Chapter Fourteen
To The Party
"Naruto! Naruto!"
Naruto raised an eyebrow and turned to see Katie come running to him with a cameraman behind her. "Oh, hello, Katie-san. What do you need?"
"I just wanted to know, now that you control all of the Entertainment District do you plan on going to war with the other Overlords?"
Naruto blinked and his head recoiled back as if punched, his red eyes looking at the woman then the camera in bewilderment. "What makes you think I want to fight my fellow Sinners?"
Katie's grin faltered at the genuine confusion. "Isn't that why you beat the Vees? Aren't you trying to be the one true Overlord of Pentagram City?"
"Nope," Naruto grinned and shook his head. "The whole point of this was not to take over other Overlords and their territories. It's about making sure that my place is safe, and it wasn't so long as I had the Vees working on their own."
"So… it was just to work with them?"
Naruto held his chin and thought for a second. "I guess you can say that. If I wanted to just control everything for myself, why would I have chosen the least destructive ways? Not only are the Vees still alive and unharmed, so are the Sinners who have no stake in the fight."
The television shut off.
"That is the new major Overlord and he has outplayed Velvette, Vox and Valentino for their souls. Now, all three of them and their areas are under his control."
Odette looked at her mother as she spoke, finding her seated in her chair across from the television.
"How dangerous is he?"
Odette pushed up her glasses and looked at her notebook of scribbles about the blonde. "He's ningen, a human variant from another world called Ninkai, so he is automatically more dangerous than the average human. He is very strong and has beaten a lot of minor Overlords, and even prevented Velvette from taking back his territory."
Carmilla listened to her daughter and could only imagine how someone like this flew under the radar for so long. It was impossible for someone like this to have stayed in the background for so long, even more so when he had a chunk carved out of a major Overlord. So what made things change? Why start challenging after so long?
"He is the owner of a bar and grill, the center of his prior slice of paradise, and it has become quite popular. It was inconspicuous for two years until lately when the Princess of Hell started working and living there. It is unknown what made her come to be there, but the Sin of Gluttony has also visited recently."
Carmilla looked up to see if her daughter was joking when she said that and she was surprised that she was not. Why would he be getting this kind of attention so suddenly?
Odette cleared her throat and flipped a page. "There was something I noticed when analyzing videos and when I looked into him more."
Carmilla raised an eyebrow as she waited for her daughter to continue.
Odette tapped her binder a few times while chewing her lip. "He shares the last name of that woman."
Beelzebub was bouncing in her seat in excitement, watching the gigantic 200-inch television. Her seat is a beautiful red-cushion loveseat with golden corded trim. "Look! Look!"
The video she is pointing at is a playback of the live news that she had seen shared by one of her followers on her feed page. On it is the Vees, but her focus is on the blonde restaurant owner. He was currently facing Velvette in a dance game but she wasn't talking about the funny dance moves that he somehow made work.
"I see now." Her father leaned forward in his seat, the eyes of his middle face narrowing in intrigue. "He's using a supernatural ability to enhance his skills."
This is Bael, the first King of the Ars Goetia, and the father of many high-ranking demons. From eldest to youngest, he sired Beleth, Purson, Asmodeus, Paimon, Balam, Belial, and then Beelzebub. Of the children, Beleth and Belial had died in the previous war against the Darkness, and Bee and Asmodeus were no longer members of the Goetia family.
Bee is the only child of Baal's third wife, a fallen fox angel that had caught his eye after the separation from his second. Beleth, Purson, and Asmodeus share a mother, Bael's first wife, while Paimon, Balam, and Belial are from the King's second wife. However, unlike her older siblings, she's been the baby of the family and the only one to have taken up their father's care for science and genetics.
She was very much still young when she began formulating the ways to manipulate genetics enough to create the hellbeasts in Hell to this day. What spurred her on was her mother's death as she could not acclimate to being so far from God's Light. She lost to the Darkness whispering in her ears long ago.
"I had noticed the energy too, but I thought it was something like magic at first," Bee told her father as she had previously recounted what she felt at the Princess's party and at her visit to Naruto's restaurant. "It operated similarly, but the fundamental essence of it was so much more beyond that I knew it couldn't be magic."
"Oh, no, this is far from the magic you and I command, hon," Bael shook his head and focused on the screen. "He's ningen, a human variant created by God some few millennia after Earth. It's weird, because last time I checked they are such a dangerous group that we had to contain and move them to another part of Pride."
"What for? What makes them so different and dangerous?"
Bael sighed and sat back in his chair as the boy finished his dance battle against the Overlord. "They were much like humans but they diverged from the introduction of a world parasite, a creature of Darkness, to their planet."
"A creature of Darkness? Those still exist?"
