AN: Review response time:
Guest from the 7th of January:
Yes, Naruto did free Isha. Who else would govern the United Uzumaki Protectorates for him? It's not like the Eldar would listen to anyone else.
Guest from the 8th of January:
My AO3 name is Blackplant, same as here.
General response:
Warhammer 40k has a way of taking over any setting it gets involved with. As such, I will keep its presence to a minimum, at least until the War with the Evie. Until then, don't expect to see anything involving that Universe. And even then, it's more likely that it gets off-screen mention that anything else. For those who haven't read far enough in DxD yet but know 40k: imagine an omnicidal species of extradimensional gods… and their leadership is composed of at least three Void Dragons. That's the Evie. Charming fellows, eh?
On a side note, the Mechanicum would go in a total frenzy about Unknown Dictator if they knew of it. That Sacred Gear is busted in any high-tech setting.
As announced last time, the AO3 version of this chapter contains smut. Any such chapters are marked with a * symbol for ease of distinction. The exact place will not be marked within the chapter. I have enough faith in my readership's intelligence to believe that it is unnecessary. I find that mentions like that interrupt the flow of reading in any case.
Chapter 22: Guilt *
Naruto was home again. He and Gabriel had spent some time looking Vasco Strada over before taking their leave. Gabriel had gone to Heaven to report to Michael while he had chosen to return to his domicile above the ramen restaurant he owned.
To be honest, he felt a bit restless. If he had not known that Koneko would be busy for the rest of the day, he would have dropped by already for training. He missed spending time with the most recent of his adopted children. Sadly, she was occupied, and Naruto was alone.
I hope Hinata comes back soon, he thought. I've never liked being the only one in the house.
It was a holdover from his lonely childhood. He liked company, especially that of Hinata and his children. Come to think of it, he had come to enjoy spending time with Gabriel too. Her spirit was comfortable to his senses.
Naruto did not quite know how to feel about that. He knew that Hinata would likely be okay with it, but it just did not feel right to get enamoured with another woman, even at her insistence. At the same time, he knew his wife would not let the matter drop. Perhaps they would be able to talk about it in the near future.
For now, he was simply happy to wait for her to return. It would brighten the evening a little. He could have immersed himself in all the interesting research he wanted to undertake, but he knew that he would not get much done before Hinata came back; and she always deserved his undivided attention in the evening.
If only she could enjoy that "attention." I miss the Pure World, he lamented internally.
There was no use crying about it. He had had worse dry spells. The many millennia may not have diminished the physicality of the relationship he had with his wife, but it had made the emotional and spiritual aspects far stronger for him. Enduring the current, non-physical state of their marriage was thus barely an inconvenience, even if it did not suit his preference. She made him happy either way.
Of course, as Naruto was never truly alone, someone else shared their commentary: [It's almost painful to hear you agonising over irrelevant nonsense. You love the woman and she loves you; end of story. Everything else is just decoration.]
"I wouldn't call important details of our relationship 'decoration,' Kurama," argued Naruto.
Kurama snorted and replied: [As you said, details. I still don't get you humans, even after thousands of years.]
"Love you too, furball," snarked Naruto.
[You'd better!] remarked the fox. [Now concentrate on the wench. I can feel the proximity of her chakra.]
This time, Naruto snorted. "Don't let her hear you call her a wench. She might take offence."
"I get the feeling that you're having a discussion that will exasperate me," said Hinata.
As Kurama had said, she had been on approach. It was not surprising for her to have arrived almost instantaneously after dimensional travel. Naruto was the perfect homing beacon for her.
"You're right," he replied to her. "But I think we can spare Kurama the grilling. Welcome back."
Hinata giggled and said: "We might as well. I have interesting news you will be interested in."
Naruto raised an eyebrow. "Colour me intrigued," he said.
Hinata smiled at him and began her tale: "As you know, I went to visit Lord Shinigami for a small check-up. Naturally, we got to the topic of the interdimensional breaches that have it so worried. I reported our findings and then asked what I had come for."
Naruto gave her a flat stare. "Was that circumspect answer really necessary? You left the interesting part out."
"But my Lord Hokage," she said teasingly, "A good subordinate must follow orders and always report in detail. And you know how good I am at following your orders. It's only proper."
"You damn tease," he said with a fond smile and a sigh.
Hinata laughed and went on: "Don't worry; I'm getting to the point. Lord Shinigami inspected me soul and came to a fortuitous conclusion. Something, most likely the Holy Grail, has changed the status of my soul. As far as Lord Shinigami could determine, I am alive. All I need is a body, and my resurrection will be complete."
Naruto just stood there for a long second.
"… Okay," he said once he had gotten his bearings back. "The more I learn about the Biblical God the more I think he's laughing at me from the grave. That guy's powerset is nuts."
"Resurrection isn't that rare," pointed out Hinata.
"But making an artefact that can automatically resurrect someone, by accident no less, while it's broken, isn't some Academy student level exercise," countered Naruto.
"… That is a very good point," said Hinata, "but it is also not the point we should be focussing on."
Naruto agreed: "You're right. That's a thought for later. For now, we gotta get you back into a body. I assume you want that."
