Hello there guys! Thank you to all my reader and reviewers for their support. I just feel surprised that people found this story awesome and I am glad you did. Sorry for being late as my job is kicking me in the nuts while boredom and the lack of any muse is chocking me to death. Also I don't even have a girlfriend! Anyways now that I have cleared my demented soul, on with the story! Thanks to my awesome Beta, again for his great work!
Normal Speech: "Naruto"
Important or Emphasized Speech: "Naruto"
Thoughts: 'Then I will break that curse. If there is such thing as peace, I will find it. I won't give up!'
Spell Casting and Jutsu Names: "Katon Jutsu, Ice Make Shield!"
Demons and Dragons Speech: "Now then... Who do you want to kill...?"
Demons and Dragons Thinking: 'The question is what to do with him…'
Chapter 8: Countdown to War
Monday, 23rd August X784
Long before the sun rose for the new day, Naruto woke up. Slipping out of bed, his need to return to his prime fighting condition was driving him to starting off an intense training routine. Using Fūinjutsu: Shitai Kankan Fūin to add weight to his body, he started off with some light calisthenics, adding his total body-weight onto his limbs for a warm-up.
He'd seen what going soft had done to the old man. He didn't want that to happen to him.
Still, whoever had made that fūinjutsu had a really morbid taste in names…
Wrapping up his calisthenics within minutes, he began the workout program that he'd originally written up during the darkest days of the Fourth Great Ninja War.
He was so busy lifting a pair of enormous rocks above his head that he didn't notice that he was being watched. He used the rocks as weights for his training trying to push himself. He knew that he could easily destroy anyone using his Sage mode but he had to start from his out of practice body, then to his chakra training.
Dusting his hands off, he unsealed a pair of metallic rods and found himself smiling as he remembered his old friend Rock Lee. The bushy-browed martial arts fiend had first revealed them during that bodyguard mission to protect Hikaru, the Crown Prince of Moon Country, and his father King Michiru, from those three rogue ninja so long ago…
He pushed away the painful memories away as he activated the weight and resistance seals engraved on the metal rods. The two batons glowed light-blue as it absorbed his chakra, just before they suddenly slipped out of his hands and crashed to the ground. A loud bang kicked up a lot of flying dust, quickly clearing up to reveal a rather-large crater.
His three observers were stunned, both by the display and the sight of Naruto cursing as he struggled to lift the now super-heavy rods. His muscles bulged from the sheer strain of trying to move the rods into place, as sweat began beading upon his brow. Letting them fall upon the ground again, he wiped his brow and grimaced.
"Shit," he swore in irritation. "I'm so soft now that I can't even grab these things without using chakra. That bastard Sasuke, he'd be laughing his ass off if he saw me like this. To think, this is only the first level…" His rambling hadn't gone unnoticed. His three spies were collectively astonished by this declaration
Picking up the rods again, his muscles straining even while being infused with chakra, he twirled both of them in hand as though they were batons. Ten minutes into his training, his movements were smooth, graceful, and even faster than before. Picking up the pace, another chakra infusion only made the metallic rods even heavier. Conversely enough, he started to speed up his swings. The combat batons swept through the air, flying at such velocities that forceful blows left powerful blasts of wind in its wake.
As the vacuum blasts tore up chunks of ground and stripped bark from trees, Erza Scarlet was aghast at Naruto's display of sheer physical strength. 'He was stronger than this?' she realized belatedly. She remembered all the times that he'd cut her armor to pieces without hurting her. 'Has he been holding himself back all this time? How strong are you, Naruto?'
Soon enough, Naruto was so drenched in sweat that his white shirt was sticking to him and revealing the planes of his muscular torso. Stripping the soaked garment off without a second thought, a soft sigh from the bushes caught his attention. His Choubuku Rinnegan flared to life, and he quickly swept an assessing gaze across the clearing. Disguising his actions by splashing water on his face, he noticed three chakra signals where none should have been there with him.
Once he finished rehydrating himself, he turned directly to where his three stalkers had hidden themselves. Smiling a little too wildly, he asked, "See something you like, ladies?"
A loud squeal of fright prompted the bush to shake itself rather vigorously as his three tails fell out of the bush and ended up piled atop each other in a heap. For some inexplicable reason, Naruto wasn't surprised that Erza, Lucy, and Mirajane had followed him.
