AN: Not really got much to say other than here is the chapter and I hope out all like it and leave a review.
Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail or Naruto.
( - )
(Last Time)
"You mean you destroyed it Master!" Erza stated bluntly as she turned on him with a ferocious scowl on her face.
"Well it wasn't my fault." Naruto said taking a step away from the angry red head, his lips curling into a nervous smile as he took a step back from the ferocious looking woman.
"Oh it was!"
"Yeah I saw him do it!"
"All his fault, you should have seen it!"
All of the other Guild Masters started shouting as they pointed at Naruto, all trying to blame him for the destruction, so they themselves wouldn't be blamed.
"Oh shut you old bastards." Naruto shouted at them.
"Bad Master!"
Sigh.
"Not you too Virgo!"
( - )
Chapter 10
( - )
(In the Fairy Tail Guild Hall)
"NARUTOOOO!" A loud, powerful voice bellowed out, so loudly in fact that it caused the entire Guild building to shake, and dust to fall from the ceiling as the source of the shout, a very short man with balding white hair and a large bushy moustache burst into the Fairy Tail Guild Hall.
The little man in question glowing golden with barely contained magical power and wrath as he stormed into the crowded Guild building, the walls and floors trembling from the waves of power he was unleashing and the sound of his voice as he strode through the building and headed for where Naruto was stood. With all those currently occupying the building, flinching at the sudden arrival of the very familiar figure. "I go away for a few months, and in that time Fairy Tail causes more chaos than ever before!"
"Hmm, oh hey Makky I didn't know you were getting back today!" Naruto replied cheerfully from his seat by the Guild's bar, a wooden tankard of ale in his hand and a large smile on his face as he spoke, his blue eyes twinkling as he toasted the arrival of his very loud, and very angry looking son as he did so. "How was the holiday? It looks like you got a tan!"
"Hello Master." Mirajane also spoke up from her place opposite Naruto, and behind the bar, entirely unconcerned about Makarov's display of power as she just happily smiled and waved at him, before she then refilled Naruto's now empty tankard with more ale.
The same though could not be said about the rest of Guild, all of whom were currently diving out of Makarov's range of vision and hiding behind tables and chairs. With some of the more cowardly members, going so far as to flee the building.
"How was the holiday!? Well it was pretty damn nice and relaxing, right up until I heard that you went ahead and destroyed the Clover Town Meeting Hall, and a bunch of other Fairy Tail idiots destroyed Oshibana Town's railway station!" Makarov continued to bellow as he approached Naruto, who in response just pulled a stool around for Makarov to sit on, his smile not fading for a moment despite the magical power Makarov was still flaring as he approached, the floorboards beneath him starting to crack as he did so, and most of the remaining members of the Guild who had not previously run, now fleeing for cover.
"Well at least you managed to relax." Naruto replied cheerfully, before he then nonchalantly chugged his tankard of ale, interpreting his son's bellows in a different way to the other members of the Guild, many of whom were now cowering under tables and sending Naruto looks which basically said; 'what are you doing you idiot?! Don't antagonise him even further!'.
"RELAX!" Makarov shouted again as he reached Naruto, his form beginning to grow larger and larger as he did so, until he towered over his father, standing easily over ten foot high, with hulking shoulders and fists the size of a normal man's torso, "I WILL SHOW YOU RELAXED!"
And with that final shout Makarov threw forward his fist in a devastating right hook, aiming straight at his still grinning father, even as he drew on even more of his 'Titan Magic', which in turn caused his arm and fist to grow exponentially bigger, until it was soon the size of a table.
With the Third Guild Master's movements being so quick that many in the Guild Hall almost missed it, though Naruto didn't as his body suddenly erupted into a cloak of crackling lightning, supercharging the receptors in his brain as well as his muscles as he dodged out from under Makarov's two metre wide fist at the last second, and then, with a crack of lighting appeared directly behind his son, the cheerful smile on his face still present for all to see.
"You know, I don't think I deserved that." Naruto said with a light chuckle and a genuine smile as he saw some of the boy's mother's hot-headed anger reflected in his son, even as the older man shrank down to normal size, Naruto's head moving with him as he soon found himself looking down at his still angry son, the cloak of lightning dispersing as he did so.
"No but you deserve this." Makarov replied, his deep voice still containing traces of annoyance as he slammed his elbow backwards, his short stature meaning that his elbow smacked his reckless and often times dismissive father square in his family jewels, an unexpectedly low blow, and one that caught Naruto unawares.
"Ah fuck it!" The blonde cried out as he fell to the floor clutching his painfully throbbing balls, his eyes were watering even as he felt the magic/chakra hybrid energy in his body flowing through him and fixing his ruptured testicle, not that it stopped the pain. "You little shit!"
