"I can't believe it's really you..." Jeanne muttered as they headed back towards Chaldea. Luckily, the snowstorm had cleared up and most of the snow had gone down. "It feels like such a long time."
"It has been a long time, Jeanne." Naruto chuckled. "I've spent several years away from earth ever since the Grail war ended. I've practically aged 15 years since I last met you."
Jeanne smiled, glad that this was still the same Naruto she grew to adore in the war. "The years have certainly been kind on you. But I have to ask, what has happened to the grail?"
"It blew up." Naruto said simply, scratching his neck. "The cup was volatile after I blew a hole in it, and it immediately exploded the second I touched down in my dimension and flooded it with black goop."
"All the worlds evil?"
"The very same. I had to close down that dimension and seal off any way to get there. It was one of my favorites too." Naruto muttered in disappointment before his face brightened. "Anyway, let's not dwell on the past. How have you been?"
Jeanne beamed with happiness and the two of them began conversing like old friends. As they did so, the rest of the group couldn't help but eye the two of them interact. More specifically, a certain redhead.
"I've never seen this side of her before. She's usually so composed and lady-like, now she's like a normal teenager." Gabby said in amazement, eying the two of them with interest.
"Naruto has that kind of effect on people, especially with young women." Kakashi said with an amused smile.
Mordred snorted. "You should have seen the two during the holy grail war. They were practically an object together." She scratched her head. "Loathe as I am to admit it, he is someone we should not take lightly. We're lucky that he's on our side."
"Now that's surprising coming from you." Robin said with a grin. "The son of king Arthur admitting that someone else is stronger? That's a sight you don't see everyday."
"Shut it Robin, before I introduce your face to my sword." Mordred growled, giving the Archer a frosty glare.
"You'd have to catch me first and we both know you're pretty terrible at that." Robin replied smugly, fueling the fire between them.
"Why you little..."
"Are they always like this?" Kakashi asked as he watched the two servants begin getting into an extremely heated conversation. He didn't even bother to pay too much attention to what they were saying, but they were certainly not using any kind words.
"Hehe... Yes, actually." Gabby giggled. "Robin and Mordred could never get along with each other considering their backgrounds. They don't usually talk with each other unless they're placed on missions together, and even then they try to stay as far away from each other as possible."
"Then why place them together?" Kakashi asked curiously.
"Because they work well in the middle of battle. Socializing aside, their skills complement each other extremely well. Robin always needed some muscle to protect his backside, and Mordred needed someone with range to compensate for her weapon. It's a win-win for the both of them." Gabby said with a superior tone. "Really now, I'm one of the leaders of humanities last hopes. Are you doubting my leadership skills?"
"You're a little too young to be taking on a burden such as this." Kakashi replied honestly. "But I do think you're doing a fine job. I was younger than you when I began leading teams, you know?"
"So I've heard. Your legend isn't exactly small." Gabby said with a smile, proud of managing to get a small compliment from a natural born leader other than that huge oaf, Iskander. The king himself may have been one of humanities most greatest legends, but he was very easy to please if you pressed his buttons right. Artoria's compliments were much more satisfying, but she was sometimes too formal for her own good. As for Gilgamesh, he was an entirely separate matter.
"My legend is just like any other. I'm surprised it's even known in the first place." Kakashi shrugged. He had figured Tsunade's legacy or the 1st would have put him in the shadows. Guess history has a weird way of documenting people.
"You're the teacher of two gods and one of the most talented medical users in documented history. Anyone with a brain who has studied Asian culture has to have at least heard your name before." Gabby said with a childlike grin on her face.
"Mmm... " Kakashi hummed with a small eye-smile, amused at the young master's expression. She reminded him a bit like Kushina if she were younger. A snarky personality that alternates with a girly one is something that Kushina was known for.
"Think she's a fangirl? The legend of the copy ninja is apparently very well known here."
"Fangirl? No. She's just very... curious." Kakashi thought.
The small group continued to trudge along, with Jeanne and Naruto happily chatting in the back while Robin and Mordred traded some not-so-kind words with each other. Finally managing to climb the last mountain, they were able to spot huge Chaldea facility below them which spanned across the mountain complex. Despite being called a facility, it looked like something more akin to a city instead with staff members and servants bustling beneath them.
Naruto whistled. "I detected the presence of a large city, but this wasn't what I had expected." He frowned a bit. "A large amount of servants too... what exactly is this place?
"Chaldea is strictly a magic facility that's cut off from the rest of the world. It took a lot of money and connections, but the original director was able to finish it before he died." Gabby explained.