What did surprise was the fact that they were still in their pajamas. Erza was at the bottom of the pile, wearing a pink Heart Kreuz pajama set. Lucy, who was laying on Erza's back, wore a white tee with a sky-blue Heart Kreuz logo as well and a pair of pink sleeping shorts. Last but not least was Mirajane, who'd done a belly flop on Lucy and was wearing a pale camisole and a pair of red leggings.
Naruto chuckled as he strolled up to the heap of girls. Crouching down to meet their eyes, he quipped, "I'm not one to turn down a good show, but are you three just going to lie there all morning?"
The girls had the decency to blush somewhat at his teasing as they began to climb off of each other. While doing so, though, they took the time to stare at him, trying to memorize his appearance. Now that he was shirtless, though, their attention was drawn to a large scar on his chest.
The faded blemish was about the size of a fist, and had missed his heart by an inch. The only visible defect on his body had intrigued them, never mind how Naruto had managed to survive an injury that would've killed anyone else.
Once they were all standing, Erza's bluntness had her asking, "Naruto, how did you get such a ghastly-looking scar?"
The blond jinchūriki stared down at the fist-sized pockmark, running his fingers across the scar's discolored skin. "Oh, this old thing?" he asked. "It's little more than an old and unwanted memento of my past." He sounded nonchalant, but his eyes were hooded with old grievances and unwanted nostalgia.
Surprised by his abrupt change in demeanor, the girls decided against asking any more questions. Noticing the mood, he smiled broadly and boomed, "Hey, no need for all these long and gloomy faces! Go get ready for breakfast while I take a shower, eh?"
They nodded, walking back to their room. Naruto's perverted nature kicked in as he noticed an opening that he couldn't ignore. If Ero-sennin had seen him, the stupid old fart would be proud of him for what he'd do next. Smirking perversely, he reached out and quickly slapped a random buttock from all three of them in one fell swoop. Before the girls could even register his impulsive act of perversion, he disappeared before the red-faced girls could turn on him in anger.
A few minutes later, having finished his shower, Naruto quickly slipped on some clothes and headed down to the dining room. He was surprised to see Erza, Lucy and Mirajane glaring at him. Much to his amusement, though, their anger was offset by the prominent blush on each of their faces. He chuckled in spite of himself. "Beautiful girls shouldn't scowl," he chided them playfully.
"Bad wrinkles would ruin those lovely faces," he clarified at their puzzled expressions. The three girls looked away, blushing furiously at the honest compliment.
Gray was stunned. Erza and Mirajane both had a history of beating up or ignoring anyone who'd even try flirting with them.
Natsu was busy arguing with Happy over what breakfast was supposed to be, so he didn't notice his teammates' interactions.
Elfman was taken aback at his older sister's behavior. He'd never seen her act like this before. Oh, sure, she could flirt like nobody else could, but she wasn't interested in general.
Maya, who'd made pancakes with bacon and eggs on the side, was smirking at her young master's perverse and flirtatious behavior.
An otherwise unremarkable breakfast was over quickly. The seven of them left Naruto's estate together, talking about mundane stuff and laughing at various jokes. When they reached the guild, they were greeted by their master Makarov Dreyar. "So… how was the sleepover at Naruto's house?" he asked slyly, waggling his eyebrows.
"It was awesome, old man!" Natsu shouted. "Naruto-san had these gigantic fox golems protecting his home and they were really cool!"
"Aye! It was a gigantic fox, too!" Happy added.
"Really, now?" old man Makarov wondered.
As Natsu was ready to continue his tale, he was interrupted by one of the townsfolk running up to them. Said person actually had to stop, resting his hands on his thighs while trying to catch his breath.
"What's troubling you so much that you had to run all the way here?" the elderly master of Fairy Tail demanded.
"M- Magnolia Southgate Park!" the villager panted, guzzling a bottle of water that someone had handed to him. "Something's happened. You need to see this!"
Makarov could feel the hairs on the back of his neck rise in alarm. Turning back to his subordinates, he said, "Let's go," before breaking into a run. Even as his children followed behind him, it wasn't long before his age caught up to him. His legs burned with the effort, and his lungs felt like they were on fire.
Wheezing as he began to slow down, he decided to open his mouth and tell them to go on ahead. Much to his surprise, however, a pair of strong hands scooped him up and perched him on a pair of strong shoulders. Naruto had decided to take some initiative and help him conserve some magic power.
