It was three days since Erza and her friend's decision to remain at the resort in memory of Simon and thus far everything was going perfectly. There had been no unexpected visits from anyone, no fights (outside of Gray and Natsu trying to kill each other), no property destruction, no nothing.

The majority of the group was now down on the beach sunning themselves or playing in the gentle swell of the ocean. The only one not partaking in the relaxing was Naruto, having snuck away while no one was watching to a secluded little spot behind the resort. Looking around, Naruto established he was alone before reaching into a pocket and withdrew a small, rolled up note.

Quirking a smile, he dropped it beside himself before raising his thumb to his mouth and breaking through the skin with his teeth. Flicking through a set of well rehearsed hand seals, the blond slapped his hand down on the ground with a cry of, "Kuchiyose no Jutsu (Summoning Technique)!"

Pumping a vast amount of his chakra into the technique, Naruto stepped back as a sizeable amount of smoke went up. Waiting for it to clear, Naruto grinned when he saw a little toad sitting before him looking a little confused.

Waving at it, Naruto knelt down. "Hey there little guy, can you understand me?"

Croaking, the little amphibian nodded. It seemed it couldn't speak but that wasn't too much of a problem. Reaching out, Naruto grabbed the note he had written and passed it to the small summon. "Alright then, I really need a big favour from you. Can you see that this note gets to Ma and Pa? It's pretty important they then pass this onto the Hokage. Do you think you can do this for me?"

Croaking again, the little toad did its best to salute while holding the comparatively sizeable note. Grinning, Naruto then reached into his pocket and pulled out a grub. "Thanks heaps for that. Here, take this as a reward."

Eyes widening happily, the toad smiled and snatched it from Naruto's fingers with a flick of its tongue. Trying to salute again, it then disappeared with a puff of smoke, note and all.

Smiling happily, Naruto pushed himself to his feet. Reaching his arms to the sky, Naruto stretched until he felt his back pop. Shivering, he dropped his arms and turned to face the footsteps drawing near.

"Naruto? Where'd ya go?"

Raising an arm, the blond teen called out. "Over here, just finishing up."

Walking into view came Cana, the tall girl raising an eyebrow as she spotted her target. If there was one thing Naruto could confidently say he loved about this place was the beach. Not for the swimming exactly, but for the incredible bikini's the girls all decided to wear. Cana was currently wearing a simple, matching two piece set that did very little to hide what made her a lady. That seemed to be the trend too with all the girls wearing just as little, or in Lucy's case, even less. Averting his eyes slightly as not to get caught, the blond waved.

Smirking, Cana crossed her arms under her bust and stopped. "What are you doing out here? We were all looking for ya."

Grinning, Naruto scratched his head as he stepped forward. "Well, you found me! Why, what's happening?"

The brunette threw a thumb over her shoulder. "The attendant brought down some food and we all knew you'd be interested."

Grinning, Naruto slapped his hands together and rubbed them vigorously. "Damn right I am. I'm starving."

Rolling her eyes, Cana turned around. "When aren't you? Come on then, let's get back before Natsu eats it all."

Hearing a growl, Cana then had to grab her hair as Naruto shot past her as he sprinted for the beach. "He better save me some! I want my food!"

Shaking her head, Cana sighed and began following at a more leisurely pace, the indignant shouts of the warring teens already reaching her ears.

XxXxXxX

Another two days passed easily enough since Naruto sent his note on its way. He hadn't heard anything of yet but the blond wasn't too fussed. It was probably gonna take a little while for the note to reach Tsunade anyway. Besides, the vacation had been fun. As it was though, this was the last day that Erza's group could stay, their tickets expiring the next morning.

Naruto could have comfortably stayed longer but truth be told he was beginning to miss Mirajane a bit. It wasn't like he was going to stay when the others couldn't either so in the afternoon of the final day, Naruto found himself sitting out on the balcony overlooking the ocean. Taking a deep breath in through his nose, Naruto closed his eyes in peace. Yeah, this break had definitely been warranted.

Hearing the apartment door open, the blond turned to see Cana strolling in. Spying her male roommate, the girl smiled and wandered out. Scruffing his hair fondly as she passed him, the brunette dropped into a nearby chair and cast her gaze over the ocean. Each sat in silence for a few more minutes before Cana finally began speaking. "Thanks for bringing me along on this. Honestly, I have really enjoyed it."

Grinning, Naruto kicked his feet out to rest them on the edge of the railing. "Eh, no problem. It'd be boring coming by myself anyway so it was good you could come."

Rolling her eyes, Cana just nodded and let the noise of the waves in the distance sooth her mind. Both teens then fell silent for a moment longer; Cana closing her eyes tranquilly. The girl couldn't remember a time when she had felt so relaxed without the prolonged use of alcohol. Granted she was still drinking it by the jug load here, but it was more out of habit than to try escape the endless noise of the guild.

Cracking an eye open, she looked over at Naruto when she heard him start to move. "So what are you gonna do tonight?"

Opening both eyes, the girl shrugged and raised both arms above her head. "I'm not sure. Guess go make a nuisance of myself somewhere. What about you? We still haven't been on that 'date' yet either."

Nodding, Naruto sighed. "Yeah, I know. I'm actually out with Erza tonight. I promised her one a while ago."

Raising an eyebrow, Cana smirked. "Oh my, what will Mira think?"

Naruto frowned in thought. "That's the thing, I dunno! She said that it was fine, remember?"

Indeed remembering when Naruto questioned her about that, Cana chuckled. "Well then, you're a lucky guy. You'll have your hands full with her tonight though."

Naruto looked up. "How so?"

Scratching her cheek, Cana looked off to the side. "Oh, she's just an interesting character. Most guys usually run and hide when they think of a date with her."

The blond teen raised an eyebrow. "That doesn't really answer the question you know."

Deciding to ignore it, Cana shrugged. "Oh well, unlucky about that. So, did you wanna go for a walk or something before the night begins?"

Letting it go, Naruto leant back. "Nah, Erza will be round soon. Gotta get ready."

Looking over at the boy, Cana raised an eyebrow. "Rushing are we?"

Naruto chuckled. "Another minute wouldn't hurt."

Hearing a knock at the door, both companions looked over. "Crap."

Chuckling, Cana smirked as Naruto jumped to his feet. "Another minute hey?"

Grimacing, Naruto dashed into the room and grabbed a bag of clothes. "Occupy her for a moment?"

Not giving her a chance to reply, the blond then rushed into the bathroom. Grumbling to herself, the brunette pushed herself off the chair and wandered over to the door. Pulling it open, she was surprised to see Erza extremely dressed up. A long, elegant dress of a most vibrant royal purple covered her slender frame, the front cut low to reveal a portion of her impressive chest. Long, white, bicep length gloves covered her arms and her hair was done up beautifully with a Kogai and Kushi holding her tight bun up high on her head. There wasn't much to comment on in the way of makeup, maybe a little bit of lip gloss, but her natural beauty on its own was easily enough to make her look absolutely stunning.

Smiling as she saw Cana, the lady dipped her head slightly. "Good evening. I was wondering if Naruto was ready?"