"And another thing, I am taking back over as Guild Master again." Makarov said completely ignoring Naruto as he climbed onto his father's recently vacated seat, not even sparing the slumped over blonde a look as he instead raised his hand and called for Mira to pour him a drink of ale.
"Of course Master." Mira said cheerfully, unperturbed by the sudden display of violence and anger, something that still had many of the Guild still cowering, as she instead poured Makarov a drink, completely impassive to Naruto's groans and muttered promises of pain and retribution. The beautiful barmaid instead smiling pleasantly at Fairy Tail's new/ old Guild Master.
"So…. Is Naruto still the Guild Master or is the old man the Guild Master?" A confused looking Macao asked into the silence that followed as he took in the scene of a hunched over Naruto, and a casually drinking Makarov, feebly noting that Mira was refilling Naruto's tankard as she waited for the blonde to recover.
"Best not to ask." Wakaba said as he too looked over before he turned back to what he was doing before, with the two of them being among those few who didn't run and hide, after all they had been at Fairy Tail for a long time, and both of them knew that shit like this happened regularly. "Both of them are barking mad so it doesn't matter either way."
"I think I would probably prefer Makarov if it was up to me, at least he seems to give a damn." Loki, a man with spiky orange hair and sun glasses said as he eyed Naruto warily, the orange haired man's words coming as a surprise to some, as he seemingly hadn't had much interaction with the blonde. Certainly not enough to garner such distaste.
"That's a bit harsh on Naruto, he is a pretty good guy!" Macao replied back to Loki, a slight frown on his face as he saw the suspicion, distaste and hint of familiarity on the other wizard's face when he looked at Naruto.
"We'll see." Loki replied, before he turned away, completely ignoring the spectacle now as he instead went to hit on some girl.
"Gah! You little shit." Naruto shouted again, oblivious to the byplay between those around him as he instead lunged forward and tackled Makarov off of his stool, knocking the half empty tankard from his hand as he sent them both crashing into bar.
"Oh my." Mira giggled, a bemused smile on her face as she watch the two Guild Masters of Fairy Tail mock fighting with one another, with Makarov using his Titan Magic to make himself bigger as he got Naruto in a headlock, only for the blonde to bolster his own body with tendrils of purple magic as he broke the grip and sent Makarov flying. The two of them acting like the younger members of the Guild as they brawled, inciting the rest of the Guild to join in after a few moments of hesitation.
( - )
(Magical Council Building, Era)
"Speaking of the recent happenings in Clover Town and Oshibana, can I just say, after seeing the reports, it seems as if the destruction caused to both towns is extreme, and incredibly costly! And what for can I ask, what was it all for? After all, all of this damage, and all of this unnecessary inconvenience achieved nothing. I mean even with most of the Eisenwald members having been arrested and the Guild having gone under, very little was achieved in the grand scheme of things, save for some minor Dark Guild having been removed. Don't get me wrong, I am not saying that the dissolution of a Dark Guild is bad, but it has done nothing to address the issue of the rest of the Dark Guilds, and the threat they pose to the Kingdom and the Council." A member of the Magic Council spoke out passionately to the other members, as they all assembled in the city of Era to discuss recent events.
With all of them standing in a cycle in a dark room, the light of the blue magic circles they were standing on casting each of them in an eerie light. "Furthermore the whole thing has damaged the reputation of the Council, what with Fairy Tail running amuck and Eisenwald causing trouble completely unopposed."
"Then we should make an example of them." Another Council Member said as he looked around the darkly lit room, his tone filled with irritation as the Council once again discussed the nuisance that was the Fairy Tail Guild, a thorn that had been in the side of the Magic Council since its inception, nearly a hundred years ago.
"How?" Another member asked curiously, looking around as he did so, after all the punishment had to fit the crime, they could not be seen being lenient, not when the Council's reputation had already taken a hit due to this very public mess.
"It's quite simple really, we put all the members of Eisenwald on public trial, those found guilty will either be executed or imprisoned depending on the severity of their crime." The chairman of the Magic Council finally spoke up, his tone unwavering and disinterested as he brushed off the problem of the minor Dark Guild, leaving it to the lower courts to decide their fates.
"Harsh but fair." Another member replied, a thought that was quickly chorused by the other members of the Council. Before his brow furrowed at the thought of the other Guild involved, after all examples needed to be made, however the Fairy Tail Guild was not some minor Dark Guild, no, it was a large, powerful, and highly popular with the masses, and furthermore it was led by one of the Wizard Saints, it wasn't the kind of Guild they could push about, or at least not without it pushing back. "But what of our other problem?"
"You mean Fairy Tail? The one Guild that has been annoying you for years now, the very same one which happened to show up and save the day?" Siegrain, a young man with blue coloured, spikey hair and a reddish tattoo around his right eye, and one of the youngest members of the Magical Council at only twenty one, finally spoke up, his tone filled with amusement and the slightest hint of arrogance. "You do know that they were able to take down nearly the entirety of Eisenwald with only four people. And their temporary Guild Master, some unknown wizard without a shred of a reputation, Naruto Dreyar, was able to beat Eisenwald's Ace and the Demon Flute Lullaby by himself? And for that you want to punish them?"
