I posted my new work, give it a try. Hope you enjoy it.
[[ Naruto : A Gacha Life ]]
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[ Isaiah's PoV ]
The Gremory mansion's backyard was peaceful, but my mind wasn't.
I turned the pieces over in my mind like a chess player studying the board.
- Someone wanted me dead
- They had access to Old Satan Faction resources
- They knew enough about clan politics to frame Lord Astaroth perfectly
- They used Diodora as an unwitting courier
- The timing coincided with my promotion to High-Class Devil
That last point nagged at me. Why now? Why wait until after the ceremony? If X wanted me dead, there had been dozens of opportunities before this.
Unless... unless my promotion itself was the trigger. What had changed when I became a High-Class Devil?
Status. Authority. The right to establish my own peerage. Political weight that couldn't be ignored.
Someone saw me as a threat. But who? And why?
The Old Satan Faction made convenient scapegoats, but the more I thought about it, the less sense it made. Katerea and her followers wanted to overthrow the current Satans and restore the old bloodlines to power. I was nobody in that conflict—just a reincarnated devil, barely worth their notice.
No, this was personal. Someone with a specific reason to want me gone.
I pulled out a small notebook I'd started keeping. Inside, I'd begun mapping connections:
*Diodora Astaroth* - Courier (unwitting?)
- Connected to Old Satan Faction
- Access to clan resources
- Motive: Unknown
*Lord Astaroth* - Framed
- Genuinely grateful according to Lady Rayne
- No apparent motive
- Benefits from my survival (family protected)
*Old Satan Faction* - Scapegoat
- Possess the poison
- Would be immediately suspected
- No clear motive for targeting me specifically
*X (Unknown)* - True Culprit
- Access to OSF resources or contacts
- Knowledge of clan politics
- Motive: ???
- Timing: Connected to my promotion
I stared at the last entry. The motive was the missing piece. Without understanding why X wanted me dead, I was just stumbling in the dark.
"Thinking hard again, I see"
The voice was calm, almost lazy, but I recognized it instantly. I looked up to find Souji Okita standing a few feet away, hands tucked into the sleeves of his traditional Shinsengumi uniform. The light blue haori with its distinctive mountain-stripe trim hadn't changed since the last time I'd seen him. He looked exactly as I remembered—a man in his late twenties with an air of relaxed composure that somehow never diminished his presence.
"Master Souji!" I stood immediately, bowing with respect.
He waved a hand dismissively, that characteristic laid-back smile on his face. "How many times do I have to tell you? You don't need to be so formal. We're not in a dojo." He walked over and sat on the bench, patting the spot beside him. "Sit. You look like you're carrying the weight of the Underworld on your shoulders."
I sat down, feeling some of the tension drain away. There was something about Souji's presence that had always calmed me, even back when I was still struggling with my past, distrustful of everyone around me.
"When did you arrive?" I asked.
"About twenty minutes ago. Sirzechs-sama sent word about your promotion, so I figured I'd come congratulate you in person." He tilted his head, studying me with those perceptive eyes that always seemed to see more than they let on. "But it seems like something's bothering you. Want to talk about it?"
I hesitated. Souji had been the first person I'd truly opened up to after becoming Rias's knight. When I was drowning in hatred and distrust, unable to accept kindness from anyone, he'd been patient with me. He'd taught me swordsmanship, yes, but more importantly, he'd shown me that not everyone connected to my new life was an enemy.
And yet, this situation was dangerous. Involving him could put him at risk.
"It's complicated," I finally said.
He leaned back against the bench, completely at ease. "You know, when I first started training you, you had this same expression. Like you were trying to solve an impossible puzzle while simultaneously expecting it to explode in your face."
Despite everything, I found myself smiling slightly. "I was convinced everyone was lying to me back then."
"I remember. You wouldn't even accept water from anyone without suspecting it was poisoned." He glanced at me sideways. "Which makes me wonder why you're wearing something around your neck that's clearly bothering you."
My hand involuntarily moved to where the vial rested beneath my shirt. Souji's observational skills hadn't dulled one bit.
His expression didn't change, but I saw his eyes sharpen slightly as he examined the vial. "That's quite expensive gift."
"No. It's poison." I explained the situation—Diodora, the supposed gift from Lord Astaroth, Grayfia's identification of the Old Satan Faction poison, and my suspicions about an unknown third party using the OSF as cover.
Throughout my explanation, Souji listened without interrupting, his demeanor remaining calm even as I detailed the deadly nature of the poison. When I finished, he was quiet for a long moment.
"So you're wearing it," he finally said, his tone unchanged. "Letting whoever sent it think you're walking into their trap."
"It's the only way to draw them out."
"I can see why you're doing it. If you reveal the attempt now, it becomes political chaos and the real culprit disappears."
"Exactly." I looked at him. "Master Souji, I know this is dangerous, and I shouldn't involve you, but—"
He held up a hand, still maintaining that relaxed posture. "First, you're not 'involving' me. I'm choosing to help, on my own accord. Second, you're my student. Did you really think I'd just congratulate you and leave when you're clearly in trouble?"
Relief washed over me. "Thank you, Sensei"
"Besides," he continued, a slight smile playing at his lips, "Sirzechs-sama would be quite upset if I let something happen to someone under his protection. And unlike everyone else, I'm not terrified when Grayfia gets angry, so I need to maintain my reputation somehow."