Giving her guild partner another look over, Cana couldn't help but whistle. "Wow, you sure went all out! Is this place really that fancy?"

Humming non-committedly, Erza looked around Cana. "So is he ready?"

The brunette shrugged. "Eh, nearly. Still stuffing about in the bathroom. Wanna come sit while ya wait?"

Smiling again, Erza nodded and walked forward. "That would be nice. The balcony?"

Not really given the option, Cana shut the door and wandered after the red-haired beauty as she settled herself on one of the chairs. Dropping down beside her in a much less dignified manner, Cana sighed and unconsciously tried to grab at a nonexistent spirit flask. "So what are you two gonna get up to tonight?"

Smiling serenely, Erza shrugged. "I am not sure. I hope Naruto has something pleasant planned for us both."

Nodding, Cana chuckled. "Mira seemed pretty happy with whatever they got up to."

Looking over with a little more than simply passing curiosity, Erza narrowed an eye carefully. "Can you tell me what they did exactly?"

Realising she was under scrutiny, Cana began sweating a little. "Oh, I'm not sure cause I wasn't there, but I saw them up on the guild roof and they seemed pretty content..."

Turning to face her fully, Erza's eyes focused on the now fidgeting brunette. "Where... where they holding hands or anything?"

"Eh..." Looking around for an escape, Cana unfortunately found none. "Well... Naruto was hugging her and stuff... why?"

Finally letting up with the paralysing glare, Erza sat back into her chair and looked down at her hands as she began twiddling her thumbs. "Oh... I just didn't know what to expect or do... I haven't... been on all that many dates."

Now understanding the situation, Cana sighed in relief. "Oh, there's nothing to worry about! Just go with the flow. If you or him wanna do something, then just do it."

Nodding hesitantly, Erza then cast an eye over to Cana. "What was your date with Naruto like then?"

"Eh?"

Leaning in eagerly, Erza smiled a little. "You know, that date he owed you or so I was led to believe? I think Lucy passingly mentioned it."

Cana blinked. She hadn't breathed a word of it so Naruto must have gone and bragged about it. It wasn't like she could blame him though, had it been the other way around Cana would have been crowing it from the roof. "Well, truth be told we haven't been on it. It isn't a real date either. He just said he'll buy me a good feed."

Frowning, Erza seemed to run the information over in her mind before looking back up at Cana. "May I request of you something?"

Pursing her lips, Cana eyed up the unpredictable woman. "Shoot."

"I was wondering if you might like to come along? I believe this would be the best way to kill two birds with one stone. If you are there, I can follow your lead and you can get that meal you desire out of Naruto." Grinning happily at her plan, Erza leant back. "What do you think?"

Cana raised an eyebrow. "Really? I thought this was your night."

Erza shook her head. "I wouldn't mind. Having someone else there would only make it more interesting."

The brunette then shivered as a memory came forth. "What about Mirajane though? Wouldn't she be a bit annoyed?"

Raising her eyebrows in surprise, Erza leant back. "What makes you say that?"

Cana shivered again. "I was joking around with Naruto before we left and she got all dark and scary about it, like she didn't want me or anyone else for that matter hanging around him."

Shaking her head, Erza chuckled. "You must have been seeing things. For I asked Mirajane if it would be ok if I dated Naruto for a night and she had no problems with that."

Cana looked up at the woman incredulously. "Seriously? She said that?"

Erza nodded. "Not a word of a lie. So, will you accompany us?"

Falling silent, Cana considered her options. On one hand, she was still scared of Mira. On the other hand though, this presented her with a nearly unlimited range of things she could do to potentially embarrass the hell out of Naruto.

But then, there was Mira. However, she did want to make up to Naruto for giving her this great getaway and a sexy girl on each side of him would only make him feel better.

But Mira...

Shaking her head, Cana threw caution to the wind. She wasn't ever really a thinking type of girl. The chance to play with Naruto's mind was too good an opportunity to pass up so why the hell not. Grinning, Cana pushed herself to her feet. "Just let me get changed."

XxXxXxX

Naruto couldn't help but smile as he walked down to dinner. Everywhere he was getting looks from men and women alike, staring as he walked past them. The men looked positively jealous while the women... he didn't really know what that look meant, but it looked pretty surprised, also with perhaps a hint of jealousy.

"You seem to be turning quite a few heads, Naruto."

Looking down to his left side, Erza was looking up at him confidently, one arm gently intertwined with his own as he guided her towards the dining room. The blond raised an eyebrow. "You don't think having you by my side isn't helping that?"

Hearing a laugh, Naruto looked over to the other side. "Well, it might, but having us both is probably a bigger reason."

Cana was smirking at him, a delighted twinkle in her eye at how many women seemed to be blatantly staring at her.

When Naruto had stepped out from the bathroom, he automatically drenched both women in a wave of chakra as he made sure what he was seeing wasn't an illusion. Erza was the living representation of grace while Cana was more than dressed to kill.

The taller brunette seemed to have a bit of makeup on in the form of some soft, silver eye shadow which matched her long, (extremely) figure hugging midnight blue dress. The most impressive part of it however was that Naruto could tell the only reason she could get away with wearing the strapless style was because her chest was large enough to hold the dress up. She had a set of gloves on that matched Erza's except that hers were a velvety black instead of white. Her hair was much the same as always, it just looked a bit more combed and perhaps straightened.

Looking at the two girls, Naruto couldn't help but feel a tad underdressed at the simple black, button up shirt and slacks he had on.

Either way, both girls were complete knock outs and when Naruto was told that they were both going to dinner with him, the teen was indeed knocked out cold.

It didn't take long to rouse the blond however so letting him lead them, they made their way down the stairs and into the current moment in time they found themselves.

Wandering into the fancy restaurant, the three had absolutely no problem finding a prime seating position. Their orders were taken quickly and the food had to have been brought out in record time. Smacking his lips as he looked down at the delicious plate of steak, Naruto rubbed his hands together joyously. If this is how people served you when you had two girls with you then Naruto wasn't going anywhere unaccompanied from now on.

Naruto then jumped in surprise and lashed out a hand to catch the waiter's wrist as he touched the blond's lap for some unknown reason. Glaring down at the hand, Naruto was about to shout at him when he noticed two other waiters doing the same with the girls. "Naruto, let him go. He was placing a napkin on your lap."

Looking aver at Erza, the blond managed a sheepish laugh before releasing him. "Ah, sorry. I can do it myself."

Trying to ignore the waiter rubbing his wrist tenderly, Naruto dropped the small paper towel onto himself and began digging in.

The meal itself went pretty well with Cana mostly in hysterics at Naruto's outrageous antics, Erza even being forced into a refined amount of laughter more often than not. Noise and food went everywhere as Naruto did everything short of getting up on the table and dancing. The other patrons around them were divided, either disgusted at the undignified behaviour or struggling to eat as they were laughing so hard.

Once the meal was over, things turned from food and poking fun at what was on their plates, to impossibly exaggerated stories of the blonds past. Stories of him painting the headstone of his village in an array of clashing colours and words, right through to him knocking out his teacher with his patented sexy technique, which he just so happened to model for them again.