In response to his words the other Council Members all grumbled in annoyance, especially irritated at the way the young man was bringing up Fairy Tail's accomplishments, and by doing so inferring the Council's lack of action in regards to dealing with the situation.
"I can understand why you don't want to admit the truth, but that's how it is." The blue haired man then continued, his lips curving up into a smug smirk as he looked around at the mostly elder, and irascible Council Members, all of whom looked less than pleased at him for 'speaking out of turn'. "In fact, you should thank them and give them an award or something."
"Like hell we would!" Org, another member of the Council, and an elderly man with a long grey beard and hair yelled, a look of outrage appearing on his face as he glared at the young upstart, one who in his opinion was far too young and immature to be a member of the Council. "Even though what you say is true, they also destroyed an entire town! Do you know how much it will cost to rebuild Oshibana?"
Siegrain chuckled in amusement at that, delighting in the effects his words had on the other Council Members.
"Don't laugh!" A short, squat Council Member with cat like ears on his head, shouted at Siegrain, his beady eyes locked on Siegrain and his voice field with barely contained anger.
"I take it you've all read the reports? And as such know that they make it clear that the only real damage at Oshibana was to the railway station, and that even then it was only partially destroyed in the battle." Yajima another member of the Magic Council, one who had been silent thus far, finally spoke up, interrupting the ongoing argument as he did so. With Yajima being a short, elderly man with thick light brown eyebrows, and a small toothbrush moustache. Incidentally he was also one of the only members without an over the top robe, with him instead choosing to wear a brown, long sleeved shirt with a very odd, black, three-spiked hat.
"Council man Yajima, there really isn't much difference between partially destroyed and completely destroyed, when it comes to property damage! It will need to be fixed all the same." Ultear, yet another member of the Magic Council spoke up with a teasing smile. The young woman in question being the only other Member of the Council, apart from Siegrain, who was under sixty.
With Ultear being an attractive young woman in her early twenties, with slightly pale skin, red lipstick lightly coating her lips, dark purple hair, and piercing brown eyes. She also had a noticeably voluptuous figure and was currently wearing a variation of the Council Member's uniform, consisting of a rather bland white garb that covered her upper and lower body, a dark yellow sash that was tied around her waist, and red collar like object around her neck, as well as the left arm being long sleeved and the right having no sleeve whatsoever. All in all she cut a striking figure, and seemed appeared to be the type that was rather playful in nature, but simultaneously had the capability of being serious when the time called for it.
"Yajima does have a point even if I don't entirely agree with it, their Guild Master; this Naruto Dreyar, an apparent distant relation of Makarov Dreyar, did a decent enough job in retrieving defeating the Lullaby flute." Org said as he looked around the room, his tone filled with finality as he attempted to bring an end to the bickering. "But what matters now is how we choose to approach this matter, we need to be seen to be doing something?"
"They need to be punished!" Another member spoke up, sounding like a broken record as they just ignored everything else that had been said and demanded that sanctions be given.
"We can't punish them for saving lives!" Yajima spoke out firmly, his gaze flashing over to the person that spoke, a look of distaste on his face as he did so.
"Well we can't just let them off the hook! If we leave them be then other Guilds may start to believe that they can get away with similar acts of destruction without any consequences!" Org responded to Yajima, his tone holding irritation once again as the debate seemed to start up again. "As I said before we have to be seen to be doing something, we need to make the other wizards aware that we are still here, and that vandalism and excessive property, no matter the reason will not go unpunished!"
"Well then I have an idea." The other members of the Magic Council all looked over Siegrain as he spoke again, most of them looking irritated that the young man was once again butting in. Still he was a member of the Magic Council, even if some did not deem him worthy of it, so they listened. "If we can't punish all of them, then why don't we make an example of just one of them?"
The Chairman of the Magic Council, a fat, bearded man by the name of Crawford Seam leant forward as he heard that, his small piggy eyes locked on Siegrain. "What are you proposing, Siegrain?"
"We require a scapegoat from Fairy Tail, someone who is well known, so the impact of our actions will carry more weight. On top of that we will also require an audience with this Naruto Dreyar, someone that powerful should be known to us, and the fact he has somehow gone by unnoticed thus far is worrying and will require investigation. However, simply bringing him along as the scapegoat won't be enough, therefore I suggest we pick an iconic Fairy Tail wizard and play it off as having both of them being punished." Siegrain suggested, smirking as that idea seemed to sit very well with the other members of the Council, all of them not nodding and mumbling their approval, all except Yajima of course, who just scowled at the proposal.
