Here's another chapter.

It took some time to get it done. It is a good thing that an author as good as Silverkitsune2017 decided to do a SasukexErza pair with the help of Celestia193. She is an extremely good writer, but doesn't do a lot of crossovers but her fics in good are general. It provides readers with more options regarding their favorite cross-over pairings.

As always, thanks to taran taran, nsymina, dimas_vaw, StopTeasing, The legendary dark knight Tony, Commander Blunt, xNightShroudx, LyHy, hateme101, ronlol2, Mobydicks, iskandarrobby47, Jutten, GB108 and guest(x2) for your reviews.

Changed the cover pic. Drew it myself. What do you think?

Disclaimer: Do not own Naruto or FT. Belong to their respective owners. Crude version. Not beta-read, so I apologize for any mistakes in advance.

Continuing on;

...

Chapter 19: Day 3

"I invoke my right to challenge 100 monsters!"

The looks of surprise on everyone's face was satisfying in a way for Sasuke. Ever since the rules for Pandemonium was explained, Erza didn't seem to care about the number cause he could tell she was already dead set - to challenge all the monsters even though she knew that the competition was set so that none of them could take on the 100 monsters.

He watched her Scarlet hair shine even brighter in the sunshine, as she strode forward with her hair swaying behind her back. That absolute look of shock on that pathetic pumpkin face made up for his lack of thrill as he actually wished the same but was unlucky on the draw, giving him the number eight- Erza being the one.

Earlier, he actually wanted Cana to take part in this. But, she was probably somewhere, flirting around with Naruto. So, as soon as he watched Erza walk onto the field, Gajeel and the others bowed out because they probably knew about the last Uchiha and her. Honestly, Gajeel could never understand what Sasuke saw in that crazy chick, but was not interested enough to know and definitely not interested in facing her wrath.

Watching it merely as a sideshow was more amusing and less harmful, as he observed Mira doing the same thing for quite some time now. Maybe Sasuke and Erza weren't even aware of it themselves, but there was a betting pool going behind the scenes about how long it would take for them to be a couple.

Inside the arena, some contenders looked to protest, while the face of Orga suggested otherwise. He probably thought she took up a fool's challenge and that she would soon regret her decision for being so arrogant. Sasuke knew better. It wasn't arrogance but recklessness, apparently the common trait among the Fairy Tail wizards.

The battle began, as Ahh's and Ooh's of crowds echoed the arena the moment she requipped into her knight armor. The same armor that he had apparently mistaken for a cosplay, when she faced the mist shinobi. He watched her take out most of the D-class monsters while few of the higher class remained.

It wasn't a blow to take out all of her opponents at once, but to check for their abilities and analyze their weakness. Analyzing any opponent was a given, unless you happened to be cunning and have a demon sealed in you. A clever attack to start up front.

He had been comparing her and Naruto for a while now, looking for similarities in between them. But, in this regard she was more analytical and tactical in approach, just like him unlike the dobe. Calm and analytical judgement skills. And, skills to back that up.

She then shifted into her black wing armor. Sasuke again failed to see how that thing was an armor. Few perverse shouts went out as he thought it revealed too much, not that he would mind if it were done in private. But, there were men watching this, as he clenched his fist a bit.

The resentment and jealousy vanished when she shifted into her another armor, fire empress armor with a water sword. He blinked. She was adapting, he could tell as the commentator was screaming her name like a rabid dog now. The crowd was enchanted with the show she was putting on, as she danced through that hideous castle.

His lips thinned a bit as she requipped into a cheetah like armor next, granting her speed. Similar to black wing armor, but instead of just speed, it also enhanced her agility. But too much revealing and suddenly he realized that he was being just as possessive as she was yesterday.

He shook his head slightly at the thought, before their guild shouted her name again. He quickly looked onto to the screen to see that she had already defeated about fifty monsters. The crowd went up but he noticed the exhausted look on her face, her hands gripping the hilt tightly.

Exhausted and many injuries but there was that look- the look of determination on her face. She roared as she charged forward again, showing the world her vast treasury of armors. She looked like she had an armor for almost anything as she continued, and Sasuke had nothing but respect for her judgment skills.

