The Dragon God (CH 2) (Patreon)

A/N: This story is rated M for mature content not suitable for children.

This chapter was commissioned by Crash.

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Chapter 2: The Monster of Shrek and the Phoenix’s Fever

The journey from the heart of the Star Dou Forest to the legendary Shrek Academy was usually a treacherous trek for a pair of young girls and an unregistered Spirit Master. But as Naruto walked through the emerald canopy, the forest itself seemed to hold its breath. The predatory beasts that usually prowled these shadows stayed silent, their primal instincts screaming at them to avoid the golden-red-haired youth whose very presence felt like an ancient mountain pressing down on the earth.

Naruto maintained a steady pace, his expression one of calm confidence. To his left, Tang Ya walked with a newfound spring in her step, her eyes frequently drifting toward him with a mixture of awe and something much deeper. To his right, Ma Xiaotao walked in a state of dazed recovery. The "Phoenix" of Shrek, usually a woman of terrifying power and volatility, was now subdued, her hand occasionally reaching out to touch Naruto’s sleeve as if to reassure herself that the cooling, stabilizing energy she had felt earlier wasn't a dream.

Behind them, Ling Luochen and Wang Dong followed in a heavy silence. Luochen, the ice-cold beauty of the Inner Court, was mentally cataloging everything she had witnessed. A purple first ring. A suppression of a draconic beast with a mere word. None of it made sense according to the laws of the Douluo Continent.

Meanwhile, Wang Dong, or Tang Wutong, though Naruto was the only one who knew the truth, was struggling with a storm of conflicting emotions. She felt a magnetic pull toward Naruto, a resonance in her very soul that made her heart flutter, yet seeing the way Ma Xiaotao clung to him made her blood boil with a jealousy she couldn't name.

"We’re approaching the outer perimeter," Tang Ya said, breaking the silence as the dense foliage began to thin, revealing the distant, towering spires of Shrek Academy. "Naruto, once we get there, things are going to move fast. With your talent... the faculty is going to go into a frenzy."

Naruto offered a small, predatory smirk. "Let them. I didn't come here to blend in, Tang Ya. I came here to claim what’s mine."

He caught the flash of a blush on Tang Ya’s cheeks, but he didn't elaborate. His eyes were fixed on the horizon, where the "Will of the Heavens" felt even stronger. Tang San’s influence was woven into the very stones of the Academy, and Naruto could feel the divine arrogance of the Sea God pulsing through the air. It was a cage, and Naruto was about to walk right into the center of it.

Shrek Academy was more than a school; it was a sovereign power. The white stone walls rose up like the teeth of a giant, and the atmosphere was thick with the soul power of thousands of students. As the group approached the main gates, the crowd of prospective students and their parents parted like the Red Sea.

It wasn't just because of Ma Xiaotao’s presence, though her reputation as the 'Mad Phoenix' certainly helped, it was the aura Naruto was projecting. He didn't hide it. He let the Seven Kill Sword’s intent leak out, a sharp, cold pressure that made the hair on the back of everyone’s neck stand up. He looked like a king returning to a kingdom he had never seen but already owned.

At the registration desk sat an older man with thick spectacles, his soul power hovering around the Rank 61 mark. He didn't even look up as the group approached.

"Name, age, and primary Martial Soul," the man droned, his quill hovering over a stack of parchment.

"Tang Ya, fifteen, Blue Silver Grass. Re-enrolling for the intermediate year."

"Xiao Xiao, twelve, Twin Souls: Soul-Crushing Cauldron and Nine-Pointed Flute. New enrollment."

The old man finally looked up, his eyes widening slightly at the mention of twin souls. "Twin souls? Rare. Proceed to the inner gate for aptitude testing."

Then, Naruto stepped forward. The temperature at the desk dropped five degrees instantly. Ma Xiaotao stood right behind him, her hand resting almost possessively on the small of his back. The registrar’s eyes darted from Naruto to the Inner Court’s top genius, and he swallowed hard, sensing a level of power from the boy that shouldn't exist.

"Name?" the registrar asked, his voice cracking.

"Naruto," he replied, his voice a low, smooth rumble.

"Age?"

"Twelve."

"Martial Soul?"

Naruto didn't answer with words. He raised both hands, his palms facing upward. In his left, the spectral, iridescent scales of the Dragon God flickered into existence, a heavy, ancient pressure that made the wooden desk groan and creak. In his right, the Seven Kill Sword manifested, its silver blade gleaming with the violet runes of his recently acquired ring.

The purple soul ring rose from the ground, rotating around his body with a violent, rhythmic hum.

The entire entrance plaza went dead silent. Prospective students froze, and even the Shrek guards at the gate shifted their spears in a moment of reflexive defense.

"A... a purple first ring?" the registrar whispered, his spectacles sliding down his nose. "And twin souls? A beast soul and a tool soul of that caliber? This... this violates the fundamental laws of soul ring absorption."

