A/N: Revised as of 5/7/2024.

"Nuzloft… That's an interesting name for a village."

Darkness commented after reading the sign that was posted at the foot of the hill.

"We have to climb that hill? But I'm so tired… Naruto, can you carry me the rest of the way please?"

Aqua, who was currently being carried by the shinobi piggyback, asked while batting her eyelashes.

"Aww… Of course not, Aqua."

Naruto responded with a gentle smile.

Aqua gaped and was about to complain, but the blonde faked a movement as if to drop her and she panicked.

"Wahh! Okay! Okay! I'll walk! Please don't drop me!"

With a disgruntled Aqua now off his back, Naruto walked up to Darkness and looked up the hill.

There was a path lined out by stones that led to the top where small, protruding structures and smoke could be seen.

"Finally… Alright, let's get this over with so we can go home."

Kazuma, who was covered in bug guts and bruises, started making his way up the trail. He really needed a bath.

As the group made their way up the hill, the sounds of voices and ferocious snarling grew louder.

"Wow…"

Upon reaching the top, Kazuma voiced the group's thoughts as they marveled at the sight in front of them.

The village consisted of numerous huts and cottages, with a large tent located at the center of it all. In the village square, a lively showcase of man and beast was currently undergoing. Music played, and various species of monsters moved to the command of their respective tamer.

A Fire Salamander was creating shaped flames in the air to which a flying serpent fearlessly dove through. A One-Shot Bear wrestled with a Nido-Rabbit as onlookers cheered on the beast they likely wagered on. In the outskirts of the village, people raced on Lizard Runners and various other creatures in a lined formation.

In fact, they were heading straight for-

"Look out!"

The lead rider, a young boy with jet-black hair and red eyes, shouted at Kazuma to move who had just stepped onto the dirt track.

"Wah!"

Realizing his mistake, Kazuma yelped as the beasts were nearly upon him. Thankfully, he was yanked back by Naruto at the last second as the monsters stomped past them.

"Interesting place to put a monster track… You alright, Kazuma?"

Naruto commented incredulously before helping his friend up.

"Not one full minute in this place and I nearly got trampled…"

Kazuma grumbled as he dusted himself off, only to groan when his hands were then stained by monster blood. If this wasn't a flag, he didn't know what was.

Undeterred, Kazuma pressed onward towards the square to get a better look at the shows.

Naruto looked back at the others, who shrugged, before following after the guy. But not before doubling back at Darkness who seemed to be lingering on the track.

"W-what?"

Darkness stuttered as she hastily caught up to her fellow blonde who was staring at her dubiously.

"You were considering waiting for the next lap, weren't you?"

Naruto pointedly asked, and the knight averted her gaze.

"No, I wasn't."

She denied it.

Honestly… Did she enjoy being the target of the Kiterunners from the other day that much?

As the group pressed on, Kazuma noted that there was a large number of demi-humans in the village. Their animalistic traits consisted of less prominent attributes such as simply having more hair on their forms, while others sported ears on the tops of their heads and even tails.

'There aren't that many demi-humans in Axel, and I didn't really have a chance to converse with any in Alcanretia… It'd sure be nice to meet a cute fox-girl here.'

Kazuma pondered to himself while wondering what kind of personality she'd have.

A Kitsune, as his people described them to be.

"Ah… That'd be nice… A real fox-girl…"

"A real fox-girl, huh? Tired of all the fake ones in your dreams?"

"Yeah, that's my most frequent request at that shop but-Geh!"

Kazuma flinched, realizing his mistake, and craned his neck to the side to see Naruto cracking his knuckles.

"W-wait a second! I was talking about a different fox-girl! I haven't requested Naruko-chan since their last promotion! I swear!"

"Are they making strange deals like that!? I'm going to have a long chat with that lot when I get home!"

The girls watched as Kazuma tried, and failed, to run from the angered shinobi. They didn't really get it, but wrote it off as their leader doing something scummy again and opted to pay attention to the lively Beast Tamer attractions.

"Step right up! Step right up! Pay the fine and face the Amazing Onion Duck!"

A man with a handlebar mustache wearing a black suit announced at the center of a rather large crowd off to the side. Megumin's ear twitched and she turned to see a confident looking Onion Duck standing triumphantly on top of a rather muscular looking adventurer.

"Darkness! Darkness! Look! There's a dancing Vigilante Dolphin! That's childsplay for the great me! I heard there's a lake behind the village. Let's go snatch a few water monsters for ourselves and I'll put on a show that'll put these amateurs to shame!"