With many choices present before her, it takes keen observation and judgement skills to decide the right set of combination in her armor set. With as many as 100 armors and almost 100 weapons, there were a lot of combinations to choose from. She took care of almost all the monsters with this.

She stared hard at the last remaining foes. Discarding her armor, she went into her most effective offensive armor. Light cloth pants, bandages strapped to her chest and a single katana in her hand. She leaped towards the monsters standing between her and the S-class one.

He smirked as Erza faced her last foe in this round, a tiny little monster that was apparently S-class. But, looks could be deceiving as he remembered his brother's words when most of them cooed at the cuteness and harmlessness of the monster.

True to his guess, the monster slowly transformed into a giant that almost dwarfed the previous A-class monster, twice their height. Erza looked to be struggling though she was in her most offensive mode, as Sasuke deduced noticing that she wasn't donning any armor but only a cloth wrapped tightly against her bare chest. She stood tall as she summoned two swords in her hands.

..

..

Battling her way through, she had reached the roof top of the castle. Erza screamed in pain, as the giant was nearly crushing her beneath its foot. It, then moved its feet and kicked Erza sending her flying a couple of feet away. A truly fitting name for a pandemonium.

But… that monster still wasn't any match for Erza. She would win and take the ten points home for her guild. She dodged a heavy punch aimed at her. Taking advantage of its size, she ran across its arm before she leaped in air and made many multiple strikes.

The monster lifted its other arm to push her back but it was dealt the same way too. Landing a couple feet away, Erza had a smirk across her face as she watched the arms being torn to pieces due to her earlier strikes.

Taking this opportunity, she sneaked behind the giant to deliver the final blow. The monster barely avoided it, but it was still a fatal wound. It groaned and kicked Erza hard sending her crashing down the wall.

Even while she was badly wounded, a fairy that should have fallen to the ground, she soared. She persevered. She fought in a way of befitting her title 'Titania'. She relentlessly attacked, even as one of her sword broke. Gripping her last sword, she dealt in many strikes finally cutting through its head.

She landed a couple of feet away as the giant turned into dust particles. She let out a sigh of relief as she heard the announcer screaming her name and the crowd going wild after her display. Stilling herself, she raised her sword above her head in victory, but the sword raised mostly for her guildmates, announcing that she had heard them loud and clear. Dedicated to them.

The castle started disappearing into the same huge magic circle that brought it, as Erza was teleported to the entry. She stood at the entrance and walked leaning against a sword.

"Erza!"

She turned her head to see her teammates running rather wildly towards her. Maybe they were upset at how much time it took for her. "Sorry guys, I hope you'll forgive me. It took a lot longer than I expec-"

"You were great!" Gray yelled.

"Fight me later!" Natsu cheered in his own way.

"I was moved…" Lucy joined in.

"I got a lump in my throat," Wendy cried tears of relief.

Erza blinked. That was definitely not the reaction she was expecting. "Oi, oi… it's not like we won the tournament yet."

Her teammates only laughed in response as the Mato, the pumpkin head sweated. "Just took a little longer than expected?" He repeated her words, not believing his ears.

"Erza! Erza! Erza! Erza! Erza!"

She looked around the arena, looking at the crowd that was cheering her name and her guild's name. From booing to cheering. From dead last to crowds favorite. She smiled as she looked towards her guild's gallery. They were all jumping in excitement, many of them were even crying. She showed her fist, pointing in their direction at the job done.

Then, her focus shifted to the person stepping beside her. Sasuke spoke no words, but gave her a smile. That said it all. She returned that smile, before she slightly winced.

"You pushed yourself too far, huh?"

"It's nothing." She said, but her body was screaming at her now that the adrenaline rush was gone. She took a step forward but pain soared through her ankle. But, she had to hide her pain for her guild mates. The last thing she wanted was showing signs of weakness after putting on such an inspiring act.

As if answering her call, her left arm was taken and rested around Sasuke's neck. She looked to her side to see him supporting her by her waist. She frowned, still trying to hide her fatigue. "I can get to infirmary myself."

"I am sure you can. I just want to help."

"You still have to compete." Erza said. "Wouldn't want you to forfeit on my account."

"My turn won't come up until the last." Sasuke shrugged as he moved forward. "Besides, I don't think it will be that fun now anyway since you took care of all the monsters."

