Minato and Jinwoo followed the demon princess named Esil as they were led down a corridor draped with an elegant red carpet.
She had long, smooth lavender hair, pointy ears with a slim, slender body that was covered by royal black and golden lined armor— fitting for the demonic princess she was.
They were being led to her father, the leader of the demon noble clan known as the Radiru. Minato had learned a lot of interesting facts about the demon realm thanks to the bashful and skittish demon princess. Such as the fact that demons were separated into two categories: intelligent and unintelligent demon kind. The unintelligent demon kind didn't acknowledge their intelligent demonic counterparts as people and were very hostile to them, usually attacking them on site.
Although that seemed to be the case with any intelligent life in Minato's opinion. It was also the norm that intelligent demons were nobles and stronger on average than their unintelligent kin although there were exceptions like in the cases of Metus and Vulcan who were stronger than some most nobles. Jinwoo offhandedly mentioned that he had dispatched of those two quite easily which greatly surprised Esil.
He was also curious about another thing with Esil was the fact that she could understand and speak with Jinwoo quite well despite the fact that he was human and the fact that Minato later learned Jinwoo spoke Korean— an entirely different language.
She explained that demon kind could understand people through intent so language barriers weren't an issue for them. Minato wondered if the Nine Tails had something to do with him being able to understand and comprehend an entirely new language like Korean without issue.
He turned to the beast dwelling inside him for the answer, but just received a gruff and rude reply.
"Didn't I tell you to not bother me?"
"I'm sorry, I'm just curious about the language thing that Esil was talking about." Minato laughed sheepishly at the furious glare of the Kyuubi through the bars of the torii cage.
"What's an Esil? And I also don't care!" He roared loudly causing Minato's hair to flap around from the force of the roar.
"Rude." Minato pouted, returning to the real world.
As Jinwoo and Minato walked they were thrown suspicious glances from the tall guards of the castle. However, Esil remained firm and commanded that they be treated as guests of the castle.
'Funny. A demon castle within the demon castle.' Minato quipped in his head not realizing Jinwoo had also thought of a similar joke.
Reaching the throne room without further issue they were greeted to the sight of a man sitting on the throne with an elegantly trimmed goatee and a stern expression.
This was Esil's father and Minato could tell that he was a pompous and arrogant man. As head of a demon noble family he supposed that it came with the territory.
"Father, I brought guests." Esil dropped to one knee and bowed to the man shrouded in the shadows of the throne.
Minato discreetly scanned the room and saw rows of guards on either side of him that stood tall and intimidating to anyone of lesser mettle than Minato and Jinwoo.
"Esil, y-you…" Her father growled. "Who in the world did you bring here of all places?" The man rose from the throne and shrieked, recoiling with a healthy dose of fear.
Esil rose to her feet in confusion, "Huh? These men are guests, father…"
She was quickly interrupted by the frightened man, "Just what kind of guest comes into someone's home with an army!?" He screamed.
"What?" She mumbled.
"Esil, can't you see with your eyes? There are countless soldiers in that man's shadow." He fearfully pointed at a stoic Jinwoo. Esil widened her eyes and glanced at Jinwoo, only to not find what her father could apparently see quite clearly.
'He can see Jinwoo's shadows, huh?He's got good eyes.' Minato thought.
Without warning the guards drew their blades and brandished them at two men. Minato kept a cool expression on his face as he was confident that if it came down to a fight then he'd make it out just fine. Jinwoo was of similar confidence as he kept his gaze aloof and detached from the situation.
"I promised Esil…" Jinwoo addressed the man on the throne with his head held high. "That we'd leave this place if she hands me the entry permit." He casually pushed the blade away from his face.
Esil's father remained nervous as he processed Jinwoo's words, 'He must be the one that's been killing all the demons at an insane rate, clearing all the floors of the Demon Castle. Although we are nobles, the Radiru clan sits at the bottom of the 20 clans, making us the weakest. He must be the one that killed Metus and Vulcan, if that's the case then there's no way we stand a chance!'
"The entry permit…" He chose his words carefully even whilst his thoughts raced. "Is that all you wish for?"
"I actually have one more request." Jinwoo said, putting the demon noble even more on edge and even Minato turned to him in curiosity.
Jinwoo quickly wrapped his arm around Esil and pulled her close to him, "I'd like to borrow her for a bit." He said very calmly and in typical Jinwoo fashion.
Minato struggled to keep his laughter to himself because of Jinwoo's rash actions, 'That didn't seem to go well with her Dad, Jinwoo.' Minato shifted his gaze to the demon noble's irritated visage due to Jinwoo's bold actions on his daughter in front of his eyes.
'He seems pissed…' he awkwardly noted, letting go of Esil's shoulder like it burned.
Jinwoo didn't think it was a big deal as he only requested Esil's presence as she knew where all the entry permits on the upper floors were, but maybe he had done something wrong.
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After that incident Esil's father invited them to come and sit down and eat so that they could discuss Jinwoo's demands in a more relaxed environment. There was an array of delicious looking and smelling food displayed on the long table. Minato looked at the nicely served piece of meat in front of him and picked up his utensils and cut through it after deciding it looked normal enough.
"A guide?" The leader of the Radiru clan started. "You want an entry permit and a guide? That's it?" He asked cautiously and almost incredulously as if he was expecting Jinwoo to make much more strenuous and difficult demands.
Minato chewed his foot to hide the smile forming on his face, 'I guess he read too much into the 'I wish to borrow her line' hehehe.' Minato thought, mimicking Jinwoo's voice in his own head.
Even he was a bit confused at his demand, but once he ran it through his head it made sense to ask her to accompany them as Esil knew the location of all the entry permits.