Aqua proclaimed while rapidly tapping on Darkness's shoulder, but the knight seemed skeptical.

"Umm… Aqua? I don't think we should separate from the others-"

"Hey! I heard there's a giant Boxing Octopus at the lake that's been pummeling anyone that gets too close to the water!"

"Really? Monsters have been in a rage around the mountain as of late… I wonder what that's all about?"

Two monster tamers who were idly chitchatting passed by the two girls.

. . .

"Let's go find that Octopus Boxer!"

"Yeah! That'll put those dolphins to shame!"

Darkness and Aqua gave each other a thumbs up before taking off in the direction of the lake.

Kazuma could only helplessly watch as his problem children went off in different directions as he was locked in a chokehold by Naruto. He furiously tapped his hand on the shinobi's arm and pointed in different directions in an attempt to redirect the blonde's attention.

How was everything already turning into a complete disaster!?

Seemingly satisfied with his punishment, Naruto released the boy.

"Honestly, Kazuma… You-"

BOOM!

Naruto's scolding was cut off by a deafening explosion.

There was no way… They took their eyes off of them for one minute. ONE MINUTE!

Naruto and Kazuma turned with pale faces to see a swarm of people running away from a massive plume of smoke and debris rising into the sky. While not as large as its usual fiery display, it didn't take someone with a high intelligence stat to deduce who the culprit was.

"That idiot…! I'm going to take her allowance away for a week! No, an entire month!"

Kazuma growled as he and Naruto started running towards the mayhem.

"Sorry, Kazuma… I mean, you totally deserved that chokehold. But I underestimated those three. I don't see Aqua or Darkness either."

Naruto half-apologized while smiling bitterly.

"It's fine… You go after Aqua and Darkness, I'll go grab Megumin! I couldn't hear what they were talking about, but I saw them go towards the giant tent!"

Kazuma hastily responded, and the shinobi nodded as they broke apart into the scrambling mess of people.

'I knew a flag had been raised earlier…'

At the center of the chaos, unsurprisingly, was Megumin who was currently laying face first in the dirt.

"M-my… My Onion Ducks!"

A man in a singed suit cried out at the center of the crater that now scarred the village grounds.

Hearing this, Kazuma began to sweat bullets. He knew exactly what happened now, as he was well aware just how much experience points an Onion Duck packed… and price..

"Ah… Kazuma… Guess what? I gained two whole levels just now…"

Megumin lethargically said as Kazuma picked her up and carried her on his back.

"You-"

"YOU!"

The showman's shrill voice called after Megumin, cutting Kazuma off before he could berate his party member on his own.

There was no getting out of this, was there?

"Ah… You'll have to excuse my companion. She has a condition, you see, that makes her lose all sense of good judgment when monsters with high levels of XP are in her presence."

Kazuma sheepishly explained with a slight bow.

The initial wave of panic had ended, and people started gathering around them to see what had happened. All eyes were on the two travelers that were apparently the cause of all of the commotion.

"I'm going to give you enough mana to stand… On my mark, we run."

Kazuma whispered to his companion.

"Excuse me. Who has a condition? I'll have you know that I even held back with that Explosion."

Megumin hissed back.

Kazuma wanted to argue back, but he'd make her suffer later. Right now, he needed to save their skins.

"Do you have any idea how long it took me to gather those Onion Ducks… How many weeks of venturing into the Grubby Grove and finding nothing but common insects!?"

The mustached man heaved with anger as he marched towards the two while wagging his finger. The tips of his mustache were smoking, which would have been quite the comical sight if they weren't in deep trouble.

"Fletchy, Flappers, Pickly, Peckers, Ducky, and Mr. Onion… Gone… I will never forgive you! You will pay the fine or face the consequences of our village!"

The man's face was redder than a tomato as he screamed in their faces, and it seemed Megumin finally understood the trouble she was in as she fell silent.

Was she playing dead!? This girl!

"...How much does she owe you, sir?"

Kazuma meekly asked, and the man seemed to calm down a great deal.

Letting out a huff and straightening his collar, the man pulled out a miniature comb and straightened his frazzled mustache.

"You may address me as Mr. Leek! I technically said I'd allow your friend to use magic as a part of my challenge, so I'll only charge you for the other five that were caught in that… Explosion."

The now named Leek said with distaste evident in his words.

"Fifty-thousand Eris-"

Oh, that didn't seem so bad-

"-each."

Megumin, you idiot!

