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Hello, Dear Readers!
Wow.. I'd like to thank all of you for reading this story. I never expected there would be so many, only after the first two days. Thanks for the wonderful reviews (10 for the first chapter!) and for being added to so many favourites and alerts lists. And of course, not to forget the three C2s as well. I appreciate every single one of you and am humbled by your support.
But I won't take any more of your time with my ramblings, which are at the end anyway. So without further adieu, here is the second chapter of "Fairy Tail's Orange Flash" !~
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Chapter 2: The Cait and its family
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The recently arrived creature approached the boy, lowering its head to inspect him better. Its eyes narrowed when it saw the state of his body. The child's life was fading rapidly, it realized. It stretched its claws towards the blond, with pale energy surrounding them, but stopped when it sensed a huge gathering of vile power coming from the ocean.
Turning its head, the winged beast quickly made its way to the edge of the cliff, where the ruins of the keep had previously stood. In the distance, it saw the giant demon fox sitting on its back legs on the surface of the ocean. Its head was looking upwards with all its nine tails outstretched over its nose with the tips pointing at what looked like a black orb of energy, three times the size of its head.
The winged creature narrowed its eyes as the orb seemed to slowly get smaller, but the power it could feel from it only increasing. "What is he up to?" it briefly wondered until it saw the fox open its mouth to swallow the orb, as realization struck. If that were to hit, it would wipe out the whole headland!
The creature grumbled as it took in a huge breath, gathering magical energy in its chest. There was no time for this, it was a miracle the boy was still breathing and would fade any second if he wasn't tended to. Its thoughts turned from the blond child and focused on the task at hand. It had to use just the right amount of power or risk the shock-wave finishing the job the vile demon had started. Just enough to create a diversion to escape with the child.
It finished gathering its power just as the fox swallowed the black orb. Both beasts looked at each other for a brief moment before releasing their respective attacks. The two energies shot in monumental speeds from their mouths and met in the middle where they both started struggling for dominance. Neither able to come on top, brief deafening silence fell, followed by a bright flash of light and an enormous explosion, making a huge hole in the ocean.
The winged beast didn't waste any time to marvel at the awe-inspiring sight though. It quickly turned and grabbed the blond boy in its mouth, channelling magical energies to rapidly begin the healing. The giant creature then turned into a small ball of light as it disappeared in a burst of speed into the night.
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This hadn't been a good day for her. In fact this was probably the worst day she had ever experienced. Since the moment of her death and the sealing of the Nine Tailed Demon Fox in her son, things had been going from bad to worse. The mistreatment of her boy in the orphanage. The refusal of everyone to adopt him and give him a loving home and a family. The abandonment of his godfather and those she and his father considered friends and family. The blind hatred of the villagers. In retrospect, she considered those good days.
For the bad ones were hell for her. She couldn't be with her son when he was scared and alone in the empty apartment. She couldn't put him to sleep, when he was having a nightmare. She couldn't soothe him when he was crying. She couldn't hug him when he wondered who his parents were and why weren't they with him. She couldn't kiss him on his birthday and spend it with him. All she could do was watch her son suffer undeservedly.
For part of Kushina Uzumaki's being was sealed in her son, since the day he was born. It was done right before her death, so when the time came and he was to face the Nine Tailed Demon Fox in order to subdue it, she would be there to assist him in any way possible. Yet, Kushina didn't know if it was fortunate or unfortunate to see her son grow. She was happy at first, but no parent should ever witness their child suffer, without being able to do anything about it.
Not once did she stop regretting her decision to agree with Minato. She was going to die anyway, he should have sealed the demon in her! The village, the people and the world be damned! At least then, Naruto would have his father. At least then, he would have been loved and appreciated. At least then, no one would tell him, it would be better for the world that he was dead!
But today, her regret had reached its highest peak. First she had to witness yet another lonely birthday. As the years passed those would get increasingly hard on her and she could feel her heart shattering in pieces during each one. And then, the unthinkable had happened. Her son was summoned to what looked like another world, because of what he held. She had watched through tears and horror, she had listened to his screams and begged whatever God was listening for this to only be a nightmare, an illusion.
It wasn't. She knew it the moment Minato had appeared in front of her, tears falling from his eyes. That meant the seal was broken. Her first reaction was to slap him without holding back anything. And to slap him again. And again. Until her slaps turned into punches and he decided to hold her in his embrace. That's when she gave in, when her tears kept flowing uncontrollably and her sobs had turned into wails. Kushina cried seven years worth of tears and she didn't need to see Minato's face to know he was doing the same. They had failed as parents and they had failed Naruto.
After a while, Kushina had calmed down and she heard her husband say "Kushi-chan, it's time to meet him." Horror fell to her face at his words. Of course she was happy she could finally see him face to face and tell him she loved him. But what would he think when they told him the whole story? That they were responsible for his years of solitude and pain. He would reject them no doubt. And he would have any right too. There was no forgiveness for people like them.
"Kushi-chan.." Minato began, but she didn't let him finish.
"I know. We owe him at least an explanation. After so many years, I won't abandon him now." She moved out of his arms and looked into his blue eyes, giving him a weak smile. "Let's go meet our son, Mini-kun[1]."
Minato returned her smile, grabbing her hand and squeezing it tight. "Let's go."
And here they were now. In front of their seven year old son, right after they had told him they were his parents.
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The Nine-tailed Demon Fox climbed on the headland and immediately surveyed the area. He was alone. There was nothing but the ruins of the two buildings he had destroyed and the now empty summoning pentagram. That winged creature had apparently left with his former container. Two things would probably happen to the boy. He would either die or the strange beast would save him. Either way, the Kyuubi didn't care much. In the first case, the boy would most likely finally find peace in the Afterlife. In the second, he would have another shot at life, without any burdens or unwarranted hatred from humans. Of course, he hated his former captor, but even though he was a demon, he couldn't help but feel some sympathy for the boy and the life he had. If the Fox was still in its own world the first thing he would do would be to go and burn the Hidden Leaf Village to the ground. Those bastards definitely deserved it and he would do the world a favour by massacring them all.
