Chapter 20: The Mage With a Passion to Write

"-And so, with the creepy snake guy and his henchman defeated, Ero-Senin and I brought the old lady back to the village to be the next Hokage."

Naruto said with a proud grin on his face. He and Arue were sitting at a table inside the café she had suggested. The mage had just ordered her food when she asked Naruto to tell her a story about his past, so he decided to tell her about the time he met Tsunade and learned the Rasengan.

"I see... To have mastered such an impressive technique at such a young age is quite impressive. Ah, thank you."

Arue thanked the waitress who placed her food on the table, then began to write something in her notebook while munching on a sandwich at the same time. In a nutshell, the hero travels with a wise old man to search for a legendary person. But they run into the main villain and get into a fight, then hero uses a technique that should have been impossible for him to use. The story was impressive, but it felt like was still missing something... She just couldn't quite put her finger on it-

'Ah...'

"Yeah yeah! Ero-Senin said it took my dad four years to create the Rasengan, and I learned it in a week! The old lady was surprised that she lost the bet! Ah, but I don't have the necklace I won anymore because it got destroyed but... Wait, why do you sound like you know what the Rasengan is?"

Naruto continued to boast about his past achievements when he noticed the girl seemed to be staring off into space.

"Hey, Arue? Hello~?"

Arue blinked when Naruto waved a hand in front of her face.

"Ah, sorry. I just got an idea-I mean... I need to go to the restroom. Please excuse me."+

"?"

Naruto tilted his head in confusion as Arue suddenly stood up and walked out of the café. The café had a restroom in the back, so why did she go out the front? She left her food, so he didn't think she was ditching him, but her behavior seemed a little odd...

From what he got to know of this mage so far, aside from being a weirdo who wanted to become Jiraiya's disciple in writing, was that she was a calm and collected individual. She had been listening to his story in it's entirety, and even asked a couple questions for extra details. It was nice having someone listen to him so intently.

Wiz asked about his past once, but he didn't go into much detail because he had gotten homesick and changed the subject. But telling Arue his story was kind of relaxing.

'You're too easy...'

'S-shut up!'

After a couple minutes of waiting, Naruto heard the café door open and he turned to see Arue walk in with another person in tow. If Naruto wasn't mistaken, that person was...

"Hey, you're that weird girl from the tailor shop! What are you doing here?"

Yunyun, the young girl that he had met at the tailor shop earlier that day, was standing nervously behind Arue.

"Weird!? U-um... You see..."

Yunyun gripped her cloak and looked down at the floor nervously.

"I happened to get lost on my way back from the restroom and bumped into Yunyun who was very hungry. If you don't mind, she will be joining us."

Arue blatantly lied with a stoic face, causing Yunyun to sweatdrop. The truth was she caught Yunyun peeking into the café a lonely expression, while staring at a certain outsider.

Being a Crimson Magic Clansman who was born with an abnormally high intelligence stat, Arue was able to quickly piece together what was going on. She remembered Yunyun saying that she was going to Axel again to search for adventuring companions, since the first time didn't go so well. But knowing that socially awkward girl, Arue guessed that Yunyun didn't have much of a chance in that plan.

So why was she following Naruto?

The answer was simple. Either Yunyun had overheard about an outsider had come to a village who was recruiting a mage, or Naruto and Yunyun had met earlier and that was where she learned of his recruiting.

Judging by Naruto's reaction just now, Arue had to assume it was the latter.

In conclusion, Yunyun was tailing Naruto and looking for an opportunity to join his party. Not that she would ever have the courage to ask herself.

'This development has proven to be quite interesting...'

Arue thought while smirking internally, and the situation could become even more interesting. All she had to do was give Yunyun a little push.

Yunyun looked at her fellow clansman nervously.

"A-Arue... No matter how you look at it, no one would believe-"

"Oh, is that so? Then why don't you join us?"

Naruto said with a grin and motioned for the two girls to sit down.

'He believed it!?'

Yunyun gained an urge to retort at just how trusting Naruto was, but she bit her tongue to stop herself from doing so. After all, she was just given another chance to join this man's party and it would be foolish to ruin it by making him mad right off the bat!

