Kyuubi's Mark

Chapter 1: Devils and Foxes

Naruto groaned as he dragged his feet through the gates of Kuoh Academy, one of the most prestigious educational facilities in Japan. The academy was massive, looming over the beautiful, freshly mowed lawn. Teenagers of all ages filtered through the gates, chattering with each other animatedly. He groaned mentally, slapping his hands over his ears to block out of some of the noise. Why was he even here to begin with? Among children? He was a Kyuubi, a youkai whose power was unparalleled except for a few beings. He was capable of reducing countries, even continents to rubble. Reduced to slaving away in a classroom, at the behest of his old friend, Sirzechs Lucifer. Damn that bastard. How did he even remember that he owed him a favor?

He had been enjoying his vacation, uninterrupted by any disturbances, when Sirzechs had popped out of a portal, begging him to help him out. Naruto had declined at first, but then Sirzechs just had to pull out a long-forgotten favor that Naruto owed him. He had once vowed never to go back on his word. He was regretting it now. Stupid loud children. Damn Sirzechs. When this was over he would prank that bastard to Heaven and back.

As he walked up towards the school doors, he could already hear whispers about his appearance. He scowled. Being a fox youkai, his hearing was especially sharp, and he could just about hear every word, positive and negative, that was being said about him. He supposed he stood out quite a bit, his spiky blonde hair and bright blue eyes making him look foreign. He swiveled his head from side to side, taking in the environment of the school. It seemed that females were the majority of the population from what he could see, not surprising as Sirzechs as informed him beforehand that the school had recently gone co-ed. Girls giggled as he walked up to the school doors, some even unashamedly snapping pictures of him.

Ignoring his internal irritation, he placed a warm smile on his face and waved at a gaggle of girls standing near the doors. They immediately blushed and waved back, their cheeks tinted red. He chuckled lightly. This experience was going to be interesting. He had been in self-isolation for quite a long time now, and he was out of touch with the human world. He was brought out of his thoughts when someone grabbed his shoulder roughly.

"Hey! Blondie, stop taking all the girls! We need a chance too, y'know?" The male, judging from the pitch of his voice, shouted angrily. He raised an eyebrow, then turned around to face the boy. Or rather, the three boys. The leader, a boy of average height with short brown spiky hair, stabbed his finger into Naruto's chest and glared at him. "Hey! Are you even listening?"

Naruto stared at the boy, his eyebrow still raised. They stood there in silence for a while, neither of them speaking. One of the boy's companions, a bald kid wearing a similar expression on his face, decided to speak up.

"Hey-" Naruto cut him off.

"Yes, I am listening. What did you guys need?" He answered lazily, running a hand through his spiky blonde hair. The third boy, the guy wearing thick glasses, spoke this time.

"You should get out of here! We don't need another blonde prince to steal the girls away!" Naruto scratched his head. Another blonde prince? He absent-mindedly wondered who that could be. Sounded interesting.

"Yeah!" The first boy exclaimed vehemently, pumping his fist into the air. "Oppai forever!" He screamed. Naruto resisted the urge to facepalm. This boy probably had brass balls, to shout that out in the middle of the formerly all-female school. Sure enough, all the girls in their vicinity directed their attention towards the group of boys.

Two of them, wielding bokken, strode over to the now cowering boy.

"Care to repeat that again, Issei?" A girl with long brown hair asked sweetly, tapping her bokken against her hand. Issei gulped and shook his head violently. His friends stood stock-still behind him, not willing to speak up for the fear of getting beat by the girls. "Good, run along now." She smiled sweetly at him, shooing him off with her hand. As the perverted boy ran off, she dropped her fake smile, and a more realistic smile formed on her face.

"Hello! I'm Murayama, and this my friend Katase." She pointed at the pink-haired girl who was standing next to her. Katase smiled cheerfully and waved at him. He studied her pink hair closely. Her hair wasn't as vibrant as Sakura's hair, but it was pretty close.

"Hello, it's nice to meet you both. My name is Uzumaki Naruto." Murayama snickered.

"Really? Fishcake? Did your parents really like ramen or something?" Murayama teased, unable to resist the chance to sneak a jab in at Naruto. Naruto grumbled. Sometimes he hated his name. People always thought that he was named after a ramen topping, which, knowing his mother, wouldn't be all that surprising. He rubbed the back of his head sheepishly.

"It's supposed to mean Maelstrom..." He exclaimed indignantly, making the two girls laugh. Murayama slapped him on the back.