Even as the short old man reoriented himself, he noticed that Naruto was in the lead. Erza and Mirajane were flanking his sides, while Gray and Natsu were close behind. Elfman had scooped up Lucy and had her straddling his shoulders, easily keeping up with the rest of them while keeping up the rear. Happy was close behind, somehow managing to keep up with them. But all of them had an air of grim determination; a real boost for guild morale if it hadn't come at such an uneasy time.
He was silent for the rest of the trip, trusting Erza and Mirajane to give accurate directions.
By the time they'd reached Magnolia's Southgate Park, a large crowd had gathered around its main feature, the giant tree in the park square. The speculative murmurs, interspersed with shocked exclamations and fearful muttering, did not imply anything good.
The seven of them didn't have to fight their way to the front of the crowd. Between Erza's reputation and Makarov's power, the crowd parted on both sides and made an open road all the way up to the giant tree. Amidst gasps of shock and surprise from his teammates and guild master, Naruto only frowned.
Fairy Tail's Team Shadow Gear had been beaten to a bloody pulp and left crucified on the tree. Natsu's eyes narrowed as fire exploded into existence, signifying his anger. His spiky pink hair flared into harder spikes as his eyes centered on the Phantom Lord symbol that had been branded onto Levy's stomach.
Naruto's frown deepened into a mild scowl. But where he may have looked mildly irritated, everyone around him could feel his killing intent. A dark and cold surge of sheer bloodlust suddenly exploded into existence, washed over them like a crashing tidal wave. Everyone there blinked, seeing their lives flashing before their eyes and dying a thousand deaths in pain that could only be remedied by-
But then Naruto took a single deep breath, and the dreadful bloodlust and raw malevolence disappeared without a trace. He may have seemed calm, but his eyes were still hard even under the shadow of his spiky bangs.
For his part, Makarov was visibly aghast. He was sputtering at the sheer indignity of such an audacious display meant to provoke him into unwanted action.
Oh, yes. This was provocation.
Phantom Lord hadn't exactly been subtle. First, the iron spears thrown into the guildhall, and now they target his children?
Unacceptable.
As he stared up at where Levy, Jet, and Droy were still hanging from their restraints, Erza called out to him. "Master…"
"I like the fact that our guild sometimes becomes a rundown beer hall, I can tolerate spears being thrown at our home, but no parent can stand idle while the blood of his children is on the line!" he bellowed as the old man's magic exploded into existence under the full force of his righteous fury. The golden-white light of his magic was so powerful that his magic actually destroyed his magic staff and buffeted everyone around him with the sheer force of his magical power. Powerful winds flew every which way, kicking up dust and sending small rocks flying everywhere and forcing his subordinates to cover their faces.
"This means war!" Makarov Dreyar shouted, too angry to act.
Naruto scowled but nodded nonetheless. Vanishing in Shunshin no jutsu, a quick hand-sign later had four Kage Bunshin appear. The original formed a wind blade around two of his fingers, quickly cutting Team Shadow Gear while his Kage Bunshin caught their limp bodies and quickly jumped down to the ground.
He was about to take them to the hospital when Lucy stopped him and his Kage Bunshin in their tracks. "What's wrong, Lucy?" he asked, being a little cold to her what with his guild mates being injured and all. "Can this wait until I get these three to the hospital?"
She flinched again, but not of fear. However small, she did nurse a pinch of attraction to him with his cold and assertive attitude.
No, she was lying to herself. She was so scared that she couldn't trust her voice. What she said instead was, "Naruto-san, could you take me to the hospital, too? I'd like to stay with Levy-chan."
He nodded, adding another Kage Bunshin to the group. It swept her off her feet, slinging her up in a bridal carry and left her blushing. The Kage Bunshin all sped off without saying a word, already knowing their orders.
"Master," Naruto turned to Makarov, "…since this is obviously a trap designed to lure us into a war that we might not be prepared for, I'd like to discuss the terms of our preemptive assault with you if you don't mind."
"Why would I do that, Naruto?" the old man snapped, still angry.
Naruto sighed. "I've told you about me before, remember? Back home, I used to be something of a battlefield general." Erza and Mirajane turned to stare at the jinchūriki, taken off-guard by his casual declaration. They'd known that he had plenty of hidden depths, but the idea of Naruto being a soldier fresh from a war seemed like such an alien concept.
If that wasn't enough, though, he was some kind of battlefield general, too!