That was the problem though. The Nine-tails had a suspicion he wasn't in his world anymore. He had travelled all around it and he had never heard of the strange speech these humans spoke and he had definitely never witnessed a creature like that before.
With his thoughts on them, Kyuubi couldn't help but let out another tirade of curses against them. He was weakened from the ritual and those pathetic humans had actually managed to hurt him and make him use some of his power. He also had the suspicion that he would never recover part of his chakra, maybe even as much as half of it. He sensed it being syphoned away when their strange ritual had begun and now he wasn't sure where it was. One thing was for certain though – the Fox couldn't feel it anymore. Which was a serious issue.
Had the fight continued with that winged beast, the Nine-tails wasn't sure he would have won. In fact there was a huge possibility of just the opposite happening. Even though he hadn't used all his power in that final attack, the creature had matched it flawlessly. Kyuubi snorted.
"If that thing wasn't in a hurry to save the boy, I would have been in trouble." Guess he should be grateful to the child for that at least. If they met again, he might even let him live because of it. He had to recover for now though. He was actually at one quarter of his original power. He had lost a quarter, because of this ritual, but the other half..
"Minato." spat the Fox. Indeed the boy's father was responsible for that. He had divided the yin and yang portions of the Nine-tails' chakra and had sealed only the yang part in Naruto. The other one, the Forth Hokage had taken in his death. But now, something was off about that. The Demon sat a bit and concentrated, nearly shouting after a while. He could feel some of his yin chakra coming back! The seal Minato had placed on himself must have been somehow linked with the one placed on Naruto. And now with that one broken and the Fox out in the open, the other one must have been broken as well! Kyuubi suspected that wasn't all there was to it. Most likely the ritual itself had something to do with that as well.
Nevertheless, soon the Nine-tails would be restored to its former glory! Almost at least, since now he realized the portion he lost during that ritual would never return to him. It was regrettable, but it wouldn't be too bad, now that he had his yin chakra back. Who knows, maybe in a couple of years, he would be as strong as he once was, despite the loss.
For now, he needed to rest and restore himself. Most importantly, he needed information about this strange world. The techniques those humans and the creature had used were definitely not chakra techniques. And the Kyuubi could feel it in the air, something was different about this place.
He surveyed the area again for anything that could be helpful. His eyes narrowed a bit when he looked at the building he had thrown the second cloaked individual in, a woman if he had to make a guess. Something was off about that place. As he made a step towards it, an object caught his eye. Beside a fumbled podium laid an open book. The Fox sniffed the area around it and grinned wickedly. Oh, this was a smell he thought he would never come across again. A power so familiar to his own, they were almost the same. He picked the book in his paw and brought it closer to his face.
"Hello.. Leonard."
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"We are your parents, Naruto."
The words still rang in his ears and echoed through his blank mind. Huh..? Ugh..? Wha..? Seeing how the mind would remain blank for a while, Naruto's body decided to take initiative for now. He could think all about it later. That's how Naruto found himself running towards his mother. She immediately knelt down, allowing him to jump with full force into her embrace. He buried his face into her chest and wrapped his small arms around her. Unable to contain himself anymore, he began to sob and shake in his mother's arms. He had parents! He wasn't alone!
Kushina sat on her knees and placed her son on her lap, as she lightly began rocking his body. She hummed a soothing song to try and calm her sobbing child. She saw Minato kneeling in front of them and placing his arm in Naruto's hair. Kushina smiled at the thought: their small family was finally together again, after seven long, painful years.
After a while, Naruto stopped crying and trembling. He probably would have cried to sleep from all the mental and emotional exhaustion, but since this was his mind, he technically already was sleeping or rather unconscious. He turned a bit and looked at his parents and was almost brought to tears again when he saw the love and adoration present in their eyes. He had never seen such eyes in his life, he was used to cold glares or eyes filled with hatred.
He just looked at them for a while, still hugging his mother tightly, as if afraid if he were to let go she would disappear and he would be left alone again. Slowly, more and more questions started pouring into his mind. The Forth was his father? Why has no one told him so far? Why was he hated then? Why hasn't anyone told him who his mother was? Finding himself more and more confused, he decided it was time to ask them.
"Mom, Dad.. What is going on? What happened to me?"
Taking a deep breath, it was his father that answered: "Well, Naruto.. It is a long story. You better brace yourself." Nodding slightly, the blond boy turned a bit towards his father, still never letting go of his mother.
"It all started seven years ago, on this very date, the 10th of October. As you know, that was the day the Nine-tailed Demon Fox attacked the village without warning. The same day you were born as well." Naruto just nodded again, showing he was listening intently. "What most people were told was that the fox is a natural occurring disaster, that just happened to hit our village. That is a lie to keep the civilians at ease."
"There are actually Nine tailed beasts in existence. They are usually masses of chakra and hatred that would destroy everything they came across with. But at some point during the past, people saw them as weapons. So to better control them and use their powers for war, the Tailed beasts were sealed into humans and those humans would be known as Jinchūriki[2]. The First Hokage, Hashirama Senju was famous for being able to control Tailed beasts and had a couple of them under him, including the Nine-tailed Demon Fox, which was considered one of the more powerful, if not the most, of all the beasts. To keep it in the possession of the village even after his death, the Kyuubi was sealed in his wife, Mito Uzumaki."
Shock was clearly visible on Naruto's face. Before he could express it though, this time it was his mother that spoke.