She explained that her clan had been assigned to protect the floor and the entry permit to the other floors. When he asked why he didn't get much as she explained that her whole clan and the other demon clans woke up in the Demon Castle with the job to protect the floor.
Apparently, they were originally somewhere else called the Demon Realm before being transported to the Demon Castle, so his questioning continued further to work out just who exactly it was that put them here.
A weird sensation occurred as if she had been taken over by some otherworldly force that caused her to repeat the lines 'I have said more than I am allowed to say. This conversation will be terminated.' which put him on guard. Jinwoo quickly jumped in after that, asking that he stop asking those kinds of questions from then on. He agreed and internally wondered if the force that possessed Esil was watching them right now.
"You won't put my daughter in danger, correct?" Minato was brought back from his musings by the voice of Esil's father. He was asking Jinwoo as it was clear he viewed him as the greater threat to his safety.
"You have my word." Jinwoo answered very easily, a slight chuckle under his breath as he thought about something funny that no else was privy to.
"Very well."
The clan leader seemed satisfied with his answer, calling for a servant with a simple wave of his hand. The servant walked over to Jinwoo and presented him with a scroll. He grabbed it and opened it up, watching as the system confirmed his suspicions.
'It's an entry permit. Now that I'm on the upper floors. Am I supposed to get these permits from each of the demon clans?' He wondered to himself. He certainly hoped that he wouldn't have to go through all this diplomacy stuff again.
He got up from his seat and made to leave, "Can we leave right away?" he asked, glancing at Esil from the corner of his eye.
"Yes." Esil answered, although a bit startled.
[A demon noble has requested to join your party. Namikaze Minato has been automatically added to the party.]
[Party members may use the divination circle to access other floors. Experience points may also be divided up between members based on the amount of contribution made by each member.]
'A party system? I share my experience with party members?' This was definitely a new feature of the system and one that he wasn't really welcoming towards as his thoughts progressed. 'If it's disturbed in proportion to the amount of contribution…'
He turned to the lavender haired demon girl, "If we happen to go into battle, don't even think about joining the fight. I'll take care of everything myself." He said sternly.
"...Okay." Esil blushed, for reasons unknown to him.
Minato watched their interaction with intrigue as only one word passed through his mind,'Cute.'
Jinwoo turned to Minato trying to assign him a role and not worry about him interfering with his leveling up process and this way he was killing two birds with one stone by keeping his promise and being able to level up without worry. "Minato, can I ask that you watch her back?"
Minato tilted his head to the side with a slight smile, "Sure. You won't have your hands full?"
He smirked, "Not at all."
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"Will you be okay without your horse?" Jinwoo asked Esil as the three of them through the golden light of the 81st floor of the Demon Castle.
"Only party members are allowed to move to other floors, so I can't take a horse with me." She answered.
They walked through the fiery plains of the 81st floor all the way to another castle in the distance. When they reached the precipice of the castle gates Jinwoo told them to wait there and asked Minato to watch over Esil as he advanced.
"Sir Jinwoo, wait up." Esil reached into her bag for an elegantly styled bottle of wine. "This is liquor that the chief of the Garsh clan likes. My father prepared gifts for each of the clans." She explained.
Jinwoo turned to her, "Why?" He was really itching to get into a fight right now.
"If you take this with you you'll have an easier time negotiating with—"
"Negotiate?" He cut her off promptly with a question of his own, "Are you guys on good terms with the Garsh clan?"
"Well, n-no. Back in the Demon Realm, hierarchical disputes among nobles were commonplace…" She mumbled but then picked up her voice. "But I can assure you that the Garsh clan is at least reasonable."
"Good to know." He said with his back facing her. "Minato—"
"Yeah, yeah, I know." Minato waved him off. He was already aware of his intentions and they weren't to negotiate.
"Alright then. You two wait here. I won't be long." He declared with an air of cool, commanding confidence.
"What's Sir Jinwoo going to do, Sir Minato?" Esil asked the blonde Hokage, slowly lowering the wine bottle back into her bag with a deflated expression.
"Well…" Minato trailed off with a sheepish chuckle.
In just a few short minutes flames and shrieks erupted from the Garsh clan's castle. Jinwoo then quickly returned with the entry permit to the 82nd floor.
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"So what's with the mask?" Kushina asked, tilting her head to the side.
The S-rank ice mage Kei gave their newest member an unimpressed look. "I have a sensitive nose to mana. The smell of it makes me barf." He said bluntly and turned away from her.
"Ah, I see…" The redhead awkwardly leaned over to Kanae, whispering in her ear, "I don't think he likes me very much."
Kanae rolled her eyes, "Don't worry about him, he's just grumpy."
"A very valid reason to be 'grumpy' I might add. It was my day off." Kei said icily, his voice muffled greatly by the high tech gas mask he wore.
"Yeah, well, we can't do anything about it. She is a new member of the team so our team structure has to adapt to accommodate her." Shimizu Akari clarified to her annoyed comrade.
She was the S-rank healer of the Draw Sword guild and had orange hair styled in two buns while her bangs framed her pretty face.
"It's still annoying." He grumbled, trying to distance himself from the others as much as possible.
"Oh, come on Kei! Don't be like that! I am personally thrilled to have another female in the squad!" Akari exclaimed with bounds of youthful exuberance.
She skipped over to Kushina and wrapped her arm around her neck to pull her in close. "We gotta go on a girls outing one of these days. I mean Kanae is fun and all but she can be a little cranky, especially when it comes to food." She whispered.
"You better not be talking about me." Kanae growled which caused the healer to hold her hands as a sign of innocence.
"Of course not, love!"
Kanae narrowed her eyes not quite believing her words but letting it go.
