A cold shudder ran up Vali's spine as the cold winter air blasted against his body. The boy's breath was visible as he stood with his arms crossed over his chest in a feeble attempt to retain some of his body heat. A harsh scowl marked his face as he glanced down at the piece of paper locked between his fingers.
"It's already been two hour." The boy muttered to himself as he crushed the piece of paper before burning it with the usage of his devil power. He had been rudely awakened earlier that morning by a way too overly enthusiastic Azazel. The fallen angel had come charging into his room, waking him up for his rather peaceful sleep, before slamming a piece of paper on his chest and dashing back out. It had taken several seconds to fully awaken from the rude wake-up call before he even read the paper. The paper was orange in color and had the simple message of 'Don't forget, 5am.' written on it. Seeing that it was already 4ish, the devil had dragged himself out of bed, gotten dressed and made his way over to the shop.
That was two hours ago. It was now 6 am and there was absolutely no sign of the blonde. The bitter, winter cold made the wait seem twice as long. Each minute that the teen was forced to wait was another minute he was closer to blowing up the shop.
"No one would even know it was me." Vali mumbled to himself as his hands began to heat up from him channeling his demonic energy into him. He uncrossed his arms as twin orbs of energy formed against his palms. The orbs began to grow in size as Vali continued to feed them more and more of his energy.
"What do you think you're doing?" All the built up energy immediately died down when Vali heard a voice from behind him. The boy turned and came face to face with a warmly clothed Naruto with Koneko by his side.
"Where the hell have you been? I've been waiting out here for two hours and you just casually show up like this?" Vali yelled. Naruto blankly stared back at the irritated teen before walking past him to the door of the shop. Vali looked close to snapping as the blond took out a key and opened up the door before stepping inside.
"This boy is really testing your patience. And you're really failing that test." Vali released a loud grunt at his partner's words.
"Don't try to play his actions off as a test. He doesn't deserve to be let off so easily." Albion sighed at his host's response before going silent, realizing that the boy was too wrapped up in his anger to reason with. With his partner now silent, Vali made a weak attempt at reining in his anger before ultimately failing and following after the blond.
As soon as he entered, he was taken off guard as an apron slammed into his face. The devil quickly ripped away the garment from his face to glare at Naruto. The blond didn't seem the least bit bothered by the glare as he settled himself down at one of the tables with Koneko.
"Storage is in the back along with the inventory checklist. Make sure everything is in order before we open." The lackadaisical way the blond addressed him served to irritate the teen even more. And the devil was getting very close to violently expressing this irritation to his 'boss'.
"Aren't you at least going to show me where to go, boss." The last word was said with such thinly veiled sarcasm that Vali was sure that the shinobi would verbally retaliate. Fortunately for the devil, Naruto didn't seem to be too bothered by the remark as he stood from his seat and gestured for the sacred gear user to follow him.
The teen led them behind the counter of the shop and through it's backdoors. Vali was immediately taken back by the massive designs that covered the entirety of the floor and hallway walls. The hallway seemed to glow and pulsate with an entrancing sort of power that served to mesmerize the devil. He didn't have much time to examine the glowing patterns as he was dragged further back into the shop.
"Everything should be organized in the fridge and freezers. Just make sure everything is there and tell me if I should order some new stuff. Have fun." And with those words, the blond turned and left the room, leaving Vali alone in the artic cold room with a clipboard and a bad attitude.
"Why am I even doing this? I have much more important things to do." Vali grumbled under his breath as the blond's footsteps grew more and more faint.
"Because your pride refuses to allow you to turn away from it now since the boy made it seem like you were too weak to accomplish it. Admittedly, the only reason you're here is because of your own stupid pride." Vali huffed at his partner's comment but said nothing as he knew the dragon was partially right. If there was one thing that boy valued behind his fighting strength, it was his pride.
"Just shut up and let's get this over with."
"Are you being serious with me right now, Raphael? After that speech you made in the meeting, are you really going back on everything you said?" It was only the beginning hours of the day and Michael could already tell that today was going to be a pain in the ass.
The day had started with a weekly report on his desk. Reading through the document confirmed what the Seraph feared, more and more angels were falling to the call of sin. Their numbers were dwindling rapidly and as for right now, there was no end in sight.
