Disclaimer - I do not own Naruto or Fairy Tail
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By Any Means
Interlude – The Past Defines Ep 1
Opening - Now or Never by Nano
0o0o0 13 Years Ago - Magnolia, Fairy Tail Guild Master Office 0o0o0
Makarov Dreyer could only stare at the two before him and sigh.
The two were covered in blood, dirt, and sweat. Their clothing could be described as nothing more than rags at this point, holding together just enough.
The eldest of the two had long stocked hair, almost a pure silver that made the young man look older than he actually was. A blue clothed mask covered the bridge of his nose and a majority of his face. From his body-language he was tense, ready to defend his young charge with his life if need be. Not that Makarov could blame him.
It was a huge risk coming here that could put not just the two unexpected guests, but the entirety of Fairy Tail in danger.
Makarov shifted his eyes toward the boy sitting stalk still staring off into space. Tear stains had cut a path through the dirt that had stuck to his face. Blood had caked on to several areas of his body and clothes, so much so that it could be made out in his ebony black hair that resembled the image of a bird of prey. What unnerved Makarov the most though, was the cold dead eyes resting in the boys eye-sockets.
Sighing again, Makarov addressed the two. "You know I should call for the Rune-Knights don't you?"
The silver-haired man nodded his head.
"Why come here? They're going to be looking for anyone out of place. And two Elemental mages severely injured protecting two young Elementals joining my guild now of all times is most certainly out of place. Coming here isn't just a risk to yourselves but to all of Fairy Tail. It wouldn't be hard for the Wizard Council to label my guild as traitors to not just the country but all of Earthland."
The silver-haired man remained silent. He made not a peep as he pulled his pack up from the ground next to his chair and reached in, pulling out several folders before handing them over to the aging guild master.
"What are these?" Makarov asked as he accepted them and began to read.
"Every document needed to make the four of us in place here at Magnolia. Birth certificates, photos of the four of us living here, guild application forms, residence history, etc. And before you ask, we had every form and document needed to seamlessly slip into any town and any country unnoticed. These were all prepped ever since our formation nearly 200 years ago. It's always just a matter of fill-in-the-blank."
"I… see. As legitimate as all of these documents and even the photographs are, I still can't explain how four elementals just appeared at my guild after what happened a few days ago. And you still haven't answered my question. Why here?"
The silver-haired mage paused momentarily as he thought up his answer. Finally deciding how to answer the old man he took a deep breath and let it out slowly.
"Because you do not look down on Elementals. Instead of seeing heritage and place of origin you see the individual and help them grow. After… everything, this was the only place I could think of coming too. Were it just myself I would disappear and never be seen again, but that's not the situation. I could take them and train them in a mission of vengeance, train them as all those who came before were trained. To be a tool to be used until broken, to toss aside emotion and do what must be done, but… I wasn't trained like that. Unlike most of my comrades I was trained to value my bonds. I was taught that the bonds I make in this life make me stronger than to just cut it all away. In this world those who break the rules are scum. But those who abandon their friends, are worse than scum."
"Master, those who break the rules are scum. But those who abandon their friends… they're worse than scum. Before Fairy Tail, I could never imagine breaking the rules. It was beaten into me that I must follow them to the letter. But being here, going through everything I have with everyone... I'm sorry, but this will be the last time you get to scold me. I love her, Master, and its my fault her life is in jeopardy. I won't abandon her, and I sure as hell will not show them mercy, even if it means becoming a murderer."
"Minato." Makarov's eyes widened as the last words spoken by the prodigal mage to him came rushing back as he could almost see the same aura of conviction flowing off the young man before him.
"Namikaze Minato was my sensei. He taught me and my comrades all that he learned during his time here. I came here, not looking for a place to hide, but for a place to begin anew. Sasuke and Tenten have yet to know the horrors planned for them to carry out. They haven't stained their souls with the blood of the corrupt or innocent. They deserve the life she and I were denied. If the Rune-Knights do come I know she and I will take them on and give our lives to ensure those two continue on."
Makarov could tell he wouldn't be able to deny the desperate man before him. The last few months had been an intense cold war between the dark guild known as Shadow Heart and the Kingdoms of Earthland and the Wizard Council. For the last 200 years Shadow Heart has operated in the shadows delivering justice upon the wicked, holding special contracts and pardons with each Kingdom to help maintain the peace. Shadow Heart would bear the title of dark guild and operate unofficially so long as the offered protection to any country they had set up shop in. Fiore was the first country to make such a deal with the group of assassins and thieves employing the devastating magic known as "jutsu" for the first time in Earthland. Thus Shadow Heart's HQ has always resided in Fiore, hidden away.
As they carried out political assassinations and stealing sensitive information other countries sought them out and soon within just two decades of operations Shadow Heart was the first successful use of a guild of magic users. For eight more decades Shadow Heart remained the only organized guild of mages until a small guild formed known as Fairy Tail. While they didn't maintain the same respect nor fear that Shadow Heart held, they did offer something that Shadow Heart could never dream of. Stability.