"Interesting, so you are suggesting that we bring Naruto Dreyar in alongside another and use that as an excuse to question him? Hmm, that would work out rather well for us, and seeing as how it allows us to hit two birds with one stone I do not see any reason to reject your plan." Org replied after a few moments, his tone slow and steady, and his words slightly stilited as if he really didn't want to accept Siegrain's proposal, even if it was the best one yet. "Though it must be handled with care, even if Naruto Dreyar is only a stand in for the original Guild Master of Fairy Tail, he still will wield some level of influence, Fairy Tail is one of the strongest Guilds in Fiore after all."
"Still, who would you suggest we bring in alongside Fairy Tail's current Guild Master?" Ultear inquired, before giving Siegrain a lazy smirk as he began to reply, with her already guessing just who the blue haired man would want to bring along. The man was so predictable, and also so obsessed.
"Oh, I know just the person…" Siegrain replied, a sly smirk now stretching across his face.
( - )
(In Magnolia)
Lucy Heartfilia let out a great sigh as she set down her pen on her desk, after which she then read over the letter she had just written to her mother, her hazel eyes scanning sadly over the neatly written words.
It was good enough Lucy thought, before she let loose another sigh and nodded to herself, after which she then folded it up carefully and placed it in an envelope, one which she then put in her desk draw.
With that done she then let loose another sigh, suddenly feeling stiff from having been hunched over her desk for the last hour or so. This of course led to her leaning back in her chair and stretching out her arms, before she then stretched her legs out from where they were under her desk.
"Ahhh, nothing beats being able to relax in your own home, especially after that whole Eisenwald mess, and, dealing with Naruto." Lucy mumbled to herself, audibly airing her grievances to the empty apartment as oppose to just bottling it up inside.
Even so, a scowl did still cross her face. After all she was still quite frustrated that the blonde didn't just hand over Virgo's key to her, she knew she was being bratty and a little selfish, but she couldn't help it. She had learnt how to use the Celestial Spirit Keys and trained herself to be a true Celestial Wizard, like her mother. She had dedicated her life to this type of magic, with the aim of collecting all twelve of the golden keys, otherwise known as the zodiac keys, Naruto however had no idea what he was doing, and was just dabbling, with him probably not knowing the first thing about spirits and how to look after and care for them.
Again she knew she was acting a little spoiled, but she couldn't help it. Celestial Spirit Magic wasn't the flashiest and most powerful of magic's out there, but it was the one she had chosen, and to her it felt like Naruto was making a mockery of that with his actions, and had impeded her from reaching her goal.
It was just frustrating.
Lucy let out another irritated sigh at that, however before she could dwell anymore on the thought of the other blonde, she was interrupted from her relaxation by a sudden, familiar and entirely unwelcome voice unexpectedly speaking up behind.
"You know, you've got a nice place here, Lucy."
Letting out a startled shriek, the blonde teenager immediately whirled around in her chair, only to see a half-naked Gray Fullbuster sitting on her bed, his hands behind his head as he relaxed and eyed up her apartment.
Upon noticing her attention focused on him though, he broke off from looking around and instead decided to give her a cheeky little wave.
"W-What are you doing in here? You... you perverted trespasser!" Lucy managed to stutter out in surprise as she looked at the dark haired ice mage, noting as she did that he was alone in the room with her, and was practically naked.
"That's a bit harsh you know, I may be trespassing but I am not a pervert." Gray replied, his smile fading as a mock offended look passed across his face at the accusation.
"Get out of my house perv!" Was the only response Lucy gave him as she grabbed the nearest thing to her, a book, and threw it at him, aiming for his once again grinning face.
Gray closed his eyes and sighed when he heard that before he almost nonchalantly shifted his head to the side and avoided the projectile. "Hey now take it easy. I just came to get you in case you wanted to see the spar."
Lucy's sudden bout of rage subsided for a moment as she heard that, the blonde sending Gray a confused look now. "Spar?"
The other teen rolled his eyes in response to Lucy, before he let his arms fall back to his sides. "Yeah, remember how Natsu challenged Erza before we set off for Oshibana, well they're about to start duking it out."
"What? Really? How long until it starts?" Lucy asked, her eyes widening as she swung around to fully face Gray now, her mind flicking back to how Natsu foolishly challenged Erza to a fight before they set off on their mission to put down Erigor.
"Yeah. They'll be starting any minute. I'm leaving to go there now." Gray replied easily as he jumped up from the bed and headed to the door, looking over his shoulder as he did so. "I just thought I would drop in on you first, just in case you forgot about it."
"Hey! Hold on, I'm coming too! Are they really serious about this?" Lucy cried out as she got up, grabbed her coat, and quickly followed the ice mage, her previous outrage over his intrusion now forgotten.