"Is she even strong enough to warrant all this trouble? I mean what has she proven?" Izawa Ippei, the S-ranked assassin who looked in desperate need of sleep, questioned.
"If you read her report you'd know that she slayed an S-rank monster known as the Arch Lich." Hoshino Minoru cut in. He looked to be a man with a perpetually stern expression— never one to crack a smile.
"That can't be true…" Ippei casted doubt on the claims.
"It's true. I was there. She's the one that saved my ass." Kanae folded her arms and looked off to the side, refusing to make eye contact with anyone.
They were all shocked to hear her admit to being saved so easily. She was as prideful as they come and to admit something like that definitely held some weight to Ippei's thoughts on the redheaded woman.
His droopy gaze eyed her more closely this time and although he couldn't sense auras as well as other people in the group he could still tell that a considerable strength lay dormant within the woman.
"If you're saying that then maybe I'll give her some grace." Ippei relented.
"What do you say to a contest of strength, eh?" Kenjo Tanaka smirked, flexing his giant muscles at Kushina and flashing his pearly whites at her in the process. "I can tell just by looking at you that you're a warrior of great ability!"
"Ehh?" Kushina laughed awkwardly at the tall man. He was the S-ranked Tank of the Draw Sword guild with an exuberant personality. 'He kind of reminds me of little Kakashi's friend, Mighty Guy, I think?'
"Yeah, that's not gonna happen, muscles-for-brains." Kanae cut in quite sternly.
"That's rude, you know." Kenjo frowned, deflated by Kanae's insult.
"Don't worry, big buy, I don't think she wants to share her new girlfriend with you." Akari elbowed him jokingly.
Kanae flushed crimson, her voice rising instantly, "Just what in the hell are you saying, Akari!"
"Nothing, it's just you've always given off a certain type of vibe to me." Akari feigned innocence as a coy smile formed on her lips.
"What kind of vibe?" She snapped, her aura starting to seep into the air.
"I think we both know what I'm talking about." She tilted her head to the side in a teasing manner.
'I can't help but feel that I caused this somehow…' Kushina lamented in her head, helplessly with an awkward smile.
"Guys, I don't think getting into a fight will help anything." Minoru interjected trying to defuse the tension.
"Ah, Kanae, I think you should calm down a little." Kushina said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
She glanced at Kushina briefly, then turned back to Akari with a sharp glare, huffing as she crossed her arms with indignation.
"I think I know who submits to who now." Akari giggled, her hand covering her mouth.
"Akari…" Minoru let out a weary sigh. His fears materialized themselves when Kanae snapped and hurled herself at the healer
"Ahahaha, Kenjo protect your healer!" Akari exclaimed, slipping in behind Kenjo and using him as a human shield against the ticked off Kanae.
"Huh, what?" Kenjo blinked, completely lost as the situation quickly spiralled out of control. The only thing registering was Kanae charging right at him. 'Ah shit, this is gonna hurt,' he thought, bracing himself for the blow from his powerful comrade.
"Out of the way, meathead! That bitch is gonna get it!" Kanae snarled, rearing her fist back and looked ready to punch through Kenjo if he didn't move.
"I think you might be overreacting a little bit, love! It's just a bit of fun!" Akari shouted, her voice muffled from behind Kenjo's back.
'Don't antagonise her further!' Kenjo thought desperately. Strong as he was, the last thing he wanted was to take a hit from an angry Kanae.
Suddenly a flurry of golden chains lashed out, wrapping around the wrathful she-beast and stopped her dead in her tracks.
"What the—?"
"Where did these come from?"
"Whose chains are those?"
'Can't…move… an inch.' Kanae squirmed against the bindings, trying her damndest to break free.
"Woah…" Akari breathed, awestruck by the brilliantly shining chains. Her gaze shifted to Kushina, whose calm and unbothered expression contrasted the chaos around her, keeping Kanae in check effortlessly. 'To restrain an S-rank as strong as Kanae so easily…she's really something.'
And Akari wasn't the only one thinking it. The others were too. Most of them knew how much effort it took to restrain a fellow S-rank.
'That's something only President Goto can do.' Minoru thought, stunned.
"Maybe you should calm down, okay?" Kushina said softly— but the crushing weight of her aura pressed on everyone, chilling them to the bone.
Kanae's muscles trembled, straining against the chains before giving in and nodding her head. Once Kushina was sure she was calm, released her from the chains.
"I think that's enough for now, eh?" Reiji Sugimoto's calm voice cut through the room as he entered, three Draw Sword Guild members trailing behind him.
"Vice President? You're here?" Minrou questioned. "So I assume President Goto will not be joining us." His words were more so stating a fact than posing a legitimate question.
Reiji nodded, "Yes, he's currently in South Korea meeting with their Hunters Association. He has already rearranged the teams to his liking so I'm here to pass the message along."
Reiji Sugimoto was the Vice President of the Draw Sword guild, second in command to only Goto Ryuji, but he wasn't a combatant due to personal reasons.
Turning to their newest recruit, the redheaded Uzumaki, he said, "Kushina, you'll be filling the remaining spot on Delta Squad. That means you'll be with Izawa Ippei and Kei."
"Good," Reiji concluded, turning to Minrou, "Now then, we should get started on the presentation. Minrou, give me a hand with the projector— we'll need it for the strategy presentation."
Minrou sighed, walking over, "Seriously, Vice President? How do you still not know how this stuff works?"
Reiji only offered a faint smile. "That's why I have you."
As Reiji and Minrou busied themselves with setting up the projector, the others settled into a quiet awkwardness. Ippei reflected on Kushina's assignment to Delta squad, showing indifference to the decision.
