Chapter 25 - Stronger Than You
Porlyusica's Hut
Porlyusica was running several dozen tests on her grandson's eyes. The woman was very sure that something is very wrong with his eyes. Though all she could tell is that he could still see. Though the old mage can tell that Naruto's vision is a lot more sensitive but is somewhat sure that he isn't blind. As there isn't anything she can do to revert Naruto's eyes back to his original green.
"Siegfried Naruto, of all the things to happen to you. Your eyes are bright purple now. Even worse, you might as well sunglasses wherever you go." Porlyusica said.
"Granny, is papa okay?" Filo asked.
"As long as he isn't blind, I want to say yes." Porlyusica answered.
The old woman can't say she doesn't like Filo because Filo isn't a human, but a bird. That adds a third person to the list of people she likes. Two homunculi and a bird.
"Then can we still go on a mission?" Filo asked.
Porlyusica sighed, "Only short delivery missions. Just like the ones your father used to take when he was little like you." she said.
"Yay!" Filo cheered.
"Actually, I think your father was shorter than you at that age." Porlyusica said.
"I feel like you are angry at me." Naruto said.
"I'm concerned, not angry. As far as I know, you could go blind from staring at the sun for a split second." Porlyusica said. "Also, why are you so relaxed all of a sudden? You used to be too focused and stern." she asked.
"Am I?" Naruto asked as he looked around.
"Yes, quite so. I heard rumor that you were singing in the guild earlier." Porlyusica said.
Naruto sweat dropped, "Lies." he lied. "Anyways, I have to go take Filo on her mission." he said.
"Delivery missions only." Porlyusica said in a stern voice.
"We will." Naruto replied.
"No dark mage hunting!" Porlyusica added.
"You're no fun!" Naruto complained as he left.
Porlyusica sighed, "That boy is as big of a mess as his mother." she said while looking up at a photo of Mordred. "You better not be encouraging him from beyond the grave." she said.
At the guild, a little while later
Kinana happily stamped a small request for Filo, "Good luck Filo, you're in charge." she said.
"I'm the adult." Naruto pointed out.
"Yes, but Filo is closer to being C Class, you're still a D Class." Kinana replied with a bright smile.
Naruto glared at the new barmaid, "Laugh it up new girl. Just wait until you learn the guild curse." he said.
"What guild curse?" Kinana asked.
"You''ll know." Naruto said as he picked up Filo and started walking backwards.
"I guess he can't take a joke." Kinana said.
"Hey Kinana, can I get a hogi?" Max asked.
"Sure thing!" Kinana said as she walked into the kitchen.
Where it suddenly exploded and sent Kinana flying back. Unknown to most of the guild, most women under the age of 20 are incapable of making food for some reason. The closest female cook is Porlyusica and she's not going to waste energy making food for a bunch of humans.
With the father and daughter
Naruto placed Filo over his shoulders and started their journey. The girl giggled as she took in the sights and wondered what sorts of adventures they would have on the mission.
"Papa, what was your first mission like?" Filo asked curiously.
Naruto had three answers in his mind as Filo asked that. He had a good idea of what was the technical answer but his memories were still just mashing together.
-Paint a fence (First D Rank as Naruto)
-Fighting a scary guy with a big sword (First C Rank as Naruto)
-Deliver a generic package (First guild quest as Siegfried Naruto)
"Delivering a package." Naruto said.
"What kind of package?" Filo asked.
"The one where you go to jail for peeking like a creepy creeper. Don't spy on other people's mail Filo." Naruto said making Filo whine.
"That's a bad a story." Filo said.
"Maybe you're a bad listener. Did you think about that Filo?" Naruto asked, making Filo pout.
"I wonder how mama Erza and mama Mira are doing." Filo said.
"Probably beating up everyone unworthy of S Class." Naruto answered.
Hargeon train station, hours later
Filo yawned as they arrived at Hargeon, "Papa, are we almost there yet?" she asked.
Traveling between here and Magnolia, Filo and Naruto had picked up the requested package. Luckily Naruto came because the package is quite big and marked as fragile.
"Just the next town over Filo, it's less than an hour away on foot. We can grab lunch if you want." Naruto said.
"Yes papa, I'm hungry." Filo said as they walked out of the station.
As the pair moved around Hargeon and took in the sights. Naruto began to notice a swarm of people moving around. Keeping a tight hold of both the package and his adopted daughter, Naruto carefully navigated out of the crowd to get to a higher vantage point.
"Papa, why is everyone all close?" Filo asked.
"I don't Filo, maybe their favorite boy band is in town. If that's the case, Fiore's government will start quarantining." Naruto answered as he looked over the crowd.
The pair watched as the crowds converged around a man twirling around some swords. Naruto assumed this man was some local street performer who was famous around these parts. Naruto shook his head and prepared to leave to feed Filo when he heard something outrageous.
"Bask in my presence, for you are all blessed by the Azure Knight! Hero of Fiore!" the man said.
Naruto groaned, "Let's go Filo." he said.
"Yes, there are no more worries from any more dark mages when I arrive. No other mage could compare to me and I stand above the Wizard Saints themselves." the man said arrogantly.
"Papa, who's that weird guy?" Filo asked.
"Someone with the "stupid" disease, cover your mouth or else you'll be infected too Filo." Naruto answered as Filo followed her father's instructions.
The man then juggled his blades before striking a pose, "Now then Hargeon, would you like to see anything else or can we skip to the autographs? The Azure Knight does have places to be after all." he asked.
Just as Naruto was about to leave out of auditory range. He heard another someone else say something outrageous.
"Azure Knight, they say you are powerful, but you say you are stronger than the Wizard Saints themselves. Is it true or just hype?" asked a woman with heavy make up.
The man smirked, "Is that a challenge? From a lovely woman?" he asked. "I don't normally accept challenges from ladies, but I can make an exception." he said.
The woman smirked back, "Then you don't know who I am to be taking me so lightly." she said before a small group appeared behind her.
The man still looked confident, "I see, you are of a guild." he said.
"Not just any guild, we're Sabertooth, soon to be the strongest guild in all of Fiore. We only respect strength, not fancy titles or hype." the woman said.
"I see, then who wishes to go first?" the man asked as he drew two swords.
Filo frowned, "Papa, who are they? They can't be the strongest guild, when Fairy Tail is the strongest." she said.
Naruto's eyes widened, "It can't be. How long has it been?" he asked as he went back to the crowd. "Minerva?" he asked.