What magic could possibly do such things to a man?
"Beyond that, I'm still a soldier who fought in an actual war," the blond continued. "If only by default, I have the most experience with matters of actual warfare."
When Makarov tried to object, Naruto's mild scowl deepened. "In that vein," he interrupted the old man, "…I'm asking for this meeting in order to establish a battle plan and other contingencies. That way, if anything happens to you and/or the others, I'll know what to do in order to prevent any more casualties on our side."
Sighing, the old guild master conceded to one of his most powerful subordinates. "Okay… okay, okay. Fine, Naruto; you'll help with the war effort. But I have one condition."
Curious in spite of himself, the blond jinchūriki nodded. "Please… please remember the rules of our guild. Don't kill them."
Naruto growled at what he considered Makarov's narrow-minded idealism, but nodded curtly nonetheless. He hadn't let himself seriously entertain the idea of mercy in battle for a long time. But could he seriously be angry at such sentiments?
From what he'd read in Era, the land of Fiore had been at peace for a long time. Serious warfare was the stuff of history books, for scholars and historians to examine. Even wars between legal guilds were few and far-between these days.
Could his rules of war really apply here?
Could he afford to think otherwise?
"Fine," he said finally, his voice tight with disapproval. "In return, I want you to control yourself and stay away from the battlefield. I won't disappoint you otherwise."
Abruptly, he popped his neck. "If you'll excuse me, master, I'll have to finalize our battle plan." Vanishing in Hiraishin no jutsu, Naruto left Makarov alone with Erza and the others.
The old man sighed. "That boy's going to be trouble one day," he grumbled.
Turning to Erza, he added, "Well, you heard him. Let the whole guild know that we're going to war. We'll listen to his plan, and you'll be his second-in-command. Understood?"
She nodded, not trusting herself to speak. Naruto had unexpectedly revealed another aspect of himself. A man experienced with the horrors of war. He had even lead soldiers into battle, watching them kill or be killed on the field.
Why wouldn't he talk to her? To anyone?
An hour later, Naruto sat down with Master Makarov and Erza at a table in the guildhall's basement in order to discuss the particulars of the upcoming battle.
"A cool head is essential when winning a fight," he lectured. "We won't beat Phantom Lord if we attack them now, all furious about this whole situation. The best thing we can do is to start combat preparations all throughout the morning and then attacking them just after high noon. That way, the enemy won't be expecting our assault."
Sighing, he popped his knuckles. "Even though strategy says that no plan survives first contact with the enemy, our casualties should be minimal. If they eat lunch, they'll be digesting and will be caught off-guard. If they don't eat, then their hunger should be able to weaken them."
For her part, Erza was surprised by Naruto's strategic capability. His battle plan was centered on minimizing casualties, covert movement, and seemed to be the easiest way to seize victory. A cowardly tactic, perhaps, but catching the enemy off-guard was always the most-convenient way to fight. So the heart and soul of a soldier beat strongly in his chest.
Makarov was taken aback by Naruto's tactical mind. There was every indication that his newest son had whipped up his plan on the fly, which was an impressive feat. He also caught what Naruto hadn't said; if they could catch their enemy off-guard, then there was every chance that death would meet at least one person during the battle.
"From what we know of our enemy, the Phantom Lord guild has a large number of branches all across Fiore. Which one do you think is the main one, master?"
"Well, their main branch is in Oak Town, I know that much," the old man shrugged. Amidst incredulous looks from both Erza and Naruto, he added, "I never really talked to Phantom Lord's master, you see…"
"That's good to know, nonetheless." Erza sighed. "But what do we do about the other branches? We all know that Phantom Lord outnumbers us three-to-one, they might attack our guild while we go to attack theirs."
"In that vein, then… Master, can you order one of our S-class members to attack and destroy Phantom Lord's branch establishments, just to make sure?" Naruto asked.
"Easily," Makarov nodded. "But I think that I'll ask Mystogan to do it. Laxus and his team are on an S-class quest and Gildarts is still on that hundred-year quest."
Naruto then turned to Erza. "Do you have an idea who their strongest mages are, Erza-chan?"
Flushing red at his familiarity, she nonetheless nodded. "Under the master, Jose Porla, are five S-class mages by Phantom Lord's standards. The strongest of them is 'Kurogane' Gajeel Redfox. He's a Dragon Slayer, like Natsu, but for a different type of dragon. His Tetsu no Metsuryū Mahō,or Iron Dragon Slayer Magic, means that metal weapons are useless on him."