Hinata nodded. "I do."
"Any special requirements?" asked Naruto.
Hinata shook her head and answered: "Lord Shinigami merely said that it must be a soulless body. It should then change shape to fit my soul."
"I see…," said Naruto. "Your previous one will have decomposed already, and I don't think you want to get a random corpse. That's not your style. Do you want me to make one? It's going to extremely energy intensive."
"Yes, and my own chakra will help. I will be able to 'regenerate' from a tiny part at lower cost," said Hinata. "Besides, flesh and blood, made by my husband's hand; it has a poetic touch, no?"
Naruto snorted. "Sure, let's call it that. It's also the fastest way. I'd better get started right away."
Hinata nodded and went still in front of him. "I'm ready if you are," she said.
"Neat. You'll be in that body in no time, believe it!" assured Naruto with a grin.
Having said his piece, he clapped his hands together and gathered his chakra. Creation of All Things was a technique that required finesse and precision in proportion to the thing the user wished to create, and Naruto wanted to be very precise in this instance. He thus took his time with each step of the technique as he performed it.
Spiritual energy moved at his command. It formed the shape of the object he wished to create, and with the template standing right in front of him, this was the easiest part of the whole process. Naruto synchronised his own spiritual energy with Hinata's, ensuring that he got the shape down perfectly. Any details he missed would be compensated by Hinata herself. That was the Yin part done.
Next, he infused physical energy into the shape formed by the spiritual energy. The Yang part of the Jutsu would infuse life into the shape, turning it real in the process. Of course, without the Rinnegan, Naruto was without a way of creating a soul to occupy a body thus created. The creation of true sapient life was beyond him without those eyes. Fortunately, that was no concern here. Hinata was present, and her soul would finish the process.
And so it did. Almost as soon as Naruto's Yin-Yang release had begun its work, Hinata's own chakra rushed forth on its own. It melded with Naruto's and adjusted the progression of the technique. Her soul and her transcendental chakra began modifying her body. An additional factor neither of them had accounted for was the remnant of Hamura Otsutsuki's chakra within Hinata. It, too, contributed to the creation process of the new body, and led to a major surprise.
"… I didn't think I'd ever see those eyes again," said Naruto as looked at her.
He remembered the last time he had seen eyes like these. That time, they had been the stolen eyes of Hinata's sister Hanabi, stuck in that blowhard Toneri's skull. They clearly had not suited him at all, but they fit Hinata quite well.
"What eyes?" asked Hinata warily.
"See for yourself," said Naruto as he hastily formed a mirror with Creation of All Things.
Hinata groaned. "Of course. The Tenseigan. I did not miss those eyes at all."
"It is what it is," said Naruto with a sigh. "If anything, it's going to end up being a help. Even when these eyes were unstable as Hell, they packed a punch. Yours are probably more stable than Toneri's were anyway. Yours aren't stolen, after all. You'll have a good power available for defence. Makes me feel better about them."
Hinata inclined her head and replied: "That is a good point. But let's not dwell on that for now. We succeeded with what we wanted."
"Yep," said Naruto with a smile.
"But I do notice that the creation process left out clothes," remarked Hinata drily. "Not that I'll need those for the next few hours."
She shot Naruto a seductive look as she said that.
I like where this is going, he thought to himself. He said: "Is that so?"
He knew that was the case. Her naked body would always get him riled up. The generous curves he had seen and felt millions of times; the hungry gaze in her eyes; the long, dark hair; it was impossible to resist. Fortunately for him, Hinata had always been eager to please in that regard.
She hummed and said: "Those eyes are proof that this body isn't quite like my old one. How about you help me explore it and… break it in? We have a whole night for it, so you ought to be thorough."
A grin came upon Naruto's face as he heard this. "I'll be as thorough as I can, believe it!"
.
Hours later, the two Shinobi laid next to each other, relaxing under the covers. It was not like they were exhausted, but they were satisfied.
"Having a body again is amazing," said Hinata. "It just doesn't feel quite the same as just a soul."
"I'm happy you enjoyed it too," said Naruto with a laugh.
Happy was a bit of an understatement, at least if the noises she had let out during their nightly activities were anything to go by.
"That I did," replied Hinata in a serene tone. "Do you think Gabriel will as well?"
Naruto's thoughts came crashing to a halt.
"What?" he asked.
She raised an eyebrow. "Did you think I would let this go? Certainly not. Me having a body again does not solve the problem. You need something to keep you attached to the world, and so do I, now that I'm alive again."
That sequence of words made Naruto contemplative. He had been sure that she had wanted him to get together with someone else because of her absence from the living world. She appeared to still be committed, however. It chipped away at his hesitance, but it exacerbated his confusion on the matter.
Sensing her emotions helped little in that regard, so he resorted to good, old-fashioned words: "Is that really what you want? You know I'd never even look at another woman if that is what you wanted."
He could already feel her slight irritation before she answered. When she did, she made herself clear: "Yes. This is what I want. Gabriel is a good woman, and she'd make a great partner for us; I'm sure. We should get to know her more. Serafall too while we're at it. I see potential there."