Kazuma's knees nearly buckled from the revelation, and Mr. Leek seemed to revel in his despair.

"Oh, don't tell me… You don't have the money to repay me for my losses? Well now… I guess you and your companion will just have to do some work for me to pay off your debts."

The man said in a mock-shocked tone while hiding a sleazy smile behind his gloved hand.

'This guy…!'

Kazuma ground his teeth in frustration. They were clearly being duped, but there was nothing he could do about it.

"Hey now, Mr. Leech. That's no way to treat our guests. They're clearly not accustomed to our ways."

Someone said, and the crowd turned to the newcomer.

Kazuma's eyes lit up in recognition. It was the boy that nearly trampled him earlier!

Riding a green Lizard Runner, the young boy wore a simple dark red tunic with black pants. His striking red eyes burned with determination as he strode to the center of the crowd.

In a way, he sort of resembled Megumin and Yunyun. Was he a Crimson Demon?

"You… How many times have I told not to call me that!? It's Mr. Leek!"

Leek snarled at the boy who was grinning mischievously.

"Okay, Mr. Leech. How about this? I'll vouch for these travelers and win tomorrow's tournament! Then you'll have to drop your charges! As a fellow Beast Tamer, you're not opposed to following our customs, are you?"

The boy hopped off his Lizard Runner and looked up at the older man. The young Beast Tamer grinned with a face full of confidence.

"Kazuma! Who is that kid!? He's completely stealing the show!"

Megumin whispered to her party leader, her Crimson Demon blood resonating with the turn of events.

"I don't know, but I'm glad he's on our side… I think?"

Kazuma said and used Drain Touch to give Megumin enough mana to stand on her own.

The kid seemed to be important because the people all around them were whispering about him. Other than the fact a mere kid was riding on a monster lizard, there was something about him that was bothering Kazuma.

"Just because you're the founder's son… Tch!"

Mr. Leek gnashed his teeth together at the boy's nickname. But then a thought occurred to him, and his sleazy smile returned in full.

"Fine! By our customs, should you win tomorrow's tournament, I'll drop the charges. But seeing as I have no monsters to participate with, surely one couldn't expect poor little old me to tame six beasts in one night. Therefore, I shall have someone participate in my stead!"

The man declared and snapped his fingers.

The crowd split as a burly demi-human with hair that resembled a mane stepped forward. A large beast with the body of a lion and the head of an eagle walked at his side; a griffin.

Kazuma's knees began to wobble at the frightening pair. Just what did Megumin get them into? They only came here to sell magic items, and now he was getting dragged into a generic shonen event.

"Heya, Roaric."

The young boy greeted the demi-human, and the monster of a man responded with a grunt that briefly exposed his elongated canines.

The Lizard Runner glared at the Griffin with a sense of challenge, albeit a tad nervously. But the winged beast held its head high as if to state the reptile was beneath it.

"Ah! That's the adventurer that was defeated by the Onion Duck before I challenged it! Was that all part of an act!?"

Megumin suddenly shouted while pointing at the beast man.

"T-then it's settled! I'll see you tomorrow, travelers… Hueheheheee!"

Mr. Leek quickly said and let out a cackle of laughter as he scurried off, with Roaric and his Griffin following after.

'So that guy really was a con-artist… Great.'

Kazuma thought to himself as the onlookers began to go back to their original business and showrunners fired up their performances again. It was like nothing had happened.

Minus the giant crater in the center of the village.

…He didn't have to pay for that, did he?

"Thank you for helping us, but… Why?"

Kazuma asked the red-eyed boy who was patting his Lizard Runner's scales.

"I hate people like Mr. Leech… He's only taming monsters for money. That's not why my father founded this village."

The boy's smile faded, but only for a moment as he faced the adventurers.

Then it hit Kazuma. He figured out what had been bothering him.

The black hair, red eyes… He couldn't be older than ten years old, yet he had the courage to stand up to two grown men. Not to mention, those red clothes…

Kazuma's gamer instincts were flaring. This kid was just like the main character in the game that inspired him to make the Scroll Ball!

His name must be-

"The name's Joe, and this is Zard! I aim to surpass my father and become the greatest Beast Tamer in the world!"

The now named Joe introduced himself with an ear to ear grin.

"Splendid introduction! I am Megumin, and I aim to be the world's most powerful Arch Wizard! My party is on a journey to defeat the Demon King and… Umm, Kazuma? Are you okay?"

Megumin, in the midst of her own introduction, trailed off when she noticed her party leader covering his eyes and trembling.

