Hey guys, sorry for the long wait. It's been one hell of a while since I last posted, so my bad. XD Anyways, I'm back to add a new chapter. After that last one, the leaf village has a completely different respect for Fairy Tail, and I plan have that come into place shortly. As for a little heart-to-heart, listen people. I know I'm not the best author, but please bear with me. Lastly, a short thanks for those of you who have stayed with me through the previous chapters. Well, here you have it, chapter 7.
Chapter 7- Chaos Strikes!
With Tsunade bringing her short speech to an end, everyone begins to file out of the arena. Before the Fairy Tail group can leave, the hokage comes down to talk to them. Upon reaching Erza, Tsunade waves her hand in a gesture for them to talk for a moment. Seeing the two women walk towards each other, Natsu turns to leave. Grey however, grabs him by the back of his scarf. "And just where do you think you're going, coal-for-brains?" Natsu slaps his hand off. "Oh, you know, two important ladies talking to each other, I don't really plan on sticking around." Grey laughs. "Well, unfortunately, you don't have a choice. Erza wants us staying here for a moment. Some of the jonin from the Leaf are about to get here and she thinks we should stick around." Natsu sighs. " But I wanna get something to eat," he says, rubbing his stomach. Grey laughs. "You'll get over it." Before Natsu can reply, a single, battered ninja appears in front of Tsunade and Erza. Noticing his state, Tsunade grabs him by his shoulders. "What's wrong? What happened? Who did this to you?" The man gives her a sad look, and crumples to the ground. Natsu and Grey run over, trying to understand the commotion. Seeing the ninja on the ground, they stop, taking in the site. Tsunade quickly kneels, using a chakra-covered hand to search for the man's injuries. Upon reaching his neck, she gasps, shoulders sagging at her realization. Shizune runs over, kneeling next to Tsunade. "What happened to him?" asks the younger medical ninja. Tsunade looks at Shizune, sorrow in her eyes. "He's going to die," she says, moving Shizune's hand to a part of the man's neck. Shizune's eyes go wide. "The supportive muscles in his neck are gone. They're completely severed." Tsunade nods. "There's no way to save him." At hearing this, Wendy comes over, standing next to the two. "Can I take a look?" she says, kneeling to their level. "I might be able to save him." Tsunade shakes her head slowly, but moves over enough to allow Wendy to move in between her and Shizune. The hokage lowers her head. "I'm afraid nobody can help him now. He's just too far gone." Wendy shakes her head. "Maybe I can…" she starts. "I said nobody can help him. There is nothing anyone can do to keep him alive. Not even I can save him." Natsu narrows his eyes. "So, you plan on just standing there and watching him die instead of taking the chance to save him?" Tsunade spins around to glare at the fire mage. "It is not your place to criticize the actions I take." Natsu shakes his head. "I know I'm out of place, but all of us are at one time or another." Erza grabs his arm in an effort to stop him, but he shrugs it off. "I know it's not my place to make your decisions for you. I don't always make the right ones myself, but look at it from any angle, and you can see that this is wrong. Just as it's not my place to criticize your decisions, it's not your place to let someone die, just because you believe his condition can't be helped." Again Tsunade lowers her head. "You're right." She looks toward Wendy. "Although I believe it's futile, please try to save him." Wendy nods and places her hand on the fallen ninja's neck, wincing at the pain he must be on. "Grandina, lend me your strength," she says as she wills her magic to make itself visible in her hand. Keeping her eyes open and focusing, she brings up a map of the injury in her mind. As she continues to allow her magic to flow into his body, Wendy imagines the wound closing bit by bit. After about twenty minutes, she stands up. She looks at Tsunade and nods. "He'll be alright," she says, and falls back, exhausted. Before she hits the ground, Natsu catches her and lifts her off her feet, cradling her in his arms bridal style. "Don't worry. I've got you," he says, pulling her closer to his chest. Suddenly, the man on the ground sits up coughing. Tsunade and Shizune grab him, helping him to his feet. "What the hell just happened?" He asks, finally able to speak. Tsunade points to Wendy. "This girl just pulled you back from the brink of oblivion," she says. The man turns, facing the sky-maiden and Natsu. "When the girl awakes, please tell her I am in her debt." Natsu nods. "I'll give her the message." Tsunade again grabs the ninja's shoulders, and begins showering him with questions. After her inquisitive rampage, the man looks to the ground. "I'll tell you what I remember. My entire squad was wiped out, and I don't mean hurt, but killed. Their heads were cut clean from their bodies. Out of all of us, I was the only one allowed to live. What makes the situation even more dire, was the fact that It only took one ninja to do all of us in. He wielded his hands like knives covered in chakra. He had the ability to attack people from the inside out. This man was young too. By looks, I'd say he was only two or three years older than Naruto." Tsunade gasps, beginning to form a mental picture of a man. "What color was his hair?" she asks the ninja. He looks her straight in the eyes. "His hair white, almost the color of snow. It wasn't very long though. It fell to a point just above his glasses." Tsunade looks to Shizune. "We only know of one ninja matching his description." Shizune nods. "I presume we will talk about this later?" Tsunade nods. Turning back to the revived ninja, she thanks him for his report. Moments after, the ninja leaves, told by Tsunade to go to the hospital to have his other injuries checked out. He nods, leaving Tsunade and Shizune alone with the Fairy Tail members. Turning back to Natsu and the others, Tsunade sighs. "I know that it's sudden and you haven't even had time to eat a decent meal, but I must ask for your help." Natsu stands up straighter. "You got it," he says. "Soon as Wendy rests up, I'll go burn this guy's ass to a crisp." Tsunade chuckles. " For now, I have something more important for you to do." Natsu frowns. "What could possibly be more important than hunting down the guy that just about killed one of your ninja?" he asks. Tsunade faces them. "I haven't told you this yet, but the Chaos village, is not exactly a village at all. It's more of a large group of ninja who have ganged together because of grudges against the Leaf Village. Every one of these ninja are elite, seasoned fighters who will stop at nothing to destroy the village we have sacrificed so much to defend." Natsu nods. "What do you want us to do?" he asks. Tsunade looks him in the eyes. "Because of the recent activity of the Chaos Village, we haven't exactly had many ninja in the village. We've had to send them out beyond the village to make sure the Chaos doesn't attack. The ninja we do have here are all way too inexperienced to be of any use. They are all genin, aside from one chunin." Natsu returns her stare. "What are you getting at?" he asks. Tsunade draws in a deep breath, preparing herself for what she plans to say. Finally finding the right words, she begins. "I know it's asking a lot, but some of the ninja have already taken to you. Naruto for instance, has already developed a respect for you, Natsu. My request is that you take these ninja, and make them strong enough to be of use when facing the Chaos village. Please, Fairy Tail, I need you to train them."