"It's ok, Naruto-san. We're just joking. Oh, and on another note, stay away from those three perverts. All disgusting filth." Katase remarked, glaring hatefully in the direction where Issei and his buddies had run off to. "Always peeping on girls and talking about oppai." Naruto sweatdropped at the pure venom in the girl's voice. Ero-sennin would be proud that his legacy is being continued to this day.

"Anyway, Naruto-san. We've got Kendo club in a bit, so we'll leave you to own devices now! Best of luck on your first day here!" Katase and Murayama ran off after waving their goodbyes. Naruto looked up at the school again. It seemed so much larger than before. He sighed. Best get it over with. As he placed a hand on the door, something red caught his eye. His head swiveled to look at a nearby window. A girl with bright red crimson hair was leaning out of the window, staring directly at him. Her bloodred hair cascaded down her shoulders and swayed in the slight breeze that blew by. Ah. So this is Rias Gremory. I'd recognize that bright red hair anywhere. That distinct feeling of the Power of Destruction can't be mistaken. Naruto snapped their locked gazes and proceeded into the building.

Rias Gremory, the heiress of the Gremory Clan, and sister to a Maou couldn't control her curiosity. A few weeks prior, Sona had told her that there was a transfer student coming in. She had ignored her friend, saying that one new student was of no concern to her. However, he had caught her interest now. From what she could sense from the boy, he contained massive amounts of energy that he wasn't even trying to suppress. Either the boy, Naruto Uzumaki as Sona had told her, was ignorant of his own power, or he was simply confident enough to display it for everyone to see. Whether he did it out of necessity or vain, she didn't know. She knew one thing for certain though. If she was able to recruit Naruto into her peerage, her freedom from Riser would be assured.

"Good morning class!" A thin weedy man exclaimed, adjusting his wireframe glasses that sat on the bridge of his nose. "Today, we'll be having a new student join us. Welcome to Class 3-B, Uzumaki Naruto!" Naruto, hearing his name, stepped through the door of the classroom, and was immediately greeted with collective squeals as the females of the class took in his appearance. The males were less enthusiastic, clapping half-heartedly and shooting subtle glares at Naruto when the teacher looked away.

"Naruto-san, would you please introduce yourself to the class? Tell us your likes, dislikes, your dreams for the future, that type of thing." The thin man said, after calming down the chattering class. Naruto froze, those words reminding him of a distant memory. It was only for a moment, and no one noticed it before he stepped up and grinned playfully at the class.

"Hello everyone, my name is Uzumaki Naruto, and I like pranks, my loved ones, cute girls, and of course, ramen! I dislike liars, and people who try to harm my loved ones. My dreams for the future, well, I don't really have one right now. I hope you all take good care of me!" He grinned roguishly.

"Thank you for that brief introduction, Naruto-san. Does anyone have any questions for him?" The teacher questioned. The once silent class burst into noise once more, this time directed at the blonde standing at the front of the class.

"Are you single?" A girl near the back of the class shouted.

"Will you got out with me?" Another girl shouted out. Naruto did his best to answer the questions that were thrown at him.

"Yes, I am currently single, and no, sorry, I'm not currently looking for a relationship." The girl that had asked that question slumped into her seat. As the influx of questions slowly got more daring and daring, the teacher stepped up, putting a stop to the flood of curious students.

"Alright, alright, class. Settle down now. Naruto-san, you can sit next too..." The man scanned the class, searching for an empty seat. Naruto saw a girl raise her hand near the sides of the class. She possessed long black hair that seemed to cascade down her back in a ponytail, tied up only by an orange ribbon. Violet eyes seemed to pierce through him as they met eyes. He slowly let a challenging grin slip onto his face, unnoticeable by anyone other than the girl. She reciprocated, tilting her head. Her violet eyes seemed to glint playfully at him. "There's an empty seat by Akeno-san over there, Naruto."

Naruto walked down the aisle until he reached the empty desk to the right of Akeno's desk. He could already hear the jealous muttering of males and females alike. The teacher pulled out a book and started reading from it monotonously. Naruto toned out the man's lecture, focusing instead on the girl next to him.

"Hello, Akeno-san. How are you?" He started, attempting to make small talk with the beautiful girl.

"Ara ara, so forward. Isn't it polite to address someone that you don't know by their last name, Uzumaki-san?" She leaned forward, leaning her head on her hand. Naruto smirked. He already liked this girl. She possessed a certain quality that he could relate to.

You know, I don't know your last name, Akeno-san." He teased, stressing her name. Her eyes widened then she giggled.

"Fufufu, how ignorant of me. Please forgive me, my name is Himejima. Himejima Akeno, pleased to meet you Naruto-san."

