Chapter 22: Trading a Mage for a Mage

After having established his newest party member, Naruto went back to the Crimson Magic Village for the night. He and Yunyun had decided to meet at the griffon statue at the front of the village the next morning where they would start their trip back to Axel.

There was a store that was run by a mage who would use the Teleport spell, but Naruto couldn't afford the fee and refused to let his newest party member pay for all of them. Yunyun had insisted, but Naruto eventually convinced her that walking back to the town of beginners would be better, mainly so they could get to know each other along the way and bond as party members.

After separating from Yunyun for the night, Naruto then searched for Jiraiya. But unsurprisingly the old sage was nowhere to be found.

So, as a way of getting back at his good-for-nothing mentor, Naruto decided to stay at an inn and put the bill Jiraiya's tab. With Jiraiya's name being so well known and the man's apparent constant bragging of his 'blonde haired blue-eyed' pupil, it wasn't hard for Naruto to convince the innkeeper to put his stay on the Sanin's tab.

The next morning, before the time of the meetup with Yunyun, Naruto decided to ask a local NEET where he could find Jiraiya. The boy had pointed him in the direction of a hill on the far side of the village.

Apparently, there was a lookout spot at the top of the hill with a telescope that could see into the Demon King's castle.

That got Naruto's attention because he still didn't know what this Demon King fellow looked like.

"Maybe that old geezer really was doing more than just peeping in town... No, there has to be another reason. This is Ero-Senin we're talking about here."

Naruto said to himself as he climbed the hill. At the top, there was indeed a telescope. There was a couple people gathered around it, one of which had huge spikey white hair.

Time to find out what his sensei ditched him for this time. Was Jiraiya doing actual research on the enemy, or was he up to no good?

"Hehehe... The morning show is as great as ever..."

No good it was then. Go figure.

Naruto stopped right behind the old man who was ogling thru the telescope while wiggling his fingers in a fashion that was fitting of the name 'Ero-Senin'.

"What kind of show is it?"

"It's the best kind of show! The Demon King's daughter is drying off her naked body after her usual morning bath."

"Heh~? Is that so? She must be beautiful."

"Of course! That's why I always have to at least stay a night or two in this village! I have to... Wait a second..."

Jiraiya, having slowly recognized the voice behind him, broke into a cold sweat. He slowly turned around and saw Naruto staring at him with an unreadable expression. It was obvious that the blonde was upset, if the set of shuriken in his hands were anything to go by.

"Run!"

"Ah! Wait, take with you! How could you leave your precious leader behind!"

Jiraiya swiped at the NEETS that had been with him all morning, but they all managed to use the teleport spell and disappeared before he could grab them. The man then tried to make a run for it, but one of the shuriken that was previously in Naruto's hands buzzed past him and stuck into a nearby tree.

Sweat pouring down his face, Jiraiya did the only thing he could do. He scrambled to the floor and apologized.

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"Seriously... Not only did you ditch me after trying to dump one of your problems onto me, but then I find you peeping at the Demon King's daughter of all people? She's not some monster girl, is she?"+

With Jiraiya in seiza in front of him, Naruto walked over to the telescope and took a quick peek.

Jiraiya smirked when he saw Naruto's face turn red but was quick to advert his gaze when the boy shot him a glare.

'This guy...!'

Naruto thought with a twitching eyebrow when Jiraiya started whistling to himself. This man wasn't even sorry in the slightest. Naruto was glad he was able to find a party member in the end, otherwise he would have just left without seeing Jiraiya.

"I heard about the reason that law was formed. But you know what, I don't even want to know why you talked a bunch of NEETS into helping you peep for three days straight. Is that why you wanted to learn magic? So that it can help you in your 'research'?"

"Hey, don't mistake my peeping practices for my research. When I do research, it's much more professional. After all, it's for my best-selling novels."

Jiraiya said with a smug smile.

"Is that so? Maybe I should start writing, then maybe I'd have enough money to pay for an inn."

"A-ah, sorry about that..."

"That's okay, I put the bill on your tab. Anyways, I just wanted to tell you I found a mage for my party. We're going back to Axel. You're probably going to stay here a couple more days, right? So I guess I'll see you later."

"Hang on, you just said something I can't ignore. You put what on my tab?"

Jiraiya looked up at Naruto suspiciously, but the teen merely waved his hand dismissively.

"That's not important right now. I was wondering... My goal is to defeat the Demon King, and his castle is right there. What if I-"

Naruto started saying while looking towards the Demon King's castle, but Jiraiya put a hand up to stop the boy.