That was going a bit too fast for him. "Listen, I like Gabriel, and Serafall seems like a fun person, but-" he cut himself off.
He blinked.
"What did you mean with 'us' and 'we?'" he asked.
Hinata smiled at him and rolled onto her side. She put a hand on his chest and traced it with a finger.
She answered: "Now that I'm back, we can do this together. I'm looking forward to bedding either or both of them together with you."
Naruto could sense how genuine she was in her statement. Her emotions left no doubt that she meant this, and this did calm Naruto's remaining worries quite a bit. However, there was a source of confusion left to examine.
"I though you disliked threesomes," he pointed out.
"Until recently, I thought I did as well," said Hinata, surprising him.
"Then why-?" he attempted to ask.
"-Because I realised that I was wrong," interrupted Hinata. "The thing that turned me off from attempting to try again was how Hanabi behaved when we did it with her."
Naruto frowned in thought. She had never really spoken about this. It had been very awkward and back then, he supposed. He had considered that chapter closed; a failed trial. Now, though, he would have to re-evaluate that assumption.
"What do you mean?" he asked.
"She wanted to have sex with me. Only with me, and she showed it," said Hinata bluntly. "It was pleasurable, but it was not something I really wanted."
"Then why did you agree?" asked Naruto. "If it was because of me, then I apologise. I didn't want to force you into anything, believe it!"
He cursed his verbal tic. He had gotten better with it, but it still snuck in every now and then to ruin a serious moment.
Fortunately, Hinata did not seem to mind. She continued tracing shapes on his chest instead. Her emotions were calm with a slight twinge of melancholy.
"I agreed because I hadn't known that this had been her goal. I had thought we'd take her together and have fun. Instead, she treated you as an afterthought. That is what irritated me," she explained.
"That makes sense, and I understand it. But I still don't get why you're okay with another woman now," said Naruto.
"Let me put it this way," she began. "I hate it when either you or I are just a side piece. I don't care which or how many women we bed, so long as we do it together and have their attention on both of us."
"… That is a lot to take in," said Naruto.
"I get that," said Hinata. "Naturally, we also need their agreement."
Naruto scoffed. "That goes without saying."
"Good," she replied. "Now, let's discuss our candidates. Gabriel seems like a good start for me. I like her personality. She has a way of making people feel at ease…"
Gabriel was no stranger to comforting people. It was one of her favourite duties, even if it took a toll on her at times. Some cases were hard to deal with for a plethora of reasons. The situation she was handling at the moment was one of those.
Her presence had been requested by those she was to attend. That was remarkably unusual, considering that it was normally her who had to reach out. The people who needed her rarely had the sense to call for her. One would have been inclined to believe that the wisdom of her current charges made for an easier time dealing with their issues, but that was not the case. The state of things was frankly a mess. Even getting to this location had been less than straightforward.
The latter part had at least fit her expectations. The place she was at was apparently a secure and hidden facility belonging to the Uzumaki Clan. Security had mandated that she be blindfolded and disoriented by seals on the journey. She could not begrudge such precautions; the group of young women who needed her were potential assassination targets.
Indeed, this facility housed the former and current members of Diodora Astaroth's Peerage, barring Maria, who was part of the Devil Desran's Peerage. A team of highly skilled therapists were assigned to them. It was a bitter necessity as the former holy maidens were all deeply traumatised. An assassin would have an easy time silencing the if one slipped past the guards; hence the need for secrecy. A secure location like this was the only reasonable place to see to the recovery of Diodora's victims.
The one in charge of their treatment was a woman named Asuna Yamanaka. She was of average height, had a very curvy figure, and bore medium-length blonde hair. Her disposition seemed friendly, and her patients apparently trusted her from what Gabriel had been able to observe. She was the one the Archangel wished to speak to before she proceeded to the former holy maidens.
The two had already introduced themselves, so Gabriel wasted no time in asking: "How are they?"
"Not as well as I would like," answered Asuna, "but they should be well enough to testify."
"I see… Please elaborate," said Gabriel.
Asuna gave a noise of assent, but she warned: "I'm not going to sugarcoat it."
"I would not want you to," replied Gabriel.
She had seen horror and depravity before. She abhorred it, and she always would, but she would not be fazed.
"Very well," said Asuna. "I shall summarise: All of them were completely broken. Their spirits were shattered and their minds may as well have been held together with tape. It took my team a lot of effort to reconstruct them into any semblance of functionality. Before we began our work, a good third of them were incapable of speech.
"Once we got them back into a functional state, we began therapy. I won't lie; this was difficult for them and for us. I have rarely been so infuriated… The tales I've had to listen to come right out of history books on our darkest ages. It was a challenge to maintain calmness while we treated these women. It will take years for them to recover, even with our help, but I believe you can be of assistance."
It was as Gabriel had expected. Abuse such as the one endured by the former holy maidens caused long-lasting marks. It was both saddening and enraging to know that this was not the worst case she had encountered over the course of her life. Nevertheless, she would do her part to lessen the suffering in the world.
"Is that why you agreed to their request to call me?" she asked.