"See, now that's just unfair." Naruto deadpanned at the girl, who laughed innocently at him. "I've got to call you by your last name, but you get to call me by my first name?"

"Now, now, I never said that you couldn't call me by my first name, but merely that it wasn't polite to call strangers by their first name." She replied, smirking. Naruto was brought to a stop for a moment. He was not expecting that answer from this girl. Quickly gaining back his composure, he retorted swiftly.

"Oh? Am I not a stranger to you, Himejima-san? After all, we just met." Naruto shot back, grinning as he did so. Akeno blinked. She had been caught off guard, something didn't happen too often.

"That's true. However, there's no reason that we can't be friends, is there Uzumaki-san? Or am I not good enough for you?" She covered the last sentence up with a fake pouty expression that would have fooled any mortal male. Naruto was not a mortal man at all. Underneath Akeno's playful facade, there was hurt. Lots of it, that she covered up in shame, like a painter hiding a ruined piece of art. Fear that he wouldn't accept her, fear that he would ignore her as most people did. Her looks did nothing else besides placing her on another pedestal in the eyes of others.

"Of course we can be friends, Himejima-san." He reassured. As soon as those words escaped his mouth, he could see the visible change in Akeno's emotions. That subtle, yet constricting fear slowly ebbed and faded away, while the hurt receded slightly. There was still a lot of it, something that he would have to look into in the future.

"Very well then. Take good care of me, Naruto-kun." She finished, her lips curling up into a smile. A genuine smile this time. A wholesome, heartfelt smile. He couldn't help but follow her example, as infectious as her happiness was. He was over a few centuries old, and yet, he could still be affected by pure, untainted emotion. The beauty of life, he supposed.

"Likewise, Akeno-chan. Let's get back to the lesson, shall we? We wouldn't want to get in trouble now, do we?" With a nod, the two went back to the lesson. On that day, a beautiful friendship was born.

"Naruto-kun, wake up!" A soft yet firm voice penetrated through the hazy mist that made up Naruto's dreams. A soft hand touched his back, and he sat up slowly, blinking to clear his vision. The class was empty, the lights turned off. He took note of his position, arms crossed to create a makeshift pillow for his head.

"Gah...what happened? I only remember the teacher talking about calculus and everything went dark after that." Naruto groaned, yawning. Akeno smirked.

"You fell asleep in class, idiot. The teacher let you off as a one-time thing, and he told me to give you my notes for this class, but if you fall asleep again, he said he'd give you detention." She said, standing up from her seat and brushing her skirt off. Naruto stared for a moment. The skirt that the girls wore as part of their uniform were really short, on the edge of being indecent. What kind of people designed these clothes? At least he could sympathize with Issei a bit now.

Akeno noticed him looking, and gave Naruto a teasing look.

"See something you like?" She inquired, quirking an eyebrow.

"Of course," Naruto whispered, standing up and leaning his head forward so that his mouth was next to Akeno's ear. He let his warm breath sweep across her skin, and she shivered. He straightened up, a satisfied expression on his face as he saw Akeno's flushed face.

"Anyway, why'd you stay behind Akeno? You could've easily woken me up as you left the class." Naruto asked the girl, who had since recovered from her flushed state.

"My club president told me to come and fetch you so that she could speak to you. She's interested in you. She's gotten you a pass for any other classes you have." Naruto quirked an eyebrow.

"Oh? As grateful as I am to her for ridding me of these classes for today, tell her that I'm not looking for a relationship as of yet." Akeno gave him a stern look.

"You know what I meant, Naruto." Naruto raised his hands in surrender.

"Fine, fine, you got me." He relented, letting Akeno lead him out the door. "By the way, who's your president?"

"Rias Gremory. Why do you ask?" She asked. So it was Sirzech's little sister. Good for him then. He would be meeting her earlier than expected.

"Oh, no reason. Is it weird of me to ask who I'm going to be meeting?" Naruto shrugged it off. "Also, what about those notes that the teacher asked you to lend me? You don't want your new friend getting into trouble, do you." Akeno laughed, opening the door of the classroom.

"Your mistake there was assuming that I actually took notes on the class. Calculus is just as boring for me as it is to you." Without another word, she headed out of the classroom. Naruto stared after her for a few moments, before throwing his head back and laughing. Man, he liked this girl. Shaking his head, he followed Akeno out of the empty classroom.

The duo eventually arrived at the old schoolhouse that was located around the back of the school. Akeno stopped at the wooden doors of the building, and opened it, letting Naruto enter first before entering herself. Naruto found himself intrigued by the feeling of the building. The walls were covered in occult symbols, and candles provided an ominous setting. He turned to Akeno.

