"Five days of looking around and we still haven't found a single clue" Cana gave a resigned sigh as she slouched her way back to the village alongside Sasuke and Gray. After what was almost a week of fruitless investigation, the three decided to return back to the village to gather some more information, hopefully with the residents being in a more compliant mood.
Of course, the same could not be said about Sasuke and Gray, both of whom kept a healthy distance from each other and refused to even talk to each other, instead, relaying all of their opinions on Cana, something which frustrated the brunette to no end. "Come on guys, you two have been keeping up with this silent act for days now, this is really getting awkward! It's like I'm the only one talking!" she complained.
Sadly, her plea was met with a resounding "hmph" from Gray as a response. Ever since that particular night, neither of them had been on speaking terms with each other.
Seeing the futility of her attempt, Cana pouted in annoyance and resignation. "You guys are so immature, you know that?" she murmured. Seeing as how she wasn't going to get any answers, Cana focused back on the task at hand. Nothing in Misty Bloom had changed since the last time they were here. The atmosphere was as gloomy as ever, along with the frosty reception that they had received when they first arrived.
However, as she continued walking through the village, Cana began to realize that a few of the residents didn't seem as cold as before. In fact, some of them looked more shocked or mortified by their presence.
"They're still alive?"
"Guess they got lucky. But for how long though?"
"If these brats know better, they should scram."
Cana could hear all the whispers and murmurs that were taking place behind their backs. Hopefully, Gray and Sasuke also picked up on this.
As the three kept moving through the hamlet, all the while ignoring the strange looks that they were getting, one of the villagers began marching towards them; a rugged-looking man without any discernable features approached them without any sign of fear or hesitation unlike the rest of his fellow residents.
"You three, come with me, quickly" he ordered before swiftly leading them away without warning.
"What the….?" Gray gawked, startled by the man's behavior. The same could be said of Cana, who was just as stunned as he was.
Sasuke on the other hand followed without hesitation as the two looked on with confusion. Gray in particular had become distrustful of him and was reluctant to follow his lead.
Cana on the other hand slowly began tailing Sasuke as she looked back at Gray. "Well, at least he's not giving us the cold shoulder, so maybe we'll get something out of him" Cana tried to convince Gray.
"When you put it like that…can't say I disagree" Gray reluctantly agreed.
The three followed the stranger towards the edges of the town's border where he eventually stopped walking and faced them. His disheveled look and furrowed expressions made it difficult to know if he was actually trustworthy or not but at the same time, he was the only one who wasn't turning them away either.
"Before you all ask me anything, I want you all to answer my questions first," the man said, in an aloof and cold manner. It made him seem like a grizzled man whom many would think twice about picking a fight with.
Sasuke was undeterred, however, and frankly, nothing in this world had intimidated him yet, even if they were stronger than him. "Alright, we're listening."
"Why did you come here?"
Cana and Gray looked at each other as Sasuke answered, "To hunt for the monster that lives here."
The man grumbled and stroked his head, looking almost frustrated and perhaps, even exhausted. "You three are either bravest kids I've seen or the dumbest…. or maybe both" he rudely remarked, "Not that I know how kids act these days, considering how the rest are-"
"Gone?"
The man was startled by the interruption from the aloof boy but nodded along anyway. "Yeah…" he affirmed with a dour tone.
"Say" Cana spoke up, "We've been meaning to ask; is it really true that some witch came and took all the kids?"
"Unfortunately, yes and that's not the only thing the piece of trash did" the man answered.
"What else did it do?" Gray added.
"Destroyed our crops and the poisoned the rest of the land. Ever noticed how this whole place looks like a poison-filled swamp? Well, now you know" he answered, "We had to hunt game and eat roots that tasted like crap just to survive. It's been almost a year now and most of us have gotten used to it."
Gray and Cana collectively groaned at his answer, thinking back to the times when their ration ran out and they had to eat some of the local vegetation, all of which tasted repulsive and even the game they hunted was rough and difficult to consume. On top of that, even before they learned about the monster issue, the whole area around Misty Bloom seemed barren and toxic.
"And what about the witch? Is it as strong as they say it is?" Sasuke inquired, placing a hand on his chin.
"Well yeah, of course, it's-"the man paused and blinked, before shaking his head, "Ah shit, you kids are making me go off-topic here."
Sasuke raised a brow while the other two tilted their heads in confusion. Something was definitely up with the man.
"Listen….forget about the hag, forget about this place, and forget about everything else that happened here. Just get out of here while you still can" he pleaded with the sincerest look on his face.
The three kids stood in silence as they listened to his plea. The man's warning seemed genuine and despite his rough demeanor, it seems like he had their best interest at heart. However, their best interest wasn't for the benefit of the village, since it would leave them at the mercy of the witch that had been causing them pain and suffering. On top of that, they had a duty to perform regardless of their differences.
"Is that why you called us here?" Cana asked.
"Yeah!" the man answered, dumbfounded. "And if you know what's good for you, the three of you will listen to what I just said and get the hell out of dodge."
"Sorry, no can do" Gray replied, as the three of them turned their backs on the man and headed for the streets.
The man looked on with disbelief as the kids ignored his warnings and began walking away from him. The audacity of those brats took him infuriated him and he could barely get the words out to describe them as his throat hitched. "Didn't you kids just hear what I said?" he called them out.
"We did" Cana swiftly replied.
"Then why aren't you getting out of here?"
"If you haven't noticed it yet, we're wizards from Fairy Tail" Gray sighed and explained, "taking down monsters like that is kinda our thing."
"No, you don't get it!" the man protested, "That thing is too-"
Before he could get the rest of the words out, a loud, monstrous screech interrupted him, followed by a massive shadow that was cast over the three of them. It was enough to bring him to his knees, as he gave a blank stare with trembling hands.
Sasuke, Cana, and Gray had also witnessed what had happened and instinctively looked towards the man.
"Its….it's her"
His words and the look of despair on his face were enough to confirm that their target had arrived. Without saying anything to each other, the three dashed towards where the shadow had flown over to.
After days of fruitless searching, they were finally going to have the opportunity to take down the monster that had terrorized this village once and for all.
….
The trio headed for the village square where the massive creature was most likely headed. Based on what had been described to them, the idea of a giant bird-like monster was a far cry from the skinny witch that had been described to them. Still, even if that bird was not the creature they were looking for, the sight of the villagers screaming and fleeing in terror was enough of an indicator that it was a threat nonetheless.
However, by the time they had reached the square, the giant bird was nowhere to be seen. Instead, in its place was something that took them by surprise: a tall, emaciated woman with sickly pale skin stood before them. Her long black hair was messy and dirty, an image accentuated by her long and worn-out skirt. Covering her hands were long sharp claws, exactly as the old man had described. It was enough to send shivers down the spine of Cana and even Gray to an extent.
As for Sasuke, it wasn't until the witch twisted her neck to an uncomfortable degree to look at them did he feel some sort of discomfort simply for the fact that it reminded him of his time with Orochimaru and his grotesque methods of movement.
As the creature looked at them, it opened up its mouth to reveal rows of sharp, crooked, rotten teeth while the crusty lips curved into a sinister smile. It was enough for the three of them to realize that it was coming for them.
