Disclaimer: Naruto belongs to Masashi Kishimoto and Fairy Tail belongs to Hiro Mashima. Anything I write in this story is purely from my thoughts

Chapter 8

An unknown person with long black hair gathered in a bun with two lock that fell lose framing her face, pale skin, dark brown eyes, and a slender frame walked up to an unconscious man whose head was buried underground. This particular person was wearing a pinstriped outfit that stopped at the knees. He wore a green hoari with white trimmings covering the dress and brown sash with a fringed tail tied around the waist

The mysterious person dug the unconscious man out of the ground lay the man underfoot. The person knelt in front of the man to perform basic first aid and CPR in an attempt to bring him back to consciousness. This proved to be futile as the man was still unresponsive despite the person's efforts.

The person dug into her pouch producing an ominous looking vial. She popped the cork off and opened the man's mouth to feed him the contents.

Just then, the man's eyes shot open and he was briefly enveloped by a purplish hue.

He turned to the person who just revived him and said, "Perfect timing as usual, Haku. Any later that that, and I would have gone under."

"Of course, Master," A feminine voice from the person answered. "You know I wouldn't let you down."

The man grunted in pain as he tried to sit up.

"Easy there, Master," Haku said. "You haven't recovered from your fight yet."

The man just growled as his companion helped him up. "Curse that blonde fairy! I underestimated him…"

"To be fair, master, no one expected a formidable opponent to challenge us," Haku said.

"You are right," The man said reluctantly. "We will retreat for now. And when we return…"

An evil laugh echoed through the woods.

THE TOWN HIDDEN IN THE FOREST

Lucy looked around in pity at the townsfolk who looked at them as they passed. The people who lived in this town looked malnourished. There were shops that were abandoned, while there were some that were holding on for dear life. It was sad.

"This town is pitiful, huh?" Tazuna said.

"I didn't—" Lucy tried to reason, but the builder waved him off.

"It's okay," he said. "It is true anyway…"

"What happened here anyway?" Naruto asked.

"This place was once well known for its cool climate and fresh air. It was a mountain paradise. We even had a Five Star Mountain Resort built at the side of town. People came from far and wide despite the hike they had to take. Merchants from far and wide to trade and open up businesses here. We were thriving!" Tazuna narrated causing his companions to imagine the town in its former glory.

Phantom outlines of people made from the Fairies' imagination walked through the streets. They imagined the place as a thriving metropolis with a lot of storekeepers competing with the others to get the crowd of customers to come into their stores. They imagined kids running around pulling their parents to buy them the treats that were offered from the stalls.

Somber looks were seen on their faces as the phantoms they imagined disappeared and was replaced by the town that was almost deserted except for the remaining citizens.

"And then what happened?" Naruto asked.

"Then, greed struck our fair town," Tazuna said.

"What do you mean?" Lucy clarified.

"The Duke wanted to monopolize the whole town. He came with his men and talked to the mayor about setting up his own businesses throughout the whole town. Of course, the mayor declined the offer. He couldn't do that to the smaller merchants in town," Tazuna continued the story. "Naturally, he was furious about the mayor's refusal, but he still craved for what he wanted."

Tazuna took a deep breath, "He took out our ride services, the small ships we used to transport the people to the foot of the mountain. He secretly placed his mercenaries to intercept the sailors who set out on their jobs to the office in the mainland. Any of the sailors went to work there were either killed or have gone missing."

"Typical," Naruto muttered under his breath

"So, without any transport, the vacationers couldn't come here. Rumors also spread of the disappearance of those that travelled to our island. That scared off any third-party sailors and fishermen from approaching the island," Tazuna finished.

"What about your guest that were already here?" Lucy asked.

"They're stranded," Tazuna answered. "Without anyone with the courage to sail from here to the mainland or from the mainland to here, there is no way for them to get across the water. Some of the desperate one's tried to swim to the mainland abandoning their things here. They were spared by the mercenaries, but it was mother nature who took them out. The current was simply too much to for them to handle."

He paused then looked at the wizards who accepted their request, "So, that is the story of this little town."

Memories of Naruto's first mission flooded his mind. That was the one he considered his first real mission, because, let's be honest here, the D-ranked missions were officially sanctioned missions, but would you consider running errands a mission? No, right? Fortunately, in this new world he was starting to call his own, the first job that kicked off his career as a wizard in Earthland wasn't an errand job. And as a bonus, this job even mirrored his trip to the Land of Waves.