"I am sorry."

Sasuke blinked. "Why are you apologizing? I was only joking. The least I can do now is finish second."

"Ano," They looked behind to see that the remaining contenders were staring at them. Mato moved forward. "The competition is still not over."

"I know." Sasuke turned around. "I will be back in a minute."

..

..

Sasuke could see the frown on most of the waiting contenders. Well, to be honest he had only gone a couple of minutes escorting Erza to the old Sakura. It wasn't like he made them wait for hours.

Clearly they haven't and never waited for Kakashi. If only they knew….

Mato coughed, sensing some heaviness in the atmosphere. "Now that you are all here, I'll explain what is going to happen now." He eyed Sasuke in particular. "After some deliberation, it has been decided to have another contest to rank the seven remaining teams." A dome shaped black device landed before him with a blue crystal on the top. "This will be a bit boring compared to the pandemonium, but I think it should be enough."

"What is that?" Sasuke asked, referring to the strange device.

"It is the magic finder. Or, MPF for short." The pumpkin head looked proud. "Pretty tansy, huh?"

Jura folded his arms, "In other words, it measures a wizard's magic power."

"Right O!" Mato got down to explaining its functions. "If you cast your magic power on this, it displays your magic power. We'll use this device to rank the remaining teams."

Sasuke frowned at this tid bit of information. As far as he was concerned, he wasn't sure if the MPF would exactly calculate his chakra. Or, would it recognize his jutsu as a spell. Meaning, he needed to think of something fast that utilizes the ethernanos, or nature before his turn comes up.

"That means I get to go first!" Millianna removed her cloak to reveal a… Sasuke wasn't sure. How was that allowed out here in public? Shouldn't it be restricted to a bedroom? "Here goes. Kitten Blast!" A glowing fluzzy tube came out a magic circle and hit the crystal.

"Kitten Blast?" Sasuke titled his head. They needed to come up with better names if… Woah! Okay. Three hundred and sixty five. How much was that? Was it good? Bad? Average?

Apparently the crowd was wondering the same thing. The special guest for today spoke to relieve the crowd's confusion. He had some experience regarding the device since it was always used in Rune training. "I can help. She did very well. Her score would qualify her for squad captain."

Novali from Quatro Puppy was next. Yeah. He had missed the ridiculous bets that happened on the other day. Quadro Cerberus to Quadro Puppy. Suits them as this Novali scored only one hundred and forty four.

It was followed by Hibiki from Blue Pegasus. He could hear girls screaming and cheering for him. It made sense for Sasuke. He could see why Hibiki worked in the same photoshoot as Mirajane. But, it was a bad thing that his scores couldn't reflect his looks. A measly ninety five.

Next was a guy from Raven Tail. Sasuke activated his sharingan to see what the big guy was going to pull seeing as the Raven Tail had warranted his suspicions. But… apparently it was just throwing some tiny creature at it earned him only four points. That definitely wasn't suspicious at all!

Orga, of Sabertooth made his way to the front admist the cheer and hopping of Millianna. The crowd went berserk for him as he shot his palm towards the crystal. "One-twenty millimeter lightning canon!" Black sparks erupted from his hands, before it headed to destroy the poor MPF. A gust of wind was produced as Sasuke raised an eyebrow at the score. Three thousand eight hundred and twenty five.

Black lighting… definitely a first for Sasuke. Maybe, that guy was also a god slayer if his encounter the other day was any indication. His decision to participate in the games looked like it was paying off. Maybe he could pose as a flame god slayer in future using his Amaterasu and flame control.

As Sasuke was lost in the endless possibilities, Jura the wizard saint stepped up beside the pumpkin head. "Do you mind if I give it my all?"

"That's the game, isn't it?"

Sasuke blinked as he could feel the magic in the air concentrating around Jura, as he continued to meditate. Land beneath him started to shake as few particles flew in air here and there. "Rumbling Fuji!" The result was as much devastating too. The whole Arena shook as a huge pillar of light descended onto it.

As Sasuke looked at the MPF after the light died down, he was surprised a bit. Eight thousand five hundred and forty four. He could only wonder what those two monsters would do to this poor device if they were to participate.