"At least they weren't lying about how ugly it was" Gray's face squinted, repulsed by the creature.
Taking the initiative, Cana threw a deck of cards coated in magic energy directly towards the hag resulting in a small explosion that covered the area in dust. As it settled, Cana's eyes widened at the sight of the creature's silhouette slowly emerging from the dust. "Edgnarai bilakade, kojman" the witch smiled and began spouting off indecipherable gibberish.
"Guess it ain't going down that easily" Gray noted, curling up his right hand into a fist and placing it into his left palm before rushing off towards the witch.
"Gray, wait!" Cana shouted but to no avail as Gray ignored her. Sasuke meanwhile, remained in place and observed the fight, gauging for any weakness while standing by in case things got too dangerous.
"Ice make: Lance" Gray invoked as multiple lances made of ice flew directly towards the witch. In a surprising twist, the hag summoned a long, wooden stave from thin air and began spinning it with such speed that it blocked off all of the ice.
Incensed by this, Gray gritted his teeth and charged forward, summoning a large ice hammer. As he neared the creature, he jumped forward and tried to bring down the hammer on the hag, only for her to block it with her stave. Gray, however, had anticipated that move and tried to grab the stave with his free hand and lower it down to leave an opening for his hammer.
But just as the ice hammer was about to connect, the witch let go of the stave and flew backward, letting the hammer hit the ground. "What the-" before Gray could register what had happened, the hag moved in on him and hit the Ice Wizard with a magically imbued palm strike right into his stomach that sent him flying backward as his face expanded in pain.
Luckily, before he could hit the ground, Sasuke managed to catch him and gently let him down to the ground as Gray winced in pain. "They weren't…..kidding. This thing really is tough" Gray stated, clutching onto his stomach to mend the pain.
Leaving him on the ground, Sasuke walked towards the creature as Cana rushed over to aid Gray. "Are you alright?" Cana asked, concerned with his condition.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Thanks" Gray reassured her as he slowly got up to his feet. "I've faced worse than this, so it's gonna take a lot more than this to put me down."
The two looked on as Sasuke and the witch locked eyes with each other, both reading their opponents and anticipating their moves. The Uchiha stared at the monster without an ounce of fear in his eye, something that must've amused the hag as it let out a monstrous, gurgling chuckle.
"I'll handle this" Sasuke bluntly stated as he began marching forward without hesitation, his eye now glowing red. Cana and Gray both knew that Erza held him in high regard, especially his prowess in combat and if that was true, then he had the best chance of taking this thing down.
There was silence in the air as everyone, even the villagers, watched on from a safe distance. This is the first time in a long time that anyone had stood up to the witch. As a gust of wind blew past the square, Sasuke made the first move and jumped forward, taking out his sword and bringing it down on the hag, who blocked it with her stave and pushed Sasuke back.
It was the witch's turn to attack as she flew forward with great speed and thrust her stave. Sasuke, in turn, blocked it with his sword. However, the witch was undeterred by this and pushed forward, forcing Sasuke to resist with his sword as the stave drove him back. Using all of his strength, the Uchiha raised his sword upward and used the momentum to lift himself up in the air as well before landing his sword on the ground, pinning the stave with it. Before the hag could even react, Sasuke landed on the hilt of his sword with his hands and delivered a spinning kick to the creature.
"Whoa, did he get em?" Gray wondered out loud as he looked on with great interest. Sasuke was the first to land a solid on the witch. Despite their differences and animosity, he could not deny that the raven-haired boy was clearly skilled.
Cana on the other hand was all smiles as she quietly cheered him on.
However, their optimism was short-lived as the witch barely flinched from the kick. Instead of wincing in pain, the creature began cackling like some lunatic, almost as if she enjoyed it, something that took even Sasuke aback.
Grabbing his sword, Sasuke jumped back and looked with a narrow eye, observing the hag as she picked up her stave and continued laughing. The Uchiha continued keeping a close eye on his opponent, waiting to see what attack she would pull out.
The witch slowly began levitating until she was floating at a reasonable height in the air before swiftly flying towards him while bringing her stave down to which Sasuke deflected with his sword. In a surprising display of skill, the hag began twirling her stave as she continued her assault against the boy from every direction.
Sasuke, in turn, countered her every attack, parrying her vertical strikes with his blade while flipping backward to dodge her horizontal sweeps while returning fire with multiple swipes of his own, nearly all of which were quickly sidestepped. As the fight dragged on, Sasuke realized that he was not making any progress with her and vice versa. Her unnatural speed and reflexes betrayed her frail, sickly appearance and his Sharingan was not yet at the level where it could allow him to predict her next moves.
Despite all of this, Sasuke pressed on, his eye observing every minuscule movement in the hopes of finding an opening or a weak spot as both continued their flurry of attacks. But it was the witch who once again, held the advantage and swiped at Sasuke with her massive claws upward, sending the Uchiha flying while leaving massive scratch marks on his chest as well as tearing through his shirt.
Before he could even get a chance to recover, the hag flew towards him and began attacking him with a flurry of strikes before pushing him back to the ground. Still, in the air, she conjured up a dark miasma in her hand and shot out dark beams towards Sasuke who swiftly dodged them all, as they exploded on contact with the ground.
Taking advantage of her ability to fly, the witch assaulted Sasuke with a barrage of aerial swoops that left him on the defensive as he still could not get a clean hit in. With every swipe of her claw, pieces of his clothing began slowly tearing off while leaving nasty cuts in its wake. Eventually, the overwhelming onslaught was enough to leave him open for a ground strike that cracked the earth beneath them before swiping him off of his feet with her stave and striking him with a magical blast that sent him flying a good meter as he let out a yelp before falling to the ground and tumbling some more while his sword landed on the side of the road.
"Sasuke!" Cana cried out, taking a step forward.
"So fast! I couldn't even see her" Gray noted, stunned by what was happening to their best mage.
The battle, however, was far from over as Sasuke quickly recovered from her assault and calmly got to a kneeling position. Grunting, he quickly invocated the hand signs as electricity surged through his left hand.
The other two mages observed with stunned silence as they continued to hold out hope that he could come up with a way to defeat her. "So that's the lighting Erza told us about" Gray muttered to himself, his eyes narrowing further as he continued spectating the fight.
Not waiting around for her to attack once again, Sasuke took the initiative and charged headfirst into his opponent, hoping to break through her stave with his Chidori. As he inched closer to the witch, Sasuke mustered up all of his might into his left arm and thrust it straight into the creature, who immediately blocked it with a dark magical barrier.
Sasuke' raised his brow for a second with a look of disbelief before narrowing them as he concentrated on breaking the barrier. The power struggle between the two resulted in gusts of wind blowing in every direction while the onlookers covered their eyes for protection.
Eventually, Sasuke's Chidori slowly began to win out the struggle as the dark barrier began to crack before shattering completely, only to be completely baffled by the fact that the witch had vanished without a trace. A stupefied Sasuke frantically looked everywhere for his opponent, unsure of whether she had retreated or was planning a surprise attack.
