Path of Peace

Sinbad gingerly walking on the streets of the capital minding his own business. No one noticed Sinbad as he passed by, eagerly looking at the buildings of the financial district. However, his mood began to sour as he noticed the people's blank eyes like brainless zombies.

'This will be over soon.' He thought as his eyes flashed with a mysterious light.

He carried on his leisurely stroll making his way to the centre of the financial district. He and Chelsea were assigned to assassinate Gebaze the Head of Public Finance. Gebaze had been abusing his power to extort and exploit the people through unreasonable taxing. This, of course, has had a significant detrimental effect on the standards of living for the people below those that of nobles.

Chelsea had already infiltrated Gebaze's home as a maid. Sinbad's job was to eliminate anyone that obstructed the success of the mission. He arrived at the target's location and he examined the house and released a small sound wave using Zepar's magic detecting 20 people in total.

The house was fairly grand but lacked in certain areas to those houses possessed by people in higher positions. It resembled a four-star hotel rather than a house. There were two guards standing by the entrance of the house with stone faces similar to that of the palace guards of Buckingham Palace.

Sinbad marched onward ignoring guards in a casual manner. There was no reaction from the guards as he walked by like an inconspicuous breeze. He made it to the lobby of the house and saw maids milling about, cleaning the various furniture with meticulous care not to incur the wrath of their employer.

Sinbad continued his walk and sensed Chelsea was with the target. Sinbad made his way through the stairways and corridors making the guards face plant into the ground like their soul was sucked out of them as Sinbad walked past. Chelsea had assassinated Gabeze as planned but there were two targets making their way to her location. Sinbad teleported to Chelsea's position and saw her in a cute maid uniform. Mainly black and white following the typical stereotype of maids. He turned his head and noticed the limp head of Gabeze, still, like a sculpture. He realised that the room overlooked the financial district and he chuckled thinking that Gabeze was truly a conceited prick then turned his attention to Chelsea.

"You look cute," Sinbad commented and laughed.

"This is not the time to be complimenting me, Sinbad." Chelsea pouted with a slight tinge of red on her cheeks.

"Let's wait and see who's coming first, then we'll take our leave," Sinbad said as he looked towards the door.

"We're the Jaegars! We have information that Night Raid is coming to this house! Due to his being an emergency, we're entering!" A voice shouted as it got closer to the door.

The door slammed open and Sinbad just stood there with Chelsea by his side smiling cheekily. Wave was about to shout something again before he saw Sinbad smiling tauntingly him.

"S-Sinbad!" Wave shouted pointing his finger at Sinbad.

"It's not good to point fingers at people, you know?" Sinbad advised. He turned to Kurome and waved "Kurome-chan, come hug Nii-san!"

This scene left Wave and Chelsea lost for words as Kurome ran over to Sinbad and bear hugged him. This left Sinbad dumbfounded and he asked "Kurome, do you miss me that much?"

"You're my Nii-san now, so of course I miss you." She said rubbing her head affectionately against his chest.

"Kurome! What are you doing!?" Wave questioned waving his arms in confusion.

"I've never had a Nii-san before, so I just wanted to hug him," Kurome answered with cute puppy eyes. This made Sinbad gush over her and adored her even more. He kissed her forehead which made Kurome blush. Wave and Chelsea were truly speechless at this point before Chelsea interrupted their hug "Sinbad, we need to go."

"Okay, Kurome eat loads okay." Sinbad patted her head flashing a gentle smile.

"Okay, Nii-san" Kurome nodded while Wave thought 'She already eats loads' as sweat dripped from his forehead.

"Take care of Kurome for me Wave." Sinbad winked to Wave before grabbing Chelsea and said "See you guys next time" teleporting away.

