~Devil Ninja~
Naruto listened to Le Fay's words, nodding to himself. A pincer maneuver was a pretty standard tactic. It also had a high chance of success, especially against a smaller force like his. In fact, some might have called it overboard, but Naruto could tell Diehauser was being cautious because of who he was.
"Good job, Fay-chan. Come back to us," Naruto said.
"I'll be right back."
After Le Fay finished speaking, Naruto turned to Ravel, who remained by his side while the others were spread out.
"What do you think we should do about this?" he asked.
Ravel furrowed her brow and cupped her chin. Her thoughtful expression lasted only for a few seconds before she came up with a plan.
"In a situation like this, the most logical course of action would be to attack one of their groups and break through enemy lines before the other group catches up. I believe we could do that and have a relatively high chance of success…" Ravel trailed off as a slight gleam came to her eyes. "However, that wouldn't really showcase your talent very well. What we're trying to do here is show how good of a King you are."
"So you're saying what we should do instead is take out both forces separately?" Naruto asked. "Doing so will show how bold I am, and if we succeed, it will elevate my reputation."
"Exactly." Ravel smiled as if she was pleased he could see where she was going with this. "Devils favor bolder plans too. It's in our nature. Having you, a Devil who is being tested to see if he has what it takes to become a High-class Devil, enact such a daring plan against the Rating Game's number one ranked Devil will go a long way toward garnering the respect of many Devils. Even if you lose in the end, it won't reflect poorly on you because Diehauser is considered the best."
"Well, I don't plan to lose, but I understand where you're coming from." Naruto crossed his arms. "Now we just need to figure out how to divide our forces."
Naruto gathered Lix, Irina, Angelus, and Saji over to him and Ravel so they could discuss the situation with them. They explained what was happening and what they planned. While Saji looked shocked by how daring their plan was, Lix was nodding in approval.
"I like it," Lix said. "Bold plans like this are dangerous, but you know what they say about danger and rewards, right?"
"Still… I'm a little worried," Angelus muttered. "What if one of you gets hurt? I can't heal someone if they are too far from me."
"Since most of us are devils, you can't actually heal us anyway," Ravel reminded the girl. "We're splitting up into two groups. You, Irina, Lix, and Saji will form one group. Le Fay, myself, and Naruto will form another group. Your group is going to harass the people Le Fay discovered. Don't engage them head on. They are a lot stronger than us. Instead, simply annoy them with some minor harassment to keep them distracted. Make them angry and chase after you. The angier they are, the harder it will be for them to think straight."
"While you guys are harassing the group coming in from the south, Ravel, Le Fay, and me are going to take out the group attacking from the north," Naruto continued where Ravel left off. "Once we finish taking care of them, we'll come back around and attack the group you're dealing with in a pincer of our own."
"So we're basically countering their pincer with our own pincer maneuver?" Irina said.
"Pretty much," Naruto said.
"That's a pretty bold move, but I've come to expect crazy stunts like this from you," Saji said with a sigh. "Well, either way, I think we can do this."
"Then let's split up here." Naruto looked at Irina. "I'm leaving you in charge of your group. Be careful."
"Right. You can count on me!" Irina said with a beaming smile.
~Devil Ninja~
After going their separate ways, Naruto and Ravel hooked back up with Le Fay and Fenrir. Naruto asked Le Fay to have Fenrir meet up with Irina's team and provide them with backup. Fenrir was a powerful wolf with the power to slay a god, which meant he'd be a big help in keeping those four out of trouble. On the other hand, Naruto didn't think he'd need a god slaying wolf on his side because he was already a badass in his own right.
It made sense to him.
They traveled through the forest under Le Fay's invisibility spell. This meant they could see each other, but no one else could see them.
The wind whistled around them as they flew past the trees, which all looked the same to Naruto. There weren't any identifying marks on these trees to let him know which way they were going or where they had come from. It made him feel like they were going in circles.
As they flew, Le Fay waved her wand, which caused tiny balls of light to spread from the tip. These were fairy spirits known as sprites. While they didn't look like much, sprites could travel great distances quickly and could communicate to the one who summoned them via telepathy, making them great for reconnaissance. The only problem was the amount of magic they consumed. That was why Le Fay hadn't summoned them until now.
"There are two Devils up ahead," Le Fay said to him and Ravel. "It looks like Anna Beleth and Elizabeth Stolas."
"So a Queen and a Bishop," Ravel murmured. "I expected more people in this ambush, but I guess Diehauser must believe he doesn't need to send a large group if he sends his Queen out. Actually, that is a pretty bold move. Most people will save the Queen for last as a trump card. That he is sending Anna out now means he believes you are a threat."
"Hmm… what do we know about these two?" asked Naruto.
"Anna Beleth is a member of the now extinct House Beleth. They were one of the 72 Pillars," Ravel informed him. "The power of House Beleth is called Love. That doesn't sound like a great power, but it actually causes men and women in her presence to become infatuated with either her or anyone else she wants. I once saw her use that power to make a High-class Devil fall in love with a tree during one of Diehauser's Rating Games."