"I'm gonna stop you right there. If you really wanted to defeat the Demon King right now, then wouldn't you have gone to the castle when you heard this village was so close to it? I didn't want to say anything since you seemed so adamant on doing it, but do you really want to be the one to defeat the Demon King?"

Naruto blinked. He hadn't been expecting such a response, but the question raised a strange feeling in him.

"That..."

Wait, why didn't he just storm to the King's castle right away in the first place? Naruto didn't want to sound arrogant, but he was fairly confident that he and Kurama could take on anyone if they were working together.

Could it be that... he didn't want to?

Naruto quickly shook the thought out of his head.

That would be ridiculous. After all, the very purpose of him coming to this world was to defeat the Demon King. An actual goddess was counting on him. The Demon King posed a threat to humanity, and he couldn't just sit by and let innocent people continue to die. To abandon this mission would go against every rule in his book.

Seeing the troubled look on Naruto's face, Jiraiya looked off into the distance and sighed. His students all had a strong sense of righteousness, and it seemed Naruto was still impatient about things. He was probably thinking he wanted to defeat the Demon King as fast as possible to save everyone.

But that's no way to live after being given a second chance at life.

"Listen, Naruto. I know you want to defeat the Demon King, but I think you should slow down a little. There's no need to rush. You've only been in this world for what, two, maybe three weeks?"

"But..."

"Look at it this way. Let's say you go to the Demon King's castle right now and manage to defeat the guy. What would that look like to the world, to the royal army? Some random kid with demonic powers shows up out of nowhere and defeats the Demon King. In the eyes of people who don't know you, it'll look like someone trying to take over the role and title of the "Demon King"."

"..."

Naruto fell silent. He hadn't thought that far ahead, but Jiraiya was probably right. The adventurers back at the guild had mostly avoided him after he revealed he was a jinchuuriki, but Naruto didn't mind because he figured they just didn't know him yet. In fact, some of them were beginning to warm up to him before he left on this trip.

The same could be said about the rest of the world. Who was to say they wouldn't see him as a threat if he went and defeated the Demon King right now?

"But wait. You're well known to this world, right? What if you came with me? I'm sure together we could-"

"Nope. That wouldn't work either."

"Why not!?"

Naruto shouted in frustration when Jiraiya turned him down a second time. With Jiraiya there, they would have to worry about looking like a threat to the kingdom. But why didn't he want to go?

"There's a reason why I can't defeat the Demon King, and it has actually has something to do with that bratty goddess that was in Axel for some reason..."

Jiraiya said while scratching his cheek nervously, as if he were reminiscing a bad memory.

"Aqua? What does she have to do with..."

It was then Naruto realized something.

Jiraiya had died a couple months before Naruto and Kazuma had. If Aqua was telling the truth about her being an actual goddess, then Jiraiya must have met her in the realm between worlds before Kazuma dragged her to this world and Eris replaced her.

But why would Jiraiya say he couldn't defeat the Demon King?

"I'll save the details for another time... But in short, I'm not really supposed to be in this world. The gods have rules about who they reincarnate to other worlds. Those rules weren't considered for me back then for reasons, so that's why I can't be the one to defeat the Demon King."

"Huh..."

Naruto was still confused, but he nodded his head anyway. Jiraiya looked tired just thinking about his past experience with Aqua so he wouldn't pry into it anymore. He'd have to ask Aqua about her meeting with Jiraiya later when he got home.+

Jiraiya patted his student on the shoulder and grinned.

"Look kid, just take it slow. Keep helping people through the adventurer's guild to get your name out there, but make sure to have some fun on the way. Make new friends, learn some magic, get a girlfriend."

Naruto sent the man a flat look at the last part, and Jiraiya chuckled before he continued.

"You may have been given another chance to live because the gods want you to defeat the demon king, but you shouldn't let that control how you spend your new life. I think you should do the things you couldn't back in Konoha. Enjoy yourself."

Jiraiya said before he turned around to walk back to the Crimson Magic Clan Village, but not before giving Naruto one last cheeky grin.

"Send little miss ninety-five my regards."

Naruto tilted his head in confusion, but then realized what his mentor was getting at.

"W-wait, how do you know about that!? That was only a test to see compatible we were to be party members!"

"Gahahaha! Enjoy yourself!"

His ears burning red in embarrassment, Naruto grumbled to himself and started walking in the opposite direction of the laughing sage towards the griffon statue in front of the village. Jiraiya was obviously misunderstanding something, but that didn't matter.

'Hey, Kurama? What do you think we should do?'

Naruto thought to his inner demon while looking at the Demon King's castle in the distance.