"Hey, I forgot to ask. What kind of club does your president run? This seems like a unique place to hold club meetings."

"Buchou runs the Occult Research Club, a club that, well, does research on the occult. Pretty straightforward. We have very few members, compared to the rest of the clubs. Rest assured, we're all very nice people." Akeno approached a winding staircase.

At the top of the staircase, there lay double wooden doors. Akeno placed a dainty hand on the doors, and pushed them open, allowing them access into the room. The entire room had a very light feel to it. It was very well lit and furnished. A sitting area with couches and pillows, desks, and what seemed to be a shower? With someone in it?

A pale outline of a girl with crimson hair could be seen in the shower. Faint broken singing could be barely heard over the sound of the running shower.

"Oh my, Buchou seems to be in the shower. Sometimes I wonder if she's an exhibitionist. Take a seat Naruto. I'll be right back with her clothes and some tea." Naruto walked over to the sitting area and took a seat on one of the red couches. He let out a groan as the soft material sank under his weight.

After a while of listening to Sirzech's little sister attempts to sing, Akeno returned, carrying a tray of tea and a stack of clothes along with a neatly folded towel for Rias. Naruto was relieved. Listening to Rias's admittedly pathetic attempts to sing made him want to go deaf. The shower turned off, and the door opened, letting steam into the room. Akeno left the clothes on the table, handed the towel to the wet girl, and went over to the windows to let the steam out of the room.

Naruto roamed his eyes over the red-headed girl. To many, she would be the definition of a goddess in human flesh. Long crimson hair fell down her back, contrasted by creamy smooth skin. Naruto's eyes widened when they reached her chest. By the log, what in the world had this girl been fed to achieve that size of breasts? There was no way that those were real.

Rias raised an eyebrow at Naruto, who was staring at her breasts with no ounce of shame.

"T-There's no way that those are real." Naruto breathed, eyes wide. Rias felt a twinge of annoyance run down her spine. Her breasts were 100% real! She covered her chest, flushing red.

"Hey! My breasts are real!" Rias exclaimed hotly. embarrassed at Naruto's declaration.

"Nuh-uh! There is no way those are natural. What kind of implants did you use to grow those watermelons? I get that some women feel insecure about their chest, but you took it too far!" He declared, pointing a finger at her bare chest.

"I didn't use any implants! Nor do I feel insecure about my chest!" Akeno stood off to the side, her body shaking as she tried to hold in her laughter.

"Well, how about being an exhibitionist? Does Sirzechs know that you like to take showers in the presence of strangers?" Immediately, the room fell quiet. Rias looked like a deer caught in headlights.

"N-No! I'm not an exhibitionist! I just like taking showers, that's all!" She stuttered, face flushing bright red. Naruto wagged his finger at her.

"You know, I can't take you seriously when you're standing there naked and trying to argue that you're not an exhibitionist." Rias fell silent. Without another word, she picked up her clothes and started putting them on, Akeno coming over to help her. The girl was still red-faced from trying to hold in her laughter.

Once Rias was properly clothed, they took a seat on the couches. Akeno handed Naruto a warm cup of tea, which he smiled and nodded his thanks to her. She flashed her own smile back and poured Rias a cup of the beverage.

Naruto took a sip from his cup, and his eyes widened, pleasantly surprised by the taste of the tea. It tasted almost as good as what Amaterasu made for him whenever he visited her in Takamagahara. He set down his cup and flashed a thumbs up at Akeno.

"This tea is excellent!" He complimented.

"Why, thank you for the compliment, Naruto-kun." Rias looked still looked disgruntled about Naruto's previous statement about the authenticity of her chest. Naruto, seeing this, leaned over and poked her on the nose, eliciting a squeak of indignance from her.

"Are you mad about what I said about your chest? It was just a joke, calm down." Naruto patted her head, flattening the red ahoge that stuck out from her hair. Rias reached up with her hand and slapped the offending limb away with a force that didn't fit her figure. She looked up with a serious look in her eyes.

"How do you know my brother's name?" She asked suspiciously. Naruto froze. He hadn't meant to spit out Sirzech's name. It was a spur of the moment when he had been teasing Rias. He mentally facepalmed.

"W-Well, hehe, you see..." Naruto mumbled, searching for an excuse that he could tell the girl. Damn it! Sirzechs didn't want Rias to know that he had asked someone to look out for her!