Kei, on the other hand, bristled at the news, but was beyond voicing his displeasure. 'Being with Ippei was bad enough— now I gotta be alongside this bimbo as well.' He thought bitterly.
Without realizing it, he was glaring at Kushina. She noticed this and it made her a little disappointed that she couldn't get along with everyone. But the harsh reality she learned from a young age was that she couldn't make everyone like her.
It's why when she was growing up she developed her fiery rage and persona to keep the bullies from getting to her— they'd shut their mouths if she could beat them up. It was a naive way of looking at things back then and she realized later on that she didn't want to live an existence in which everyone feared her.
'That's no way to live.' She thought. She was lucky that only the village higher ups knew she was the Jinchuruki of the Nine Tails.
"That wasn't the only reason that you were brought in." He clicked a button on the device he carried, an image flashed onto the wall like a projector. "While President Goto is in Korea discussing the proposed battle strategy for the raid on Jeju island. I'm here to explain that strategy."
"Aw, man. I hate these tactics sessions. Why can't I just punch something?" Kenjo groaned, dropping to the floor with his knees hugged to his chest. For such a towering man, the sulking made him look like a giant, pouting child —something that almost made Kushina laugh.
Huzeshima Tatsumi, a freckled young man with messy orange hair and round glasses, strolled over and patted Kenjo on the shoulder, "There, there, big guy. You'll get your shot sooner rather than later."
"Yeah, I know," Kenjo sighed. "It's just been really boring with all the gates drying up lately."
"Yeah, I hear you." Ishida Mari chimed in, The short woman with a bob of orange hair and brown eyes leaned against a wall with a troubled look. "It's like something big's gonna happen."
"Well, something is happening." Kei muttered flatly, his voice muffled by the gas mask he wore. "We're going to Korea to take care of an S-rank gate."
Off to the side, Atsushi Kumamoto lingered quietly. His long greasy black hair hung loose, an eyepatch covered his left eye, and a white surgical mask over his mouth.
He was never one to join the group's small talk, however, his gaze continued to drift over to Kushina. 'She's… beautiful,' he thought, cheeks hot behind the mask. He quickly looked away when Kushina turned in his direction— probably because he was staring too long.
'Atsushi… just calm down.' He tried steadying his breath, willing the heat in his face to cool. 'Just go say hi. Just go say hi. She's your new teammate afterall.' He rallied himself after calming down.
Kushina felt the strange young man's eyes on her from the moment he walked in.
At first, she thought it was just the surprise of seeing someone new, so she ignored him. But his gaze lingered for far too long for her liking.
So she confronted his stare, however, instead of the hostility she expected, it was a boy flustered and fumbling to look away. Which made her think he probably wasn't looking for a fight. However, she still didn't get his deal, 'Maybe he's weird like that?' She guessed, watching him stroll over.
Kanae snorted when she saw Atsushi making his approach. "Oh, look at him—he's gonna trip over his own shadow just trying to talk to her," she muttered, loud enough for Akari to hear.
Akari smirked, resting her chin in her hand. "Mhm, but at least he's trying. Atsushi's kinda cute when tries things he's not used to," she teased, her eyes glinting with mischief.
Kanae sneered, "Ugh, cute and that psycho in the same sentence?" Her eyes judged Akari hard. "You have the strangest taste in men."
"At least I have a taste." It's always fun to poke fun at her sexuality because Akari knows it ticks her off. She was disappointed when Kanae didn't take the bait this time and opted for a gruff shrug of the shoulders.
She pouted. "No fun."
Atsushi strolled over, doing his best to be casual. He still had some time left to introduce himself before Reiji would start the presentation. "Ahem," He cleared his throat. He was tall, taller than Kushina, yet, somehow she made him feel small, like a small child being disciplined by their mother— her face certainly looked motherly.
"Uh, h-hi, I'm—" He coughed, trying to recall the confidence leaving him. "I'm Atsushi. Nice to meet you."
Kushina blinked, then offered him a warm smile, "Nice to meet you as well, Atsushi." The kindness in her voice nearly knocked the wind out of him.
"Uh, y-yeah, yeah…" He stammered, unable to tear his eyes away. "Y-your hair is really beautiful."
She offered him another warm smile, "Thank you, Atsushi."
"Uh, yeah." He laughed awkwardly, scratching the back of his head.
Before the moment could stretch longer, Reiji's voice carried across the room, signaling the start of the meeting. Once everyone was seated, he pressed a button on his handheld device, and lit up the projector on the wall.
"We have much to discuss regarding the plan, but first— the history of Jeju Island," he began, clicking to display a new slide. "There have been 3 raids on the island, and all of them have ended in catastrophic failure for the Koreans. The last attempt, 3 years ago, claimed the lives of countless A to B-rank hunters and one S-rank hunter named Eunseok."
His emerald eyed gaze swept across the room, tone grave. "Understand this— the ants are powerful enough to bring down even an S-rank. So, don't fool yourselves into thinking this raid will be easy, no matter what you may think of our neighbours."
Reiji clicked a new slide. "The plan is straightforward," he started. "The ants share a telepathic link with their queen— much like normal ants. Because of that, the workers never stray far if the queen is threatened."
The graphic showed the queen's location somewhere deep within Jeju Island's central mountain.
"After months of analysis," Reiji continued, "we have found a way to disrupt the signal she sends out to her workers."
He raised two fingers. "Here's how it's gonna work: two teams will be sent out. The Korean team, composed of all the S-rank hunters they have to offer, we'll provide the second force. Our squads will move to the four corners of the island in the designated teams, drawing the workers out of the nest."
Another slide appeared—movement patterns, predicted paths, timing lines.
"Seems like a good plan," Kanae chimed in, arms folded, "but how are we gonna stop the bitch ant from screaming for help?"