Unfortunately for him, it was the latter, in a move reminiscent of a shinobi as she leaped from the ground below, grabbed his face before he could react, and slammed him to the ground. Holding the immobilized Sasuke in place with her right hand, the hag readied her left claw to gut open her adversary.
"Hold on" a frantic Cana shouted as she rushed towards Sasuke with Gray following behind.
But before she could execute him, the hag reflexively summoned up a small barrier to block an oncoming projectile in the form of a card. Once that was taken care of, she conjured up another spell that caused Cana to telepathically fly towards her. Despite her struggles, Cana was helpless as the dark magic enveloped her body and dragged her towards the witch. Once she was within her grasp, the witch grabbed Cana by the throat and began choking the life out of her.
Despite being neutralized, the sight of Cana gasping for air as the witch tightened her grip around her throat was enough for Sasuke to muster up the strength needed to invoke a one-handed sign for the Chidori before sending that electricity right through the hag's entire body, causing her to let go of both him and Cana as she screamed in pain.
Seeing the opening that they finally needed, Gray created a makeshift ice canon and aimed it directly towards the witch. "Get outta the way!" he yelled, to which Cana instinctively dragged Sasuke away in response.
With the fear of friendly fire out of the picture, Gray fired the canon which let out a marginally large explosion as it hit the target. However, his observations had taught him that this would not be enough to bring her down, only buy them some time.
As Gray kept watch, a distressed Cana looked over a prone, bloodied, and bruised Sasuke struggling to breathe. "Hey Sasuke, are you alright?" she gently asked him, to which he answered by first slowly opening his eyes and then steadily getting back to a seated position, clutching onto her shoulder for support.
"Yeah, I'm doing just fine," he replied, rising up to his feet as he could hear the insane ramblings of the creature.
"Looks like we gotta go at it three to one" Gray advised as Sasuke and Cana walked up from behind him.
"Yeah, that might be our best chance" Cana agreed, readying her cards.
As the dust began clearing up once more, the witch emerged, still alive albeit with some visible damage. Wasting no time, the three charged forth, Gray summoning an ice sword, Cana with her deck of cards, and Sasuke with his Chidori.
Gray came at her first, swiping with his ice blade which was immediately parried as he was tossed aside. Cana followed up with a scattershot of multiple cards which were swiftly dodged, to which Gray took the opportunity to go for the second round of attack alongside Sasuke with a forward thrust which was aptly blocked by the witch with her stave, hitting Gray in the torso before she sidestepped a Chidori by Sasuke. In one single motion, she used her stave to toss Gray like a projectile towards Cana knocking them both out.
Still in the fight, Sasuke continued on with a barrage of assaults with the Chidori, all of which were swiftly evaded. Her inhuman reflexes were becoming an annoyance, yet as the fight dragged on, his Sharingan began to notice patterns in her movement, repetition in the way she fought. Thinking quickly, Sasuke summoned three shurikens from his pouched and imbued them with electricity, while his Sharingan kept up with her freakish movements. Without wasting a single moment, Sasuke tossed the shurikens in the direction that he anticipated the witch would appear next and as predicted, it hit the target on her arms as the electricity immobilized her.
Shrieking in pain, the witch was finally in a state where she was vulnerable to attacks. Gray was the first to seize this opportunity as he brought his right fist to his left hand and created a child-sized rocket launcher on his shoulder. "Chidori stream," Sasuke called out as he slammed his hand on the ground and released a torrent of electricity that ran all the way to the witch, amplifying the shocking effects and immobilizing her even further. "Do it now, hit her with everything you've got!" he ordered his comrades.
"Don't need to tell me" Gray clicked his tongue and scoffed at his instructions, but readied himself and took aim nonetheless. "Ice-make: bazooka!" he cried out as he released a cannonball made of ice, nearly falling back from the recoil.
"Sun's strength" Cana shouted as she threw multiple cards that were enveloped in flames.
The combined effect of the ice cannonball and fire cards simultaneously hitting their target was enough to combust into a large explosion that sent the three of them flying and knocked the nearby village bar down. As the smoke cleared, a crater was left in its wake while the witch lay prone on the ground.
There was a look of hope in Gray's eyes as the witch remained still. "Did we get her?" he murmured, slowly walking over to the body before being stopped by Sasuke, who placed a hand before him to block his path. A surprised Gray glanced over to the Uchiha only to get a firm shake of his head.
Unfortunately, Sasuke's intuition turned out to be correct as the witch slowly began getting back to her feet, angrily snarling like some rabid animal that had been freed from its shackle. "gnosan negihs!" it screamed out in a language none of them could understand.
"Looks like we just made her even madder!" Cana proclaimed, panicked as she frantically backed away.
"Ya think?" Gray sarcastically replied, looking over with concern.
Large black wings began to sprout out of the witch's back as she took flight and ascended towards the sky. The further up she went, the larger her wings became until a familiar yet deafening screech was heard all the way to the ground.
As the witch began descending towards the ground, Sasuke's face contorted into a narrow snarl as he readied himself. But alas, neither he nor the other two mages could prepare themselves for what would back down, for it was no longer a skinny, deformed human that was flying back down but a massive raven-like monster with thick black feathers.
In one single swoop, the raven sent the kids flying backward while demolishing every adjacent building with its wings. As its feet touched the ground, the earth shook as the villagers ran for their dear lives but at the same time, its' effects were enough to get Sasuke back to his senses along with Gray and Cana.
As the three recovered from the initial attack, they were shocked to see a massive bird-like creature standing before them. It towered over the remaining houses and its body seemed to be coated in some sort of black-armored plating. Its eyes were glowing white while being surrounded by a dark aura. The sight of it was enough to make Cana fall to her knees and tremble, all the while dropping her deck, almost looking like she had given up.
Gray, however, had witnessed far worse in demons like Deliora and as such, wasn't going to let another Trieste or Brago happen again. Sasuke himself had witnessed even more destructive monstrosities than Deliora and this raven form of the witches was no different. The only problem was, his current level of strength was proving to be problematic in this fight. As such, the two boys readied themselves for round two as they stood in front of Cana to shield her.
"Ice make crescent blades" Gray made the first move and summoned a volley of ice blades
"Fire style: fireball Jutsu" Sasuke followed up by releasing a torrent of flames from his mouth.
Both attacks did little to deter the monster as the blades shattered on impact while the flames harmlessly burned with little effect. Gray's face expanded into a look of disbelief while his mouth twisted into a snarl, "Seriously!?"
The sentiment was felt by Sasuke as well, who clicked his tongue and gritted his teeth in displeasure.
Just as either of them was about to go for another round of attack, the raven struck back, knocking Gray out to the side by swinging its head and using it as a battering ram before flapping its wings and hovering above the air as dust followed in its wake, momentarily blinding Sasuke as it forced him to cover his eyes. It was the opening needed for the witch to swipe her massive talons at Sasuke, sending him flying to the other side.
"Gray! Sasuke!" She called out to her teammates but received no answer.
With the boys down, Cana was now vulnerable. Left at the mercy of the monster, she scrambled for her cards and threw nearly everything she had at the bird-like monster. The attempt was in vain as the raven ignored the attacks as if they were nothing before swooping in and grabbing her with her talons.
