Hovering above the Vale skies, a distorted shadow watched the city below with its countless red eyes; each one spread around its decaying humanoid form, including the pair of ragged draconic wings on its back.
It's here... Bael, one of the seven Fragments of Darkness, focused each of his eyes in a specific direction, and his unstable form stirred at the presence of a purple flame of divine nature that burned there in silence. Strong.
That was the only word he could use to describe the intruder who walked freely in the world his father and...uncle had created.
An arrogant entity who not only dared to invade this world but also didn't hesitate to kill thousands of his younger brothers after luring them in by filling the atmosphere with its cold, corrupted essence.
The familiarity behind this power was undeniable and more nostalgic than Bael would like to admit.
For no more than a moment, he and each of his brothers and sisters believed that their Father had returned to this world.
Even Luciel had woken up from his deep sleep and, contrary to all expectations with the disappointing reality that was presented, chose to do nothing.
While Bael understood why they couldn't interfere directly with the world and this flawed creation called humanity, since it was a direct order from Father that only applied to the seven of them and no one dared disobey because they knew better, intruders should be treated as such and eliminated immediately.
No matter how strong this being was, if they all acted together, destroying it was more than possible.
They were created exactly to kill a god, if necessary, so dealing with a false one would be no problem.
Still, all Luciel had to say about this was for them to wait for further orders and observe the situation.
Certainly, the destruction and losses resulting from this conflict would be catastrophic and perhaps justified his brother's decision.
However, Bael refused to see it that way or accept it.
Something had to be done!
Otherwise, it made them look weak and disrespected the God of Darkness himself!
Disappointing. This little brother of his should be the strongest; his father's masterpiece and pride. Instead, he prefers to hide, like a coward.
But it didn't matter.
Luciel wouldn't stay at the top making all the decisions forever.
There were other ways to achieve perfection and one just happened to present itself now that this intruder had come into their world.
An opportunity to act, even if indirectly, and avoid the consequences.
Then I will make that power my own. Bael had to stop himself from being consumed by his endless hunger and desire. The darkness that this being emitted was that great.
It was a pity that this desirable and familiar characteristic had disappeared, now replaced by a glow reminiscent of his uncle's unpleasant purity.
Still, power was power.
No matter where it came from. His countless eyes observed the flawed creation of his father and uncle with disdain. Even from inferior creatures.
Every single one of them, unable to live for more than a century, susceptible to falling ill with their laughable fragility and unstable because of their emotional souls; the gift of the God of Light that seemed more like a curse.
The reason why the lesser Grimm, devoid of logical reasoning, hunted these creatures was to destroy the side of creation and soul that belonged to the enemy light; following the original wish of the God of Darkness.
Worse still, this species was ungrateful enough to betray its creator, resulting in the punishment of being destroyed before being given a second chance they didn't deserve.
As if that wasn't enough, it was this event that culminated in their father and uncle's decision to leave Remnant behind along with everything else, and for that, Bael would never forgive them.
The fact that they were celebrating the death of thousands of his brothers and idolizing this false god only served to fuel his hatred.
Fortunately, their time was running out.
Eventually, they would destroy themselves or the true gods of this world would return to erase this mistake permanently.
Or maybe I should spare Father the trouble and do it myself? The idea taking shape in his mind was tempting, but Bael knew better. Yes, that's right, I can't get carried away.
His brother, the youngest and most arrogant; strong yet weak, would not let his meddling and actions go unpunished.
For now.
In that case, Bael would have to settle for making use of this inferior species in another way to bring his plans and ambitions to life.
His eyes were special; every single one of them and they could discern that there were a few different humans in the same place as the false god.
There are five souls who feel different, almost like those blessed by Father's magic. As far as Bael knew, there should only be two people like that left in this world: the woman in the Land of Darkness near Luciel's resting place and the little Champion of Light. The fool who gave up his gift to create four more magic users, believing he could change something.
That and defying the will of the God of Darkness himself.
The audacity.
His punishment suits him perfectly. From where he stood, Bael could see him too, being nothing more than a shell of his former self who had been able to destroy and seal his father's first failed attempts at creating Fragments of Darkness, but who could now only hide inside a castle to guard one of the divine relics. Objects that could bring Father back home immediately...
If it were up to him; if these relics weren't touched by the light too, Bael would have found a way to gather them a long time ago.
A pity, but irrelevant. There was no point in pondering over what it could be, he needed to look ahead. What matters is the humans touched by the false god.
Which made them even bigger traitors.
Those with the Champion of Light's magic might be an affront to his father's wishes, but they were still less than the five next to the intruder, where two of them felt much stronger, almost like the false god himself.