Needless to say, a great number of men needed to be carried back to their rooms after that.

Eventually, the group was asked to leave so the restaurant could try regain some form of dignity again. They accepted easily enough and the trio began wandering through the great halls of the magnificent resort without too much direction. For all the attractions and other bright entertainment places, the three of them ended up drifting outside and down to the beach.

Breaking away from the girls, Naruto ran ahead and spread his arms out wide as he continued telling them a story of his past. "...and I swear, he must have done the world's biggest fart cause the walls of the room literally shook! I was like, 'Dude, how could you push out that mush air at once?', and he was like, I dunno, stop asking, it's not funny, even though when clearly it was. I mean, the whole academy must have been laughing. Seriously the best memory of my entire time there."

Cana had all but fallen over at this point and Erza was covering her mouth delicately as she tried to stifle the giggles. "Honestly Naruto, is this really the kind of thing you should be talking about with two ladies?"

Grinning, Naruto raised an arm behind his head. "I didn't think it'd matter! Girls do it too, so you should be able to relate!"

Hearing a bark of laughter, Naruto looked over to Cana as she sat cross legged in the sand. "Speaking of that, this time with Erza-"

"Cana..."

Seeing the fierce look she was getting, Cana realised just who she was with and swallowed what she was about to say. "Uh, yeah, story for another time."

While she wasn't looking however, Naruto dashed in and scooped the red-head up in his arms. Squealing in shock, Naruto laughed and spun her around a bit. "Lighten up Erza-chan! The night is going great, we're having fun, let your hair down!"

Smiling despite herself, Erza raised an eyebrow. "As you wish, Naruto."

She then twisted around in a surprising display of agility, wrapping her arms around Naruto's neck before planting her feet firmly onto the ground and chucking Naruto into the waves. The blond managed a surprised cry before he disappeared in a splash. Exploding up from the water a second later, Naruto spluttered about before locking eyes with the girl who threw him. "Oi, what was that for?"

Laughing, Erza smirked. "You merely requested me to lighten up. I believe playing in the ocean is included in such a suggestion."

Grinning, Naruto held his palms out. "That just means you have to come in too then!"

In a burst of chakra, Naruto fed a powerful blast of air into the water, sending a far reaching wave over both women on the beach. Bursting out laughing, Naruto held his stomach as twin screams reached his ears, both girls now properly saturated.

"Oh that is it!"

Dashing into the water, Naruto was caught off guard as Cana slammed into him and knocked him clean off his feet. Seconds later, Erza hit the both of them and sent them flying several meters out into the ocean with her impressive strength. What followed from that had to be the most aggressive water fight ever to occur on the beach of the Akane Resort.

XxXxXxX

Now looking up at the stars from the badly eroded beach, the three adolescents sat side by side as their clothes dried off to the side. Naruto was in a vibrant orange pair of boxers, Erza was in her black bra and undies while Cana had nothing but a towel wrapped around her, courtesy of Erza. While two of the members present were able to dry themselves almost instantaneously, it was a bit unfair to Cana to be the only one left drenched so all three agreed to dry off the old fashioned way.

It was just an excuse to talk more anyway.

As it was, Cana and Erza were pointing out the star constellations to Naruto and giggling as the blond struggled to see it. Cana was currently pointing out one such group. "Can't you see Capricorn? Those two stars there represent the horns; that's the back, there's the legs and then there's the arms!"

Crossing his arms, Naruto focused up at the sky, his eyes thinned as he tried to see what was being pointed out. "I can sorta see the head I think... the rest of it just looks like a ramen pot."

Sighing, the brunette dropped her arm and shook her head. Everything seemed to come back to ramen for some reason.

Dropping back, Naruto rested his head on his hands and began running his eyes across the endless sky. Hearing a hum beside him, Naruto looked up to see Erza gazing down at him. "Is this sky different to your sky back home?"

Nodding, Naruto let his eyes trace a pattern across the stars. "Yeah, like super different. It's pretty crazy actually." Raising a hand, he pointed to nine stars and traced a stylised 'M' shape through it. "I mean, that there almost looks like the village symbol for Kusagakure. Three blades of grass."

Looking down at him curiously, both ladies expressed their interest at the foreign word. "Kusaga...kure?"

Sitting up, the blond explained. "Uh, well I suppose it translates as 'Village Hidden in the Grass'. Each of the hidden villages at home had a symbol that represented the village."

Eyebrows raised at the new found knowledge, Cana leaned in. "So what was yours?"

Smiling fondly in remembrance, Naruto pointed at his head. "You know that headband I always wear around?" Both girls nodded. "Well, that was my village symbol. A leaf."

Pushing, Erza cocked her head slightly. "So what was its name?"

Looking to the stars, Naruto grinned. "Konohagakure. Or 'Village Hidden in the Tree Leaves'. That's my home."

Looking to the stars with her companion, Erza sighed gently. "Hidden in tree leaves? It sounds beautiful."

Turning to look at the girl, Naruto nodded vigorously. "Yeah, it sure is! There's the Hokage Monument, all the houses and buildings and stuff within a big, protective wooden defence wall and then outside that is nothing but greenery as far as you can see! It's so pretty... was so pretty..."

Nodding slowly, Cana looked over at Erza. "Well I'm not sure about you, but I'd like to visit there sometime."

Frowning slightly, Erza looked at the now quiet blond. "Was?"

Smiling sadly, Naruto nodded. "Yeah... just before I came, I fought this guy called Pein. He destroyed my village completely. It was just a massive hole in the ground when I got there."

Gasping, Cana furrowed her eyebrows in concern. "Oh no, that's terrible!"

Shrugging, Naruto managed a happier grin. "Yeah, a bit I guess, but everyone was alive despite that so I don't mind. We can build it again."

Feeling an arm wrap around his shoulders, Naruto turned a surprised eye to Erza. "So that's where you got those wise words from when you were talking to Natsu."

Naruto didn't follow. "Huh?"

Shaking her head, Erza reminded him. "Back when the guild was destroyed, Natsu wanted to go beat up Phantom Lord just for that but you managed to persuade him not to with words much like that."

Remembering, Naruto shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so."

Pulling him in for a tight, one armed hug, Erza smiled gently. "Still, thank you for that. You saved us a lot of problems. It is sad to hear your entire village was destroyed though. You are blessed to have such strong optimism."

Feeling another arm snake around him, Naruto felt a head rest itself on his shoulder. "You seem to have had it kinda tough, haven't you?"

Naruto shook his head and looked out over the ocean waves. "Maybe, but I always had amazing friends there who stood beside me no matter what." His mind then drifted as he thought of his childhood friends from back home. Seeing them alive and well within his mind, Naruto grinned widely. "Yeah, they're the best. We can do anything together!"

Feeling both girls shuffle in close to him, Naruto looked down as skin touched exposed skin. "And I'm sure they're very lucky to have you there too. Now come here, I'm sitting here in nothing but a towel and it's cold."