"Yes, yes they are. Oh yeah, and by the way Master Makarov, the Guild Master before Naruto, has come back to the Guild and has taken over from Naruto!" Gray continued as he walked through the front door of Lucy's apartment. "Since you've not met him yet, I thought I would give you a heads up on that too, he's the short old man in the orange and blue outfit."
"Wait what?" Lucy shouted as she ran after Gray, hurrying out of her apartment as she chased after the all but naked Ice Wizard.
( - )
(Back at the Fairy Tal Guild)
It was as Gray and Lucy were hurrying over to the Guild Hall, that the two of them noticed how most of the Fairy Tail members, and several dozen other residents of Magnolia had all gathered in front of the homely building, creating a big, crowded circle in the street, one that was directly in front of Guild Hall's main doors.
Slipping through the loud, bustling and lively crowd, both Gray and Lucy pushed and shoved their way to the front, where they could see that wide open space had been made in the middle of the crowd for the two Fairy Tail mages that were about to face off.
One of them a pink haired, wildly grinning teen, who was currently going through a set of stretches. Whilst the other was the red haired, Titania of Fairy Tail, who at present had an expression which somehow exuded, resignation, boredom and amusement in equal measure.
"Wait hold on! Are these two really serious about this? Why would they want to fight in front of all these people, and in the middle of the street too!?" Lucy shouted out as she and Gray made it to the front, and looked on at the two powerful wizards.
It was as she spoke, that her loud voice carried, attracting the attention of several other people in the crowd, some of whom turned to look at her, including several other members of the Guild. With the one who replied to her question being the obnoxiously, big, brawny and loud Elfman, who stood a full head higher than everyone else in the crowd. "Of course they're serious. If they weren't, then they wouldn't be real men!"
"Erza's not a man though…" Mira, Elfman's sister, pointed out blankly from her place in the crowd next to him, her lips curling up in amusement as she saw Elfman twitch at her words, after which she then sent Lucy a warm welcoming smile. "Hi Lucy!"
"Hey Mira." Lucy replied with a slight smile, waving back to the chipper barmaid as she did so, before she was distracted when another member of Fairy Tail spoke up.
"Yeah, but you've got to admit, she's pretty manly." Macao said jokingly from a couple of feet away, with Wakaba chuckling and nodding along in agreement.
Elfman however just coughed awkwardly to himself and scratched idly at the scar on his face, choosing the wise option of not commenting further, especially since he knew his sister, despite how sweet she appeared and acted, was an absolute demon, and would continue to pick holes in anything he said and then tease him about, basically doing what all older siblings did.
Ignoring Macou's comment, a look of genuine concern crossed Lucy's face as she once again looked between the two wizards, after which she decided to voice her concerns to the others around them, "Aren't you worried that this fight could tear apart Fairy Tail's strongest team? I mean it wouldn't it be pretty bad if two of the strongest people in Fairy Tail fight?"
"Strongest team, what are you talking about?" Gray asked amusedly from his place next to Lucy, tearing his gaze away from what he hoped would be a one-sided beat down to instead look over at the blonde.
"You, Natsu, and Erza are Fairy Tail's strongest wizards, right?" Lucy replied as she looked around at all her fellow Guild members, each of whom had a look of surprise and amusement on their faces at her statement.
"What idiot fed you that lie?" Gray scoffed, snorting in amusement at the idea that either Natsu or himself were the strongest in Fairy Tail, even if Erza, as an S-Class wizard, was probably on a par with some of the stronger members, there were much stronger wizards in Fairy Tail than either him or Natsu. Not even Gray could deny that.
An instant later the white haired barmaid Mira began to cry as a result of being thoroughly insulted by Gray, though whether or not she was actually upset, or just playing around to get Gray in trouble was questionable, either way it caused most of the surrounding people to glare at Gray for making such a cute girl 'cry'.
"I didn't mean it like that Mira!" Gray shouted worriedly as he attempted to calm Mira, having not realised she was putting on an act to get just such a reaction from him, with him instead being more worried about the hostile glares of those around him.
"Natsu and Gray are tough, I'll give them that, but they're not even close to being the strongest. There are wizards in Fairy Tail that are far stronger than the two of them combined." Elfman stated matter-of-factly, not too bothered about his sister's theatrics, after all he knew his mischievous sister well enough to realise when she was faking.
"Still it's a pretty safe bet that Erza's the strongest female wizard in Fairy Tail." Levy commented her eyes flickering over to Mira for a moment as she did so, even as she along with her teammates decided to butt in on the conversation, the group of three having arrived and pushed their way through the crowd of spectators' midway through the conversation.