After sitting and praying, an activity that he wasn't sure had any effect nowadays, he started his daily round of meetings. Everything from low-level angels complaining of housing issues to archangels requesting less missions were heard by the stand-in God. Most of the requests or issues were rather mundane and didn't really require his personal attention. It was a task that was probably better off be delegated to a lesser being but Michael felt that it was his personal responsibility to hear them out, no matter how picayune they may be. Fortunately for the blond, his bland meetings had been interrupted by the appearance of one of his top generals, Raphael.
Raphael was one of Michael's most trusted advisors and one of his greatest friends. The angel of healing had stood by his side during the war against the devils and fallen angels. He had been there for him during the mourning of his father. He had been at the forefront of the people who supported him taking over the role of God.
The archangel was considered one of the wisest amongst the heavenly court. His powers of healing made him well-worshipped and respected by both humans and angels. His word was considered golden and should never be taken lightly. Having him by his side had been a great boon early in Michael's transition to his new position.
"I know that it's sudden but recent events have made it clear to me that this militarization and pursuit of the boy isn't the best idea." The angel was straight-faced as he addressed his superior and friend. Michael released an exhausted sigh as he reclined back into his chair. This was not what he needed to be hearing right now.
"What is with this sudden change in heart?" He asked, his voice a mixture of exhaustion, frustration and curiosity. Raphael seemed to pick up on these emotions as his own face softened before he began to address his friend.
"You forget that I am the one who puts together that folder you have on your desk every week. I am not ignorant to the knowledge that our numbers are falling. While we are not in immediate danger, we are certainly nowhere near full strength. With the patrol we sent out and the beefed up border, our actual combat numbers, at the moment, are at an all-time low. Plus our extra presence on earth is drawing warning flags from the other factions. Our actions could unintentionally lead to war." Raphael explained. Silence hung between the two for several long seconds as Michael took in the information. His emotions were unreadable as a mask of stoicism settled upon his face.
"What's the real reason, Raphael? I know you. You may not be one for arrogance but you take pride in the strength of our brethren yet here you are doubting them because of our 'numbers'. We both know you don't fully believe in any of that." Raphael looked caught off-guard by the angel's statement. His surprised look was met with a stoic glance from Michael, showing that the angel hadn't fallen for it at all. Raphael released a small chuckle as he threw his arms up in the air.
"Fine, fine. You got me. I should've realized that I couldn't get by you that easily." He lowered his arms back to down to his side as his face took on a more serious tone. "That still doesn't mean I don't believe that we should ease up on spreading ourselves so thin."
"When you give me the real reason as to why you think that, maybe I may take your worries into consideration." Raphael stayed silent for a moment at his friend's response before releasing a small sigh.
"I think we should attempt to recruit the boy or at the very least ally with him." The incredulous look that greeted him almost forced a chuckle out of Raphael but he managed to hold it in. Michael didn't seem as amused as he shot up from his seat.
"Are you okay? Are you sick? Are you in the process of falling or something? I've never seen you go back on your own decision this quickly in my whole lifetime. It was only a week ago that you were calling for this boy's capture and death." If the situation hadn't been so serious, Raphael would've been touched by the sincerity in his friend's concern. He wasn't too surprised by Michael's reaction. After all, he, himself, had a reputation for a stubborn streak.
"I assure you that I am completely fine. My original judgement was based off an initial reaction to the news that Heaven had apparently been invaded. Now that I have had time to fully assess the situation, I can speak with a much clearer sense of mind." Raphael and Michael entered into a staring match as neither refused to back down from each other. While it lacked the coldness that it usually carried, Raphael's face was still contorted into his patent, emotionless mask. Michael's brow was creased with worry as his eyes scanned over his friend's face for a sign. What that sign was, he didn't know exactly.
After a full minute of silent staring, Michael seemed to admit defeat as he collapsed back into his seat. The man's hand came up to his forehead as he began to nurse a headache he was sure was only going to grow worse.
"Explain to me what changed your mind. And don't give me any more fake reasons."Raphael shook off his friend's dismissive tone as he stood from his seat.
"As you know, the 'boy' is located within the town of Kuoh, a well-known territory for devils. We don't have much influence there but with the admission of Asia Argento into the town, I called for an increase of our presence in the city. While the church made of ex-communicated her, she is still too valuable of an asset to just leave unattended, especially in a territory with such high devil activity." The Angel of Healing started off as a folder materialized in his hand. He placed the folder down on Michael's desk and allowed the Seraph to open it before continuing.