"Yes, it was the primary reason," answered Asuna. "All of them feel guilty for forsaking the Church and for the sins they have committed since, no matter their lack of culpability. Combined with feelings of worthlessness and the memories of their torment, it makes for a dangerous mix. We managed to do some work to prevent the worst, but they are still in a precarious situation. Fortunately, Sabrina, the most recent of Diodora Astaroth's… 'acquisitions,' proposed that they all confess. As I understand, that is a ritual of great significance in their faith. It was only logical to contact you from that point on, considering that Lord Seventh holds you in high esteem. I hope you can at least alleviate their guilt."
"Confession is indeed very important for many denominations of the Christian faith," said Gabriel. "I would be honoured to lend my aid."
.
Preparations had been made quickly. Barely a quarter of an hour later, Gabriel and the rescued women were situated in a small, hastily built chapel. It was haphazard and not properly hallowed, given that such a thing would be harmful to most of its current occupants, but it was more than enough for their needs.
The whole process was unorthodox in any case. Confessions were normally one-on-one, but Gabriel agreed with the rationale she had been given.
"We all share the same sins. It is the same outcome for all of us," she had been told.
When she deemed everyone ready, Gabriel spoke: "You have come to confess your sins. Name them and renounce them."
"Forgive us, Father, for we have sinned," said the women in chorus.
From there, the oldest of them, Sybille, continued alone: "We have forsaken the Church and cavorted with a Devil. We have surrendered to depravity and impurity, broken our vows. Though we have since rejected our bondage, we became willing slaves to a Devil. We h-have…"
She choked up. Tears of shame adorned her face as she continued: "… We have assisted a Devil in seducing and r-ra-… defiling others. Repeatedly."
As Sybille spoke, she and the others revealed their black Devil wings. It was clear to Gabriel that they regarded these appendages as evidence of their sins. It was understandable, and she was inclined to agree; not because they were Devils but because these wings were the result of their poor choices. That said, it was far from Gabriel's mind to assign them the sole blame – or even a majority of it – for what had happened to them.
She said to them: "I have heard your confession and I recognise your guilt for this: You broke your sacred vows, and you succumbed to the temptation of evil."
"W-what about the rest?" asked Sybille.
Gabriel took a deep breath before she explained: "Diodora broke you, all of you. You had no agency. Your ability to choose was stripped from you. You cannot be blamed for what your bodies did while your minds were not yours."
"But it was horrible! What we did to each other was abominable! We're monsters!" protested Sybille.
The Archangel knew that she could not convince Sybille and her company that they were not to blame. It did not matter to them that they had been unable to disobey their disgusting master's commands. They were convinced of their own guilt. But perhaps they would understand that not all was lost.
"Do you regret it?" she asked.
"Yes! All of it!" shouted Sybille.
Gabriel looked at the other women and asked: "Is it the same for you as well?"
A chorus answered her: "Yes!"
"Then live. Repent and do penance," said Gabriel. "You have strayed from the path, but you can find it again. Find the way to the Lord again. Even Devils can find peace in Heaven."
She knew this to be true. It was only a low number of them, but there were Devil souls in Third Heaven. Expeditions into that near-infinite realm had found them, most notably Cleria Belial. Her kindness and virtues had earned her a place in the hallowed realm despite being a Devil. It was not out of the realm of the possible for the women before Gabriel to achieve the same.
Gabriel then finished her pronouncement with a question: "Will you accept that? Will you walk the road to salvation?"
"Yes!" declared all of them.
There was a faint glimmer of hope in their eyes now. The despair Gabriel had seen in them before had been driven away. She knew this would only be temporary if she did not reinforce her message. Fortunately for them, she would do so.
She smiled and intertwined her fingers in a prayer gesture as she said: "By my position as Archangel, a true and loyal daughter of the Father, I invoke the name of the Lord in Heaven, our Almighty God."
It was not to be done lightly. There was a reason why the vain invocation of the Lord's name was a sin. There was power in such an act.
Hisses of pain entered her ears as the women in front of her felt the effects of her prayer. Devil's suffered pain while hearing God's name. Only those who were manually exempted from that function of Heaven's System suffered no repercussions. Diodora's former Peerage members did not count among them.
Gabriel was not finished yet, however. She addressed the former holy maidens: "I forgive your sins and rescind your excommunication. May you find pardon and peace in the Lord's embrace. In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen."
A sudden wave of holy energy overcame Gabriel. Her eyes widened in surprise as it burst forth from her body and engulfed the Devil's in front of her. She nearly panicked, expecting to hear pained shrieks as they were annihilated by the light, yet something else happened.
While there were exclamations of pain, they were merely a byproduct of a much more significant occurrence. The holy light seemed to attack the women's wings. At first it looked as though they were being burned away, but a closer look revealed the truth: Where the light touched the wings, their black pigment was scoured, leaving behind bat-like Devil wings with the pure white colouration of an Angel's feathers.
When the light faded, the women looked at each other in shock. Sybille turned to Gabriel and asked with a shaky voice: "My Lady… W-what has just happened?"
