The Pact of Strays (Naruto X Highschool DxD)

Chapter 3 — "Of Smoke and Shadows, and Bonds Forged in Blows"

[A lone wind whispers through the desolate corridors of a once-proud domain.]

Enter NARUTO, with RIAS behind, walking toward the abandoned Uchiha Complex.

NARUTO:

Now mark thee, fair Konoha with all thy bustling breath,

Thy beating heart of traders, shinobi, child and crone—

I take my leave from thee for now,

And step into the shade of haunted walls,

Where ghost and silence in council meet.

[He halts before the great gates of the Uchiha estate.]

No sentry guards this cursed gate, no voice calls "Who goes there?"

The air is thick with memory and blood unwept,

A tombstone carved of stone and ash.

[He strides inward.]

RIAS: (aside)

What place is this, where silence sings so loud?

The walls, they whisper things I dare not name.

Yet follows he with steady step and brow unbowed.

What seek'st thou, Naruto, in these forsaken halls?

[Naruto climbs an old wooden watchhouse and peers down.]

NARUTO: (muttering)

Behold the pride of dying flame—

A raven child with midnight eyes,

Dancing 'twixt shadows with steel in hand.

Sasuke, the hawk of vengeance clothed in boyish form.

[Below, SASUKE moves with sharp precision across the training grounds, shuriken whirling like silver comets.]

NARUTO:

O artful son of ruin'd clan, thy blade is swift,

Thy purpose clear as noon.

Yet I see in thee a mirror strange—

A soul not fed by peace, but bound by chains.

Thou art the storm the elders feed,

A weapon polished for revenge and war.

And yet thou play'st alone, away from court and crowd.

What dost it mean, this solitude of thine?

[He watches closely. Sasuke flings a shuriken, which arcs, then rebounds from a wall and strikes a hanging leaf.]

NARUTO (with a smirk):

Aye, thou mak'st blades sing like larks.

Yet thy path is straight, so straight it bends.

To eyes that see beyond the feint,

Thy fury lies in plainest sight.

'Tis easy, lad, to read a killing heart,

When thine own was born beneath a hunter's moon.

RIAS (whispers):

He speaks with such knowing—how doth he see so deep?

This child, this fox-mark'd boy.

Each glance a blade, each word a quiet storm.

 ------------------------------------

[Konoha's Edge – The Uchiha Ruins]

(A stage silent save for the wind's whisper, the ghosts of legacy loom overhead.)

Enter NARUTO and RIAS, atop a crumbled archway.

NARUTO:

Lo, behold the cradle of silence and dust—

The House of Uchiha, now a monument to woe.

Where laughter once danced 'tween high-walled courts,

Now 'tis but whispers of wrath that echo here.

(He peers down, mischief tugging his lips like a jester cloaked in solemnity.)

Mark thee yon figure, Rias—see how the storm within him takes root.

That child, Sasuke, doth dance with blades and vengeance both,

As though each throw could wound a phantom past.

RIAS:

(A solemn nod, arms crossed, crimson locks billowing in the breeze)

Methinks his soul burns blacker than thine cloak, young fox.

Such eyes—no innocence remains in those orbs.

He is as those cursed nobles I have known:

Devoured by grief, and fed upon by rage.

(She pauses, her gaze faltering upon the deadly grace of Sasuke's movements)

Yet still, he moves as one trained by gods—

Each leap and throw a stroke in vengeance writ.

He is… terrifying, aye, and yet beautiful in form.

Would that I too wielded skill so precise and deadly.

NARUTO:

(Leans forward, elbows resting on knee, voice low)

Thou hast power, Rias—aye, power enough to raze the skies.

But power untempered is but lightning with no aim.

Thou knowest strength in bursts—but not in breath.

See how he moves? Each step is purpose. Each breath, war.

RIAS:

(Sighs)

Indeed. Mine strength is but a banquet half-eaten.

I fed on praise, not battle. I, a noble, pampered.

Yet here, amongst these shinobi children,

Even babes art forged in fire and hardship.

'Tis humbling.

I, who once could fell towers,

Now scarce keep pace with a genin's sprint.

(She looks away, fists clenched)

My brother—Sirzechs—could sunder mountains with a whim.

He flies as lightning's own twin, and I?

I played at court, I flirted and posed.

While others bled, I dreamed.

NARUTO:

(Quiet, but not unkind)

Then dream no more. The world hath teeth.

Here, thy dreams must wear armor,

And thy heart must bear iron beneath beauty.

But listen well—

This team I forge shall need thee.

Not as thou were, but as thou shalt become.

RIAS:

(Softly)

And if I falter? If I fail to reach the heights thou aimest for?