"So long as the Eldritch of Darkness exist, so will their creatures," Bael told his daughter grimly. "The creature was called the God Tree; or, in the ningen language, the Shinju. It was seen as an object of worship because of how tall and large it grew, and the natives did not know it was sapping the very life of their world."
Bee felt a shiver run up her spine, knowing that anything that could feed off of God's creations of life was bad news. It defied the Light and sanctity of God and the very breath he gave to his creations. Those of Heaven and Hell alike relied on the power and radiance of God, so much so that many were lost in their fall from grace.
"What happened?"
"Like any tree that bears fruit or seeds, the Shinju did as well. But it is only a single fruit that stores the entire amount of energy from life collected by the plant. When eaten, it makes the individual on par with the lowest forms of angels and demons. Eat enough, and they gain the power of the Seraphim."
Bee was horrified at her father's words. The fact that there is a tree that could do this at the cost of the life created by God made it so much more dangerous to her.
"Sometime, the fruit of the Shinju of Ninkai had been eaten before it could kill the planet. This premature fruit was enough to create a being close enough in power to us hellborn. The descendants of this event are what would become the modern ningen, including the blonde there."
Bee could tell she was given a watered down collection of the event but even then she understood what he was trying to say. "So he's dangerous?"
Bael laughed softly. "Not anymore than any other person who has arrived, but it is weird how kind he is for him to be sentenced to Hell. He's powerful, as much as those fifty years his seniors who've arrived, but he doesn't carry the mark of a tainted soul."
"Wow," she breathed, pausing as she realized she started something with someone even her father sounded interested in meeting.
I can't wait for the party tomorrow.
"Jiraiya, report."
Tsunade ran her fingers over the cover page summarizing her former teammate's spy report, briefly looking over each paragraph quickly. At this point, they were coming in biweekly with how quickly tensions have been rising between countries.
"The Akatsuki have captured five Biju currently. The only ones left are the Nibi and Hachibi from Kumo and the Nanabi from Taki." Jiraiya paused as Tsunade turned the page of his report. "Temari has taken over as Kazekage and our shinobi sent there to help train their forces are doing good. Kumo is keeping their Jinchuuriki in their village currently, and Taki is doing the same with keeping theirs next to their leader."
"And what of Orochimaru?"
"I found one of his bases in Kusa completely leveled. It turns out, Sasuke has betrayed him and is traveling around the Elemental Nations. I have no clue where he is but last he was seen was in Hotsprings two weeks ago."
Tsunade paused at that and looked up at the Toad Sannin to see if he was serious. He was. What the fuck? "What happened that made the Uchiha betray Orochimaru?"
"Unknown," Jiraiya did not hesitate to answer and shrugged his shoulders. "Only scarce information is coming out about Orochimaru and his condition but he isn't dead that's for sure. He has some kind of technique that prevents his passing to the Pure Lands every time he dies."
Not like the bastard would enter Heaven, Tsunade thought to herself with a shake of her head. "Has the Kyuubi reformed yet?"
"If it has, someone already got it. I have not found any trace of it beyond what was left from Minato's fight with it about seventeen years ago." Jiraiya's face did not change as he spoke.
His heart and mood has turned cold from the previous way he handled himself, and it wasn't for no reason. He's lost a lot of important people and he felt it was because he did not prepare them enough or he was not there for them. He has lost his students, kids he had looked at as his own, and he has been drowning himself in his work again.
"That's not good," Tsunade sighed while pinching the bridge of her nose. "This currently makes Kumo the biggest threat to us."
"And the Akatsuki?"
Tsunade locked her fingers together and looked at Jiraiya. "Akatsuki are hunting bounties and Jinchuuriki. The only bounties we currently have of worth are Itachi Uchiha and Sasuke Uchiha. One is part of Akatsuki. And we… lost our Jinchuuriki years ago. We are of no concern to them."
"But they can still be a threat to us," Jiraiya argued. "An organization of S-rank threats that are gathering Biju. That would pose national-level threats and we barely know their full potential."
"What are you suggesting, Jiraiya?" Tsunade tiredly looked into the man's eyes. "What do you think I should have us do?"
Jiraiya just stared back without saying anything, his eyes dark and troubled while hers were exhausted and searching for something. "You should keep bolstering us and our allies for a possible war. I will go to Rain and find out about the Akatsuki and their forces. I will be back with a comprehensive report on what I perceive of their threat level."
Tsunade shook her head but she did not argue with him. He was Konoha's spymaster and he operated adjacent to the Hokage and could, in essence, do what he wanted should he find it necessary to village security. "Just be careful, Jiraiya."
"I always am, Tsunade-hime."
Naruto was finishing getting dressed and stood in front of his full-person mirror to look over his appearance. Normally he did not care much for how he looked but he has learned that he was a very big figure now in Hell. He was attending Bee's party, after all, and that required at least some sense of fashion.
