Chapter 27 - War In Alfheim
The Ocean
Naruto was flying over the ocean, desperately trying to reach Tenrou Island. If it wasn't bad enough that he had to deal with a psychotic clone who was bent on pointless vengeance. Naruto had learned that everyone participating in the S-Class Trials was in danger and under attack. Naruto wanted to believe that things would be calmer, he wouldn't have to travel as much anymore and maybe he could begin a life of normalcy.
Not that he would stop killing dark mages at any point in his life.
Yet, Naruto still had to constantly move and this time it wasn't just business. Naruto considered his vendetta against dark mages to be personal but now it got worse as his loved ones were in danger.
"Hey, is this flying rat really under your control?" Balder asked.
"It obeys my command, but I can't micromanage it." Naruto answered.
Naruto's lack of rest only continued when he found himself meeting Balder. A man who was apparently looking for Siegfried Naruto and not the Naruto clone that they fought. Balder was very vague at first when he tried to explain who he was, but with the grimoire he carried. Naruto was able to deduce that he was a type of homunculus made by an evil witch named Morgan. Apparently, Naruto's old DNA samples were up for grabs.
However, it wouldn't be long before Naruto learned about the incident on Tenrou Island and surprisingly it's thanks to Shukaku who revealed this. It was also revealed that Carla and Panther Lily left the guild after Carla had a vision. Of course, they couldn't avoid Shukaku who got curious and forced them to tell him everything like the bully he is. Shukaku said that Carla made him promise to not tell anyone anything.
As already mentioned, Shukaku is a jerk but at least something good came from it. So out of desperation, Naruto had to figure out a way to get to Tenrou Island quickly and managed to summon a monstrous looking bird with the Animal Path.
"I can summon a variety of monstrous animals apparently, but I can't summon something graceful." Naruto said.
Balder scoffed, "Then this giant turkey better move with haste." he said.
"Why are you even here?" Naruto asked.
"Besides itching for another fight, which you stole." Balder started to say.
"That clone was wrecking the city and looking for me!" Naruto interrupted.
Balder waved him off, "Whatever you say, you mangy thief." he said. "There's also the fact that the witch who made me is with this Balam Alliance. It wouldn't go past me to think she's somehow a part of this." he said.
"How would you know if the Balam Alliance is involved?" Naruto asked.
"If this island is sacred and filled with the strongest members of your guild who already beat one of their best. Then they need some real muscle, not the wimps like the rejects from the lab." Balder explained.
"It sounds like an excuse for you to find another fight." Naruto said.
"Just keep this bird steady. It's big, but it feels like we're riding on a rock with wings." Balder said.
"It's doing fine." Naruto said.
Balder sighed as he turned to look at the ocean, forcing himself to wait until they reach the island. All the while Naruto started thinking about Shukaku and how the tanuki mentioned Carla having a vision of the future. It made the Azure Knight think about Queen Shagotte's prophecy and how several events were to come. It didn't help that Shukaku didn't remember the whole thing, even with Kurama there.
Carla's prophecy was too confusing to remember but it had some variants plus a few familiar images to work with.
"Why did those cats go on their own?" Naruto asked.
"What I want to know is how do they plan on getting there." Balder spoke up. "If what you say is true. Those runts won't make it in time. You said the trip is about a day on boat and they don't sound too fast." he said.
"That's another reason, Happy told me that he can't fly once his magic runs out. I doubt they would take turns and even if they arrive, they wouldn't be much to support everyone on the island." Naruto said.
"So what you're saying is they shouldn't have gone alone? Maybe think about it more?" Balder asked.
"Yes." Naruto answered. "What, are you trying to tell me something?" He asked.
"No, but I get some strange sense of irony." Balder said.
Naruto shook his head and tried to ignore Balder's words. Unaware of how much Carla's actions reflected on his own both now and in recent years.
On Tenrou Island
Natsu was empowered, but still felt a lot of sharp pains in his body. Like an athlete having gone through an intense workout the night before and woke up the next day to feel cramps all over their body. Natsu felt sluggish as he was empowered by the flames of Amaterasu that he forced himself to devour.
"What is wrong little hunter? Was that bravado just for show?" Zancrow taunted as he threw a flame coated punch at Natsu.
"I'm just getting warmed up!" Natsu said as he blocked the punch before delivering a swift kick into Zancrow's chest.
Zancrow started to get a bit more annoyed with every minute that passes. The Godslayer is a zealot when it came to Hades who had personally trained him to use Fire Godslayer magic. Natsu was easy to pick on, but now the Dragonslayer was fighting him on equal ground. Even worse is that Samehada was refusing to work with him any longer because it could no longer handle the intense flames.
"It does not matter, your persistence is just a test for me. But like all tests, they are just annoying and need to get out of my way!" Zancrow exclaimed.
"I hate tests too!" Natsu yelled as their fire coated fists collided.
The resulting collision caused a massive wave of black flames to spread around the forest. Yet the two fire wizards stood their ground looking unharmed outside of their fists beginning to bleed. Zancrow started to growl as he felt more annoyed by the class. He then jumped back and clapped his hands together.
"Fire God's Supper!" Zancrow shouted, trapping Natsu in a spiral of flames.
Natsu gritted his teeth as he could still feel the pain from the fire. Only it hurt much more when he tried using Naruto's Amaterasu to block out the spiral of flames. Eventually blowing them away as a result of the magic.
"Illuminating Dragon's Roar!" Natsu yelled, releasing a powerful stream of bright red fire with black tendrils surrounding it.
"Fire God's Kagutsuchi!" Zancrow yelled in an attempt to block out the roar.
Zancrow created a large sphere of black flames from all over his body to block out the sphere. Normally, this magical technique would have stopped any one of Natsu's stronger spells with moderate difficulty at the absolute most. However, Zancrow had yet to realize that his defense was already breaking once Natsu's new attack had made contact with the sphere.
"What is this!? Is the Dragon Hunter going to exhaust himself with one last attack!?" Zancrow asked, thinking Natsu was the one that is doomed.
Like a sword and shield, Natsu's attack pierced through Zancrow's defense. Hitting the Godslayer and surrounding him in flames that reached hundreds if not more than a thousand degrees of heat. With the attack also sending Zancrow flying over the nearby cliff and falling deep into the ocean. When Natsu's attack ended, he almost collapsed from overexertion.