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A Few Minutes Later...

"The Anti-Demon King Army Unit? Oh, you mean Buzucoily and the others. I don't think they would want to go on that quest with you. After all, they're all just a bunch of NEETs."

NEETs? Wasn't that an utterly hopeless person who lounged around the house all day? Naruto vaguely remembered Aqua's definition of the term when he had asked why she kept calling Kazuma a NEET.

"But don't they go on patrol to hunt for the Demon King's army? The Demon King's castle is pretty close by, isn't it?"

Speaking of which, Naruto still needed to ask about that too.

"They just use that group as an excuse to get out of getting actual jobs."

Yunyun responded while waving her hand casually.

"...And that whole talk of seals?"

"Ah, their parents probably didn't let them out of their houses when they heard 'that man's' call."

"..."

And just like that, Naruto's image of the Anti-Demon King Army Guerilla Unit was shattered. Not that he didn't have his suspicions to begin with, what with the way Buzucoily was acting around Jiraiya. But to learn that the group was a bunch of NEETs was a little...

Arue watched as the two interacted with a keen eye, making sure to write down notes as they talked.

"But you know, you sure know a lot about them Yunyun. Although it is a small village, so everyone probably knows about those guys."

"Y-yes... The Home of the Crimson Magic roughly has a population of three-hundred after all..."

Yunyun stuttered while adverting her gaze awkwardly. She couldn't tell him that she was actually apart of their group awhile back. Back then, she needed the extra skill points to catch up to that person no matter what. Such embarrassing memories...

"A-anyways! I-I noticed you were walking with that thing earlier... What is your relationship with it?"

"...Huh?"

Naruto failed to comprehend what Yunyun had just asked. The last time he saw her was back at the tailor shop, and the only person he was with besides the owner was-

"Oh, you mean Jiraiya-Sen-?"

"Pui!" x4

Naruto's eye twitched in annoyance when all the females in the café, including Yunyun, spat onto the ground in disgust. They were in a café, a place where food was served, and yet they still followed such a ridiculous law.

"...Can I ask you something?"

"Y-yes!"

"That man is actually my good for nothing mentor. What did Ero-Senin do in this village to cause such a law to exist?"

"Er-Th-that's..."

Yunyun, who became even more nervous than before, began squirm in her seat. She didn't expect Naruto to be that thing's disciple, but he didn't seem like a dangerous person at all, so it didn't bother her much.

No, what bothered her was the answer to Naruto's question and the trouble it spelled.

Arue placed her notebook onto the table and stood up. She struck a slight pose, her hand somewhat covering her visible eye.

"The story goes as the following: Ero-Sensei-"

"-Please don't call him that-"

"-first arrived at this village about half a year ago. With his self-introduction skills, it was only a matter of time before he became well known to the Home of the Crimson Magic. But then, the incident at the village's bathhouse happened."

'I can imagine what he did...'

Naruto thought while pinching the bridge of his nose.

Arue continued her story.

"Having come to this village to learn about magic, Ero-Sensei-"

"Oi."

"-was particularly curious about the about the Invisibility spell. And so, he gathered the village's NEETs and they peeked on the woman bathing in the bathhouse for three straight days. Their unconscious and malnourished bodies were later found in their campsite next to the outdoor bathhouse."

What the hell Ero-Sensei!?

"Unfortunately for them, the village chief's daughter happened to be bathing at the time and they were quickly found out. She became infuriated and used her influence on her father to create the spitting law."

"!"

Naruto glanced over at Yunyun when she suddenly tensed in her seat, she looked nervous and her face was bright red. He wondered if she was involved in that 'incident'. After all, a grown man peeking into the woman's bath could be considered a traumatizing event to a young girl.

Noticing the blonde's gaze, Yunyun immediately turned away. If he found out she was the chief's daughter and that she was the one who created the law that cursed his mentor's name, then she could kiss her chances of joining someone's party goodbye!

"I gotta say, Ero-Senin got what was coming to him. Honestly, wanting to learn magic for such a stupid reason..."