'Keh! Isn't it obvious? We pick fights with the strongest beings this world has to offer. But just so you know, I'm sure the number of strong opponents would drop if we were to go and decimate that castle now.'

'So, in other words... The Demon King can wait?'

'I don't care what you do brat, just keep entertaining me so I won't feel like I'm wasting my time here.'

Kurama growled and cut the mental link between them.

"So, it's settled then! Back to Axel it is!"

Naruto said and turned his view away from the Demon King's castle.

'I should probably hurry too, Wiz is probably...'

Naruto's thoughts trailed off when he remembered the clumsy shopkeeper with a ramen addiction. How many days had he been gone?

...

"Crap! Wiz is probably going berserk right now! I gotta hurry home!"

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With Yunyun...

At the front of the village next to the petrified griffon that served as a landmark stood a nervous looking girl who was all geared up to travel.

Despite her appearance, Yunyun was actually writhing with excitement. She was finally in party! It wasn't a temporary group, or someone asking for her help, but an actual party with real party members!

"We're going to Axel, and that's where Megumin is. I wonder what she'll think of Naruto-San..."

But wait! If Megumin were to learn about the results of the compatibility test, surely she would say something along the lines of: 'I knew Yunyun would fall prey to a nice guy', or 'Yunyun is so easily fooled by nice words'.

"Megumin definitely cannot find out!"

"What about Megumin?"

"!"

Yunyun jumped when Naruto was suddenly right next to her. She was so absorbed in her thoughts that she didn't even notice him.

—A couple minutes later and the two were on the road.

"I'm surprised Naruto-San knows Megumin."

"Yeah, she's in the party of a drinking buddy of mine. Kazuma sure has his hands full though, Megumin can be a little..."

"I apologize for any trouble she has caused you!"

Yunyun blurted out and bowed deeply, causing Naruto to sweatdrop.

"N-no, it isn't like that... Well, she did make me learn that stupid spell."

"...Stupid spell?"

"Yeah, but I haven't tried using it yet because I'm afraid I won't be able to move after doing so like her."

Naruto said while scratching at his whisker marks. Maybe it was time he tried using Explosion magic, he now had a party member to look after him if he dropped from mana exhaustion.

Yunyun was about to retort about learning that useless spell was when she realized something.

"Don't be silly Naruto-San. I may be inexperienced with friends, but even I can tell that you're joking. I once read in a book about friendship that friends often joke about absurd things. That spell costs way too many skill points and requires too much mana for humans to-"

"No, it's true. Look, here's my adventurers card."

Naruto said and showed his stat card to Yunyun, and her eyes bulged upon seeing 'Explosion' under his skills tab.

"You actually learned that useless spell!? I can't believe Megumin would force you to waste so many skill points! Wrong! That Megumin is always causing trouble! She even dares to call herself the number one mage despite learning such an insufficient spell! To think that her obsession with Explosion magic would even affect Naruto-San... I'm very sorry for the trouble she caused you!"

Naruto was taken aback from the normally quiet Yunyun's outburst. But it seems like she and Megumin were quite close. Despite what Yunyun says about not having friends, she sure was close with a lot of people from her village. Arue, the fortune teller lady, and now Megumin.

"Hahaha! You really are weird Yunyun, thanks for joining my party."

"Eh? Ah, no... Please take care of me."

Yunyun said and looked away to hide her growing blush.

"Hey, I think we're far enough from the village now. Would you mind if I tried using Explosion magic?"

Naruto asked when they entered an open field.

"I don't mind, but I don't think I would be able to carry Naruto-San very far if monsters show up..."

"That's okay, I have confidence in my stamina! But even if I collapse, I'll have Yunyun to protect me!"

"L-leave it to me!"

Yunyun said and pulled out her silver dagger. If Naruto was willing to place his trust in her, then she couldn't let him down! If monster did show up, then she could show him what she was capable of as a mage.

Naruto nodded and recited the incantation he had been secretly memorizing after Megumin forced the spell onto him.

'Ready Kurama?'

'Keh sure, but I don't know why you would waste your time with this pale imitation of a tailed beast ball.'

'Do you always have to say something snarky when I ask you for help? Just help me with the technique already.'

Naruto responded to the fox, and his eyes snapped crimson red.

Truth be told, Naruto had actually tried using Explosion magic before. But just like when he tried making a mini-Tailed Beat Ball by himself, he had trouble condensing all the required energy. So the plan was to have Kurama help him with the mana collection.

It was after Naruto used the Steal ability for the first time when he discovered that his chakra and mana were treated as the same energy source in his body. He hadn't noticed at first since the Steal ability required so little mana/chakra. But then he tried using multiple times and eventually felt a drain on his reserves.