Chuckling, Naruto reached out and wrapped an arm around each girl to help keep them warm. Silence fell over the three as they then just sat and watched the ocean roll in deep into the night.

XxXxXxX

The following day found all members of the little getaway packed and ready to leave by about ten am in the morning. Wally, Shou and Millianna didn't have all that much seeming everything they did have had been destroyed on the Tower of Heaven, so they were left standing at the front door as they waited for everyone to clear out.

Erza was the first to greet them, the mage dragging along an enormous suitcase absolutely packed full to bursting with clothing and other items she had bought during her stay. That being said though, it was still a smaller amount than what she usually took out with her on weeklong missions.

Natsu and Gray came next, the only reason they hadn't arrived first due to the scrap they had fallen into on the way down the stairs. Happy floated over them chirping gaily about fish and other unrelated things, clearly pleased to be going home.

Lucy and Cana followed behind them, each girl taking their time as they were reluctant to leave the luxurious apartments that had been their homes for the past week. Their actual suitcases weren't that cumbersome surprisingly, despite Lucy being a massive shop-a-holic and Cana being caught up in her whirlwind of energy more times than once. It seemed the girl had some form of restraint.

Lastly came Naruto, the blond grumbling all the way while lugging along a number of bags filled with clothing and other items Lucy had made him buy. Finally dropping them before the group, Naruto turned a glare on the blond girl and pointed at the number of bags at his feet. "You realise this is your fault? Why did you make me buy so much stuff anyway?"

Huffing indignantly, Lucy waved about an arm. "Well dah, we all know you'd have spent all your money on food and nothing else! I had to make you get some souvenirs, else you would have gone home without a single memento of the trip."

Kicking one bag, Naruto motioned at the pile. "Yeah, but all clothes? I don't even have any space in my storage scroll to hold it all!"

Shrugging, the girl crossed her arms and looked away. "Well if it's such a pain, just throw away all our hard work finding them. There's a bin over there."

Naruto snorted. "Are you kidding? I must have spent... a butt load of jewels on all this stuff! There ain't no way I'll waste it."

Smiling, Lucy spun around and reached out to pat his head. "Well stop grumbling and enjoy the company I could give you while we were here. You should be happy you had such a sexy girl helping you shop."

The blond ninja rolled his eyes. "Did it ever occur to you I may have just wanted to spend time not shopping with y – damnit Millianna!"

Said girl had latched onto him like a magnet again, her beaming face looking up into Naruto's eyes innocently. "But you're my Kitty-kitty! I'll never let you go."

She then ducked her head into his armpit, signifying the end of the conversation. Sighing defeatedly, Naruto just gave up and looked around as Erza took a head count. "...Naruto... Millianna and Lucy. Alright, all here. Make sure you don't leave anything behind because we will not be turning around to come back. Now load up."

Pointing to a massive SE sitting behind her, the red-head proceeded to throw her mighty suitcase into the boot of the thing before climbing up into the driver's seat. Rushing forward, Naruto threw his stuff in next before taking his seat on the roof. "Kitty, don't you wanna sit inside?"

Naruto glanced down at the girl with a flat look. "I thought you knew Erza. You can sit inside if you want."

Shaking her head, the girl just gripped him around his chest tighter and muffled something into his shirt. Understanding it was probably something along the lines of, 'I don't wanna let you go', Naruto resigned himself to the long trip home and readjusted her grip on him so she wouldn't slip and grab something else.

XxXxXxX

"Woooooow..."

Standing in awe, the group looked up at the enormous new structure before them. Soaring stone pillars stretched up into the air, ornate decorations rimming the edge of a number of baloneys. Three mighty levels sat atop one another, the top two having what looked like battlements fitted into them. It seemed the Master was keen on making sure something like what happened to cause the guild destruction didn't happen again. The lower floor seemed to be the main place of rest for all the mages as it was extensively furbished with a great number of chairs and tables for well over a hundred occupants.

Looking up, the group observed two thick towers standing guard at the entrance, elongated windows running the length of them and the tips capped off with matching weather vanes. From these ran a spiked stone wall that encompassed the guilds perimeter to prevent any intruders getting in through the back. Standing proud over all of that then was an open room, a massive tapestry with the guilds symbol stitched into the fabric hanging from the front of the structure. Within that open room then sat a massive steel bell that just looked like it was itching to be rang.

While the former guild looked more like a pagoda in design, this new architectural wonder was more like a miniaturised castle and looked every bit as proud and strong as the real thing.

"They actually managed to finish it?"

Ignoring their luggage for the moment, the small group wandered into their impressive new guild, eyes going everywhere. A pleasant new open area cafe was set up with a western theme in mind, umbrellas sticking up from the tables to provide shade.

Naruto nearly giggled in delight when he saw a lovely orange umbrella and instantly called dibs on it. That was his table from now on.

"Hey guys, you're back!"

Looking over the group saw a plain looking man resting on the bench top within a brand new shop. "A goods shop? Who would have guessed!"

Wandering over, the man smiled a greeting to the group. "It's good to see you all back safe and sound. How are you liking the place?"

Smiling approvingly, Erza crossed her arms under her chest and hummed. "It is quite the change up. I rather like it. Was this little stall your idea though, Max?"

The mage shook his head. "No, the Master decided to set it up to help cover costs when these two –" he pointed at Natsu and Gray " – go and destroy something again. Surprisingly though, it has been going really well."

Laughing, Gray just crossed his arms and looked over at Natsu. "You'd wanna get a pretty big account set up for this guy. I wouldn't be surprised if he destroys something today."

"Oi!" Brought back from his open gaping at the new guild, Natsu turned to face his arch nemesis. "Wanna say that again, puddle boy? I'll kick your ass three ways into next week!"

Instantly rising to the challenge, Gray levelled him with a withering gaze. "Please, you couldn't even tell me what day next week begins."

That was all it took for Natsu to pounce him and within seconds they were verbally and physically abusing each other on the floor.

Ignoring that mess, Happy floated onto the bench top as he looked around eagerly. "This place is great! What kinda stuff do you sell?"

Motioning to a packed wall behind him, Max shrugged. "Oh, the usual merchandise stuff, mugs, wristbands, shirts, towels, plates and figurines. The most popular thing however is this."

Reaching under the desk, Max pulled out a miniaturised Lucy, cast in an action pose with one of her gold keys held high. Squeaking as she heard this, Lucy dashed forward and snatched it from Happy's paws. "Don't go and make these kind of things without asking me!"

Ignoring her protest, Max grinned at the group. "Naturally, all clothing is removable. Here, watch."

Pulling out one of his own, he then pressed a button on her foot that instantly had the dolls outer garments flying everywhere, leaving it in nothing but a rather revealing two piece bikini. The girl it was modelled after shrieked in horror while Happy gave it a once over. "Oh, that's pretty sexy! Natsu, what do you think?"

Displaying the doll to the teen, Natsu shrugged. "Eh, it's ok I guess. I've seen the real thing before though so it isn't as impressive."

Walking up, Naruto looked it over. "Hmmm, it's ok I guess. Not too accurate though, the bikini should be briefer."