Reiji smirked. "I was getting to that, you know."
"As Kanae pointed out, the queen would recall her workers to defend her once the Korean team has infiltrated the mountain." Reiji continued the presentation, switching to a slide displaying a pole like device.
"However, thanks to these bad boys— disruptors— the signals she sends out will be completely hijacked. Her orders won't reach anyone."
Kushina leaned forward, eyes narrowing at the purple mana crystal embedded in the device. "There's something strange about that mana crystal."
"Like what?" Ippei raising a brow.
"I'm not sure… but it reminds me of a mana absorption stone. It's been a while since I've seen one that color. They're usually yellow."
"Correct on all fronts." Ippei said, stifling a yawn to hide the flicker of intrigue in his eyes.
'She figured that out by just looking at a picture? Not even the real thing? Apparently, she wasn't even a hunter until yesterday… Uzumaki Kushina. Who are you?' He quietly studied her from the corner of his eye.
"Okay, that's cool and all," Akari cut in, "but what's it mean for us?"
"It means that the disruptors require a massive amount of energy." Reiji answered. "And luckily, you guys are that energy source. Splitting you up into four different teams wasn't just to stretch the workers thin— it's to broaden the field disruptors can influence."
Reiji switched the slide to a map of Jeju island where the four teams will set up the disruptors.
"There's also a certain threshold of power needed to hack into the ants' telepathic wavelength. With four S-ranks, that requirement is easily met."
Reiji tapped the map. "To draw out the ants, you'll need to act as bait. Power up your auras— that'll lure them out. At the same time, the disruptors will absorb what they need from you to sever the link queen's link."
"That sounds simple enough!" Kenjo smashed a closed fist in his open palm. "When do we start bashing heads?"
"In a few days," Reiji answered, "So use this time to get familiar with your new teammate, Uzumaki Kushina."
All eyes turned to the redhead as she smiled back awkwardly.
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"Hmmm… You seem a little different from before." Minato commented with momentary intrigue. As they progressed through the floors, with Jinwoo mowing down clan after clan, the former Hokage noted a sharp increase in Jinwoo's aura.
"Oh? In what way?" The man in question asked.
"Your aura is a lot stronger now compared to the previous floor."
They were currently on the 89th floor and Jinwoo had just decimated another clan singlehandedly. Minato kept himself occupied with asking Esil a variety of questions about the demon realm and what it was like. He leaned away from topics that related to why they were brought to the demon castle so that she wouldn't experience that weird curse. It seemed to have a bad effect on her the last time it was in action.
He had learned quite a bit about demon kind. Not only were there 20 clans but they were a society based entirely around strength. Might made right in the demon world and by virtue of her clan being number 20 that meant they were the weakest. It made him wonder if Jinwoo did destroy all the demon clans then what would the hierarchy look like? Would there be some kind of power vacuum?
It's a question he posed to Esil although not as directly. He phrased it more along the lines of how they compare to the rest of demon kind excluding the noble clans. Her answer was that they were the strongest barring a few exceptions like Metus and Vulcan, but considering they were dead it didn't matter.
"I also see Igris and uh, what's his name?" Minato asked, his gaze shifting to the huge shadowy ice bear.
"Tank." Jinwoo replied.
"Yes, Tank. I see they've gotten much stronger too. It's only been a short time. Keep going like this and you might catch up to me." Minato chuckled, noticing that the ice bear didn't take too kindly to having his name forgotten.
'Am I still not on his level?' Jinwoo frowned at the thought. He didn't sense an intense aura from him at all, not like he could from Hunter Cha Hae-In or Chairman Go. He was kind of like Esil in the fact that he could hide his aura very well which made him difficult to detect even with his increased perception stat.
"Um, Sir Minato, you're stronger than Sir Jinwoo?" Esil interjected.
"Huh? I mean it's hard to tell since we've never really fought before but from what I've seen I could probably take him." Minato answered.
'I suppose there comes the double edged sword of me being selfish with xp. I won't get to see just how good Minato really is.' Jinwoo thought although he would never regret his decision, leveling up was just too good a feeling for him.
"Uh, Sir Jinwoo…"
"You don't need to add 'sir'." He said a little exasperated. "Ahem, okay, um, Jinwoo, sir… Do you know how many clans you've destroyed so far?" She still seemed a little nervous around him, specifically. He saw that she didn't have the same problem when speaking with Minato. 'Is she not comfortable around me yet?' he thought. She kind of reminded him of Jinho back when he was being weird around him.
"This is the 89th floor so excluding your clan, about 9?" He answered after running the numbers in his head.
"Right, I feel the need to warn you that things will only get more difficult from here on out. From the 90th floor and up the other noble clans are in a completely different league of power. I suggest trying to persuade them to hand over the entry permit like you did with my clan would be the best course of actio-"
He interrupted her, "If I was weaker than you would you have negotiated with me?" he asked her instead.
When she remained silent it was more than enough to confirm his beliefs. "That's how it is then." He said with a slightly sad smile that even Minato, a trained shinobi, couldn't pick out. His experiences informed a world view that was very sad and built on the harsh lessons of being weak that got you nothing in this world, so he wouldn't be weak.
"Besides, you said that there's always been serious disputes between the clans over their ranks. I'll just do you a favour and boost the Radish clan to first place." He stretched his arms above his like he had nigh a care in the world, walking over to the divination circle.
"They're called the Radiru clan, Jinwoo." Minato corrected.
"Huh? Is that not what I said?"
"No, you said the Radish clan."
"What? That's not what came out of my mouth." Jinwoo vehemently denied this.
"It totally did!"
"I've no clue what you're talking about."