"Okay, that was cool but it felt I was trying to vomit a giant burrito." Natsu complained.
"But you beat him. I guess that means you're stronger than a god." Happy said.
"Oh good, now I can challenge Erza again." Natsu said. "Right after I figure out what the heck is going on." He said as he went to look around.
In the stories of myth, Kagutsuchi was revered by blacksmiths and seen as a force of nature because of the terror caused by volcanoes. Regardless of how flammable houses were in ancient times, the fear of fire spreading and destroying everything is what caused this fear and respect for the God of Fire. However, Amaterasu was the Queen of the heavens and embodied the sun. In the end, no matter how hot Zancrow could make his body, he was doomed to be consumed by the sun.
"Is that the masked creep I smell? How did he make it all the way here from Galuna Island?" Natsu asked as he started sniffing a familiar scent.
With The Strauss Sisters
At base camp, Mirajane and Lisanna were quickly confronted by Azuma who immediately began attacking them. Even though the girls hardly understood what was going on or where Azuma came from. They could already tell he was a dangerous dark mage that would use as much force as possible to win. Even going as far as trapping Lisanna in some kind of tree bomb.
Mirajane got desperate and angry as she saw the position her sister was in. Even with the use of Satan Soul, Mirajane had a difficult time with Azuma who's physical strength was as high as his magical strength.
"Is this all from the Demon of Fairy Tail? Were the rumors all false?" Azuma asked as he blocked Mira's next kick.
"You're one to talk! You're a coward that takes hostages!" Mira yelled as she kicked Azuma into a tree.
Azuma looked unfazed by the insult and the attack.
"If you are angry then defeat me before my three minute timer ends." Azuma said before charging at Mirajane.
Azuma quickly blasted Mira, sending her crashing into the ground. Mira looked to the side and saw the bomb timer on Lisanna had under two minutes left. Mira gritted her teeth as she got up only to find her wrists and legs bound by chains.
"Chain Burst!" Azuma cried out.
The chains around Mira extended towards Azuma but started to explode as they came closer to her body. Mira tried to use all of her strength to break free but had little success. In a moment of desperation, Mira came across an old strategy she created when she trained with Erza. It was originally meant for battling Naruto but plans changed back then.
Satan Soul: Vinea!" Mira shouted.
Just as the chains exploded and created a fog, Azuma stood back and wondered if Mira was had escaped and was planning to fight him some more. The man lived for the fight and would be disappointed if it ended like this. Only to find himself having to defend against a dragon made of water.
"Water Membrane!" Mira shouted from the dust fog.
"Bleve!" Azuma shouted, making his explosion collide with the water dragon.
The collision only further obscured Azuma's line of sight as it created a thick mist. He didn't want to take any risk and manipulated a nearby tree and transformed it into a fist.
"Tree Fist!" He shouted as it punched through the mist.
"Vainel Al Salos!" Mira shouted from the sky.
Azuma soon noticed that Mira wasn't hiding in the fog and instead sent a spear made of water towards him. Azuma avoided the spear only to find several dozen more coming right at him in quick succession. Azuma extended his hands and surrounded himself within a massive linear explosion to destroy all of the incoming spears coming down to him.
When it was over, Azuma then found himself being slashed at with a massive sword of water. The explosive user quickly recovered but didn't have time to avoid another spear of water that pierced his shoulder and nailed him to a tree. Before he could free himself, Mira slammed her hand against Azuma's throat and with enough force, made the tree tumble onto the ground with Azuma still attached.
"Give up yet?" Mirajane asked as Azuma fell off of the tree.
"I am only now being entertained." Azuma said before raising his hand.
For a brief moment, Azuma briefly studied Mirajane in an attempt to find some weakness or understand her strength. He wasn't the type with photographic memory or had special eyes to memorize every detail to his advantage. However, he did notice that Mirajane had a more aquatic look as her her chest and was still exposed while the rest of her body below her neck had blue scales, gills and fins along with this big sash surrounding her body.
All Azuma could do was think about trying to overpower Mirajane with his explosive magic.
"Tower Burst!" Azuma shouted as he released an explosive wave around his body.
Mirajane raised her sword to try and block the attack. At the same time, she managed to call upon a fairly large wall of water to help with her defense. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough and it ended up sending Mirajane crashing near Lisanna.
'Damn it, even with this new power. It's not enough and I'm running low on magic.' Mira thought.
Then she looked at Lisanna who was still struggling. Mira realized she had about 40 seconds left before the bomb timer goes off. Mira glared at Azuma and threw her sword at him before focusing on Lisanna. Azuma avoided the attack but did not pursue Mira as she saw the older Strauss girl trying to save her sister.
Azuma silently stood there and watched the futile attempt of a rescue. Watching Mira go as far as to try and pry Lisanna out with a trident made of water.
'I have to break it open! I have to save my sister! I can't lose her again!' Mira thought as she could feel her arms beginning to cramp.
"Mira, you have to run!" Lisanna yelled.
"I'm not leaving you!" Mira yelled.
Mira continued to try and pry Lisanna out even as she felt her magic burning away with every second. Even if it was impossible, Mira refused to let her sister die for good this time. In an act of sisterly love, Mira used the remaining water she could materialize and sent it within the bomb. It could not squeeze Lisanna out, but it could cover her in a thick layer of water. Mira didn't know if this worked as a perfect safety measure, but she didn't care.
Lisanna held her breath as she felt the water surrounding her, having felt a similar experience with Juvia's Water Lock. She couldn't call out to her sister as she watched Mira return to normal. Lisanna wanted to scream at Mira to run away but could only watch as Mira mouthed something to her before the explosion went off.
Lisanna stopped holding her breath and screamed within the water barrier as it popped. Despite that, Lisanna landed safely on the ground while Mira took the front of the explosion. All the while Azuma could not be seen anywhere nearby.
"Mira! MIRA! MIRA WAKE UP!" Lisanna screamed as she tried shaking her sister awake.
After a few minutes of trying to revive Mirajane, Lisanna could see her sister's eyes open just a bit. Lisanna cradled her older sister in her arms, hoping the explosion wasn't fatal.
(Code Geass OST - Innocent Days)
"…Lisanna" Mira whispered.
"Mira, please stay with me. I'm taking you back to camp with everyone else." Lisanna said.
"I was scared… I almost lost… again." Mira murmured.