"You see, the Uzumaki clan was famous for two things. Our sealing techniques and our longevity. The Uzumaki clan is not native to the Hidden Leaf Village, its origins.. Our origins actually lie in the Village Hidden in the Whirling Tides. But the two villages were close allies and the Senju clan and the Uzumaki clan are actually distant relatives, so political marriages to strengthen the alliance weren't uncommon."
"Since Mito Uzumaki was going to live a long life and was the wife of Hashirama Senju, she was naturally chosen as the first Jinchūriki of the Nine-tailed Demon Fox. But as she grew old in years, at one point it was decided that a new host would be chosen. That host was me. I had a special type of chakra, that could help with the control of the beast and because of that, I was moved to the Hidden Leaf at a young age and would join its ranks as a ninja. It was actually surprisingly fortunate, because shortly after I moved away, the Village Hidden in the Whirling Tides was attacked and completely destroyed and the Uzumaki clan was wiped out, with only me and Mito as the sole known survivors."
Naruto had remained silent the whole time, unconsciously holding his breath during the story. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. It almost felt like a fairy tale. He didn't dare interrupt though, he realized the story was actually just beginning.
Kushina smiled at the thirst evident in Naruto's eyes. He was certainly enjoying the history lesson. Her smile fell a bit though at the part that was coming up. She briefly looked at Minato, who just gave her a nod. Kushina understood that she should continue and he would join in from time to time.
"Which brings us to the 10th of October, the day you were supposed to be born. The happiest day of my life, because I would be able to hold my beautiful little son." Kushina chuckled when she saw Naruto's face becoming red in embarrassment at her words, but carried on. "You see, Naru-kun, there was one problem though. There is one point in a female Jinchūriki's life when the seal containing the demon would weaken. That's when she would give birth. Because of that, I was to be escorted to a secure location outside the village into a special barrier, in case the seal broke and the Nine-tails escaped. That way, the village would be out of harm's way."
Naruto looked down at her words and swallowed slightly. "Is that what happened, Mom? Did the seal break because of me?"
"Of course not, Naruto." His father spoke, as he ruffled his hair. "I was actually a very good seal master and I was present during your birth so I could specifically hold the seal in place. You were born without any hitch. I actually remember, the Third's wife was the one that delivered you and she scolded me for worrying to much." Minato explained with a small chuckle, making Kushina and Naruto smile as well.
"What happened was something no one could have predicted.. Well, I suppose since we are in your mind, we should just show you our memories." Naruto nodded, as he began to watch the events that were to unfold, as if he himself was there. In a way, he actually was.
The blond boy watched in horror as a masked man showed up and killed the Third's wife and had taken his infant self hostage. His eyes widened as he saw how his father saved him from the exploding tag and took him to a special hide-out. The scene then switched to his mother's memories and he shuddered as he saw her bound to a cliff and witnessed the fox being pulled away from her body.
Seeing the familiar scene he immediately understood what had actually happened to him a while ago. He had the Fox sealed in him and someone had extracted it the same way as with his mother. He had many questions about that, but decided not to interrupt. He opted to just squeeze his Mom tighter, offering some sort of comfort to her. He had experienced the same pain after all.
He almost gave a small cheer when he saw his father showing up and saving his Mom from the Fox's claws. Minato then brought her to the same hideout he was at and had set her on the bed next to his infant self. Seeing his Mom crying just made Naruto squeeze her one more time.
The scene then switched to the village where the Fox had started rampaging. He watched in awe how his father diverted what looked like a giant orb of black chakra from the village. After that, Naruto witnessed quite possibly the coolest thing he had ever seen in his life. His father, the Forth Hokage, battling and winning against the masked figure responsible for everything. Not only was Minato able to defeat him, but he also wrestled control of the Fox from him. Naruto looked at his Dad with even more respect and adoration than ever before. But the small celebration was cut short, when he saw what came next.
His father teleported the Nine-tails to the hide-out and after a brief discussion with his mother had proceeded in sealing half of the Fox in himself and the other half in Naruto. He almost jumped when he saw how Kyuubi tried to prevent the sealing by killing his infant self, only for both his parents ending being impaled by a huge claw, in order to protect him.
The memories had ended at that point and Naruto had remained silent, looking down at his hands. He wasn't sure what to make of all of this. On one hand, he was happy at the enormous trust his parents had placed in him. They believed that the masked man would bring destruction to the world and to prevent that they had entrusted Nine-tails' power to him, in order to one day defeat him. On the other, they had cursed him into a life of loneliness and pain. The villagers' eyes and voices passed through his mind.
"There he is."
"That's the fox brat."
"Stay away from him, he is evil."
"His parents left him alone. Who would want a demon for a child."
"Just ignore him."
The empty apartment. The solitary birthdays. After each thought his face only frowned more and more with anger. Then he saw something fall from above him, onto his clenched fists. Something warm and wet. Looking up, he was a bit surprised to see tears falling from his mother's face.
"I'm sorry, Naruto!" The woman cried, as she held him against her. "I should have pulled the Fox with me and died! You should have never carried such a burden! I've seen every day of your life since then and if I knew it would have turned out like that, I would have never agreed! I have failed you as your mother and I don't deserve forgiveness for what I did. But know that not a moment has passed since, that I haven't regretted my decision and if there was any way, I would change it in a heartbeat!"
"That's not true, Kushi-chan. It's my fault things turned out like that. Back then, I thought Hiruzen would have protected him better or Jiraya would have actually taken care of him as his godfather. I believed in the village. It's not an excuse though. In the end, I was the one that convinced you. It is my fault entirely that things turned like they did, so you shouldn't blame your mother, Naruto. If you want to hate anyone, hate me."
