to do the impossible and LOOKED better than it smelled.

"H-hey… I think there's been a mistake? W-where's my Food of the Gods?"

Aqua asked meekly when she found a completely different meal on her plate. She began to sweat bullets when the clones all smiled at her before exploding out of existence.

"Oh, Aqua… Didn't you say you wanted me to make you something different? Something… Better than junk food?"

Naruto's voice suddenly whispered into Aqua's ear, causing the girl to stiffen.

"After all, I do have a maxed out Cooking skill. So, I made you this. It's a Smoked Lizard Burger, topped in a savory gravy with crisp cut vegetables. I hope you like it~!"

With that said, Naruto went back into the kitchen before returning with a bowl of ramen for himself.

The moment the shinobi seated himself and took his first bite, the group dug into their own bowls.

'T-this is…! Miso!?'

Kazuma decided to start with the broth, and the familiar signature flavor of his home country exploded in his mouth. Tears began to fill the boy's eyes as he was filled with nostalgic memories of his childhood.

Megumin went straight for the meat slices, and clasped her cheeks as it simply melted away in her mouth. This put fried toad meat to shame without a doubt!

Darkness slurped up some of the noodles and purred in delight as they had been crafted and cooked to perfection. Not too hard, but also soft enough to feel just right as she chewed.

Each bite revealed a new combination of flavors, with every ingredient mingling with one another flawlessly.

Aqua watched with envy as her friends devoured their bowls with more enthusiasm than she'd ever seen. Looking at her own plate, her stomach growled as if to voice her conflicted emotions.

The make-shift hamburger steak looked amazing in its own right, and it tasted better than anything else she'd eaten in this world.

'But it's just not the same…!'

The goddess thought as she ate her meal with tears streaming down her face.

'Dinner and show… Life doesn't get better than this!'

Naruto thought with a gleeful smile on his face. He then picked up his bowl and downed the rest of his soup. He wasn't cruel. He'd let the girl have a bowl of ramen... Next time.

Letting out a satisfied sigh, Naruto noticed a strange looking cat looking up at him from the floor.

Did these guys always have a cat?

At Wiz's shop, the beautiful Lich looked up from reading the depressing numbers on her papers.

"...I don't know why, but I feel like something terrible just happened."

Wiz said mostly to herself. But Vanir, who was busy dusting the floors, started laughing uncontrollably.

"Fufufu… Fuaha… Fuahahahaha! Moi must hand it to that cheeky brat who refused to make a deal with moi regarding that foreign dish. Moi can feel the negative emotions from that false deity from here! Fuahaha!"

Vanir said while roaring with laughter as if to the heavens themselves.

Wiz simply tilted her head, not quite understanding what her friend was talking about. But if Vanir was happy, then something good must have happened. So she was happy.

'Ah, I wonder if Naruto-san is going to bring any ramen today.'

As the group was taking a day off so Kazuma could work on his designs, Naruto and Yunyun decided to spend some time at Wiz's shop.

Due to Vanir's presence, Naruto hadn't really been needed all that much and found himself increasingly bored there after long periods of time.

Not to say he disliked Wiz's company! It was just that Vanir kept the shop clean, the wares neat, and even did a better job at staying on top of making sure Wiz was keeping track of the digits than Naruto ever was.

This resulted in Naruto becoming quite antsy as there was simply nothing for him to do there to help out.

Although it seemed that even Vanir with his all seeing eyes couldn't prevent the shopkeeper from purchasing her questionable products.

Which brings us to the present-

"Wiz! Stay with me! We're gonna get you help!"

Naruto cried out as he held his dear friend in his arms.

Wiz's body was completely blackened and charred, as though she'd gone through an inferno.

When Naruto and Yunyun entered the shop, they'd found Vanir shaking his head while standing over Wiz's still smoking form.

"You bastard!"

Naruto growled at the masked devil.

Vanir simply scoffed.

"This hopeless shopkeeper brought moi's Vanir-Style Laser upon herself. Wasting our miniscule profits to buy such useless merchandise."

"You little…!"

Naruto was about to lay the woman down and teach the devil a lesson when Wiz reached out with a weak hand and cupped his cheek.

"D-don't blame… Vanir-san. He's just doing… What he thinks is best for the shop…"

Wiz struggled to say, and her form seemed to become transparent.

"I'm sorry Wiz… It's because I haven't been helping out at the shop as much. I should have been here, and now…"

Naruto muttered and placed his hand on top of hers.