Minerva snapped her finger, "I'll go first, the rest of you can have what's left of him." she said.
Naruto narrowed his eyes as he saw the fight unfold. It was pathetic, but sure that man claiming to be Naruto had some degree of skill with swords. So much as he could use more than a pair at a time and use them with great precision, but it looked like an agile hedgehog fighting someone who was untouchable.
The impostor swung at Minerva with great speed and precision only to slip up as Minerva raised her hands. As the young woman blocked the sword strikes with her hands which were shielded by her magic. Minerva revealed a great deal of skill as she parried each attack before immediately switching places just as the impostor was charging her. Resulting in Minerva forcing the man to fall into a water fountain.
"What's wrong Azure Knight? If you can fight dangerous dark mages, surely you can handle one woman." Minerva said in a mocking tone.
The impostor growled as he came out of the fountain and extended his hands, "Flare Burst!" he yells as he ignites an explosion around Minerva.
Minerva merely smirked as she generated a barrier around herself. When the explosion died down, Minerva ran towards the impostor who tried to thrust his sword at her. Minerva dodged the blade and parried the second sword's swing with her magic. She kicked the impostor in the chest before punching him in the back of the neck causing him to stumble backwards as he nursed his wound. Before the impostor had the chance to recover and attack again, Minerva trapped him inside of a sphere with her spatial magic.
"Who are you?" Minerva asked.
"The Azure Knight and I'm going to kick your ass, you bitch!" The man said angrily.
Minerva frowned, "The Azure Knight?" she asked.
"Yes! Now let me down and fight me!" the man yelled.
"We've wasted enough time with this fraud." Minerva said before raising the sphere that restrained the man. "Territory Explosion." She said as the contents of the sphere exploded.
The man wasn't killed in the explosion, but his burnt body crashed hard into the ground. Leaving the man barely conscious as Minerva paid no mind to his massive injury. In fact, Minerva felt stupid for wasting so much time by giving that man attention.
"Listen up people of Hargeon, we are Sabertooth and this is our strength! That man was nothing more than an impostor who picked up tricks from a circus!" Minerva announced. "If you want legitimate strength, then you can only find it at Sabertooth! Not some fraud trying to steal someone else's reputation!" she added.
Some people were scared by Minerva's brutality at how she treated the man. At best, the man was probably a high C Class mage but he stood no chance against a wizard from Sabertooth. Then again, the crowd started to question the legitimacy of the man who claimed to be the Azure Knight. To be fair, some people didn't really know what Siegfried Naruto looked like unless they saw him on a newspaper without his armor or in that one Sorcerer Weekly magazine.
"And one more thing." Minerva spoke up again. "While we do not advertise our competition and rivals, we still admire strength. So it only infuriates me and our guild as a whole to see that man faking his identity. The Azure Knight, Siegfried Naruto, is a strong force to be reckoned with and not some street clown like that fool over there." she explained.
"That guy was a fake?"
"Freaking wasted our time for nothing."
"So lame!"
Feeling satisfied, Minerva smirked as she left the center of town with the rest of her team to complete her own mission. Naruto sighed as he looked at the injured man and could see signs that he was alive. It appeared that he would need some medical help, but there was likely little to no permanent injury. Minerva probably didn't want to harm a civilian and earn a bad reputation for her guild.
Sabertooth may be filled with arrogant blood thirsty wizards who want to prove their strength, but even they know not to get into legal trouble. Unlike Fairy Tail who often disregards the rules of the council and cause a lot of damage while on the job.
"Papa, she was scary." Filo said as she shivered.
"Don't worry Filo, stay close." Naruto said.
As the crowd started to disperse, a girl with dark hair and a white hairband with a ribbon looked at the impostor. The girl scoffed as she looked at the man angrily while clutching her blade.
"Worthless! He got my hopes up!" she said angrily.
Naruto carefully approached the girl, "Something the matter?" he asked.
The girl never looked at him, "I heard a rumor of the Azure Knight being here and it was some fraud. Likely a con artist too. It seems that Hargeon is the transit space for all sorts of filth." she said with anger in her voice.
That much is true. Just a couple of months ago, Lucy arrived in Hargeon where she ended up meeting Natsu for the first time. It ended with her meeting Bora, an excommunicated wizard from Titan Nose who attempted to kidnap young women to sell in another country. Unfortunately for Bora, Lucy and Natsu stopped his plan and the local military arrested the man after he claimed that it was part of his fictional modeling business.
"I see, are you a fan of the Azure Knight?" Naruto asked.
The girl closed her eyes and took a deep breath, "I owe him much gratitude." she answered.
Naruto nodded, "Good to hear, I heard his methods are questionable." he said earning a glare. "But he knows self restraint, unlike most people that justify themselves as the good guy." he said.
Naruto internally laughed at the reaction. This girl looked like she really respected him and she didn't even know Naruto's identity. It was hilarious to consider.
"While Siegfried Naruto does kill dark mages and goes out of his way to hunt them down. Many fail to see that he's not a blood lusted animal like the dark mages he hunts." the girl said.
"Good to hear that from another fan." Naruto said before turning back. "I'll see you around." he said as he left with Filo.
The girl stared at the back of Naruto's head for a while before a tall man stood over her.
"What happened here?" the man asked.
"Some upstart and fraud was injured by a Sabertooth wizard. There is nothing for us to see Simon." the girl said.
Simon scratched his neck awkwardly, "Okay, hopefully someone calls a doctor or something." he said. "Did you find what you what wanted Kagura?" he asked.
Kagura shook her head, "I thought I did." she said before leaving with her brother.
With Carla
Things back at the guild were relatively calm. Especially with the guild being empty of it's most powerful members and only a few less strong members sticking around to brawl. At least Kinana didn't have too much of a work load to worry about. Thus, things were much more peaceful and quiet compared to normal days. Unless you consider Nab finally picking a job to be a sign of omens.
At least until Carla looked shocked as if she had been hit with the most disturbing revelations. Panther Lily, who was nearby, had been the first to notice this.
"Hey, something wrong?" Panther Lily asked. Carla started muttering to herself, "Hey, I asked if you're alright!" He spoke up more loudly.
"No, something is wrong. Very wrong." Carla answered.
"What happened?" Panther Lily asked.
"I saw something, I saw many things. They are all happening on the island." Carla muttered.
"What are you talking about?" Panther Lily asked.
