Disclaimer: I don't own anything except the plot.
A/N: This is the rewritten version of Fairy Tail's Innocent Vixen and the pairing of the story is still the same however, I've decided to focus the next ten to fifteen chapters in developing Naruko's personality so we won't get into the manga's arc. I would like it if you could review in the end of the chapter to tell me what you think about it.
Minato couldn't remember a day in his life when he didn't miss his guild. He missed his father, the guild master of his old guild. He missed how his father will always complains about the magic council in their dinners. How they were just a bunch of old farts and other things. He missed seeing his mother scolding his father for being a pervert or, seeing his father arguing with his brother about the silliest of things.
He missed his eccentric friends, who always found new ways to make him roll in the ground in laughter. He definitely missed the missions they used to do together, where they always seemed to get into trouble. Missed how they swung their arms around him as they tell him in their loud voices 'welcome back' before saying they missed him.
He closed his eyes and breath in, trying to calm his aching heart. Oh what he will do to hear those words again but he knows with a heavy heart that he will never hear them again. After all, he left the guild after he finished his last job. He didn't speak any of his plans to his father. No, he didn't tell anyone of his plans to see his mother's home village. He had been planning to give them letter, but never found the courage to do it.
He just didn't know how to tell them that he was curious about the mysterious village his mother came from. It was a village not in the maps of Earthland! A village that not many people heard of. It was a village even his father had been weary of. In the beginning, he had just hoped to learn a little bit of the culture before coming back to his guild. But things never go according to plan.
His plan was simply to visit the village and get to know it before going back home, going back to his guild. The plan never involved becoming a shinobi. He loathed the idea of killing yet; listening to those people talking about how honoured they were to be a ninja changed his mind. He wanted to see what was so amazing about being a ninja and he did find out. He did see what was so great about it. He loved the thrill of the danger, loved knowing that any minute he could be well be dead. He loved the fact that he was helping people, from the civilian's to the lords of the country. He loved everything about being a ninja, except for the killing. Never the killing, it's the part of the job that he hated. Who would love such a horrible thing, he will never know. Yet, he knows now that people have no choice but to kill. However, a part of him apologizes over and over again for the families that lost their kids or husband or wife as well as, apologizing to his father for the choices he made. He knows if his father were to know this then he would be so disappointed and angry with him.
He never planned of falling in love with a beautiful, wonderful, feisty redhead woman. He chuckled quietly to himself. Kushina was nothing like his own mother. She was more challenging and more difficult to get along with then his own mother, which was saying something. He laughed as he remembered how she would always scream about becoming Hokage and how she would called him names. Not once did he think that he would fall in love with her.
He never thought that he would become Hokage or be a proud teacher to three incredible ninjas. Not once did he think that he would have a beautiful little girl in this village.
He run his hand through his hair and couldn't help but smile softly at the sight of the baby in his wife's arms. The baby turned her head, revealing beautiful blue eyes. Her sapphire eyes bored into his, causing him to gulp as, his heart became heavy with the decision that he will soon has to make for his child. No matter how he looks at it…he will die tonight. Tears streamed down his eyes, and he thinks for the second time this night about the things he could never do. Never will he see Naruko grow up to become an independent girl. He will never get to hear her first words or see her first steps. Never question any guy she brings home or even see her off on the first day of school. All of these things were no longer possible for him.
Kushina might still raise little Naruko-chan but he wasn't so certain if it will happen or not. He could allow her to be raise by the village but he wasn't so sure about going with this option.
The main issue in his mind were the people of this village. There was very little chance of the people accepting his daughter and they will mistreat her, if what his wife said was true. They will neglect her and that was the last thing he wants to happen. He didn't want to die knowing that his daughter will never be happy, will never know what it is like to be loved. He doesn't want to see her get hurt.
Sustaining the unbearable pain, Minato called his predecessor to do something for the sake of Naruko. He can't believe that he was going to let his old father take care of Naruko but for her sake he will have to swallow his pride.
He just hopes that his father wouldn't rub his bad habits on his daughter. The last thing he wants is a daughter that behaves just like her eccentric grandfather.
"My son and his wife are dead and my son wants me to raise my granddaughter?" Makarov said as he stared at the tired old Hokage. "Are you sure, he wasn't joking with you?"
"Yes, Makarov-san. I'm certain that your son wasn't joking with me. " Hiruzen said. "Minato told me before he went off to seal the Kyuubi that if anything were to happen to him or Kushina that you will be the one to raise her. He was very doubtful to do this that I won't lie to you about, but, he knew she is safer with you then here."