"Mira, that doesn't matter right now! You need medical attention!" Lisanna said frantically.
"…I'm a coward, Lis." Mira said.
"You're not a coward! You're my brave big sister!" Lisanna said as she tried lifting Mira up.
"Then how come I'm too scared… tell Naruto the truth?" Mira asked.
"Truth?" Lisanna asked.
"I almost died and almost lost you at the same time." Mira said as tears welled up in her eyes. "Naruto is back but I… was too scared to be close to him again." she said.
"Mira, don't cry now. Naruto is waiting for you at the guild with Filo." Lisanna said.
"…It doesn't matter …if I can't tell him that I love him." Mira said, surprising Lisanna.
"Mira, you're not going to die! You're going to make it back and tell Naruto you love him!" Lisanna said as she started dragging her sister away. "You're going to be together! You're going to get married and raise Filo together! You both will both even have more babies and grow old together!" she said.
Mira smiled weakly, "…you just want nieces and nephews to spoil." she said. "Erza deserved him more…" she said before losing consciousness.
"NO! Mira wake up!" Lisanna screamed.
With Naruto
The Rinnegan bird summon was on the horizon but Naruto felt a heavy wait in his chest followed by a sharp pain. He felt like his heart had a nail in it and it made it hard to breathe.
"Slow ass bird." He said.
"At least we can see the island now." Balder said as they saw Tenrou Island in the distance.
"Not close enough." Naruto commented.
Naruto could only wait several more minutes as the bird was too slow. Leaving him feeling impatient and more anxious by the minute. Leaving him with trying to think of a good way to land on the island.
"Baldur, how good is your throw?" Naruto asked.
"What, are we playing catch now?" He asked.
"Just listen to me!" Naruto shouted.
A few minutes later, Baldur used his absurd strength to throw Naruto towards the island. Sending him flying high into the air with Naruto switching to armor that was capable of gliding. It only took him two more minutes of flying before he finally landed on the beach and scan the area.
"Hang on everyone." Naruto said before being spotted.
"Look! There's another one!" said a dark mage.
"Grimoire Heart? You just had to pick the wrong island!" Naruto shouted as he threw down his sunglasses.
"Get him!" the dark mage said as a large squad rushed at Naruto.
Naruto narrowed his eyes as he waited for them to come close.
"Shinra Tensei." He whispered.
With Erza
Erza continued to look around for her fellow guild members when she almost lost her balance when she heard a loud explosion. She looked in the distance and saw a massive pile of sand flying in the air. Erza could not recognize it as friend or foe but had to stick to her own root.
"That was quite an explosion. Do you not wish to seek it out?" a voice in the distance asked.
"Who is there? Show yourself." Erza demanded.
From the ground, Azuma sprouted out like a plant. Erza instantly switched to her Heart Kruez armor as she recognized Azuma as a threat.
"You are the Titania of Fairy Tail. Will you grant me a true challenge?" Azuma asked.
"What kind of challenge?" Erza asked.
"A battle from a real warrior. I was unable to receive one from the little girl or the so called demon of Fairy Tail." Azuma said.
Erza narrowed her eyes as she raised a sword at Azuma, "What did you do to Wendy and Mirajane?" She asked.
"The same thing as you if you fail to meet my expectations." Azuma said before witnessing another explosion from the beach. "Even so, it seems that someone else quite powerful is nearby as well." he said.
Erza raised her sword and prepared for Azuma. At the same time, she was able to see that the attack from the beach was not an ally of Grimore Heart. Then again, Erza would be surprised to see that reinforcements have arrived in the most unexpected way.
"Then perhaps I will actually have use for this." Azuma said as he took Shibuki from his back.
"You cannot defeat me with a lint roller." Erza said with narrowed eyes.
Azuma replied with silence as he still could not comprehend why Shibuki was considered a sword. He remembered Kain had Kabutowari which was mallet connected to an axe. It didn't matter to him, this was a fight and not a fashion show.
Erza engaged Azuma in a sword fight which she quickly dominated at first only to learn Shibuki's power. While the odd looking sword did look like a massive lint roller, the explosive tags were still dangerous. More so that Azuma quickly found out he could use the weapon could be used like a proper sword unlike Kabutowari. Thus hitting Erza with a surprise explosion, sending her skidding across the ground.
'Was that his magic?' Erza wondered.
"Bleve!" Azuma shouted, firing an explosive projectile at Erza.
"Requip!" Erza shouted as she changed into her Flame Empress armor.
Erza reduced the impact of her attack before lunging at Azuma again. Azuma quickly blocked Erza's incoming attacks with great difficulty. He was no sword user but started to get used to incorporating Shibuki as an extension of himself. Even as Erza began to dominate him in a sword battle, Azuma managed to dodge her next attack where he then moved around her while dropping several explosive tags from Shibuki.
Erza raised her guard and found herself flying backwards from the massive explosion. By the time she recovered, Azuma sprouted from the ground like a plant again and tried to attack her again. Erza then made the mistake of trying to parry a blow from Shibuki which caused another explosion.
'This man uses some kind of explosive magic.' Erza thought as she hit the dirt. 'But he's not using it on the sword. Those tags it dropped looked familiar.' she thought.
"Don't overthink the fight, Titania." Azuma said as he surrounded Erza with various plants.
"You should think it more when you play with fire!" Erza said as she surrounded her sword in flames.
Using her armor's fire magic, Erza quickly swung at all of the plants and set them ablaze. Azuma summoned more but watched as they continuously burned before Erza came rushing out of the fire she started. With her weapon aimed at Azuma who stood his ground.
With Lucy, a while later
Lucy was getting tired and it looked like Kain still had some steam in him. However, he was still acting over the top and it really annoyed her.
"What are you made of? Do you go to the same gym as Natsu?" Lucy asked.
Kain's eyes were covered by his bangs that suddenly grew out. He raised his head and gave Lucy a really serious stare that scared her.
"Hey, why are you so serious all of a sudden?" Lucy asked.
"Even if my bones break or my blood goes dry, I will never surrender." Kain said in the most dramatic voice ever.
Then silence.
Which Lucy broke a moment later.
"What the heck!? Why do you sound all heroic!?" Lucy asked.
Kain suddenly lunged at Lucy and almost crushed him with his massive weight. Lucy still had enough energy to roll away from the random attack. By this point, Lucy's only hope was for some unorthodox method of fighting to beat someone crazy like Kain.