Their bickering was interrupted by the soft giggles of the demon girl next to them. They stopped and stared at her for a while until she realized that they had stopped squabbling, which then caused her to flush in embarrassment.
"Uh, umm…"
"You have a weird laugh, you know that?" Jinwoo broke the silence.
"Huh? What?" She waved her hands very flustered.
"Yeah, there's something off about it?"
"Eh? You too, Sir Minato!?" She cried with her face growing redder and redder by the second.
"Yeah, it's like she was running out of air. It made me kinda worried." Jinwoo commented.
"It wasn't!" She exclaimed which caused her to clamp her mouth shut for shouting at him. "I mean it wasn't…" She mumbled much quieter to herself.
"Well, we should probably get going. Don't want to keep the other clans lonely." Minato quipped.
"Wait, before that I want to ask you something, Sir Jinwoo." Esil announced. Her eyes traveled down to her shoes, refusing to meet either Minato or Jinwoo's gaze as she nervously shifted her feet.
"Yeah, sure, what's up?" Jinwoo turned around and acknowledged her.
"Why did you spare my clan?"
"It's because I took a liking to you."
"Huh? Huh?" Esil jumped within her own skin as a light blush flashed across her face. She wondered if he realized what he had just said to her and the implications of it.
Jinwoo quickly turned around, almost as if he was embarrassed but that was farther from the truth, 'Just like with Jinho, am I somehow compatible with people that have clumsy personalities or something?' he thought walking off to the divination circle.
Esil was still clearly flustered as Minato gave her a silly and knowing smile that she did her best to avoid.
They moved over to the divination circle and climbed up the next floor.
.
.
And it was just as Esil warned, the power of the 90th floor demons increased. So much so that the last ditches of the battle spilled out from the castle as Jinwoo's army was almost shoved out. The monster's level and numbers were in a different league that couldn't be compared to lower floors. On more than one occasion demon nobles would break free from Jinwoo's army to try and attack Minato and Esil, but were swiftly dealt with in a flash of brilliant light.
"Eek!" Esil cried as her guard was broken by a ferocious demon noble. She fell pathetically to the ground and the shadow of the demon shrouded her— an elegant spear swinging down to end her.
All Esil saw was a yellow flash with the spear falling just short of stabbing into her head. Minato's grip on the spear strained as the demon noble pushed down with much more force.
"I can't let you do that." He smirked, throwing the demon to the ground. His glowed a soft yellow from the magic swelling inside of him. He clocked a fist back and rocked the demon in the face —sending his helmet flying off.
"Esil, you should probably try and stay out the way from now on." He suggested his focus on the enemy rushing up to engage him.
"What's the meaning of this, you vile scum of Radiru? Working with humans! How low you have fallen." The demon cried out in outrage.
"... Things don't seem that well between you guys." Minato quipped.
"Silence human! You have no idea the terror that awaits you! You and that abomination in black." The demon spat. He charged forward and went to stab Minato through with his spear. He flipped over and kicked him into the dirt before using his kunai to ram it through his head.
"Hmmm... Are you okay, Esil?" Concern flickered in his eyes as he wiped away the blood from his face and extended a hand toward the Radiru clan princess. She grasped it gently. "Thank you, Sir Minato." She said as he helped her to her feet.
They looked over at the smoke plumes in the distance. Shadows raced atop the crumbling castle walls as the screams died down and the fires ravaged the land.
'Even the 4th ranked Petios clan and the 5th ranked Rikado clan…' Esil was astonished with Jinwoo's progress at every step of the way. She never would have dreamed of breathing the same air as any of the top 10 clans let alone being witness to their demise. It only made her fear and admiration for Jinwoo's strength grow that much more.
The commander of the shadow battalion emerged from the ruined castle— expression cold and dark. "Are you guys okay?" Jinwoo asked calmly, his shadow soldiers quickly retreating into his shadow after fulfilling their purpose. "Things got a little out of hand this time."
"It was no biggie, I dealt with them." Minato answered. "Although it looks to get tougher the higher and higher we climb. Are you sure negotiations are off the table at this point?" He asked although he already knew the answer.
"I'm sure. Besides, even if I tried to do that now it'd be a futile effort. I imagine word has already spread about my exploits… They'll be gunning for us no matter what."
"You're probably right about that," he sighed. "But you know…I never asked why you're so determined to climb these floors. I've been turning it over in my head, and I just can't figure it out. What are you chasing?"
"That has…nothing to do with you," Jinwoo replied coldly, his tone sharp enough to kill the conversation. Without another word, he strode toward the divination circle, expecting the others to follow.
"Hmmm." Minato exhaled, disappointed by the response but quick to shrug it off. "Come on, Esil. Let's go catch up with your crush."
Esil's cheeks flushed as she shot him a look of exasperation. "What are you saying now? I don't know what you mean!" She still remembered Minato explaining the word crush earlier. At first, she thought he meant she wanted to crush Sir Jinwoo in battle, but he had clarified— he meant she liked him, which she had furiously denied.
'I mean…he is handsome and unbelievably strong. But he's human, and I'm a demon. Could that ever really work?'
Esil never voiced these thoughts to Minato, keeping them locked away in her heart. Still, they lingered, stirring questions she couldn't ignore. Demons had always regarded humans as an inferior species— but if Jinwoo was this strong, could there be others like him?
"Are there any other humans as powerful as you two?" Esil asked the moment they rejoined Jinwoo at the divination circle.
"Can't say that I do," Minato admitted, then turned to Jinwoo with equal curiosity. "What about you?"
Jinwoo paused, his expression thoughtful as he pressed a hand to his chin.
"Hmmm… I'd say maybe two."
"Two?" Esil echoed, tilting her head.