Makarov saw the sincerity in the Hokage's face and he looked down at the little bundle in the Hokage's hands. He curled his hands into a fist and pondered over what the man in front of him said. Him raising a child? He would be horrible at raising a child, let alone a girl. Look at his own children. Yet, he can't deny that he just wants one more chance at doing this.
A chance to prove that he wasn't a complete failure at being a parent.
He nodded his head before staring closely at the baby. He found himself smiling at the sight of the locks of blond hair. The little girl has Minato's hair but does she have his eyes? If so, then he will have a female version of his son right in front of him.
"So will you raise Naruko-chan?"
"I can't really deny my son's dying request, can I?" Makarov asked, smiling at the man. "But I will tell you this, she might never come to this village!"
"I realize this." Hiruzen said, slumping in his seat. "But it's for the best…if she stays here or even visits, I fear that they may harm her."
"Harm her." Makarov said, standing up in his seat. "What do you mean harm her? She hasn't done anything to earn such hate."
"It isn't something she has done that cause their animosity." Hiruzen said, looking at the little bundle, who was scrunching up her nose. "It's the point of her having the Kyuubi sealed inside of her. They judge her to be the demon itself and will try their hardest to make her life like a living hell! They may even murder her if they were given an opportunity."
"What! She's just a child! An innocent child that has no control of this!" The older man yelled. "Don't they have a mind? If they even think of injuring my grandchild then you can bet your ass that I will bring harm to them!"
"I see that Minato didn't inherited his personality from you."
Makarov blinked his eyes before feeling tears rolling down his cheeks. He didn't bother to hide his tears from the Hokage. He just wanted all out, all the anguish and despair that he felt when his son didn't appear after a few weeks. All the pain and anger started to come out. He just couldn't stop questioning himself about this. Why him? Why did his son had to leave him and get himself slaughtered? Why didn't he tell them where he was? Did he despise him? There had been no clues, no hints of his son leaving them, of him planning to join this village.
"…He told me that he's confident that you'll teach her, the teaching that you taught him." The Hokage spoke solemnly, snapping him out from his thoughts. "In his eyes, you're the only reliable person that he can trust. He's certain that you will always be there for Naruko. Before he died, he was convinced that you will protect her with all your heart!"
"If anyone dare harms anyone in my care than you can be certain I will punish them." Makarov said, smiling down in the child in his arms. "No one hurts my children or grandchildren and gets away with it."
Hiruzen nodded grimily at the warning and looked down at the blond-haired girl. This may be the last time he would see this girl but it will be better this way. This decision will be able to spare a child from a world of hate and pain.
(Six years later: Mangolia town)
It's been six years since Makarov had taken in Naruko, and not a day passed, where he wasn't shock of just how much the girl reminded him of her father. Not only in appearance but, in personality as well. She had her father's brains and his rational thinking, and for that he was very grateful for. He doesn't know how he could bare it if his granddaughter was like the rest of the guild. Reckless and troublemaking were not traits that he wished on his two grandchildren. He shook his head and gazed at his grandchild, musing about how at the same time his sweet granddaughter wasn't like her father.
She was just more reckless then him, getting into fights in school whenever someone insulted the guild. If it had been Minato, he would have kept quiet and calmly dealt with it. No, not Naruko! She just went in there and beat the utter crap out of those kids.
This was the main reason why he hadn't started her training in magic but this will all change today. He couldn't deny her of her this part of her heritage and her big blue eyes didn't change his mind! Not in any way or form! The tearful eyes didn't change his mind, not one bit did that change his mind!
Oh who was he kidding!
He can't deny his granddaughter of this chance.
"Gramps, where are we going? We're not going our usual route to the guild." Naruko said, tilting her head at her grandfather.
"That's because we aren't going to the guild." Makarov smiled at his six-year-old granddaughter. He can practically picture his granddaughter's reaction, when he tells her about the training he plans for her. She will be crying with tears of joy and will tell him, he is the best grandfather in the world.
"But, don't you have work to do?" Naruko furrowed her eyebrows at her smiling grandfather. "You never miss a day of work."
"It's okay to take a day off, once in a while. Besides, it isn't like our guild will be destroyed if I'm not there."
"Gramps, have you met our guild? They will destroy the guild even if you're there!" Naruko said incredulously. She groaned as her grandfather shrugged his shoulders at her. She felt like pulling her hair or throwing a chair at her eccentric grandfather. Didn't he know how reckless their guild is? Doesn't he always complain about the damages their guild causes? She sighed. She really doesn't understand her gramps.