Carla took a deep breath as she stated what she saw. Even Kurama, who was nearby, paid close attention to Carla's prediction. With the bijuu having a hard time understanding what the exceed had seen.
By the time Carla finished, she told Panther Lily that they needed to warn everyone on the island. The two were being idiotic from the sounds of things. For Carla suggested that they should go alone and while Kurama was tempted to follow them for the sake of Wendy's safety. However, Kurama thought it would be a good idea to wait for someone else he knew who would be very capable in helping whatever was going down on Tenrou Island.
'Move your ass Gaki.' Kurama thought.
Back with Naruto and Filo
Filo couldn't help but giggle at her adoptive father. The little girl couldn't help it, Naruto looked so silly wearing sunglasses indoors like he's some old man pretending to be a cool and hip youngster. It didn't help that the waitress at the restaurant would give him a weird eye roll when she saw his face.
"You look silly papa." Filo said.
"Why is that?" Naruto asked.
"You look like an old man pretending to be cool." Filo answered.
Naruto sighed, "Do you remember why papa has to wear these?" he asked as he lowered his sunglasses.
Filo giggled again, "Now you look like a crazy person." she said.
Clearly the Rinnegan didn't make Filo see Naruto as a more respectable person. It wasn't that Filo thought less of her father or lost any respect. She just didn't take his new appearance seriously. It didn't matter, the whole sudden power shift going on in Naruto's body was too complicated.
'I bet I'll be stronger than I was in the past life. I think I'm at the very least stronger than when I fought Pain.' Naruto thought as he finished his lunch.
"That was tasty papa." Filo said as she finished as well.
"I'm glad you liked it Filo." Naruto said as he asked the waitress for the check.
When the two left, they started making their way out of Hargeon. Heading directly toward the path of the city where the intended receiver of the package is. Filo puffed her cheeks before coming to a stop.
"Something wrong Filo?" Naruto asked.
"Why can't we travel when I'm in bird form?" Filo asked.
"You can walk beside me as a bird if you want." Naruto replied.
Filo shook her head, "No papa, we'll still move slow." she said.
"Then I'll jog beside you." Naruto suggested.
"Ride my back papa. I can get us there super fast." Filo said.
Naruto sighed, "Filo, I'm too heavy for you." He said. "Besides, you might drop the package on the way. I don't exactly trust your feathers to work as a good pouch." he said.
"You can hold it papa. I can carry you. One time, I carried mama Erza while she wore her armor." Filo said.
Naruto saw that this argument was going nowhere, "Fine, only for a little while. Otherwise you will get tired." He said.
Giving into his daughter's demands. Naruto took the package from Filo's hands as the girl turned into a bird. With some hesitation, Naruto grabbed onto Filo and had to adjust to sitting on. As she didn't have a saddle or anything for him to hang onto. As Filo did initially complain about Naruto pulling on her feather's too roughly.
Eventually, the two started moving with Naruto having to hang on tight as Filo decided to go at full speed. Filo's movement was amazing, but Naruto felt concerned for the girl's stamina. It left him wondering how long Filo could move at such a speed before getting tired.
'I guess this counts as a workout for her.' Naruto thought as they travelled for over a half hour this way.
Along the way, Naruto saw a man in jet black armor riding a hamster with a pretty pale woman sitting right behind him. The armored man looked at Naruto's mode of transportation before nodding.
"Nice bird." the man said as a compliment.
"Nice hamster." Naruto complimented back.
"Where did you find it?" the man asked.
"In the forest and you?" Naruto asked.
"The forest, people leave the strangest animals around." the armored man said before taking a different turn.
Naruto shrugged as the man in the jet black armor left, "That guy seems nice." he said as the next town started coming up. "Slow down Filo, we're almost there and you might overexert yourself." He said as the girl started to slow down.
"Okay… papa… I do… good?" Filo asked between pants.
Naruto got off of Filo's back, "Yes Filo, now you need to rest." he said.
Filo reverted back to normal and had to be scooped up in Naruto's arms. The man sighed as he expected something like this to happen. Though he was lucky that Filo had enough speed and energy to make it this far so quickly. Now all they had to do was turn in their package and be done with it.
Upon arrival, they saw that the town's people looked very busy. For some reason, they were all crowded around the center of town. Naruto paid no mind to it and just followed the address of where the package was meant to be taken to. Which appeared to be a small shop didn't appear to be too busy.
"Hello, how may I help you?" the shopkeep asked.
"We're from the Fairy Tail guild. We're here to deliver your package." Naruto said as he put the package on the counter.
"Oh, thank you!" the shopkeep said gratefully.
"By the way, is there a festival or something going on outside? There's quite the crowd." Naruto asked.
Filo gasped with excitement, "Does that mean there will be snacks?" she asked.
The shopkeeper sighed, "I'm afraid that's not the case. There was an issue the other day." he said. "Here in Bernia, our main export is an ale we specialize in making. Some thugs came in and drank up a whole lot without paying." he continued.
"I'm assuming that crowd isn't from a group of dine and dashers?" Naruto asked.
The shopkeeper shook his head, "If it were that easy, we would just have reported them to the guards." he said. "The issue is the thugs were from a guild and had some strong magic. So after a scuffle, one of those idiots stabbed the ground with a big axe and it cut off the flow to our well where we get the water needed for the ale." he explained.
Naruto looked out the door, "I'm guessing maybe some magic is keeping it stuck?" he asked.
"Probably, our strongest men and women keep trying to remove it. Even worse, those jerks are "offering" to remove the axe for a price." the shopkeeper said finishing the tale.
Filo started tugging on her father's leg, "Papa, you can take it out right? You're super strong." she said.
The shopkeeper was so stressed from telling his story, he forgot he was speaking with two mages. He didn't have much faith in the little girl since he doesn't know what she can do but Naruto appeared capable of something.
"Is there by any chance that you or someone from your guild could could remove that axe?" The shopkeeper asked.
Naruto sighed, "Might as well, it's probably nothing too bad." he said.
"Oh, can you also take out the sword in the rock too?" Filo asked.
"What?" Naruto asked.
"The sword in the rock. While you were gone, mama Erza along with everyone else tried to remove a sword that was stuck in a rock." Filo explained.
Naruto immediately remembered the sword that Makarov told him about. Naruto shook his head at Filo.
"Sorry Filo, only someone worthy can remove the sword." Naruto answered.