"Yeah, but if we're talking about the strongest male I'd say it's probably Naruto when it comes to the standard members. I mean he beat Erza and Laxus in a one on one fight." Elfman commented, getting a look of shock from Lucy as he did so, even as he scratched his chin in thought. "Though Mystogen is supposed to be pretty tough, and then there is Master Makarov and Gildarts the Ace of Fairy Tail. I am not too sure who would win if they were all to fight, though I don't think Mystogen is on the same level as the others, nor do I think Naruto could match up to either Makarov or Gildarts, I mean he is pretty young and doesn't really have much of a reputation."
The others nodded at that, though Macou and Wakaba shared a look, after all the pair of them had discussed it and were certain that they had met Naruto before, though for the life of them they couldn't remember when or where, either way they both had an inkling that Fairy Tail's Fourth Master was capable of far more than he let on.
"Still, I'm interested to see how this fight turns out." Lucy stated as she absorbed what Elfman had just said, noting the names Makarov and Gildarts as she did so, after all she had heard of them both, in fact the pair of them were famous wizards, but she'd never met either of them in person, nor had she met this Mystogen.
Shaking her head at that, the blonde then turned and directed her gaze back towards where the fight was going to take place. Nothing had happened as of yet, as both of the two wizards just seemed to be staring each other down, with Natsu dancing slightly around on the spot trying to psych himself up, whilst Erza just looked a little impatient.
"I bet she'll mop the floor with him." Gray said, smirking at the prospect. Natsu may be his Guild mate and sort of a friend/ rival, but he was still a pain in the arse, and so the Ice Wizard was more than
looking forward to seeing him getting the crap kicked out of him by Erza.
Before anyone could rebuke Gray, or say anything else, the group's conversation was suddenly interrupted by a large flash of golden light, one which engulfed Erza's body for a few moments, before it began to fade as she equipped one of her various armours. The sudden action silencing the crowd, as they waited to see which armour she would choose.
When the transformation did finally came full circle, her new appearance was revealed. With her armour being made up of gauntlets that resembled dragon's limbs, and a breastplate, gauntlets and greaves, which left her shoulders as well as her upper arms and thighs exposed. With this armour, like many of her others, being somewhat more revealing than strictly necessary.
The armour itself was predominantly red, but also sported several orange and black parts that took on a shape similar to flames. Her hair had also become tied up in two separate, long pigtails by two hair clips which gave off the appearance of obsidian dragon horns. All of which was likely more for aesthetic reasons, than anything else. Then finally, she was now wielding a sword in her right hand, one which had a long, slightly jagged, crimson blade. A blade which appeared as if the steel it was made of was trying to burst into fire.
"That's Erza's 'Flame Empress Armor'." Macao stated an impressed look on his face, though whether it was for Erza's rather obviously choice of armour when facing off with a Fire Wizard, or due to how striking and revealing the armour was, was up for debate.
"Aw, come on Erza, at least give the kid a chance." Wakaba shouted from beside Macou, a slight mocking note to his voice, as he made it clear as to all just who his money was on to win.
Before Lucy could ask about the specifics of this particular armour, though she could guess, there was a sudden, but brief explosion as Natsu let loose with one of his own techniques as he rushed Erza, the both of them suddenly moving so fast that Lucy could barely follow their battle as they collided. Though she certainly felt the aftereffects, because as they did slam into one another, a large burst of hot wind exploded outwards from the point of contact and into the surrounding crowd, almost knocking her backwards onto her rear as it did so.
Steadying herself, Lucy couldn't help but wince as she saw one of Erza's armoured boots catch Natsu square in the face; it was so clear it was almost as if it happened in slow motion.
Not to be outdone, Natsu rolled with the kick, moving his entire body in a full rotational circle so that he faced Erza again. However, as he was turning around, he sucked in a large breath of air and prepared a Fire Dragons Roar in his mouth before he promptly launched it at her as soon as she was in his sights again.
Erza though took it in stride, with her wasting no time in dodging it, before with a smirk on her face, she once again blasted towards Natsu, her sword held behind her ready to deal a critical, but not deadly, strike to the fire mage.
Natsu however reacted too, as he without a second thought he used a blast of fire from his feet to exploded forward and bulrush the charging Erza, his fist covered in fire as he made to strike Erza with a 'Fire Dragon's Iron Fist'.
However before the two of them could once again engage in battle, they were interrupted by a loud clapping noise, one which caused both of them to freeze in mid-swing as someone interrupted the fight, forcing their way through the crowd and into the open space in the middle.
Following on from that a rather feminine, if nasally, voice spoke out, causing the jeering and booing crowd to quiet down as they focused on the source of the voice, and saw who it was that had interfered in the fight.
"This fight is over." A very frog like being said as it made its way through the crowd, the being's amphibian like appearance and expensive robes, getting a number of reactions from those around it,
though from the sound of its voice Lucy was able to identify that it was probably female. And while shorter than most humans in the crowd, it was definitely humanoid, though it had the head of a frog and webbed hands. On top of that her expensive robes, looked almost like a uniform, giving her a somewhat official appearance.