I couldn't help but laugh quietly at that. It was true—Souji was famously the only person who could remain completely calm when Grayfia was in one of her rare but terrifying moods.
"Now then," he said, his tone becoming more focused while still maintaining its characteristic ease. "Let's think through this logically. Your promotion triggered this. Why would a High-Class Devil status make you a target?"
"That's what I've been trying to figure out. I'm not important enough to threaten the Old Satan Faction directly."
"No, but think about what you represent." Souji stood, stretching slightly. "You're a reincarnated devil who rose to High-Class status remarkably fast. You've saved the Phenex heiress, protected the Astaroth family, earned respect from multiple noble clans. You're living proof that Sirzechs-sama's system works—that the old bloodline arguments are outdated."
I stood as well, the implications clicking into place. "Anyone who benefits from the old hierarchy would see that as a threat."
"Exactly. And who benefits most from maintaining traditional power structures?" He began walking slowly along the garden path, hands still tucked in his sleeves. "Not just the Old Satan Faction. Think broader. Conservative noble families, those who resent the current Satans' reforms, anyone who sees the rise of reincarnated devils as diminishing their own status and influence."
"It could be almost anyone in the upper nobility," I realized, following him.
"Which is precisely why using the Old Satan Faction as a cover is so clever," Souji nodded. "Everyone expects them to be violent. It confirms existing prejudices and draws attention away from other possibilities."
"So X is someone with everything to lose if the current system continues," I said, working through the logic. "Someone with access to OSF resources or contacts. Someone close enough to the political center to know about my promotion immediately and act quickly."
"Someone in or connected to the Satans' inner circle," Souji agreed, his voice still calm but his mind clearly working through the possibilities. "That's a dangerous position for both you and the culprit."
The implications made my blood run cold. If X was that close to the center of power, they'd have resources I couldn't anticipate, eyes everywhere, and the ability to strike through channels I couldn't predict. And lately of few revelations, it won't be a surprise that someone close was behind this.
"This is more complicated than I initially thought, sensei" I admitted.
Souji stopped walking and turned to face me. "You're not alone in this. You have Grayfia's information network, my sword if you need it, and your own abilities."
He smiled slightly.
"Good." Souji started walking back toward the mansion. "I'll be staying at the Gremory estate for a while. Officially, I'm here to congratulate you on your promotion and perhaps do some additional training. It's been long since we sparred"
"Thank you, Master Souji."
He waved it off with his characteristic casualness. "Don't thank me yet. This is going to get messy before it gets better." He paused at the mansion entrance. "One more thing—don't underestimate your opponent. Anyone smart enough to orchestrate this kind of frame job won't make obvious mistakes. They'll be patient, careful, and they'll have contingencies."
"I understand."
"Good. Now, I believe breakfast should be ready soon, and I haven't had a decent meal lately" He grinned. "Let's eat. Everything looks clearer on a full stomach."
As we entered the mansion together, I felt steadier than I had since receiving the vial. Souji's calm presence was a reminder that I didn't have to face this alone. With his tactical mind, Grayfia's resources, and my own abilities, we had a chance.
---
[ Unknown Location ]
In a dimly lit room, a figure sat behind an ornate desk, fingers steepled in contemplation. A communication device glowed softly in the darkness.
"Report" the figure said.
"He received the gift as planned, my lord" a voice crackled through the device.
"Excellent. And his behavior since the ceremony?"
"Normal, my lord. He spent time with the Gremory family, retired to his room at the expected hour. This morning he was in the garden, seemingly deep in thought. No signs of suspicion so far"
"Good. Continue monitoring. I want to know the moment he uses it"
"Yes, my lord. There is... one other matter"
"Speak"
"Souji Okita has arrived at the Gremory mansion. He was seen speaking with the target in the garden this morning"
"Okita is... inconvenient. He's a swordsman, and his master apparently. Even, he doesn't know about it being a poison"
"What if he doesn't use the gift voluntarily, my lord?"
The figure smiled in the darkness "Then we create a situation where he has no choice. Everything I've worked for, every sacrifice I've made to preserve the natural order—it all depends on eliminating this symbol before he becomes too influential to remove quietly."
"The reincarnated devils are changing the balance of power, my lord. If we allow them to continue rising—"
"They won't," the figure interrupted. "The old bloodlines built the Underworld. We maintained it through the Great War, through the loss of the original Satans. We survived by honoring tradition, by understanding that power belongs to those born to wield it. These... reincarnated devils... they're an aberration. A temporary experiment that threatens to replace us"
The figure stood, walking to the window overlooking the Underworld's night sky. On their hand, a ring bearing the Lucifuge clan crest gleamed in the dim light.
"Isaiah—or Yuuto Kiba, or whatever name he uses—is the perfect symbol of everything wrong with the current system. A human, granted power he never earned by birth, rising to heights that should be reserved for true devils. And the current Satans encourages it, uses it to justify his progressive reforms."
"This is about the future of the Underworld"
In the darkness, the Lucifuge crest seemed to glow with old pride, old power, and old grievances that refused to die.
"Enjoy your final days" the figure murmured. "With you, Sirzechs's foolish dream of equality will die as well"
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