"Do you think it will work on me?" asked Naruto.
"That's hard to say." Ravel bit her lip and thought about the question. "Because I don't know the exact mechanics behind her power, I don't know if having sufficient resistance or willpower will be able to negate her abilities."
"I guess we'll find out when we get there," Naruto muttered.
"What about Elizabeth Stolas?" asked Le Fay. "What is her power?"
"House Stolas was known for their knowledge of astronomy, herbs, and precious stones," Ravel said. "They use stones as catalysts for powerful magic and can use the alignment of the stars to affect the natural world. Their powers are tricky because it is nearly impossible to counter unless you have knowledge of astronomy yourself."
"In that case, I want you and Le Fay to go up against Elizabeth. Meanwhile, I will handle Anna," Naruto decided.
Neither Ravel or Le Fay argued with his decision, which made him feel warm inside because it meant they trusted his judgement.
They burst into a clearing and found Anna and Elizabeth waiting for them. The two women were able to track Naruto, Ravel, and Le Fay with their eyes, meaning the invisibility spell didn't work on them. Naruto saw stars glimmering in Elizabeth's eyes. She must have been divining their location using astronomy somehow. Since it looked like the spell was ineffective, Le Fay dropped the magic.
"You reacted quicker than we expected," Anna said. "I guess Master Diehauser was right to send me. You are quite bold."
Naruto shrugged. "Fortune favors the bold… or something like that."
"Indeed it does, but unfortunately for you, Master Diehauser is just as bold," Anna said with a smile.
"That remains to be seen."
Naruto didn't hesitate to start things off with a bang, summoning a horde of Shadow Clones and having them gang up on Anna. He wanted to see her power first hand.
She did not disappoint.
Anna tapped her foot against the ground as a magic circle suddenly appeared around her. The circle, a pink circle with the crest of House Belial, traveled up her body and encased her in a gentle pink glow.
There was something intensely erotic about her after the magic circle dissipated, though Naruto couldn't quite put his finger on it. Maybe it had something to do with her pouty lips, or perhaps it was those luxurious golden locks of hair, or you know, it could have been that ample chest of hers. Whatever the case was, the moment she became engulfed in that magic circle, the woman's entire countenance changed from that of a simple beauty to a succubus.
The clones stopped where they stood and ogled her.
And then they were destroyed.
Naruto narrowed his eyes when all one dozen clones were wiped out in an instant. Anyone else would have missed what happened and been confused, but he had spotted the magic circles that appeared underneath his clones a split second before the magic activated. What he couldn't figure out was what kind of magic it was. All he knew was that he'd heard the sound of a trumpet blowing a moment before his clones were destroyed.
"Music magic?" he wondered out loud.
"I'm surprised you recognize what kind of magic I'm using," Anna said.
"I see. So it is music magic." Naruto tilted his head. "I don't suppose you'll tell me how it works?"
"Sorry, but no." Anna wore a congenial smile as she shook her head. "I'm aware of how dangerous you are. If I tell you how my magic works, you'll no doubt figure out a way to counter it."
"Can't blame a guy for trying." Naruto shrugged.
Since it looked like he wouldn't be getting any information out of this woman, he raced forward, deciding to attack at close distance. He would probably end up caught in that Love magic of hers. However, he was confident he could do something against it. In fact, he already had a very basic idea on how to counter her unique power.
Naruto quickly brought to image all the girls in his harem. Rias with her brilliant crimson hair; Ravel and her tsundere personality; Koneko, whose small body in no way reflected her erotic disposition; Ophis and her ridiculous sexual appetite; the uptight Rossweisse who nevertheless tried hard to be a good girlfriend; and Irina, a religion obsessed angel who was at heart a great person worthy of his respect. Maybe he should include Le Fay in his harem too? Thinking about them filled Naruto with love, causing his heart to grow warm.
"W-why isn't my power working on you?!" Anna suddenly shouted when he closed the distance between them.
"Hmph. As if I'd tell you why your power doesn't work."
Since she didn't want to answer him, he had no intention of answering her.
Naruto lashed out with a punch that rent the air. Anna leapt back to dodge it, but Naruto infused wind into his attack, causing a powerful hammer-like force to flow from his hand and smack into her. The Devil stumbled back as she was struck in the face. Unfortunately—for him at least—she'd been able to raise a barrier in time to stop his attack from truly damaging her.
Anna waved her hand and created several magic circles, all of which were aimed at him. Naruto quickly replaced himself with a log just as a massive burst of music erupted from the magic circles. It sounded like a symphony of trumpets. The sound struck the log and caused it to explode.
Several more magic circles appeared around Naruto when he appeared in place of the log. He didn't have time to dodge this one. However, as the sound of trumpets rang out, Naruto created a vacuum of wind around himself. All the noise from Anna's magic was blocked off. He could see the wind around him rippling as if something was slamming into the vacuum he had created, but nothing else happened.