As Gray and Sasuke cleared the rubble and recuperated from the witch's assault, the screams let out by Cana sprung them back into action as they mustered what little strength they had left to run towards her.
"Cana!" Gray cried out to her as he desperately tried to grab her, even though the witch was already out of his reach.
Sasuke took out a kunai from his back pocket and threw it at the raven. It was too far away to use his grappling hook on but if he could get its attention, Sasuke thought that it might give them a better chance.
While the kunai bounced off the raven's body, it was enough to get the witch's attention as it turned around to face them again. Unfortunately, it was the wrong kind of attention since rather than flying towards them; it hovered in the air as it gathered dark magic energy in its mouth before releasing a massive blast that headed straight for them.
The radius of the blast covered too much area for them to evade it. Worse still, Gray's reserve of magic had run out, meaning he could no longer summon an ice shield, and owing to this new body, Sasuke no longer possessed a Mangekyo Sharingan, which by extension, meant that he could no longer call upon the Susano'o for protection. All the two of them could do was brace themselves for the worst and hope that they could come out of this unscathed.
It was at that time, in their moment of imminent demise that something strange happened: by some miracle, strange force fields began surrounding them as the dark energy blew past them, eradicating everything in its path yet leaving the two of them relatively unharmed.
The phenomenon took both of them by surprise; however, since it saved their skins, they decided to not waste their breath asking questions as to its origins. At the moment their primary concern was still getting Cana.
Sadly by the time, the corrosive darkness was gone, so were the witch and Cana as well. "Cana!" Gray cried out for her, he called for again but there was no answer. Frustrated, he dropped to his knees and pounded the ground.
….
"Dammit! Dammit! Dammit!"
"Calm down, Gray" Sasuke advised the young wizard, slowly walking over to him while keeping a wary eye. Knowing what he had gone through; he could see why this would affect him badly.
"What did you say?" Gray turned around and asked, almost looking offended by Sasuke's suggestions.
"I said calm down. Getting worked up isn't going to help us here" Sasuke explained, but it was at that moment that Gray's face turned from surprise to disgust.
"Calm down?!" Gray responded, his eyes filled with rage, "How could you tell me to calm down after what happened!? That thing kicked our ass, we didn't even stand a chance and now she's taken Cana to who knows where. Don't tell me to calm down!"
Gray continued glaring at Sasuke before rising to his feet and stomping over to him, ready to give him thrashing. "I don't what it is about you that Erza liked so much that she thought of you as a good friend. First, you lie about my father and now, instead of worrying about Cana, you're just standing there like a damn machine!" he shouted as he took a massive swing at Sasuke's face "You're nothing but a phony, gutless coward."
This time, however, Sasuke easily blocked his punch and held it there with little effort, despite how much Gray struggled. "Emotions can get in the way of the mission" Sasuke quietly retorted, before letting go of his hands and stepping aside, allowing the momentum of Gray's punch to direct him to the ground, pushing his head to do so. As Gray crashed to the ground, he slowly walked over to him and offered a hand, "You should know that if you wanna survive."
Instead of reciprocating, a furious Gray smacked his hand aside and pushed himself off the earth. "You're wrong; emotions are what make us strong. The feelings I have for my comrades are what taught me to be better. It's what the Master taught me" he paused as he swallowed to compose himself, "It's what…..she taught me."
Sasuke could guess that he was most likely referring to Ur and to be honest, he didn't necessarily disagree with what Gray had said. The reason he's still alive in the first place was that there were so many people willing to fight and die for him, care for him, show him that the world wasn't always so dark and miserable, and made him realize that he wasn't alone. But he was wrong about one thing.
"A single flash of emotion in the heat of battle can mean the difference between life and death" Sasuke explained in a tranquil voice, slowly moving over to the spot where Cana had dropped her bag of cards and picked it up, "Any sign of imbalance in your heart can lead to vulnerability and in those moments, it can determine whether you or your friends will live or die."
The explanation caught Gray off guard and sent him into a daze. Sasuke ignored his surprised look and simply walked towards him before handing out Cana's bag to him.
"You can call me a phony or a gutless all you like, I don't care. But don't think for one second that I don't care about finding Cana and getting her back. I'm not some machine you know."
Gray silently took the bag off of Sasuke's hands, rendered speechless by Sasuke's answer. He found himself having no response towards the raven-haired boy's statement; part of him felt slightly guilty for levying such accusations against him, even if it was in the heat of the moment.
"You're all still alive?"
The two boys looked over to see the man that had warned them earlier run over to them with a look of joy as if he never expected things to happen the way they did.
"Not all of us" Gray dejectedly answered.
The man looked around and noticed that the girl wasn't with them. And with that revelation, his excitement died down a little. "I see, sorry" he offered his condolences before facing the two of them once more, "But the fact that the two of you are alive and in one piece is still a miracle."
Sasuke narrowed his brow and looked over at the man with his hands crossed, "We weren't supposed to win?"
"Nothing like that" he waved his hand before nervously rubbing them, "To be honest, most of us couldn't even get a scratch on her while you kids actually took the fight to her. Guess you three weren't lying when you said you were wizards."
Gray and Sasuke blinked in confusion towards the man's sudden change in opinions; not too long ago, he was practically telling them to get out of this place, and now, here he was, practically beaming with excitement. The same, however, could not be said when it came to the rest of the villagers, who fearfully looked on from their windows, the nearby rubbles of what was once their houses or from the back alleys of those houses that were still remaining, doing their best to maintain distance between themselves and the boys.
"Guess not everyone's as happy as you are" Gray commented, taking note of the fearful villagers.
"Yeah" the man nodded and agreed, "Can't blame them though. Folks here have been through a lot. And then you kids show up, go toe to toe with that monster, and wrecked half the village while you were at it. After what that witch did, they're just scared of anything related to magic."
Sasuke looked around as the villagers continued whispering to each other. He didn't know what they were saying and frankly, he didn't really care. His priority right now was to find any leads on Cana.
"Listen" Sasuke began as he approached the man, "Do you know where it lives?"
The man let out a disappointed sigh and shook his head apologetically, "I wish I knew. When that thing took our kids, we looked everywhere for it but we just couldn't find them. It was like they just disappeared."
"Did you guys try to look at places beyond Misty Bloom?" Gray added.
"We did" he answered, "But we got no luck there as well."
Sasuke began to think deeply about the information that was given. It was obvious that witch wasn't exactly subtle in her presence, considering how she openly terrorized the settlers and her powers meant that there was little they could do to pose a threat to her. Yet, at the same time, she chose to run and disappear the moment she kidnapped their kids. On top of that, the royal army had no presence in this area and no one had come forth on who had made the request to the guild. It almost seemed like she deliberately planned her attack for some purpose.
"So what you're saying is, she found a place to hide, somewhere no one can find her" Sasuke suggested.
"Don't know anything about any hideouts but, yeah, that's probably what she did. We just can't find it" the man confirmed, "Maybe it's blocked by some sort of magic. Since you kids are wizards, maybe you two can find it."