"Maybe I should summon Scorpius." Lucy muttered.
She already summoned Aquarius and became mentally exhausted with this idiot. Then she summoned Taurus who also got beat up pretty quickly. Lucy considered summoning Gemini but didn't want to create a second Kain. Just as she was about to summon Scorpius, she felt a cool wind behind her, brushing against her cheek.
"I'll deal with him Lucy." Said a new voice.
"KYAAH!" Lucy shouted as shes saw Naruto standing beside her. "Naruto!?" she asked.
Naruto cracked his neck as he stepped forward, "You can go now Lucy. Regroup with everyone else." he said.
Kain narrowed his eyes as he looked at Naruto, "I can sense the stench of blood. You have walked down a bloody path as I." he said.
Lucy just sighed at the stupid conversation Kain started. She started forgetting that this idiot is on the elite team of one of the most dangerous dark guilds in Fiore. It was hard to take him seriously with how goofy he is. One can only wonder how Lucy would react if she met Might Guy who could probably run circles around Kain despite being a senior citizen in a wheelchair.
"Of course you have." Naruto said. "A dark mage has no concern for the lives of others. Only that they reach their selfish goals regardless of the sacrifices." He said.
Kain suddenly drew the Kabutowari much to Naruto's surprise. Kain took his position as he saw Naruto summoning Balmung. That's when the rain had arrived, adding to the suspense of the silence. Lucy just watched as she felt like she was in some samurai film.
Kain then rushed at Naruto who raised his sword defensively. Only to watch as Kain slammed the axe onto the ground in front of Naruto. Before the Azure Knight could attack him, Kain slammed the hammer on top of the axe and triggered a heavy shockwave. Naruto heard Lucy cry out as she was sent flying and immediately flew after her. Once he grabbed her, he ran a small distance away.
"Lucy, just go!" Naruto said.
"R-Right, sorry!" Lucy said before running off. "I'll come back with back up!" she shouted.
"I don't need it!" Naruto shouted before avoiding another axe strike from Kain.
Kain once again slammed the hammer on top of the axe, causing another shockwave but Naruto was prepared. He jumped high into the air and came back down attempting to slash at Kain. Kain sluggishly raised up both parts of Kabutowari and blocked the attack along with most of the incoming strikes before stumbling.
"Shoot!" Kain cursed.
"Wind Style: Air Bullet!" Naruto shouted, sending Kain falling onto the ground.
Kain grunted in pain before slowly rolling away from Naruto's sword as he tried to impale him. Kain stumbled back before trying to swing at him a few times only to receive various cuts all over his arms and chest.
"No! I won't lose!" Kain yelled as he stumbled back.
With all the strength he could muster, Kain dashed at Naruto and swung down the hammer part of Kabutowari and missed. Kain swung the axe portion a few times before swinging the hammer at Naruto's head. Naruto blocked the attack with the sword and had a bit of trouble holding his grip before feeling the axe hit him in the side.
"You lose, jerk!" Kain said before feeling some recoil.
As if he had just steel pipe against the ground. Kain lost his hold of the Kabutowari as his hands felt numb. He looked at Naruto and saw the damage to his clothes, but no sign of blood or a visible wound. All he could see was that Naruto's eyes were obscured by his bangs.
"What the heck?" Kain asked.
"You know, I'm becoming too reliant on new skills. My thick skin has made me too comfortable with the idea that an enemy can hit me without feeling pain." Naruto said.
"Thick skins? I felt like I tried carving up titanium!" Kain yelled.
Naruto just stretched his arms, "I'm not having a good day. So instead of fighting you like you're my equal. Why don't you be a good dark mage." he said.
"Eh? Are you mocking me?" Kain asked. "You're mocking me, aren't you?" he asked.
Naruto then revealed his Rinnegan, "A dead dark mage is a good dark mage." he said as his eyes looked vibrant.
"You have some freaky eyes." Kain commented before howling in pain.
With Lucy
Lucy kept running as quickly as she could in an attempt to find the camp where Makarov gave everyone their next instructions. At the same time, she wondered where Cana had gone and why she was all alone in the forest. However, Lucy's concern quickly became the sound of painful howls from behind her where she left Naruto.
"I guess that's why Naruto steals fights. He really hates dark mages." Lucy said. "I'm so glad that I didn't want to watch that." she said.
No one cannot call Lucy a coward that runs away without adding the fact that Naruto is around and killing a dark mage. While Naruto isn't a sadist, Lucy would rather not see some guy get burned alive or eviscerated like vegetable ingredients.
As Lucy continued to run, she eventually found the camp where Wendy was getting to work on Makarov, Mirajane and Elfman who looked badly injured. Lucy looked startled but held her resolve as she didn't want to give up hope.
"Lucy!" Lisanna called out.
Everyone turned and noticed the celestial spirit mage's arrival.
"Are you hurt?" Wendy asked.
"No, don't worry about me." Lucy answered.
"Where's Cana?" Lisanna asked.
"I don't know, I remember blacking out and she wasn't around. Then this guy from Grimoire Heart attacked me and I was by myself." Lucy explained, confusing everyone.
"Wait, you lost consciousness and woke up by yourself?" Lisanna asked.
Lucy nodded, "Yeah, I was fighting with that guy for a while. I thought Cana was briefly gone, but haven't thought about where she could be" she said.
Evergreen snickered, "Normally, I would see how pathetic it was of you to lose consciousness but the cards you were dealt were just bad." she said. "You were clearly abandoned by your teammate and yet you still defeated a member of Grimoire Heart." she said, almost sounding impressed.
"Actually, I ran off." Lucy admitted, getting everyone defensive.
"I take back whatever respect I started to feel towards you." Evergreen said with a scoff.
"Okay, rude much?" Lucy asked. "Also, Naruto dealt with him. He just showed up and told me to run and I didn't want to get in the way." she added.
"Stop making things up, coward!" Evergreen exclaimed.
Lisanna giggled, "You are just freaking out because Naruto scares you." she said.
"That is not true! I am not afraid and how would that boy have made it to this island?" Evergreen asked, failing to hide her fear.
Lisanna continued to laugh, "Yeah, you are so scared. You and Gajeel are like Natsu and Gray when they get Erza really mad." she said.
"Who got Erza mad?" asked a familiar voice.
"Natsu!" everyone called out.