Anna tried to bombard his wind vacuum once more, but she seemed to eventually realize nothing she did was working and stopped. The magic circles surrounding Naruto disappeared.
In most cases, Naruto would have dropped his wind vacuum, but this time he felt cautious of Anna, who was a High-class Devil and a Queen. He quickly prepared the replacement technique. Counting to three, he dropped his wind vacuum and replaced himself with another log.
It was the right decision.
Almost from the moment he dropped the wind vacuum, Anna attacked him with a magic circle she'd prepared in advance. It appeared underneath his feet and launched a powerful sound attack at him. Naruto, however, had already replaced himself, so what she hit was not him but the log he'd used in his jutsu.
"I think I finally understand how your magic works," Naruto said behind Anna. The woman froze when she felt a hand on her back. "Your magic attacks using sound, which causes vibrations in the air. By manipulating soundwaves, you can create attacks that are difficult if not impossible to counter. That's very impressive. It's too bad I've actually fought against other people who use sound to attack before."
At that moment, just before the woman could open her mouth, Naruto created a Rasengan and slammed it into her back. Anna screamed as she was launched across the ground. She slammed into a tree, which shattered, then struck a boulder sticking out of the ground… which also shattered.
"Diehauser Belial's Queen has been retired."
Naruto grinned at his victory before turning his attention to Ravel and Le Fay's battle.
It looked like their fight had been much harder than his. While Ravel appeared fine thanks to her regeneration, Le Fay's clothing was torn and blood leaked down her arms and legs. Meanwhile, their opponent didn't seem to have a single scratch on her.
Elizabeth was, at the moment, in the process of dodging several magic attacks being launched at her by the two. Fire tornadoes were avoided, lightning bolts were negated when the woman threw several crystals that created what appeared to be star constellations. Even as the battle continued, Elizabeth tossed several silver gems.
"Scutum!"
The eight gems formed a diamond-like pattern that vaguely resembled a shield. Each gem lit up and lines of light shot from them to connect all of the gems together. When the gems became connected, the lines solidified and spread across the gap in the gems center, becoming a shield that took the combination attack Ravel and Le Fay launched. The giant fire tornado slammed into the shield and broke.
While the shield blocked the first attack, Ravel created another magic circle behind Elizabeth, which launched a sharp spear at the woman's back.
Elizabeth must have had eyes in the back of her head. She tossed several gems behind her and created another shield. This one was smaller and only used four gems instead of eight, but the attack Ravel unleashed was smaller as well. The attack was blocked.
"You cannot win against me," Elizabeth announced. "Both of you are very strong, but as long as I can predict your next move, defeating me is impossible."
"She's using the constellations to predict our attacks," Le Fay announced.
"Then we'll just have to become unpredictable," Ravel said.
Several dozen magic circles appeared around Ravel and launched a number of powerful fire attacks at Elizabeth, who merely scoffed and prepared her catalysts. However, just as she threw her gems, Ravel created several more magic circles, which changed the course of her attacks. Rather than strike at Elizabeth, they struck the ground.
Elizabeth seemed to have predicted that. The explosion was blocked by her gems, which had created the constellation Scutum once more.
Ravel closed the distance and attacked with her hands and feet, which had caught fire. Despite the sudden change in battle pace, Elizabeth calmly anticipated her opponents moves, moving back and relying once more on her catalysts to block Ravel's attacks. It became clear that the other Bishop did not have any talent at fighting hand to hand.
While she attacked, Ravel created more magic circles. The fire and wind attacks launched from the circles in time with her own hand to hand combat.
Despite how Elizabeth seemed able to predict her opponent's attacks, it also became clear from how she was unable to keep up with both Ravel's hand to hand combat and magic attacks that there was a limit to her abilities. It was taking everything the woman had to keep herself safe. She couldn't attack anymore.
During the time Ravel was keeping her distracted and fully focused on defending herself, Le Fay snuck in a single magic attack. It looked like a simple lightning arrow at first. This proved incorrect when it Elizabeth tried to unsuccessfully block it and was struck. Lightning exploded from her body and smoke poured off her skin. The lightning then became a series of chains that kept her bound and continued shocking her. Elizabeth soon fell to the ground, her body shaking as though her muscles were undergoing seizures. Once that happened, Ravel slammed a powerful fireball into the woman's chest.
Elizabeth disappeared within a scream.
"Diehauser Belial's Bishop has been retired," the announcer said.
"Great job, you two," Naruto complimented the pair on their performance.
"Thank you," Ravel said, her breathing a bit heavy.
"Now that we defeated these two, we need to launch a pincer attack with the others," Le Fay said.
Just before they could move on, however, two more announcements echoed across the forest.
"Naruto Uzumaki's Pawn has been retired."
"Naruto Uzumaki's Rook has been retired."