Before the man could get another word in, Sasuke held up his hand in front of the man's face to get him to stop talking. The sound of wings flapping alerted him to the presence of another winged creature heading straight towards. Based on the previous experience, the two boys instinctively readied themselves for combat as a large bird drew near.
To their surprise, instead of attacking them, the bird instead harmlessly flew past them before suddenly landing on Sasuke's shoulder, an act that nearly caused him to strike at the bird before calming down.
"Okay, this day is just getting weirder. First, that witch turns into a giant bird and steals Cana, and now, another weird-looking bird lands on your shoulder" Gray huffed, rubbing his head with his palm to alleviate his irritation.
"Not just any bird. It looks like an eagle" Sasuke corrected.
'Yeah, a weird one" Gray answered back.
On closer inspection, Sasuke noticed that the eagle definitely did look strange. The upper portion of the eagle from its back, its wings and all the way to its tail were maroon or pinkish in color, yet the feathers of the underside, from what he could see of the breast and the neck were coated in white-tipped feathers. It had two large yellow crests running from its forehead all the way to its crest, which itself was messy and spiky. But what was most distinct about this bird were its striking blue eyes.
All in all, the bright colors seemed wholly impractical when it came to hunting, so Sasuke wondered how it even survived. Stranger still, was the fact that it landed on his shoulder as if on purpose. But just as it rested on Sasuke, the eagle quickly began to take flight and circle around the sky.
"Okay…" Gray remarked, looking up at the sky with confusion, "What the hell does that thing want from us?"
Sasuke stared at the eagle with a furrowed brow. "Guess it wants us to follow it" he deduced, hoping it was the correct assumption.
"You want us to tail that bird?" Gray repeated, "But what about Cana."
"Whoever is behind that barrier that saved us probably knows a lot about what's going on, and I'm guessing it might have something to do with this eagle was well" Sasuke explained, "We might be able to get some answers, and a way to find Cana."
"Can we even trust it?" Gray argued.
"Do you have a better idea?" Sasuke answered.
Gray hitched and held his tongue. "Fine, but if it leads to a wild goose chase and something happens to Cana, it's on you" he warned.
The two boys followed the mysterious bird through the forest as the creature led them through a path they had not yet familiarized themselves with. The trees were so large that they blocked out the sun, making the woods seem darker than they really were. And yet, despite the dense vegetation, the crimson eagle did not stop or find any trouble flying.
The same could not be said of Sasuke and Gray, who were having a much harder time trudging through the flora. While Sasuke could easily pick up the pace by jumping from tree to tree, Gray could not and the Uchiha had no intention of leaving him behind in case the witch came back to mop up loose ends.
As something resembling a path amidst the thick flora began to open up, the little sunlight available began to seep through the opening left by the threes. It was there that small a herd of deer began to stand in front of them, almost as if they were paving the road for the two.
"Okay, now this is just starting to get weirder and weirder" Gray observed with unease as he looked at all the deer staring at him as he walked past them.
"We've seen strange things before, this is no different" Sasuke responded, marching forward without showing any concern for the strange herd of deer.
They continued following the eagle until it finally rested on the trunk of a massive tree, grander and sturdier than the rest. Beneath its trunk was a large hole big enough for adults to walk through.
Sasuke stared at the eagle, whose head shifted back and forth as if to look back at him, he wasn't sure if he could fully trust it but it seemed better than chasing dead ends once again. "Looks like this is it," he said, slowly approaching the unknown lair while his furrowed brow receded.
But something unexpected happened the moment Gray tried to follow and enter the lair. The ice wizard found himself physically unable to enter as if some invisible force was keeping him out of there. "What the?" Gray shuddered as he took a few steps back before charging a full speed, only for an invisible wall to stop him in his tracks.
Sasuke himself was just as taken aback by this unforeseen circumstance that they were in. "Is something wrong?" he asked, walking over to Gray.
"I don't know, something just won't let me pass" he complained as he placed a hand on the entrance of the burrow, whereby it rested on some invisible wall.
Seeing his predicament, Sasuke tried to do the same and realized that, in his case, his hand passed safely through the entrance of the burrow without any hassle. After that, the Uchiha walked back and forth through the entrance, passing through without any problems, in contrast to Gray, who was immediately stopped in his tracks.
"Dammit, why is it that you can go through this while I'm stuck here?" Gray ranted, crossing his arms and grumbling.
Knowing that there was definitely some force at work here, Sasuke's eyes traced through the tree before fixing his gaze back on the strange eagle once again. There were so many unknown elements at play here, which made it difficult for him to predict the outcome of the events that may unfold. He wasn't sure going in alone would be the right idea: he could end up in the witch's lair, or leave Gray alone and vulnerable.
But at the same time, Cana was still in danger and the longer he spent contemplating, the more he was risking her life. It was a gamble he had to take.
"Wait here" he ordered, slowly walking towards the center of the burrow.
His actions caused Gray to blink in surprise, puzzled by his decision to go into the unknown all by himself. "Wait, you're going in there alone?" he questioned the Uchiha, "what if that thing is down there? What if this is all a trap?"
"Then it's all the more reason for me to go there as soon as possible" Sasuke swiftly replied.
"You can't win against her on your own, you know that, right?" Gray pointed out, alluding to their last encounter.
"I don't have to. So long as I can get Cana out, it'll be fine"
"But-"
"There's no time to complain. The longer we argue, the more we risk putting Cana's life in danger. Just keep watch over this place and wait for me" Sasuke gently persuaded as the distance between him and Gray grew bigger. Before vanishing into the darkness completely, the Uchiha looked back one more time, "And if I don't come back here by sundown, assume the worst and get out of here."
Gray watched as Sasuke's silhouette vanished into the unknown, his fate a mystery as is the outcome of this journey. He still didn't fully trust him and he had not forgotten the comments he made on his father, but for the sake of saving Cana, he had to put their differences aside. Moreover, even if he found the eye-patch kid to be an insensitive jerk, at the end of the day he was still a member of Fairy Tail. He couldn't let him get hurt, not on his watch.
"Idiot" he grumbled with indignation as he stared at the eagle. "He'd better make it out of there in one piece, or else you're going to turn into chicken soup, got it!"
…..
As Sasuke ventured deeper into the burrow, he noticed that area around him had become more spacious. On top of that, the place itself was well lit with torches that illuminated his path going forward.
Stranger still was the appearance of several man-made structures that consisted of sculptures in the shape of a stag and several murals depicting it, even though he could not decipher them. Further ahead were small, glowing trees neatly placed in such a way, that they resembled part of the overall design, like the gardens he grew up in.
"It seems to be a temple or a shrine of some sort. Be on your guard, Sasuke" Hagoromo warned him.
The Uchiha silently nodded as he continued exploring the area. Eventually, he stumbled upon a clearing where the trees began to circle around what seemed like an altar. And standing before that altar was a large stag with thick reddish fur and horns that were embezzled with blue runes tracing all across it. With glowing yellow eyes and feathering around its legs, the stag stomped its front feet.
Sasuke looked at the stag with awe as it began to somehow trot in the air, its feet never once touching the ground. As the beast came closer, he realized just how enormous it was; perhaps not as big as the black raven that the witch transformed into but it was still quite large, considering he was barely the size of its leg.