Gabriel was barely able to contain her own shock as she answered: "A miracle."
Michael's days had recently consisted of sitting on the Throne of Heaven recently. Many things were in dire need of his attention; things that had been neglected for centuries. Much of it involved fixing messes that required urgency. Sometimes it felt like he was sliding from one emergency to the next.
[NOTICE: REQUEST OF ABSOLUTION ISSUED BY ENTITY "ARCHANGEL GABRIEL." PROCESSING. APPROVED.
EXECUTING SALVATION SUBROUTINE.]
Sister, when you get back, I have questions for you, thought Michael with exasperation.
He now had research to do, thanks to her.
.
Hours later, Michael reflected that Salvation was a fascinating yet frustrating topic. It was something Heaven's System did automatically, yet it could also be triggered manually. It required approval by the Holy Ghost, of course, but the diversity of potential targets was astounding. Apostates, repentant sinners, heathens, and more were eligible. It was this eligibility that had turned his cursory look into Gabriel's actions into an exhausting research project.
The part where the tedium became fascinating were the old and forgotten intricacies of Heaven's justice system he had discovered. The best example of this was how Falling was handled. While any Angel who Fell would immediately be cast out of Heaven, there was a sort of appeal process. Michael's own ignorance on the subject despite his high rank came from the fact that a Fallen Angel who wished to make an appeal had to pray to God. As Salvation had been disabled until recently, the very few such prayers which were made had not made it through. That issue aside, what made the topic interesting were those whose appeals had been processed.
Second Heaven was a combination of observatory and prison. Michael had never questioned this, for he had deemed his father's will enough reason. Now, however, he had an answer to the mystery. The Angels who had sinned and then pleaded for forgiveness had been given a choice: To walk away or to willingly be imprisoned. Those who had chosen the latter had then been brought to Second Heaven by God Himself. The inmates of this prison had since been conducting astronomy-related research separate from that of their non-Fallen counterparts and more in line with what human astronomers were doing, such as searching for life in the great void of space and deciphering the mysteries of the cosmos. They would continue to do these tasks until the end of their sentence.
As Michael could read on the display in front of him, some of the sentences were nearly at their end. One of them was even due for this very day. The scheduled release was only a few hours away. The knowledge of this had driven Michael's research of the procedures involved with this the last few hours. Fortunately, the process was automated.
It was deceptively simple. The Fallen Angel in question would be engulfed by a circle of holy sigils which mirrored those used for expelling a Falling Angel from Heaven. Their wings would turn white, and their sins pardoned. In most cases, it would take less than a minute. It was little more than a specialised Salvation event.
Fascinatingly, Gabriel had inadvertently applied the same thing to a group of Devils.
I'm sure I will have to deal with all the trouble this will no doubt cause, groused Michael to himself.
For now, however, he was worried about another non-standard case; one with far-reaching implications. Like a personal sword of Damocles, the words on the display hung over his head, and he did not know what to do.
[NOTICE: SENTENCE OF ENTITY "FALLEN ANGELIC DEMIGOD SAMAEL" HAS EXPIRED.
RESPONSE: ATTEMPTING RELEASE PROCESS. FAILED.
RETRY. FAILED. ERROR ENCOUNTERED. ADJUSTING.
RETRY. FAILED. ERROR ENCOUNTERED. ADJUSTING.
RETRY. FAILED. ERROR ENCOUNTERED. ADJUSTING
ANALYSING ERROR. PROCESSING.
PROCESSING…
PROCESSING…
ANALYSIS FAILED. ACCESS DENIED BY OUTSIDE SOURCE. IENTIFYING.
SOURCE IDENTIFIED. ENTITY "GOD OF THE DEAD HADES" RESPONSIBLE.
ANALYSIS: ENTITY "GOD OF THE DEAD HADES" IN VIOLATION OF PRISONER EXCHANGE PROGRAM.
RESPONSE: SENDING CODED BACKDOOR MESSAGE TO ENTITY "FALLEN ANGELIC DEMIGOD SAMAEL." INITIATING RETALIATORY ACTION AGAINST ENTITY "GOD OF THE DEAD HADES."
SELECTING APPROPRIATE RETALIATORY ACTION. SELECTED. RELEASING SUBJUGATED GREEK EVILS FROM MALEBOLGE INTO NETHERWORLD. ATTACHING PREARRANGED MESSAGE FROM PARTIAL ENTITY "FATHER."
"You have reneged on our deal. Suffer the consequences of your folly."
PROGRAM EXECUTED.
STANDBY.]
Even just reading his father's words made Michael's head ache. The unfiltered words of God spoken with his full divine might were no joke. Hades had probably already received that message and was now probably dealing with the divine equivalent of tinnitus. Not that the Greek god did not deserve it for betraying the Almighty.
The problem was that this presented several challenges Michael was not sure how to deal with. For one, it was a diplomatic incident, and the enemy it made Heaven was not one to be taken lightly. Hades was one of the Top 10 strongest beings in the world. Michael's own power had risen dramatically since becoming and Angelic Demigod, but he did not want to test the limits of that power. Therein lay another problem. The text on the display made it more than clear that Michael was not the first Angelic Demigod to exist. Samael was the first among that category, it seemed, which made the situation even more delicate.