Naruto was taken aback by what his parents were saying. He was even more shocked when he saw their eyes. They were filled with genuine regret for everything that had happened. They didn't even want any forgiveness. Now that he thought about it, he supposed they had their reasons at the time. Everything seemed all too complicated for him. He wasn't sure what he would have done in the same situation.
But he realized, he shouldn't be mad about it now. It was all in the past and it wouldn't change anything. He should just enjoy the moments with his parents from now on. He lifted one of his arms and placed it on his mother's cheek. Startled, she looked down at him, tears still flowing from her violet eyes.
"It's all right, Mom. I don't know yet how I feel about the whole thing, but it's all in the past now. We should just enjoy our time together." With that Naruto gave his mother a huge smile.
This time, it was Kushina and Minato's turn to be shocked. They had expected him to be angry and to curse them. They had expected him to say he never wanted to see them again. But they certainly had not expected their seven year old son, acting in such a mature way. He had admitted he didn't know what to make of it all, but at the same time, that it wasn't that important. That it was in the past.
"Well, he certainly is our son." Minato chuckled.
"Are you surprised, Mini-kun? He looks exactly like you."
"Not entirely. He has your face, Kushi-chan."
Hearing this, Kushina gave an embarrassed smile to Naruto. "Yeah, that's right. Sorry about that, son."
"Why, Mom? You look really pretty! That means when I grow up, I would look really handsome. I wish I had your beautiful red hair though. I think I would have looked way better with it."
Hearing that, Minato looked dejectedly at the ground, mumbling. "Thanks a lot, son. What am I..?" He continued grumbling to himself, much to the amusement of the other two.
"Hehe. You are right, Mini-kun he really is your son." Seeing her child's confused expression at stating the obvious, Kushina gave him a smile. "Naruto, you are only the second man to ever compliment me on my hair. The only other one being your father."
At that Naruto outright laughed. "Hey, Mom, Dad! I'm really curious, how did the two of you meet and fall in love?"
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The silence of the night had fallen over the headland. Even the ocean had calmed down and its waves now slowly caressed the cliffs. Only the noise of crickets could be heard in the gentle wind. It was a clear night, with millions of small lights painting the sky. The whole scene looked serene and calm, as if a monumental battle had not been fought at all here.
More than half an hour had passed since the Demon Fox had left. Now the whole headland was void of life. Or so it seemed. The air near one of the two collapsed buildings flickered and distorted. Slowly, the small spot changed, only to reveal a very battered Morgana. There was barely anything left of her bronze belt or the cylinders in her hair, as they were slowly crumbling to the ground. Her dress was torn in many places, barely holding together from exposing her completely. Her body was bruised and cut in many places as well and there was an alarming red spot, which was slowly growing on her now naked stomach, signifying the possibility of internal bleeding and ruptured organs.
After the illusion had fallen, Morgana fell to her knees and began gasping heavily, as if each breath of air was going to be her last. Her body began trembling uncontrollably as cold sweat started covering it. The sorceress lifted her gaze slightly to check on the area and make sure she was completely alone. She didn't even want to imagine what would happen to her if that Demon were to return.
It had killed everyone. Sure, there were no bodies, but she didn't need to see any, no one should have survived what it did to them. She got lucky, she realized. The sudden attack of the Fox had caught her by surprise. If it wasn't for the runes on her belt and cylinders, her body would have been completely crushed. And even though she was enveloped in the protective shield, she still got severely hurt.
It didn't matter if anyone else had survived anyway. They had failed. Now because of them, there was a powerful demon unleashed on the world. True, they were exhausted when it attacked them, if it wasn't so, then maybe they wouldn't have been defeated so easily. Then again, Morgana had the suspicion the Fox wasn't at full power either. She shivered, just thinking what facing something like that would have felt like. Her heart had almost stopped when the Fox looked at her, despite her illusion. Her fears of the Demon seeing through it only intensified, when it had made a step towards her. Luck was on her side again though, since its attention had turned towards something else.
In truth, they had entered dangerous waters and had paid the price for it. Their temporary leader had faced immediate and gruesome death because of that. Or his body did at least. For a while Morgana, had the suspicion, Blaire was in fact possessed. Seeing the Nine-tails pick the book he was always carrying around only confirmed her suspicions. She didn't understand a word of what the Demon was saying in some strange language, but she did make out one word. A name actually – Leonard.
Morgana cursed at how careless she had been. If she knew such a powerful demon and dark sorcerer was the one behind this whole venture, she would have definitely done things differently. Of course she and Babajide had discovered the changes he had made to the runes in the pentagram. After discussing it, they had decided to make changes of their own. Instead of him absorbing the whole power by himself, it would have been divided in four and spread amongst the rest of the group. She didn't like them much, but Morgana was true to her word and she honoured agreements, no matter with whom they were.
Babajide had agreed with her surprisingly. The witch doctor was actually the only one she got along with from their group. His reason for being there wasn't entirely selfish too. Even though vengeance isn't a noble reason to pursue power, after what had happened to him, Morgana couldn't really blame him. She supposed it fell on her now to complete his goal. The group that had done it were an atrocious Dark Guild anyway. Of course she had to report to her guild master first.
The Sorceress cursed, just thinking about it. This was a huge failure indeed. After she had accepted Blaire's or rather Leonard's proposal an year and a half ago, she had informed her guild master and they had proceeded in telling the Council of mages. They weren't happy with the whole thing, but she had convinced them. There was a possibility that the cult was much bigger than Leonard had let to believe or that there was some mastermind behind it all. There could have been even more cults.
Of course, she continued when she learned there was nothing of the sorts. Morgana still had suspicions that someone was controlling Blaire and had remained. She believed after the ritual was done, the one responsible would reveal himself and she would have used her newly acquired power to capture him and bring him before the council. Sure, she didn't really care for the power, but it was a nice bonus, one that the sorceress would have used to her advantage. She had almost given up on the idea, when she learned some of the lacryma crystals were infused with souls of people. But they were already dead and there was nothing that could really be done about them. Morgana had just vowed she would bring the ones responsible to justice. She was arrogant, believing she could have dealt with everything on her own.