"Worthy?" Filo asked.
"Someone really amazing, maybe the next guild master." Naruto said before heading outside.
At the axe
Naruto groaned as he saw a giant axe stuck in the ground, "I have no idea how they guessed this was the right path." he said as he walked through the crowd.
Naruto then gestured for everyone to move back. As he could sense a lot of magic keeping the axe glued to the ground and potentially creating a geyser once it's removed. Naruto extended an arm as he started tapping into Susanoo. However, instead of creating a giant skeleton as he would normally start with. Naruto's control only extended to his free arm as a skeleton shaped arm grabbed onto the axe.
With minor difficulty, Naruto pulled out the axe and immediately started plugging up the water that started pouring out. When that was all done, everyone cheered for Naruto who proceeded to seal away the barbaric weapon. The local mayor even ran up to Naruto shake his hand with much gratitude.
"Thank you good sir! You've done us quite the service!" the mayor said cheerfully.
"It was nothing, really." Naruto said.
"Then please, stay for the moment. We were preparing for an upcoming festival, until it was ruined by those thugs." the mayor said. "Now, we don't have to cancel it at all." he said.
Naruto looked at Filo who smiled, "I'm sure brief stay won't do any harm." he said.
"Yay!" Filo cheered.
With the Tenrou group
The ship that carried Makarov and his S Class candidates had finally made it's way to Tenrou Island. However, the ship had stopped in place with Makarov having no intention to dock and just drop them off. As he gave them the first test of the exam. All of them had to race to the island, but none would be disqualified if they arrived last or arrived too late compared to everyone else.
No, the trick would be reducing everyone's chances of succeeding. Because the trick is that there are 6 tunnels and two of them are guaranteed to make two teams battle it out. So two would automatically be eliminated, three other tunnels would lead to an S Class mage who would battle a respective candidate and their partner, and the one tunnel is free of any danger so the lucky pair can move onto part two with no difficulty.
"From here on, anything is game and there will be no penalty for the use of any kind of magic. Now go brats!" Makarov announced.
With that, everyone began to make their way out. Actually, it was just Freed and Bickslow as the green haired man had already stepped off of the ship and used his jutsu shiki to trap everyone onboard.
"All is fair in love and war! Do not hold this against me!" Freed exclaimed.
"Yeah, because we LOVE winning!" Bickslow said, followed by some laughter.
Levy quickly made a small exit for herself using her own magic, but made it temporary as to not let everyone else out. Leaving everyone to try and think outside of the box in an attempt to reach the island.
"Those brats are going to destroy this ship before they even touch the sand." Makarov said.
"It's just the new generation Master. Everyone wants to do things their own way." Gildarts said.
Makarov scoffed, "Give me a heart attack from all of these expenses maybe. This is our only boat Gildarts, there are no other ships. Not all of us can fly or walk on water like Naruto and Wendy." He said.
Meanwhile, Wendy was trying her best to help Mest. As she was walking on the water and breaking the laws of physics using what her adoptive father taught her. Mest was panicking as he struggled to swim. While he wasn't drowning, Mest looked like a panicked hyena that was doggy paddling.
"We need to move! The good tunnels are being taken!' Mest shouted.
Wendy felt lost, confused and scared, as well as feeling unsure as to what to do with Mest. Wendy thought about pulling Mest but she knew she lacked the strength to carry him. As well as the fact that Mest would pull her down into the ocean with him. Wendy wouldn't be able to walk on the water again if she was between the surface and water. Wendy heard that the technique can supposedly let users climb on top of water, but she wasn't sure if that was true due to her not turning water into a solid.
"You can do it Mest! Just move faster!" Wendy said in an attempt to motivate him.
"I'm trying but nothing is working!" Mest shouted as he rapidly flails his hands like an idiot.
Makarov shook his head as he saw that pathetic display, but didn't want to give up hope on the man.
With Cana and Lucy
The girls were rapidly swimming across the ocean as if they were about to be swallowed by a sea monster. Once they made it to shore, they didn't think twice about resting or even drying off as they made their way to the first cave that Cana picked. Feeling only a surge of urgency, the girls only considered catching their breaths once inside of the cave.
Deep down, Lucy hoped that she picked the cave that lead to no danger whatsoever. It sounded cowardly, but it was the most prefered compared to fighting an S Class mage. Luckily, neither of them would have to worry about fighting Gildarts, Cana or Erza depending on however those three would have arrived despite them staying behind on the ship after everyone left.
"Remember Lucy, Naruto always said to be active but not be distracted by anxiety." Cana said.
"Yeah, I'm the one who feels the most anxious here." Lucy said sarcastically.
Then they heard the voice of their opponents. The very first obstacle in their path to Cana reaching her promotion.
"Look what we have here Freed." Bickslow said as he came walking in with Freed.
"It appears that fate has requested a rematch." Freed said as he drew his sword.
Lucy and Cana already started to sweat in fear as the two girls already faced these two when Laxus attempted to overthrow Makarov. Lucy losing and possibly losing her life had Leo not appeared to save her and finish off Bickslow. Whereas Cana stood no chance against Freed when they encountered each other.
It was all in the past, and the girls had to remind themselves of that. In other words, being S Class didn't matter if foes would be scary and stronger than them. There's no excuse to run away, only another chance to improve from previous past mistakes.
"Are you ready Cana?" Lucy asked.
"Of course." Cana said, smiling as she started feeling more confident.
Cana then looked into the palm of her hand and saw a new pack of cards that have yet to be opened. She glanced at Lucy and saw a strange device that looked a lot like a pocket knife with a shiny metal.
'Let's hope your gifts work Naruto… because we sure as hell didn't practice.' Cana thought.
Just then, as Bickslow attempted the first strike by using his "babies" as a weapon. Lucy drew her pocket knife, but the blade extended and stretched around as if it were made of taffy. Before Bickslow could properly initiate his attack, Lucy started swinging her weapon around like a whip. Resulting in the flying totems being hit and sent crashing into the ground. By the time Bickslow noticed Lucy's new moves, he was already hit in the side of the head and sent falling onto the ground.
"Okay, girlie has a new toy. I think I better take this seriously." Bickslow said.
"Then we better be cautious around Cana as well." Freed said.
"Your turn Cana!" Lucy said while giving a thumbs up.
Cana started to sweat but looked calm, 'Okay, only Lucy practiced. Maybe Naruto was right about drunk girls not being attractive.' she thought. 'Screw it, alcohol is life!' she thought as she opened her new card pack.