"It's a facility designed to oversee and protect the world from threats humanity can't normally face on their own. And right now, we face a threat unlike anything Chaldea has ever encountered." Jeanne said with a grim face.
Naruto glanced at Kakashi, who simply shrugged. "Don't look at me. I told you I was just summoned yesterday alongside Jiraiya. I haven't been given any details on the primary threat."
"Then it's time we fix that. With a god on our side, our job will be much easier from here on out." Gabby said as she eyed the two remaining servants. "Robin, Mordred, why don't you two head on down first? Tell the doctor we have someone he should see."
"You heard him, courier. Go and get the egghead." Mordred said smugly.
Robin just grumbled under his breath as he began descending the mountain with Mordred right behind him. Watching them go, Gabby sighed as she tightened her scarf.
"Come on. Let-"
"NARUTO!"
The four of them looked up in surprise as a shape smashed into the ground next to them with an explosion of dust and white snow. Seconds later, Naruto's eyes widened when a very old, but familiar, form stood up from the cloud with a swish of white hair and a ridiculous pose.
"The toad sage of Mt. Myoboku has returned! Come with me, Naruto, you have some people to meet!"
"Jiraiya, you son of a bitch. How have you been? It's been a while." Naruto asked with a small smile as he walked through the halls of Chaldea with Jiraiya joining in to talk to his godson.
"Oho? You've expanded your vocabulary since we've last met. If you weren't a god, I would have put you in your place." Jiraiya chuckled. "I never would have thought that a gaki like you would have gotten this powerful. Though, I guess it's because of my incredible teaching skills."
"You didn't even teach me anything other than the rasengan. The rest I head to learn by myself." Naruto thought with a deadpan look. Jiraiya may have been the closest thing he had to an actual relative, but he was certainly very odd and quirky. It doesn't help that the old sage had absolutely zero abilities in taking care of children. He was going to bring up the fact that he hadn't even payed attention to him until he had been in his young teens, but it quickly died in his throat when Gabby spoke up.
"We're here." Gabby announced as they approached another steel door. Apparently those were very common in the new world. "You guys don't need to be so formal. The doc isn't exactly someone you would have thought to have a medical degree."
"Doctor? You have a doctor in charge?" Naruto blinked in surprise.
"What? Something wrong with that?" Gabby asked with a confused look.
"No... It just seems odd that a doctor would be put in charge of a facility like this. As far as the ladder goes, doctors aren't exactly close to the top in terms of leadership."
"True, but wasn't the Fifth Hokage a doctor?"
"Combat medic." Kakashi corrected.
"Same thing." Gabby said with a roll of the eyes. "She did fine, didn't she?"
"Well..." Naruto trailed off, glancing at the two other Shinobi.
"She had... problems." Kakashi muttered.
"Gambling, drinking, anger issues..." Jiraiya began counting.
"Money problems, politics, old age, the list goes on and on." Naruto shrugged.
Gabby gave them an incredulous look before sighing. "Well, the doctor is the best choice we have at a leader as of now. We used to have the daughter of the old directer here to give us orders, but she died in an... accident." She scratched her head. "The doctor was the only one left at the time to inherit the spot since everyone else above him had died in the accident. He's not the best leader, but he's better than nothing at all."
"Accident?" Kakashi intoned curiously.
"A saboteur from the inside blew up the base during the meeting. Practically everyone was killed except for me, Gudao, the doc, and the servants who were summoned at the time. Personally, I was a little bit late to the party so just ask the doctor for the full details." Taking out a small keycard and swiping it in a nearby port, the iron doors slid open.
"After you." Gabby said with a grin. Heading inside, the group found themselves standing in front of a large blue sphere that hovered in the middle of the large room. The platform they stood on hovered over a pool of blue water which covered the ground below them with the occasional lily pad floating around. Blue outlines raced around the room, converging on the large device in the middle of the room.
In the middle of the room, a lone person had his back turned to them as he stood by a terminal while typing at speeds that could make a speedster seem tame in comparison. Having heard the door open behind him, the man spoke without looking around.
"Gudao? Is that you? Good timing. I am almost finished upgrading the leyshifter with those parts you got me, but it seems like I'm going to need a few more. Could you go get me a few more parts along with a few sticks of dango from the cafeteria? Thanks." The man said, too engrossed in his work to pay attention to what was going on around him. Typical egghead scientists.
"Actually, Doctor, it's Gabby."