"Almost… It was almost perfect…"

Kazuma muttered to himself, prompting Megumin and Joe to look at each other questioningly.

'Where did those two run off to…'

Naruto thought as he ran around the village.

There were so many tamers walking about with their monsters, it was almost overwhelming. But it was quite an amazing sight nonetheless.

Some walked with big and scary beasts that made Naruto want to drop everything and challenge them to a fight, while others carried cute little monsters on their head or shoulders.

Opting to see if anyone had seen Aqua and Darkness, Naruto asked a few individuals. He was met with dead ends until a couple Beast Tamers claimed to have seen two pretty girls heading towards the lake.

Along with the news of the rampant Octopus Boxer.

'Those idiots…'

Naruto thought, having a vague idea as to what their motives were.

Thanking the people for their directions, the shinobi ran towards the massive tent to the north. As he passed the entrance, he managed to get a glimpse of the inside.

There was a crowd of people watching two monsters fighting at the center of a large stage.

Did they hold tournaments inside there? Interesting…

The lake wasn't too far from the village, and Naruto didn't have to search long to find Darkness and Aqua standing by the lake's edge.

"Come out come out, lil octopus~! Mama wants a new collection of expensive wine~!"

Aqua cooed while lightly swishing her hand in the water. Small fish gathered around, copying the motions of her fingers. It was quite an amazing sight.

"I heard an Octopus Boxer can send out thirty punches in a single second! I can't wait to test my defense against such an overwhelming offense!"

Darkness said while discarding her armor piece by piece and tossed them onto the grass until she was only left with her black under armor.

"Oh~ That sounds impressive. So why are you taking off your armor?"

Naruto asked while watching Aqua's little fish performance. While impressive, it reminded him of the Dustiness manner… and that made him shudder.

"Because it might drag me into the water. How can I do battle underwater with my… Ah."

The Crusader trailed off when she realized who was talking to her.

"Silly Darkness… You won't even need to fight. I can tame any water monster with a single glance, so leave it to-Geh!"

Aqua was startled to see Naruto smiling down at her.

–With the two girls in seiza in front of him, Naruto shook his head as he scolded them.

"What in the world made you think it was a good idea to split off from the group and seek out a powerful monster like that? Honestly though? I'm not even surprised."

"We're sorry…" x2

Aqua and Darkness apologized solemnly, earning a satisfied nod from the ninja.

"As you should be. Now, come on. We need to go bail out Megumin who decided it was a good idea to-"

Splash!

A massive object burst from the lake's surface, and a giant burnt orange octopus with what looked like red boxing gloves attached to the ends of its tentacles let out a screeching roar.

The creature was easily the size of a small house.

A wave of water splashed over the group.

"..."

Naruto, who was now completely soaked to the bone, wiped his wet bangs out of his eyes and leveled a hard stare at the giant monster.

"It appeared! Go beat it up so we can catch it, Naruto!"

Aqua shouted excitedly, earning a baffled look from Darkness.

"Didn't you just say you could tame any water monster with a single glance!?"

The Crusader balked as she helped the other girl to her feet then hastily gathered the pieces of her discarded armor before it could be washed away.

The Octopus Boxer aimlessly lashed out at the water around it, causing more waves to reach the lakefront.

Naruto leapt over the surges of water and landed on the lake's surface a good distance away from the rampaging creature.

"You know what? Maybe catching this guy wouldn't be such a bad idea."

The shinobi said as he reached into his ninja pouch and pulled out an orange Scroll Ball.

"Hah!? You're not seriously going to use that toad to fight, are you!?"

Aqua, who had grown excited at the aspect of Naruto fulfilling her request, balked upon seeing the magic item that contained Jerry.

What? She may not like Jerry, but she didn't have a death wish for the thing.

Hearing Aqua's concerns, Naruto smirked and activated the Scroll Ball before throwing it into the air.

It seemed his toad was getting the underdog treatment… Good.

"Hang on. Let me get this straight. Your parents let you go into these dangerous forests, alone!?"

Kazuma asked, befuddled at what Joe had just said.

They were currently standing by the large tent, or as Joe called it, the "Conqueror's Tent" as the young Beast Tamer shared some very useful information with them.

Apparently, it was a custom Joe's father, the founder and chief of Nuzloft, had come up with upon the creation of the village.

When a villager came of age or acquired the Beast Tamer class, they would traverse into each of the forests surrounding the village to tame monsters.