With Levy
Levy smiled as she saw that the end of the tunnel is the one that guaranteed her a free pass to the next portion of the exam. There, she saw Makarov already sitting down and waiting for the candidates to arrive.
"Ah, Levy and Gajeel, congratulations on passing the first portion." Makarov said.
"Thank you master." Levy replied gratefully.
"Hey this is a rip off! I wanted to fight Titania!" Gajeel roared.
Makarov sighed, "The exams are not just a battle of the body Gajeel. They are also a battle of the mind and soul." he said.
Gajeel scoffed, "I'd believe that the same day that bunny girl's partner decides to be sober and Titania stops getting physical with her punishments." he said.
Gajeel did have a point, whenever someone in some organization or group brought up responsibility not being about strength. Strength tends to be a heavy weight and requirement. Maybe deep down, those people just feel inferior when someone who's not an arrogant maniac will have more power despite not being as wise or intelligent as their fellow man. For example, Gildarts is the only S Class wizard in Fairy Tail who doesn't resort to violence right away or act cocky about his power.
Sure he's not smart like Levy and some of the other guild members, but Gajeel earned his rank many years ago.
"Then perhaps you can earn some wisdom for when you are nominated Gajeel. After all, your purpose is to assist Levy, not do battle." Makarov said.
Gajeel cursed under his breath, "Fine, I'll help shrimp get promoted. Only so I can get nominated next." he said.
Makarov laughed in response, "Good to hear that you are motivated and planning for the future! In fact, when Naruto officially returns, you can fight him!" he said, scaring Gajeel as a result. "Oh don't be like that Gajeel. I hate to say it, but Naruto isn't an active mage. He would start off at D Class when he returns." he said, adding more insults.
Levy giggled at the thought, 'I guess that means I outrank my big brother. Actually, I think Wendy and Filo are both C Class by now.' she thought.
"There is no way that psychopath is D Class!" Gajeel exclaimed. "Thinking about it, the rain woman was S Class back in Phantom. Why did she get nominated?" he asked while referring to Juvia.
"My rankings and Jose's rankings are different. Besides, Fairy Tail is always better." Makarov said.
Before any more arguments continued, two more people arrived. Namely, Evergreen and Elfman with the former carrying the Strauss over her shoulder.
"We did it! We beat my sister!" Elfman exclaimed.
"You two defeated the barmaid?" Gajeel asked.
Elfman suddenly looked ashamed, "We're not proud of how we did it." he said as Evergreen also looked ashamed.
"A victory is a victory, regardless of the circumstances." Makarov said. That's when Erza arrived afterwards, "I see the same cannot be said about Juvia and Cana." he said.
"Tenacity and determination are one thing, but they lack the strength and confidence master." Erza said with the shake of her head.
"I was saying with everyone else, this can be a good learning lesson for next year or the year after that." Makarov said with Erza nodding. "Perhaps you can have your rematch if Naruto earns a nomination." he said.
"Why would Naruto need to be nominated?" Elfman asked.
"We just mentioned that Naruto is technically still a D Class mage." Levy said with a giggle.
"Very well, if it comes to that. We will break our tie." Erza said with a proud smile.
"There is no tie you liar. You and that other girl won because Naruto took a nap. He was a lot harsher on me when we fought and I had back up the second time." Gajeel pointed out.
Erza frowned at the statement. It was very true, but she kept it to herself. Naruto lost because he gave up the will to keep fighting when Mira spoke to him. Even then, it felt like Naruto was getting stiff when he used higher tier powers.
"Enough, worry about yourselves first. You still have an exam to complete once everyone else arrives." Makarov said.
Elsewhere, off the coast of the island
Unbeknownst to the guild, dark forces were approaching the sacred land belonging to Fairy Tail. The airship belonging to Grimoire Heart, a leading dark guild in the Balam Alliance, was making it's way towards the island. Where the dark guild's master, Hades, was having a meeting to his elite group. Otherwise known as the Seven Kin of Purgatory, who were all very powerful as they were trained under Hades himself.
"What is this? I didn't agree to carry around antiques." one of the Seven Kin, Zancrow, said rudely.
"Know your place Zancrow. If Master Hades is offering something to you, be grateful." Ultear said. "Though, if I may ask. What are these weapons?" she asked her master.
In front of the Seven Kin were several swords of odd designs. Some looked didn't look like weapons at all and to call them swords would give a strange impression from other. However, Hades was not senile or foolish to present odd objects without reason.
"These are weapons of the shinobi lands. Belonging to seven of the strongest swordsmen in one of their villages." Hades said.
"If these weapons are remotely as good as their users. Why aren't they in some special storage?" Kain Hikaru asked.
"For all the pride they boast in those lands, shinobi have no sense of security. They would sooner begin wars rather than purchase a padlock." Hades answered.
Most of the group thought their master was crazy, but he did have a point. When have the Elemental Nations every put any priority on guaranteed security on sensitive materials and weapons? It doesn't matter if only a few people can use the weapons they steal, the fact that one tool capable of demolishing a small army is stolen by anyone is definitely worth concern.
If it were possible, the Akatsuki probably would have stolen all the bijuu using nothing but a paperclip, a hairpin, a stick of gum and some mentos for good measure.
"Regardless, each of these blades has a unique ability of it's own." Hades stated.
Rustyrose stepped forward, "Surely you are joking Master Hades. Really, look at this one. It's covered in bandages." he said while pointing at Samehada. "Are these weapons capable of harming themselves?" he asked as he proceeded to grab the handle.
Hades remained silent as Rustrose was stabbed by Samehada's silver haired man collapsed onto his back as he gripped his hand in pain. This caused Zancrow and a couple of others to laugh while the rest of the Seven Kin just looked at him in disappointment.
"You are no better than Zancrow, Rustyrose. Master Hades is no fool and as you can see, there was good reason for it." Azuma said, thinking that Rustyrose's injury as divine punishment.
Zancrow laughed, "Whatever, I guess pompadour head isn't likable. See? I'm holding it just fine." he said as he raised Samehada into the air.
"You little…!" Rustyrose tried to curse.
"Enough, these weapons are powerful, but dangerous to any fool that does not use them properly. Select one now and prepare for our arrival." Hades said.
"This one looks easy to use, but is it even a real sword?" Kain asked as he picks up Kabutowari.