"Sirzechs-sama sent him here to look after you." A monotone voice sounded out behind them, making Naruto jump. He turned around to find a beautiful silver-haired woman dressed in a French Maid outfit. This was Sirzech's wife, Grayfia Lucifuge. Also known as the "Strongest Queen" due to her overwhelming control over ice. The only people he knew that could utilize ice better than her were Serafall Leviathan, another Maou, and maybe Skadi from the Norse pantheon.

"W-What do you mean by that?" Rias asked, disbelief underlying her tone. "Onii-sama wouldn't do something like that?"

"He was worried about you, Rias-sama. It is only natural for an older sibling to care for their younger ones. He couldn't come himself for obvious reasons, so he asked someone else to come and take care of you." Grayfia explained, her voice carrying a sense of importance.

"I don't need someone to take care of me! I have Akeno and the others! They are more than enough to protect me!" She protested, her cup of tea laying forgotten on a side table.

"Strange occurrences have been happening around Kuoh lately, Rias. I'm sure you know about them already. Disappearances, kidnappings, the such. Tainted light energy has also been found at the sights of the crimes. Forgive your brother for being concerned." Grayfia retorted, her voice growing slightly in volume.

"Bu-" Rias tried to protest one more time, but to no avail.

"Naruto will be protecting you. That is final. I, as well as your brother, have enough trust in his power and his character to let him do this." Grayfia finished coldly, her tone allowing for no further argument.

Rias slumped down into her seat in resignation.

"Fine...but can I ask, what supernatural creature are you? You're definitely not a devil, else we would have sensed you right away." Rias inquired.

"I am the man that has no enemies in the North, West, East, nor South! I am known by many titles. The Prankster King, the Ramen Addict, the Playful Trickster are all part of my collection of names! Naruto Uzumaki, at your service!" He finished, standing up and bowing deep at the waist.

Everyone in the room sweatdropped at the blonde. Rias could only stare at the man in complete disbelief. This was the man that her brother had asked to help protect her? Grayfia reached his ear and tugged on it sharply.

"Ow! Ow! Let go of me Grayfia-chan!" Naruto struggled to free himself from the woman's iron grasp as best as he could.

"This is not the time to make jokes, Naruto-sama." The silver-haired woman scolded, letting go of his ear.

"Fine, fine. I'm a Kyuubi Youkai. Jeez, did you really have to pull that hard?" Naruto muttered, rubbing his ear gingerly. "I'm starting to feel bad for Sirzechs if he has to deal with that every day." Grayfia's eye twitched in annoyance. She raised her hand threateningly and Naruto cowered away in pretend fear.

"Okay okay! I'll stop! Don't hurt me anymore!" Naruto cowered away from the angry woman. Grayfia closed her eyes and rubbed her temples with her hands.

"Please refrain from speaking of my relationship with Sirzechs-sama in such a manner in the future." She sighed in a resigned manner as if this was a common occurrence. "I need to be going now. Rias-sama, please treat your guest with respect, even if he is a clown and a practical jokester, he is also a very good friend to your brother and should be treated as such."

Rias nodded reluctantly. It was clear that she still didn't think that he was needed to help protect her, that her peerage was enough to keep her safe, but this was the mentality of a sheltered child. She only had the barest idea of the other beings that existed in this world, beings that could crush her brother to nothing using naught but a thought.

Grayfia waved her hand in the air, channeling her magical energy. A teleportation circle bearing the sigil of the Gremory clan formed underneath her feet, glowing red as it did so.

"I'll be on my way then. No doubt Sirzechs is doing something stupid right now while I'm gone. That idiot." She smiled fondly, a rare expression for the usually reserved woman. "Take care Rias-sama, Naruto-sama."

"See ya Grayfia-chan!" Naruto enthusiastically waved at the woman from his spot on the couch. In a bright red flash, the woman was gone.

He turned to Rias and Akeno, the former having a disgruntled expression on her face. The latter was seemingly taking it easier, her usual playful aura replaced with a contemplative one.

"Aww, it won't be so bad, Rias-chan." Naruto grinned at her. "Once you get to know me, I'm sure we'll have a lot of fun together." Rias groaned.

"That's what I'm afraid of." Naruto chuckled.

"So, when do I get to meet the rest of your cute peerage? From what I've already seen, I'm sure the rest of them will impress me as well." Rias seemed to puff up a bit from the compliment, some of her former confidence returning.

"They'll be returning from their last class..." She glanced at the nearby clock that hung from the wall opposite her. "Right about now." As if the red-headed girl was able to tell the future, a knock sounded on the wooden doors that led into the clubroom. Naruto propped his chin on his hands, curious as to who it would be.