"I had several low-level angels place themselves amongst the town folk a few weeks before in preparation for her arrival. I lost contact with them a while ago and with having no idea what was going on, decided against sending any more scouts to the area. I kept with this idea until a week ago when the boy escaped Heaven. I thought that there may of been a possibility that he was responsible for the deaths of the angels." Michael paid rapt attention to his general's words as he flipped through the folder. The folder was filled with numerous reports and pictures of Kuoh. Everything from its forest's density to its industry area was included with the reports.
"So I sent a small group of scouts down into Kuoh once again. They unfortunately learned that the original group had been killed by a faction of fallen angels that had taken refuge in one of the abandoned churches in Kuoh. I would've immediately charged down there myself and rid them of their lives if it wasn't for the fact that Kuoh belonged to one of the higher ranking devil families and we weren't exactly supposed to be there in the first place. The situation definitely was not pleasant;however, the second group of scouts managed to retrieve the original group's reports that were left untouched by the fallen angel's. That report is in your hands right now." Raphael paused in his talking as Michael continued to idly flip through the folder.
"Okay. While I'm not exactly too upset at the fact that we managed to infiltrate a devil territory, I still don't see how any of this managed to shape your opinion on what to do with the child." Michael said as he closed the folder before placing it back on his desk. Raphael nodded before reaching down and taking the folder for himself, beginning to flip through it immediately.
"At first, it had no affect on my own opinion. That's until I started to actually read the full report. One thing that stood out amongst all of the reports was a sudden spike in the natural energy around Kuoh." Michael frowned at the mention of senjutsu. The corruption of Earth's life-force, one of the last remaining pieces of his father, was not something he enjoyed hearing about.
"So are you saying that a youkai managed to find its way in Kuoh?" Michael questioned. His question was immediately answered with a negative shake of Raphael's head.
"I assumed the same thing before reading further into the report. While it had the markings of natural energy, it was different from the type that the youkai used. Our scouts reported that it felt … "pure". The best way to describe it is how they put it: 'Just like Heaven.'" Michaels' eyebrow shot up at the revelation. No one should've been able to replicate the perfect conditions of Heaven. That's what made it Heaven. It was a one-of-a-kind paradise.
"And the centerpoint of this energy just so happened to be at the Candy shop and the surrounding forest." Raphael stopped to allow the information to sink in for Michael.
"This may coincide with the reason why his name isn't present in the Book of Life." Michael mumbled out. Now it was Raphael's turn to be shocked at a revelation.
"His name wasn't in the book? So he is a devil?" Michael gave a negative shake of his head once again as he gave a snap of his fingers. Within a bright flash of light, the Book of Life appeared before the duo.
"As you know, the Book of Life records the name, information and life of all living creatures. Any name that isn't recorded is that of a natural born devil. Even our fallen brethren have their names recorded. This fact led me to assume that the boy was a devil except for one thing. He was present in the seventh level of Heaven and didn't instantly combust into flames. If he was a devil, his presence in Heaven would've been the most torturous experience of his life."
"So he isn't an angel. He isn't a devil. He also isn't a fallen angel. Most likely isn't a youkai. He's not a human since his name isn't recorded in the book so no hero descendant. We don't even know where he is from. What in the lord's name is he then?" Raphael questioned. Michael didn't respond for several seconds before slowly opening the Book of Life to the back.
"Unknown to most, the Book of Life has one exception when it comes down to who it records. While it is a creation of our father, some creatures manage to get around it's all-knowing ability. These creatures are mostly exclusive to Gods of other mythologies." Michael turned the book towards a nervous Raphael. While this wasn't his first time getting a glance at the Book of Life, it was certainly the furthest he had been in it.
The archangel was surprised to see two completely blank pages. Actually, the closer that he looked, the more he realized that the pages weren't actually blank. Small pieces of writing could be seen briefly on the paper before they were washed away like sand on the beach. This process seemed to continue on endlessly, never lasting long enough for Raphael to get a full glance of one of the names.
"Everyone from Zeus to name of the Buddhas are supposed to be contained on these pages. Unfortunately with their own divine power, they have managed to bypass the book's power. All information we have on them is fully artificial." Michael said as he pulled the book back towards himself before closing it.