Kurome waved Sinbad goodbye and exited from the room leaving the astonished Wave in the room. Wave recovered somewhat and looked out of the window to the horizon and thought 'Sinbad-san, truly is amazing' as he admired how cool Sinbad with an exit like that before he snapped out of his stupor. He slapped himself for praising the enemy and left with a flushed face while Kurome was questioning Wave's intelligence.

Sinbad and Chelsea were teleported back as Sinbad continued to tease her about her cute maid outfit to which she stormed off to her room pouting her lips. Sinbad found her so cute and laughed making his way to his haven, the kitchen.

"Su-san! I'm hungry" Sinbad shouted as he sat down eagerly waiting for some food.

"Yes, Sinbad-sama." Susanoo complied and changed into his chef gear and got to work. It was an arduous task cooking for someone like Sinbad who had a whale's appetite and the taste of a refined aristocrat. His demeanour and actions greatly contradict each other. One moment he is the High King of the Seven Seas the next moment he's the bane of all chefs. However, Susanoo had lived up to Sinbad's expectations and is his personal chef.

Akame was in the training ground, working to contain and control her magic when she smelt a divine scent coming from within the base. She sheathed Murasame and turned into a blur. She abruptly appeared on Sinbad's lap drooling over the smell filling the kitchen.

Everyone else, made their way into the kitchen because they were filling a bit empty. They saw Sinbad and Akame already in their spot shaking in excitement. They laughed and sat at the table to join them. They began to talk about Sinbad and Chelsea's mission to which Sinbad explained all that occurred. There wasn't much that happened on the end of Sinbad but the most noteworthy thing was meeting Wave and Kurome again.

"You saw Kurome again, Nii-san?" Akame asked.

"Yeah, she's so cute!" Sinbad said happily.

"That's not important Sinbad." Chelsea interjected and continued "The main thing is that it was a trap."

"Good thing Sinbad was there then," Mine said after sitting down holding a cup of hot chocolate.

"Teleportation is beyond doubt one of the most powerful abilities ever." Chelsea praised as her eyes gleamed with envy and admiration.

"If Sinbad wasn't there it would've been difficult getting out" Mine muttered stroking her chin.

"Even if Sinbad wasn't there I would've just transformed into a cat as he already had three pets," Chelsea said smugly.

"It's infuriating to say, but your Teigu's rather useful" Mine said reluctantly.

"No, I'm just happy that Sinbad was there..." Chelsea whispered under her breath.

"Don't worry Chelsea, I'll always be there for you" Sinbad added all of a sudden with a comforting smile on his face.

"Sinbad..." Chelsea said as her cheeks heated up as Sinbad's words began to go on repeat in her head. She placed her hands on her cheeks and squirmed around extremely embarrassed hearing "I'll always be there for you". Mine meanwhile, was irritated that Sinbad uttered such words to Chelsea even though she had been with Sinbad for longer. She clenched her fists as she glared angrily at Chelsea.

"Food is ready, Sinbad-sama," Susanoo said getting everyone's attention again.

"Thank you Su-san!" Sinbad and Akame yelled as drool could be seen dripping from their mouths. Everyone thought 'They are the definition of foodies.' Everyone dug into their meals after thanking Susanoo.

Najenda walked into the kitchen with a towel wrapped around her neck while she was wiping her hair dry. She just wore a short vest that exposed her navel area along with a pair of hot tight black jeans accentuating her curves. Sinbad and Lubbock went wide-eyed looking at Najenda's sexy figure. Najenda saw the flame in Sinbad's golden eyes feeling pleased with herself as she sat down next to Sinbad.

Sinbad gulped looking at Najenda's still moist skin and feeling the warm steam radiating from her body. Najenda decided to tease the man a little and placed her hand on his leg. She bewitchingly stroked Sinbad's thigh. Sinbad felt her seductive touch and thought 'She has gotten a bit naughtier as of late. She probably learnt from Leone.'

Sinbad decided to get some compensation from her incessant teasing and placed his hand on her leg. He unhurriedly manoeuvred his hand on her thigh making her moan as he got closer to her sacred garden. She didn't want to surrender and directly put her hand on his crotch which made him jolt a little.