"Come in!" Rias called out. Akeno pushed herself off the couches and went to fetch more tea for the newcomer. The door creaked open and in walked a petite white-haired girl. This was Koneko Toujou, the school's unofficial mascot and to the perverts, the resident loli.

To Naruto, she was as cute as cute things could get. Golden eyes widened in shock as the larger boy slammed into her and wrapped her up in a tight hug. Rias nearly burst out laughing when she saw the older boy cuddle Koneko as if she was a real kitten.

Naruto could feel the cute white-haired girl struggle against his firm grip, using all of her strength to try to break free. This one must be the "Rook" of Rias's peerage. If what Ajuka had told him about the Evil Pieces was true, the Rook was the most physically capable of them all, besides the Queen. Pawns were run of the mill cannon fodder, Knights were the speedsters, and the Bishops were the long-range caster types.

At least, that was the stereotype. There were stronger devils that owned peerage members that could fit in multiple categories. He placed a hand on the still struggling girl's scalp, rubbing it gently while channeling nature chakra through it. Eventually, the girl calmed down, her movements coming to a near-complete stop.

Naruto nearly tripped as he brought the girl back to the couch. She had started purring like a cat! He had never seen anything as cute as this before. Akeno came back into the room and almost dropped the tray of newly brewed tea.

She rubbed her eyes to make sure that what she was seeing was real, even pinching herself a few times to ensure that it wasn't a dream. Rias wasn't much better off, staring at the pair with wide eyes, mouth hanging open in disbelief. The usually detached Koneko was showing affection to someone? Naruto snickered and the two snapped to reality.

"My, my, Koneko seems to be very bold, don't you think Buchou?" Akeno asked. Koneko had long since curled up in Naruto's lap, eyes closed and purring as Naruto's gentle fingers stroked her white hair. It seemed that Nekoshou carried the same likes as their animal counterpart. Naruto looked up at Akeno and saw her still staring at Koneko, a hint of jealousy present in her eyes.

"You know, you can just ask if you want to get petted as well, Akeno." He called out to the girl, who flushed red.

"I'll be sure to remember that, Naruto-kun..." She trailed off. Rias groaned. Couldn't they be any less obvious about their mutual interest in each other? Luckily, she was saved by another knock on the door. Koneko cracked open her eyes as well, sitting upright in Naruto's lap.

Naruto, seeing this as a signal to stop petting her, removed his hand from the top of her head. It turned out to be a mistake, as Koneko grabbed his hand and placed it on top of her head once more. Giving her a questioning look, he was met with a bland stare.

"Pet me more." Came the monotonous demand. Naruto smirked and continued rubbing her scalp, earning him another purr. When the door opened this time, a blonde-haired boy walked in. Once he saw Naruto sitting on the couch with Koneko purring under his touch, his face gained a confused look and he glanced toward Rias for instruction.

Akeno looked over to Naruto.

"Are you going to pet him too?" She teased, her lips curling up into a smile. Naruto wrinkled his face.

"No thanks. I'm not into guys." He replied, smirking.

"Naruto, this is my Knight, Kiba." The boy waved at him and bowed slightly at the waist, walking over to an empty seat on the couches and taking his own seat, accepting a cup of from Akeno. Naruto nodded at him in greeting. "Koneko over there is my Rook. Akeno over here is my Queen. I presume you know what all these pieces mean?" She asked. Naruto nodded his confirmation.

"How about that other energy signature that I feel? Somewhere in this clubhouse, there's another devil. Feels somewhat like a vampire too." Naruto inquired. Rias froze up. It was clear that she hadn't expected him to be able to sense types of energy, judging from the stunned look on her face.

The look only lasted for a couple of moments before her face recomposed itself back into its usual mask. Rias glanced sideways where Akeno sat, her face unreadable as if asking her a mentally conveyed question. Akeno nodded at her.

"That...that is my Bishop. His power is too unstable to control, so we have to keep him under seals to prevent any accidents from happening. His name is Gasper. Gasper Vladi." Naruto raised an eyebrow. Interesting. A vampire turned devil.

"Any other peerage members I need to know about?" Naruto asked. Rias shook her head. "Well then, I think that's enough for today. I'll be going now." He made to move Koneko off his lap, the girl reluctantly jumping off his lap.

"Tomorrow. More petting." She demanded in her usual monotone. Naruto slowly nodded. Rias was a little jealous, truth be told. Why did her cute servant like a person that she had just met over her? It was unfair. A little raincloud formed over her head.