In that case, devouring each of them wouldn't be a problem. If he thought about it, it would only be the right thing to do and Bael couldn't wait to get a taste of the power of a being from another world. Maybe I can aggravate this false god and force his hand too.
That way, Luciel would have to act and the world would be plunged into chaos again.
Just thinking about it made Bael tremble with anticipation!
Before that, however, he needed to prepare himself and nothing was fairer than making use of the essence of his fallen brothers that now filled the air to the point of reminding him of Father's presence.
"Fear not," Bael said, his voice echoing in tandem through countless mouths as he raised his hand adorned with razor-sharp claws and it wasn't long before the corrupted energy that permeated the air condensed to the point where it took the ethereal form of the head of one of the many destroyed Grimm, "For I, your eldest brother, Bael, The Devourer, promise to carry the will and endless desire for destruction of each and every one of you!" A smile formed on each limb of his decaying form as he lived up to his name and title, and began to consume everything; to fulfill his destiny! "And to bring an end to all that is undeserving of the gift received!"
He would be sure of it.
This false god couldn't wait and when his time came, Bael would devour him completely in order to finally take the last necessary step and earn his rightful place in a higher realm alongside his father!
At the hospital, after leaving the girls and going after the old Doctor to thank him for helping Winter, and asking for guidance around when the nurses were clearly avoiding him for obvious reasons and something else, Sasuke came across a man who looked even more dead than alive than before, almost as if he had aged a decade in a matter of days.
Surely the result of his excessive efforts to save the lives of two worthless people and deal with Neo's threats.
The half-empty bottle of alcohol he had been drinking earlier and the calming pills scattered on the floor at the moment were certainly not a combination that did him any favors, but it said a lot about his physical and mental condition.
Sasuke still remembered very well the frightened expression on seeing him earlier, to the point of making him feel both worried and guilty about what had happened, and even though he knew the dangers of this decision, he decided to reward this man so that he could continue working in his role for longer, helping other people who really deserved it and in a much more efficient way by enhancing his Aura, just as he had done with Neo and Winter, but to a lesser degree.
With that, there would be five people in this world with a fragment of his power.
Two of them were unintentional and Sasuke needed to think about what to do with them.
Roman and Cinder, both of whom would be a problem if they survived.
I'll deal with it when the time comes. Perhaps Sasuke could prepare a seal or a prison from which they couldn't escape. Or use them against Kaguya?
Unlikely, but still an option.
If he managed to convince Neo and even get into her heart, anything seemed possible.
Something to think about later. For now, Sasuke needed to finish helping the doctor recover. Using his Semblance as a catalyst.
The irony didn't go unnoticed and it was much better than believing that there was some kind of fate involved.
The reaction this old man had when he regained his senses, even for a moment, and discovered that his ability had been copied, not to say stolen, said a lot about it before he passed out without being able to say anything.
He'll wake up eventually, even knowing that the guilt Sasuke felt wouldn't change and more needed to be done. Yeah, I think apologizing for everything that happened would be a good start.
The indirect results of his decisions and actions were so heavy that the continuous flow of hot water in his well-deserved bath proved unable to help clear his mind.
After the day he'd had and its seemingly endless tribulations, it was to be expected.
After all, he had been through so much in such a short space of time and it wasn't just in Remnant.
Extreme situations had been happening almost non-stop since he left Obito's hideout behind.
In one day, Sasuke was reunited with his brother and joined him in a battle that made him question his own existence. Soon after, he revived Orochimaru and the former Hokage, all to ask his questions and finally understand that what deserved his hatred was the flawed system that shaped that entire world, thus deciding to change his vengeful plans for something...less destructive but not exactly orthodox, but with the goal of making the Elemental Nations a better place, no matter the cost.
Unfortunately, from that point on, things got much worse, as he had to fight literal Gods whose method of salvation would only bring about the end of everything.
It was during one of these fights that Sasuke was defeated and forced to taste death.
Or to remember what dying felt like, because it wasn't the first time.
Sasuke never had time to really digest this information; about the fact that he had lived many lives with many names over thousands of years and had basically died at the hands of his previous incarnation.
He only accepted it because it was convenient; because of the power he so desperately needed to bring his ambitions to life.
Too bad Sasuke wasn't the only one and he despised the way his fate was intertwined with Naruto's in an endless cycle of hatred.
Not for long, though.
As far as Sasuke knew, he was the last Uchiha alive.
Obito must have made sure of that, considering the massacre of the clan that took place mainly at his hands and the stockpile of eyes he had until Sasuke destroyed it altogether from that hiding place.
An extreme way of ensuring that no one else would abuse the power of his clan, just as Danzou had done.
Taking this into account, if Sasuke dies before having a child, it will be the definitive end of the Uchiha clan and Indra will have no way of reincarnating again, thus breaking the cycle that the Sage of the Six Paths mentioned.
