"A/N: Hello, one and all! Welcome, welcooooome! Oh, it feels GREAT to be back here, folks! My folks and I are finally back home, my sister's doing fine!

Graduated with FULL HONORS! XD XD

We partied, we laughed, we cried, we DRANK~~! IT WAS AWESOME!

...Okay, I may need to lay off the rum a bit. I mean she's come a long way to earn her Bachelor's Degree, so all I had to do was remind her of her Student Loans.

And then she broke my hand in the doorway by accident... but I'd say it healed rather nicely, so it was worth it!

So again, I apologize for the short chapter folks, but I hope you enjoy it all the same! Who knows, I may even throw a surprise in the near future!

Now, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls!

I proudly present for your delectation and delight!

I give you…

BLAAAAAAAAAADE OF OLYYYYYMPUUUUUUSSSS!

Chapter 4: One Godly Champion, Coming Right Up!

"Sooo...you're dad's Poseidon." Naruto bluntly asked as he, Kassandra, Thalia, Luke and Annabeth were leaving the Dining Pavilion after having breakfast. It was a sunny Saturday morning after the Latina was claimed during their victory of Capture The Flag. Upon learning of her parentage, most of the other demigods tended to avoid her like the plague. Something about her breaking the Big Three Pact, or something. Whatever new friends she could have made suddenly didn't want anything to do with her.

The whiskered boy thought they were idiots.

'So what if Kass was a daughter of Poseidon?' He thought to himself, 'it's no different than Luke being a son of Hermes, or Thalia being a daughter of Zeus. They didn't ask to be born, so what's the big deal?'

"Yep." The newly-christened daughter of the Sea replied half-heartedly as she kicked the dirt.

"The god of the Sea."

"Yep."

"The brother of Zeus and Hades."

"Uh-huh."

"Can control literally anything that's water."

"Yes."

"Has his own kingdom under the sea."

"YES."

"Made a deal with his brothers not to have anymore kids after World War II."

"YES!"

"THAT Poseidon."

"YES!"

"And you're his daughter."

"Ay carajo mierda, Naruto! YES, he's my father! Why are you asking me this?!"

"..." At that moment, Naruto understood exactly that what he was doing would have him labeled as suicidal. Hell, his sensei lived in downright fear of the saying "hell hath no fury like a woman scorned," and so did he.

Thus, in his infinite godly wisdom, he asked the Latina demigoddess: "...so does that make you the Little Mermaid?"

*SMACK!*

The poor boy soon found himself eating dirt with a stinging pain on his left cheek, followed by Thalia's cackling filling the air. "Owwwww..."

"Don't. EVER. Call me that again." Kassandra managed to growl between her teeth. How she hated that movie!

Prying himself off of the ground, the blond shinobi looked at her with a raised brow and a cheeky grin before finally relenting. "Sorry, Kass. Won't happen again."

"...Think you can get him to stop calling me Freckles?" Thalia suggested with a wry grin as she wiggled her eyebrows at the Latina demigoddess.

"Fat chance, Thunderpants. That name's set in stone."

"WHAT DID YOU CALL ME, WHISKERS?!"

"YOU HEARD ME, SPARKY!"

"I'M GOING TO FRY YOU, SHORTSTACK!"

"THAT'S WHAT YOU SAID LAST TIME, PIKACHU, YET HERE WE ARE!"

"YOU WANNA GO, NINJA-BOY?!"

"BRING IT, LIGHTBULB!"

As they were making their way to the Arena for training, they noticed more and more people staring at them, or more specifically, at Kassandra. Looks of unease and wariness were evident, as though the daughter of Poseidon were an unstable bomb that could go off at any second.

"Honestly, do these guys have nothing better to do than to stare at us?" the Latina asked.

"Eh, who cares?" Luke quipped, starting to get annoyed with all the staring. "Personally, I don't see what the big deal is. Whatever they've got running through their heads, that's on them."

"Luke's right, Kassandra." Annabeth continued. "If it wasn't for you, Thalia and Luke, I wouldn't have lasted as long as I did. We're here now, that's all that matters."

"Oh, that's just hurtful, Annie. I thought we were friends!" Naruto babbled, crying out crocodile tears at the thought of being left out. Annabeth stuttered as though she were thrust into the spotlight, not wanting to intentionally leave him out. It was only when the whiskered boy's cries turned to mirthful chuckles that the grey-eyed girl realized she'd been duped.

Naruto kept laughing even as the small girl pummeled on his body with her fists.