"Hey guys, I'm glad to see you. There are these freaks on this island and I just managed to beat one who said he was trained by a god or something." Natsu explained.
"…okay." Lucy said.
"Also, what's this about Erza getting mad?" Natsu asked.
"I was telling Lucy that Evergreen gets scared like you and Gray whenever Naruto is around." Lisanna said.
"That jerk? Well when I beat him, then Evergreen and the rest of the Laxus fan club is going to be scared of me!" Natsu said excitedly.
"As if I would fear a cretin such as yourself! Also, stop referring to the Thunder Tribe as such!" Evergreen angrily yelled.
Natsu continued to laugh before hearing a heavy weight. Where he saw Kabutowari falling beside him.
"I have killed the dark mage." Naruto said, causing Evergreen to gasp before losing consciousness. "Lucy, I beg for your forgiveness. I did not consider the fact that you were eager to kill your first dark mage." he said.
"…I don't want to kill any mage." Lucy said, looking sick.
"What the heck!?" Natsu angrily asked.
"Oh Natsu, you are here as well. You are so short, I did not notice you." Naruto said.
Happy snorted, "You hear that Natsu? He probably has an easier time seeing Levy." he said.
"Naruto you jerk! You stole Lucy's fight didn't you!? Even worse, you actually apologized about it you inconsiderate bastard!" Natsu yelled.
Naruto bent down to meet Happy, "Hello my feline friend, how is the 17th strongest member of the guild?" he asked, referring to Happy.
"Hey don't ignore me!" Natsu yelled.
"I'm cool, I'm just letting Natsu deal with the weaklings." Happy answered arrogantly.
"Where did you get a random number like 17!?" Carla asked.
"Wait, Naruto did you really kill that guy?" Lucy asked.
"I did and I took his weapon. I don't understand how he obtained it though." Naruto answered.
Lucy looked curious, "What is that thing?" she asked while pointing at Kabutowari.
"It's a weapon from Kirigakure no Sato, one of the five strongest hidden villages in the shinobi lands. They come in a set of seven and belonged to dangerous individuals called the Seven Swordsmen of the Mist." Naruto explained.
"They sound tough." Panther Lily commented.
"They are all A to S rank in the shinobi lands. Generally speaking, I would say they are more or less on Erza's level give or take a few abilities." Naruto explained.
Natsu scoffed, "Well I beat one guy claiming to be a God Slayer and he had this weird sword covered in bandages. It tried eating my magic but burned itself." he said.
Naruto pondered on the information as he thought back to his past life. He immediately remembered Kisame had a similar and he was ferocious. Much more powerful than Zabuza and much more dangerous than Raiga.
"Wait, you left the sword behind?" Naruto asked.
"Why would I want it?" Natsu asked.
'I guess he has a point and Samehada would no doubt reject him.' Naruto thought. "I will go and collect it later." he said.
As Lucy and Natsu went to rest themselves from their battles. Naruto surveyed the wounded and curled his hands into fists at the thought of arriving too slow. He wondered if Balder and the bird summon had arrived to the island by now but would not concern himself with it.
"Wendy, how are they?" Naruto asked.
"They all took nasty hits. I think Master Makarov had it the worst though." Wendy answered.
Naruto's eyes moved to Elfman who looked like he took several beatings across his body. He looked over to Evergreen who looked scared of him but also appeared to have a few cuts and bruises that Wendy clearly treated. His eyes then focused on Mira who had several burn marks around her body.
"She mentioned you." Lisanna spoke up. "I think she regretted not telling you how she felt." she whispered.
"I had a good idea." Naruto said, surprising Lisanna.
"For how long?" Lisanna asked.
"Some time after I returned to the guild. I didn't know if it was true or if it was just a feeling. I'm no psychologist." Naruto answered.
Lisanna looked at the ground, "She's clearly loved you since we were kids. She just didn't understand her feelings." she said.
Naruto let a smile creep on his face, "I think she does know now, but tries to deny it." he said. "The big scary demon is a little scared tsundere." he said.
Lisanna giggled when she heard that, "Why are older siblings so dumb?" she asked.
Naruto gently tucked some hair behind Mirajane's ear, "Because they don't know how to look into their hearts." he said.
For a brief moment, a memory of Laxus flashed in his mind.
Naruto bent down and kissed Mirajane's forehead, further surprising Lisanna. He then turned to the younger Strauss girl.
"Now, tell big brother Naruto who bullied your siblings." Naruto asked, earning a smile from Lisanna.
Lisanna was about to say something before she noticed the metaphorical elephant in the room.
"What the heck happened to your eyes!?" Lisanna asked with a shocked face.
"Hey, how come you got new eyes? I want new eyes!" Natsu yelled.
"They look big purple targets." Happy commented.
Back With Erza
Erza took her fight with Azuma deep into the forest where she made her way into the Great Tree of Tenrou Island. The two combatants were now trading blows while hopping between branches.
"Heaven's Wheel!" Erza shouted as she requipped again.
She then summoned a barrage of swords and launched them at Azuma who blocked them with tree branches. Azuma then released several exploding tags from Shibuki to give him cover for the next stage of his plan. Erza flew away just as the explosions had gone off. Erza then flew through the smoke once the fires cleared up and sought out Azuma.
"You are too late, Titania. My goal has finally come." Azuma said as the entire island started to shake. "Behold the magic the Lost Magic granted to me by Master Hades himself. My very purpose for setting foot on this island." he said as the tremors continued.
"What are you doing?" Erza asked as she started to lose balance.
"Completing my mission, taking the magic power of the island for myself." Azuma said as the roots of the tree started to bend.
"I do not know what you are talking about, but you will not take away anything from our island!" Erza roared. "Blumenblatt!" she shouted, firing more swords at Azuma.
But Azuma was a lot stronger now that he was taking control of the tree with his lost magic. He summoned more vines and commanded them to attack Erza.
"Ramus Sica!" Azuma shouted, firing a wave of projectiles to counter the swords and attack Erza.
As Erza tried to shield herself, she suddenly saw a massive wooden fist rising from the ground and aimed for her. Erza did not have enough time to prepare as the fist came down. However, Azuma's attack was blocked by another fist that collided with it.
"Impossible." Azuma said.
Azuma then saw two more wooden fists appear and smash Azuma's Tree Fist. They then focused their attacks on Azuma who tried to shield himself with more wood. Instead, his barrier was shattered and Azuma was sent falling down the branches.