"Yeah. But I can't say for certain— I'm just going off what I felt from them." His mind drifted to the Chairman of the Hunters Association and Cha Hae-In, the Hunters Guild's vice president.
His gaze flicked toward Minato. Even at his side, he felt nothing—no presence, no weight of power.
Everyone had an aura, yet Minato was like an empty void. That mystery only deepened Jinwoo's conviction: this man was anything but ordinary.
'I'll surpass you eventually,' he swore, his eyes narrowing with iron resolve. 'It's only a matter of time.'
.
.
Just like all the other times, Jinwoo was already gone, stalking off to go take down the 3rd ranked demon clan.
Minato and Esil watched from a cliff as the fires of the castle rose during the cataclysmic battle. Shadows streaking across sentries and watchtowers like a dark wave.
"Those shadow soldiers of his…" Minato said. "They sure are scary, aren't they?"
Esil nodded, agreeing with the sentiment. Despite this, there was nigh a shiver or chill that she expected to follow the admission. Watching Jinwoo down there, it was almost as if she was reliving a past life. Her pale skin prickled with familiarity.
Minato shifted slightly. "Looks like we've got stragglers down there."
Esil followed his gaze. Four demon nobles had slipped past the collapsing front, sprinting toward the mountain's rear.
"Should we—"
"Take them out?" Minato cut in, finishing her thought without looking away. "Maybe. If they've got the entry permit, we can't let them get far."
Esil's lips thinned into a line, her self-preservation instincts kicking in at the thought of facing down her superiors. She glanced at Minato from the corner of her eyes, his face mirroring Jinwoo's effortless calm and confidence.
'He's not scared at all.' Esil's fists clenched so hard her gauntlets groaned under the pressure. Without them, she was sure her palms would be bleeding. 'Just what do you have to go through to be so brave?'
"Esil…" Minato turned to her. "You stay up here okay? I'll deal with those guys down there."
He offered her a small, reassuring smile—far too gentle for someone about to leap into a slaughter—then flicked a kunai downward. It spun once, twice, before embedding itself exactly where he wanted it.
Esil blinked.
Minato vanished in a flash of yellow light.
The four demon noble knights thundered forth on horseback, escaping the total darkness that had flooded their castle so quickly. They fought back hard and looked to be pushing the darkness for a time, but the dark soldiers' constant regeneration and relentless attacks made it so that they could no longer defend the palace any longer.
A demon knight reflected on the events that transpired, gripping his golden lance. His red eyes gleamed behind his helm, burning with frustration and rage.
Suddenly at the corner of his eye, the gleam of metal flashed and a strange knife buried itself to the ground.
"What?" He pulled the reins on his horse, halting his squad's retreat.
"What is it?"
"Why have we stopped?"
"Sir?"
The other demons questioned their commander. The lance wielding leader opened his mouth to answer but was cut off by a golden light.
Minato materialised before them, his dark cloak rippling in the hellish winds of the Demon Castle.
"Sorry," he said, voice calm but unyielding. "But I can't let you leave. Not if you have the entry permit."
"Human…?" the high demon noble growled, disbelief and rage twisting through his voice.
"Is it the human that commands the dark soldiers?" One demon noble growled, drawing his sword without a second thought.
"No," Minato answered, unfazed by their numbers or significantly greater stature. "But that's a friend. Hand over the entry permit and I'll let you go."
The lead knight scoffed at Minato's demand. "What makes you think I'll hand it over, human scum?"
"I could kill you and be done with it." Minato offered, holding up a kunai. He let just a bit of his killing intent out. "But I don't want to do that. You don't have to lose your lives on this day."
The lead knight gripped his lance as Minato's words stewed in his head. His pride and rationale at war loudly in his head, each demanding his obedience.
"Sir, you can't possibly consider this human's demand?" One of the knights leaned in urgently. "We've been given orders by the clan leader. You can't forsake your duty."
"You think I don't know that?!" The commander roared back, levelling his lance directly at Minato. "Human scum! We make no compromises with inferior species. We take what we want— and kill anything that tries to claim what is ours. Possessions… or even our own lives!"
The commander bellowed out a war cry and charged, followed by his fellow demonic kin. Minato just exhaled as the deadly blades closed in on him. Vanishing in a flash, their blades stuck nothing but empty space.
"I'm disappointed."
Minato stood behind them now, back turned, kunai lowered at his side. He had placed several markers around the area underneath their notice. It offered Minato points of attack and defence as they had to guess which kunai he would teleport to.
The commander immediately took note of all the kunai scattered about. 'Where did those come from?' He thought befuddled.
He jumped off his horse and struck his lance out at Minato.
There was a clang and sparks went flying as lance and kunai clashed. Minato held the commander back with strength that shocked the demon noble.
Minato used that lapse in concentration to hook the lance between the folds of his three pronged kunai and shoot out a devastating kick to the jaw. The commander spilled the lance from his grasp as his two knights slashed from Minato's blindspot.
Minato threw his kunai in the air— teleported to another marker before flashing back to the airborne knife. He dropped down behind the first demon noble, landing on his armored shoulders. The knight only had a second to register the weight before Minato drove another kunai straight through the top of his helmet.
Using the collapsing body as a springboard, Minato kicked off, flipping gracefully over the second noble. His heel snapped out mid-spin, a precise side-kick that sent the demon crashing into his dying comrade in a tangle of armor and limbs.
"Now," Minato scanned the battlefield, "Where's the third one?"
A faint whistling cut through the air— too fast and sharp to anything but an arrow. He turned and caught the arrow. He locked eyes with the archer perched atop the boulder and snapped the arrow in half.