"Naruto!"

Ignoring the distressed girl, Erza cast a speculative eye over it. "Hmmm, that's true. Lucy usually reveals much more than that."

"Not you too Erza!"

Thoroughly humiliated, Lucy covered her bright red face with her hands and began mumbling something about sexual harassment. She didn't remove her hands either when Natsu reached out and grabbed her arm to drag her along inside the guild.

Inside, the group once again looked around in awe at the new splendour of the guild. A massive room was laid out before them, a raised platform surrounding the border before stepping down several steps to the main dining hall. There were something like eighteen massive tables lined up in rows of three, each capable of seating up to eight people.

Running down the center of the room was a carpeted walkway, the grass green giving the room a very natural feel to it. Towards the front of the room though was now the main attraction. A sprawling stage took up most of the wall, beautifully decorated drapes and curtains hanging from the awning. Whistling as he observed over the place, Naruto couldn't help but look extremely impressed.

"It's so lovely! What an amazing job!" Looking over at Lucy, Naruto guessed that the splendour of the place had managed to pull her from her embarrassment as she gazed out over the shiny new room. The comment itself was extremely warranted though as all the mages that had pitched in to help complete the guild had done a fantastic job.

"Natsu, what's wrong?" Hearing Gray address his fellow teen, Naruto turned around. The mage had his face buried darkly into his scarf, his arms crossed and generally looked displeased. "It's too different."

"Naruto! Lucy! Welcome back!"

Turning his gaze from the troubled mage, Naruto looked over and a grin split his face as his eyes rested upon a certain blue headed girl he hadn't seen in a while. "Levy! How are you? All better?"

Giggling as Lucy rushed at her and lifted her into the air with a hug, Levy nodded. "Yup, all better! So what do you think of the new guild?"

Naruto only had to nod along as Lucy voiced all his thoughts. "It is spectacular! Everyone has done such an amazing job, I can't even believe this place was completely destroyed only a week or two ago!"

Giggling again, Levy nodded. "Awesome right? Down stairs we now have a games room, out the back we have a pool and the biggest change of all, the second floor is now available for anyone to ascend to!"

While the main group was shocked that the second floor was open, Naruto was more focused on the prospect the newly built pool could hold. That could prove to be the place to hang out from now on.

"Hello everyone! How was your escape? As manly as possible I do hope?"

Hearing the bellowing voice echoing across the room, Naruto looked up to see Elfman standing up on the second floor waving down at everyone. Returning the wave, Lucy nodded happily. "Well, not manly perse, but still really good!"

Sighing at Elfman's speech quirk, Levy shook her head before continuing. "You still have to be an S-Ranked mage to take one of those jobs though so don't think you can just take one." The girl pointedly glared at Natsu who remained oblivious, still looking around the guild unhappily. "It's not the same."

Hearing a throaty chuckle behind them all, the group then turned to see Makarov looking up at them all. "So you finally decided to come home, you stupid lot? Back to torment me further I suppose, and with other people to boot."

Smiling widely, Erza stepped forward and motioned to her three awed friends. "Yes, please allow me to introduce my friends, Wally," The rubix cube of a man stepped forward and tipped his hat, "Millianna," the girl offered Makarov a shy wave, "and Shou." Smiling hesitantly, the dirty blond dipped his head in greeting. "These three are dear friends from a long time ago. They have come home with me to help with... with the burial of Simon."

Nodding understandingly, Makarov sighed. "It is never good to bury a loved one. I can only offer you my sympathies and pray that you made peace with him before he left. On that note though, I received a letter from the council indicating they will be sending him over later today."

Widening her eyes, Erza blinked in surprise. "How did they know we'd be back today?"

The old man shrugged. "What do I look like, a soothsayer? Those old fogies have methods in place I neither know, nor want to know of."

Smiling gently at the strange old man's humour, Erza nodded. "Indeed. Well, I guess we will have a bit of down time before all that."

Humming gently, Makarov them moved to the side. "Speaking of new members, please meet Juvia Lockser."

Stepping forward, Naruto blinked as he recognised the girl he had caught snooping around the guild. There had been some subtle changes to her appearance since then too. While still partial to blue, she now had a form fitting vest on that was edged with white, a big, frilly white skirt sticking out from underneath that that came down to her knees. It had a blue wave pattern around the hem that matched the vest nicely, along with a little blue, brimless hat that had white extensions sticking up from the edges. Her hair had also been changed up somewhat, the once bountiful curls that had graced her shoulders now cut short in a stylish spiky haircut. Finishing off the look were a pair of long white gloves that reached right up to her biceps and tied off with a little blue ribbon.

The guild master chuckled as she curtseyed. "Cute, ain't she?"

Sending the group a wide smile, she bowed her head slightly. "It's good to see you all again!"

Grinning in return, Naruto raised an eyebrow. "So you decided to join aye?"

Stepping forward, Erza offered her a warm smile. "I just wish to thank you again in regards to Akane."

Blushing slightly, the girl's grin widened further. "I was just helping you all. I'll continue to do my best however!"

Raising a hand, Lucy offered her support as well. "That's great! You'll do just fine here."

For some reason, the girl suddenly darkened and glared dangerously at Lucy. Wilting under the malicious gaze, Naruto watched as Lucy sweated it out. He hadn't realised Juvia had been at Akane so he nudged Gray for information. "What did she do? Spit in Juvia's breakfast?"

Gray just shrugged. "I have no idea. She seems to just hate her for some reason. Pretty weird if you ask me."

"GAH!" Twisting his head over to see where the sound came from, Naruto saw Juvia looking absolutely heartbroken after hearing Gray's last sentence. Glancing between the two, Naruto began grinning mischievously. This could prove to be fun.

Either ignoring or not noticing the hostility between the two females, Makarov carried on. "There's also one more person. Speak up, would you?"

Hearing a disobedient grunt from one of the tables, the group looked over and gasped in shock. Growling fiercely, Natsu jumped forward and raised a fist high. "What the HELL are you doing here huh? You looking to get your ass thrashed again?"

Narrowing an eye slightly, Naruto sat back and waited for this to play out. The Master clearly had a solid reason for letting this guy join up, so the blond was willing to hold off from any hasty conclusions. As for Juvia, the girl jumped up and stood before the aggressive mob. "No, don't fight! Juvia brought Gajeel here!"

Hearing something grinding, Naruto looked over to see Erza gnashing her teeth together in fury. "Juvia was one thing, but this man was directly responsible for the destruction of the guild!"

"Calm yourself you rowdy bunch. Isn't there a saying that goes something like, yesterday's enemies are today's allies?"

Hearing a small voice off to the side, most of the mages looked over to see Levy cowering behind a table, the girl shaking but trying to keep her voice steady. "Y-yeah, honestly I don't mind him being here at all..."

Brushing past a protective Juvia, Natsu stomped up to the table and slammed a hand down in front of the mage. "Like hell I'll accept this punk in our guild! I could never work with him!"

That finally managed to rouse a reaction from the otherwise silent man and he turned to glare up at Natsu darkly. "Oh, no problem there. I'd never want to work with some two bit mage either."