Thankfully, he had one of the biggest fashion critics working for him now.
"Oh my fuck, you look so good!"
Naruto raised an eyebrow at his reflection and could only criticize how little like a ninja he looked.
He wore a plain white cotton tee under a black collared short-sleeve with a white flower print pattern on the left breast. The back is just flower petals falling. He has black drawstring cargo joggers that are loose fitting and blend with the stylish black boots he was made to wear. For accessories he was wearing a black, hexagonal onyx pendant hanging on a black cord while a gray smiley face beanie loosely covered his hair.
"Is this really fashion?"
"Yes!" Velvette nodded her head seriously. "It's modern and it is also casual for the party."
Naruto sighed and shook his head . "Alright, fine," he looked at his watch and balked. "I should be heading out, my ride should be arriving soon."
Velvette frowned when the boy turned around to make his way for the door out of the room. She blew between her teeth before marching up behind him and grabbing his arm to yank him around.
"Wha-!"
She silenced him with a kiss, slipping her tongue in briefly before pushing away. "That's compensation for helping."
She didn't wait for an answer before leaving the room herself, leaving the boy to stand in place with a bewildered expression.
He moved his hand from the spot she had stood to the door, muttering to himself. "She… kiss... why… another?! What is with women just harassing me for kisses?!"
"Is that all it takes nowadays?" Haku's voice sounded from behind the wall and he saw a laundry basket fall just outside of view.
The raven-haired boy walked around the corner and gave an amused stare while wiping his forehead. "I might just seize my chance now."
"I will fight you if you even dare to do that, Haku-chan," Naruto gave a dead stare at his friend. "I let you get away with a lot, but starting the domino effect of men kissing me without permission as well will land you a right hook to the jaw."
Haku tittered to himself and shook his head before reaching down to grab the laundry again. "I can continue with the fact that you told me I was too pretty to be a boy. Have fun at the party, Naruto-kun."
Naruto rolled his eyes and waited for the boy to leave while he adjusted his outfit. He cast one last glance at the mirror before leaving as well.
He had gotten to the bottom of the stairs before he was stopped again, this time by Charlie, Helsa, and Tayuya. "See you girls later, I should be back later tonight."
"Still can't believe you're not bringing at least one of us with you," Tayuya crossed her arms. "What if you get attacked again?"
Helsa gave a narrowed stare out of the corner of her eyes as she knew that was the subtle way the girl was still judging her. Because she was the one to invite the blonde out, and it happened under her supervision, the pinkette still blamed her. As if she was the one that hired the mercenaries!
"Bee only invited me, and while I'm sure she wouldn't stop Charlie from going, she wanted this to be a second date. So I cannot invite someone when I myself am just a guest to the party."
"I wanted to attend one again," Helsa pouted to herself. "Only got to go to one and they're so much fun. I don't know how you will feel about them."
"They're crowded and there's a lot of people who want to over indulge themselves to the extreme." Naruto shook his head and shrugged. "It's not my kind of thing but I'm not gonna tell Bee I won't go."
"It'll be fine, Naru," Charlie nodded her head confidently with a bright smile. "I'm sure you will have a good time!"
Naruto chuckled softly and nodded his head while glancing at his phone. "I'll take your word for it, Charlie-hime. Anyways, my ride's here so I will catch y'all later."
Naruto hugged all three women at the same time, gathering them in a bear hug that had Charlie in the middle. Helsa and Tayuya looked uncomfortable but Charlie was beaming in joy. But Naruto knew deep down that the two cold girls actually enjoyed the embrace as well; his taste never lied, and there was more than one but less than four strawberry flavors in his arms.
"Love you guys, be safe and don't burn down my restaurant with me gone," he cracked a smile before letting them go.
"No promises."
"Send me pictures."
"Tell auntie Bee I said hi!"
Naruto laughed at the three girls' responses as he finally left the store.
The three stood where they were, not moving even after the boy left. Charlie looked at the other two with a large smile on her face, and Tayuya stared back with a raised eyebrow while Helsa was just avoiding eye contact. She had an idea.
"Anyone wanna watch some movies? I feel like watching Troy and Titanic!"
The two girls looked at each other before Tayuya shrugged and Helsa chuckled to herself.
"Sure, we're in."
Naruto grinned as he listened to the girls leave the room after making the decision to watch movies together. They were getting along very well once Tayuya and Helsa talked to each other about whatever was going on between them. Charlie is still the one left to make all the decisions on events and activities for their small group, much like how Haku decides on what boys night actually entails anymore.