Lucy was lost in her own thoughts too. No one knew it at the time, but the thought of her father crossed her mind. He hadn't gone as far as this Duke that the builder was talking about, but it was a comparison. He was so engrossed in his business that he forgot all about his family. Money certainly changed people. That made Lucy happy about her decision of running away from home to join Fairy Tail. She was so happy to be with Naruto right now; she might as well ask him for a date in this mountain resort.

'Wait, wait, wait! What am I thinking?!' Lucy's cheeks heated up because of her own thoughts. 'We are here on a job! This is not a vacation!'

Her argument with herself was interrupted when Naruto spoke up.

"Don't worry Old Man Tazuna," Naruto raised his fist showing a thumb up. "We'll make sure they won't bother you as you work. That's a promise!"

The builder couldn't help but shed a few tears at Naruto's words.

Lucy recovered from her thoughts and added, "And your town would be back on its feet in no time,"

Tazuna was so touched by this that he lowered his head to the two wizards. "Thank you…"

"It's no problem," Naruto said.

"So, what do we do first?" Lucy asked.

"Uhm, we have to meet up with the mayor and inform him of our arrival," Tazuna answered.

"Lead the way," Naruto said.

And so, the builder led the wizards to the town hall. They passed by more of the closing businesses around town that were on the brink of bankruptcy and more of the one's that were closed. Naruto became more and more determined the more he saw the townspeople, who looked at them curiously and with a hint of hope as they passed by.

Pretty soon, they made it to a tall building that looked more regal than the other buildings. It wasn't as decorated as the other buildings they passed, but it still followed the towns motif as minimalistic as it could. It reminded everyone who came across the building that the transactions happening inside were serious and not fun and games.

They entered the building and were greeted by a receptionist with a fair skin, green eyes, and long brown hair sitting at the front desk. Her eyes widened when she saw the three approaching and then they turned seductive at a particular blonde. She couldn't get her eyes off of a certain whiskered blonde. This bothered Lucy a lot. She didn't know why or didn't want to admit it, but she was bothered.

"Good Morning! My name is Anna," The receptionist greeted with a wink directed at the said blonde. "What can I do for you today?"

"We're here to see Mayor Rose," Tazuna stated.

"Ahh, Mr. Tazuna! I see you have returned with the wizards we requested." Anna said.

"Yes, yes! As a matter of fact, we have just arrived in town," Tazuna answered.

"Then, you better inform the mayor right away," Anna said.

Anna stood from the desk she was sitting on showcasing to everyone her outfit. It consisted of a long white coat that covered a red blouse and a black pencil skirt. She wore a sheer-grey pantyhose that covered her legs and high heels that matched the color of her skirt. As she stood, she took off her coat slowly and subtly seductive as she stole glances from the blonde male. She draped the coat neatly over her chair.

"Right this way…" The secretary said walking ahead of the little group. She made sure to give a little sway to her hips as she walked hoping a certain Naruto would notice. Alas, though, the only attention she got from the builder who lived in this town. That left her to wonder how the blonde had managed to reach the clueless young man assuming they were a couple.

She led them to the door that led into the mayor's office. From the outside, they could hear the mayor talking to somebody over in a lacrima orb crystal.

"Yes, I know. It's not like I have a choice. We couldn't hide the fact that he has sent them."

*static*

"I know, I know. I already sent word to the different guilds about the update in the request."

*static*

"I'm sorry, but even if we lie about the difficulty, only a stupid wizard would continue the job if they find out who they have to fight. "

That's only some of the bits and pieces they have heard from behind the door. Anna decided to knock on the door to let him know that they were there.

"Excuse me, I'll call you back," The mayor said. "What is it?"

"It's the Wizards from Fairy Tail, sir," Anna replied. "They have answered the request."

"Oh, oh!" The mayor's voice lightened up. "Come in!"

Anna opened the door to the office. The room was a large square in shape. There was a rectangular table that was facing to the left when you looked through the door. When you entered the room, you could see a love seat opposite the table. On the wall adjacent to the loveseat, there was a large bookshelf that was filled to the brim with books. On the opposite end to the book shelf, there was large window that overlooked the town. Beside that one, was a love seat half the size of the other one. On the floor, there was carpet that covered the floor and another circular rug in the middle of the room.

