Chapter 5: A Human's Heart

"I've lived for a very long time now, longer than most beings in existence, but in all that time I never lost faith in humanity. Most people in my position would have grown cold hearted towards their fellow man, after witnessing their capacity for evil as a whole, but I always kept my faith that the good inside them would eventually win out over their evil."

Naruto Uzumaki

While David left to attend to the mess caused by the group of armed men and women who attacked the castle, Naruto led Goliath back to the very top of the castle so that they could have their own private conversation. The other Gargoyles went off to explore and discover what had changed about their old home, which would no doubt lead to property damage of some sort. Still, Naruto actually felt like he could breathe again with some of his old friends freed from an eternity of stone.

"Much has changed since our time away, but I am pleased to find you to still be the same," Goliath spoke as he gazed out upon the flickering lights of New York City, amazed at how far humanity had advanced in only a thousand years.

"It hasn't been easy; there has been much conflict while you and your clan slept away the years. I am actually happy that none of you were around for the wars that seemed to dominate the world after you all went to sleep," was Naruto's reply as he leaned casually on a stone wall, being far more fascinated with his friends response to the new world than he was to the same old skyline he had seen a thousand times already.

"Hm," Goliath grumbled, "Then it seems that even time cannot change humanity from the path of bloodshed."

"I wouldn't go that far, but you're not wrong either."

"Have you found any other Gargoyles during your years walking this earth?" Naruto paused at Goliath's question, as if contemplating whether or not he should tell his large friend what he wanted to hear.

"I've walked this earth for just over a thousand years and have seen many things, but your clan is the only group of Gargoyles I came across aside from a few strays that prefer to live on their own. I'm sorry Goliath, I know it's not what you wanted to hear."

Goliath closed his eyes and let out a tired sigh, the loss of his own clan still fresh on his mind even though it had really be a thousand years since that fateful day. Still, he now had five others to watch over in a strange new world and he would be lying if he said the challenge in front of him wasn't daunting. Hopefully, with Naruto's aid, he would be able to keep what's left of his family alive.

"Can we trust this Xanatos, do you trust him?" questioned the large Gargoyle while glancing over at his unaging friend, who scoffed at the question.

"David may have a mind for business but he's still an eccentric billionaire that only invests in things that peak his interest. He isn't stupid enough to cross me though, he knows no amount of money could stop me from coming for him if properly provoked, but I still wouldn't trust him," was the Sage's reply, to which Goliath hummed in understanding.

Their conversation was then interrupted by the sound of David Xanatos himself talking to someone that Naruto didn't recognize, which was quick to put the immortal Sage on alert since his friends had just woken up earlier that night. So, motioning of Goliath to remain in the shadows, Naruto calmly walked down the steps of the tower and out into the courtyard where he found that the mysterious guest was actually a female police detective. Naruto wasted no time in putting on a laid back smile the moment David saw him approaching.

"Ah, Naruto I'd like you to meet detective Elisa Maza, she was apparently on the streets below when that rival corporation attacked us earlier tonight," David said with his usual smooth tone, but neither Naruto nor Elisa were buying into it.

"So that's what happened, a rival company just decided to attack out of the blue?" there was clearly doubt in the detective's voice, which was understandable, but Naruto didn't even so much as twitch at her doubt.

"Indeed, although I wish David would have warned me before inviting a detective onto the premises; we haven't had time to check the damages and I would hate for anyone to get hurt," it was more like Naruto was angry that his disciple had brought someone else onto the property before the Gargoyles had time to adjust to their new situation.

"I'm sure I can manage just fine, but thanks for the worry," the detective's tone of voice clearly stated that she didn't think much of Naruto or his supposed concern for her well being, which she was mostly right about.

"Excuse me Mr. Xanatos, Mr. Uzumaki, but there seems to be a problem in the kitchen with our new guests," Owen politely interrupted, earning the sharply dressed man a subtle smirk from the immortal sage.