Pushing Natsu out of the way, Gajeel stood up. "I needed work, this dump was providing, so I thought why the hell not. Make no mistake; I ain't here to make friends."

"What did you say, bastard?"

Trying her best to calm everyone, Juvia had her hands raised as she desperately tried to salvage the situation. "P-please, Gajeel always looked so lonely, so Juvia couldn't bear to watch him suffer alone!"

Finally speaking up, the Master scratched his small moustache indifferently. "Well, it is the job of us older folk to help guide younger men back towards the right path if they've taken a wrong turn somewhere along the way. He ain't that bad... or atleast, I hope not." Muttering that last bit to himself, Makarov didn't notice Erza pick up what he said.

Narrowing her eyes, Erza didn't comment on that but instead decided to offer her support. "Well, if the Master believes it to be ok, I back his decision." She then turned to look down at him. "However, I would strongly suggest having everyone keep a very watchful eye on him for the time being."

Sweating slightly, Makarov nodded conceding. "Yeah... sounds like a good idea. Let's go with that."

Hearing Erza and the Master reach an agreement, Natsu (for once) decided to be the bigger mage and walk away. Watching him pass, Naruto chuckled as he overheard him grumbling about how he didn't like this new place and its new members.

Suddenly, the lights flicked off and left the entire guild standing in pitch black. Blinking as his eyes adjusted to the darkness, Naruto looked over to the stage as it slowly lit up revealing Mirajane sitting on a stool. Grinning widely, Naruto waved at her. "Mira-chan! We're back!"

Waving in return, the girl smiled. "I know, welcome home!" Lowering her hand, she then plucked a few strings of the guitar Naruto noticed sitting in her lap. Speaking into a weird airborne microphone, she then addressed the number of mages in the room. "Now that we are all home safe and sound, I'd like to sing a little song as a housewarming for everyone."

Watching as she plucked a few more strings, Naruto grinned as he heard a few encouraging calls ring out from several other mages across the room. It seemed they had all been eagerly expecting this. Settling himself down at the nearest table, Naruto felt the familiar jarring thump of Millianna attaching herself to his side, Wally and Shou joining him either side. Making themselves comfortable, the guild then lit up in the colours of Mirajane's beautiful music.

Closing his eyes as the sounds washed over him, Naruto smiled softly as the guitar gently sang along in harmony to Mira's own voice, the lilting notes and chords drifting lazily through the room. Feeling his muscles relax, Naruto couldn't but help imagine the girl sitting right beside him and gently running her hands through his hair.

Actually, that was probably Millianna petting him again, but he could pretend.

About halfway through the song, Naruto began detecting the sound of someone snoring, obviously put to sleep from the soothing melody. Realising it was Natsu; the blond reached out and weighed up a mug in his hand before pelting it at the mages head. A fleshy thump reached his ears as Natsu toppled off the table, knocked out cold. That problem taken care of, Naruto turned to look back up at the beautiful girl on stage.

The rest of the song went off without a hitch and when the final chord was strummed, the guild went up in a chorus of cheers and whistles. Adding in his own noise to it, Naruto cupped his mouth and cried out happily. Beaming a smile in his direction, Mirajane took to her feet and bowed deeply.

"That was awesome! Who's up next?"

Thoroughly agreeing with whoever said that, Naruto leant forward keenly as he waited for the next act to present itself. What he didn't expect however for the curtains to draw back and reveal Gajeel in Mirajane's seat holding a jagged looking guitar. He had also changed into a white suit, complete with a white hat and black shades. "What the hell?"

Having recovered from the blow to his skull, Natsu jumped up and pointed an accusing finger at the man. "WHAT? GET OFF!"

Completely ignoring the shocked and somewhat horrified look, Gajeel strummed the guitar experimentally and leaned forward into the mic. "This is a song I wrote called 'Best Friend'. Listen up, morons."

Blinking, Naruto sat back, not really sure what to expect next. "He's certainly settled in fast."

Suddenly a hail of attacks began pouring in in the forms of mugs of beer, old bottles and food. "Get off the stage; as if we'll listen to you!"

Ignoring the attacks, Gajeel began. His grating voice sounded out over the speakers, an odd tune reminiscent of a jazz composition reaching everyones ears. Understandably, the guild was divided as to whether or not they liked it. Elfman was near in tears he found it so manly; a number of the older men also crowing their support. Juvia was standing high on her feet too, for all the world looking like one of those love struck groupies that forever haunted Sasuke's nightmares. Naruto also found he didn't mind the tune too much, but the voice seemed a bit harsh for his liking.

The rest of the guild however found it a little outside of their tastes. They showed their displeasure via hurling more rubbish at the cool mage; Gajeel still resolutely ignoring their attempts to boo him off. Even the occasional wooden mug that smacked into his face didn't cause the man to hitch in the slightest.

Holding his ears in pain, Natsu glared up at Gajeel indignantly. "This has got to be the worst thing I have ever heard! Even a fart would sound better!"

For some reason, that was enough to cause a rise from Gajeel and with a mighty throw, the mage on stage hurled the guitar straight into Natsu's face with a resounding thump. "YOU WANNA FIGHT?"

Both men then leapt into the air, equally powerful leg kicks smashing into each other and cancelling the opposing force out. From there, the two mages fell into an energetic wrestling match that kicked up an incredible amount of dirt as they rolled across the floor. A number of spectators that found themselves in the road were viciously thrown out of the way by the two as they fought.

From there, everything went downhill.

Natsu collected a mug to the face and instantly blamed it on Gray. Jumping to his feet to defend his innocence, he bumped Erza and made her drop an absolutely delicious looking piece of cake onto the floor. Not a moment later, Elfman dropped a mighty foot into the desert and promptly killed it.

It was the straw that broke the camel's back and not a moment later, the mighty man was sent soaring through the roof via an even mightier kick from a visibly crying Erza. She then proceeded to rampage through the guild in a tantrum of epic proportions, effectively silencing several mages in a single swipe of her arms.

Laughing off to the side, Naruto struggled to catch his breath as tables and humans alike were thrown through the air, enraged screams and cries of pain filling his ears as the entire room dissolved into one massive cage fight. Cowering behind him were Erza's three friends, all staring out at the horrendous mess in a kind of fearful awe. Swallowing, Wally pointed over Naruto's shoulder. "D-does this kind of thing happen often?"

Naruto shrugged. "Yeah, from time to time. It's pretty entertaining."

Feeling a hand on his other shoulder, Naruto looked over to see Shou visibly shaking in fear. "H-how can you say that? It's like a war zone out there!"

Letting out a bark of laughter, Naruto grinned at them. "Awww come on, it ain't that bad once you get into it! Here, go check it out!"

Reaching out faster than they could avoid, the blond grabbed the two horrified mages before hurling them straight into the main ball of bodies. They were instantly swallowed up by the writhing mass in a howl of terror.

Bursting out laughing, Naruto barely registered Millianna pounding away on his back, nearly in tears. "How could the Kitty-kitty do something like that! They were my friends! They could get killed!"