Probably the whole Arena would have been destroyed if they did not hold back. And, he has to do the same. Wouldn't want people dying on him now.

"My juts-… spell requires some time." Sasuke coughed, correcting himself. He was already forming a few hand signs. Mato didn't seem to care about that.

"Take all the time you want." He spoke, before sending few looks of pity. "But, it sure is a tough task to follow that up."

Sasuke had already decided what he wanted to perform. A jutsu that uses nature's energy just to be on the safe side. His sharingan flared as the crowd went still waiting in anticipation for the Uchiha.

If it were anyone other than Sasuke, the second place would have been undoubtedly given to Jura. But, the Uchiha clan was supposedly strong and Sasuke hadn't disappointed them in the first day. He would have to probably thank Jura later for the dark clouds above their heads.

"Katon: Gouryuuka no jutsu!"(Fire Style: Great Fire Dragon!)

The crowd went in ah as fire dragons illuminated the sky. They were momentarily distracted from the fireworks that they didn't bother to speculate on why he had shot it towards the sky. Few people thought that he had missed it, while very few who knew Sasuke waited to see what he was playing at.

Erza who had returned to her team's gallery looked up when multiple flashes went off followed by thunders. The skies giving off as many lightning was probably a terrifying sight for most except Laxus and Ogra who feast on them. Her eyes widened when she saw many sparks erupt from the Arena and outside the Arena too.

These sparks went and collected in air, joining the already rampaging thunders. The sight had too much intensity that many of the audience had to close their eyes and ears.

"Man… Sasuke knows lightning too?" Gray asked slightly shaken by the sight.

Natsu closed his ears. "I thought fire was his only technique."

"I wonder what his earlier fire technique was then."

"It was to heat up the air above us." Erza watched with her arms crossed, her gaze not moving from the clouds. "It was to create a powerful rising air current."

"Air current?" Natsu titled his head.

"She means thunder clouds, flame brain."

"What is he going to do with that?" Natsu asked.

"To use it for his… spell." Even Gray wasn't sure. He only confirmed it when he saw a similar lightning on Sasuke's right hand. "He did specify that it was going to take some time."

The contenders wisely moved away from MPF, going near Sasuke. He looked around the confused looks of the participants and decided to enlighten them about the technique he had devised to kill his brother. "With this spell, lightning will strike down from heaven. The name of this juts-… spell is kirin."

The blue sparkles vanished from his hand into the clouds. His chakra filled lightning, bent the surrounding ethernanos to his will along with the thunder clouds. Lightning dances as it morphed into a dragon and a huge roar following it.

Orga did not move much, but it was a surprise to him. A non-slayer magician was able to tame the lightning to this level, difficult for even slayers to perfect… Just who was this guy? Laxus had similar thoughts going in his head. His eyes only widened further as a fully formed dragon emerged from the thunder clouds.

Its roar boomed through the Arena as people trembled at the sight. Dragons were supposed to be extinct, even if it were one made of pure lightning. Natsu, and most of the dragon slayers present there straightened at the sight. Was that a real dragon? They still weren't sure, but the magic in them tinkled them to be on guard.

With a lazy move of Sasuke's wrist, the dragon went back into the clouds. Only to reappear later near the MPF. Light travels a lot faster than sound, as before anyone knew what happened, a huge pillar of light hit the MPF, even dwarfing Jura's spell.

Thunderous sound followed afterwards, much to the displeasure of the audience. The whole arena was now scattered, broken and crumbled as the dust settled. The MPF had hit the grave as only four figures remained in its place. Nine nine nine and… nine.

People also noticed another strange thing when the spell was finished. All the people who were near Sasuke were engulfed in a strange purple ethereal skeleton. It was only a glimpse as it disappeared the moment the attack was ended.

The announcer was the first one to retrieve from the shock, as he yelled the scores in excitement and announced their standings to the crowd. Sasuke looked around at the damage done… maybe, he should have taken a gamble and hit that thing with a chidori.

He left silently before the authorities could ask compensation of him. He did not have that kind of money and his guild surely as hell didn't. He sighed.

Only if they had collected Naruto's illegal earnings from the other night. He closed his eyes and walked back towards his team gallery admist the cheers, not bothering to address them as Erza did, and definitely not bothering with the screams from his newly found, but already one of the biggest fanclubs.