Naruto said while shaking his head like a parent talking about a problem child. He guessed this was the reason why the tailor shop owner didn't like Jiraiya as well. The man probably thought Jiraiya was a bad influence on his son, not that his judgement was wrong in the slightest.

Hearing that, Yunyun sighed in relief.

"But if I ever meet the chief's daughter, I would ask if she could revoke that dumb law-"

"That will never happen."

Naruto was taken aback from the intensity of Yunyun's surprisingly willful words. There was so much sureness in her statement, he wasn't quite sure how to react.

"I-is that so...? Well, I'm sure she would come to reason if I-"

"I'm afraid that is not possible."

Yunyun said firmly.

Naruto rubbed the back of his head and laughed awkwardly. It seemed the girl was adamant the chief's daughter wouldn't budge on the matter.

'Maybe it's best we change subjects...'

Arue thought, as she was slightly taken aback by how willful Yunyun was acting.

"Ahem. I have finished my lunch. Come, Yunyun. I think we should have Naruto visit that place."

"Eh? Where?"

Yunyun asked as she was dragged out of the café, prompting the one responsible to stop and turn to her.

"I'm curious to see if this was a fateful encounter. To do so, we must go see that person. We will have Naruto and Yunyun go first. Trust me, this will help Yunyun's goal."

Arue said with her ever-stoic expression, but her eye flared with anticipation.

"I-I still don't understand, but if Arue thinks this will help, t-then I'll go!"

Yunyun stuttered as confidently as she could.

"Yunyun really is weird."

"...! A-am I really that weird!?"

Naruto chuckled as he watched the two mages exit the café. He moved to follow them when a hand grabbed his shoulder, making him tense. Naruto turned around to find the waitress smiling at him cheerfully, a small piece of paper in her other hand.

'I knew it...'

Why was he always meeting girls that forced him to treat them?

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"Achoo!"

Aqua sneezed before rubbing her arms together.

"Did you catch a cold? It's been getting colder lately."

Kazuma, who was walking beside her asked while trying his best to keep his hands warm in his pockets.

"No... I got the feeling that someone was just talking about me. Puhihi! It's probably just Naruto who must have realized how much he misses my divine company. I guess it can't be helped! When he comes back, I'll share some of my treasured wine."

'Just how big headed are you...?'

Kazuma thought with a sweatdrop as he watched the (self-proclaimed) goddess of water carry herself with pride after blabbering such nonsense. But it was still surprising to hear that Aqua was willing to share some of her precious wine.

Once, Kazuma tried to drink some and Aqua snatched it out of his hands and refused to share any of it. He ended up using steal to retrieve the bottle and threatened to sell it, and Aqua ended up crying for half a day. It was annoying, and it irked Kazuma that Aqua was willing to share some of that wine with Naruto and not him.

Wait, why was he so upset over something so stupid? It was good that Aqua and Naruto got along so well. If Naruto took Aqua into his party, it would mean one less problem child to worry about.

"Well anyways, we better hurry to Wiz's shop. I forgot to bring Wiz some lunch because of what happened yesterday."

There was a rumor going around. People were saying that they heard weird noises around this part of the town last night, and were thinking that perhaps a monster had somehow snuck in. Wiz also seemed kind of twitchy the other day, so Kazuma was kind of worried.

Not that a general of the demon king army needed help with a lowly monster, but still.

Aqua crackled her knuckles and sneered.

"I still think we're better off sending that filthy lich to heaven."

"Naruto would be angry if he heard you say that."

—When they reached Wiz's magic tool shop, Kazuma opened the door and walked inside.

"Hey Wiz, sorry we didn't come yesterday~!"

...

No answer.

Kazuma cocked an eyebrow. That was odd. The store was open, so Wiz should. Did she step out of the store for some reason? No, then she would have closed the store before doing so...

"Show yourself, Lich!"

As Kazuma pondered in his thoughts, Aqua stormed into the store and looked around for the owner. With Wiz nowhere to be found, Aqua's gaze immediately turned to the back room.

"In there!"

"O-oi, Aqua! Wait a second!"