Mayor was standing in front of the window. He was a tall, tanned-skinned man with black hair, green eyes, and a neatly trimmed facial hair. He wore a sharp, dark-grey business suit consisting of a grey vest with numerous black buttons, a grey overcoat with a single gold button, a white shirt and a red tie. He also wore classy grey pants that matched his upper body, a gold and black belt, pointed red and black shoes, and a gold watch. His suit made his look slim, but in reality, it hid his round, portly belly figure perfectly.

"Good morning everyone," The mayor greeted. "I thank you for answering our summons despite the change in difficulty of the job."

"Change in difficulty?" Lucy asked in confusion.

"Ah, yes…" Rose nodded. "Weren't you informed that the job is being reassigned as an S-class quest due the multiple assassins that were popping up. Although, we did try our best to keep the difficulty as low as possible. After all, you saw it from the town below, our town could not afford to pay any more."

"Actually, we ran into a couple of them along the way," Naruto rubbed the back of his head.

"You did?!" Rose asked raising his voice in surprise. "I don't believe it! You managed to push them back and without a scratch on you, no less."

"Well, as you can see, we are capable wizards after all," Lucy proudly declared.

"You are S-class, then I presume?" Rose asked.

"What's S-class?" Naruto asked scratching his cheek.

"You don't know what an S-class wizard is?" He asked.

Lucy sighed. "I keep forgetting that you are new here. I have just gotten used to you being here that I think that you were born here."

"Okay here goes," Lucy began. "S-class wizards are the elites of the guild. Only the guild master is able to determine who he promotes. The guild master is also the one who decides how he or she would test the abilities of the wizards in the guild. These wizar."

"Ohhhh," Naruto said having a look like he discovered the meaning of life.

He turned to the mayor and said, "Then no, we aren't S-class. Actually, we are just new to the guild."

The mayor dropped his head in despair at hearing what Naruto said. "I guess we are to blame for this. We lied when sending out the requests."

Then his face lit up, "But you said you were capable wizards, correct?"

Naruto nodded. "Yes, of course!"

"Then, please be our guests for the duration of your stay here. The construction will resume tomorrow now that we have you guarding us," Mayor said then he bowed his head in gratitude. "And thank you so much for coming…"

"It's no problem," Naruto said. "As I told Tazuna before, we promise to guard your builders to the best of our ability. That will be the first step in returning your town to its former glory."

LATER

After discussing the quest some more, Mayor Rose asked his secretary to show the wizards their lodging for the duration of their stay. They exited the office and returned to the front desk.

"One question, if you don't mind me asking," Lucy asked.

"Fire away," Anna said.

"If you're the mayor's secretary, why are you working so far from him? Shouldn't your desk be close to his office?"

"Yes, supposedly," Anna answered. "But, as you can see, we had to lay off most of the workers and they shoved the jobs to me."

"Oh, I see…" Lucy said.

"Now, Mayor Rose said I should take you to your rooms." Anna said.

"Change of plans," Naruto said.

"What are you talking about?" Lucy asked.

"What do you think about staying at a Five-Star Mountain Resort for a couple of weeks?" Naruto asked.

THE FIVE STAR MOUNTAIN RESORT

Everyone who entered the Resort was awestruck by what they have seen inside, even those who lived in this town. Despite living here for years now, they had to admit that they haven't set foot in the Hotel yet. For one thing, there were too many people checking in especially during peak seasons. And the second reason, which Naruto believed was the main reason, was that they really couldn't afford to book a room here. So, they were really thankful when Naruto asked them if they wanted to join them in the Hotel.

Who are they you asked? Well, before they made their way to the Hotel, Tazuna invited them to his humble home for a bite to eat. He told them that it was the least he could do for escorting him back to the town.

It was there that Naruto met Tazuna's family.

First was her daughter. She was a young woman with blue hair. She was wearing a simple attire consisting of a short-sleeved pink shirt with red bands on the end of the sleeves and a red collar paired with a blue skirt. He introduced her as Moriko. She managed one of the small businesses, a diner, in the town that belonged to their family. Unfortunately, it had to close down due to the recent events

Next was his son in law. He was a young man with short spiky black hair. He had a small white rope tied around on the right side of his head and a small x-shaped scar on his chin. He wore a black shirt that had a white outline paired with a white pair of pants. He called him Kaiza. Tazuna told them that he worked as a sailor transporting the tourists from the mainland to their small island.