"Normally, I wouldn't carry around something so heavy, but I will trust Master Hades as it fits my abilities." Azuma said as he picks up Shibuki.
"I will have to make due with this." Meredy said as she picked up the Kiba blades.
"This looks simple, but elegant." Ultear said as she picks up Nuibari.
"I feel that this weapon is quite too big, but I will have to work with it." Capricorn said as he swings around Kubikiribocho.
Rustyrose sighed as he was left with Himerakarei, "Then I'm stuck with this hideous thing." he said.
"Good, now be ready. The island and Lord Zeref is only a few meters away." Hades said, leaving everyone to adjsut to their new weapons.
Back with Siegfried
The little festival had taken a while to start, but it wasn't anything big with the sudden change of plans. Though Filo seemed to enjoy herself as the festivities entertained her young mind.
"Are you having fun Filo?" Naruto asked.
"Yes papa, can we get some snacks?" Filo asked.
"Sure, but not too much. You mothers will kill me if they learn that you spoiled your dinner." Naruto answered.
Filo nodded, "Only a little bit." she said as she grabbed Naruto's hand to pull him around.
As Naruto purchased some cotton candy for Filo. He was surprised to meet another familiar face from some time ago. As Naruto was relaxing with Filo, he was shocked to see a large exceed approach him.
"Queen Shagotte?" Naruto asked as he saw the exceed queen approach him with her guards.
"You are the Earthland counterpart of Achilles Menma, correct? A member of the guild who saved my people?" Shagotte asked.
"That is I." Naruto answered. "What brings you out here?" he asked.
Shagotte took a deep breath, "I cannot answer that right now. I have come with a dire warning about your guild." she said.
"What do you know?" Naruto asked, activating his senses to detect lies.
"I had told a girl from your guild, Wendy I believe is her name, about my unique ability of clairvoyance. I can see images of the near future and it affects your guild." Shagotte explained.
"I do not always take prophecy seriously." Naruto answered.
(God of War OST - Echoes of an Old Life)
"Then heed my warning as advice to consider at the very least." Shagotte said, almost pleading with him.
"What is it that you saw that could be so bad?" Naruto asked.
From there, Shagotte spoke in a cryptic message. Deep down, detailing what she had seen and what is to come. Despite the future not being very clear with the details. And thus, the exceed queen had told these things to Naruto.
The most beautiful individual will die a needless death
The watcher will sound the horn to warn of the end times
A traitor will return from the underworld with an army of the deceased
Those who did not pass on in a glorious death will be amongst them
The ruler of fairies will call upon those who did pass on with a glorious death
They will help fight against the end times
The father will be meet his fate in the jaws of the wolf
The son will be poisoned by a serpent
A great tidal wave will wash over the sacred land
When it is over, those left, will rebuild in the aftermath
The most beautiful individual will return
And finally, the two children will succeed where their predecessors did not
Following the footsteps of their father
Where they will not repeat the mistakes of the past
Naruto shook his head, "I don't do riddles either, your majesty." he said.
"I have a difficult time understand them myself. If I knew your group better, it may have helped me explain the events more clearly." Shagotte said in a sad tone.
Naruto sighed, "I'll have to head home then. Maybe I can get a better idea of what this all means." he said.
"Very well, pardon my interruption." Shagotte said.
Naruto nodded, "It's fine, I should get Filo and…" he stopped and looked. "Filo? he called out,
At that very moment, Naruto felt the immediate fear that every parent has. Losing their child.
Naruto ran across the crowd and started scanning for his daughter. Being mere moments from performing an earth jutsu to literally flip the entire village upside down just to find the filolial girl.
Never had Naruto believed that he would feel the anxiety of losing a child and feeling the panic attack of not finding Filo. Naruto shook his head, he did his best to keep a calm mind. He took off his sunglasses and started looking around for Filo's chakra pathway. Naruto looked around wildly as he expected to run after the smallest chakra signature, even if it looked like a bright blue dot in the distance.
"There!" Naruto exclaimed as he ran towards the first literal dot that he saw.
It was quite easy as the town was mostly filled with civilians. None with any sign of magic from the looks of things, making things less obscure for Naruto to search. For when Naruto managed to make it passed the crowd, he found Filo standing in front of a little stall where a short man was working on some metallic wears.
"Filo!" Naruto shouted.
"There you are Papa!" Filo said cheerfully.
"Filo! I was the one looking for you! Why did you run off on your own?" Naruto asked in a scolding tone.
Filo recoiled at her father's tone, "I'm sorry papa." she said sounding instantly depressed.
Naruto sighed as he realized he scared the girl, "Filo, just tell papa why you were wondering off on your own." he said.
Filo wiped her watery eyes away, "I got curious papa, I didn't mean to make you mad." she said.
"I'm not mad Filo, I was scared." Naruto replied, surprising Filo. "I thought I was going to have a heart attack when I lost you." He said.
"I'm sorry papa, I won't do it again." Filo said, apologizing again.
"Look, just promise to stay with me before going anywhere. There's bad people who would want to kidnap you." Naruto said with Filo nodding.
The man working the stall gave a small chuckle, "I'm glad to see you two worked that out. I was getting worried about a little girl running around by herself." he said.
"How long has Filo been here?" Naruto asked the man.
"About a couple of minutes, I guess my wares caught her eye." the man answered. "Still, I was just about to ask about her parents when you showed up sir." he said.
Naruto sighed, "I see." he said.
"Papa, when I went by myself. I saw this store and thought I should buy a present for mama Erza and mama Mira." Filo said.
Naruto sighed, "Filo, just tell me next time." he said.
The man laughed, "You really should, little girl. You're lucky I'm not a creeper. There used to be this red haired knight that got into trouble because of a problem with a little girl he tried to forcefully adopt." he explained.
"Was that the same man who claimed that the little girl he found was of noble birth?" Naruto asked, having remembered that story.
"I think so, he said something about her saving Fiore. I know the kingdom ain't perfect, but he practically kidnapped that kid." the man explained. "But that's old history, he got his but kicked by Fairy Tail's Titania." he added.
"Mama Erza beat up a creepy man?" Filo asked.
"Erza? No young lady, it was another woman who went by the title. Her name was, Mortus? Morbid?" he asked, making Naruto frown.
"Mordred." Naruto interrupted.
"Yeah, Mordred was her name!" the man confirmed. "The woman had a good soul. Though I wish I got a look at that sword and armor. Classic Titania was arguably the strongest woman in Fiore in her time." He explained.