"May I have your attention please; I have come here on behalf of the Magic Council." The frog like messenger said as she came to halt in the centre of the impromptu arena, her chest swelling up with her own self-importance.
Silence fell across the crowd as they heard that, even as the Fairy Tail members all started looking uncomfortable and nervous at her words, after all it was common knowledge that the Council wasn't fond of the Guild and its rambunctious members.
Before anyone could respond to the Council's messenger though, they were interrupted by another voice, as Naruto, the now former Guild Master of Fairy Tail, made his way on to the scene, the crowd around him parting as he spoke, which allowed him to walk into the impromptu fighting arena as well, his blue eyes shifting over to Natsu and Erza, before looking onto the messenger. "What do you want?"
"As a result of the recent Eisenwald incident and the destruction of the Clover Town Meeting Hall, two members of your Guild are to be arrested and attend a trial where you will be judged in accordance with the laws of the land. Erza Scarlet and Naruto Dreyar you are to come with me and stand trial." The messenger replied bluntly, her words shocking everyone present, and her officious and confident demeanour cowing some of the watching Guild members.
"They're going to stand what?!" Natsu shouted out in response to this, the dragon slayer instantly lighting up his fists with fire and going to stand in front of the scarlet-haired wizard as he did so, obviously desiring to prevent her from leaving as he instead glared at the messenger.
"What?!"
"What do you mean Erza's being arrested?!"
"What for?!"
The other Fairy Tail members in the crowd muttered, a sudden surge of dissatisfaction sweeping over the crowd as those present began to grumble and protest to the messenger's words.
The frog took a step forward in response to the protests, her dispassionate gaze passing over Natsu coolly for a moment, before looking over his shoulder and instead at Erza. "I'm sorry Miss Scarlet and Mr Dreyar, but I'm going to need you to come with me."
"Hmm, I'm going to say no." Naruto replied bluntly, his usual cheer fading from his face as he locked eyes with the messenger.
"I am here on behalf of the Magic Council!" The frog woman spoke up her tone turning frostier, a look of faint surprise passing over her face at his resistance.
"Again I'm going to have to say no." Naruto said again unimpressed.
"It was not a request." The frog said clicking her fingers as she did so, causing several armoured Rune Knights to shove through the crowd and flank the frog messenger, spears and shields held threateningly in their hands, and hard looks on their faces.
"Naruto we should just go with them." Erza finally spoke up, her voice cutting through the tension like a knife.
"Again no." Naruto said ignoring the glare from Erza and the council messenger. "What right do the Council have to make us their scapegoat for this whole mess? They already have most of Eisenwald behind bars and have sworn statements from numerous Guild Masters about the happenings in Clover Town, this is a farce and I refuse to accept this injustice."
"You are a wizard and so cannot refuse the Magic Council, if you do so there will be consequences!" The messenger replied haughtily her eyes narrowing, and the Rune Knights shifting about, their grips on their weapons tightening.
"Oh I am sure there will, but there will also be consequences for the Magic Council. Just think what the King of Fiore will say when he hears how the Magic Council failed to act to contain the situation and instead relied on Fairy Tail to do their work for them. And that is not even taking into account what the King and the rest of Fiore will say when they hear how an entire battalion of the Council's Rune Knights fled like cowards from Lullaby and left the Guild Masters to fend for themselves." Naruto said harshly, completely disinterested in diplomacy as he laid into the messenger. He had never liked corruption or people blaming him for something he hadn't done, he'd had enough of that growing up, and he was a man now, many years older and many years wiser than he had been. In fact his younger self would probably barely recognise the man he had become, though he would likely be proud of who he was now, and as such he would not accept this shit.
"W-What!" The messenger replied back stepping as she heard Naruto's comment.
"You heard me, now leave and tell the Council to find another patsy, otherwise I will go to the King about this and then we will see what he does. My guess would be sanctions and a large budget cut, so I wouldn't hold out too much hope over keeping your job." Naruto continued as he took a step forward his body crackling with lightning, the ground around him beginning to crack as he did so.
The sudden display of power being enough to give the messenger and her Rune Knights second thoughts as the backed away quickly, the smell of ozone filling the noses of those in the crowd, as Naruto's blue eyes began to glow violet
"I will return to my superiors and update them on this." The messenger said quite nervously now, very much aware of the numerous scowling Guild wizards that surrounded her and her escort now, and of the visible display of magic in front of her.
"Good, now if you would be so kind. Piss off!" Naruto replied irritably, before he looked away, the lightning cloak beginning to fade as he completely dismissed the messenger and her soldiers
Backing away hastily, the Council representative did exactly that, throwing Naruto a filthy look over her shoulder as she did so, her Rune Knights following after her as she shoved her way through the now chuckling crowd.
"Ohh shit that was awesome!" Gray shouted out as he watched the Council messenger flee, some of the members of the crowd jeering and taunting her as she did so.