"What's wrong Nii-san?" Akame asked innocently.

"Nothing Akame-chan, just carry on eating," Sinbad said with a forced smile on his face.

"Okay." She said quickly stuffing more food in her mouth. Sinbad's mouth twitched and thought 'Did she just ask if I was okay out of courtesy?' but then his train of thought was shattered as Najenda was stroking his crotch.

'You're really asking for it.' Sinbad thought.

Sinbad's hand like a flash slid into Najenda's jeans which made Najenda scream a little. This made all eyes on the table turn to her. "It's nothing..." She said weakly while Sinbad was smirking evilly. He began rubbing his hand against her love canal making an electric sensation run up Najenda's spine.

Sinbad saw Najenda's breathing sounding a bit uneven. He felt her panties feeling a bit damp as he continued to play a bit more. Najenda stopped stroking Sinbad's crotch as she was lost in pleasure. Sinbad suddenly shoved his fingers inside her vagina making her jump up and shiver ecstasy before Sinbad held her down to not attract any attention. She panted and leaned in close whispering "You made me cum" as she breathed heavily into his ears.

He removed his hand from her pants and moved his sticky fingers around. He cheekily sucked his fingers clean as Najenda watched. He just looked too beguiling, further making Najenda stimulated.

"You taste so good babe" Sinbad whispered into her ear enunciating every word slowly. Najenda's felt wet down below hearing Sinbad's alluring honeywords. Sinbad added, "You should control yourself a little, otherwise someone's going to catch on."

Najenda sobered up and looked angrily at Sinbad with scarlet cheeks. She buried her head in food to hide her face but that didn't escape Leone's keen senses. Leone looked at Sinbad and Najenda as she had a complicated expression on her face before it softened back to normal while a light flashed in her eyes for a brief moment.

After eating, Najenda instructed everyone to convene in the conference room. A short while later, Najenda was dressed normally and everyone was gathered. Najenda sat down on her chair while everyone else positioned themselves around the room getting comfortable.

"The subject this time is the religion that is being spread throughout citizens called the path of peace." Najenda addressed looking to the group.

"That religion that says doing good deeds contributes to happiness and longevity, huh," Chelsea said leaning against the wall with a lollipop in her mouth.

"Ah. They came to my village as well!" Tatsumi added in realisation. He continued to say "That statue of God that the village head gave me when we left was from that religion."

"Over the past ten years, the Path of Peace has been increasing their adherents, and they've become quite influential on the Eastern Side of the Empire," She slid a cigarette in her mouth and lit it up an breathed out a puff of smoke "Soon, this path of peace will start an armed uprising... That is, a religious insurrection..." She raised her arm in front of her and moved on saying "We are going to use this for our own purposes."

"Wai... Wait for just a second!" Tatsumi shouted agitated. "If an insurrection like that happens, just how many are going to die?"

"Calm down Tatsumi," Sinbad said alleviating the tension off Tatsumi's shoulders. Tatsumi breathed and felt guilty for his outburst. Sinbad patted his shoulder and said "The citizens have suffered for too long under the torment they have been subjected to by the corrupt politicians. Even if we prevent the Path of Peace's uprising, the citizen's themselves will direct their animosity elsewhere."

"This country has just come this close to its end," Najenda said.

"I understand," Tatsumi said with a level mind.

"Good, the plan is when the Path of Peace's insurrection begins their armed uprising, we'll have the allied tribe in the west begin an attack." Najenda said and proceeded "With this, the Empire will have enemies both within and outside. But they can probably withstand even this."

"Who'll take care of the Path of Peace, sorry?" Tatsumi asked confused.

"Esdeath will. In the previous two revolts, the Empire had Esdeath suppress them." Sinbad answered patiently.