"With the information you have given me today, I have reached one conclusion. Our target isn't just a 'boy'. He is most likely an entity, a God like our father. From which faction, I do not know. He could be the worship figure of a backwater tribe of people or even an unknown nature god of one of the well-known myths. We do not know. But there's one thing for certain. We can no longer treat this 'boy' as a simple nuisance. I thank you, Raphael. You have opened my eyes to his potential ally or an even greater threat with the information you have gathered." Raphael blinked in shock as Michael shot up from his seat and bowed to him. It was very rare that the blond showed such a level of humility and respect to anyone excluding his sister or his late father.
"Think nothing of it, brother. Anything for the continuation of our father's legacy." Raphael said. Michael raised from his bow and offered the archangel a small smile before Raphael turned and exited the room.
"Is this one of your blessings father? Have you used Raphael to uncover my eyes to a gift you have left for us? I can only assume that this boy's presence is your will and I will follow it and him to my grave." He glanced silently up at the ceiling of his office for several long moments before bowing his head once again and disappearing from the room in a brilliant flash of life. He had work to do.
"Young man, my cookies were several underbaked. Now let me be clear. I've been coming to this place ever since it opened up and I've come to expect A-class quality from here. This is the first time I've been truly disappointed by one of your products. Now, this doesn't mean I'm going to demonize the shop but next time time I…" Vali had long since drowned out the excessive, whining of the customer in front of him. To be completely honest, it wasn't that hard to do. He didn't care much about her opinion of the shop or her cookie order.
It was about mid-day in Kuoh and Naruto's shop was in full swing. People on the lunch break were flooding in and out of the house for a quick taste of the some sweets in order to get them through the rest of their days. It was a constant and repetitive flow of people that helped keep the shop afloat.
Usually Naruto would be manning the register considering the fact that just earlier that week, he was the only employee present. But with the addition of Vali to the team, the blond had immediately put the devil to work as the cashier. The owner, himself, was still behind the counter except now he was making him busy by making more snacks and watching Vali attempt to hold in his anger.
"Furthermore, do you guys make your lemonade fresh squeezed? If so, I highly recommend you guys start doing so. It gives the beverage a much higher quality taste. A simple change can take this business a long way. Hey, are you listening to me young man? I am your customer and I demand that you listen to my co-" The portly man's complaints were put to a stop when his 'underbaked' cookie- the thing that had started off this whole rant- slammed into his face with enough force to actually force to man to stumble backwards a few steps. A series of astonished sputters exited the man's mouth as he looked between an agitated Vali and the crumbled remains of his cookie.
"H-How … How dare you! You call this proper customer service?! This behavior is absolutely despicable. Outrageous! I want to speak with your manager im-" Another cookie sailed through the air and slammed into the man's forehead, this one sending him to the ground. He attempted to scramble back up to his feet but was halted as a hail of cookies rained upon him. A terrified scream accompanied the man's departure as he crawled his way to the main entrance of the shop and out of the door, leaving behind a whole room full of shocked customers.
Vali stood with several cookies in his hand as all eyes turned towards the teenage devil. He watched as some picked up their meals before dashing out of the shop, causing him to release a hush as he lowered his cookie projectiles.
"Those cookies will be coming out of your paycheck. Plus you're going to have to sweep up those crumbs." Vali turned to shoot a scowl at his blonde boss. The teen didn't seem to register the nasty look as he continued to knead away at the dough in his hands.
"Why should I have to pay for that? You heard that man. Anyone would've did what I did after listening to that slob babble on about his stupid cookies." The devil's tone was bitter, his agitation clearly showing in his speech. It was bad enough that he had to work but now he was getting his pay deducted.
"Once again, you don't have to work here. You have no obligation to him, this shop or anyone. The only thing that is keeping you chained to this place is your own pride." His partner's voice echoed loudly in his head. Vali's scowl deepened as he turned away from Naruto, not even bothering to listen to the blonde's response.
"Shut your trap, you old lizard." Vali huffed while making his way over towards the sanitation equipment. His partner's words weren't true. He was doing this for good reasons! … Reasons that he couldn't name currently.
Didn't mean they didn't exist, though.