"Huh?" Minato blinked as a white light clouded his vision before an explosion rocked him. He was sent flying into a wall with force enough to crater it.
His ears rang as dropped down to one knee. "Wasnt expecting that." he muttered, blinking through the disorientation.
A glance at his hand showed blistered, charred skin—burns crawling up his arm. The right side of his face throbbed with a sharp, searing pain. 'Great. That one actually did some damage.'
Looking up, Minato saw three more arrows heading his way. He rolled out the way the shockwave from the explosives sent him tumbling back. 'Dammit, focus, Minato!' Hesnarled inwardly, forcing himself to his feet.
Digging into his pouch, he fished for a kunai before blinking out of existence. He appeared just beneath the archer's perch and flung the kunai at him before he could react. Flashing to the flying knife, Minato popped out of thin air and kicked the archer in the face.
The archer crashed to the floor. His quiver of arrows spilling out as he rolled to recover. Minato reared his head back when the archer managed to expertly fire an arrow while grounded. The archer pulled out a knife hidden in his leg and slashed at Minato's throat. Minato parried the blow and went for a stab of his own.
The archer sidestepped expertly and swiftly countered Minato's overextension, but the Yellow Flash shimmered out of reality before steel could kiss flesh.
"Eh?" The demon archer blinked before he was stabbed from behind. The kunai piercing deep into his collarbone and being dragged right up his jugular. Blood shot out like a watersprout, raining down and staining the ground.
Minato took a breath looking at his palm, the skin was rapidly stitching itself together. 'Oh, right, I've got the Nine Tails now. Its chakra must be filtering through and healing me. Amazing.'
He remembered how Kushina could always shake off some of his more brutal hits during training and be right back at it. Cuts, gashes and burns were gone in a matter of seconds, like they were never there in the first place. For all the stress holding the Nine Tails must have caused his wife, it sure had its benefits when it came to battle.
"That's much better." Minato sighed, relieved at the feel of his repaired skin. He swirled the kunai he was holding and flickered down to the commander and his last remaining ally.
"Surrender," Minato said, voice firm, "and I won't have to end you."
His sharp blue eyes caught it— the subtle shift of the commander's footing, gripping his lance tighter. He had no intention of giving up. Neither did the warrior beside him.
"Come at me, human!" The commander roared, launching his lance with deadly precision.
But Minato flickered out of the way at the last second. The commander's eyes swept the field instantly, tracking every kunai embedded in the dirt—desperately calculating where the Yellow Flash would reappear.
Minato did not reappear at any kunai.
He flickered into existence right in front of the commander's face—so close the demon saw his reflection in the human's cold blue eyes.
"W–what—?"
Minato rammed his kunai right into the commander's chest, going through his armor like a hot knife through butter. Before the commander could even gasp, Minato reappeared behind the second knight.
A flash of golden light. A head rolled.
The commander roared and charged, but Minato flashed away before a kick from above sent the demon careening to the dirt.
Minato crouched down and leveled a kunai right at the demon's throat. "The permit. Now."
The demon choked on his blood. "Ack! You'll have to take from my corpse, huma—"
He paused. A sudden, unhinged laugh coming out of him, rising into hysterics.
"What's so funny?" Minato demanded, putting pressure enough to draw blood. "I can oblige your request and take it from your corpse."
"Now… that you're so close…" the commander rasped, fighting for breath between bouts of laughter. "I can smell it… on you."
"Smell what?"
"A demon…" The demon noble said, coughing out more blood. "You smell human… but there's something else. Potent. Distinctly demonic."
"Ah. That." Minato replied coolly as if discussing the weather. "I sealed half the Nine Tails demon fox inside of myself not long ago. That's probably what you're sensing."
"Nine Tails…? Never heard of him."The commander admitted.
"I imagine not." Minato replied. "He's a demon from my world."
"Your… world?"
"Yes." Minato's tone left no room for further questioning. "And that's all you need to know. Now—where's the entry permit?"
"You'll have to kill me." The demon spat.
"Fine."
Was Minato's cold reply before slicing through the commander's throat. The demon's body slumped to the dirt without another sound.
With the dust settled and the fires of conflict cooled, Minato searched the commander's body for the entry permit. After a minute of patting down the corpse, Minato found the piece of paper.
"All this trouble for a piece of paper." Minato chuckled.
"I know, right?"
Dark shadows swarmed the battlefield in seconds. Jinwoo's massive army settled down at his location.
"Thanks for keeping an eye out." Jinwoo said, climbing down from the giant ice bear he was mounting. "You saved us a lot of time."
"That's not a problem." Minato handed Jinwoo the permit once he made his way over.
Jinwoo gave him a once over, eyes lingering on Minato's charred right sleeve. "They gave you trouble?" He furrowed his brow.
"I let my guard down." Minato replied.
Jinwoo hummed, keeping the rest of his thoughts to himself. "Where's Esil?"
"Give me a moment." Minato teleported away and not a single moment later he reappeared with Esil right next to him.
"What the—?" Esil blinked rapidly. "Sir Jinwoo?"
"Sorry, Esil." Minato apologized. "I didn't mean to be so sudden."
"It's okay, Sir Minato." Esil said, already overcoming the slightest disorientation from Minato's sudden teleportation.
"Again with the 'sir' stuff?" Minato chuckled lightly. "I thought we were closer than that."
Esil's cheeks warmed instantly. "I-I'm sorry…"
"Don't worry about it," Minato waved a hand dismissively, still smiling. "I'm just teasing."
He turned toward Jinwoo, expression settling into something more focused.
"Well, captain," Minato said, "what's our next move?"
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Well… I'm back.
Will I be explaining where I went?
No. No, I don't think I will.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Have a wonderful whatever time of day it is for you.