~Devil Ninja~
While Naruto, Le Fay, and Ravel were taking care of the attackers coming from behind, Irina led the ambush of the ones coming in from the front.
She stood on a branch several feet from the Devils in Diehauser's peerage. Energy filled her body as she channeled her angelic aura and created several haloes, which she liberally tossed at the group of Devils. Each halo was filled with enough energy that a Low-class Devil would be annihilated by them. However, it would only be an annoyance to these Devils.
The Devils she attacked didn't so much as flinch.
A magic shield sprang up around them; the one who had created the shield, Lilith, lowered her hand and turned her gaze toward Irina's direction. The moment their eyes made contact, Irina flinched. So this was the gaze of a High-class Devil directing their killing intent at you? It was terrifying! Irina felt an incredible pressure inside of her, like something was threatening to crush her flat, simply from this woman's gaze alone.
"It seems our plan to ambush Naruto Uzumaki's team has failed," she said.
"Heh." Lisander also looked at Irina. "So they decided to bring the fight to us? That suits me just fine." He turned just his head to look at Lilith. "You don't mind if I take care of this, do you?"
"Go ahead," Lilith sighed.
Lisander grinned as he bent his knees and adopted a stance that made him look like a predator about to pounce. The look in his eyes sent a jolt down Irina's spine.
Perhaps it was instinct that warned her of the danger, but Irina bolted from the tree she'd been standing on, flying back with a great flap of her wings. She was just in the nick of time. Lisander blasted through the tree. Shattered bark sprayed through the air, some of it hitting her, as Lisander landed back on the ground and bent his knees again.
It looked like their plan to harass Diehauser's peerage had failed. Knowing better than to remain there, Irina took off. She flew through the forest as fast as her legs could carry her, dodging left, right, over, and under as trees and branches appeared in her path.
Lisander followed her.
"Don't think you can run from me!"
Irina didn't listen to Lisander's taunts. She flew faster.
It didn't take long for her to reach a small clearing, Lisander following right behind her. As she moved, she looked left and right, at Lix and Saji, who were hidden within the shrubs. She nodded once as she flew past them, then turned around and landed on the ground as Lisander emerged from the trees.
"Tired of running?" Lisander asked. "That's no fun. You should scurry around some more."
"Sorry. I'm all scurried out," Irina said.
"Che! Whatever."
Lisander got ready to charge her again, bending his knees and preparing for blast off, but before he could even consider taking action, a rope-like object extended from the trees and latched onto his arm. In that moment, Lisander's demonic power was sucked out of him.
"Looks like your plan worked," Saji said as he stepped out of the treeline. The rope-like thing was extended from the dragon gauntlet on his hand, which looked a lot like a mouth, making the object seem like a tongue.
"So your plan was to lure me out and attack me in full force, was it?" Lisander asked with a snicker. "That's not bad as far as plans go, but I'm afraid I should tell you that it's never going to work." Demonic power suddenly erupted from Lisander's body, so much it felt like Irina was drowning, suffocating. The Absorption Line wrapped around Lisander was also ripped off. "Had you not been up against someone like me, I'm sure this plan would have gone off without a hitch, but you're up against a member of House Belial. Cheap tricks like this have no effect on me."
"Then why don't you try this on for size?!"
A shout suddenly echoed from the other side of the clearing seconds before a massive spear of light shot forward. It was an incredible attack. The light spear crackled as it flew at Lisander, whose eyes went wide as he raised his hands and created a shield. Light spear met shield in a clash of power. Sparks flew. Several arcs like lightning shot out and gouged chunks out of the ground. All the while, Lisander gritted as teeth as he kept the shield up, raised his right hand, and slammed it into the spear.
The spear shattered.
While Irina was surprised, she knew better than to stand around. She raced forward, creating two swords of light with her angelic power and attacking Lisander. Her hope was to attack while he was weak.
That hope was sadly dashed before it even began.
Lix's attack must not have done the damage she had hoped, for Lisander proved more than capable of dodging and blocking her strikes with nothing but his hands. It was like he was immune to her light magic.
Of course, that wasn't really the case. He was just encasing his hands in protective magic circles to fend off her holy magic. Regardless of how he was doing this, it did not change the fact that her attacks weren't getting through.
Saji chose to attack at that moment, launching the Absorption Line at Lisander and catching him around the arm. Black flames quickly spread across the Absorption Line and caused Lisander's body to catch fire.
"It burns! Ah! It burns!"
As Lisander screamed in surprise and pain, Irina moved in and prepared to slice at Lisander before he could recover. She wanted to defeat him before the other three Pawns arrived. However, just as she was about to slice into him with her light swords, a smile appeared on his face.
"Just kidding."
More power erupted from Lisander's body like an explosion. Irina screamed as she was caught by the eruption of energy and sent flying backward. She struck the ground hard and rolled across it. The world tumbled around her. When it finally stopped, she looked up from where she lay prone and saw that Saji had also been blasted backward. That said, the Absorption Line was still attached to Lisander. It looked like Saji was being stubborn about not letting go.