"It would seem the observers of causality are true to their word. The outlander from a world beyond whose vessel is to be this lands' salvation has indeed appeared before me" the stag spoke in a loud, commanding voice; audible enough that its echo reverberated throughout the temple.
Any normal person would probably be terrified by the sight of a talking animal, but considering his own experiences with giant talking serpents before, it barely fazed Sasuke. His words still didn't make any sense to him, however, "Outlander?"
"My words are not meant for you, mortal. It is for the one referred to as the Sage of Six Paths. The one called Hagoromo Ōtsutsuki" the stag corrected.
Its words took both Sasuke and Hagoromo by surprise. So far, the former had been able to blend in with the inhabitants of this new world with none of them any wiser as to who he really was and where he came from while the latter was literally invisible to all but Sasuke. The realization that someone or something had knowledge of who they really were immediately put them on alert.
"You know of me?" Hagoromo inquired, materializing for the first time in years.
"One has been made aware of your true nature and that of your vessel. They have informed me of your deeds as well and one has found them admirable" the stag answered as it circled around Sasuke before lowering its head and leaning in close until he was right next to Sasuke's face, "Though the same cannot be said of this one. I have been told stories of this mortal and the misdeeds he has committed. His scent reeks with the putrid stench of sin."
Looking past the stag's thinly veiled contempt for him, Sasuke's mind focused on compiling a list of questions he had for the creature. "Who told you about us?" he firmly asked.
"They are known by many names: Observers of causality, Lords of Time, and Chronomancers. But they are all children of Chronos, the once true God of Time" the creature explained, "Regardless; they are irrelevant to the matter at hand. They will make their presence known to the both of you in due time."
"And what of you? Are you one of them as well?" Hagoromo asked, curiously staring at the deer.
"The one before you is known as Justiça, enforcer of justice and guardian deity of these lands" he proudly proclaimed.
"Then you're doing a terrible job of it" Sasuke sarcastically remarked, crossing his arms.
His comment sent the Stag into a thunderous fury as the earth began to shake. Sasuke flinched a little but maintained a stoic façade. "Hold your tongue, vessel of the Sage of Six Paths. Do not take me for some common lout who cowers beneath you, Sasuke Uchiha."
"Had it been my wish, I would have crushed that despicable creature under my heel the moment it set foot within these lands" Justiça loudly and proudly boasted, " For I' am Justiça, keeper of justice, the one who parted the clouds, shaped the mountains as befitting my vision and carved the moon itself."
"I' am a god, do not forget that. It is through my will that you yet breathe in this moment and my will that will decide whether you live or die" He leaned in on Sasuke once again, directly facing him before exhaling loudly enough that steam emerged from his nose "So choose your next words carefully."
Amidst all his posturing and thinly veiled threats, Sasuke could deduce the reason why he brought them here. The despicable creature he mentioned must mean the witch. While he did not know the full extent of this so-called god's power and that uncertainty warranted caution, it also did not mean he had to tremble before him either.
"If you really wanted to kill me, you wouldn't have bothered trying to save us from that thing" Sasuke brushed off his threats, "There's a reason you can't kill that witch, isn't it, O might God."
The deity stomped its' front feet and let out a loud growl, seemingly in response to having Sasuke get under its skin. "As much as I loathe to admit it, you are correct" Justiça conceded, "The witch is under the protection of her master, Moloch."
"Moloch?"
"The god of sacrifices. You will not find a crueler god than he, who demands the flesh and bones of children as offerings" the deer god explained, his tone becoming quiet and somber, "Moloch is a grotesque entity even amongst us. It is he who has sheltered her from my gaze and my wrath."
"That explains the kidnapping of children" Sasuke added, drawing to the obvious conclusion. "But if this 'Moloch' is such a problem, why don't you take care of him yourself?" Sasuke pointed out.
"We are forbidden from fighting amongst each other" Justiça replied, "If we were to clash, our combined strength would lead to consequences for this world that would be….severe. It is why we select champions to fight on our behalf."
"But what does the witch gain from committing these acts?" Hagoromo asked, stroking his long goatee, "Could it be that she seeks to appease this god?"
"Indeed, she has taken children from the nearby villages as offerings for Moloch in exchange for gifts" Justiça affirmed, "She was once a mortal woman named Abigail. A student of magic, who once sought to reach the zenith of magic. The circumstances behind her desire for power are irrelevant, what is important is that her desire to reach the primordial magic led her down a dark path: a path which led her to Moloch and made her his most devout acolyte. In exchange for absolute loyalty, Moloch blessed her with powers beyond any mortal's imagination and transformed her from a simple human to a degusting wretch, one who has sacrificed her humanity to become a fiend."
The god's information piqued Sasuke's curiosity, but also made him concerned as he swallowed at the thought of Cana becoming another sacrifice. It was something that did not go unnoticed by the god before him.
"If you must know, there is little you can do for the children who have been taken by this witch," the god said, sounding almost apologetic, "Their souls have already been fed to Moloch in exchange for more power."
"But there is still time for your friend" Justiça continued, sounding more hopeful than before, "If you can defeat her before the ritual is completed, you will not only save your friend but also put an end to this madness as well."
Sasuke raised a brow as he listened to the deity. He wasn't sure if his offer of help was genuine or if he was just trying to use him to get rid of a problem, but given how limited his options were, he had no choice but to accept. "Then how do I beat her?" he asked intently.
The deer began strutting around the Uchiha as it explained, "When the ritual to offer a child is initiated, the witch needs to return a portion of her strength to summon Moloch. It is at that time when she is at her most vulnerable."
"And the perfect time for Sasuke to strike" Hagoromo added.
"Precisely"
"But how do I find her in the first place?" Sasuke pointed out again, "I don't even know where she's hiding."
As if on command, a magical emblem appeared as it conjured images of a strange place, one very dark and desolate. "She has taken refuge in a realm far beyond our own" Justiça explained, "It is a world trapped in endless life, inhabited by creatures beyond mortal comprehension, screaming in agony: Malebolge"
"And how do I get there?" Sasuke asked, keenly looking at the images.
"The entrance to the realm is protected by powerful magic, only gods or those with knowledge of the black arts, like Zeref can enter with ease"
"Zeref" Sasuke hissed as he mentioned the name, one that had become a constant throughout his journey. Whether it was the tower or the demon Deliora, nearly all of the misery inflicted upon this world seemed to trace back to this 'Zeref'.
As if picking up on his discomfort, Justiça flicked his ears and shook his head. "A name most defiled, he is a cursed one. However, he is not responsible for the events that have transpired here, thus he is not my concern at the moment."
"But surely, you have seen the depths of his work" Hagoromo argued, having been witness to the same atrocities under Zeref's name as Sasuke did.
"Yes, but it is neither my place nor the place of my kin to deal with him. He is serving his due penance under Lord Ankhseram and it is Lord Ankhseram who will decide when it is time to free him." Justiça answered back.
"Ankhseram?" Hagormo repeated.