..

Kawaguchi eyed the Last Uchiha from Konoha as Sasuke walked back to his team's gallery. He sighed, turning his attention to his siblings beside him. "We should go. We have witnessed enough."

His sister and brother only gaped at the clearing. His little brother swallowed a hard lump, "T-This is w-what he looks like-"

"When he isn't holding back." His sister finished for him, her gaze following the Uchiha who had now exited the field. Then, those two followed their brother, exiting the stands as few of the rune knights entered right then. The security had been increased thanks to the previous night. They were constantly on the run now.

..

..

Round 2 of day 3;

The first two match ups were pretty much one-sided. The first one was won by Millianna, from Marmaid Heel against Seemes, from Quatro Puppy.

The second match up was between Rufus of Sabertooth and Eve of Blue Pegasus. The match was always going to Sabertooth with Rufus using an ancient magic and lost magic, memory make. Against his variety, Ren could do only so much with his Ice magic.

With only two matches left for the day, Sasuke wondered if Fairy Tail A and B would battle each other. That would certainly be a nice twist of turn, though one of the team would be guaranteed a sure defeat. In the hindsight, it would be a safe bet as one team would be guaranteed a victory.

His speculations were put to a rest when the next match up was flashed on the big screen. Laxus from his team vs Alexie of Raven Tail.

"About damn time." Laxus pushed himself of the wall and proceeded to step into the arena.

"Good luck." Mira smiled.

Gajeel's face went grim. "Watch out, that guy has an odd vibe to him."

"Got it." With that Laxus headed to the center.

Sasuke had never seen Laxus in action before except the elimination round and he was sure that the third's grandson had much to offer. He was probably the second strongest in the guild after Gildarts if we were to exclude Makarov. Stronger than Erza and Mira. That counts as something.

The battle begins in a rather even way. Laxus and Alexie were head to head. Sasuke found something strange about that as if the battle was already planned. About how easily Laxus was beaten and beaten around.

"Yo, Sasuke."

"Took you long enough." He greeted the blonde without turning around. Naruto placed his hands on the back of his head as they watched the match. "Any clues as to their whereabouts?"

"Couldn't find them." Naruto shrugged. "There is something in the air that is making it difficult to track them in sage mode. I will require some more time to adjust."

"Must be ethernanos." Sasuke mumbled. He had to send Naruto on his behalf to search for the siblings. He would have searched for himself like he strolled off the first day, but few technicalities occurred.

A fan club was waiting for him when he tried to leave after the first round of today. He had slipped past his team as usual, and proceeded to investigate. He was shocked the first time he found them waiting for him. But, it seems like someone had sold his whereabouts, or there were some really dangerous stalkers out there.

To say that it hindered with his 'sniffing' was an understatement. He turns left, and there they were. Turned right, again there were present there. He slips to streets, and they are present there too. He had to briefly wonder if he had walked into a zombie world. He had to partly blame himself too after the spectacle he put on.

"Naruto-san, was it?" Mira smiled. "How exactly did you arrive here? Was there another anima leading to your world?" If there was, it should probably be brought to their master's attention.

"He entered through a gate way that I created." Sasuke answered for Naruto. "Near the ruins where Natsu found the scroll."

"Is anyone else going to be coming too?"

Sasuke shook his head. "None that I know. Naruto arrived here because I requested a back-up." It was days ago he sent the letter to Kakashi, but he never expected Naruto to show up. He had been expecting someone like Sai.

"Woah…" Naruto caught the sight of the battle. "What is going on, Sasuke? I sense six different energy signatures, but there are only two of them visible."

"What?" Gajeel unfolded his arms. Even Mira turned towards him.

"It's just as you heard… is that iron piercings?" Naruto blinked. This guy looked like the mixed version of Madara and Pain with his long hair and iron piercings. Not that he was complaining. He had seen many weirder things.

Sasuke ignored a spat that just spewed between Naruto and Gajeel, but instead focused his gaze onto Laxus's movements. Something was really off. He activated his doujutsu to only observe an illusion of some kind cast on the field.