"Irina!" Angelus shouted as she raced into the clearing at the same time as Lix. While Lix ran over to Saji to help fend off Lisander, she came over to Irina and knelt down. A magic circle appeared before her hands. She placed them on Irina's side. The healing magic almost immediately went to work, fixing up her wounds.
"Thanks," Irina said as she sighed in relief.
"That Lisander is a lot more powerful than I thought," Angelus muttered.
"Yeah… I didn't expect him to be strong enough to take all of our attacks." Irina grimaced. "I guess that's a High-class Devil for you."
Even as they were speaking, Saji and Lix were attacking Lisander together, but their attacks didn't seem to be having any effect on the member of House Belial. Light spears were negated. The Absorption Line was shattered. Nothing they did worked.
"You don't really believe this paltry amount of power will be enough to defeat me, do you?!" Lisander asked. "I might not be as good as my brother, but I can still render all of your attacks Worthless!"
Even as he spoke, Lisander's right hand glowed with a purplish-black color as he punched a light spear, which completely shattered upon contact. Irina's eyes widened when she realized what he was doing.
"Of course! He's using the special ability of House Belial!"
Worthless was the ability to nullify both offensive and defensive abilities. There was probably a limit to how much and what he could nullify, but so long as he understood how their powers worked, he could nullify all of them.
"If this doesn't work, then maybe I should go all out," Saji suggested.
Black flames erupted from Saji's body, though they weren't in the least bit hot. If anything, Irina felt a cold chill from those flames. The fire expanded into the sky before taking on the shape of a dragon with a long, snake-like body. That was his Vitra Promotion, which allowed him to use all four abilities of his Sacred Gear at the same time.
"Let's do this!" Saji roared as he charged at Lisander.
"Shado Purizun!"
The dark aura surrounding Vitra writhed before transforming into numerous tentacles that latched onto Lisander, who tried and failed to break the restraints. His demonic power surged. However, even his Worthless ability seemed useless at that moment.
"Don't bother. I've used Derito Firudo to take away your ability to use Worthless. Now it is like you are just a regular Devil."
"D-damn it! What the hell kind of power is this?!" Lisander shouted as he struggled.
"Now! Let me absorb your power!"
"What?! No!"
Dozens of tentacles wrapped around Lisander. They glowed a bright but dark purple that seemed ominous and vile.
Lix moved back as Saji began absorbing Lisander's demonic power, though she didn't go too far away in case he needed help. She created a light spear in her hand and readied it. Irina, now healed thanks to Angelus, stood up and watched the proceedings from a distance away.
None of them noticed the danger until it was too late.
Saji's body suddenly stiffened and the glow from the Absorption Lines attached to Lisander's body stopped working. Irina didn't know what was happening. However, before she could even think about what might be wrong, a massive creature that resembled a minotaur stampeded out from the forest and slammed into Saji, impaling his massive dragon body with both of its horns.
Irina didn't think an attack like this would do anything in normal circumstances, but it became clear to her that this creature was special. Brilliant lights erupted from the Minotaur's horns. Cracks began appearing on the black dragon's body. It was like the Minotaur was injecting all of its power into Saji, causing the dragon body he had created to expand like a balloon. Before much time had passed, said balloon swelled to an incredible size before exploding.
"Naruto Uzumaki's Pawn has been retired."
The words rang across the clearing, shocking Irina. Yet time did not stand still even though she was shocked.
A dark sword suddenly flew into the clearing, spinning around as it came at Lix, who was smart enough to dodge. She leapt aside as the sword flew past her. What she didn't see was how the sword curved around and came at her from behind.
"Lix! Duck!" Irina shouted.
It was probably a testament to Lix's ability and trust in Irina that the woman dropped onto the ground. The spinning sword flew past overhead and headed back toward the treeline. A figure emerged from the trees before it could disappear, catching the sword in her hand as she ran into the clearing. It was Rapunzel Zepar. The woman flew into the clearing like a bird of prey and attacked Lix before the woman could recover. Whipping her hair around, Rapunzel made it grow to an incredible length as it struck Lix in the face and sent her reeling. Then Rapunzel took the sword she had thrown and raised it.
"No!"
Irina threw several haloes at Rapunzel, but the Minotaur suddenly appeared before Rapunzel and blocked them with its sturdy body. This gave the woman enough time to impale Lix through the chest. The Fallen Angel gasped as blood leaked from the corner of her mouth. Then she transformed into particles of light and disappeared.
"Naruto Uzumaki's Rook has been retired."
Once Lix was retired, the Minotaur shrank and grew less monstrous before eventually changing into a person. Lilith Marax. Now that both Saji and Lix were retired, she, Lisander, and Rapunzel all turned to Irina and Angelus.
This was not good.
~Devil Ninja~
Naruto had rushed on ahead of Ravel and Le Fay, pushing his body to the limit—and breaking much of the surroundings.