NARUTO:

(Smiling)

Then rise again, and rise once more,

Until the stars take heed of thy ascent.

---------------------------------- 

[Scene: The Uchiha Compound. A desolate garden cloaked in solemn air. The training grounds stretch vast and silent, save for the slicing breath of shuriken through wind. The sun weeps golden tears o'er broken roofs and weathered stones.]

Enter NARUTO, the Golden Fool, and RIAS, the Crimson Rose of the Underworld.

RIAS

(aside, touching the seal upon her shoulder)

Is this thine wisdom, or mad folly's voice I heed?

To court a storm within this brooding land,

Where vengeance groweth deep as ancient roots?

NARUTO

(smirking, voice heard through the seal)

Fret not, sweet Rose, I've danced with darker things.

Half a year this game I've played with shadows,

And now I move the king upon the board.

These pawns, though prideful, still draw breath and thought.

Let them taste hope, or at least, my knuckles.

RIAS

Yet mark his eyes, how void and storm-bound turn they—

'Tis not the look of one who doth embrace discourse.

NARUTO

Aye, but even stone will speak if struck aright.

Watch, and thou shalt learn this ninja's charm.

Tonight, our spar shall make philosophers of brutes.

He grins, rises like the sun from shadowed plank, and casts his voice upon the quiet world.

NARUTO

Ho, how fares thy brooding soul, young raven?

How hangs thy day in this forgotten nest?

SASUKE, in motion, near slips upon the dusted ground, shuriken halted mid-flight.

SASUKE

Who speaks thus in jest upon Uchiha soil!?

Reveal thyself, or be crushed like insects 'neath my wrath!

NARUTO

'Tis I, fair Sasuke, a neighbor of mirth and mischief—

Naruto, Uzumaki born and bred,

Bearer of sunny locks and charming wit!

Here not to scorn, but raise thee from thy gloom.

SASUKE

A jest, and poorly told. There be no Uzumaki

'Cept in tombs or tomes forgotten.

And if thou meanest prank or trespass,

I shall summon leaf's iron hand to strike thee down.

NARUTO

(steps down with lazy swagger)

Peace, peace! Sweet wrath is wasted here.

I come not as thief, but as duelist and friend.

A spar, good sir, and if thou dost prevail,

Then chase me hence with broken limbs and pride.

SASUKE

(eyes narrowing like twin daggers in moonlight)

Five seconds. Speak thy peace, or taste defeat.

NARUTO

I ask for none but five minutes,

In which our fists shall trade philosophies.

If thou findest merit in my blows,

Then grant me audience and ears unclogged by pain.

SASUKE

(rolls shoulders with slow menace)

So be it. Words are wind, but fists ring true.

Prepare thy bones, intruder.

Enter RIAS, watching from the eaves like a ghost cloaked in crimson.

RIAS

(aside)

Lo, what strange courtship of souls be this?

One born of laughter, one of loss.

Their spirits clash like sword to shield,

Yet perchance 'tis not hatred, but healing's herald.

Would that I might learn this art—this human spark

That tempers fury into fellowship.

 ----------------------------

[Enter NARUTO and SASUKE upon a wind-kissed shore, the sun casting golden threads o'er the shifting dunes. A stillness reigns, broken by steel and storm.]

NARUTO:

(With a grin that danced like the morning sun)

Hark, what say thee to blades that bend the wind?

(He draweth two shurikens, launching them forth with cunning arcane craft. The twin blades whistle, converging like fates intertwined, then split—as if the stars themselves diverged.)

SASUKE:

(With eyes like thunderclouds, already a panther coiled)

These games of thine hold little mirth for me.

(He leapeth back, shadows trailing him, dodging with the grace of a falcon in flight. The shurikens bite naught but air as he landeth like a whisper upon sand.)

[They clash.]

SASUKE:

(Steel meeteth steel; the sound like a hymn to old gods)

Thy foolishness hath brought thee naught but pain.

Speak thy last, for my patience wane.

NARUTO:

(Pressing forth, eyes blue as heaven's own heart)

Thou lack'st in spark and spirit both, I say.

Come, partner, what say thee to brighter day?

Join hands with me, we may yet craft a dawn

Where blades be still, and not a soul forlorn.

[He sweepeth Sasuke's legs. The raven soars—lands.]

SASUKE:

(A kick swings forth—but Naruto shifteth his stance mid-motion. With sudden art he raiseth his opposite leg, parrying with deftness rare.)

[Shurikens fly once more—this time from Sasuke's hand, swift and sure.]

NARUTO:

(With a puff of breath, as if Aeolus lendeth power)

Come now, is this not a dance divine?