Of course, she had failed. Because of her over-confidence and stupidity, she never considered the possibility the Demon would be too strong or the summoning would exhaust their magic reserves so much. Not only that, but an innocent child had been involved in the whole mess as well! Tears came to her eyes when she remembered his wails of anguish. They started falling, when she remembered how the Fox was probably going to kill him and how she could have done nothing about it.
It was a relief when the other beast had arrived. If her suspicions about it were correct, then the boy would most likely survive. Morgana vowed on the spot, if she were to ever meet the blond child again, she would make it up to him. Even if he wanted to kill her, she would let him without any condition. It was in his rights after what she had done and it would be the payment for her sins.
The pain in her stomach had started being more noticeable and Morgana realized it was time to do something about it. Slowly lifting herself to her feet, she leaned on what was left of the wall. She started channelling a healing spell and let out a scream when her organs began repairing themselves. She didn't know that much healing magic, considering it was long-lost ancient magic and what she knew was definitely insufficient to take care of the pain of the process. Her injury was grave and she had noticed the red spot was now enlarged and dark blue on places. It was still a blessing she at least knew this spell, after she learnt it from the inscriptions on a wall, in some old ruins she had explored during one of her journeys. It was a good thing ancient runes and rune magic in general was a hobby of hers or she wouldn't have understood anything.
The sorceress almost passed out from the pain, but did her best not to scream too much. It was a hard task, but she didn't want the Fox to hear her and return to finish the job. Besides, this was probably nothing compared to what that child had experienced. After she was done, she immediately felt better. Her organs were repaired, the pain was fading and the internal bleeding had disappeared completely, now revealing her royal-purple guild mark on her exposed stomach. It looked like a sitting fairy, with two wings and a tail outstretched behind it.
Taking a deep breath, the female mage straightened up. It was time she told Makarov the bad news and face the music. She had no illusions there wouldn't be a lecture or some sort of punishment, after the colossal screw up that was tonight. First she needed to find some clothes though, it wouldn't be a good idea for a woman to wonder alone naked in the wilderness. On second thought, knowing the pervert Makarov was, maybe she should just remain like that. That would certainly lessen her punishment.
With a small smile creeping on her face, Morgana le Fay[3] began the long trek towards her home.
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Naruto couldn't believe all this was happening. Not for the first time he wondered if he was dreaming and praying for it to never end if that were the case. Sure, he had been shocked and angry at first, but that was completely replaced by the joy he was feeling now. Naruto was spending time with his parents, something he had wished for for years. This was definitely his best birthday ever.
He had found it quite funny at first when his mother admitted she thought Minato was a weak girlie boy, the first time she met him at the Ninja Academy. It was ironic how he would later not only save her from a kidnapping, but also make her love her red hair, even though she was made fun of, because of it. They had all laughed when Naruto had told them his favourite colour was orange, probably because of their respective nicknames: the Yellow Flash and the Red Hot-Blooded Habanero. Naruto had realized he didn't get only his mother's face as he had the same hot-headed, loud, hyper-active personality as hers.
They had continued sharing stories with him later on and even showing him some memories, of their younger years, some of their dates (even though they would take turns at being embarrassed at various moments) and the many missions they would do. Naruto couldn't stop himself from laughing when he learned of his godfather Jiraya and how he would always get pounded by his mother after she caught him peeping on women or doing other perverted things. As far as the boy was concerned the old pervert deserved it, for not visiting him even once during all those years.
As time passed on though, there was a question in the back of Naruto's mind that kept nudging him. He got increasingly worried because of it, but chose not to voice it, else it could end the wonderful time he was having. Unfortunately the rising discomfort he was feeling didn't go unnoticed by his mother.
"Naru-kun, what's wrong?"
The blond youngster was still sitting in his mother's lap at the moment and when she asked him he slowly turned his eyes away from her face and looked down at his hands.
"Nothing, Mom, I'm just happy to be with both of you right now. Don't worry." he muttered, trying to convince Kushina.
"Come on, son, you don't need to hide your feelings anymore. We've waited seven long and painful years to finally be together like this. You can tell us anything." his mother gave him a tight squeeze as she tried to reassure him.
Seeing there was no escaping it, Naruto sighed. "I'm just.. I'm just a bit scared, Mom. When I asked if I was dead, you said I wasn't and that we were just in my mind. So I was wondering what happens now, am I going to go to the Afterlife with you?" The boy turned his hopeful eyes towards Kushina, but they immediately fell when he noticed her sad smile.
Seeing it was time to continue with the explanations, Minato placed a hand in his son's hair. "You see, Naruto, it might seem unbelievable, but your mother and I think that you have been summoned to another world, because of what you were holding. Even though you were in pain at the time and couldn't take notice of your surroundings, we were still able to see that you were transported from the Leaf village to some strange-looking pentagram. There were five cloaked individuals, that looked like they were performing some sort of ritual, in order to bring the Fox to them and extract it from you."
"Now, as we've told you earlier, if the beast is extracted or released from a Jinchūriki, then the holder would die. Kushi-chan was able to remain alive for a while, because of her special chakra and the Uzumaki clan's vitality. The latter is the reason you are still alive actually, even though your chakra system has been completely destroyed. But because of that, the possibility of you actually surviving disappeared completely, since chakra is essential to all living creatures."
Naruto was quite confused, as well as terrified at the same time after hearing this. "Then how come I'm not dead yet and am not with you in the Afterlife?"