His feet slammed against a branch. Chakra exploded from it, resulting in Naruto being propelled forward far faster than most would have believed was possible. It also destroyed the branch. Sawdust and splinters rained to the ground and formed a small pile.
The wind rushed all around him; he could feel it everywhere, surrounding his body and the rest of this forest. He was using the wind to guide him. It acted as his sonar, allowing him to "see" Irina and Angelus as they tried to flee from Diehauser's Pawns. He was getting closer. Closer. Almost there…
"AAAHH!"
Naruto burst out of the clearing just as a loud scream tore through the air. Irina and Angelus had been hit by some kind of attack and were soaring through the sky, their bodies tumbling in an out of control spin.
Narrowing his eyes, Naruto channeled chakra to his feet and activated the Shunshin no Jutsu, which caused him to instantly appear in the flight path of Irina and Angelus. He caught them both in his arms. The impact of their bodies sent him flying back, but he was fortunately strong enough not to get hurt. Landing on the ground, he skidded across the surface, digging a slight trench in the ground before coming to a stop.
"Are you two okay?" he asked.
Angelus and Irina didn't seem to be injured. They'd likely dodged whatever attack had been launched at them and were sent airborn by the resulting force. Even so, the pair had clenched their eyes shut out of fear, and only now, upon hearing his voice, did they open them.
"Naruto… san?" Angelus muttered in shock.
"Naruto?" Irina also questioned his existence.
"You two okay?" he asked again.
"Oh. Yes, I think so." Irina patted herself down to make sure nothing was broken or out of place—then realized that he was holding her in his arms and turned bright red. Her face was so hot he could feel it without touching her. "Er, um, would you mind letting me down now?"
Given that they were in a combat situation, setting her down was logical, so he complied. Irina took a few steps away from him and placed a hand on her chest to calm herself down. Angelus didn't seem to be flustered like her fellow angel was.
At that moment, Naruto turned toward the Pawns who wandered out of the treeline. If he was not mistaken, they were Lisander, Rapunzel, and Lilith.
Where was Diehauser's Rook?
"You two stay here and rest. Leave this to me," Naruto said.
He didn't give them, or their enemies, time respond before launching himself at the nearest opponent—Lisander. The Devil recognized himself as the target and created a shield. Naruto crossed his fingers in a hand seal.
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Several clones appeared. Two made Oodoma Rasengans and slammed them into the shield Lisander had created, causing not only an impressive detonation that sent Lilith and Rapunzel stumbling from the force, but also created cracks in the shield, which eventually shattered under the pressure.
"What the—"
Lisander's eyes went wide, then became wider still when the real Naruto suddenly appeared in front of him. He threw a punch out of instincts. Shock permeated his face when his fist went through Naruto's body like he wasn't there, showing him to be an after image. Naruto, who had ducked, was now given the perfect shot.
And he took it.
"Rasengan!"
Naruto didn't need any fancy moves for this. He slammed his Rasengan into Lisander's chest, and the intense drilling effects of his jutsu ground away at the man's body. A loud scream of anguish escaped the man's throat before he was blasted off his feet and sent spiraling away. He crashed into one tree, then two, before disappearing. An announcement came over the message system seconds later.
"Diehauser Belial's Pawn has been retired."
"He defeated Lisander so quickly!" Lilith muttered in shock.
"So this… is Naruto's power," said an equally flabbergasted Rapunzel.
Naruto turned to the two girls, who tensed up, but then Ravel and Le Fay burst into the clearing. Before he could attack the pair of Pawns, his girls fired off their magic at the two—a massive tornado made of fire and wind—forcing Rapunzel and Lilith to dodge. The heat was so intense the ground combusted and even Naruto broke out in a sweat. The two girls were very lucky to have dodged or they'd have been roasted.
"Naruto!" Le Fay suddenly shouted. "Fenrir is currently engaged in combat with Daina and two more members of Diehauser's peerage! I don't know who, but he's having trouble!"
"Got it. I'll leave things here to you!" Naruto turned to Irina and Angelus. "Can you two take out the last Pawn?"
"Leave this to us," Irina said as she readied another light sword.
"I will provide Irina-san with support," Angelus added.
"Then I'm heading off."
"Kurama?"
"I'm ready."
Naruto activated Rikudou Modo and Kurama's Ten-Tailed Chakra Shroud. As the Truth-balls appeared, he manipulated one to create a platform that he stepped on. The Platform shot forward even faster than he could move normally. It traveled in the direction where he sensed several people. Judging from the fluctuations he felt and the sounds of explosions, he guessed Fenrir was currently taking on the task of stalling the enemy forces.
"Time to get this party started."
Naruto pounded his fists together seconds before he stumbled upon the battlefield, where he found Fenrir fighting against a Rook, a Knight, and a Bishop. It looked like Elizabeth, Axel, and Daina were the ones Diehauser had sent. They were currently engaged in combat against Fenrir, who was able to hold his own well enough but couldn't attack because the three weren't giving him a chance to do so. Whenever one of them was in danger of being bitten by Fenrir's teeth or stabbed by a claw, the other two provided support. It was impressive teamwork.