"The island, it must have rejected his hold." Erza said.
"Don't give credit to this old place." said a familiar voice.
"Naruto?" Erza asked as she looked down.
She then witnessed Naruto rising in the air with a massive wooden pillar under his feet. Naruto then jumped onto the same branch as Erza to assess the situation. With the Rinnegan, he could see a whole mess of magic coming from the island's great tree and it looked like it was being taken or better yet, violated.
"I just arrived about an hour or two ago. How are things on your end?" Naruto asked.
Erza snapped out of her surprise and got to business. Reunions would have to be set aside for later.
"That man from earlier is with Grimoire Heart. I don't understand what his secondary power is, but it is supposedly taking magic from the great tree." Erza explained.
Naruto narrowed his eyes as he kept scanning the tree before locating Azuma who was being supported by branches of his own making. He grabbed Erza as he saw Azuma begin his next attack.
"Folium Sica!" Azuma shouts as he sends a wave of leaves at the pair.
"Fire Style: Great Fireball Jutsu!" Naruto shouted as he released a massive fireball at the leaves.
With the leaves destroyed, Azuma hopped between branches and tried to reach Naruto and Erza. Azuma quickly tried to slash at Naruto with Shibuki. Naruto summoned his zweihander, Requiem, to block the attack when he heard Erza warn him.
"Naruto, his weapon creates explosions upon impact!" Erza shouted, making Naruto's eyes widen.
At the last second, Erza shoved Naruto to the side and requipped into her Adamantine Armor. The explosion went off but Erza stood her ground despite the branch starting to crack. Azuma noticed this and tried something else without having to worry about Erza's defense.
"Tower Burst!" Azuma called out, engulfing his surroundings in a massive explosion.
Erza was able to block the explosion but the tree branch she was on couldn't. The branch burned off of the tree and broke underneath Erza, causing her to plummet. Azuma jumped away before he would plummet, leaving Erza falling at a rapid rate due to the weight of her armor. Naruto dashed after Azuma with angry eyes.
"Shinra Tensei!" Naruto shouted, releasing the biggest blast he could muster.
Azuma suddenly found himself flying in the opposite direction and crashing into tree branch. Leaving Naruto with time to free fall after Erza who trying to Requip into an armor capable of flight. Only to find Naruto approaching her at a rapid pace.
"Naruto I…"
"Hang on." Naruto said as he grabbed her with one arm and stabbed Requiem into a tree.
Naruto held onto Requiem as it reduced the their fall before coming to a stop. Naruto then threw himself onto a branch while keeping Erza in his arms. He then called for Requiem to return to his storage.
"Are you okay?" Naruto asked Erza.
"Naruto, I could have just used armor capable of flight. I wasn't in any danger." Erza said.
"You want me to take that risk?" Naruto asked. "Also, you don't seem capable." he said while noticing that Erza was clinging to him.
Erza looked away and blushed, "You just startled me with your recklessness." She said as an excuse.
That's when they felt the entire tree beginning to shake again as it started to fall. Naruto cursed as he could only imagine the damage being done to the island. Naruto and Erza had to think of something before Azuma does end up stealing the mysterious power within the island.
"Maybe I can use my own Mokuton to hold the tree or maybe somehow transfer energy." Naruto murmured to himself.
"Naruto, we have to stop him right now." Erza said. "I am not aware of the power he seeking but not only is it destroying a landmark of this island, but grating himself power." She said as she winced.
"Erza, are you okay?" Naruto asked as he noticed Erza clutching her arm.
Naruto scanned it with his Rinnegan and noticed energy within the guild mark. It was strange, the guild mark had no magic whatsoever when a member joins. For all the sentimentalism and spiritual meaning behind the marks, they were as ordinary as painless tattoos. They can be easily removed with simple methods, they never had any connection to power that Naruto was aware of. Yet, the mark looked like it was being drained of magic.
Naruto grunted as he also felt the mark on his shoulder starting to burn a little bit. Perhaps there was more to the tree than spiritual meaning.
"The tree, it must have more meaning. It must be connected to the guild somehow." Erza said as she felt weaker.
"It only means we have to stop that dark mage from stealing not just any power but our own." Naruto said before remembering something.
The island has magical power which appears to be affecting the guild. There's a good chance everyone else is also under the effects of the tree being weakened. It wasn't a direct link and it was unlikely everyone just felt more powerful once they became a member of the guild. Would stopping Azuma be enough or does it need energy?
"No that's stupid, it wouldn't make any sense." Naruto said to himself.
"What is it?" Erza asked.
Naruto argued with himself and it gave him a headache. Why did he have to be his own enemy by overthinking things?
"Naruto, please talk to me." Erza said.
Naruto took a deep breath before and tried to compose himself.
"Erza, I will tell you the truth." Naruto said before facing her. "I was planning you to throw you in the direction of the camp and deal with the dark mage by myself." he said.
"That's your original plan!? I can see why Natsu complains!" Erza shouted with surprise in her eyes.
Erza always heard Natsu complaining about his fights being stolen, but Erza's concern is Naruto fighting by himself.
"Look, I need you by my side for this battle. Just help me with my plan." Naruto said as he clasped her hands.
Erza looked deep into Siegfried's Rinnegan, feeling confused by what she was seeing. However, she didn't have the time to question it.
"Very well, what do you need help with?" Erza asked.
With Hades
Hades made his way across the forest of Tenrou Island. He eventually came to a stop and found a massive pillar of ice with trapped Ultear on top of it. The man just shook his head as he raised his hand and shattered the ice, causing Ultear to fall. Before she hits the ground, Ultear is caught by several vines.
Ultear starts drifting into unconsciousness when she sees the leader of Grimoire Heart.
"Master Hades?" Ultear asked.
"You have failed, Ultear. I trained you myself since you were a child and armed you with a great tool. Yet, you failed spectacularly." Hades said.
"Master Hades, I can't remember the past as I know it." Ultear said.
During the end of the fight she had with Gray. Ultear started seeing visions of her mother, Ur, who had arrived at the research facility where she left Ultear to be treated. Ultear thought Ur had abandoned her and yet she saw a vision of Ur begging for Ultear to return to her after the staff had said Ultear had died. It was confusing and she could not wrap her head around it.