Yunyun stood at the entrance, a hand to her mouth as tears began to fall from her eyes. She was about to lose one of her first friends… Just like that. Was there anything they could do to save her?

"Can you… do something for me… Naruto-san?"

Wiz asked with teary eyes, and although something was tugging at him from the back of his mind, the shinobi could do nothing more than nod as he focused on the dying woman in his arms.

"Just this once… Before I disappear…"

The words came out as a whisper as Wiz brought Naruto's face closer to his, causing the blonde's face to become quite red.

A… Kiss? Was Wiz's final wishes a kiss!?

"Please…"

Naruto held his breath as their faces were mere inches apart from each other.

"Give me…"

…Hang on. Wasn't this scene very familiar?

"Mana…"

Yup. There it was.

"Gyahhhhh!"

Wiz sat at the table at the center of the shop, a blissful expression on her face as she sipped on some tea.

Naruto on the other hand, was crouched in the corner dejectedly with a rain cloud hovering over his head.

"Fuahaha! Thou is so unlucky with women, it is pitiful! To think that thy nickname in town is 'Naruto the Player'! Moi thinks a more proper title would be 'Boy Who Plays Himself'! Ah, yes… These negative emotions are quite delectable indeed! Fuahahaha!"

Vanir said while pointing at the shinobi and laughing hysterically, and the rain cloud started pouring even harder over the blonde.

Yunyun felt bad for Naruto, but she was glad that Wiz was alright.

'But… Why is my heart still pounding so much?'

The mage thought while holding a hand to her chest, but she jumped when she noticed Vanir staring at her intently.

A devil with all seeing eyes… Did he see through her?

"Ah, would you look at the time? Moi has an appointment with a certain man who peeps more than he reaps. Try not to go even deeper into the red while moi is gone, store owner."

Vanir said before walking out of the shop with a skip to his step, and Yunyun released a breath she didn't realize she'd been holding.

Naruto's ear twitched when the Arch Devil mentioned something interesting.

A man who peeps more than he reaps…

That could only be one man.

Standing up, Naruto walked to the exit to follow Vanir.

"I'm going out for a little bit, Yunyun. Why don't you keep Wiz company to make sure she recovered okay."

"O-okay!"

Yunyun replied as Naruto closed the door behind him.

Turning to her friend who was still in a blissful state, Yunyun tapped her fingers together.

"W-Wiz-san… Can I ask you a question?"

Naruto walked a good distance behind Vanir as he trailed the devil, and even transformed into a random townsperson for added measure.

He wasn't sure what Vanir was planning to meet with Jiraiya for, but his gut told him it probably wasn't anything good.

After a few minutes of walking, Vanir turned into a certain alleyway.

Naruto watched from across the street with cocked eyebrows before trotting over and peeking into the alley.

Was their meeting place… The Succubus shop?

Sure enough, Naruto watched Vanir enter the side entrance of the little café that led to the shop that sold dreams.

Narrowing his eyes, Naruto quietly approached the entrance. Panic rushed over him when he suddenly heard a series of cries and squeals. Was Vanir slaughtering them!?

Kicking the door open, Naruto canceled his transformation and charged inside.

Eyes darting left and right, the shinobi assessed the situation.

There were half naked women everywhere, a certain man with a heavy nosebleed was sitting on a couch at the center of the room with a succubus on each arm, and Vanir-

"Unhand me, you uncivilized bunch! Moi is not a toy thou can just attach thyselves to!"

"""""Kyahhh~!"""""

The Succubi were throwing themselves at Vanir, but the Arch Devil simply brushed them off and exerted a little pressure of his power.

"Hmph! Though thou art from moi domain in Hell, that will not excuse such behavior. Why don't you concern thyselves with that brat who followed moi here out of needless concern. Moi has business to attend to."

Vanir said and gestured to Naruto without even looking before he approached the man on the couch who was in fact Jiraiya.

The lesser devils obediently followed Vanir's commands and began to creep towards their next target. The Succubus seemed to already be in their Lust Frenzy Mode, as Naruto had come to call this state of theirs.

Naruto had been right about Vanir's business partner, and he was curious about what the masked man said about his domain in Hell. But the shinobi didn't have time to worry about that now. For he was about to fight for his life.

Why did it always come to this whenever he came to this shop?

As the Succubi crept towards him, Naruto glanced up to find that they were prepared this time. A couple succubus were hovering in the air just above him, their thin black wings keeping them afloat.