"Laws are for those who lack the strength to break them," Naruto said, his gaze piercing through the old man. "Is there a problem with my registration?"

"No... no problem," the man stuttered, quickly stamping a gold-trimmed form with trembling hands. "Go directly to the Chancellor’s office. Do not take the standard testing. You are... an extreme anomaly. The Martial Soul Department will want to see you immediately."

"Good," Naruto said, taking the form. "I hate waiting in lines."

As they walked through the gates, Ma Xiaotao leaned in, her lips almost brushing Naruto’s ear. Her scent, a mix of cinnamon and scorched air, filled his senses. "You really like to make an entrance, don't you? You've just put a target on your back for every ambitious student in the academy."

"A target is just a way to make sure the enemy knows where to aim before I cut them down," Naruto replied, glancing back at her. "Besides, I think I’ve already won over the most important judge."

Xiaotao’s golden eyes flickered with a dark, appreciative heat. "Don't get cocky. The Chancellor is Rank 95. He won't be as easy to impress as a registrar."

The Chancellor’s office was a sprawling chamber filled with ancient scrolls, soul-tool artifacts, and the heavy weight of authority. Chancellor Yan Shaozhe sat behind a massive oak desk, his presence radiating the aura of a Titled Douluo. To his left stood a woman with short, grey hair and eyes as sharp as flint, the Dean of the Martial Soul Department, Zhou Yi.

They had been briefed via a soul-communication device the moment Naruto passed the gate.

"So," Yan Shaozhe said, his eyes scanning Naruto with an intensity that felt like a physical probe. "The boy who tamed the Phoenix and absorbed a three-thousand-year ring at Rank 10. Naruto... where did you come from? No clan in the Douluo Continent has a record of a 'Dragon God' or a 'Seven Kill Sword' appearing together. Your bloodline is an impossibility."

Naruto stood tall in the center of the room. He didn't bow. He didn't yield to the Chancellor’s Rank 95 pressure. Instead, he channeled a sliver of the Dragon God’s authority, meeting the Chancellor’s gaze as an equal.

"I am the Son of Destiny, Chancellor," Naruto said. "As for my origins, they are irrelevant. Shrek claims to only accept monsters. I am here to ensure that your 'monsters' actually live up to the name."

Zhou Yi stepped forward, her face a mask of iron. "Arrogance is a quick way to get expelled from my class, boy. Having a high-year ring is one thing. Having the combat instinct to use it is another. We've seen 'geniuses' die in their first real battle because they didn't have the stomach for the gore."

"Would you like to test my stomach, Dean?" Naruto asked, a cold light dancing in his eyes. "Or perhaps you'd like to see if your top students can even stand in my presence without shaking?"

Zhou Yi smirked, a predatory expression. "Tomorrow. The freshman trials. You will be placed in a team with Wang Dong and Xiao Xiao. If you can't lead them to a decisive victory against the other teams, I don't care how many purple rings you have, you'll be out. Shrek doesn't need solo acts; we need leaders who can dominate the battlefield."

"Consider it done," Naruto said.

As they left the office, Tang Ya was waiting in the hallway, looking relieved but anxious. She pulled Naruto aside as the Shrek faculty began their hushed, frantic deliberations inside.

"Naruto! They didn't kick you out, did they?"

"Hardly," Naruto said. "I’m in. Class 1. But I need a place to stay."

"The dormitories are already assigned," Tang Ya said, a slight blush creeping onto her cheeks. "Since you’re a late addition, you’ll be in Room 108. It’s the only one with a free bed. It’s in the white dormitory building."

"And who’s my roommate?" Naruto asked, though he already suspected the answer.

A voice from behind them answered with a sharp, annoyed tone. "Me."

Wang Dong was standing there, her arms crossed over her chest, looking thoroughly disgruntled. "And don't think this means we’re friends, Naruto. You might have impressed the Seniors, but I’m not so easily swayed. I expect you to keep your side of the room clean and stay out of my way."

Naruto looked at 'him', a slow, knowing grin spreading across his face. He could see the subtle tremble in Wang Dong’s fingers, the soul resonance was already working on her, drawing her toward him even as her mind tried to push him away.

"Room 108," Naruto mused. "Perfect. I look forward to seeing how 'unswayed' you are by tomorrow morning, Wang Dong."

The dormitory room was small and sparse, illuminated by the pale moonlight filtering through a single window. It smelled faintly of lavender and high-end soaps, a stark contrast to the scent of blood and earth Naruto had grown used to in the forest.

Wang Dong was busy unpacking a trunk filled with high-quality silks and expensive grooming kits. She was pointedly ignoring Naruto, her back turned as she arranged her pillows with obsessive precision.

Naruto sat on his bed, his spiritual sea restless. The Dragon God soul was purring, reacting to the proximity of the divine light within Wang Dong. There was a thread of divinity in her, a lock that only the Dragon God could pick.