Samael had, according to the protocol, been imprisoned in the Netherworld because he was too powerful to be kept around the other inmates. Considering Samael's punishment, it would not have been unusual for involuntary spasms to injure others. Said punishment was another reason. Michael had to admit that he was sort of squeamish about the torment inflicted on his brother, but Samael had willingly agreed to it for his chance at redemption. The hazardous state it had left him in had then necessitated his transfer to the Netherworld.
The release conditions were, as with the other imprisoned Fallen Angels, surprisingly simple. Michael had not found out the details, but there were only two conditions listed on Samael's file. The first was a genuine desire for repentance. The second, which caused the most questions for the regent of Heaven, was that at least one human had to be released from the Mark of Noah. Michael was ignorant of this mark, but the event had clearly occurred since Samael's sentence was officially declared as served in full.
The one thing he was sure about was that their eventual meeting was going to be a very awkward family reunion.
"Greetings and salutations to my adorable adoptive daughter!"
These were words Koneko was subjected to as Naruto burst into the ORC building. He was not alone.
"Hello. I am pleased to meet you all again."
Next to him was his wife Hinata. Koneko had not seen her often; about a handful of times, in fact. She recognised her, though. Oddly enough, the woman no longer looked or felt ghostly.
"Sensei," greeted Koneko, "you know that I haven't formally acknowledged this, right? And hello to you as well, Lady Uzumaki."
"Call me Hinata," said the woman with a smile. "You should know that neither he nor I care that you do not feel like you are one of us yet. We care for you either way. Besides, from what my husband tells me, you have already accepted informally. That is enough."
Koneko felt conflicted about that. On the one hand, she was touched. On the other, she did not wish to make a judgement before she knew more about her real parents. That had always been a blank spot in her personal history. She only vaguely remembered her mother's face, but her identity remained a mystery. Of her father she remembered even less. Her curiosity had to be satisfied before she could properly respond to the bizarre but friendly offer of adoption.
"I… appreciate it, but I want to first know more about my mother and father," she told her Sensei and his wife.
"That is completely understandable. It would be better if you at least did not deny the adoption in public in the Underworld. Naruto has used it and the wording of the Kuoh treaty to get the kill order on your sister suspended and the conditional one of you rescinded entirely," said Hinata. "But otherwise, you are under absolutely no pressure to accept it."
"The reason we're bringing this up," added Naruto, "is because the investigation in Diodora and the clusterfuck his associates represented has unearthed some information regarding your presence. As it's gonna come up during the trials, we thought we'd warn you ahead of time."
"Trials?" asked Rias.
"Yes, trials," said Azazel. "You're a sly one when you want to be, Uzumaki."
Seeing as Naruto and Hinata had interrupted a full club session, everyone was present, including the club advisor Azazel. The moment of their arrival had been chosen deliberately because of this, Koneko would come to know. That way, they would not have to repeat the information more than once. Their next stop would be the only instance, and even then, the ORC would receive more of it.
"It wasn't that hard. Conceited assholes are always so easy to manipulate when you pretend to be bad at 'their game.' Ajuka called it the 'day of trials' in the announcement, and nobody even noticed. They're all playing right into my hands, believe it!" said Naruto with a smirk.
It'd be nice if he actually told us the game plan, complained Koneko internally. Then again, I can literally just ask.
And so she did: "And what exactly are you aiming for?"
"So far, you seem to have only enraged the Devil nobles. That does not spell anything good for your future political ambitions," pointed out Rias.
Naruto simply laughed and said: "You're too funny, Red. What gave you the impression that I was gonna play politics with those losers? I want them angry at me."
Koneko blinked owlishly, and she was not the only one. Only Azazel seemed to have an idea.
"Are you trying to provoke a reaction?" he asked.
Naruto nodded. "I hate political bullshit. Never was any good at it. Instead, I provoke my enemies until they make obvious attacks at a time of my choosing."
"I still remember what you did to the Hyuuga Clan Elders," said Hinata with a fond laugh.
Naruto scoffed and commented: "They had it coming. Enslaving their own family in my village? They shouldn't have been surprised to get arrested and imprisoned when they came to protest my 'radical changes' to village policy and 'internal matters of the Hyuuga Clan.' Like I was gonna tolerate them having kill switches on my Shinobi."
"This sounds very interesting, Sensei, but can we get back to the topic?" asked Koneko.
She was actually curious about the event he had spoken of, but current problems took priority over solved ones.
"Sure," said Naruto.
A broad grin spread on his face as he explained his plan: "I'm making a threefold attack. First, I'm pissing off the Naberius and Nebiros households, and by extension the Khaos Brigade, by setting an associate of theirs up. That's Diodora, by the way. The little shit's trial is also a direct provocation at the traditionalist Devils of the Great King Faction. I'm undermining Underworld politics and interfering in their affairs by going over their heads with this. That the judgement panel has two foreign representatives is fuel for the fire. Then, I'm gonna drop a surprise on them by announcing your and your sister's trials just the day before. And finally, just to make it more tempting, the trials will take place in an isolated dimensional space that can be infiltrated with some heavy lifting.