"It no longer matters. You cannot hold onto the past." Hades said as several vines tangled around Ultear. "You had served your purpose." he said.
"Master Hades, what are you… doing?" Ultear asked as she felt the vines tangle around her tightly.
"Giving you a new purpose." Hades said.
Just as Hades said this, Ultear couldn't fight against the binds as she desperately tried ot move. She knew she would be punished for her failure, but now she had this sense of terror. As Ultear struggled, she saw Meredy coming out from the forest and watched as Meredy stood there and watched with fear in her eyes.
Ultear tried to move her hands and reach out to Meredy but the vines kept her in place. As she watched Hades continue to torture her, Ultear couldn't help but notice this strange monster hiding in his shadow. This humanoid creature that had odd features she couldn't make out. She was sure she was losing her mind from fear or loss of oxygen as a vine wrapped around her throat. Ultear started to give into despair and decided to look at Meredy.
"My daughter… Meredy… I'm…" Ultear tried to say as a strange sealing mark appeared under Ultear.
Ultear was then lowered to the ground where the seal started to activate. At the last moment, Gray appeared with Juvia who was carrying him. Along with Meredy, they watched as Ultear was helplessly executed by Hades.
"Meredy… I'm so… sorry." Ultear said as a tear fell down her cheek.
No one saw it, but a white pair of arms came out from Hades' shadow and made strange hand signs before extending towards the sealing circle. Where Ultear was trapped within a wooden coffin.
"Edo Tensei." The figure behind Hades said.
Meredy felt tears fall down her eyes as she ran towards her adoptive mother.
"ULTEAR!" Meredy screamed.
'My daughter… please… someone… protect her…' were Ultear's last thoughts before the coffin shattered.
Ultear was gone from this world and in her place was the body of another person. A mother who had also been separated from her child. Meredy continued to run, not realizing she was too late while Juvia also ran and tried to save Meredy from a force she could not defeat. Giving Hades a chance to utilize the forbidden technique he used on Ultear.
"Destroy the fairies and the child, Titania Mordred." Hades commanded.
And like that, Mordred had returned to a world she had left nearly 20 years ago. Her body looked decayed, her sclera was black with her green eyes looking darkened and the first thing she did was pick up Nuibari from the ground where Ultear lost her fight. Mordred tested the oddly shaped sword before noticing Meredy rushing towards them with the Kiba blades in hand while Juvia and Gray tried to intercept her.
Mordred turned towards Hades who had jabbed her in the back of the head with a talisman. Forcing her to focus on Meredy who was coming closer. Mordred silently raised Nuibari at the flick of the wrist and swung the blade.
With Laxus
Laxus was flying through the air in lightning form while carrying Lucina. When he almost lost his balance as he felt this aura as he approached the island.
"Laxus!" Lucina shouted.
"Sorry, just lost my focus." Laxus said as he adjusted his flight path.
"What could have happened? You were flying just fine." Lucina said.
"Don't worry, I'm almost there." Laxus said, not understanding why felt this warm wave hitting him.
With Makarov
Makarov sat up and gasped for air.
"Master!" everyone shouted.
"Where am I?" Makarov asked.
"At base camp, a lot of us got hurt but don't worry. We're fighting them off and even Naruto is here." Lisanna explained.
"Naruto? Here? That must explain this… sensation." Makarov said as he felt this warm wave hitting him.
With Naruto
Naruto had created several clones using his magic and had half of them use the mokuton in an attempt to keep the tree up. While the rest were trying to gather nature chakra. Both working together in an attempt to try and revitalize the great tree with another source of energy. It was either going to be a reckless mess or nothing would happen at all.
With some hope, Naruto wished that by somehow transferring senjutsu to the tree. Azuma would absorb it and turn to stone like one of Pain's paths did all those years ago.
"It's not much, but hopefully this enough for now." Naruto said.
"Naruto, even if your plan fails. I won't blame or abandon you." Erza said.
Naruto nodded but suddenly felt this warm wave hitting him, causing him to feel stunned. Erza quickly grabbed him, thinking Naruto was about to fall off of the branch.
"What's wrong?" Erza asked.
"I don't know, there is this new but familiar feeling on the island." Naruto answered as he tried scanning for it with his dojutsu.
"We'll worry about Azuma first." Erza said, getting Naruto to focus.
"Right." Naruto said as they turned their attention towards Azuma.
With Mordred
Mordred slashed her sword…
…at Hades.
Hades tried blocking the sword but found himself staggering backwards as the sword cut him deeply. It wasn't that deep, but he cursed the fact that Nuibari was very sharp despite not being the best weapon for slash attacks. However, the attack distracted Hades long enough for Mordred to break away and grab Meredy before being followed by Juvia and Gray.
"The living corpse is acting with free will." Hades said.
Then a voice from his shadow spoke, "We will worry about it later. For now, we need more sacrifices." it said.
In the forest
Meredy was swinging her arms and legs at Mordred who got far away enough to stop. Meredy tried to swing at Mordred but was stopped and disarmed with ease.
"Give her back! Give Ultear back!" Meredy cried out.
Mordred bent down and stopped her, "I'm sorry kid, I don't know how to do that." she said.
Meredy kept swinging her arms before just breaking down into tears. Losing her cold emotionless facade and leaving herself vulnerable to Mordred who hugged her.
"I don't know what's going on, but I know a little girl like you shouldn't be on your own like this." Mordred said as Meredy held onto her for comfort.
A few moments later, Juvia and Gray arrived and saw the seen. Juvia raised up her water, thinking Meredy was in danger when Gray grabbed her hand.
"Wait, just look at her arm." Gray said.
Juvia noticed what Gray saw and realized that Mordred had a silver Fairy Tail guild sigil on her right shoulder. Mordred held onto Meredy while turning her head and noticing Gray's own sigil.
"You're with the guild?" Mordred asked.
"Yeah, Fairy Tail." Gray said.
"Juvia is in Fairy Tail too." Juvia spoke up.
Mordred lowered her guard and smiled as she picked up Meredy in her arms.
"Then maybe you can help clear some things up." Mordred said. "But before that, do you know Laxus or Siegfried?" she asked.
"Laxus and who?" Gray asked.
"Laxus Dreyar and Siegfried Naruto, they are my sons." Mordred answered.
TO BE CONTINUED…
Omake: Give Me Your Friendship!