Zeref, Ankhseram, Chronos, gods, forbidden realms, they were all a little too much for Sasuke to handle right now, and more importantly, they were irrelevant to the matter at hand. "It doesn't matter who Ankhseram is right now. We're wasting time here so just tell us how to get to that realm" Sasuke impatiently pointed out.
"Beings of light or pure souls are forbidden from entering the place of their own accord. Only those who have sinned can be granted passage from the Tollman. And since you and that boy have plenty of it, gaining safe passage should not be an issue" the stag explained, "Talyn, the eagle who led you to me will show you the way to the gateway of the realm. Follow him."
"How convenient," Sasuke thought, piecing together clues as to why this deity sought him out. And the more he explained, the more it made sense. The stag needed a hitman to do the dirty work for him. Still, if it got the Uchiha what he wanted, he had no problem going along with it, although, he made sure not to let his guard down around him either.
"Why sin?" Hagoromo inquired, his curiosity getting the better of him.
"Sin is an essence most divine and potent yet dark and enticing. It fuels those who tread the path of darkness as food and water nourish the body and soul."
"If that's all, then I think I'd better head there as soon as possible" Sasuke interrupted, making sure to end the conversation as soon as possible while making his exit.
"Before you leave, I have one final request of you," Justiça said, stopping Sasuke in his tracks.
"What is it?"
A green aura began to glow around Sasuke as he curiously watched his wounds begin to close, soothing his pain and restoring him to full strength in the process.
"Do not mistake this for pity. One is simply ensuring that you are at your best when confronting the filthy creature. The same has been done for your friend" the deity answered standoffishly, in response to the look Sasuke was giving him.
"Should you manage to defeat that fiend, bring me her body as proof of your victory. Moloch's dark magic is versatile and there is no doubt that he will revive her once more if her corpse is left alone." The stag ordered, "I will ensure that she will never again bring harm to this land or the mortals living here."
"Fine" Sasuke nodded and agreed, slowly disappearing out of the god's sight.
"I hope you will not disappoint me" the god of justice proclaimed. "And under no circumstance must you challenge Moloch. That is a battle you cannot hope to win"
….
"Find anything useful" was the first question Gray asked the moment he saw Sasuke coming out of the burrow and much to his relief, relative unscathed although he wouldn't admit to it openly. "And do you anything about what happened just now? It's like all my wounds just got healed."
Sasuke gave a firm nod as his answer before diverting his attention towards the eagle. "Your master told me everything, you know what to do" he ordered, "take us to the Malebolge."
The eagle complied and began flying towards an unknown direction as if it understood everything that was being conveyed.
"Wait, Male- what now?" Gray asked, looking puzzled by what was happening.
"It's where that witch took Cana. I'll tell you all about it as we go along" Sasuke said as he began trailing behind the eagle.
"Why am I always kept in the dark about everything?" Gray complained but followed behind nonetheless, earning a sigh from Sasuke who knew he had a lot of explaining to do. "And can we even trust it?" he continued asking.
"No. But like I said before, it's better than chasing for dead ends" Sasuke replied.
The trek to the forbidden passage was a relatively quiet one, aside from the occasional questions that spurned up on Gray's head, many of which Sasuke would quickly answer while moving forward.
"So, let me get this straight again; A giant deer claiming to be a god healed us, told you that we could find the witch and by extension, Cana, in some weird forbidden nether realm that no one sane enough would be going to," Gray said out loud, still trying to comprehend the answer that Sasuke had given.
"Yes" Sasuke bluntly replied.
"Not to mention the fact that this apparent 'god' can't find and stop a crazy old hag because she's protected by another god who's protecting her cause she's offering him kids as a sacrifice" Gray continued, "So in other words, we're basically his goon squad sent in to do his dirty work."
"Pretty much"
"And you think it's a good idea to believe him?" Gray pointed out.
"Of course not"
"Then why are we following that bird again?"
"Because we don't have much of a choice" Sasuke answered, "It's either this or walking around in circles while Cana's life is in danger."
Gray reluctantly sighed and kept quiet for the remainder of the journey. His gut told him not to trust Sasuke or what the god he described easily but at the same time, Cana was running out of time and he had no choice but to concede to his plan.
After following the eagle a few good miles into the heart of a small mountain, the pair eventually stumbled upon a large, strange door in the middle of a body of water, with rocks laid out as paths towards it, almost like an entrance to a temple. The place itself had a somewhat eerie feeling to it, much different from the mysterious yet captivating domain of the deer god. "Is it just me or does this place feel wrong, like, really wrong?" the ice wizard pointed out, observing the area around him.
"Stay on your guard" Sasuke advised him, walking towards the door as the crimson eagle rested atop of it.
As Sasuke approached the door, black miasma began to appear all around him as the air got colder. It began enveloping around Sasuke before making its way towards Gray who tried in vain to dispel it until it harmless flew into the air. The miasma began to slowly take form as it let out a sinister cackle. In response, Gray placed his right fist into his left palm as he prepared to conjure up ice constructs to fight the entity.
"Wait, don't do anything rash" Sasuke interrupted, pleading with Gray.
"Are you crazy!?" Gray barked; baffled by what the one-eyed boy was telling him.
"Just trust me; this isn't the right person to pick a fight with" Sasuke explained, lowering his guard a little but still keeping a close watch on the entity.
"Yeah, because that totally looks like a friendly face" Gray sarcastically remarked, still unwilling to back down.
Sasuke grumbled a little in frustration but managed to compose himself enough to continue convincing Gray. "I know it looks like a monster, but this one is just the guardian of this domain" Sasuke explained, looking up at the black miasma as it began to take a more definitive shape, "Isn't that right?"
"Correct"
"Gahhh!" Gray yelped in fright as he took a few steps back, eyes wide open as he began to try and make sense of what he was seeing. The entity looked like something straight out of a horror story with its fierce glowing eyes, black smoky torso, and a head without any legs with sharp claws for hands.
"Do not be afraid. You, dear children, may call me Karrion. I 'am but a humble guardian of this gate. If you seek passage to the world of eternal stagnation, then I shall grant you safe passage…..for a price"
"A price?' Gray hesitantly asked, still on guard.
"He means our sin" Sasuke stepped forward and answered, "That is if the god of justice is telling the truth."
"Oh yes indeed. You can trust the words of Justiça. He is a wise one indeed, albeit a little too prideful if you ask me." The entity gleefully replied, "And the two of you have plenty of it. The both of you reek of hatred and vengeance. I could sense them the moment I flew past the both of you."
Gray was a little taken aback by what he was hearing. Even if Sasuke had explained it earlier, he still found the whole experience to be a little absurd. "Y-you're kidding…..right?" he nervously gulped.
In response, the entity known as Karrion giggled and flew over to Gray as it began to float around him. "But why would I jest? Your face may hide it but your heart is as honest as ever. I now know every dirty little secret the two of you have, the moment I peered into your souls" Karrion condescendingly hissed, "Of course, how could you forget that it was your need for vengeance that led your beloved master Ur to her sad fate."
Gray froze in shock as his eyes twitched while his hands trembled. Hearing her name brought back a lot of painful memories and feelings he had quelled up deep inside of him, namely guilt. "That's….impossible" he muttered.