"We are not sure exactly." Minato answered. "You see, when the Fox was extracted and you fell into unconsciousness, we stopped monitoring what happened in the outside world and came here to talk with you. Truth be told, I expected we would have moved on by now. But while we were talking something strange happened. Your body started to heal at rapid rates. That wouldn't help that much, since as I've said, you actually had no chakra or chakra network left at all. But it seems that some strange power has replaced it, filling your body with vitality at the same time."
"In truth, our chakra, the one we have sealed in you so we could meet again, should have been diminished by now and we should have disappeared. It looks like because of that new power not only are you going to continue being alive, but we have gained more time, before we have to move on. Thanks to the ritual, your seal wasn't the only thing that was broken, but the one I had placed on myself as well, in order to seal the yin portion of Kyuubi's chakra. So now my soul can actually move on to the Afterlife with your mother."
Naruto smiled a bit at that, but it immediately disappeared when he realized that his parents would be leaving him alone again. Not only that, but now it looked like he was in another world, all by himself. In the Leaf village he at least had the old man Hokage. Not being able to hold himself, he hugged Kushina again as tears started falling from his eyes.
Understanding why her son had broken down, Kushina gave him a reassuring squeeze, while caressing his cheek. "Don't worry, Naru-kun. Even thought you can't come with us right now, I am actually happy that you are going to survive. There is nothing sadder for a parent than to see the death of their child. I don't think you will be alone either, because whoever did heal you and gave you this strange life force, is actually caring enough for you to go through all the trouble and most likely won't leave you on your own."
"But I don't want to leave you, Mom! Not after I finally got to meet you and Dad after so long, not after we spend such a good time together, not after I've had the best birthday I could hope for! Not after I'm finally happy.." Naruto shouted, still not letting go of Kushina. But before he could say anything else, he felt his father's hand ruffling his hair. Tearing his face from his mother, he looked at Minato's broad reassuring grin.
"Now, now, son. You still have your life ahead of you. You are only seven years old, after all. There are still so many things left for you to experience. Whatever this world is, you should give it a chance. Here you can start anew, without any of the villagers' hatred or prejudice. Here you could find friends, love and live a truly happy life. You are our son after all, we believe in you and know that you would never just give up no matter what."
Hearing his father's words and his faith in him, Naruto couldn't help returning the same large grin. "All right, Dad! Next time we meet, I promise I would have explored this world and will have even more awesome stories of my many adventures to tell you than both of you combined!"
Hearing that, Kushina hugged her son again, while giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Naru-kun, I'm so proud of you. If it's you, I'm sure you can do it. I'm only sorry I wouldn't be able to see it for myself."
"Well, even though it was more than a curse, rather than a gift, now without the Nine-tails you don't really have anything left from us. So I'm going to tell you some of my most prized techniques, the reason I became so famous and feared throughout the Elemental nations. Even though you won't have any chakra anymore and this is a different world, I think you should be able to find a way to use this new power within you. Since it's you, I'm sure you'd be able to use the concepts behind them and invent them yourself here. Listen carefully, they can be a bit complicated.."
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"Wow, Dad. You really are amazing! Even though you aren't really smart at making good decisions.." Naruto trailed off. He saw his father's shoulders fall a bit at his comments. Even though he had forgiven his parents, he was still slightly annoyed at his decision. So his mischievous side had decided he should tease the man a bit, making him believe he wasn't completely forgiven. Doing his best to hide his evil smile, he continued with a slightly confused expression "I think I got the spiralling one, but the others.."
"Don't worry, son. You will always remember this meeting, so whenever you feel confused, you can just come back to your mind and replay it." Minato chuckled, while ruffling his son's hair. It was unfortunate that they would have to leave shortly. He could never get enough of doing that. "I think it's time we leave you with some parting words, to give you some guidance. Even though your life-force has been restored, our energy is running short. Kushi-chan, I think the honour falls to you, since you did it last time as well and I already left him something."
Kushina looked at her son as she cupped his cheek with her hand. "Naru-kun, don't be a fussy eater. I've seen how you eat only ramen and even though ramen is great, make sure you also eat lots of fruit and vegetables and grow up to be a big boy! I've seen how you can make a mess of yourself, so keep taking baths every day. Make sure you go to bed early and have plenty of sleep and rest.. Don't overdo it though."
"Make friends! It doesn't matter how many, but make sure they are real friends that you can trust fully and love. Make sure to study and become strong, to protect those that are precious to you as well as those that need it. It's another world, but I'm sure you can do it. Always do what you think is right and follow the path you have chosen. Don't let outdated rules or prideful old geezers hold you down and prevent you from doing what is right. Don't drink alcohol until you are older and don't overdo it! Make sure not to borrow money. And as for women.. Well, I can't really help you there, since I am one. Try not to pick too weird of a girlfriend.. Someone like your mother is all right."
Kushina felt tears streaming down her eyes. Her voice became rigid and she found it a bit hard to continue. "Naru-kun! There is so much I want to say, to teach you about. I would do anything to be able to stay with you forever and make up for all the lost time.. I love you so much.."
Not being able to continue, Kushina embraced her son in a tight hug, as her body racked with sobs. She felt his small hand moving to her cheek and she opened her eyes to see a smiling Naruto.
"Don't worry, Mom! I will live my life to the fullest and make you and Dad proud! I am really happy to have parents like you and I love you both!" The blond's grin grew wider as he looked between both of his parents.
Relief washed over Minato and he let out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. In truth, he had been worried the whole time his son still hated him or felt betrayed by what he did. Naruto would have the right too. But now, the Forth gave him a broad grin, ruffling the boy's hair yet again, feeling sad that this would probably be his last time. "It's time we go, Naruto. Make sure to listen to your motor-mouth mother! And remember, you are our son and we will always love you!" Minato said as he started fading away.