That said, Naruto had no time to admire it.
Naruto canceled the transformation. It wasn't needed for this.
Bending his knees, he channeled wind chakra into his feet and threw himself at the group. The ground cracked beneath him as he flew forward and attacked the person furthest from Fenrir—Elizabeth.
The woman was standing about two or three meters from Fenrir, who was locked in combat against Axel and Daina. She wove magic spells that attacked the wolf in subtle yet annoying ways. She'd create owls and ravens that pecked at Fenrir's eyes. This distracted the giant wolf and allowed Axel and Daina to attack with swords and brute strength.
Just as she got ready to launch another spell, Elizabeth finally spotted him coming toward her.
"What the—"
Her eyes widened as she turned around and tried to prepare a spell for him, but Naruto was not about to let that happen.
"Futon: Repusho!"
Naruto created a fierce gale that slammed into Elizabeth and made her stumble. It wasn't much, but the spell she had been about to use was disrupted. With no spell forthcoming, Naruto closed the distance between them.
"Rasengan!"
And hit her with a Rasengan.
Bishops were characterized by their strong magic. While some of them had a good defense, or could create a magical defense, they needed time to prepare it. Naruto had struck Elizabeth before she could prepare anything of the sort. His attack drilled into her stomach and sent her flying. He thought he heard her scream, but it was impossible to hear over the sounds of combat between Fenrir, Axel, and Daina.
"Diehauser Belial's Bishop has been retired."
With Elizabeth out of the game, Naruto turned his attention toward the battle with Fenrir. Now that their Bishop was gone, Axel and Daina were having a more difficult time fighting the wolf, who no longer had to worry about any sneak attacks from Elizabeth's magic.
Fenrir released a howl that caused the two to freeze for a moment. They recovered quickly and moved away when Fenrir slammed his paw into the ground, but the resulting hurricane force from the attack blew them further than they intended to go.
"Duehauser Belial's Pawn has been retired."
Another announcement came over the speakers. Naruto smiled as he realized one of the two groups he left behind must have taken care of another Pawn. He wondered which team had done it, but it didn't matter.
"Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"
Several clones appeared, though they vanished mere moments later, disappearing like the wind.
Since Axel was the closest person to him, Naruto charged forward, pulled a kunai from his pouch, and engaged in melee combat against the Knight. Sparks flew as the two clashed. Naruto held his kunai in a reverse grip as he redirected several swift blows. Despite being a Knight, this man had quite a good deal of power to him. Each blow felt like a hammer slamming against his bones, but Naruto wasn't some fifty pound weakling. He met each attack head on and subtly redirected the other man's blade away from him.
A diagonal overhead slash glanced off Naruto's kunai as he accepted the attack and twisted his wrist. The sword glanced off. This didn't stop Axel, who used the weight of his sword to increase the speed of his next swing, spinning a full 360 degrees and attacking again. Naruto leapt over the blade this time.
"You are quite talented," Axel said. "I now see why we were asked to be your opponents for this Rating Game."
"Thanks, I guess," Naruto said. "But you should pay more attention and not hand out compliments while in battle."
At those words, Naruto leapt back as several Naruto clones burst out of the ground. They were the same clones he had created earlier. All of them had dug their way underground in preparation for this surprise attack. Each one had a Rasengan ready.
Axel observed the attacking clones and smiled. "This is an impressive ambush. However, it won't be enough to beat me. Allow me to show you the true power of a Knight."
Axel readied his sword before disappearing, or that was how it seemed to Naruto.
Reappearing behind a clone, Axel attacked with a swift thrust that went straight through the clone's throat. As the clone disappeared, so too did the Knight, who once again appeared next to a clone and dispatched it with incredible swiftness.
As Axel began demolishing his clones, Naruto thought up a plan of attack. He didn't want to use his Truth Seeking Orbs. They were too powerful. While everyone was aware of the risks, Naruto didn't want to run the risk of this man dying during a simple Rating Game. That meant…
"Stealth attack it is," he murmured before disappearing into the ground.
At that exact moment, Axel finally finished dispatching the last of Naruto's clones—only to realize his actual opponent was no longer around. He looked left, then right, then behind, and then above. Naruto was nowhere to be seen.
"Where did he go?" Axel pondered out loud.
"Diehauser Belial's Pawn has been retired."
He sighed. "Looks like the three Pawns Daina directed to test our enemies' strength have been defeated. Even our Queen has been beaten. This Naruto really isn't a simple—eh?"
Axel's eyes went wide when something suddenly wrapped around his body, pinning his arms to his side. He looked down. A glint appeared around him. This was… some type of steel wire. It went around his arms and body, though not his legs, and kept him from being able to swing his sword.