(A gust from his lungs raiseth the sand—a swirling veil of gold. And with sleight, a chilly smoke bomb falls, cloaking the world in shadowy mist.)

[He dons his goggles, orange and black—like twin suns obscured.]

NARUTO (mocking, yet light of heart):

Is't not joy to spar 'gainst friend, not foe?

This play, this jest, doth soothe the soul.

SASUKE (through gritted teeth, ire rising):

I shall take pleasure in thy suffering cries.

This jest of thine offends mine eyes.

[The raven burns—his hand a-flame with inherited wrath. A great fireball hurls through the smoke—bright and proud.]

NARUTO (aside):

Ah, fire—thy name is predictable.

(Slipping through shadow, guided by cunning and guile, he reappeareth behind Sasuke. With a sudden push, he sendeth the raven tumbling into sand.)

SASUKE:

(Choking upon dust, eyes wild)

Wha—!?

NARUTO:

(With measured breath, as if bearing ancient truth)

Thou feel'st not my presence, hidden in the murk.

Genjutsu, thou know'st it, aye—but dost not heed.

Yet 'tis moot, for it bendeth not my soul.

This prisoned fox within hath paid its toll.

[A moment of stillness—truth laid bare.]

NARUTO (murmuring):

The beast within hath granted me strength and bane.

A tail-less beast I am—shackled not by chains.

My chakra doth swell with every tide and sun.

A tempest walks with me—its song not yet done.

 ------------------------------

Scene: A wide and lonely training field, kissed by the sun and flanked by windswept dunes. There, the heat of challenge brews, and pride shall be tested 'neath heaven's gaze.

Enter NARUTO and SASUKE, locked in martial contest.

NARUTO:

(aside)

Yon raven prince doth bear the weight of storms—

So sharp of gaze, so swift to strike and burn.

Yet pride hath made his footing rough and blind,

And thus the tempest stumbles on the sand.

(Sasuke lunges like a thunderbolt, but Naruto, nimble as the breeze, sways aside before the blow hath found its mark. The ground kicks dust and silence into the air.)

NARUTO:

(throwing sand)

Have at thee, sour prince of glowering mien!

Thy eyes may blaze, but dost thou see the fun?

(He flicks a chakra spark, a sphere no larger than a lark's egg, from his fingertips. It whistles past with naught but a sting—but serves its aim: confusion.)

SASUKE:

(firmly)

I see thy tricks. They're naught but child's delight.

This jesting art thou callest strength?

(With chakra cloaked 'round limbs like armor thin, Sasuke rolls, rises, dashes like the wind.)

NARUTO:

(guarding, breathless with delight)

Thou mov'st with fire! Aye, and sharpness too.

But thy wrath hath left thy sides unguarded.

(Their limbs clash—arm 'gainst arm, knee 'gainst air. Sasuke twirls, kicks, twists—but Naruto catches his foot mid-turn with a grin most foxlike.)

NARUTO:

Thine answer quick—what color paints thy soul?

Is't blue as dusk, or red like warrior's flame?

Mine own is orange—bright, obnoxious, bold!

(Sasuke crashes to the earth, held firm, his legs bound in Naruto's grip like prey ensnared.)

SASUKE:

(muttering)

What devilish hold is this? A vice of steel?

This jesting fool... hides strength behind his smile.

(He breathes, forced calm upon the tempest in his chest.)

SASUKE:

Speak thy name, strange spirit in boy's guise.

NARUTO:

Naruto Uzumaki—Normal Class the First.

Yet little is normal when joy is thy weapon.

SASUKE:

Normal? Thy strength belies such simple cloth.

Why hide amongst the sheep, when wolves roam free?

NARUTO:

Some men crave gold, I crave peace and shadow.

Yet shadows know the worth of well-placed friends.

SASUKE:

And now, thou seek'st from me what? Brotherhood?

NARUTO:

Aye, alliance forged in battle's flame.

We climb the mount with hands clasped firm and fair.

You share thy skill—I grant thee challenge rare.

Together, rivaled, we rise beyond the stars.

SASUKE:

I need not thee. For coin, a jounin comes.

Why spar with brats when masters beckon close?

NARUTO:

Because, dark soul, 'tis in the clash of equals

That greatness blooms, and sparks strike brightest heat.

Wouldst thou chase stars, or sit 'neath them alone?

SASUKE:

Break both my legs and still my answer stands.

This heart, though cracked, bows not to dreams so soft.

NARUTO:

(softly, rising, releasing him)

Thou art a rock. Yet even rocks erode.

I'll come again, to test thy will anew.

(He leaps away, laughter trailing in the wind like song.)