The doctor's frantic typing immediately halted and he turned around with a surprised look on his face. He was quite young looking, probably into his late twenties or early thirties. He wore a white and green lab coat over his normal Chaldea uniform. Hanging around his neck was a name tag with the initials 'Dr. Roman' written on it. Every other space had numbers and words that the servants couldn't make out.
"You're back? Already? I thought you would have at least sent me a message first." The doctor said before he eyed Naruto curiously. "And whose he? I wasn't informed of another servant summoning."
"I sent Mordred and Robin to inform you. Obviously, they were sidetracked." Gabby said with a sigh before she gestured to Naruto. "As for him, he was the source of the power spike we detected earlier."
"Really? Incredible! But why did you bring him back here?" Roman asked with a frown, obviously not fully trusting Naruto's unknown presence.
"Because it's better than him rampaging around attacking everything he sees." Gabby said, shooting him an accusing glance.
"Ehehe... Sorry." Naruto apologized with a sheepish smile while Roman stared at him curiously.
"So... what exactly are you? I'm detecting the energy qualities of a servant, but you're not made out of prana and certainly don't possess a spiritual core. In fact, I'm getting readings similar to that of a grand." Roman narrowed his eyes. "What are you? One of the 27 dead apostles?"
Naruto blinked in surprise before crossing his arms with a pouty look. "Honestly, do I look like a vampire to you? I admit, I can get really careless in a fight, but I'm not bloodthirsty."
"He's my student, Doctor Roman. He fell out of a portal he tore when he traced my signature back to here." Kakashi said, causing Roman's eyes to widen in surprise before a grin split his face.
"Ha! Nice prank Kakashi, but we both know that's impossible. The gods don't exactly walk amongst this part of the world anymore. Hell, the only reason we managed to summon Artemis was because we tried to pull her hubby. Having another god walk among us would be a one in a trillion chance!"
"Roman, this isn't a prank. This actually is my student." Kakashi deadpanned.
"He's also my student, Kakashi." Jiraiya said with a smirk.
"Yes, yes, Jiraiya. I know." Kakashi sighed before turning to Naruto. "Naruto, do something cool."
"With pleasure!" Naruto grinned as he snapped his finger. Seconds later, the entire room exploded into smoke as hundreds of shadow clones popped into existence. When the smoke died down, the entire room was full of shadow clones standing on every part of the room. On the water, the walls, and the ceiling. Not a single part of the room wasn't covered in orange.
"No way..." Roman muttered in awe as he looked around the room. "This is... physical cloning?"
"As close as it can possibly be. These clones are physical, a perfect replica of me in physical appearance. Strength wise, I'd say they're at least at C-ranked strength with D-ranked endurance. They're only used for distractions honestly." Naruto said as he clapped his hands and dispelled the clones. "I could show you a bunch of other abilities, but they would be too dangerous to unleash with a machine like that."
"I-incredible... Not even the Casters have managed to create a solid copy of themselves without the use of earthly materials! The only one who has been able to do so is Minamoto, but even that's limited to only 4 copies at a single time." Roman muttered as he stared at Naruto in awe. "A real god... Not like a small manifestation like Artemis."
"I'm the real deal. The original one. Unlike the other gods, I prefer to stay and watch over the earth." Naruto said as he cracked his knuckles. "And from what I've been told, this earth is in danger once more. I want details on what is going on."
"Details?" Roman muttered before he slapped himself straightened up. "Right, details. Have you seen the outside world?"
"No. I dropped in here directly from my dimension. There wasn't any time for me to stop and take in the sights."
"Well you're missing out." Roman said as he stepped over to another terminal and typed in a command. Seconds later, a hologram showing the earth appeared above them. Except this wasn't the same blue and green earth that Naruto was familiar with. Instead, it was completely red.
"What in Kami's name happened?" Jiraiya asked as he observed the hologram.
"This is the exact state of earth right now in present time." Roman said with a grim look. "As you can see, the entirety of the surface have been scorched by a massive prana blast, causing the extinction of the human race as the earth was cooked from the outside in." Pressing a button, a list showed up next to the scorched earth.
"Fuyuki, Orleans, Septem... Holy Grail?" Kakashi muttered, reading off of the list.
"The holy grail?" Naruto frowned.
"Not just one. Multiple Holy Grails have been scattered across history as we know it. With their placement, history has begun to erratically shift and displace as the Holy Grail spawned servants into the past. It's messing up history so thoroughly that it's creating a paradox time bomb that'll explode if left alone."
"And that's where we come in." Gabby chimed in. "Chaldea has advanced far enough in magecraft and technology to allow us to monitor both the past and future for the safety of humanity."