"Do you really think this can contain me? I might be a Knight, but steel wire isn't strong enough to bind me."
After saying this, Axel flexed his muscles and strained, snapping the wires as easily as if they were made of paper. While he was doing that, Naruto suddenly appeared behind him. Axel hadn't noticed yet, but he would soon. Very soon.
"Konohagakure Hiden Taijutsu Ogi: Sennen Goroshi (Konohagakure Secret Technique: One Thousand Years of Death)!"
"What the—aaaAAAAAAAAHHHHH!"
Axel had no chance to retaliate as Naruto slapped an exploding note on the man's ass and launched him into the air with a glorified finger poke. The chakra flowing through his body, raging like a torrent, ensured that his attack was powerful. Axel was launched clean into the skies. As the man was soaring through the air like a bird, Naruto created a seal with his hands.
"Katsu!"
Chakra flowed through his body and activated the exploding note on Axel's butt. The detonation swept across the sky, spewing fire and hot air in all directions.
"Diehauser Belial's Knight has been retired."
"Diehauser Belial's Rook has been retired."
As the two announcements were made, Naruto looked at where Fenrir was to see that only the wolf remained. Fenrir, perhaps sensing his gaze, looked at him and tilted his head.
Naruto made a quick note of everyone they had beaten. So far they had defeated a Queen, two Bishops, a Knight, a Rook, and three Pawns, which meant there was one Knight, one Rook, five Pawns, and one King left. In return, Naruto had Irina, Angelus, Ravel, Le Fay, and Fenrir still in the game.
However, even as he thought this, several more announcements were made that casued his blood to chill.
"Naruto Uzumaki's Bishop has been retired."
"Naruto Uzumaki's Knight has been retired."
"Naruto Uzumaki's Bishop has been retired."
"Naruto Uzumaki's Rook has been retired."
All four of his pieces had been retired.
Well, shit.
~Devil Ninja~
Naruto and Fenrir returned to the clearing where Ravel, Le Fay, Irina, and Angelus had been fighting. The remaining members of Diehauser's peerage were all present. Diehauser Belial himself was also there. It was no wonder his team hadn't won. They had been completely overwhelmed with sheer numbers, and it didn't help that each member of Diehauser's peerage was a High-class Devil.
"You did an excellent job taking out all of our advanced troops," Diehauser said as Naruto appeared before him. "However, in a Rating Game where you have less pieces, it is better to battle defensively instead of offensively. Had you decided to find a defensible position and kept there, you would have lasted much longer."
Naruto shrugged at Diehauser's advice. "I'm not really the type to just wait around for the enemy to attack, but I see your point. My team was retired because I didn't think about what would happen if you just decided to overwhelm my group with numbers."
"I would have played it more cautiously had you been with them," Diehauser admitted. "I wanted to split you up from your team so I could take them out more easily."
Naruto placed a hand on his forehead and rubbed it as though trying to rub out a headache. He glanced at Fenrir, who glanced back at him, but the wolf didn't offer any insight. A sigh escaped his lips as he turned back to Diehauser.
"I see. I might be the King, but I'm also the strongest person in my peerage. You knew your peerage wouldn't stand a chance if I was present, so you decided to send in smaller forces in the hopes that I would attack on my own."
"It was a gamble." Diehauser admitted. "But I figured you'd want to take out these forces before they became a threat. The best way to do that is to attack the strongest members on your own and have your other pieces attack the remaining members."
"Well, you got me there," Naruto sighed and scratched his head. "So what now?"
"Now? Nothing. The time limit is nearly up. Even if you and I fought, neither of us would win before the time limit ran out."
As if his words were prophetic, the announcer for this Rating Game began speaking.
"It looks like the one hour time limit is up! The battle is over… and the winner is… wait. What's this?! It's a tie! There is no winner! The battle between Diehauser Belial and Naruto Uzumaki has ended in a tie!"
Because Naruto had defeated eight of Diehauser's pieces (which was half of his entire peerage) while Diehauser defeated six of his pieces (which was almost his entire peerage), it was concluded that the match would end in a draw.
Both peerages were transported out of the Rating Game dimension and back to the real world, where they were met with a round of cheers and applause.
Diehauser accepted the applause with a calm smile. He raised his hand and waved at the crowd, who went crazy and grew louder. On the other hand, Naruto was lost in thought.
He hadn't lost this match, but at the same time, he hadn't won either. A tie. It had been a long time since Naruto could say he hadn't defeated his opponent, but he realized now that the Rating Game was not the same as real combat. In real combat, Naruto would have used everything at his disposal to win. That wasn't the case here. There were some moves he simply couldn't use because they were too dangerous. Strategy became much more important thanks to that.
As the crowd's cheering continued, Diehauser Belial came up to Naruto and offered his hand.
"It was a good match," he said. "I look forward to seeing you play in the Rating Games in the future."
"Yeah." Naruto reached out and firmly gripped Diehauser's hand. "You too. I look forward to facing you again."