NARUTO:

Think on't, brooding flame.

We're all but sparks, but some choose to ignite.

(Exit Naruto. Sasuke lies still, not in pain, but thought.)

SASUKE:

(quietly)

Strange fool. Perhaps... not wholly foolish.

 ------------------------------------

Scene: Training Field, dusk creeping over the broken dust where once two youths did battle. The sky bleeds crimson, and the wind whispers secrets through the leaves. Sasuke lies upon the ground, breath slow, eyes wide with troubled thought.

[Enter Sasuke, sitting on the training ground, bruised and covered in sand. He looks to the horizon, where Naruto vanished like mist.]

SASUKE (aside):

What phantom wind hath snatched him from mine eyes?

He vanished swift as dreams at break of dawn,

His laughter echoing like jesters rude

That mock the pride of lords in tatters clad.

What devil's game is this, where I—the heir

To blooded might, to Sharingan divine—

Am made to taste the soil by common hands?

(He touches the dirt where he fell, slowly clenching it in his fist.)

This earth remembers all who fall in shame,

And I, Uchiha, marked by noble flame,

Did fall, did flinch, did fail... before him.

A wretched orphan born of whispered sin,

A son of ghosts, with none to speak his name—

Yet moved with grace that mocked the very wind.

(He rises, paces slowly, muttering as if to the shadows around him.)

Each day I break my flesh in silent toil,

While others feast, I suffer, sweat, and bleed.

The scrolls, the forms, the elders' hollow praise,

All mine—but what have they bestowed on me?

What strength, what edge, what triumph did I find

When faced with him—this "Naruto," uncrowned?

(He halts, staring up at the sky now darkening.)

Is he a trick? A beast wrapped in boy's form?

Why doth the village speak his name in hush?

What dread doth lie beneath his reckless mirth,

That warriors blanch and watch with wary eye?

Can power such as his from shadow bloom?

Or hath he struck some bargain with the fates?

(Sasuke falls into thought, gazing at the moon.)

Perhaps I err in scorning offered hand.

He spoke of bonds, of scratching backs and rise—

But can I trust one clothed in mystery's veil?

Nay! Such reliance makes the warrior weak.

I am no fool to chase his fleeting light.

Instead, I'll forge my path with sharper steel.

(He clenches his fist, fire lighting in his gaze.)

A jounin shall I seek—one versed in war,

Who knows not mercy, sleep, nor second thought.

From them I'll learn what books have never shown—

How best to kill, to move, to never yield.

Let Naruto play king among the low.

I shall ascend alone. Uchiha stands… alone.

(Yet even as he says this, his voice trembles for the briefest of moments.)

SASUKE (softly, to himself):

But still… that grip… that gaze… that grin…

He was not born to kneel.

What storm brews in his chest, that even I—

I could not see the end?

[Exeunt Sasuke, the wind picking up as if to carry away his doubts—or perhaps to stoke the fire within.]

 ------------------------------

Scene: A narrow path under moonlit trees, where fate writes with blades and smoke the truth behind the smile of an orphaned fox.

Enter RIAS, breath heavy, stumbling after NARUTO, who vanishes into the mist of his own conjuring.

RIAS:

O stars above, what fury hast thou loosed upon this earth?

Yon smoke did part like curtains drawn too fast,

And through its veil, a phantom laughed and danced—

Nay, battled! With grace that mocked all noble creed.

He spoke not of power, yet wielded it as king.

His hands bore ink, but not of poets born—

Twas sealèd might upon his flesh inscribed,

And each movement brought forth a silent storm.

(She stops and clutches her arm, bruised and sore from the scuffle)

I had thought our world alone held ancient craft,

Arcana old and lineal might of blood,

Yet here comes he—an urchin with no name,

No noble house, no whispered birth foretold,

Yet gods and beasts do tremble in his wake.

(She recalls the battle)

Like tempest wild, he led the fight alone.

His foe—a trained warrior with eyes like fire—

Did falter 'neath the rhythm of his dance.

Each strike a jest, each dodge a cruel jest,

As if to mock the pride of clans and lords.

(Beat)

And when I fell—aye, struck and brought to ground,

Did he extend a hand, or speak kind words?

No! His eyes, cold as moons o'er winter seas,

Regarded me not as friend nor shieldmaiden,

But a tool unsharpened, not yet of use.

(She rises and follows again)

I must remember this—this truth now scarr'd

Upon the chambers of my prideful heart.

This fox, this boy, is no mere jesting fool,

But tempest bound in flesh and golden locks.

He sees through masks, and wears one well himself.