"You should stop worrying about the guild, Naruko." Makarov said. "It can survive a day without me."
"No, it can't." Naruko muttered under her breath. "It can't even endure an hour without you."
The old man chuckled nervously at his granddaughter's words and tugged on his granddaughter's hands as he led her towards the forest. The blonde giggled at the sight of so many animals in one place, trying to remember the names of the animals her schoolteacher taught her. That was…a rabbit! And that was a fox, wasn't it? She inched closer to the animals but stopped when her grandfather gave her a warning look.
He suddenly stopped, causing the sapphire-eyed girl to stop. She tilted her head in curiosity and watched as her lovely grandfather gestured for her to sit down on the ground. She frowned but did as her grandfather wish, wondering what he was planning for her. He wasn't going to do anything crazy. No, that's her Uncle Ivan, not her loving grandfather. Definitely not her affectionate, goofy grandfather.
"Naruko, do you know what magic is?"
The blonde blinked and nodded. "Of course I know what magic is. Only an idiot doesn't know what magic is."
"Naruko, mind explaining to me what magic is!" Makarov asked, rolling his eyes at his granddaughter's rudeness.
"Alright, Gramps. From what you told me, Magic is stored within a separate system within that is the physical embodiment of the spirit. When the physical spirit of an organism connects with the spiritual flow of nature, the spirit forms Magic as a product of the connection. Only ten percent of the world's population is able to use Magic, which is noted to keep a balance between ordinary people and those with Magic. It takes an enormous amount of concentration and mental ability to use Magic." Naruko recited, frowning at her grandfather. "Why are you asking me to tell you this? You already know this."
"Because I'm going to teach you magic, today." Her grandfather explained. Naruko beamed at this and the old man smile at her, before ruffling her hair. Her smile widens and for a brief moment, Makarov can see his young son smiling at him. He shook his head and smiled as his granddaughter, who is grinning and whooping at his words.
"However, I'm going to get you to access your magic." Makarov said.
"What! That's no fun!"
"Laxus even have to do this."
The blonde arched her eyebrows and stated dryly. "I'm a hell lot smarter than Laxus."
"You're six, Naruko! You're not the same age as Laxus."
"Who has to help him when it comes to his math homework? You and Uncle Ivan?" Naruko retorted. "Even he knows that I'm smarter than him at some subjects."
"You're only smarter than Laxus when it comes to Math, not when it comes to other subjects." Makarov shook his head at Naruko. "Your cousin had unfortunately inherited my horrible math skills."
"Gramps, you aren't that bad in math!"
"It took me three weeks to see that the guild spent too much money on beer and all because I miscalculated the cost." Makarov muttered. "If Minato was here, he would have been able to make sure that I wouldn't have done such a stupid mistake."
Naruko kept quiet and stared at the lushes green trees before asking. "What's my dad like, gramps? Am I anything like him or am I like my mother?"
The old man smiled. "Your father was in many ways just like you." Makarov chuckled. "He was just as good as math as you and was exceptionally bright especially when it came to magic. Mastered his spells at the age of eight but, he was just so humble about it." He smiled sadly. "He was never the type of kid who would brag about his achievement."
"Tou-san was completely different from Uncle Ivan. If it were Uncle Ivan then he would have bragged about it!"
"Yes, Ivan would have done that." Makarov agreed. "Your father just simply got most of his personality from your grams, thank heavens for that."
The blonde giggled at her grandfather's word before going back to the topic at hand. "So gramps! How do I access my magic?"
"First of all, Naru-chan, take a seat."
Naruko blinked her eyes and obeyed her grandfather's order, taking a seat on the dirt-filled ground. She gazed up, finding her grandfather staring hardly at her but she wasn't fazed one bit.
"Now what do I do, Gramps?"
"Breathe slowly and clear your mind of your thoughts, Naru-chan." Naruko closed her eyes and exhaled. Makarov nodded his head in satisfaction as the blue-eyed girl repeated the actions before speaking.
"Now, Naru-chan, finding your magic might take a little while." Makarov sighed. "It may take weeks before you can access it so, keep doing this until you can find it! It certainly took your tou-san a while before he accomplish it!"
"I bet you I can do it by today!" She said, staring determinedly at her grandfather. "I'm not like my father! Whatever my father can do, I can do it ten times better!"