"THALIA! Help, I'm being attacked by a tiny blonde monster!" he guffawed.

The punk-wearing daughter of Zeus merely snorted at the display. "You asked for it, Naruto. Now take your beatings like a man!"

"NOOOOO!" The young shinobi cried playfully.

Kassandra couldn't help herself. Between little Annabeth's reddening cheeks and Naruto's face-splitting grin, it was hard not to break out in laughter. The quarreling demigods stopped to look at the laughing daughter of Poseidon before letting smiles of their own grow on their faces. Luke chuckled, Annabeth giggled, and soon the small group of five burst into laughter.

"Th-thanks guys, I needed that." She managed to get out before finally calming herself.

"Anytime, Kass." The daughter of Zeus replied with a laugh.

Finally arriving at the arena, They were able to see Cerys and Kazuhira giving out swordplay lessons to an onlooking crowd. The daughter of Ares was demonstrating a few parrying techniques while Kaz was hashing out the proper way of immobilizing a cyclops. Settling in, it wasn't long until they were allowed to practice the forms. Only Luke seemed better at swordplay than the others, causing the son of Athena to begin tutoring him in advanced lessons. Leaving Cerys to start leading the others in drills.

However...

Naruto paused momentarily as he noticed more and more campers outside of the arena moving towards the Big House. Turning around to look at the others, he saw that he wasn't the only one to do so. Cerys and Kaz soon called off training as they marched over to see what the commotion was about. Getting closer, they were able to see Mr. D sitting on the front porch reading a wine magazine. Chiron, however, seemed to be talking with someone.

It was a woman, clad in a dark revealing sleeveless gown that rippled as though it were made out of ink. Her skin was a deathly pale, yet beautiful all the same. Her blonde hair was tied up on a high-set ponytail of Ancient Greek design. She seemed to be blankly staring at the famed Trainer of Heroes, who was talking to the her whilst maintaining his composure. As they approached, she turned her green eyes to glance over the masses until she saw Naruto, who fidgeted at her curious gaze for a moment before she turned back to Chiron to say something in Ancient Greek. Clearing his throat, the aged centaur began.

"I'm sorry, campers, but I'm afraid I'll only need Thalia, Kassandra, Luke, Annabeth and Naruto at this time. Dismissed!"

The crowd dispersed with a few disappointed groans, leaving the singled-out group of five at the foot of the porch before being led inside. Blinking, the whiskered blond made to ask about the lady when said newcomer immediately stepped into his personal space; drawing out startled gasps from the teens.

"WAAH! Stranger, danger!"

"Calm yourselves, children." She finally spoke, her voice serene and mysterious. "It is quite rare that demigods attain my personal attention. Hence the reason for my unusual visit."

"Unusual, indeed." Mr. D muttered under his breath while flipping a page from his magazine, earning a look from the beautiful woman.

"Now, Mr. D," Chiron mediated, "You know she wouldn't have come here without reason. Surely it could be important?"

With an annoyed grumble, the god of parties left her alone.

"...Um, excuse me," Naruto had to blink at what he had just heard. Thalia, daughter of Zeus, respectful?

'Guess Hell really did freeze over...'

"You must be the daughter of Zeus." the woman stated with a raised eyebrow. "A...pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am Hecate, the Goddess of Magic, the Mist, and the Crossroads."

Thalia's face immediately blanched as she and the others quickly got down to their knees. "P-please forgive us, Lady Hecate! If we'd known-"

"That's precisely the point, Thalia Grace," the older woman rebuked, causing the punk-clad girl to flinch at the use of her surname. "I, as is the case with other gods, can dictate whether or not to bother making my presence known to others not above my station. It falls to you in how to respond." Taking a moment to give the young demigods a once-over before closing her eyes. "Regardless, I suppose you are forgiven. I have come for another reason; there was a spike of magical energy earlier in the week.

Clenching her teeth, the daughter of Zeus mentally started counting before saying anything. It wouldn't do well for her to piss of a goddess right now.

Folding her hands in front of her, the Goddess of Magic walked around them as she continued to ponder. "If it was any of my children, I would have understood but no less proud-eradicating a large pack of four hundred hellhounds with absolutely no demigod training at all is quite the feat." Walking behind them now, the beautiful tall woman then looked down at one in particular. "But this trace was foreign and new."

"Eh?" Naruto took a moment to blink before realizing that she was talking about him. "Wha-ME?! What'd I do?"