Yet I, Rias of Gremory's hallowed line,

Shall not be pawn nor shadow to his scheme.

(Clenches fist)

If he would drink from the chalice of my lore,

Then I shall feast upon his strength of war.

No longer shall I trail behind, aghast,

But match him step for step, blow for blow,

And draw from him the truth of what he is—

A killer born, yet not unteachable.

(She gazes toward the trees where he vanished)

Run fast, sweet fox, and draw thy stars around—

But know the devil too can learn to hunt.

For knowledge shared is rarely freely given,

And thou art not the only soul with secrets hidden.

 ----------------------------

[A wooded glade, distant from the place of conflict. Enter RIAS and NARUTO, fleeing apace.]

RIAS

Prithee, are we not pursued? Shall thine foe not summon guards to fetch thee hence?

NARUTO (laughing, with a swaggered gait)

Fear not, fair flame, for pride is the leash 'round that hound's throat.

He shall not summon law nor blade nor rope,

But rather seek to match me blow for blow,

To feel again the fire that didst burn in him so.

He'll not call watchmen — nay, he'd sooner choke

On spite than confess a rival made him broke.

RIAS

Yet strange is this way of menfolk's bond,

To trade not words, but fists so fond.

Was't not thy aim to gain him as thy friend?

Yet now, he boils with wrath thou didst offend.

NARUTO (grinning)

Ah, lady fair, thou speak'st like one untried

In paths where warriors walk with wounds as guide.

To cross blades and trade might is no offense,

But tribute paid in battle's recompense.

In conflict truest kinship oft is born —

A tie not wrought by smiles, but tempests sworn.

RIAS (aside)

He speaks with certainty, yet I find it strange,

Like tales in tomes where hearts with fists exchange.

Is such the custom 'mongst these men of might?

To court respect by clashing, not by right?

NARUTO (stops, turns, arms crossed like a sage of war)

There's truth in pain, in steel, in breath hard-spent —

In trials faced 'neath stars when hope is rent.

Sasuke, that dark-eyed prince of burning pride,

Now sees a path he cannot walk beside.

Yet walk he will, for even now I see

The fury in his gaze shall set him free.

'Tis not hatred, no — but hunger sharp and keen

To match the strength in me that he hath seen.

RIAS (nods slowly)

Perchance I judged him wrong, this boy so wild.

In warlike guise, he bears the soul of child.

But oh! What power burns behind those eyes,

And what strange games 'twixt foes and friends arise!

NARUTO

Come now, Rias, let us not dally so.

Much yet remains to teach, much more to know.

And though I am no knight nor polished lord,

My fists speak truth no gilded tongue afford.

RIAS (faint smile, then aside)

He is no courtly bard, yet words he wields

As deftly as the blade he brings to fields.

He may not feel as I — with gentle heart —

But in his fire, there lies a different art.

If I must learn, then let this be my way:

To walk with wolves beneath the break of day.

And if he means to use me, so shall I

Draw from his storms the strength to reach the sky.

 ------------------------

They stand atop a water tower, the city sprawling beneath like painted scrolls. Konoha, with its tiled roofs and humming streets, lives and breathes with mystery.

RIAS (gazing outward):

This village... 'tis like and unlike the Nippon I adored.

Yon towers hum with sparks and wires, yet no car be seen.

The screens do flicker, aye, yet no web doth bind them.

Strange world, a twin to mine, but older—steeped in sealèd time.

NARUTO (walking forth, cloak fluttering):

Konoha, heart of shinobi, breathes through roots unseen.

These trees—no mere trunks of bark and leaf—

They were sung to life by Hashirama's might,

Each a guardian, each a spell-bound tower,

With sigils carved to veil us from the world.

No man unbless'd by leaf's own mark may tread

Without wandering lost 'neath beast and branch.

RIAS:

Aye... I feel thine art, carved deep in nature's womb.

This forest is no mere grove, but fortress green.

NARUTO (pausing, peering east):

Well said. Now come. Our next tale draws near.

A lad awaits, a sprout of spring and ceaseless flame.

Rock Lee his name, all might and no magic—

The soul of toil in flesh and bone.

RIAS:

What dost thou seek in him? He seemed less sharp than others.

NARUTO (smirking):

Not all strength lies in genius, lady fair.

Some rise by sweat alone, and shine the brighter.

He shall join us—or test us. Either way, the play proceeds.

With that, Naruto leaps from the rooftop, a yellow blur descending to fate. Rias follows, her crimson locks dancing with the wind, eyes alight with thoughts unspoken.

RIAS (softly, as she vanishes):

Oh crimson eve, guide me through this tale.

Mayhap this devil learns to dance 'mongst leaves.