As Naruto made his way to the door, Rias called out to him, making him stop in his tracks.

"Wait! I wanted to ask you something!" He turned around and raised an eyebrow, waiting for her question.

"Would you be willing to join my peerage? I'm sure you'd make a great addition to our family." Rias asked. She wasn't sure that she would be able to reincarnate the blonde youkai as a devil, with the large amounts of power surging through his body, but she sure as hell would try. She was desperate after all, with the upcoming events.

Naruto laughed and shook his head.

"There's no chance that you'll be able to that, Red. After all, if your brother wasn't able to reincarnate me, what hope would you have? Anyway, I'm getting tired. Have a good night, everyone." He gave everyone a mysterious grin and strode out of the room, leaving everyone with new questions on their mind.

Rias sat in the clubroom alone. Everyone had already returned to their homes within Kuoh. She mused over what Naruto dropped on everyone in the room before he left. Apparently, her brother, the strongest Maou, and one of the top ten strongest beings in the world couldn't reincarnate him. She wasn't sure she believed him. She knew of the power that her brother possessed, and the sheer destruction he could bring. What she sensed from Naruto was equivalent to an Ultimate Class Devil, maybe on par with Grayfia at most. Definitely not on par with any of the Maou, much less Sirzechs.

His charisma was certainly not be underestimated though. He had already made connections with Akeno and Koneko upon his arrival. Something about him just attracted people to him. It had taken all that she had to keep her composure in his presence. When he had walked into the room, she had been hit with the sudden desire to drop the cold front and treat him like a friend. Whether it came from a passive power he held or whether it was just his natural charisma was unknown to her.

She shook her head. She would have to contact her brother tomorrow to get more information on Naruto. Suddenly, the flyer that she kept in her pocket started glowing a bright red. She leaped to her feet, all thoughts about the mysterious youkai flitting out of her mind. It was time to secure her final step towards freedom, even if it was a desperate act. After all, don't we all fight harder the more we're backed into a corner? Rias thought as she teleported away in a flash of crimson light.

Naruto hummed as he strolled through a park. He inhaled, taking in the fresh air that Kuoh provided. He felt power course through his veins and heighten his senses. He took a deep breath, taking in some of the tainted nature energy that coated the planet. Grimacing when the tainted energy touched his core and clung to it like tar, he began the process of cleansing it. Wiping the black stains on it off and filtering his own pure nature chakra through it to form new, untainted chakra, he released it back into the environment.

Around him, trees seemed to grow greener and lusher. Dead grass came back to life, and the happy sounds of the animals who inhabited the park could be heard. He had been doing this for quite a while now, ever since he discovered that he could connect with nature on an intimate level, essentially recycling the tainted energy of the planet and purifying it.

He continued his walk towards his apartment, which was located not far from the park. The sunset painted a glorious image across the horizon. Bloody red and orange streaked across the sky, lighting it up like a painter's canvas.

As Naruto cut through some foliage blocking his path, something caught his senses. A surge of tainted light energy? What was a fallen angel doing here? A very faint scream soon followed. He broke into a run towards the source of the conflict.

Not even noticing the magical barrier that blocked his path, he skidded to a stop in the middle of the park, where a large fountain was located, his blue eyes taking in the situation.

A female fallen angel floated above a bloody body, wearing something that looked like it came straight out of a BDSM store. The body was unrecognizable at this distance, even if he squinted. The fallen angel turned in his direction, a sneer forming on her face.

"You know, you'd be way prettier if you weren't wearing that outfit and if you didn't have that look on your face. Somebody wake up on the wrong side of the bed today?" He called out. The taunt seemed to work, as the fallen angel's face contorted in rage. A spear of light formed in her hands.

"How dare you! You're nothing but a lowly human. Nothing compared to us! You should've just walked away. I'll have to kill you now!" She growled, plunging towards him, spear ready to impale him.

Naruto grinned. Finally, some action after his boring day. The angel only had one pair of wings so it wouldn't count as a real fight, but beggars can't be choosers, can they?

As the fallen angel neared his body, he grasped the spear of light and threw it to the side, throwing her off balance.

"Wha-" The angel gasped. She didn't have time to complete her sentence, as Naruto slammed his fist into her stomach. She coughed out spittle, splattering Naruto's face with it. She went flying back into the fountain, struggling to sit up as she watched the man get closer.

"Now, that wasn't too nice was it, crow?" Naruto smiled down at her, wiping the spit off his face with his sleeve. She weakly formed another weapon in her hand, trying to ward the man off, but to no avail.