"You're a blacksmith?" Naruto asked.
"A good one." the man confirmed. "Though it's hard finding anyone appreciative of the art. They just grab what looks nice and sharp and discard it when it gets rusted. I'm better off making Knick Knacks." he continued to explain.
"Can I have a sword papa?" Filo asked.
Naruto shook his head, "You're still too small to be using a sword. Besides, you don't even use weapons." he answered.
"You and mama Erza can teach me." Filo said as she tugged on Naruto's pants.
"Then you can ask permission from her." Naruto countered, making Filo pout. "Anyways, is there anything you want besides a sword?" he asked.
Filo looked back at the man's wares for a moment, "Take your time child. Pick the one thing out that you defines the love for your mother." the man said.
"I need to pick two, because I have two mama's." Filo replied.
"Okay, then think it more… did you say two?" the man asked before looking at Siegfried. "Are you polyg-"
"You're not allowed to ask." Naruto interrupted.
"Okay." the man quickly responded.
On the road
After letting Filo pick out souvenirs for Erza and Mirajane. Naruto took his adopted daughter and started traveling back to Fairy Tail. During the brief disappearance off Filo, Naruto forgot about Queen Shagotte's sudden appearance and her strange warning. It was so detailed, Naruto could hardly remember the whole prophecy she came up with. What's worse is the fact that it was very vague and couldn't explain what the details meant.
'I'm guessing Carla gets her rude and arrogant attitude from her father.' Naruto thought as he quickly made his way down the road.
"Papa, how long is the island test?" Filo asked, referring to the trials.
"Hm? Oh, less than a week. It takes about a day to arrive and a day to get back. Maybe less depending on the winds." Naruto said, though not entirely sure himself.
"Okay." Filo said, accepting the answer. "Oh no, I should have got something for Wen." she said.
Naruto snorted, "I'm sure Wendy won't mind." he said. "Besides, you two can go on a mission together when she comes back." he added.
As they continued to travel. Naruto was thinking about more about Shagotte's words, at least what he could remember.
'Needless death? A horn? The underworld? Was she smoking something?' Naruto mentally asked. 'What does end times mean?' he kept asking himself.
He didn't want to take it seriously considering it's Carla's mom and Carla is a bit of a hypocrite. Considering the fact that Carla often gets angry and points out everyone else's flaws while doing nothing to bring anything of value to a mission is just a sign of arrogance and hindrance. So there was no assurance that Shagotte's message meant something or she assumed Naruto understood every word she said.
'Still, I should head back to the guild as quickly as possible.' Naruto thought as he placed Filo over his shoulders. "Hang on Filo, we should get back home quickly." he said.
"Okay papa." Filo responded.
In The Outskirts of Magnolia
A young hooded man with eyes as blue as ice looked over Magnolia. He gritted his teeth as he felt an insatiable anger. He formed a sphere of blue chakra in one hand and smashed the technique into a rock. The resulting explosion reduced his rage a bit before he started marching towards Magnolia.
Until a rude man stopped him, "Hey! Where are you going!?" he asked.
The young man's ice cold eyes turned to see a shaggy looking man who would be best described as a homeless looking man who had taken too many mushrooms from the forest. From his shaggy and skinny look to his clearly aggressive stance towards the young man.
"You wanna go into town? You have someone to see?" The rude man asked.
"I don't have to talk to you." the young man said.
The rude man then grabbed him, "You do when I want you to. Why the angry face?" he asked.
The younger man growled as he slammed another blue sphere into the rude man. Making him crash into a tree with a sickening crack following it. However, it wasn't over as the man stood up and threw the upper half of the tree at the young man who hit the ground hard.
"I'm just striking conversation. You don't have to be rude." the rude man said. The rude man then picked up the man by the scruff of his shirt, "I don't feel a lot of things, but your anger. I can feel it and it hurts me so much, I feel like I have a skin rash." he said.
The younger man slammed his fist across the rude man's jaw. The rude man dropped the younger man and held his chin before being kicked in the stomach and kneed in the chin. However, the younger man recovered and proceeded to slam his face against his foe's face. The collision ended with the young man falling onto the ground while clutching his broken nose.
At the same time, his hood fell off to reveal blond spiky hair and some feral looking cheek marks. The rude man gazed at the young man before laughing.
"You have to be joking. Let me guess, Naruto Uzumaki?" the man asked. The young man snarled as he struggled to stand, "Correction, Uzumaki impostor. A dirty one that had it's feeling hurt and thinks it's the real deal. What does baby have to cry about now?" the man asked.
The Naruto imposter retaliated with another Rasengan to the man's chest, but this time. The aggressor retaliated by standing his ground slamming his elbow down the fake Naruto's arm. Causing a loud crack to be heard all around the nearby forest. The man laughed as he proceeded to lift up the impostor over his head and slam him into the pavement.
"Come on boy, at least challenge me. You won't believe how many people like to play dress up these days." the man said before being bum rushed into a nearby rock. "You're not the real deal, now are you?" he asked as he slammed his elbow into the fake Naruto's back.
After a few seconds of fighting, the mysterious aggressor threw the fake Naruto onto the ground. Where he proceeded to step on his back and rubbing the heel of his foot.
"Tell me "Naruto Uzumaki", what's your story?" the man asked.
"To get rid of that impostor that's been impersonating me first. Then kill you!" the fake yelled.
The man laughed and clapped, "Wow, so angry! Listen friend, if you're going to be acting like a mentally unstable boy who got his feelings hurt, try… cosplaying as the Uchiha." he said before kicking the imposter across the forest. "Because then, I might believe you. You don't even have the looks done right!" he added as he rushes at the fake Naruto.
"I AM Naruto Uzumaki!" The impostor growls as his eyes turn red with black slits.
"Ooh, scary." the man joked as magic circles appear all over his body. "Let's see if you're really worth facing that Azure Knight. Because no one is hitting my prey first." he said as he radiated with energy.
The battle of Fairy Tail wasn't just going to take place on Tenrou Island.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Omake #1 - Amazing Hearing
In Xadia
Tiadrin was horrified as she was frozen by Viren who was trying to destroy the egg of the dragon queen. Just as the man had recovered and picked up his staff. Tiadrin realized something when Viren casted the ice spell on her.
"You're a dark mage, aren't you?" Tiadrin asked.