"That's right! We also hold a yearly tournament where only the best tamers take on the Nuzloft Challenge. Taking only one monster, the Beast Tamer must travel to each region around the village and catch the first monster they encounter no matter what."

Joe enthusiastically explained while wagging his finger and proceeded to point out all of the notable locations surrounding the village.

The regions consisted of four forest areas bordering around Nuzloft, the lake behind the village, and the mountain at the center of it all. Each area contained completely different types of monsters.

To the south was the Grubby Grove, which mostly hosted bug, plant, and bird-like creatures. This was claimed to be the "easiest" route someone could take to get in and out of the village, and was actually the way Kazuma and the others had entered.

Kazuma wanted to dropkick the person who made that claim.

To the west was the Wilted Willows, which was said to be haunted and contained spirits, pixies, and other supernatural creatures.

Kazuma had to deal with enough ghosts in one lifetime at his own home. Hard pass.

To the east was the Petrified Pines, where giant rodents and venomous snakes that could turn you to stone with a glance lived.

Turned to stone? No thank you.

Lastly, to the north was the Ancient Acres where only the most experienced Beast Tamers were allowed to enter because it eventually led up the mountain. Salamanders, Ice Elementals, and even Dragons were said to live in that region.

Kazuma struggled to kill bugs and toads. He shuddered at the thought of facing a dragon.

"After visiting all six regions, and catching six monsters, you can take part in the tournament. The winner is deemed Conqueror and wins a grand prize! My father has been the Conqueror each year the tournament's been held. But now that I'm a Beast Tamer, I'm going to win this year!"

Joe continued with stars in his eyes, and even Zard seemed to reflect its master's enthusiasm.

"Six, huh?"

Kazuma said with a knowing smile. It was exciting to think that this village was a exactly like the game he used to play in Japan. The only thing stopping him from running off into the forest to start taming beasts was the fact that he was powerless against those powerful monsters, and his Scroll Balls apparently weren't strong enough to catch these monsters without weakening them first.

"I've been wanting to ask, but are your parents Crimson Demons? I sense strong magical potential in you, not to mention your eyes…"

Megumin asked while staring into Joe's pupils, causing the boy's face to heat up from the intensity of the stare.

"U-umm… Yeah, my mother is a Crimson Demon named Aomidori, but I've never been to the Crimson Demon Village. My parents met while dad was traveling the kingdom searching for strong monsters to tame. He met my mom and she ended up killing all of my dad's beasts thinking they were attacking him. Mom helped him find more beasts because he wouldn't stop crying so she felt bad… Anyways, they went on a journey, fell in love, yadayada… Then they found this place, had me, and Nuzloft was founded."

Joe explained while waving his hand dismissively.

'What a… romantic story?'

Kazuma thought to himself while scratching his cheek. He wondered what all of the Crimson Demons were like and if they all had weird names. The Crimson Demon Village was apparently not far from here, so maybe they could visit after selling all of the Scroll Balls?

Then again, if the rest of them were like Megumin…

"Hey. Why are you looking at me like that? Are you picking a fight?"

Megumin asked when she noticed Kazuma's disappointed expression.

"No, I'm just hoping the rest of your village is like Yunyun. But somehow, I don't think that's going to be the case."

"!?"

As Megumin pounced Kazuma, Joe laughed at their antics.

"You guys are funny. Is the rest of your group like this?"

"You could say that…"

Kazuma grumbled as he struggled against Megumin. How was this girl so damn strong!? Didn't she just use Explosion magic?

"Well, you said your friends went up north right? Then they probably went to the lake. I was actually planning on going there myself to investigate something, but I got distracted because some friends of mine were having a monster race and got a little carried away. Hahaha!"

Joe admitted while sheepishly rubbing the back of his head.

"Oh! Can I ride on your Lizard Runner? You looked really cool earlier and it made me want to try!"

Megumin released Kazuma from her hold and ran over to Joe as Zard lowered itself to allow its master to hop on.

"Eh!? Oh, umm… Sure. Here, I'll help you up."

Joe stuttered and hopped onto the beast, then reached down to give the excited girl a hand up.

"H-hey, Megumin! Don't be rude!"

Kazuma blurted out as Megumin hopped onto the back of the reptile, suddenly feeling frustrated.

Hold on. Wasn't this kind of familiar?

"Don't worry, Kazuma! Joe said it was fine! Let's go! Let's go!"

Megumin brushed her party leader off and started pressing her legs together excitedly.

"Wait, don't kick your legs like thaaaaAAAAT!"