"I hope I've answered your questions satisfactorily detective, Owen will show you out," Xanatos didn't even give the woman a chance to argue before he walked past her and back into the castle, not expecting anyone to follow him while he went to deal with the young gargoyles.

"Please forgive David, he's been like that for as long as I've known him. Please, Ms. Maza, allow me to escort you out. Owen, if you would be so kind as to help David with our guests I would very much appreciate it," Naruto said with a polite, borderline charming, smile as he motioned his hand towards the elevator that led back down to the ground floor.

Elisa was hoping he young looking business man would simply escort her to the elevator and leave it at that, which would give her a fine opportunity to look around some more, but instead Naruto decided to join her on the ride down.

"You know, you look a lot younger than I thought you would, Mr. Uzumaki," Elisa commented as they neared the front door, earning a light chuckle from Naruto.

"Trust me, my dear, you have no idea," Naruto opened the door for her, "Please, have safe night."

"Mr. Uzumaki, if I may be frank, we both know it wasn't a rival company attacking out of the blue. Level with me, what's really going on?" Naruto was momentarily taken aback by Elisa's question, having met very few people in his life that would talk to him in such a direct manner.

"(Smirk) Trust me, it's a story a thousand years in the making," with that said, Naruto turned around and walked back inside, wanting to make sure Xanatos doesn't use that sly tongue of his on the clan.

By the time Naruto managed to make it back up to the castle, the three younger gargoyles were receiving a rather harsh tongue lashing from Goliath's mentor while Goliath himself looked out over the city. Naruto joined his old friend, with no sign of David, and began telling him all the many things that had happened since they were frozen in time.

"What of that woman that was here tonight, does she know about us?" Goliath asked while staring out at the sky, noting that the sun would be rising very soon.

"No, not as far as I can tell, but I'm going to check her out just to be safe. Don't worry Goliath, I won't let anything happen to your clan," Naruto placed a reassuring hand on Goliath's shoulder, but the gargoyle didn't look convinced.

"Even in our own time, I didn't know all the dangers to my clan. Now, even as humans have evolved, I fear we will never truly be safe," Goliath replied as he took his place upon the castle walls, neither of them speaking as the bright sun rays finally lit up the sky in a beautiful sunrise.

Naruto turned around and slowly began walking away, only to pause and glance back and his friends frozen form, "I promise Goliath, I won't fail any of you again."

Later that day, after returning to his own office that he shared with Xanatos, Naruto found himself lazily reading through the profile of one Elisa Maza, a second class detective with the NYPD. It would appear that Ms. Maza was about as clean a cop as humanly possible and even volunteered at the homeless shelter whenever she had some free time. Sure there were a few complaints against her, mainly from those she arrested, but the pro's far outweighed the con's at this point.

"I'm surprised you're still awake," David said when he saw Naruto sitting at his desk, that damn smile still ever present on his face.

"I'm tracking down who hired those mercenaries from last night," that was a lie, Naruto had already tracked down the man who hired them.

David lost his smile, "Any leads?"

Naruto smiled ever so slightly as he glanced up at his pupil, eyes glowing red and slit with Kurama's power, "I'm looking at him right now."

There was not much David still feared in this world, since most things could be handled by a man as rich as himself, but his mentor was still someone he very much feared. David had seen Naruto rip apart an entire slavery operation that had kidnapped some of their employees when they were just becoming a noteworthy business; at the time he had those same eyes.

"Tell me something, David, did you think I wasn't smart enough to figure out what you were planning? Using my friends to attack our rival company by tricking them with that little stunt, collecting data on them for your pet project you started up months ago, and lets not forget trying to hide it all from me to begin with," Naruto put down the file on Elisa Maza and slowly walked towards his now sweating student, placing a hand on his shoulder.

"I-I can explain," David tried to stammer out, not daring to look Naruto in the eye.

"I don't need an explanation, but what you need is a warning. I would raise this entire city to the ground, and all of the people in it, if it meant keeping Goliath and his clan safe. So be careful, my friend, because you are only going to get this one warning."