A brief sting of pain ripped through Vali's head, causing the boy to stumble during his walk. The devil quickly recovered and directed his head towards the door, his eyes narrowing in the process. If he had looked to his side, he would've noticed that his boss had the same exact look.
The room seemed to grow cold as two men wearing trench coats entered the shop. The temperature took a nosedive as a light mist followed in behind the duo. Customers froze in the middle of their meals as the chill of the room dug into their bodies.
Vali met eyes with the taller of the duo and had to stop himself from gasping at the man's identity. These two weren't supposed to be here. Had Azazel sent them or had they come on their own accord? If it was the latter, what was that accord.
The devil's questions went unanswered as the two figures stride past him straight towards the register. The cold temperature that accompanied their arrival persisted as got got closer and closer to shop's counter. Naruto paid the duo no mind as he continued to meticulous molding of his dough.
"Excuse me." The man's voice was a deep, rich baritone. It was voice that contained power, a deep and ancient power that commanded respect with its very present. Unfortunately for the voice and it's owner, Naruto didn't care much for power.
Naruto's finger sunk deep into the dough as he continued to work it over, completely ignoring the presence of the two people standing before him. The cold air that flowed around the incognito duo did little to bother the blond as he threw the dough from hand to hand.
"I said excuse me." The owner of the deep voice spoke out once again, a slight tension now present in his voice. Being ignored was certainly something the man didn't feel like going through. Once again, unfortunately for the man's dwindling patience, he was interacting with Naruto Uzumaki.
A pleasant hum began to emit from Naruto's lips, an action that unknowingly broke the last bit of patience that the man had. A small twitch of the man's brow was the only indication of his irritation as his partner seemed to take that as his cue to step in.
"Excuse me sir. Are you the one named Naruto Uzumaki." This statement seemed to finally catch Naruto's attention as he looked up from his inordinate amount of dough kneading. The blond had a pleasant smile on his face.
"Yes it is. Is there any reason why you two fallen angel's are in my shop?" The casualness in the boy's voice threw the duo off. They hadn't been expecting such a direct statement from him. Though that didn't deter them for long.
"I'm sorry if you see our presence troubles you. I can assure you that we are here on friendly terms. We mean you nor your shop any harm." The taller of the two spoke as he dropped his hood, his partner following suit behind him. In the background, Vali bit down a curse as Baraqiel and Shemhazai's identities were unveiled.
Naruto waved off the man's apologies while stepping out from behind his counter. The blond then proceeded to reach his back, causing the fallen angel duo to tense up as they prepared for a surprise attack. Vali clutched onto the broom in his hand as he prepared to defend his boss. Even though he found the blond human to be an annoyance, he didn't think a human versus two generals of the fallen angel army was a very fair fight.
Everyone was relieved when they realized that Naruto was simply undoing the knot that was holding his smock together. The blond balled up the garment and threw it behind the counter before turning and facing the duo once again.
"You guys don't bother me. I'm pretty sure it's bothering my customers. The smoke is a bit over the top, don't ya think?" Naruto asked. Baraqiel nodded his head before turning to look at Shemhazai. The fallen angel released a small grunt before the oppressing presence, along with the smoke, disappeared from the shop, much to the relief of the remaining customers. Naruto released a pleasant hum as the relaxed atmosphere returned to the shop.
"That is much better. Now let's take this conversation somewhere else." Baraqiel offered the teen a small nod before following after him with Shemhazai in tow. Naruto got back behind the counter and was about to walk into the backroom before stopping in his tracks. He turned towards the still shocked Vali and offered his fellow teen a small wave.
"Man the shop for me a bit. Make sure you don't throw anymore cookies." The blond then descended into the back of the shop with the fallen angel, leaving the devil teen all alone with a shop full of customers.
"Y'know, its a bit foolish to think that the boy is a normal human when he has connection with Azazel. You shouldn't make assumptions, child. They'll get you killed." Vali was snapped out of his shock by his partner's words. A small scowl placed itself on his face as he quickly made his way back towards the counter.
"I'm starting to realize that myself. But I'm not sensing any sort of supernatural energy coming from him. He does have a very strong life force though. Still an annoying asshole."
"A lot of the people you interact with are assholes. The question you should be asking is: have you found yourself a new ally or do you have another target that you'll eventually have to do with?"
"Who know. Either way, I'm prepared to kick his ass no matter what it comes down to."