"What a man!" Elfman shouted as he and many other members of Fairy Tail cheered Naruto on, celebrating how he had stood up to the Council.
"What the hell do you think you were doing!?" Makarov interrupted as he marched into the centre of the circle a scowl on his face as he locked gazes with his father.
"Making a stand Makky, the Magic Council hasn't exactly been subtle in their hatred towards us so I very much doubt we can sink any lower in their eyes. But at least now they know that we won't take their crap lying down. I thought you knew Makky the best way to make a bully back off is to show you aren't scared of them." Naruto replied with a sagely nod, his lips curling upwards as he noted how his son's face was turning bright red face. "Besides I told the truth, they are just looking for a scapegoat in order to cover up their own incompetence."
"You've still painted a target on our backs!" Makarov snapped back churlishly, even as he tried to refute his father's words.
"Meh, we already had one on our backs anyway." Naruto repleid blandly.
"Master Makarov should I go after the messenger and give her an apology?" Erza said in a solemn tone as she took a step forward.
"No, there is no real point, after all what's done is done." Makarov sighed before sending Naruto a slight scowl which soon turned into a smirk. "Besides Naruto does have a point."
"Ha! I knew you would see things my way Makky!" Naruto laughed out with a smile. "Now let's all go to the bar and get shit faced!"
That received a large cheer from many members of the Guild as they started to pile into the main hall.
"By the way Mira I have someone I want you to meet, it is a new friend of mine called Virgo, and I think the two of you will get along well." Naruto said as he walked into the Guild, Mirajane walking at his side.
"Ermm, what just happened?" Lucy asked as she still tried to process what had just happened, allowing herself to be swept up by the crowd as they headed inside, the previous fight now forgotten.
"Shit happens Lucy, welcome to Fairy Tail." Gray replied as he grabbed Lucy's hand and pulled her into the Guild hall with him, ignoring Natsu's complaints over how the fight hadn't finished.
( - )
(Elsewhere, sometime later)
Far away from Magnolia, a tall, pale man, with waist length black hair strode through a large, stone chamber, heading for the throne at the end of the hall, where a shadowed figure was currently sat.
As he walked the dark haired man licked his lips nervously, his fingers twitched and playing with the cuffs of his knee length coat as he prepared to relay some bad news to his leader, his leader who inspired loyalty through terror, and was devoid of mercy, or pity.
The man's paused for a single moment at that thought, after all he was going to be relaying some bad news, news which might lead to his master lashing out in anger, as he often did when hearing things that displeased him, with his Guild Master being the type of man who believed it literally gutting the messenger if they displeased him.
The dark haired man swallowed the lump in his throat at that thought before forging on, after all as bad as his master could be when brining him bad news, he was even worse when it came to someone shirking their duties and hiding things from him.
"Mard how good to see you, tell me what news do you bring me?" A deep, rich voice spoke out, the tone surprisingly pleasant and seemingly filled with good humour, with it being a voice that could very easily lull someone into believe that the speaker was a kind, warm person, one who was your friend. Which was ironic considering the monster the voice belonged to.
"Master." Mard replied, falling on one knee before the man as he did so, his wide eyes fixed on the ground, and unwilling to look up at the kindly smile on the man's face, and the twinkling eyes, after all he knew what kind of a monster dwelled behind those kind eyes and warm, inviting smile. "I bring news Master, of Lullaby."
"Oh, and how is Lullaby, the 'flute of Zeref'?" The man in the throne asked in amusement, his tone telling Mard just what he thought of the fact that Lullaby's existence was tied to a flute, as oppose to a book, like most of Zeref's other demons were.
"I, I am afraid he's dead Master." Mard replied, a trickle of sweat running down his face at the silence that followed, as he continued to star at the stone floor of the chamber, not daring to look up, in case it incited his Master's wrath.
"Hmm, well not to worry, I am sure he deserved it." The man in the throne chuckled, the sound echoing quite pleasantly around the hall. "Still it is a little irritating."
"Y-yes Master." Mard gasped out, relief flooding him at the realisation that his Master was not angry, though he didn't let his guard down, not when his Master was so unpredictable.
"Ah well, I suppose we will just need to progress the plan without him." His Master replied, the smile on his face, evident in his tone.
Mard looked up at that, his dark eyes locking onto his Master's warm violet ones as he did so, a quiver of fear running though him at the cruelty, violence and wrath that he knew was hidden within their depths. "Y-yes, Master."
( - )
AN: So there it is, what do you all think? I hope you enjoyed it and leave a nice long review.
Also if you have some free time checkout my other stories.
And for those that are interested the re-write of my Naruto/ DxD story, the 'Ten Tailed Wolf', has begun. So that will be coming soon, on a page near you…
Thanks for reading, and I'll see you later.
Seagate.