Lastly, there was his grandson. He had spiky black hair and dark-colored eyes. He was wearing a green jumpsuit and a simple pair of sandals. They introduced him as Noah. He basically just helped his mother around the house and around the business.

It was nice meeting Tazuna's family. Kaiza even bragged to the guests that his wife was an excellent cook. And true to his word, Naruto and Lucy loved the food she prepared. Naruto even described it as one of the best foods he had so far. (But, between you and me, I think he just said that in the spur of the moment. I think we shouldn't mention that in front of a white haired she-demon.) Moriko just meekly thanked him for the compliment.

As they ate, Naruto explained his idea of going around town buying their stuff and sampling the local delicacies as a way to jumpstart the town's economy. He even invited everyone to go with him to check in at the hotel. There was much protests from the family saying that it was okay and it was fine if Naruto didn't bring them along, but the blonde was persistent in inviting them over.

So, that brings us to the present.

Lucy looked around with stars in her eyes. She had to admit that, even though she came from a luxurious life, she hadn't really gotten the chance to come to places like this. After all, her father was so busy with his work that he never showed time for her. But looking at the place now, she didn't know how to describe it.

The building itself was a large, 6-story structure nestled on the side of the forest. Everyone who saw the place couldn't help but be fascinated by the architecture which blends perfectly with the surrounding trees. It gave you the ambiance of a log cabin that was build deep in the forest.

Once you enter, you will notice a huge chandelier hanging up high that was made up of glowing orbs that seemed to be little embers that continually burned. She figured that it was powered by magic since she saw that it wasn't connected to a power source.

The walls, ceiling, floor and even the front desk was made of polished wood that shined from the light reflecting over it. The middle of the room was a large sculpture that decorated the place. It was surrounded by couches that were covered with velvet cushions.

The reception area was over at the edge of the room they were in. It was a long rectangular counter that was made from the same material as the walls and floor. There wasn't much papers on the counter since there weren't any customers in a long time, but couple of ladies still manned the front desk just in case someone arrives.

On one side of the room, instead of a wall, the room extended to a dining area. From there, they could see a bunch of round tables covered in white linen. There was a small pot with bouquets of flowers surround by plates that were flipped upside down and topped with a napkin folded into a bishop's hat.

Over in the distance, they could see that the dining area let outside to a garden with the same tables as the one's inside. They could also see a raised platform with a grand piano over it, suggesting that the place normally had a singer serenade the diners as they ate.

"Good morning!" The receptionist greeted. "Thank you for coming! How may I help you today?"

"I'd like to book some rooms please," Naruto said.

"I'd be happy to help you with that!" The receptionist said enthusiastically. "Right this way please."

"Be right back," Naruto told Lucy.

"We'll wait for you here," Lucy said sitting down on the comfy couch.

"It was nice of Naruto to invite us to come to the Hotel," Moriko said.

"Yes, he seems to be well off considering he is a guild wizard," Kaiza said.

"Well, to tell you the truth, he and I are newbies in the guild," Lucy explained.

The couple's mouths hung open at what the blonde said. "B-but how can he—"

"Honestly, I don't know," Lucy said as she watched the blonde talk to the receptionist with the latter seemingly flirting with the clueless blonde. "We don't know anything about his life before he joined the guild."

'I am doing the same as well,' She thought to herself after her statement. 'I just hope father wouldn't do anything rash.'

"We can ask Naruto that later. Either way, at least we get to try this place out!" Tazuna added his.

"It's hard to argue with that logic!" Kaiza agreed with him.

Not long after, Naruto walked up to them. When he was in front of them, he dangled two keys in his hands. "I got our rooms!"

"So, what did you get us?" Kaiza asked.

"We'll be fine if you got a family room for our whole family," Moriko said.

"Yeah, that's what I did," Naruto said. "But they said their family is so big that it could fit ten people."

"That will be fine, Naruto," Moriko said. "Listen, Naruto…I can't thank you enough for doing this. Noah here hasn't had the luxury of doing these kinds of things, especially since the tourists stopped coming."

"Don't mention it," Naruto smiled.

"But why are there only two sets of keys?" Lucy asked.