He couldn't go back either, as he had to know what Vanir wanted with his teacher.

So, his only option was forward.

With his signature seal, Naruto created half a dozen clones. He'd been secretly working on a special technique since the last time he'd faced this lot.

Never again would Naruto Uzumaki be backed into a corner by these Succubi!

"Transform!"

Naruto and his clones shouted, and they were consumed in clouds of smoke.

The women watched with careful eyes as the smoke began to clear away, but their jaws dropped when it was revealed that Naruto and his clones were now dressed in various different outfits.

One wore his adventuring gear, another a police uniform. Then there was a clone wearing a tuxedo, and another wore a speedo. One of the clones had transformed into a female version of himself whose privates were only covered by a swirl of smoke. Lastly, the final clone was wearing a tight leather outfit he'd once seen in a dirty magazine during his travels with his mentor.

That last clone cracked the whip it was holding and sneered.

"Who needs to be taught a lesson, little piggies!?"

. . .

The Succubi's reactions were explosive as some straight up fainted from major nosebleeds, and the rest flew to the clones to fawn over them.

Surprisingly, the clone with the whip had attracted the largest crowd, with the second most popular being the female version of himself that was immediately assaulted.

Succubus were terrifying.

While the women were distracted, the real Naruto had transformed into Dust, casually walked around the excitement and up to Vanir and Jiraiya. The old sage was staring at the Succubus with a longing expression as the two who had previously been keeping him company had been drawn in by Naruto's diversion.

"Ah, so thy student can shapeshift too. Interesting indeed... Anyways, he who goes by Ero-sensei by the NEETS in a certain village, back to our deal. I can see you received moi letter?"

Vanir chided before gesturing towards the paper in Jiraiya's hands.

"How did you know th-no, nevermind. I already know about you, Clairvoyant Vanir. I've long since received intel from my sources about your… Capabilities."

Jiraiya said in a tone that was rather serious, much to Naruto's surprise. The older man looked at Naruto in the form of Dust and winked.

"Ah, moi reputation precedes me. It certainly was interesting meeting that person in the Demon King's Army. But enough about that."

Vanir replied in a cryptic tone, earning a slight frown from the former toad sage.

Staying in his transformation so as to not draw the attention of the Succubus, Naruto walked over to his mentor's side defensively.

"What do you want with Ero-Senin, Vanir?"

"Fuahaha! No need to act so suspect of moi, boy whose heart strings are easily pulled by his female companions. Moi is simply trying to make an offer that this retired adventurer simply cannot refuse."

Vanir replied with a smile befitting that of a devil.

Naruto didn't trust that suspicious smile for a second. Vanir had a lot to gain by working with Jiraiya, who had various spies planted around the country in both the peasant and noble worlds.

Vanir was talking about Arue earlier, was he using her as a hostage to use against Jiraiya for the man's spy network?

With a network that powerful, Vanir, who was a devil with all seeing eyes, could potentially be plotting to overthrow the-

"Sure, I'll let you sell my books at your magic shop. I'll even let you keep an extra five percent for the generous partnership with these lovely ladies."

"Pleasure doing business with you, moi new comrade~!"

Jiraiya said and he and Vanir shook hands, causing Naruto to fall flat on his face.

"You mean this was all about your stupid porn!?"

Naruto quickly recovered and barked at his mentor, who raised an eyebrow in response.

"Of course. My books are well loved by the men of this country, but it's hard to get them on the shelves in stores with female employees for some reason."

Jiraiya explained with a shrug. Honestly, what did those women have against his precious books? They were selling like hotcakes in Alcanretia, to man or woman!

…On second thought, maybe he shouldn't be using that place as his basis.

"Indeed. Now, if you'll excuse moi. There has been an uprise in giant toads recently outside the city and none of the adventurers have been accepting the quests due to the excess amount of change in their pockets. As a model citizen of Axel, moi cannot let this stand. Jiraiya-dono, moi looks forward to doing business with thee. Adieu."

Vanir said with a bow before walking right through the crowd of Succubus, and Naruto was surprised to see that the lesser devils moved aside without hesitation to let the Arch Devil through.

Putting aside the alarming thing the masked devil said about giant toads, how did he get the Succubi to respect his boundaries like that!?

'It's because you're too soft. Just look at that clone of yours, they're listening to him just fine. You should be acting more like that with this lot. Keh…'

Kurama chortled, and Naruto glanced at the clone he'd made who was currently making outrageous demands to the Succubus, and they were all eagerly following its commands. Even the other clones had a hard time focusing on their increasingly smaller groups as they kept stealing glances at their whip-wielding brother who seemed to be enjoying himself a little too much.