"Hey," Naruto said, his voice cutting through the silence.

"What?" she snapped, not turning around.

"You're a girl, aren't you?"

The silence that followed was absolute. Wang Dong froze, a silk shirt halfway out of her trunk. Her shoulders tightened, and for a moment, the air in the room grew heavy with the scent of light and butterflies.

Slowly, she turned around. Her face was pale, her eyes wide with a mixture of fear and fury. "What... what did you just say?"

"I'm not blind, Wutong," Naruto said, using her true name with a deliberate, low tone.

She gasped, her hand flying to her throat as if to hide the lack of an Adam's apple. "How... how do you know that name? Who are you? Are you one of his agents? Did my father send you?"

"I'm no one's agent," Naruto said, standing up and taking a slow, deliberate step toward her. He didn't use a soul skill, but his presence filled the small room, looming over her. "I told you, I see things others don't. Your disguise is magically supported, but to a Dragon, a butterfly can't hide in a boy's skin. Especially not one that resonates with my soul so clearly."

"Stay back!" she hissed, her martial soul, the Radiant Butterfly Goddess, flickering behind her. The blue-and-gold wings manifested in a burst of light, filling the small room with a divine radiance. "If you tell anyone... if you try to use this against me..."

"I'm not going to tell anyone," Naruto said, stopping just inches from her. He was taller than her, and he used that height to loom over her, letting his shadow swallow her light. "But I don't like being lied to. And I certainly don't like my future family members keeping secrets from me."

"Family?" she whispered, her confusion overriding her fear. "What are you talking about? We just met."

"Destiny doesn't care about time," Naruto murmured, his face inches from hers. He could smell the floral scent of her soul power, a sweet, intoxicating aroma.

He reached out, his hand moving faster than she could react. He didn't grab her; he simply brushed a strand of twilight-colored hair away from her forehead. The moment his skin touched hers, a literal spark of gold-and-purple energy flew between them.

Resonance.

The Dragon God and the Butterfly Goddess screamed in harmony within their spiritual seas. It was a martial soul fusion, the highest level of compatibility. Wang Dong let out a soft, choked gasp, her knees buckling as a wave of pure, golden energy flooded her system. Naruto caught her by the waist, pulling her flush against his chest.

Her heart was hammering against her ribs like a trapped bird. Her eyes were glazed, the divine light in them flickering as Naruto’s energy began to interact with the seal placed on her soul by Tang San.

"What... what is this?" she breathed, her hands clutching his forearms for support. "Why does it feel like... like I've known you forever? Why can't I pull away?"

"Because you were made for me, Wutong," Naruto murmured into her ear, his voice a low vibration that made her shiver. "You're the daughter of a God, but here, in this room, you're just mine."

She didn't pull away. She couldn't. The soul-bond was already taking hold, a golden chain that linked their fates. For the first time in her life, the cold, distant influence of her father felt secondary to the warmth of the boy holding her.

Suddenly, a sharp, frantic knock at the door broke the trance.

"Naruto? Are you in there? Please... open the door!"

It was Ma Xiaotao’s voice. And she sounded like she was in agony.

Naruto released Wang Dong, who stumbled back onto her bed, her face a deep, burning scarlet. She looked at Naruto with a mixture of awe and terror, her breath still coming in shallow, ragged gasps.

Naruto walked to the door and pulled it open.

Ma Xiaotao was standing there, leaning heavily against the doorframe. Her red hair was disheveled, and the scarlet flush had returned to her skin with a vengeance. Steam was literally rising from her shoulders, and her eyes were glazed with that familiar, burning fever of the Evil Fire.

"It’s back," she rasped, her hand reaching out to grab the front of Naruto’s shirt. "The fire... it’s worse than the forest. Luochen’s ice... it didn't work. It just made it angrier. I need... I need you to make it stop."

Naruto looked back at Wang Dong, who was staring at the Inner Court's 'Phoenix' with wide eyes, realizing for the first time the kind of "cooling" Naruto provided. Then he looked at Xiaotao, whose fingers were trembling as they clutched him, her body radiating a heat that would have melted lead.

Naruto smiled, a confident, protective look. He reached out and pulled Xiaotao into the room, kicking the door shut behind her.

"Come in, Xiaotao," Naruto said, his voice commanding and calm. "I think it’s time we showed my roommate exactly what I’m capable of. And Wutong... don't look away. This is how I take care of my own."

The night was just getting started. As the "Evil Fire" raged within the Phoenix, Naruto prepared to unleash the full, cooling dominance of the Dragon God, beginning a ritual that would bind Xiaotao to him forever.

Chapter End

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A/N: I hope you all like the chapter! Remember, I'm accepting paid commissions if you have a story idea or want an update that isn't part of the poll. I really appreciate your support as always. See you later!