"Yeah, about that," Naruto rubbed the back of his head. "They closed down some parts of the hotel since they are really, really short on staff. Unfortunately for us, the wing that they closed was where the single rooms were. The only rooms available were the twin rooms and family rooms."

'At least we don't have to share the same bed…' Lucy thought. 'I don't think I'm ready for that yet…'

"I-I guess that's fine," she then said. "We live in the same house already…what's the problem with sharing the same room…"

And so, the hotel's guests were ushered to their rooms by the bell hop. Luckily for him, the guests didn't have that much bags to carry. He insisted that he should carry Naruto and Lucy's bags but the two insisted the opposite saying that it was fine since they only brought one bag each.

They first dropped by Tazuna and his family in their room. A collective 'woah' was heard from everybody who saw the room. If they were impressed by the exterior of the hotel and the lobby, they loved the room. It was far better than anything they have experienced in their lives.

They left the family to enjoy their room and moved on to the next room.

They expected to be wowed by their own room, and they weren't let down. It was a spacious room with two single beds separated by a night stand in the middle. There was a button on the wall that dimmed or brightened the lights at the guests' preference. The floor was carpeted muffling their feet as they walked. There was a balcony that led outside with a couch so you could lounge around and relax as you enjoyed the food as. The beds were decorated with towels that were shaped into a swan and rose petals that littered around giving Lucy the wrong idea. Their bathroom was large, containing a tub that was able to house two people easily. There was a shower mounted on the wall giving you the option of a quick shower if you didn't want to soak.

"This is perfect," Naruto said.

"I'm glad you like the room, sir," The bell hop said. "I'll just remind you of the hot springs of the hotel."

"Hot springs?" Naruto asked. "This hotel has everything!"

"That's why we were number 1, sir!" The bell hop explained. "We have a mixed bath if you're interested."

"D-did you say m-mixed bath?" Lucy stuttered at his statement unconsciously covering her feminine bits despite being clothed.

"Yes ma'am!" The bell hop nodded. "We do have our rules and regulations though, to prevent the naughty things to happen."

"Hey, that's cool. Wanna try it?" Naruto asked his partner not realizing what that was implying.

"A-are you serious?" Lucy turned away further hiding herself.

"What's the problem?" Naruto asked still clueless.

"You don't have to be fully naked there," The bell hop suggested giving Naruto a look of realization.

"I-I didn't mean it like th-that! I-I just wanted to hang out with Tazuna's family and talk some more!" Naruto explained with a blush on his face and his hands waving in front of him to illustrate his point.

"We do still have our segregated baths if you're not comfortable," The bell hop suggested.

"You should have said that earlier!" Lucy snapped.

"S-sorry!" He cowered at the guest's irate demeanor.

"We'll be alright, sir," Naruto said. "Thank you for showing us our room."

"Th-thank you, sir! I'll be leaving now!" The bellhop quickly said as he ran away not bothering to ask for a tip anymore.

He stopped midway and returned to get one final word in. "Enjoy your stay here, sir, ma'am," He said with a wink.

"We are not—"

Naruto turned to Lucy. "Relax, Lucy!"

The busty blonde still looked at him with an incredulous look. "How can I relax with what he's saying?!"

"To be fair, he was just giving a suggestion," Naruto suggested.

"I-I guess you're right," Lucy briefly considered it. "I guess I was just flustered that's why I snapped."

"Yes, that's right!" Naruto said with a grin. "Besides, it's going to be a loooong two weeks."

A/N: Hey guys! Just a filler chapter for now. The original just skimmed through Naruto and Sasuke's training in the Land of Waves, then suddenly Zabuza and Kakashi were already on their feet ready to kill each other again. So, I added these stuffs here to flesh out the town a bit. Damn I hate describing stuff myself.

Well hope you enjoyed and have at least a rough idea of what the Hotel looks like. I just based it off of one of the Hotels from where I'm from.

Thanks for reading. Next chapter, I'll probably get on with the action again and maybe the arc would end? Not sure.

TitanT456: In hindsight, I see that now. I'll have to make them stand a chance against a literal god. Thank you for that. Though, your idea would make for a nice story in the future. Right now, I am not in the position to be writing more than two stories at a time. For now, i'll work with what i got.

Mr. Haze: Gotcha. Thanks for the suggestions. Those would be enough for now.

redlox2: Fake dragon? Is that the one where Grey seemingly left the guild to join that wacko? That's a filler right?