'Absolutely not.'

Naruto thought in return, but it was more to himself than to his snickering partner. He hoped the memories he'd soon gain from that clone didn't awaken something amazing within him later.

Shifting his thoughts back to the problem at hand, Naruto faced Jiraiya and crossed his arms.

"Why didn't you tell me you were coming into town today, or that Vanir sent you a letter? I sent you a letter too, y'know?"

"Aww… Is my cute little pupil jealous? Gahaha! Sorry sorry, I was kidding! No need to get so flustered!"

Jiraiya teased his disciple, and laughed when Naruto raised a shaking fist.

Shortly after receiving the information Morrigan and Maria had given him about Alderp, Naruto had written a letter and shipped it out to the address Jiraiya had told him about in case the blonde ever needed anything and the former toad sage wasn't around.

"So, what's this news that you wanted to talk about? It must be something serious since all you mentioned in the letter is that we needed to talk. Also, cancel your transformation already. I don't like the look in your disguise's eyes."

Jiraiya asked while gesturing to a seat in front of him for the teen to take.

Taking a seat, Naruto transformed back and filled the older man in.

"I see… So Alderp made a contract with a devil, huh? Can't say I'm surprised. Even amongst the nobles, he's quite devious. But that would explain why everything seems to go in his favor. He's a member of my inner circle, you know?"

Jiraiya revealed before going into further detail, and Naruto's eyes widened in surprise.

As a part of the legendary Sanin's spy network, he ran a circle of nobles with high standing within the kingdom and held regular meetings with them. Alderp, a high member of that inner circle, had been gaining more power in recent times.

"That's actually why I'm in Axel right now. I'm going to be having a meeting with Alderp to see if I can figure out where all of this extra power and influence is coming from. But if he's contracted with a powerful devil… That would explain a lot."

After finishing, Jiraiya swiped the mug of booze that was resting on the side table near him and took a long swig.

Naruto was honestly impressed. Part of him thought his old mentor was simply in town to visit the succubus shop, but this was good information.

"Anyways, let's talk about something serious now. Naruto, I'm a little disappointed in you."

Jiraiya suddenly said, catching the blonde off guard.

Disappointed? How? Was it because he hadn't been taking down more high bounty targets? He technically defeated Vanir, who was no longer a General.

The giant of a man stood on his sandaled feet, easily towering over the teen.

Naruto gulped. He hadn't seen Jiraiya this upset since he'd accidentally spilled a bowl of ramen on the man's manuscripts during their training trip.

"How come you didn't tell me you were so popular with the Succubus!?"

"...Huh?"

Now red faced, Jiraiya grabbed Naruto's shoulders and began to shake the young man.

"To think I was going to introduce you to these beauties myself and even treat you to a special service of theirs… Damn it! Why is it always my pupil that gets surrounded by beauties? I was a Hero Candidate back in my adventuring days, you know!? The great Jiraiya-sama, author of the beautifully crafted Icha Icha Paradise, defeater of the Demon King Army General Hans the Poison Slime, and greatly favored by the Crimson Demon Clan and Axis Cult! Just hearing my name sends chills down a lady's spine! Gahahaha!"

As Jiraiya continued to rant, Naruto watched with a deadpan expression. In his distracted state, the blonde failed to notice that his clones had been dispersed. All except the whip bearer, who also listened in on Jiraiya's nonsense until a Succubus pounced on him from behind and popped it out of existence.

Through a collection of woes and sorrowful moans, the Succubi noticed the real Naruto and slowly started creeping up from behind.

"Ah! Ladies, come mend the sorrow in this heart of mine! Guhehehe!"

"Ah shi-Oof!"

The Hermit cheered as the mob of women pounced on his pupil.

Between the tugging and pulling of his person, all Naruto could hear was the muffled laughter of his drunken sensei and the arguing Succubi.

Men could dream of being in his shoes all they wanted, but Naruto was done with this nonsense. He was tired of being ragdolled and eyed like some piece of meat by these women.

Click!

In a flash of yellow light, the spot in the dogpile that had once housed the shinobi became empty.

"That's enough."

"""""!"""""

Shrouded by the very power they craved, Naruto now stood a few feet from the Succubi. His voice was calm, but authoritative as he omitted a pressure that the lesser devils had never experienced in their long lives. They immediately took to the seiza-style position.