"Seeing the future?" Jiraiya frowned. "That's dangerous stuff. Humanity shouldn't have the ability to do something like that."
"It's not like that." Gabby reaffirmed. "The device doesn't exactly tell us exact details of what is going to happen, but it warns us of the impending doom by a use of magecraft and science. It's hard to explain since the people who have made it are now dead, but that's the general gist of it."
"That's cool and all, but what does observing the future fix anything?" Kakashi asked.
"Like I said, that's just one of its functions. It also serves as a telescope into the past. It detects any possible anomaly that shows up and informs us of it, allowing us to go back in time and fix it."
Naruto frowned. "Go... back in time?"
"Yeah, That's what Chaldea is for. We have a device called 'The Grand Order' which allows us to travel into the past to correct these anomalies. In the last few singularities, most of the problems have been solved once we collected the grail. When we travel back here, the singularities correct themselves and the complete destruction of humanity is avoided."
"More often than not, these anomalies usually involve a smackdown with a super-powered demon or a very powerful servant. We came quite close a few times, but we've always managed to pull through." Dr roman said with a grin.
"Yeah, but now that we have a literal god on our side, the new singularity will be a breeze." Gabby smiled, but it quickly turned curious with Naruto sighed.
"Sorry, but I don't think sending me in would be a great idea. It's too dangerous." Naruto said.
"What? Why not?" Gabby asked with a frown. "What's going to stop you? It's not like anyone can match the power of a god."
"You said singularities are fragile timelines, right?" Naruto asked, getting nods from the two employees. "Then that means too much power in a single timeline could cause it to pretty much implode it in on itself. The presence of a foreign god from a different time might just be enough for the timeline to break from the pressure."
"Could that be possible, doctor?" Jiraiya asked, watching Roman put his hand on his chin in thought.
"It could certainly be possible. In Okeanos, a similar situation nearly happened when a servant tried to sacrifice a goddess to the Ark in an attempt to crash the entire singularity."
"Wait... like the Ark of God?" Kakashi asked with wide eyes.
"The very same. You'd be surprised how many crazing situations happen in these singularities." Gabby shrugged. "Well, if Naruto can't help us then we're gonna have to keep going with our regular plan."
"Woah, woah, I never said I wouldn't be able to help you. I CAN go into the singularities with you, but that's only as a last resort that should be used when you're close to finishing the singularity. On the off times, I can communicate with you while you're on the field."
"So... basically nothing." Gabby summed up. Naruto's shoulder slumped and a miniature raincloud formed above his head complete with miniature blue raindrops.
"...Yeah."
"Don't worry about it, Gaki. This way, you'll learn how to really lead a squad." Jiraiya said with an amused grin.
"I did become hokage, Jiraiya." Naruto grumbled.
"True, but I bet that you made Shikamaru your advisor so you wouldn't have to do all the thinking, right?" Jiraiya pressed on with his smile growing as Naruto deflated even more.
"He's right you know." Kakashi said with a small chuckle. "You've never been put in charge of your own squad before. This'll be some good experience for you."
"Whatever..." Naruto muttered before his expression turned serious. "We can discuss my involvement later. For now, I must know exactly who, or what, caused Earth's destruction."
"Well, that's an easy question to answer." Roman said as he pressed a few more buttons on his terminal. "The source of Earth's destruction came from only one man, and his power is above any class of servants we have seen yet."
Throwing a switch, a hologram appeared in the air. This time, it showed a man in sinister looking clothing sitting atop a floating chair that resembled a throne. On each of his fingers were several golden rings except for one, which was silver. Despite being a hologram, everyone in the room could just feel how dangerous the man was just by looking at him.
"This, is Solomon: King of Magic, and the sole holder of the Grand Caster Class."
Elsewhere in the world, in a place between both time and space, between life and death, a being opened its eyes as a sudden foreign feeling invaded his mind. Narrowing its eyes, the being stared into the darkness unflinchingly in deep thought.
"Power..." He muttered. "A gods power... but where?" He scowled as he closed his eyes. "I can't find it... Something is... blocking me." He gripped his armrest tightly and growled in anger. When it seemed like he was going to tear the side of his chair apart, his entire personality switch. His grip softened, and the angry scowl disappeared from his face, replaced by what seemed to be a calm and smiling facade.
"It matters not. I'm too far ahead to be stopped now." He spun in his chair and laughed. "It doesn't matter what kind of help Chaldea get. The grails have already been planted for long enough. They are already too late! They've always been... too late. They can't save anything. Humanity could never save anything."