Hm, now that I think about it, we haven't had a boy or girls night in a while. Naruto decided that he will have tomorrow be a half day and they can all go out and do their thing. He was sure Haku would like the chance to get them out for some activities that didn't include working and having movie or game nights.
"Maybe I should take Velvette on her offer to manage a social media channel for the restaurant. It would be helpful if I could let this be known before customers come later and we aren't open."
With that mental reminder to talk to the Overlord about it, a nice vehicle pulled up in front of him. It's a 1979 Lincoln Versailles in a medium copper metallic color with whitewall tires. The bumper and fender were a polished sleek metal that he could see his reflection perfectly on.
"Naruto Uzumaki?" The hellhound driving the vehicle asked him.
Naruto nodded his head at the driver's question. "Yeah, that's me. You're from Bee?"
"Yes, I am here to pick you up and bring you to Queen Beelzebub's party." The driver unlocked the door. "Get in."
Naruto opened the door and raised his eyebrows at the pink and blue colors of the interior. It makes sense considering the Sin's fur and hair colors. The colors went surprisingly well together but he felt that he would personally get sick of seeing them often.
Sitting in the seat, noting with apprehension the lack of seatbelts, he got comfortable as the vehicle began their trek to the Gluttony Ring. "So, what does it take for a Sinner to leave the Pride Ring? I had always assumed it was not possible because of the requirements of Extermination Day?"
The driver looked back at the mirror briefly before turning his attention back on the road. "A Sinner may be invited outside of Pentagram City so long as they have the permission of Lucifer, and the day is not Extermination Day. The only ones who are exempt from Extermination Day are hellborn."
Naruto nodded his head. "With permission, I can leave to go anywhere I want?"
"Within reason," the driver shrugged his large shoulders.
"Neat, so how do we go to the other rings?"
The driver smirked. "Not the elevator, that's for sure."
"We've been getting less and less ningen arrivals lately."
Michael did not look up from the papers he was reading, his droopy eyes just reading the many reports sent to him. His blonde hair is beautiful and similar to that of his twin, down to even his features. Unlike his brother, however, he had golden circles on his cheeks and his eyes retained their majestic blue hue.
He knew that was Uriel. She was always the one to keep conversations going when their family got together every Sunday. It was a tradition that has stood the test of time, even if they were one person short.
"They just keep falling more and more into their sins." Themiel sighed, tipping his cup of water back and forth with his finger. "It's disheartening. I hope Father's child saves them soon."
Themiel is the twin brother of Azrael and is the Angel of Visions. He has shaggy, curly black hair that reaches his shoulders and golden eyes that shines like the lifeblood of all angels. Unlike his brother's darker outfit, his clothes are white and gold with the middle of his tunic having an opened eye stitched into it.
"Father has His child fulfilling the prophecy," Azrael sighed with a shake of his head. "He said He would be back in time for the ending."
Azrael sat next to his brother with his long black staff leaned against his chest. He had long since grown tired of these events but he showed up at the insistence of his twin. He could never say no to Themiel and the others knew it.
Michael did not say anything though and just continued reading his report. But something nagged the back of his mind at Uriel's simple comment. It was something that no one would think twice about, especially since Ninkai was not a place known to the general populace. Only the Seraphim, Adam, and the Elders know of it.
So why did Uriel saying not as many ningen are entering Heaven bothered him so much? The last time he felt this was the moment the Darkness was corrupting the Ōtsutsuki people without Heaven knowing. He had realized too late because he had ignored his gut feeling and it cost them so much in that war.
Was something missing?
Michael called forth the Tome of Extinguished Lights, the book that records the births and deaths of everyone on Ninkai until the Savior could be born. It was usually kept in God's study with only each of the Elders havin access to it, Azrael mostly since he did handle the process of death and dying. The book was large but was magically altered to condense the pages together by century and decade.
He opened it and began skimming through the hundreds of names silently. Through the amount of names at certain period of time he could tell when they had war and when they had peace. The period the ningen call the Warring States is the longest and most condensed period of births and deaths than any other period with the exception of the Shinju's attack. What was he looking for?
A name. The name of the prophetic child. Why?
"What are you doing with the Tome, brother?"
Gabriel leaned over his brother's shoulder and followed his fingers as they skimmed over the names of living and dead ningen. The pages flipped as they went from name to name, section by section, looking for something.
"Looking."
Gabriel smiled softly at his brother's words and placed his chin on his head. "And what are you looking for, hm?"
Michael did not answer as he turned the page and he skimmed over the page before finding the name he wanted. But… this could not be right. How…?
"He's dead."
Gabriel raised an eyebrow at his brother's words and looked into the book. His own eyes widened when he saw.
"What are you guys looking at? Who's dead?" Themiel sat up a bit as he asked his question.
"The child," Gabriel swallowed as he spoke. "The child is dead."