Naruto grabbed her from out of the fountain and slammed her into the floor. Her face contorted in pain as her back made contact with the ground.

Naruto drew out a kunai from his uniform and held it to her throat.

"So, crow. What are you doing here? I thought that Azazel kept you all in your territory, unless...you're a defector. Which means that I have the right to kill you on the spot." The fallen angel's eyes widened in fear. "Tell me, what is your name, and why did you kill that boy?"

He pressed the edge of the knife a little deeper into her throat, drawing several droplets of blood.

"M-My name is R-Raynare." The fallen angel choked out.

"Go on." Naruto urged as he readjusted his position so that he was more comfortable while he interrogated Raynare.

"We-" It seemed that luck was on Raynare's side today. A burning pain ripped through Naruto's side as something impaled him through the side. His grasp on Raynare loosened up, and the fallen angel bolted into the night sky. He looked down to see a light spear being removed from his body.

Should've known that these crows tend to travel in flocks. He groaned. This was going to be a pain to regenerate. He stood up slowly.

Another fallen angel floated in the sky, using one arm to support Raynare. Focusing a little energy to the entry point of the spear, he could feel the bleeding stop and the flesh knitting itself back together.

The fallen angel that had thrown the light spear gaped at him. It was another female. She had blue hair and a maroon trench coat that was opened up at the chest area, exposing a generous amount of cleavage. A golden necklace hung from her neck.

"Wha-" Naruto grinned smugly.

"You thought that was enough to put me down? Barely felt like a scratch to me, truthfully." He taunted. That was a lie. Even though he could heal from his wounds faster than a Phenex could regenerate, he still felt the pain like they did. At least, in his base form he did. A measly spear of light wouldn't even register to him if he was in one of his more powerful forms.

The fallen angel grasped her spear of light tightly. Naruto could see her knuckles growing white with how hard she was clenching her weapon. She glanced over at the half-conscious Raynare and back at Naruto. She seemed to come to a resolute decision. With a flash, she disappeared into the night sky, leaving behind a few black feathers.

Naruto watched her go, an unreadable expression on his whiskered face.

"So, that was your plan all along, wasn't it, Rias?" He spoke without turning his back to the bloody body on the floor. The park was silent for a while before the aforementioned girl stepped out from behind a tree that littered the edges of the park, a guilty look on her face. He turned around to find the bloodied body of Issei.

"So you were the one, huh? Poor kid. I suppose you're going to reincarnate him now, Rias?" Naruto looked at the girl. Rias gave a shaky but determined nod. He examined her face carefully. She possessed the look of someone who was desperate, someone that would do any to achieve what they wanted. Desperation was a strong motivator for both goals that some would label good, and that some would label bad.

That look was dangerous. After all, he had been best friends with someone that had the same look throughout his life. It would be easier to let the boy die, and than erase what memories he had left behind. After all, there were multiple Sacred Gear users in Kuoh Town, what use was this one?

Suddenly, Naruto sensed a presence in the boy, Faint, but present all the same. A glimmering light, reduced to a spark, but nonetheless still shining. Ddraig. So this is your new host, huh? Interesting. Perhaps I'll let him live after all. A small grin formed on his face.

He looked Rias in the eyes and nodded.

"Go ahead. Do it quickly." Wasting no time, she knelt down and drew out her Evil Pieces.

"Use all your pawns. It's the only way you'll be able to reincarnate him." Naruto called over, tapping his foot on the ground. Rias shot him a disbelieving look.

"Really? He doesn't look like much." She mumbled slowly.

"Trust me on this one. Reincarnate him quickly. I'll heal him for you unless you want to use the other way to heal him?" Rias grimaced. Skin to skin contact with the leader of the Perverted Trio of Kuoh? No thanks. She pulled out all her pawns and placed them all on Issei's chest.

"I, Rias Gremory, bid thee, Issei Hyoudou to rise! Walk the earth again as a devil, and my pawn! Relinquish the gates of heaven and hail to the gates of the Underworld." The pawns glowed a faint red before sinking into his chest. Seeing that the reincarnation process was over, Naruto walked over to the motionless body and placed a hand on near the perforation on Issei's body.

Channeling a bit of chakra through the limb, he was pleased to see the hole in Issei's chest slowly close. If Rias was shocked, she didn't comment. Probably had enough excitement for today. She picked Issei's body up effortlessly and teleported away in a bright red flash.

Naruto chuckled lightly. He couldn't wait to see what would happen as a result of the rebirth of the Red Dragon Emperor. The fights between the White and the Red were always glorious to watch. The stars seemed to shimmer brighter that night.