Kushina gave him another huge hug completed with a kiss on his cheek. "Goodbye, Naru-kun! Make sure to have a happy and full life! I am so happy for being your mother, for Minato being your father. Thank you for being our son! I love you!"
After their final words, both his parents faded away and disappeared. Even though he was left alone, Naruto couldn't help but continue smiling. He had never felt this happy in his entire life before. This truly was the best birthday he could hope and wish for.
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Naruto opened his eyes slowly and looked around. He saw he was in some sort of a cave, illuminated by various coloured crystals. He marvelled a bit at the beautiful sight. This was the first time he had seen so many different lights in one place. The crystals covered the ceiling and the walls and Naruto realized they reflected the light coming from the entrance of the cave. Naruto noted surprised that even though it was a closed space, the whole cave was actually full of light.
He grumbled a bit as he tried to move. His whole body ached, although it wasn't as bad as when the Fox was removed from him. He noticed he was lying on a couple of blankets and was covered by one as well. He was also surprised to see he was wearing new and clean clothes.
A movement caught the blond's attention. He turned his head towards the entrance of the cave as his eyes widened at the sight of the creature that was approaching him. He heard a feminine voice coming from it as it moved it's mouth, showing many sharp teeth.
In front of him was a beast never seen before. It was as big as the Nine-tails, but unlike the Fox it was completely white. Its legs and bottom side were scaly, while its head, neck and back were covered with white fur. Naruto noticed bewildered it had two huge white, furry wings, folded over its back and a huge scaly tail was swishing behind it with more white fur, splitting at the end. It had black eyes, which were focused on him and pointed, cat-like years.
The creature kept closing in on the blond, while still saying something incomprehensible in its feminine voice. Naruto backed off in panic until he hit the wall. His eyes still wide in shock, the boy opened his trembling mouth and screamed.
"Please don't hurt me!"
The white beast stopped at that and visibly narrowed its eyes as it turned its head away. Naruto noticed it was looking at a wooden crib. With a rumbling noise, which reminded the blond of a sigh, the creature carried on its advance towards him. Naruto opened his mouth for another scream.
"I would appreciate it if you kept quite, child!" Naruto's jaw snapped shut at the insistent voice. He realized it was the same feminine one that came from the beast, but he could understand it this time. What surprised him even more was the fact the creature never actually opened its mouth again.
"Good, it seems you can understand me now. I'm glad to see you are awake and moving around. You have been asleep for two days now and I was getting worried. How are you feeling?"
Naruto was about to respond, before he was interrupted.
"You don't need to speak, child. Just focus your mind and think your answers."
Naruto nodded slightly as he thought.
"Uhm.. Like this?"
He heard a low rumble, which reminded him of a chuckle.
"Yes, that is quite fine, child." The winged beast said as it moved even closer to Naruto, now standing right before him. It saw the boy stiffen at that and decided to reassure him. "Don't be afraid, little one. If I wanted to hurt you, I wouldn't have gone through the trouble of healing you."
"That was you?" Naruto paused. "Thank you! I am feeling really good, just a bit stiff, but that's all right. How are we doing this?"
Assuming the boy referred to their current conversation, the creature responded. "I have lived many centuries, I have travelled all over the world and I know any one of the human languages. But this is the first time I hear the one you are speaking. That is why I am speaking directly to your mind and you are doing the same. It's a special type of magic, called telepathy magic."
Naruto slowly nodded, doing his best to understand. This was the first time he heard about something like that and to say he was amazed would be an understatement. "Who are you?"
"I am the Sky Dragon, Grandine Marvell. And you should know, child, it is a sign of good manners to introduce yourself first."
Naruto smiled, while rubbing the back of his head with his hand. "He-he, sorry about that, I have never seen or heard of a Dragon before. My name is Naruto Uzumaki."
"So tell me, child, how did you end up at those ruins at the paws of that dreadful demon?"
Naruto took a deep breath. This was going to be a long story. He remembered his life in the Leaf village, how he was ignored and hated, even by the teachers at the Ninja Academy, and how the only one who cared for him was the old man Hokage. He remembered the excruciating pain when he was summoned and when the Fox was ripped from his body. He then remembered the meeting with his parents and all the things they told him about. Slowly exhaling, he thought.
"This is going to be a long story. Where should I begin?.."
"You've already told me everything, child." The dragon spoke. Naruto's eyes widened in surprise until realization struck – apparently, he could communicate memories the same way as words. "You've had a difficult life, little one." Grandine lowered her head, resting it on her paws right before Naruto. "I guess, this is a first for the both of us. I haven't seen someone from another world like you."
Naruto gave her a wide grin. "Hey hey! How were you able to save me? My parents told me the last thing that happened before I lost consciousness was the Fox being extracted from me. They also told me something like that should have killed me and that I was severely hurt."
"Indeed, you were, Naruto. It would be better if I showed you myself."
Naruto's eyes widened as the events from the dreadful night replayed before him. He was awe-struck at the brief battle between the Nine-tails and Grandine. After that he shuddered a bit when he saw the Dragon had grabbed him in her mouth, but then realized he was actually being healed. They returned to this cave and he was amazed to see his whole body was completely healed when Grandine opened her mouth and placed him on the floor.
"Yet, you were still fading away, even though I healed your body completely. Now I realize it was because of the destruction of your.. chakra network? In any case, it seemed like your life force itself was disappearing. So I gave you a part of my own."
Naruto saw Grandine opening her paw, producing a small orb of light. Small for her at least, it actually engulfed his whole body.
"After your life was out of danger, I changed your bloodied clothes and left you to sleep. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to restore your.. chakra network, so I don't think you would still be able to use your father's techniques. However, thanks to my life force, you would be able to become a mage, if you so desired."