The blond winced at this assertion, but only Makarov caught it as Erza continued, "After him are the Elemental Four-"
"Wait, wait, let me guess," Naruto interrupted her. "Each of them are proficient with one of the four main elements; earth, air, fire, and water. These are the balanced, yet conflicting, elements of the world and allow for a great deal of power available to each of these people."
Erza was surprised by his sharp intuition. She didn't understand his sarcasm either, but continued her briefing while trying to ignore her feelings.
"First is 'Great Sky' Aria, a very skilled user of Airspace Magic." Naruto's eyes narrowed in calculation. This Aria character sounded like a Fūton master, which meant that he might have to break out his Katon jutsu in order to deal with such a man.
"Next up is 'Rain Woman'Juvia Lockser. She's very skilled with Water Magic, to the point where she can actually convert her body into water in order to avoid physical and even certain magical attacks." That got his attention like nothing before. If this Juvia had powers equal to that annoying prick Hōzuki Suigetsu, then he had to revise their battle plan immediately.
"Third up is Totomaru the Conflagration. He's obviously a powerful Fire Magic user of some kind." Naruto had no comment for a man with such a mild-sounding epithet.
"Last but not least is Sol of the Land. He uses Earth Magic and supposedly uses Sand Magic as well." Again, Naruto had to wonder what kind of special trick this character used.
Finally absorbing Erza's information on their enemy, Naruto nodded contemplatively. Then he looked up at her with his deep blue eyes and smiled, making her feel somewhat self-conscious and start blushing under his soul-piercing gaze.
That was before he ruined the moment by opening his big mouth. "Hey, how do you know all this, Benihime-chan? Do you have a crush on someone in that guild or something?"
Her face red with indignation, Erza sputtered as her right eyebrow twitched violently. She could only barely manage to reign in her anger at such a stupid question and the even-more idiotic notion that she'd have feelings for someone in Phantom Lord.
Makarov could barely keep himself from guffawing out loud. He knew what Naruto was doing. Her confusion over the exact nature of her feelings for him meant that she couldn't just lash out at him automatically. He was glad that the young shinobi had joined his guild; he'd made Erza happy, even if she wouldn't admit it out loud.
But his good mood soured as Naruto turned to him. "Master, I think that you should stay at the guild while we handle the frontlines. As our leader, you're the most-important part of our efforts. Please stay behind and command the troops. If anything were to happen to you, morale would plummet and we'd lose the momentum of our attack."
"He's right, Master," Erza chimed in, briefly glaring at Naruto. "You're our master, our father, and our symbol of strength. If something were to happen to you during the battle, we'll automatically lose."
The old man's face grimaced at the way two of his children had ganged up on him. No matter how he could try to argue, he knew they were right. Jose was a fellow Wizard Saint, after all, and a powerful wizard. Jose would have no compunction against using underhanded tricks in order to get what he wanted.
He sighed, giving in to their demands. "All right, you damn nosy brats!" he snorted. "I'll do as you ask, and stay back to defend the guild while you go attack Phantom Lord's headquarters. But I do have one condition…"
"…which is?" Naruto prompted.
"You two are the only S-class mages that we have right now, which means that you're the only ones who can fight Jose if he's there," he lectured them seriously. "So you have an extra responsibility; make sure that none of the other brats fight him, understood?"
When they nodded, his eyes faded into reminiscence. "Plus I get to be with Mira-chan all day," he mused, giggling in a strangely-familiar and perverse fashion.
Naruto sweatdropped. 'Is this how master's going to act? He reminds me so much of both the old man and Ero-sennin that it's scary!'
Erza had ignored Makarov completely, too lost in her own thoughts to listen to his sagely advice. 'Great! Now I can see Naruto-kun at his best in combat! Every time he fights, he never displays his full power. Almost like he is afraid of revealing them or something…'
"Nevertheless, I think that Jose of Phantom Lord is up to something," Naruto said finally, snapping her out of her thoughts. "We really should talk more, Benihime-chan; looks like master won't be talking again anytime soon…"
She nodded, following him out of the guild's impromptu briefing room and left Makarov alone with his pleasant thoughts and fantasies.
Original Jutsu Dictionary
Fūinjutsu: Shitai Kankan Fūin – Sealing Technique: Four-Body Weighing Seal
To be continued…