He stooped spinning in his chair and paused in thought.
"Except... For that one."
In front of him, the void rearranged itself to show an image of a beautiful castle, resting atop a field with a bright light coming from it. To a normal person, it would look like something comparable to that of a utopia. It was just so bright and warm, and the regal stone walls that surrounded the city made it look safe.
But Solomon knew better.
And it irked him a little.
"This one... is an anomaly. I did not expect such results from one I didn't indirectly worked on. It seems that British girl's absolute loyalty for her kingdom has flipped the table. Amazing how a little girl's will to protect her home can bring the monster right out of her."
Solomon hummed and rapped his knuckles against his armrest. "It matters not. Let them save or fail to save that timeline. They'll come for the last grail soon enough. And when they do..."
Loud roars and screeches filled the dimension as monstrous shapes with thousands of beady eyes came into view. They were each impossibly wide, and all impossibly tall. They reached so high that their tops weren't even visible anymore.
"They will see exactly just why I am sole holder of the Grand Caster class."
"Solomon." Naruto repeated, staring at the screen. "King of Israel? One of the most recognizable figures in the Bible? Got his wisdom directly from God himself?"
"The very same, though he seems way too unhinged to be a wise king of Israel." Gabby muttered with a grave look. "He's the first of his kind that we have seen. He's not a regular servant, but a Grand Servant."
"Grand servant?" Jiraiya questioned. "Pray tell, what would that be?"
"It's a class that is far above the normal ones. Unlike the regular class system, which only allows a certain amount of power to be given to a heroic spirit, the Grand class gives far more power. On some extensive research, we managed to figure out that the Grand Servants are servants summoned by the World itself to combat literal world ending threats. As such, the power they are granted could end the world several times over by themselves if they wanted to." Roman said with a serious look.
"How ironic for the world to be ended by one of its protectors." Kakashi said, narrowing his eyes. "So this Solomon person is one of those Grand Servants, right?"
"Correct, though you wouldn't have thought of him to be a servant if you stood face to face with him." Gabby shivered, remembering her past encounter with the man. "Even the servants who fought against him couldn't even point their weapons at him before they were destroyed in extreme brutality. It was almost like God was the one dishing out destruction."
"Is that so? Then it seems a meeting should be arranged." Naruto growled.
"Not possible. I haven't been able to sense him, not even using the high tech magical equipment has been able to pinpoint his direct location. Our only hope of getting him to pop up is for us to collect enough grails for him to consider us as a threat. Only then will he actually take us seriously." Roman said as he typed on the terminal to zoom in on Solomon's hands. "What do you notice?"
"His rings." Jiraiya immediately noted. "Nine of them are gold, one of them is silver."
"Indeed. In the Bible, it was told that Solomon was given 10 rings from God himself as proof of his kingship and wisdom. As the king of magic, those rings are able to shut down magecraft of any kind and place it under his control. Not only that, but it also allows him to shut off magic entirely for the rest of us."
"As king of Magic, it should only be natural that he would possess something like that." Kakashi said, already documenting this information for later use. It was good to always take notes. Never known when you would have to fight dirty to win.
"There is also a few other threats we have documented." Roman said, replacing the hologram with another one. This time, it showed a long beady creature with numerous eyes. "These are his personal lapdogs, the Ars Goetia demons. They are 72 demon pillars that have been his main method of attack against us. Each of them requires at least several servants to take down, but alongside powerful offensive abilities, they have another use as well."
Another hologram appeared, but this time it was that of a large bright circle over the earth. "This, is Solomon's most powerful noble phantasm. Using it once, it was able to completely burn down all life on earth in multiple timelines. To do so, however, he specifically stated that all demons were required in different times to hold the earth down and allow him to fire his weapon. As long as one demon isn't alive, we can negate this ability completely."
"An orbital death ray? It's amazing what magic can do in the hands of others." Naruto muttered.
"As good as this information is, we need more than just his abilities. We need to know how he acts, how he thinks." Jiraiya said as he turned to Gabby. "This may be a shot in the dark, but does Chaldea have a servant who may have known King Solomon? An enemy or friend perhaps?"
"I can do you one better." Gabby said with a smirk. "I can get you his father, King David. He's a very passive Archer class servant, but I'm sure he'll be happy to talk to you about his son."
"Then it's settled." Naruto said, rolling his shoulders with a crack. "Let's see what the dad exactly thinks of his son."
"Maybe his dad didn't pay child support and made him angry."
"Be quiet Obito, Naruto is doing a thing right now."