Viren didn't have to answer, but his silence and his ability to cast magic without a catalyst answered that question. However, what Tiadrin didn't realize is that she spoke way too loud. It wasn't like there was an echo and she wasn't raising her voice. Yet, it was still loud enough for someone to hear.
In Fiore
Siegfried Naruto was enjoying his ramen beside Filo when he suddenly heard Tiadrin's voice.
"Dark mage!? Where!?" Naruto asked as he got up and left.
Filo pouted, "Stupid dark mages! They take all of papa's time away from me!" she shouted. "I'm gonna slay dark mages too so papa works less!" she said while wiping away her tears.
In Xadia
Just as Viren was about to smash the dragon egg before being lied about the egg being made into a good weapon. Viren suddenly felt immense killing intent directed at him. It was so bad, the Dragon King's killing intent felt equivalent to that of an injured rodent. Viren turned around and saw Naruto glaring at him (imagine Yelena's glare).
"Who are you?" Viren asked.
"Die dark mage!" Naruto roared.
Viren immediately casted another ice spell, but Naruto managed to absorb it with the Preta path. Viren then tried a spell that summoned snakes that can turn into binding chains but those got cut up. Finally, he tried just summoning a blob of darkness which also got absorbed. BY the time Viren just settled on using his staff like a blunt weapon. Naruto already sliced off his hand and proceeded to dig his fingers into his skull.
"What are you doing? The elves are the enemy! They want to destroy humanity!" Viren shouted.
"You're the one trying to destroy a baby egg!" Tiadrin exclaimed.
Viren suddenly felt terrified under Naruto's gaze, "Your punishment is to have your soul ripped out." Naruto said.
Viren scoffed, "What sort of delusional and unrealistic magic…" he never finished his sentence due to the Human path ripping out his soul.
Just then, King Harrow came running in, "Viren, have you destroyed the egg?" he asked. Then he noticed an angry Naruto, "You killed Viren!" he shouted as he charged at Naruto.
A day later
Ezran was now King and looked down at his father, "I'm sad that mom died too, but you almost killed a baby!" he yelled.
"Ezran, maybe I was in the wrong. I admit, Viren led me down a dark path." Harrow said.
"Dad… you're a handful!" Ezran shouted ironically. "Your eternal punishment is to bake jelly tarts in the kitchen." he said.
Harrow hanged his head in depression, "Okay." he said reluctantly.
That's when Ezran saw Soren and Callum carrying Claudia who was bound and gagged. Claudia was screaming and begging for her life as the boys were talking about burning her at the stake. Ezran shrugged it off as his brother and Soren were in the right. All according to the holy text that Naruto gave them.
Cleansing The Mindless Beasts: Death To Dark Mages
"It's Claudia's fault for following in the footsteps of a dark mage." Ezran said as Bait nodded in the background. "You never know when Claudia could turn evil and make a bad excuse. That's if she makes an excuse." he said as he eats his jelly tarts with his pets.
End of Omake
QA with Siegfried Naruto
Question #1 (Lucian Naruto):Did Mirajane ever receive that Siegfried doll as a gift from Lisanna?
Naruto: I saw Lisanna buy a few, so I wouldn't doubt she stuffed one onto Mira. She's pretty much in denial despite Erza's help.
Question #2 (Guest): Siegfried and God Serena know each other? What happened between these two that Siegfried didn't like the guy?
Naruto: *Yelena style glare*
R0tatcid: We'll cover that soon, I promise. Don't you glare at me! Get that Flapjack style glare out of here!
Question #3 (Guest): Siegfried, are you afraid of ghosts? Naruto Uzumaki was afraid of ghosts, and since you are him, are you also afraid of ghosts? Soon you will receive a visit from Mavis.
Naruto: You would assume that with me managing to survive an encounter with a pagan god, I wouldn't be afraid. However, I'm going to assume my Rinnegan's Human Path which has the ability to rip out souls can also absorb ghosts! It's not my fault if I send Mavis to Valhalla!
Question #4 (Guest):Siegfried, did you know that those who don't eat their vegetables are more likely to become Dark Mages?
Naruto: Lies! My holy book does not prove that to be a true statement! Green leaves are the embodiment of evil!
Question #5 (Curious Fan): What happened to Erza after Siegfried ran away from the guild? He was already injured, but after Erza pushed him, the wound on his back must have opened up even more. Since he ran away that day, he must have left blood in the place. Did Makarov come to know that this was Erza's fault? If so, what did he do with her? And Erza, did she go back to the Infirmary to apologize to Siegfried? Did she see what her ignorance had wrought? Did she see Siegfried's blood where she made him fall?
Naruto: That is a super long question. In a nutshell, grandfather basically grounded Erza and a few others for bullying me. They were punished by having their magic sealed for a brief period to see how tough life is without having OP magic to back them up. Erza did go back and the flashback of her approaching Gildarts showed that she confirmed that she "punished" me which earned her a punishment in return. Honestly, it was these moments where Erza started getting a wake up call.
Question #6 (Spellbat): So Naruto now has the Rinnegan. Now he can kill dark mages faster than ever before! Speaking of the Rinnegan, did Naruto get it because he already has Sasuke's eyes and just received Naruto Uzumaki's chakra, or was it because of something with Ankhseram?
Naruto: Technically, my new body had ounces of Ashura's chakra. Trust me, I didn't know how this worked before but you need Ashura's chakra and Indra's chakra to make the Rinnegan. Not by mixing a random Uchiha with a Senju or even a Hyuga like some elders believe in other stories. Since I had Sasuke's old eyes (I still shiver at the thought), Indra's chakra started to leak in a bit. So it was by Ankhseram's arrival that my eyes finally evolved.
And now it's time for the Kingdom of Fiore Secret!
R0tatcid: Erza and Mirajane's respective personalities are a result of responding to their behavior from bullying Siegfried. Erza frequently asks people to hit her whenever she makes a mistake as penance for harming Siegfried. Mirajane on the other hand indirectly tries to forget about the accident and trauma, which is why she constantly pretends that her personality now and six years ago are the same. Too bad, even Mira's crush thought her punk/goth outfit looked more cute.
Mira: Hey! Let me change it back! I'll get rid of the dress!
R0tatcid: No time! I'm already super behind on stories! I don't have time for you to change wardrobe! Also, everyone take a look at my poll! I'll change the rules of it later!
Next Time! Chapter 26: Ragnarok!
END OF QA