In a way, it would be a kind of revolution too, but it was nowhere near enough.
The Uchiha clan was far from the only problem in that world.
The descendants and reincarnation of Ashura, who followed the will of fire along with Hagoromo's teachings like fanatics, were also part of the problem.
Even if Naruto died, there would surely still be others to continue his altruistic vision of peace and start new conflicts as a result...if Kaguya didn't kill everyone before then.
That was also another possibility.
Regardless, his point remained.
The end of an era was underway and Sasuke needed to finish the battle with his own demons, define his goals, and make peace with himself before then.
Seeing the blood being washed from his body, ironically, helped with this by bringing up unwanted but necessary memories.
After all, it was a recurring scene in his first year under Orochimaru's tutelage, whether with his own blood or that of those he targeted to test his strength.
Using the Bingo Book, Sasuke hunted down many criminals as he rose through the ranks, always aiming for the S class where Itachi was.
In his mind, however, every one of those scumbags was Itachi and so there was no mercy on his part.
I wonder if all that...hatred and obsession helped at all. Sasuke never saw himself as some kind of hero, that was something Naruto did with his endless naivety; no, Sasuke always acted for something that benefited him, regardless of how dangerous it might be. Even if it meant dying.
The price needed to gain more power, twice, where one was voluntary and the other not so much, but which he didn't regret having experienced.
In fact, Sasuke even thanked Madara for it.
The Rinnegan was an absurd power that could bring all his ambitions to life and it was by having this line of thought that he could understand where his biggest problem lay.
Despite his principles, Sasuke lived walking on a thin line to avoid becoming a monster like he believed his brother and Orochimaru to be...only to end up being exactly that at his lowest moment.
"Either you die a hero or you live long enough to become a villain."
A popular quote that rang true, except for his brother who pretended to be a villain until the end when in fact he was a hero even after death.
Without him, there was no telling how the war would have turned out in the end, with Kabuto keeping the Edo Tensei and not showing up to give Sasuke the cells of Hashirama and so many other powerful ninjas who helped awaken his Rinnegan.
Indeed, Itachi, even if indirectly, saved his little brother once again and gave the world a chance to continue existing.
Now, Sasuke had to honor his sacrifice and keep fighting, even against himself if necessary.
How things have changed. So much so that Sasuke wondered what his hate-filled self would say upon seeing him at this moment. I can imagine.
Disappointment? Perhaps confusion?
After all, Sasuke was stronger than ever, to the point where only two people, a goddess and the reincarnation of a demigod, were capable of posing a threat to him.
All this without being consumed by hatred.
Before, the mere idea of reaching this level didn't even exist, even more so without what had motivated him all his life and Sasuke wasn't sure he could have gotten as far as he did without hatred.
What's more, he had opened his mind and heart to what he found most annoying: girls.
If he thought about it, it was strange but not necessarily a bad thing, and thanks to that, Sasuke found himself...happier than he could remember being since he was a child.
If it hadn't been for Kaguya, I would never have come into this world. Not only that, but having gone through these changes and met Ruby, Weiss, Blake, Winter, Yang, and even Neo. Perhaps, before getting rid of her, I should thank her.
For having given him so many things along with the opportunity to grow stronger as a person.
At the same time, he felt bad that he was enjoying all this while the other girls were in Beacon and definitely worried about him.
I need to go back. This was already something that Sasuke had defined, but now it felt even more like an obligation. Go back and apologize for... he stopped, feeling something like a twinge in his left shoulder and shivering because of it. The Six Path Mark?
Again?
Sasuke closed his eyes and concentrated on sensing what was wrong, especially when he wasn't using Chakra or being consumed by emotions.
Fortunately, there was nothing wrong with him.
Unfortunately, there was something going on outside and it could be even worse.
Sasuke wasn't a sage, but he had experience with Natural Energy, especially now because of the power of the Six Paths that he was assimilating and could perceive changes of the kind. When he finished making this power his own for good, Sasuke was sure he could become an even better sage than Naruto and take another step towards obtaining absolute power.
For now, his perception was strong enough to notice that the corrupted natural energy present in the atmosphere from which the mark was feeding had disappeared.
Normally, this would be considered a good thing, but when it happened like this, almost out of the blue, it was different.
This was not a natural occurrence and Sasuke was certain that he wasn't responsible for any of it.
While the mark on his neck could absorb large amounts of Natural Energy, it was nowhere near enough to deal with everything that had been released into the atmosphere around Vale.
It was then that his senses picked up something more, fully capable of making his heart sink.
The old doctor's spiritual energy was disappearing at an alarming rate!
Without hesitation, Sasuke left his bath with nothing but a towel tied around his waist and arrived in the room where Argento was at the same second to be faced with something that left him without action for what felt like an eternity.