Joe shouted in warning as Zard took the mage's thrashing as an indicator to go fast, and fast it went as the Lizard Runner ran towards the lake with a burst of speed.

"...You're being stupid. This is nothing like that time."

Kazuma said to no one in particular as he was left behind. Letting out a deep sigh, the adventurer started making his way over to the lake.

BOOM!

The ground trembled, causing some of the nearby people to shout in alarm.

"Let me guess… Naruto got a little too excited and went overboard."

Kazuma grumbled to himself. He really couldn't catch a break with these people.

Earlier…

"Let's go, Jerry!"

The magic item opened, the sealing symbols spilling out as the head of a giant toad popped out. Then its torso, and finally its limbs appeared.

"That's… Jerry?"

Aqua managed to say as Jerry, who had previously been the size of a dog, was now a fully grown giant toad.

"How!?"

The goddess wailed in disbelief as Jerry's body hit the water, and even at the distance she and Darkness had made from the shoreline, they were splashed by the wave the toad had created.

Landing on the back of his toad companion, Naruto cackled with laughter from Aqua's reaction.

"Never underestimate the power of the toads! Alright, buddy! Let's show this overgrown calamari what you're made of!"

The shinobi said while thrusting his arm forward, and the orange toad croaked before leaping out of the water with tremendous force.

The Octopus Boxer had been surprised by the sudden appearance of another giant monster, but it snapped out of its surprised state and braced itself as Jerry pounced on it.

The lake quivered from the impact and created a wall of mist that obscured their vision.

"Did they get it?"

Darkness asked, debating whether or not she should join the fray. Not that she would be able to do much in the deeper parts of the water.

"No! It blocked it! Now it's preparing an attack! Watch out, Jerry!"

Aqua screamed when the vapor cleared, she noticed the tentacles between Jerry and the octopus. Realizing what she'd just said, the goddess clamped her mouth shut.

"You hear that, Jerry? Aqua's worried about you! Isn't that cute?"

Naruto said while patting the back of the toad's back, causing the bluenette's face to redden.

He knew a simple pounce wouldn't be enough to defeat the Octopus Boxer. They just needed to get in range to trigger its attack.

The Octopus Boxer shoved Jerry back and gathered all of its tentacles together for a barrage of punches.

"Grab it!"

Naruto commanded, and Jerry's tongue shot out of its mouth then proceeded to wrap around the collected limbs.

But this wasn't enough to stop the opposing monster from thrusting its tentacles forward in one collective punch.

"Ah!"

Aqua found herself shouting in fear as the gloved tentacles smashed into Jerry's stomach. But to her surprise, the orange toad remained relatively unharmed as its blubbery hide absorbed the strike.

"That's right… Giant toads are resistant to blunt force."

Darkness noted in awe while Aqua let out a sigh of relief.

"Good job, Jerry! Now let's send 'em sky high!"

Naruto instructed and pointed straight up.

Jerry's body lurched in response as it dragged the Octopus Boxer that was still recovering from its attack. After coming full circle to gain enough momentum, Jerry's tongue retracted and sent the octopus hurtling into the air.

"Light it up!"

Was Naruto's next and final command, which prompted the giant toad to spit a glob of slime at its foe. The slime hit its target right in the face, causing Aqua to shudder in remembrance.

Then the shinobi's arm flashed forward, and glimmering light flew towards the descending beast.

When the light made contact with the slime-

BOOM!

-it resulted in a massive explosion.

As the smoked Octopus Boxer crashed into the water, Naruto waited for the water to settle before jumping off his companion's back and strolled over to the fallen monster.

The beast was still alive, but it definitely wasn't getting up anytime soon.

Snickering, Naruto fished another Scroll Ball out of his ninja pouch and tossed it onto the Octopus Boxer.

After making contact, the magic item opened up and successfully absorbed it into the seal.

Upon completion, the orb landed in Naruto's palm which he pocketed. That was when he noticed something in the distance.

"Hm?"

Naruto squinted his eyes and saw a small wooden boat, and there were two men riding inside of it. They seemed to be heading towards the mountain.

"EHHHHHHHH!?" x2

Someone shouted from the shore, causing Naruto to jolt in surprise.

Turning around, he saw Megumin and a kid riding a Lizard Runner pointing a shaky finger towards him.

Who was that?

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the kick off to Nuzloft. A very Pokemon inspired parody, so kudos to those who understood any references I threw in there.

Anyways, happy holidays everyone and cheers to the new year!