"Hmm...Naruto, was it?" Hecate asked, getting a hesitant nod from the whiskered teen. "And may I see what technique you used to defeat most of the hellhounds?"

"U-uh, sure thing, lady!" he was quick to blurt out, almost fumbling with his words.

"Hey Scooby-Doofus, you're drooling~" Kassandra teased with a shit-eating grin.

"Zip it, Wethead!" he growled before quickly forming a Rasengan. The Goddess of Magic moved closer to examine it, peering into the very center of the orb as though there was a highly-guarded secret that laid within. "Uh...excuse me, lady? Er-"

"Interesting..." She muttered under her breath, "This signature of this spell feels somewhat familiar, but from where...?" Hecate shifted her focus from the spinning sphere to the boy in front of her. "What is your name, child?"

"Er, Naruto Uzumaki...uh, ma'am."

Blinking, she replied. "Ah, you are from the Elemental Nations! I should have recognized the chakra for what it was, but it has been quite some time since my last visit."

"Wait, you know where he came from, my lady?" Annabeth asked with child-like wonder.

"And how'd ya know all that from my name?" Naruto, on the other hand, was a little suspicious. Not everyday a complete stranger knows where you live just by your name alone.

The goddess looked down at them with a small laugh. "Child, where your friend comes from...how should I put this? They have earned my favor in almost every single way."

Kassandra, Thalia, and Luke tilted their heads to the side in confusion, while the young girl stared at her, her stormy grey eyes never ceasing to gleam with curiosity. "They perform incredible feats of magic?!"

"Hmm, more like they tend to ignore even the most basic principles of physics, but yes."

And leaving the young Annabeth Chase doing the most perfect impression of a wide-eyed fish, Hecate turns back to Naruto, who was trying not to laugh at the younger blond. "As for your question, young Naruto, I seem to recall meeting the head of the Uzumaki Clan at the time whilst impersonating as a mortal guest. Within the next few days, Lord Kagemaru Uzumaki and his kin demonstrated their techniques and philosophy to me without even knowing of my true status; nor did they care for that matter. It takes much to impress me, but they did all the same; in which I granted them my blessing. For so long as one of their lineage should live, they would want for nothing in their pursuit of arcane knowledge. And now, it appears one has finally made his way here." she finished with a tone of intrigue.

Allowing Naruto to finally disperse his jutsu, Hecate then peered over to his wrists, where she seemed to bitterly stare at the bracelets he seemed to wear. "It seems that you must have truly impressed Lord Ares if he granted you the right to wield the Blades of Chaos, child."

"THAT'S what they're called?" the young shinobi gasped, raising his arms to look at the chains.

"Yes, and gratingly so. The God of War held a great influence over your realm and sired many warriors with various different clans. It wouldn't surprise me if you were one of his legacies." she summarized in a huff before turning to look at Chiron. "If you don't mind, Chiron, I would like to converse further with the boy. Alone."

The aged centaur was all too happy to oblige. "As you wish, my lady." Turning to the others, he motioned for them to follow elsewhere-no doubt to continue their training. Dionysus merely looked at the pair before vanishing away with a pop, the scent of fresh grapes lingering in the air.

Naruto blinked at the sight of them leaving. Nervously, he turned around to face the Goddess of Magic. "S-so, what can I do for ya, Your Holy Goddess-ness?"

*sigh* "Lady Hecate will suffice, child." she tutted in response. Seeing him calm down, the Queen of Witches conjured herself a simple wooden chair before taking a seat. "Now, to keep this brief and simple: I wish to offer you a quest to make you my newest champion."

"Eh? EEEEEEEEEEH?!"

Meanwhile, At The Same Time...

Thalia Grace was bored out of her skull, twirling her spear back and forth in one hand while sitting down on the Cabin One porch. At first, she was irritated being told off like that within her first meeting with another goddess. She had to thank her self-control not to immediately roar out in anger. Idly, The dark-haired demigoddess wondered how everything could've turned out if things had been different. Would it be that she'd had her way, they would have been at camp much earlier.

'DAMN! This whole mess is my fault! I should've knocked Luke back to his senses sooner. I don't care that he wanted to prove himself different than any other hero, that's no excuse to-' She had to stop herself from her train of thought to clear head. 'No, stop right there, Thalia Grace. Luke's been somewhat different ever since that muck-up with Hal. We were only lucky that Naruto happened to show up by chance. I'd hate to think what would've happened if he hadn't...'