His reaction wasn't for nothing, being surprised by a disturbing thing that could only be described as some kind of winged black demon, its shape slightly human despite being twice the size of a normal person with its excessively long arms and legs; each limb covered with countless eyes and mouths open in toothy grins.
Some kind of Grimm? One strong enough to be mistaken for a Bijuu and which Sasuke couldn't sense even now that his eyes were on it, almost as if it were part of the world, something only Kaguya was able to do. How is that possible?
For a being who was nowhere near her level to be able to replicate that feat?
However, all of this was rendered irrelevant by the fact that this thing had the doctor by the throat, black veins covering his body to have his essence drained with every passing second to the point where his eyes were rolling back in his head as he choked for oxygen.
"Get off him!" Sasuke ordered as he smashed the floor beneath his feet, soon cutting off the thing's arm with a blade made of lightning when what he really wanted was to have decapitated it. He managed to react to that? Unexpected, but irrelevant when countless eyes opened to the limit to prove that it was just an instinctive reaction and Sasuke already had his heel colliding with the thing's head to send it flying through many walls in an explosion of force, all the way until it hit another building outside. "Old man!" he ignored the screams of fear and the commotion resulting from his attack to grab the Doctor before his body could hit the ground, his eyes scanning for injuries and finding none but bruises around his neck. "Then why is he..."
Dying.
Argento had visibly lost weight in a matter of seconds, his skin was deathly pale, his breathing weak, and worst of all...his soul was almost gone.
If before it had seemed like he had aged ten years, now he had truly lost at least twenty years of life.
For someone of advanced age, that was almost a death sentence.
Sasuke didn't know what to do and was still quick to try to heal him, but he didn't manage to do much before his instincts screamed danger and he was forced to move to dodge a mass of darkness that seemed to consume everything in its path without leaving a trace behind.
"Didn't anyone teach you that it's rude to steal someone else's food?" Bael came back through the hole into which he had been thrown, each of his mouths carrying a big smile with his disdainful eyes as his arm grew back until it was as good as it had been before. "But I suppose an intruder like you wouldn't know anything about the etiquette of this world."
Truth be told, he was almost laughing as he spoke, never having felt better before!
The false god's sudden attack was strong and fast, taking him by surprise but being much less than he had expected!
Bael was full of power, even more so now with the taste he got from almost consuming everything this old man had, being as sweet as the essence of thousands of his fallen brothers, and that made him want even more!
Suddenly, nothing seemed to matter anymore; be it rules, restrictions, or consequences!
Bael just wanted to devour this false god and take all his power!
As for Sasuke, he wasn't sharing this excitement, his Chakra growing cold by the second.
This thing, as well as being able to speak and regenerate, seems to be able to consume everything it touches directly or with its power... he narrowed his eyes, not liking the implications behind this, but not as much as the words used when calling him an intruder. He's here because of me.
Which explained why the Doctor had been attacked in particular.
Sasuke had given him a fragment of his power that had now disappeared, almost along with his life.
As such, his mind immediately moved to Winter and Neo, worried that this thing wasn't alone and had targeted them as well, but soon sensed that not only were they fine, but they were coming towards him.
In fact, even Cinder and Roman were in no danger. At least, no more than usual, considering that his Chakra was still doing a number on them.
Regardless, Sasuke now knew that this thing had attacked the weakest and most defenseless of the five.
A coward, just like Black Zetsu.
The resemblance says it all. Sasuke should have known that this world would have something lurking in its shadows and that was definitely not a good sign, not knowing what else might be out there. But that doesn't matter. While he couldn't actually feel this thing, his eyes could see the extent of its power and how far it was from being a real threat. I need to do something about the Doctor.
If it kept going like this, he'd die soon.
"No answer?" Bael wanted to believe that this reaction was due to fear and shock, but those strange eyes gave him a sense of unease along with the darkness tied to the growing power of this false god. Almost as if he were... The oppressive image of his father was there to make him regain some sense of reality in the worst way, instinctively taking a step back. No, he stopped when he realized what was happening, his claws digging into his palms to feel some pain. This false god is not the same as Darkness, I am!
No one, not even Luciel, represented the concept of darkness better than him!
"Let's see how long you can keep up that arrogant expression," was Bael's hate-filled reply as he let his magic burn stronger than ever around his body, almost echoing like the scream of everything he had consumed over the millennia! "While I put an end to your existence!"
In the next second, there was darkness along with the desire to devour everything!
Here is the second chapter of the month, hope you guys liked it.
That's all for now, so review, and if you want to support me and read ahead, take a look at my P t r & on (slash) Bertoti
The next one comes out on the 15th.
Until then.