The Khaos Brigade and the Great King Faction will have no choice but to attack. At the same time. Our enemies are gonna come at us and crash into each other. From there, it's like fishing in a barrel."
"Hahahaha! That's diabolical!" exclaimed Azazel.
"That's insane!" complained Rias. Her voice held far less approval than Azazel's. "Not only that; it's dangerous!"
Koneko shared those thoughts. "I agree with her. That doesn't sound safe, Sensei."
"Rias, Koneko," said Naruto, forgoing nicknames in a show of seriousness, "I've led troops into battle on thousands of different occasions. I know how to intuit danger, and how to counter it. The only reason I'm provoking this attack is because it lets me speed up the destruction of our enemies."
Koneko began to ask: "And how are you-?"
"I've got thousand of soldiers ready," interrupted Naruto. "If you thought I was gonna let you stick it out on your own, you seriously need to get a better grip on my personality. Besides, we've still got some training to do to prepare you."
The Nekoshou frowned and said: "It can't be too far away. A week at most."
Naruto nodded. "Less than that, actually. But don't fret. I'm organising reinforcements who would rather die than let anything happen to you, Little One. In fact, Hinata and I are off to get them just about now. Let's talk more once we're back."
Without further fanfare, he turned to leave. Hinata shook her head in exasperation. "Naruto, we can't just leave after dropping that sort of revelation on them."
"You're right, I suppose," said Naruto. "You might have a point about attachments. I'm losing my touch with social interaction."
"I'm glad you're admitting it, at least," replied Hinata. "Let us have a chat with these nice young people."
"We're old, but we're not decrepit enough for that choice of words, Hinata," deadpanned Naruto.
The woman only laughed.
I don't know if that was planned, but they've distracted from the point of interest. I'm getting a feeling that a big headache is in my future, noted Koneko.
She interrupted their interaction to ascertain where her bad gut feeling came from: "Can we get back to the topic? Who is 'reinforcements,' Sensei?"
"Nyahahahaha!" laughed Kuroka. "I'm in!"
"Excellent!" said Naruto with a grin.
"Kuroka, you are colluding with the enemy!" said Bikou.
Unfortunately for the young man, he was in no state to do anything about it. After they had tracked down Kuroka with the use of a seal Naruto had left on Kuroka, he and Hinata had promptly showed up and pounced. Before any of them knew it, Hinata had taken down the Vali Team with the Gentle Fist. It was as much of a trial for Hinata's new variation of the style – the Gentle Fist had been developed to combat beings with a chakra pathway system, after all – as it was a matter of practicality. The test had been a success, which had left the two Shinobi with enough time to convey the important parts of the plan.
"Are you?" asked Hinata. "I do not think we are, at least not officially."
"We're members of the Khaos Brigade," stated Vali.
The young man appeared to be seething. That was not surprising. A battle maniac like him would always take an instant defeat like the one Hinata had handed him as an insult.
"And have you thought about the consequences of that idiotic decision?" asked Naruto. "You're making enemies you can't afford to."
Vali harrumphed and responded with: "I will grow strong enough to take on anyone who comes my way."
"And what about the others, dipshit?" asked Naruto harshly. "Lone wolves like you always end up losing. I should know; I spent my teen years hammering that lesson home in that bastard I called my best friend when he was still alive. Problem is, when you lose, you're gonna end up dragging everyone else down with you, including the sister of a girl I adopted into my clan."
He pointed at Kuroka as he spoke those words. She looked back at him in surprise, clearly not expecting that he cared for her safety.
"Please watch your tone, love. You were not very concerned with the consequences of your actions either when you were a teenager," chided Hinata.
Naruto sighed. "I know. That's what makes it more painful. Listen, Broody Boy, if you want a good fight, there are better options than joining a terrorist organisation."
"I don't expect you to understand," said Vali, "and I don't need your sanctimonious speeches."
"And I don't need your belligerent attitude, kid. If you're an enemy to peace, I'll put you down like a rabid dog," promised Naruto. "I'm trying to prevent that, though. That's why I'm bothering to lecture you in the first place. You don't have the spirit of an evil person, so I'm gonna do my best to keep you from going down that path."
Hinata chimed in at this point: "We have thought of ways to satisfy your desire for strong opponents. That is the reason why you joined the Khaos Brigade in the first place, is it not?"
"… It is," said Vali.
"Excellent. Our methods should help you do that in a relatively non-destructive way," replied Hinata. "I'm sure that morale amongst your teammates will improve once they realise that they won't be putting their families in danger."
"What is that supposed to mean?" asked a calm voice.
It belonged to a swordsman whom Naruto knew to be called Arthur. He only had access to second-hand information, but the young man fit the description.
Naruto answered him: "Anyone who hates your guts but can't take you is gonna gun for softer targets; friends, family, cherished locations. And you'd better believe they're gonna find out your soft spot. Petty bastards like that are extremely thorough."
"And you know this why?" asked Vali.