As all the events stopped replaying in his mind, Naruto tilted his head a bit to the left in confusion. "A mage? What's that? What's magic anyway?"
Grandine chuckled at his question. "It looks like I will have a lot to teach you about this world, Naruto. I think we should start with the lan.."
The Dragon was suddenly interrupted by a loud cry. Letting out an audible sigh, Grandine turned towards the wooden crib. Naruto was actually surprised to see her shrinking while she approached it. Curious himself, he decided to go look what was there.
Grandine stood on her two rear legs and picked up a small baby from the crib. Even though she had shrank considerably, she was still much bigger than an average human, so she most likely had difficulty holding it. Naruto could see though, she was giving it her utmost care and concentration. He noticed the Sky Dragon reach for a glass bottle, most likely filled with milk, which was on a table next to the crib. He jumped a bit, when he heard the shattering of glass.
Letting out an annoyed growl, Grandine began speaking to the child, while rocking her gently, most likely trying to calm the baby down. Naruto decided he should offer her some help, seeing how she had done so much for him already.
"Uhm.. Grandine.. I can help you with the baby if you want? My hands are smaller and I wouldn't have as much trouble holding her and the bottle. I promise I will be very careful."
The Dragon seemed to be giving this a thought. Letting out yet another sigh, she beckoned him.
"All right, come here, Naruto. Be careful, hold her with both hands! If she is too heavy for you, please tell me, don't try to push yourself."
"Don't worry, Grandine. I've seen mothers hold their babies before in my village. I'm quite strong, I can handle it!" The blond boasted as he took the baby in his hands. He noticed she had dark, ocean-blue hair. Feeling the new presence, the child stopped crying momentarily and opened her brown eyes, giving Naruto an intense, hunger-filled gaze.
Her curiosity seemed to be short-lived though, as a rumble escaped her tummy, making her cry again.
"Whoa! Did that come from her? Man, she must be really hungry." exclaimed the bewildered blond. This was a whole new experience for him. He could feel many unfamiliar emotions pass through him, as he held the small, fragile life in his hands. Even though she was crying, he couldn't help but think how cute and precious the baby was. He wondered if that's what his mother and father had felt for the brief moments they were actually able to hold him.
Grandine couldn't keep herself from letting out a small giggle. Those two looked insanely cute together. She noticed there was a small gleam in Naruto's eyes, which made her believe that even though he had just met the baby, he would no doubt give everything he had to protect her and make her happy. It amazed her that such a bond was formed between them instantaneously. Maybe there was some higher power working here..
Now that she was able to give it her full attention she managed to pick up another bottle of milk without much trouble. She used some of her magic to warm it a bit, before she handed it to Naruto. The boy let out a small grunt, but still ever so careful, held the baby to his chest with one hand while taking the bottle with the other and started feeding her. After a bit, he felt his arms getting tired, but he resolved himself that the only way he would drop her was if his own arms were to fall off. Nothing short of that would make him let go. He looked at Grandine.
"Who is she?"
"She is my daughter. Wendy Marvell."
To say Naruto was surprised would be an understatement. He looked at the baby again. "So Dragon's children look like human babies? That's amazing."
Grandine couldn't keep herself from laughing. After she calmed down a bit, she turned towards the confused blond. "I didn't give birth to her. I found her abandoned in the forest a month ago and decided to take care of her."
Hearing that, Naruto felt sadness wash over him. He looked at Wendy again and was surprised to see her staring at him with the same intensity as before. He felt a smile make its way on his face.
"So, she is an orphan like me.."
Grandine let an annoyed grumble. "What nonsense are you spouting, child!" Feeling he had said something wrong, Naruto turned towards the Dragon, who continued. "Both of you have a family. You have me, your mother, as well as each other."
The blond was speechless. Just three days ago, he was completely alone. He hadn't had any idea why that was or why the village hated him. He hadn't even been looking forward to his birthday, since he would have had to spend it in a hell called solitude. But in just one moment all that had changed. He had met his real parents and even though it was for a short period of time, they had showed him they loved him deeply. Furthermore, despite him initially thinking he would be alone again in this new world, he not only had a mother, but a sister as well. Truly, the gifts for his birthday only kept getting better and better.
Unable to contain himself, tears started falling from the boy's eyes. Seeing that, Grandine let out a small chuckle, as she moved close to the two children and enveloped them lovingly with her arms and wings in a warm hug.
"Welcome to the family, Naruto."
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[1]-kun – suffix of endearment.
[2]Jinchūriki – literary means 'Power of a Human Sacrifice' (jap.).
[3]From the French la fée – Fairy (fr.).
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Author's Ramblings:
After I posted the first chapter, I noticed it was 9636 words long. For some reason this number excites me a lot. Maybe it's because all those numbers can be divided by 3. Or because the result is 3212. I don't know, just find it exciting and funny.. Look at it, 9636! You can play with it so much.. If you take 3 from 9 and put it on the 3, it would look like 6666. If you add all the numbers, it would make 24 which is the multiplication** of 3 and 8. So you can get 888 as well.. Yes, I'm an easily amused and very excitable person. d^∆^b This number is awesome though, admit it.
I read the first chapter more than twenty times to check for mistakes. It wasn't done consecutively of course, there was quite an interval between each read. And of course, the moment I read it after posting it, I discovered several mistakes and things I'd like to correct. ¬_¬ That's Murphy's law for you, I'm sure I've missed mistakes with this chapter as well. （╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
Thank you for reading Chapter 2 of "Fairy Tail's Orange Flash" !~ Thank you all, awesome readers, for spending time on my story, for the great reviews (10 of them!), for all the adding in Favourites, Alerts and C2s. Since I'm a very greedy person, I can only say.. Keep them coming. (≥▽≤) Final Prologue chapter will be posted in a day or two !~
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