The old man quirked his lips into a small gentle smile, causing the blonde to crossed her arms at him. He shook his head at her, ruffling her straight blond hair. She laughed, clasping her hands in delight before glaring at her grandfather.
"I'm going to do it, Gramps! I'm going to be a hell lot stronger then my own tou-san!" Naruko declared.
"I believe you, Naru-chan."
The blonde nodded her head in satisfaction at his words before concentrating deeply on the action of drawing out any magic power she could find. Sweat started to form on her face as her search for her magic began. She furrowed her eyebrows as she searched for something, anything that would feel different from inside of her body. Nothing. Not even a funny feeling. Maybe, she was doing something wrong. Was it possible that she shouldn't try to find it? Perhaps, she needs to envision it.
She focused on her physical spirit, imagining it to be a huge ball of thread in her mind's eyes. She imagined herself picking a thread that was her spirit and allowed it to go through the needle. Naruko felt herself being flooded with magic power...it was...overwhelming, but in a good way. She could feel it flowing to her hands, to her whole body! She didn't notice that the wind started to swirl around her.
"I did it! Gramps!" Naruko cried out, beaming at her gaping Gramps. "I think I found my magic!"
Her grandfather blinked his eyes and muttered. "Found it! I think you basically found the perfect magic for you!"
The blonde blinked, frowning at her grandfather and asked. "What do you mean, Gramps?"
"Did you notice what happened to you, just now?"
She shook her head, scrunching her nose at him. He grimaced and rubbed his chin, before ordering her to gather her magic. She nodded her head eagerly and did as he asked, concentrating with all of her heart to find it again. The old man's eyes widened when he saw that the wind was again swirling around her, gulping when he saw that the winds around her were coming more fierce. This was strange. Not once in his long life has he seen a kid finding their magic this fast or find their affinity this quickly.
Not even Minato found his affinity in magic this fast! Her father only found it after a couple of weeks when he found his magic! Not only this, he could feel just how much magic she has! And by Kami, it was great. He stared at his beaming granddaughter and sighed. His granddaughter may just become one of the strongest mages in this whole world, if trained properly.
"So Gramps, since I found my magic, what're we going to do, now?" His granddaughter asked.
He blinked and shook his head before answering. "I'm going to train you in your affinity, Naru-chan."
"Affinity?"
"Many mages have natural affinities for their own Magic style." He explained. "Just now, you called upon your natural affinity, which appears to be Wind magic!"
"Sweet!" She yelled. "Wind magic! I always wanted magic associated with the elements! So Gramps what're you going to teach me now! Are you going to teach me some cool moves or what!"
Makarov gave her a sharp look, causing her to chuckle in embarrassment. He flexed his wiry arms, staring thoughtfully at his cheerful granddaughter. Excitement was shining through her eyes and child-like curiosity glinted in her eyes. Her innocence disguises the potential of the strong mage. As a fellow mage, Makarov learnt from experience that the faster you can find your magic, the more potential they have.
His granddaughter was no different.
"Naruko, I'll start teaching you your affinity next week when I see that you can access it without any struggle." He said firmly, causing the girl to pout. "This means for the whole week, you're only going to mediate, alright!"
"Hai, Gramps."
"Next thing you need to know, Naru-chan is that I'm not going to be easy on you! If anything I'm going to be tough on you." He warned the blue-eyed girl. "When I'm training you, I'm not your grandfather! I'm not the guild master! I'm your teacher, understand?"
"Yes, G-"
He gave her a warning look.
"Yes, sensei." Naruko said, nodding her head at him.
"Good." Her grandfather said curtly. "Next thing you need to know is that this training won't be easy! This won't be like school! There will be times when you will get bruise, are you ready for that?"
"Of course I am!" She yelled. "Why are you telling me this now! Why didn't you tell me earlier!"
"I have my reasons, Naruko." He said firmly. "Your training may take months, maybe years because what I'm about to teach you is something that not many people can do."
The blonde smiled and said. "Thank you, Gramps! Sorry Gramps I forgot to call you sensei!"
Makarov gulped as a full blast of memories of his son saying the same thing to him hit him. The pain in his heart tightened but he ignored it, staring full-heartedly at his smiling granddaughter. He will trained her and Laxus to be better and wiser then their own fathers. Maybe then, history won't repeat and he won't loose his last members of his family.
Thank you for reading!
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I would love to hear your thought on this chapter and whether this appears to be better than the first version or whether I should stick to the old version.