"Oh, but it is. I mean, it is only because of her sacrifice that you still live" Karrion insisted, mockingly waving his index finger, "It's quite a shame that you have now changed your ways. You could have been capable of so much more. Still, yours will suffice."
"But this one!" Karrion pointed at Sasuke before flying towards him, circling around the Uchiha, "This one's sins are potent. Not only does was he fueled by hatred but treachery as well. If I were you, dear Gray, I would be concerned for my safety as well should I be in his company"
"What are you talking about?" Gray asked with a hardened gaze.
"He murdered his older brother in retaliation for the massacre he committed towards his clan. In his quest for revenge, he has betrayed each and every single ally he has ever had, even after killing his own brother" the entity cackled, continuing to float around Sasuke before turning its attention to Gray, "But worry not. He eventually saw the error of his ways and is trying to make amends. However, the darkness within him, still resides, lying dormant like an animal trapped in a cage ready to destroy the world should it ever be released."
Sasuke tightened his fists as he silently glared at the guardian entity. He was not at all pleased with having his dirty laundry aired in front of Gray and he presumed that Gray felt the same as well. As his eye trailed towards Gray, he could see a look of fear in his eyes, almost as if he couldn't believe what he was hearing; since that night, Sasuke presumed that he didn't think too highly of him, with Cana being the glue that kept them together. Now, he wasn't sure if he could ever mend the gap between him and Gray. He had always tried his best to keep his old life a secret away from his new one, hoping to try and look past it to atone for all the things that he did, the pain he caused
"Of course all of this is-"
"Stop wasting time. If we have what you need, then open the door and let us through" Sasuke interrupted with a frown as he crossed his arms, his patience having reached its limit.
"Of course" Karrion clucked, floating away from Sasuke, "It seems you have not completely changed. Good, I like that about you. But first."
Karrion began sucking up the air around it as black smoke began emanating out of Sasuke and Gray's bodies while they both looked on with discomfort. The smoke began entering what looked like its mouth as the entity began wolfing down on the smoke as if it were a lump of meat. "Mmmmmm, delicious! That was quite a meal" Karrion blissfully said slurping what was left of the sins "Now then."
With a snap of his fingers, the gate began to open as it paved the way towards a large, empty cavern through which Karrion flew towards.
"Follow me" it instructed.
Gray and Sasuke looked at each with uncertainly, having their dark secrets revealed to each other just minutes ago; although, it was a different form of concern Sasuke, since he had already witnessed the events that Gray had gone through. Even so, Sasuke could guess what Gray was feeling right now and if that was the case, he hoped that he still remembered that Cana was their priority and that he could put aside his suspicion of him long enough to save her.
Without saying a word, Sasuke took the first step as he walked through the door, part of him hoping that Gray would stay behind for his own safety while another part of him, wanted him to come along.
As he entered the cavern, he could hear the steps of the ice wizard marching behind him, no doubt unwilling to trust Cana's safety to him and having a lot of questions that needed to be answered. Deep down, he couldn't help but heave a sigh of relief. He hoped that he would at least be able to clarify some things to him once this was over.
AN: Apologies for taking so long to upload, there's been a lot going on that's been keeping me busy and considering what's happening right now with the world, didn't feel too good. Anyways, hope you all are doing fine.
To those who have been asking me to change the premise, thank you for your suggestions but I don't want to retcon my entire story. The concept of Sasuke committing suicide and then transporting to another world has been done before and frankly, it wasn't as good as I hoped it would be, mainly because these stories tend to hand Sasuke everything on a silver platter and the plot gets boring. Also, it leaves a lot of plot hole in the world of Naruto, since without Sasuke, Hiashi will be left for dead, Konoha would be destroyed by a meteor and Naruto would've been killed on the moon. Barring that, he would've been woefully unprepared for Momoshiki and Kinshiki and would've been kidnapped and extracted of his chakra leaving his world in trouble. It sounds like a great premise but it's not the story I want to write (Feel free to take it though). That's why I decided to create two Sasukes, one canon and one on earthland (this one).
Yoj1mb03796: I like writing stories where the hero struggles, faces a lot pain and hardships but eventually overcomes them and every victory is hard earned. A stomp here and there is nice, but most of the time, I'm a sucker for "earn your happy endings" format.
Fallen into despair: I wanted to give Sasuke a deeper connection with the characters here beyond just being from another world. I also wanted to explore his relationship with his parents since his bond with Itachi has been done to death. Finally, I liked the thought of Sasuke and Gray fighting side by side as brothers, since they have such similar backstoreis.
Rei: Sorry, I'm not really good with writing Yaoi or Yuri ships or romance in general.
Aka Daka: They might or they might not find out. I think in the next couple of chapters I'm going to hint at potential love interests more.
AkashiReiko30 : I've always enjoyed writing stories in slow burn formats, it's just I don't want to take too much time either.
Park Otsutsuki: No, other than Hagoromo, no other Otsutsuki. I don't like them that much. They have cool designs and powers, but other than that they suck as villains. Compared to the ones we got in Zabuza, Haku, Orochimaru, Itachi, Tobi, Nagato/Pain and Madara, they're as charismatic and interesting as a cardboard box. All of them besides anime Kaguya and Toneri can be boiled down to "I'm overpowered and a dick"
Robin Chwan Fatliyansyah : Sasuke can Susano'o with one eye, but this is a new body and thus he needs to awaken the Mangekyo sharingan in this one first. Also, while I do find Wendy cute and adorable, I just don't see her much as a love interest material. Sasuke would most likely just see her as a little sister.
Vena Jugularis: I have decided on some romance, it's not gonna be a huge part of the plot for now. While I don't want to put out any spoilers, there are going to be hints in the next couple of chapters, enough to let you all guess. But don't worry, not planning on pairing Sasuke with Wendy.
Ashmole: Thank you for continuing to read. I'm aware that people are gonna get upset about me nerfing Sasuke and making him go through shit (and I can't blame them) but this is a slow burn fic so the good times need to come with the bad so that the awesome moments feel that much more satisfying. At least, that's what I'm hoping for when I write this.
: Thank you! I'm glad you enjoy it.
Ubivashka-kun: crossover op stories are fun and all, but after a while I got bored of them, so I wanted to write a story of a protag falling down and building himself back up, so that when he wins, it feels good. As for Irene, it's unlikely she'll apologize, considering how nuts she's become but I can tell you she doesn't hate Sasuke either, in fact she's intrigued by him.
Pikapikachu4291: I mean, theoretically, they could work. For me, I could imagine them as odd drinking buddies, where she'll run her mouth drunk while he'll just quietly listen, lol! Or brag about him while drunk while he'll just stand still.
Sasuke25: I was thinking of making a Sasuke/Genshin Impact crossover. But I'm just too busy now. Maybe someday but with no Hu Tao pairing (Maybe Ganyu). Also, if I do that, the backstory will be depressing as hell, just so you know.
Joe: Thanks for the encouragement friend, and don't worry, I appreciate their suggestions but I've already planned a lot of things for this story.
Savage-Butterfly: Glad you like it!