Inside that field, Laxus just stood there with five others standing in front of him. They weren't even fighting. Just talking.

Oh, seems like their negotiations got broken down. Sasuke got to know one thing regarding his team's dragon slayer. Laxus was a beast compared to his guildmates. Most of his blows were knockout shots. He was surprised a bit though when even Laxus's father, Ivan did not last longer against his son.

That last thunder punch from Laxus disrupted the illusion. The crowd gasped when they found that the entire Raven Tail guild fought in a single match. And, defeated.

["Wh-what happened down there?!"] The announcer gaped. He couldn't believe his eyes. ["Apparently the fight has been nothing but an illusion. But, Laxus held his own and defeated the entire Raven Tail guild by himself. I think its safe to say Laxus is the victor."]

Mira and Juvia jumped in excitement as Sasuke smirked. Naruto and Gajeel were too busy to notice. Team B was given its ten points, whereas Raven Tail got disqualified for breaking the rules. A ban was also placed on it preventing it from participating in the games for three years.

The crowd also seemed to cheer and whisper about Fairy Tail. Erza, Sasuke and Laxus stood out for today, which should be more than enough to get their popularity back.

The next match did bore Sasuke a bit if he was honest. He wanted to see Wendy's abilities, but the opposite girl, Chelia caught his attention. Wind God Slayer. That made it what? Three God slayers he encountered in two days.

Maybe they aren't so uncommon. The match was interesting at first, but it now boiled down to endurance test between two magicians who are using the same element. Naruto was a different case. He was cheering Wendy like there was no tomorrow, and Sasuke briefly wondered if Naruto was a pedophile.

If he was, then Sasuke would probably have to summon his would be, Hinata though Sasuke was sure that they haven't spoken a lot till now. Maybe a few sentences. Okay... a few words.

The bell rang and the two were still standing. A draw, huh? Sasuke mused. This was the first match to have dragged on for the full ten minutes. Maybe, the elders need to take lessons from these kids on how to fight. Compared to theirs, this was a lot interesting and an even fight.

His guild mates leave the gallery as the last match was called off. Sasuke stayed a bit, wondering what Ivan referred to as the dark secret of Fairy Tail. Konoha was rotten to the core, whereas Fairy Tail was all white and looked all innocent. But, was this possible for a guild like this? No, it can't be. Rather, it shouldn't.

Well, for now all he could do was head back to their bar and 'enjoy' their success today. He'll confront his master on that later.

..

..

"Barrel Surfing!" Natsu slept on a board that was on top of a few barrels. Happy joined him as he 'barrel surfed' in the bar before he crashed against a wall. He narrowly missed crashing Wendy and Levy, causing Gajeel to lift him by his scarf.

A tick mark appeared on his forehead, "What are you doing, salamander?!"

Natsu chose that moment to be reminded of his motion sickness. He covered his mouth as his face went blue, "Wanna do it too?!"

"You're doing it to the point of getting motion sickness!"

"Alright, I'll do it!" Gray took the chance that Natsu so graciously offered. He climbed onto a board and continued the act of 'Barrel Surfing.' He grinned, riding past a squealing Juvia, before he too crashed against a wall, his clothes coming off naturally.

"What the hell is the matter with your clothes?!"

"Yosh, it's my turn now!" Naruto pumped his fist, getting into the act of it. He maneuvered himself carefully, riding it a lot better than Gray and even Natsu, the inventor of this sport. His joy was only short lived as he too crashed against a wall with the alcohol finally kicking itself in.

He lifted his head and smiled sheepishly as Erza stood near him with her arms crossed. Her stern expression was lifted as Naruto saw a mischievous glint in the corner of her eyes.

"In that case..." She quickly got onto a bill board. "I'll do it, too. Watch and learn."

"Yeesh! Like I said, it's dangerous!"

"Somebody, stop them!"

Jet and Droy's pleas fell onto deaf ears as she too crashed against a wall. Maybe, that was the sport. To see who can surf longer before crashing into anything or anyone. Everyone smiled and laughed at the sight, not certainly at the part where Erza lost her skirt. They all were in a jovial mood as who wouldn't be. It was a complete victory for that day after all.