Snorting, Naruto shook his head. "Nah, they'll be fine! No one ever gets seriously hurt."

Clamping down on him in her usual strangle hold, Millianna tried to draw strength from her kitty as she worriedly looked into the mess. Raising an eyebrow, Naruto chuckled. "You really that scared for them?"

The girl nodded anxiously. Suddenly, she screamed in fright as Naruto's hand whipped up to catch a flying mug that was barrelling in towards her face. Taking that as a challenge, Naruto reared back his arm and brained the mage who accidentally threw it. "Ha! We can't let that go! Time for some payback and to find your friends!"

Howling her disapproval, Millianna's fingers nearly punched holes through his top as the excited blond jumped into the fight with a scream of joy.

XxXxXxX

A few hours later, Naruto was sitting cross legged in the middle of the completely ruined hall, fading bruises covering most of his face and arms. Millianna and her two male friends were sitting beside Naruto, each was glaring at the beaming blond as they tried to convey just how angry they were at being so violently roughed up. It bounced off Naruto harmlessly however as Natsu ran up, the boy all bubbles and energy again. "Yeah, that was awesome! This is how I remember the place!"

Grinning, Naruto high fived him. "I know right? You sure got a good hit in on Gajeel too! I thought you knocked his jaw off!"

Grinning bashfully, Natsu scratched the back of his head. "Awww shucks, you know I tried my best."

They then burst out laughing, oblivious to the horrified and slightly disturbed gazes they were receiving from Millianna and her group. Gray then wandered up, the teen in nothing but his boxers and looking extremely proud of himself.

Allowing a moment of chivalry between guild members, Natsu thumped Gray on the back. "Ha, you didn't suck too bad out there, I saw you thump Juvia pretty good! I didn't know you had it in ya!"

Raising an eyebrow, Gray looked around to see Juvia laying face up on the ground, out cold but for some reason looking incredibly happy with the bruise rising on her cheek. Shrugging, the near naked teen turned and grinned. "Heh, you didn't do too badly either I guess. I can't believe you tried to tackle the Master though!"

Turning to look down at the still grinning blond, Natsu shook his head. "That was nothing, I can't believe Naruto actually took on Erza head first! And WON!"

Chuckling as he looked over at the female sized hole in the wall, Naruto scratched his cheek. "Awww, it was nothing, I just got a good shot in on her while she was raging."

Laughing, Natsu shrugged. "Who cares? You actually managed to knock her out of the guild!"

Smirking, Naruto just tipped his head to the side and said nothing. At that moment though, the battered guild doors opened and revealed Erza. Walking in calmly, Naruto grinned as he noticed the numerous bruises on her face. "You alright?"

Shaking her head, she disregarded the question. "Natsu, Gray, would you be so kind as to leave us for the moment? I have something I need to talk with these four about."

Looking down at Naruto, each teen just shrugged and began walking out; Gray collecting a few articles of clothing on the way. It wasn't their problem if Naruto was about to get 'disciplined'.

Waiting until they had completely left and closed the door, Erza let out a sigh and visibly shrunk. "I'll just cut straight to it. The council is here with Simon's body and are ready to bury him."

Instantly the life drained from the room and Naruto's smirk vanished from his face. Frowning, the blond nodded as Shou spoke up. "S-so we need to come right now?"

Nodding gravely, Erza held out a hand to help them up. "The sooner the better. Come, let us get cleaned up before we head out."

XxXxXxX

Now dressed in a respectful black, Naruto stood back as Erza and her friends stood over the deep grave as four council knights lowered the large coffin into the ground. The occasional sniffle reached Naruto's ears as the four of them struggled to contain their emotions. He could almost hear the warm tears hitting the earth as they stood there, nature apparently realising something was amiss and for once was dead silent.

Kneeling, Erza held out the small bunch of flowers in her hands and managed a small smile before letting it drop onto the lid. Millianna, Shou and Wally followed suit, dropping various items of mourning onto the simple box. Reaching out, the powerful woman brought her friends in around her in a comforting circle, her hands and arms touching each of them in some form of reassurance.

A soft thump from within the hole signified the coffin touching down and one side of the guards let go of the ropes before pulling them out. Stepping forward, the small group of four looked down at their last glimpse of their old friend.

"I... I'll miss you Simon..." It seemed Millianna didn't register her knees giving way beneath her, her slender body needing to be caught by Shou as her hands slapped to her face and soft sobs filled the air.

Gently lowering her to the ground, the rest of the group kneeled around her, the tears falling a little more freely; the emotions running a little more wild.

The sandy thump of dirt hitting wood made the group look up as the knights began filling in the hole solemnly, the rhythmic beat of dirt on wood signifying the end of everything. Slowly, the hollow thumps were muffled out to the simple sound of dirt landing on top of dirt.

With one final shovel full, a guard gently patted the small mound down with the back of his shovel before sighing. Turning to face the grieving group, he nodded at them. "If that is all, we will leave you now in peace."

No response was given except the sound of Millianna's sobs increasing in volume. Taking that as their leave, the group of four men turned and walked away, their job here done.

Watching from behind, Naruto stood as still as he could as he tried to give the small group as much privacy as he could. Actually, the only reason he was here was because he helped bring Simon back. Smiling sadly, the blond dipped his head and turned to walk away.

"Naruto."

Pausing, he looked over his shoulder and saw Erza gazing up at him. Smiling reassuringly, the teen shook his head. "This is your time with your friends. You can find me later, but for the moment I'll leave you be."

Unresolved emotions flashed through the red-heads eyes but she nodded hesitantly all the same. Smiling again, Naruto turned and began the short walk back to the guild.

XxXxXxX

A/N – Hmmm, dark. I haven't written a burial scene before.

I also hope I managed to convey the emotions properly through that last scene. Death and burial scenes are tricky to be written tactfully without over describing parts, so I really hope I succeeded there.

To everyone who has been asking about the triplets, I'm really sorry but I mucked up my timing so unfortunately they will have to wait another few chapters. Rest assured though, they will come back.

Anywho, omake time, part three.

Omake

Naruto and Lucy were stuck dodging the veritable human cannonball that kept ricocheting from wall to wall around them. More than once they were smacked with flying debris and as much as it galled Naruto, he had to spend so much time trying to protect Lucy that he couldn't seem to get a good shot in on Everlue.

Finally taking a breather from his incessant attacks, Everlue skidded to a stop in front of Lucy and Naruto. Finally being able to see the man, Naruto growled and pointed a finger at him. "What is wrong with you? Freakin' crazy man, what ya trying to do, bring the room down on all of us?"

Indeed, the underground room was groaning ominously as its structure was sufficiently destroyed by Everlue. Frowning in return, Everlue pointed at Lucy. "Inconsequential! That blond bimbo has something of mine and I want it back!"

Tucking the book down into the valley of her breasts, Lucy whipped out a gold key that was attached to her hip. "Well you'll never get it back! This book is for our client so just roll over and play dead! Open, gate of the crab! Cancer!"