Letting out a sigh, Naruto ceased his pressure and returned to his normal form. He hated resorting to this, seeing the fearful looks he was now receiving. But reason hadn't worked, as his past few interactions could attest to. It was time to put his foot down.

If anything, for the sake of his clothes.

'Heh. It's about time you grew a pair.'

Kurama chided in the back of the teen's mind.

"Listen… I know you're all just acting on your urges because of this power, but this has to stop. I just bought these clothes, y'know? Since I know you're not bad people, I'll let you all off the hook this time. But please give me some space from now on, okay?"

He meant that last bit as a joke, but the Succubi began to weep tears of joy.

"So kind!"

"Naruto-sama is so merciful!"

"We shall obey your commands, but please call upon me anytime Naruto-sama!"

""""No, me!""""

A small argument broke out, but it was notably more civil this time around which relieved the shinobi.

At that moment, the sound of a bell rang out as a customer entered the shop. It seemed night was nearing outside as another man entered the shop shortly after.

Seeing as there was work to do and the Succubi were no longer drunk with lust, the women scattered and became quite busy.

'Well, that worked better than I thought…'

Naruto thought while scratching at his whisker marks. He then turned back towards his master who was happily enjoying the company of a couple Succubi once more. One massaged his shoulders as another poured him a glass of wine.

"That reminds me. What kind of deal did you make with that masked devil about the Succubus? Nothing good I'd guess."

He was sure it was something pervy, given the pervy sage's history.

"How rude. I'll have you know I've been quite the gentleman with these lovely ladies."

Jiraiya huffed in offense, but it was hard to take the man's word while he was leering directly at a succubus's chest as he said it.

"That's right! Jiraiya-sama has been quite generous lending us his novels before officially releasing them to the public."

One Succubus chirped.

"Jiraiya-sama's novels have been quite inspiring for us Succubi. Our customer reviews have been increasingly positive since our partnership as we offer a special service in collaboration with Icha Icha Paradise."

Another Succubus added and handed Naruto an advertisement with a familiar image on it.

On the paper was the cover of Icha Icha paradise, but the female character had a succubus tail and the title read: 'Collab! Icha Icha Paradise X Succubus Cafe! YOU are the Main Character!'

It was honestly an impressive business strategy. The men read the books, become infatuated with the characters and the story, then lived out their fantasies in the Succubus dreams.

'You know you want to try it.'

'S-shut up!'

Naruto handed the paper back to the woman before addressing his master once more.

"Hey, let me come with you to that meeting with Alderp. I want to talk to him."

"Hah! With how you are now, you'd end up incarcerated again after one sentence! Gahaha!"

Jiraiya let out a bark of laughter at Naruto's request, earning a grumbling fit out of the teen.

"Tell you what. I'll let you know how my meeting goes, and if I find anything suspicious we can plan a course of action from there. The noble world is a tricky one, Naruto. They're not all easygoing like the Dustiness family."

After hearing the older man's reasoning, Naruto lowered his gaze in defeat.

As much as he hated to admit it, he wasn't ready to face a noble head on as he was and he knew it. From what he'd gathered from Kazuma and Darkness, a fight in the noble realm was different from a simple fist fight. One couldn't just charge in and declare war on one, and if what Jiraiya said was true, Alderp was a big fish in the pond which made his eventual fight with the man that much more difficult to approach.

Simply put, Alderp had strong political allies. So Naruto needed allies of his own.

Naruto began to scratch at his head, as all of the political thoughts were beginning to frustrate him.

'If only I could just blow up that bastard's house with a Tailed Beast Bomb and be done with it…'

'What do you mean? Of course we can. It could be our declaration of war on this kingdom's broken system. Then we could wipe out all of the corrupt nobles one by one, maybe fight the King's army here and there. Of course, the Demon King's army would take advantage of the chaos and attack too… Kekekeh! Brat, why didn't we just start with that strategy from the get go?'

'...You're really bored, aren't you Kurama?'

'Cheh…!'

Naruto decided he'd spar with the nine tailed fox later. But for now, he needed to start thinking of a plan to take on Alderp.

A/N: At long last, Kazuma's party gets a taste of the Food of the Gods!

There's a lot in store for our little group of fools in the near future… Kazuma's magic item idea and the corrupt noble Alderp, to name a couple.

Let me know if there are any monsters or magic items(even faulty ones) that you'd like to see in any future chapters. :D