Kazuma reached out to stop Aqua from doing any unnecessary things, but she was just out of his reach and the girl disappeared into the dark back room. Cursing under his breath, Kazuma followed after the bluenette to ensure that she didn't break anything.

Once inside the small backroom, Kazuma saw that Aqua had stopped right in front of a desk.

"Oi, Aqua. I don't think we're supposed to be in here. Let's just come back later... and..."

Kazuma's words trailed off when he noticed Aqua was staring at something, and he followed her gaze. He hadn't noticed at first since the room was so dark, but after activating his Foresight ability, he saw a figure standing in the back of the small room.

"...Wiz?"

The figure that Kazuma assumed to be the shop owner twitched upon hearing his words.

"...Oh, good morning Kazuma-San, Aqua-Sama..."

Kazuma gulped, his internal voice screaming that something was wrong. It was indeed Wiz, but her voice was quiet and raspy. Not to mention she didn't even turn around to look at them.

Aqua, who clearly couldn't read the situation, stomped over to Wiz with her hands on her hips.

"Why didn't you come out and greet us when we walked in, huh? You've got some nerve to ignore the people who came to visit!"

"...How rude of me... I'll brew some tea right now..."

Wiz said in the same tone of voice and Kazuma heard shuffling sounds, but it was too dark for him to tell what she was doing.

Kazuma gripped the box of food in his hands tightly, making the cardboard creek under the pressure.

'No matter how you look at it, Wiz is not acting normal. But what's wrong with her? Is her hunger getting to her? Is this why Naruto wanted me to stop by every day-'

Whoosh!

"...Eh?"

Kazuma said when Wiz suddenly blurred out of his vision, and he felt a grip that threatened to break his wrist almost lift him off the ground. Snapping his head back, Kazuma found Wiz staring at the box with glowing red eyes.

"Eeeiiiih!"

Needless to say, it was quite a scary sight.

"Ah!? So the Lich finally bares its fangs! Time to put it down! Sacred-"

"Crystal Prison!"

"!?"

Before Aqua could finish her spell, her form was encased in a pillar of ice.

"Aqua!"

Kazuma shouted fearfully when his only means of defending himself was defeated in an instant. Wasn't that girl supposed to be a goddess or something!? How useless!

"Uhhhh..."

Kazuma winced in pain when the grip on his wrist tightened, then nearly wet himself when he looked back at the person responsible.

"...Gimmie... The box...!"

Wiz said with icy steam coming out of her mouth.

Scary! Hungry Wiz was scary!

"O-o-o-of course! Take it! Take it please!"

Kazuma surrendered the box of food peacefully, and his wrist was let go. Kazuma fell to the floor and immediately scrambled behind the desk next to Aqua's frozen form. His wrist was bruised, but he could just have Aqua heal it after she broke out of the ice.

Wiz now held the box in her hands and opened it with haste.

"..."

Inside the box was a bowl of stir-fried noodles made by a local food stand. Wiz stared at the food for a moment before she scarfed it down in a matter of seconds.

Crash!

Kazuma flinched and squeezed his eyes shut when he heard the bowl shatter on the ground. After finally opening his eyes, Kazuma saw Wiz staring off into space. Her expression looked dead, her eyes dull and void of emotion.

"It's still not enough... Not unless... It's Naruto-San..."

Wiz said before collapsing onto the ground.

"Wiz!"

Kazuma stumbled onto his feet and rushed over to the fallen shop owner.

How could this happen? What did Wiz mean by something of Naruto's? Did he do something to her? Kazuma didn't think Naruto was the type of guy who would do something that could harm a girl but...

'One thing's for sure... These next couple days are going to be troublesome.'

At that moment, Kazuma and Wiz both thought the same thing:

''Please come back soon, Naruto...''

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A/N: Poor Wiz... T-T

I love how you all thought it was concrete that Arue was going to join the party, but there is hope for Yunyun yet! XD

By the way, Arue is an actual character from the KonoSuba light novels. She was introduced in volume five. :)

Next chapter, Naruto is introduced to yet another Crimson Magic Clansman!