"Sinbad's right. Now carrying on, then, as a clincher, the Revolutionary Army will be a revolt on the south side. They will advance towards the capital... and overthrow the Empire." Najenda said.

"A three-pronged attack..." Tatsumi muttered,

"The Empire is underestimating the Revolutionary Army. Since they're gathering the pus of the Revolutionary members all in one place, you could even say we're grateful to them." Najenda commented. She explained that to get the Revolutionary Army to the capital they would have to make their way through several forts and castles. They had already arranged betrayals by several crown princes and since there were many cases where those who were taking their jobs seriously were demoted, therefore making it simple to convince them.

In turn, this would catch the Empire off-guard as the Revolutionary Army advance towards the capital at a frightening speed.

"But even then, the trump card of the Empire, Budoh and his Imperial guard will most likely move to intercept," Najenda said. To which Sinbad added straight after "However, this means that the palace's security will drop sharply."

Najenda looked to Sinbad as they were totally in sync with each other. Sinbad saw her gaze and winked making her lose concentration for a second before Akame stated.

"...And when that happens, it's the perfect opportunity to assassinate the Minister. We will storm the palace, and consign the Minister. We will break the Empire from the inside-out."

"Well, sly bastards like that seem like they'll get away at the end, though," Lubbock said chuckling.

"We won't let anything like that happen. He's the main culprit. He'll have to die, without fail" Leone said letting out a faint blood lust cracking her fingers.

"In return for the Western Tribe's help, we've agreed to restore their original territory. Originally, part of the Western Region of the Empire belonged to the tribes. Recovering that land is their dearest wish..." Najenda said.

Sinbad noticed Mine's solemn expression when the Western Tribes were brought up and remembered that she was a half descendant from there. He walked over and patted her head which made her quiver a little. She turned her head and saw Sinbad's reassuring smile while he kept on stroking her delicate pink hair. Mine's mouth curled upwards and regained her spirit.

"If the plans have been made, then all there is left to do is to execute, but..." Susanoo said and paused. He said after "The reason as to why we can't do that yet must be connected to the job this time."

"That's exactly it, Susanoo! As one would expect from my Teigu!" Najenda turned and praised him as if she was praising herself.

"The Path of Peace is the key to everything, but at the moment, there seems to be some commotion going on within," Najenda said taking in another smoke.

"In the Path of Peace, the Lord may possess tremendous charisma but his trusted assistant, Borick is a spy brought in by the Minister," Najenda continued.

"I'm guessing Borick's goal is to seize the Path of Peace and stop the armed uprising from happening." Sinbad judged.

"Yes, you're right. He plans to eventually kill the Lord, and make him into a true God, and stand at the peak himself." Najenda said.

"Can't you pass information to them and prevent that?" Sheele said tilting her head.

"There's a group within that sides with Borick, and they have a great deal of influence. And they have the backing of the Empire, too." Najenda said.

"It's just like injecting a parasite from within. The Minister is someone to be feared." Bulat commented.

"And this is the mission this time," Najenda said pointing at one point on a map. "We will go to the headquarters of the Path of Peace and remove Borick."

"We have information that he mixes drugs into the food of a small percentage of adherents. Once they're addicted, the fiend uses them as loyal playtoys." Najenda stated.

That was when a demonic air filled the room. Everyone turned their eyes to Sinbad who's eyes had turned blood red. His face remained calm but the aura he was emitting was terrifying as a Devil King that had risen from Hell.

"I'll eliminate him personally." Sinbad slowly said. He closed his eyes and his eyes returned once again to their original state. No one had any qualms with Sinbad personally taking on the mission. In fact, this was the first time Sinbad had taken the initiative to put himself forward for a mission.

"Very well, Sinbad this is your mission," Najenda said complying with his request. She continued "As for the Jaegars, I propose that we lure them outside the Capital, and then wage war on them."

"About time." Sinbad smiled. It was the confrontation that decided it all now.