The day after Naruto returned to the guild, he found that it was vandalized by Phantom Lord and spoke to Makarov about it. However, it was at that moment when Mirajane appeared and revealed her changed appearance and personality. However, Naruto looked at the girl with furious eye as she went to check on the guild master.
That's when Naruto marched up to Mira and removed his helmet as he glared down at Mirajane. Mira was shocked to see her former victim again and even more surprised by how much she was developed.
"I knew I recognized you! You thought you could disguise yourself?" Naruto asked.
"Naruto!?" Mira asked with a shocked face.
"I'm still pissed at what you for what you did when we were kids." Naruto said.
"Naruto, I'm really sorry." Mira said, thinking her crush referred to her being a bully to him.
"There's no excuse, about six or seven years ago. I played music for you with my ocarina in exchange for your friendship and you never gave it to me!" Naruto exclaimed.
Suddenly, Mira's older personality surfaced, "Your music was terrible and it almost made my ears bleed." she said. 'No stupid! Why did you have to say that!?' she mentally berates herself.
"Give me your friendship!" Naruto demanded.
'Good, this is a start. We can try this again and be real friends.' Mira thought. But her tsundere personality took over, "Make me, loser!" she yelled.
Mira mentally screamed at herself before Naruto tackled her onto the floor. Naruto repeatedly demanded Mira to give him her friendship as if it were a physical object. Subjecting Makarov to watch his adoptive grandson roll on the floor with a pretty girl.
A day later
Everyone was happy to see Naruto had returned but he focused his eyes on Erza. Erza met his gaze and felt depressed by what she did to him. She felt like the embodiment of trash as she watched him approach her. Erza was ready to be scolded, slapped, just any punishment would be fine.
"I knew I would find you, Erza." Naruto said.
"Naruto, words alone cannot describe how ashamed I feel." Erza started to say.
"Damn right, several years ago when we met. I gave you strawberry cheesecake in exchange for your friendship and you never gave it to me." Naruto said.
Now Erza looked defensive, "That sad excuse for a pastry was soggy." she said.
"Give me your friendship!" Naruto yelled.
"Make me!" Erza countered.
Naruto tackled Erza onto the ground, subjecting the entire guild to watch the pair wrestle on the ground. Naruto demanding Erza to give her his friendship like he did with Mira. Makarov just sighed and rolled his eyes as the Rune Knights arrived to watch the scene.
More time later
Naruto glared at Princess Hisui who looked content, "Princess Hisui, I'm still unhappy with you." He said bluntly.
"Sir Siegfried, while I cannot stomach your actions, it was wrong of me to call you a monster for killing those dark mages when we first met." Hisui said with regret in her voice.
"No, I don't care about that. I meant when we met last time." Naruto said. "I let you ride Filo like a horse all day long in exchange for your friendship and you never gave it to me." he said.
"To be fair, I did almost sink into her body. Filo-san's feathers are quite deep." Hisui pointed out.
"Give me your friendship!" Naruto demanded.
"Hold your tongue Azure Knight!" Arcadios angrily yelled.
"I'll give you my hand in marriage instead." Hisui said.
"Yes, settle with the princess… marriage?" Arcadios asked with wide eyes.
Naruto crossed his arms, "I want a friend, not a wife!" he countered.
Now Arcadios was angry, "You ungrateful, unworthy scoundrel!" He yelled.
Hisui interrupted him, "But a spouse is a new level of friendship. We just share the same bed, we go on dates instead hangouts and um… we make babies who will inherit the kingdom." she said, blushing at the last part.
Naruto looked at Filo, "What do you think Filo?" he asked.
"Filo wants friendship too!" Filo said.
"I'll sweeten the deal and be your step mother." Hisui suggested.
Filo frowned, "No, I already like mama Erza and mama Mira. I don't need another mama." she said, breaking Hisui's heart.
"Filo has a point." Naruto said, further breaking Hisui's heart.
END OF OMAKE
QA With Siegfried Naruto
Siegfried: Hello I am back and let me say this first, there will be a Kingdom of Fiore Secret so don't be angry and impatient. In fact, we'll make it too.
R0tatcid: *Inaudible annoyed groans*
Siegfried: Let's get to the questions then.
Question 1 (Tr1vium): Was that an Overlord Reference lmao?
Siegfried: What's Overlord?
Ainz in the distance: Quiet you!
Question 2 (Troll): Mirajane... hypothetically speaking, how would you react if the entire guild found out that every night you sleep hugging a Siegfried doll? Now with Erza? Did you know that Siegfried wasn't fighting seriously when you faced him with Mira's help? Do you intend to face him again in the future?
Mirajane: I-I-I don't have a doll! Why would I want stupid Naruto with me in bed!? Not that I wouldn't… I'm gonna kick your ass! Lisanna, stop spreading these rumors!
Erza: I had a feeling that was the case. Naruto wasn't trying to kill me after all. If we really need to, I will spar with him again… alone.
Siegfried: Erza, this isn't the place for you to have perverted fantasies.
Erza: I wasn't doing such a thing! *Red face*
Question 3 (Spellbat): Soooo... Will Seig obtain the Seven Swords of the Hidden Mist? I could only imagine him seeing them give it to him as a gift and immediately fanboy over them.
Siegfried: I am not a fanboy, but some of those swords are quite nice. I doubt Chojuro-san will notice they're missing. In fact, how did Rustrose get his hands on Chojuro's sword? He's the freaking Mizukage!
Question 4 (Ares): Can you please leave my champion alone? I don't bother pink haired girls, so don't bother Link when he's smashing vases.
Siegfried: Then keep your vase smashing vandal on your dimension. For those who don't know, that's an alternate version of me from another dimension. A dimension where Ares reincarnated as another Naruto. I heard from somewhere that Link has the blessing of Ares and now it's annoying me that Link is smashing vases across the multiverse. Anyways, it's time for the Kingdom of Fiore Secret!
Secret 1: Mordred was considered the strongest female in her era but could never defeat Makarov in a fight. Rumor has it that she has surpassed Makarov, but doesn't have the heart to injure her adoptive father before she passed away.
Secret 2: It may or not be obvious that Laxus is a mama's boy, but he was treated with great love by Mordred despite the woman not knowing where Laxus really came from. Until she passed away, Mordred has rarely punished Laxus with anything more than a timeout and verbal warnings. Now that Laxus is an adult, Mordred will still discipline him.