As more and more mages saw the strength of bonds and formed more and more guilds, Shadow Heart continued on its path of being a war deterrent. Giving only fear and chaos to those that wished to spark the flames of war. It wasn't long before the Wizard Council rose in the grand city known as Era and rule and order had finally formed for the magic world. Magic could now be sold and bought safely, with the banning of dark and dangerous magic outlawed.
And soon Shadow Heart fell into obscurity. The world knew a peace that it had never known before. For the last sixty years only rumor and legend remained of the shadow warriors. Until recently when they surfaced once more. Instead of falling off and dwindling into almost non-existent numbers, Shadow Heart had only grown into a force that could conquer any country they wished.
It started with the assassination of Bellum's youngest prince who had voiced the desire to invade the peninsula country of Sin and hold more territory between Per Grande and the rest of the continent. He had demonstrated for the King, his father, a successful invasion and conquer strategy before being executed publicly by a shadowy figure in a black cloak with red clouds. Every Rune-Knight that went to save the prince had been killed by a secondary assailant that had moved too fast for the eye to see. They had declared that should the King of Sin follow through with the invasion the entire royal bloodline would be eradicated by morning. They then cut the prince's head off and disappeared before a horrified crowd. Sin never followed through with the invasion.
From then on any political leader, no matter the county, who voiced a want for war was killed. And thus a summit was held with every King from the 14 different countries met. The treaty of Era was made, where each King swore that should any kingdom try to invade or invoke war they would stand alone against the other 13. The current royal bloodline would be removed and a new one would be instituted to help maintain the peace.
As for the unwanted peacekeepers a kill-on-sight order was given. Any man, woman, or child caught in the attire of the dark guild known as Shadow Heart would be given no quarter. They would be tried as traitors to all 14 Kingdoms and to be executed without trial. It was an order never followed.
That is until the assassination of Per Grande's next in-line. Prince Charles the Third, his wife, and two children had been ruthlessly murdered on their return from touring the 13 other kingdoms. A lone guard had survived the ordeal. When questioned who was responsible all he could utter was "red-clouds."
That had been 2 weeks ago.
Now every single remaining Shadow Heart member was being hunted to the last. One week ago the biggest co-op military strike force had been mustered of Earthlands finest Rune-Knights and Mages to hunt down every hide away Shadow Heart had created.
The assassins had all mustered in Fiore, gathering their armies strength to take on the joint Army. It had been a massacre. Within 5 days Shadow Heart had been declared destroyed and their forces scattered to the winds. Newspapers claimed a one hundred percent decimation and not a single survivor.
Makarov sighed as he made up his mind. "I will not say I can understand the mentality your ancestors had when they formed Shadow Heart. Nor will I say I understand what it is like for the world to turn on you. But I will say I am an old man, and it is my duty to help the young find the right path no matter how fallen they are. I will not expect you to curb your killing side as that is a part of you, something you cannot deny. But it is your decision on whether or not you act upon those urges. However, that does not apply for the two children you have brought with you. As you said they have not stained their souls with blood but they have seen it spilt. It will take time for them to come to terms with what they could have been and what they will become. If they so wish to learn their ancestry and continue on the tradition of death I will not turn them in. But they will not be welcome here. However should they choose another life, no matter what it is, I will stand by them and see to it they flourish in their endeavours. The same applies to you and her as well. Do you understand?"
"Yes."
"Then I welcome you to Fairy Tail, Hatake Kakashi."
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Ending - In My World - Rookiez Is Punk'd
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Just an interlude I decided to post while Lord of the Morning and I finish up our break from writing before getting back to it more than likely in January. I realized that the full background for Shadow Heart wasn't really divulged and that hadn't been sitting well with me. So I threw this together in about 3 hours running more or less off memory of Shadow Hearts history while also showing how Sasuke, Tenten and Kakashi joined the guild, more revealing Kakashi than showing. As for the other one, well you'll have to wait and see.
I am going to say this now. This isn't the full true history of Shadow Heart. Just an outsider's observation and knowledge of events as Makarov has nothing to do with Shadow Heart. Not only that the truth isn't always pretty and it's easier to live in a bubble of lies than to accept the harsh reality of the world. The truth is yet to be uncovered.
I know Lord is going to give me shit for writing this without him but whatever. He can get over it. Sorry for any grammar mistakes. Started this at midnight kind of on a whim and not to worried about my grammar as I am tired.
I'm probably going to write some more of these interludes as we wait for the finale of Arc 1 and move onto the next arc. Yes thats right. Arc 1 is almost done. Super excited and can't wait to show you guys all the twists and turns we've come up with.
Before I get going I'm going to share some stats with you guys. As of 12/5/2014 at 3:21 am there are:
459 Reviews
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I can't say how blown away I am by the response this story has gotten. I came up with this as just a casual side story and had no idea just how big it was going to get. I can't believe all the positive response I've gotten and just how great the Naruto x Fairy Tail community is.
When I first wrote this story 3 years ago I never imagined what a fascinating and amazing world I was creating by merging these two great epics. There is a lot to this story and it takes time to sit down and flesh things out. Even now Lord and I get together and make changes when one of us has thought up something or didn't like a plot. So I can't express my gratitude for the patience all of you have had with us. I can only ask a little more patience as Lord and I enjoy the holidays with our families and make it through our hectic work schedules.
As always,
See you guys in the next one.