As a result, Naruto learned that his ninjutsu, along with his spells, took from both his chakra AND his mana reserves. So as such, he had twice as much energy as he did when he was in the Elemental Nations.

But this didn't apply to Kurama, and they figured it was because the fox didn't need two nearly infinite sources of energy.

"Darkness shrouded in light..."

As Naruto continued the incantation, the wind around them began to stir. With Kurama's help much like they made a Tailed Beast Ball, mana began to concentrate into Naruto's outstretched right hand.

Yunyun had witnessed Megumin's Explosion magic many times in the past, but she was surprised to see Naruto effortlessly draw out this much energy. She always felt that he was suppressing his power, but she never thought it was to this extent.

"Burst forth, Explosion!"

Naruto shouted, and the condensed ball of mana shot out of his palm and out into the forest.

*BOOM!*

A dozen trees fell prey to the fiery combustion caused by the spell, and a strong gust of wind flew passed them shortly after.

It wasn't quite as big as Megumin's Explosion, but Naruto was expecting that. After all, it was his first time using the spell.

'Megumin sure is talented to be able to use this spell on her own. I don't think I'll be able to use Explosion magic without you Kurama...'

'You just need to work on your chakra control. Figures it would affect your control over this world's magic. It's still shit.'

'Thanks, Kurama...'

Naruto let out a short breath as his eyes reverted to their normal blue. With the initial test complete, he now had another powerful technique in his arsenal. Now he had to train himself, and test out some other ideas he had...

After the wind settled down, Yunyun was expecting Naruto to collapse due to mana exhaustion. But to her surprise, he turned around and grinned.

"That was a pretty good test shot, don't you think?"

"I-is Naruto really human?"

Naruto frowned. What was this girl talking about?

"That's rude. Of course I'm human!"

"Ah! I'm sorry! It's just... Megumin is considered a prodigy in our clan. She was ranked number one in our school and even graduated early. But even with her massive mana reserves, she can only use Explosion magic once a day before collapsing to mana exhaustion, and Naruto-San is still standing..."

Yunyun said while poking her fingers together nervously. She didn't mean to offend him in anyway, it was just that humans couldn't normally use Explosion magic due to the spells insane mana requirement.

Devils and Undead who had inhuman reserves and extra skill points from living so long learned the skill for fun, but for a human to use the spell and still standing without a hint of exhaustion was unheard of.

"That spell still took about a third of my mana reserves, but I guess you could say I cheated and had the demon that's sealed inside me help with the spell."

Naruto said and rubbed the back of his head sheepishly. He then blinked when he realized he never told Yunyun about Kurama.

"Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you... But I have a giant nine-tailed fox demon sealed inside my gut."

How could he forget to mention something so important? Maybe it was because Arue had already known, so Naruto must have unconsciously assumed all the Crimson Magic Clansman knew about it. He just hoped this didn't change Yunyun's mind about joining his party.

Yunyun tilted her head when Naruto started laughing awkwardly. Was he worried that she would hate him because of the demon?

"If you change your mind about being in my party, I'll understan-"

"Nonsense! I-I fine with becoming friends with anyone! Be it human, animal, or inanimate objects! I heard about the rumors of that man's pupil having a demon sealed in him, and Arue told me they were true, but I don't mind at all!"

Yunyun said fiercely.

"I-is that so? That's a relief then... Wait, inanimate objects?"

Naruto said when he realized Yunyun had said something rather strange.

"Ah... I was feeling lonely one day at the river next to the village when I found a shiny rock, so I decided to make it my friend. But the next day, I challenged Megumin to a duel and she decided the competition would be a rock skipping competition. So she took my friend and threw it into the river..."

H-how cruel...

"I forfeited the match and spent the rest of the day trying to find my friend, but I could never find it. Ah, but don't worry! I'm over it now! Please don't cry for my sake! It'll make me sad too!"

Yunyun said when tears started flowing down Naruto's face.

"B-but that's... That's just so sad! How could Megumin be so cruel!?"

"That's just the way Megumin is. We used to have daily competitions at school, but Megumin always won and claimed my lunch as a consolation prize."

She even took her lunch!?

Naruto decided Megumin would be the target for his next big prank.

"A-anyways, I'm sure monsters are going to be attracted by that explosion. So we should get going now."

Yunyun said and took the lead into the forest with a depressed and secretly angry Naruto following behind her.

After a couple minutes of silent walking, Naruto spoke up.

"Don't worry Yunyun, next time we visit the Crimson Magic Village I'll help you find your long-lost friend!"

"Please don't!"

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