A doorbell chimed from nowhere as Lucy's magic exploded out from her in the form of an ice blue ring filled with small glyphs and strange characters. A bright gold light shot out from the middle of the magic seal, the ball growing rapidly in size until a full sized human with crab accessories stood before them. Snipping the odd scissors in his hands, he turned around and flashed Lucy a cool look.

Happy was absolutely spell bound by the incredible sight, the little cat hopping from one foot to the other as he drooled slightly at the thought of crab. "He's a crab! That means he has to say 'crab' after everything he says! I know he will because he's a crab! That's the rules! Don't ask me about them, I didn't make them because I'm just a little cat, but it's the truth! The crab has to say 'crab'!"

Carrying on like that, Naruto couldn't help but look at the strange being with a form of hunger brewing in his stomach. He hadn't eaten in a while and the sight of the humanoid crab has his tummy rumbling. Well, granted he was more human than crab, but still.

Frowning, Naruto cupped a thoughtful hand to his chin. Cancer looked human, but then he clearly wasn't because he had crab legs sticking out of his back. So would it matter too much if he had a quick nibble? It wasn't cannibalism because he wasn't fully human... so because he was part crab, would it make it crabibalisim? It was close to meaning the same thing, but not quite. He wasn't too sure so the subject definitely required more thought.

Heedless of the hungry looks, Cancer smirked and snipped his scissors at Lucy. "How would you like your hair done today... shrimp."

Even if you had you tipped a bucket of cold water over Happy, you couldn't have achieved the same horrified expression he had when he heard Cancer say that. Ears flat and tale drooping, Happy waved a dismissive paw despondently. "A crab that says 'shrimp'. What a failure. Not even Natsu is this bad when he tries cooking. Send him home Lucy, I can't stand the sight of him."

Grinding her teeth together audibly, Lucy did her best to ignore the infuriating cat. "Cancer, please take note of the situation at hand and realise this ISN'T really the opportune time for a haircut. Turn around and have a look at that fat mess behind you. See him? Yes, kick his ass."

Witnessing her power, Everlue swallowed. A celestial spirit wasn't something he could deal with by himself. Reaching into his pocket, he whipped out a key of his own. "I need your help right now! Open, Gate of the Maiden! Virgo!"

The doorbell chimed from nowhere again and suddenly the earth beneath Everlue exploded upward, that absolute behemoth of a woman that attempted to squash Natsu earlier roaring into view. "You called, Master?"

Pointing an angry finger at Lucy, Everlue nodded. "Damn right I did! That ugly creature has stolen my book! Get it back!"

"Ugh... where the hell am I?"

Gasping in absolute disbelief, Lucy and Everlue both started up in shock as Natsu climbed over from behind the spirits back. Virgo seemed oblivious to him as Natsu held his head and took a seat on her broad shoulder. Pointing a shocked finger up at her companion, Lucy struggled to find the right words. "N-N-Natsu, how on earth did you get here?"

Groaning again, the boy looked down at her. "Stuffed if I know. I just saw her running through the house, jumped on her and suddenly 'poof' I was here."

Nearly ripping her hair out, Lucy began staring off into her own little world. "A human passed through the spirit world. A human actually managed to pass through the spirit world! That's impossible! Natsu, you are impossible! You just did the impossible! That shouldn't be possible. What are you –"

Cutting off her ranting, Natsu struggled to keep his footing as Virgo began bucking around. "Lucy, quit freaking out and tell me what to do!"

Regaining her senses, Lucy shook her head and pointed at the spirit he was perched on. "Melt her!"

Grinning widely, Natsu nodded. "Roger!"

Inhaling an inhuman amount of air, Natsu puffed his cheeks out before spewing red hot flames down all over the spirit. "Roar of the Flame Dragon!"

That taken care of, Lucy extracted a lengthy whip from her belt and lashed it about. "And you Mister I-Love-Ugly-Girls, don't you move! I think you've had enough time burrowing about!"

Skilfully striking out, Lucy wrapped up Everlue so quickly the man didn't even have enough time to think. Struggling to hold him there, the girl looked over to Naruto. "Damnit, don't just stand there, take him down!"

Glancing over at the fat man, Naruto grinned widely. Time to get even for making him jump about like a grasshopper. Taking off in a burst of speed, Naruto reared back a leg and smacked a mighty kick into Everlue's body. Crying out in pain, the home owner shot off toward the wall like a bullet. Unaided by his magic however, this time he bounced off the wall and rebounded toward the back of the room. What followed was the man pinging around the room like he was trapped inside a pinball machine, complete with dinging sound effects and everything courtesy of Happy.

When he finally came to rest, Happy let out a cheer and raised a paw. "New high score! Four hundred and fifty million! Please enter your initials."

Naruto snickered. "Ok, I want A-S-S. Got that?"

Nodding brightly, the small cat recorded the score. "Alright! ASS has the top score, followed by ASS in second place, ASS in third, ASS in fourth and finally ASS in fifth!"

Lucy turned a flat look toward the still snickering boy. "You play that game a lot with Happy, don't you."

Naruto shrugged, the smirk never leaving his face. "Yeah, and you should hear the top ten scores. I convinced Natsu that FAG stood for Flames Always Grow."

Lucy could almost smell the immaturity in the air. A deep groan filled the room before she could say anything though and with panicked eyes, turned to see Natsu hovering around Cancer sniffing him experimentally. "Natsu! Enough of that! This place is about to cave in so GET ME OUT OF HERE!"

"Right!"

Scooping her and Happy up in his arms, the mage turned to see Naruto holding a tightly packed ball of blue energy in his hand. Grinning, Naruto ran in front of them. "Just follow me!"

XxXxXxX

Now outside the house, Naruto, Natsu, Lucy and Happy were treated to the sight of the massive Everlue mansion sinking into the earth as its foundations gave way. Laughing brightly, Natsu clapped Lucy solidly on the shoulder. "Holy crap, well done! You completely destroyed this place!"

Turning a mortified gaze to Natsu, she tried to squeak out something when Happy interrupted her. "Yeah, you did great! As expected of a Fairy Tail mage."

Stamping her foot, Lucy felt the blood drain from her face in fear. "N-Now listen here, I had nothing to do with this!"

Laughing, Naruto slung an arm around the girl and pulled her close. "Awww come now, don't be bashful. You deserve just as much credit in the destruction as the rest of us!"

Tapping the book between her breasts, Naruto then had to dance away as the indignant girl lashed out at him. "Hey, hey, hey, I was just gonna say you did a good job of holding onto it!"

Glaring up at the taller blond, Lucy fixed him with a scrutinising glare. Huffing at his wide grin, she turned and began stomping away. "Natsu, Happy, Naruto, let's go. I've had enough of this mission."

"Surrrre."

Dragging their feet along as they followed the girl, Naruto hung back. Quickly transferring a little orange book to his back pocket, Naruto couldn't help but grin.

A quick Kawarimi (Body Replacement), mixed with a discrete henge and a spare clone made for a very warm and comfortable Naruto.

XxXxXxX

A/N – omake = done. Hope you enjoyed it while it lasted!

Onward to the next update.

Lanky Nathan