"Experience, duh," answered Naruto in a flat tone. "Look no further than Kuroka. She killed her [King] and ran away. What did the Devils in power do? They went for her little sister. If you've got any family members in the outside world, you'd better believe your enemies will be going after them."
"And considering who your 'allies' are, you can't count on them to defend your families. Quite the opposite," added Hinata.
Arthur grimaced as he heard this, as did Kuroka. That was understandable. Research and espionage Naruto had ordered had revealed that Arthur was form the Pendragon family. Though he was estranged from them, they were still kin. And Kuroka was obvious; she loved Koneko, even if she sucked at showing it in ways that Koneko could appreciate. Kuroka and Arthur were the two who risked the most being associated with Vali.
The interesting part about this was that Naruto could feel fear not just from them but also Vali himself. Despite his aloof attitude, he seemed to fear losing someone close to him. That was valuable information, even if Naruto had no intention of ever using it for malicious purposes.
"That's why you can play along with us and get your battle maniac tendencies appeased without screwing yourselves over," said Naruto.
Vali scowled. "That is unac-"
"Vali, stop. I want to hear what they have to say," interrupted Kuroka.
The half-Devil shot her a glare but relented.
"Right. You remember Broody Boy's little spat with Pervy Kid?" began Naruto.
Upon receiving confirmation, he continued: "Back then I came up with the legal fiction of a spar. We're gonna do some more of that. As long as you guys don't cause fatalities and don't go after artifacts that are too valuable, I can convince the other leaders that you're spying on the Khaos Brigade for us. You get your fights and you can keep out of trouble."
Vali seemed to actually contemplate this as an option.
"Wouldn't we have to do some actual spy work for your excuse to be worth anything?" asked Bikou.
"Well, yeah, there's that, but let's be honest, the Khaos Brigade is not united. From what my own spying has told me, the individual factions would start slaughtering each other if they weren't afraid of Ophis," answered Naruto. "You slipping us some information isn't gonna upset the apple cart."
"Good point," conceded Bikou.
"I also didn't spend the last few months trying to get Kuroka's death sentence lifted only for her to get herself labelled a terrorist," said the blond Shinobi.
"There's that…," said Kuroka. "I'm for it, nya."
Bikou then voiced his opinion on the matter: "I'm fine either way."
"… I agree to the proposal," said the swordsman of the group.
Vali looked at him and frowned. "Is that so? … Very well, then. We'll see how it works out, but don't expect me to hold back."
Naruto grinned. "That's fine with me. You won't regret it, believe it!"
Hinata looked pleased as she said: "I look forward to working with you. Now, let us discuss how to proceed with our plans for the day of trials."
As the details were being hammered out, Naruto had his own thoughts on the matter.
Things are heating up. One way or the other, that day's gonna be rough for someone. I should spend some more time with the Little One and get her up to snuff on a few Jutsu. And a bit of fun before the action never hurt anyone. Prepare yourself, Koneko; it's gonna be intense.
Back in Kuoh, a certain white-haired girl shuddered. She felt dread from an unspecified source for some reason.
AN: Greetings, dear readers! Welcome back to a new chapter.
There's a lot to unpack here today, so let's get to the most important points:
Hinata's back in action, and she comes with upgrades. Unlike Toneri, who cheated his way into a Tenseigan by first stealing the eyes themselves and then the chakra necessary to activate it, Hinata has both natively. Expect Shenanigans with her and Naruto's combined powers of creation.
AO3 readers will have gotten some spice on top of it, and then some relationship development. Now, let me spell it out a bit more clearly in case I wasn't clear enough in the chapter: Naruto's big problem with getting hitched with someone else was that it would be like abandoning Hinata to his sensibilities. Getting another spouse together with Hinata is something else entirely.
After that is where things get interesting. The Confession and what happens is the result of me engaging the two remaining brain cells in my head to put a few things together.
1: Lucifer stole what is known as the "Book of Lucifer" from God
2: He and Lilith, who was gifted/stole power from God used the Book of Lucifer to turn themselves into Devils and create the entire species.
3: Devils are still under limited control of God. He arranged Heaven's System in such a way that light and holy element type attacks do special damage to Devils. They don't do so naturally.
4: Devil souls can go to Heaven. Cleria Belial's soul shows up there in canon.
5: If all the above is true, as canon would indicate, and Angels can Fall, then why can't Devil's "Rise?"
Following the logical conclusion of that, we arrive at a hard day of work for Michael. Heaven's System is giving him a 150% job, it seems. And causes international incidents. That segment should also answer some people's questions as to how the balance of power between Heaven, the Underworld and the Grigori will be maintained.
And finally, Naruto reveals some of his mid-term plans. Pissing off the Devil nobles had a purpose. Ajuka's galaxy brain and Naruto's propensity for chaos have set the stage for a big confrontation. That, and defusing Sasuke 2.0's (i.e. Vali's) nascent terrorist tendencies is also of some importance.
Should you have any other questions, don't hesitate to leave a review or send a PM. Once more my sincerest thanks to all those who already have reviewed, favourited or followed this story.
I think that's everything for now.
Until next time. Stay happy and healthy, everyone!