Sasuke heard the door being creaked and he quickly closed the scroll he was inspecting. He was currently standing outside the bar, leaning against a ledge and inspecting the scroll regarding Erza's physiology. He could briefly hear laughter and screams before the door was shut. He lifted his sake cup and turned towards the approach er.

"What are doing out here in cold?"

A bar jug was slammed hard against the railing he leaned on. Cana burped as she whirled around facing Sasuke, "I should be the one asking you that. Is that..." She squinted as she narrowed her drowsy eyes towards a small bottle beside his arm.

"It's sake." Sasuke told taking a sip. He noticed her flushed cheeks and could only wonder how much booze Cana had. "How much have you- never mind." He didn't want to know. Probably in double digits. That girl was a monster when it came to drinking. He had personally witnessed her conquest when he was her drinking partner during that time. The time when he had witnessed... you know the cliff.

"Sake is plain and does not have the required kick in it. It is more like old men's version of booze." Cana drank a complete mug as if proving her point. Sasuke watched her drink the entire tankard in silence.

He then gave a side glance to the saucer near him, "Hn. Everyone has their own preferences."

"Is that why you chose to celebrate today's victory far away from others?" Sasuke turned towards her raising an eyebrow. She continued on observing his expression. "You are missing your own party again. You have already missed the first day's too. Even Naruto is enjoying himself despite joining only yesterday unlike you."

Sasuke got back to his sake. "Naruto is cut from the same cloth as Natsu. I'd be surprised if he didn't. And, regarding me, it doesn't make much of a difference and it doesn't matter where I am after the games." He had been delivering for his guild, right? He could not see what the issue was.

Cana nodded taking in his words, before she spoke softly remembering her younger days in the guild, "Erza was just like you when she joined the guild. She was just as reserved and stayed far away from the festives. But, slowly, but surely she started opening up to us. You are like the older- male version of her younger self. Reserved but a sexy handsome hunk." She winked at him which Sasuke chose to ignore wisely. The last thing he needed was for Erza to think that he was flirting with Cana, even if she wasn't present at the moment.

Sasuke bent his head down a bit and leaned further into the ledge spreading his arms. Erza was a loner too, huh? Well, who wouldn't if they had things happen to them like it did with Erza. It was a miracle that she again started trusting others and opened up. She didn't end up like him. Well, even Naruto didn't. So, maybe he was the odd one out.

"You'll open up too as the time progresses. Eventually." Cana reassured him noticing the supercilious look on his face.

That was the thing. Even he didn't know how long he would stay here, and if it was actually possible to get him to open up. He chose to be a loner by choice and it was his decision too in the past to push others away. "I am not sure about that."

"You'll do, eventually." Cana placed her hand on his shoulder. "Nobody can stay aloof for long in our reckless family. Even the arrogant and bossy Laxus has opened up."

Sasuke blinked as he took a sharp intake of air.

Family. That's what they have been seeing him as whereas he has been just seeing them as Erza's family and nakama. That was right. His breathing slowed down as realization dawned on him. This guild was a collection of sad sobs like him and provided them with a family to lean on. This was a new world and if he couldn't even trust his other team mates in this world, then he couldn't hope for them to trust him. He had missed another key thing which he threw away two years ago. He still needed to segue completely.

He then turned to Cana and gave her a small smile. Damn, even the drinker in Fairy Tail just taught him something. "Looks like the drinker just became the hermit to have started preaching."

"Don't blame me." Cana gave a sly smile. "Many of the preaches and wise things are born when they are said by people who are drunk. It is actually the drunk people who start saying these kinds of things first."

Sasuke just smirked in return. "Yeah, I am sure they are."

"Come on, I am finished." Cana pushed herself off the ledge. "Let us go inside before you catch a cold."

Sasuke stayed back, watching her go inside the bar as he caught a glimpse of Erza holding Ajuka in her arms and a smile on her face. A smile automatically lit up at the sight as he turned back when the door was closed. He surveyed the area beneath him as he finished his sake. Then, he pushed himself of the ledge too, and strode in to enjoy the remainder of the party.

And, cut. That makes it day 3 of the games.

I am wondering... how far can I push the suggestive themes in T rating. I need to know to decide if I need to change the rating of this fic.

Anyway, see you guys in the next chapter.

Until then, later!