Flashing images of what could've been, blurring so fast that she could barely make sense of it all.

Running from monsters, a final stand, a flash of lightning...and her turning into a pine tree?

None of it made sense, and neither did she want to think more of it.

"Hey, Thalia!"

The Daughter of Zeus looked up to see Kassandra waving her over from the fire pit. Standing next to her were Luke and Annabeth. Grinning, the punk-clad demigoddess got up from her perch and walked over to her friends, the little blonde running up to hug her big sister figure. Catching Annabeth in her arms, Thalia was quick to carry her under her left arm before stopping in front of the other two. "What's up?"

"Oh, nothing much. Just wanted to know what you were up to." The Daughter of Poseidon answered, a wide grin on her face as she watched Annabeth kicking the air in protest.

"Who, me?" Thalia followed through with a smirk as she flexed her fingers, causing arcs of electricity to dance in-between. "Just getting some practice in."

Luke grinned at her response, his eyes gleamed with mischief. "You hate losing to your 'Whiskers' that badly, don't you?'

The punk-clad girl scowled at the Son of Hermes, who innocently looked away so as not to draw attention to himself. "One more word, Castellan, and I'll fry you. GOT IT?"

Annabeth, not liking to be left out of the loop, asked them: "Thalia, why did you call Naruto 'Whiskers'?" And before a reply could be given, the little blond followed up with a simple: "Does that mean you like him?"

Thalia Grace, almighty Daughter of the King of Olympus, DID NOT turn an embarrassed shade of red. She DID NOT choke on air in surprise. And she DID NOT feel fear at the innocent question.

Instead, she took a brief second to calm herself before giving an answer. "Annie, he has whiskers on both sides of his face. Of course I'd call him that."

Kassandra and Luke could only look on, amused at the interaction between the two friends. Soon, however, they were joined by Grover; the satyr having just finished his daily laps around the camp perimeter. "Hey guys! Where's Naruto?"

"Oh hey, Grover!" the Latina demigoddess cheerfully said, flashing a megawatt grin at her friend. "Lady Hecate just wanted to talk with him for a moment. he should be just about done by now. Why, what's up goat boy?"

"Nothing much. Heard about the little incident during last night's Capture-The-Flag. You know the other kids are starting to call him 'The Half-Blood Rambo'? I was kinda hoping to challenge him to a race." He finished with a downcast look.

"Hey, Grover buddy. Cheer up, will you?" Luke tried to lift his friend's spirits. It seemed to be working, now that Thalia saw Grover's expression seem to brighten. "We'll just wait until he's done with whatever Lady Hecate needs to talk to him about, okay?" It was weird, however, that she was the only one to hear a slight change in Luke's tone at the goddess' name. It sounded...dark.

Oh, well. Naruto's probably banging his head against the wall at having to stay in one place for too long. The punk-clad teen almost pitied him for a moment.

Almost...

"Why?" The fore-mentioned blond asked as he looked at the Goddess of Magic with a suspicious look on her face. "With all due respect, wouldn't one of your kids be up for the task? They'd probably know more about this stuff than I do."

"Hmm...true, I could simply have one of my children undertake such a task. They do have more experience when it comes to dealing with magic." Hecate pondered with a straight visage as she entertained the very notion of bargaining with the poor boy. "And yet, I came to you. It is not often that a shinobi of the Hidden Lands makes their way into this world. Do you have any idea just how much attention you've gained on Olympus since your arrival, young one?" When she saw Naruto's confused face looking back at her, the Goddess of Crossroads sighed. "Lord Zeus had half a mind to smite you then and there due to your status."

"WHAT?! B-but I haven't done anything! I helped Thalia and the others get to camp, didn't I?! That's gotta count for something!" he blurted out before remembering just who he was yelling at. Bowing his head, he begged for an apology. "S-sorry, Lady Hecate!"

*chuckle* "It is fine, child. As for your question, it is true that helping Thalia Grace and her companions to camp safely was one of the reasons the King of the Gods stayed his hand." she replied helpfully before schooling her features. "However, it isn't just you that came here, is it?"

Naruto suddenly felt a chill run through his body at what she was saying. "Wh-what do you mean?"

"I speak of your tenant, little jinchuuriki."

Alarm bells went off ringing in the whiskered blond's head as his eyes widened in surprise, then fear. Fear of once again being judged by powers beyond belief simply because of what he was.

"Calm yourself, Naruto Uzumaki." The goddess assured, having known his reaction would take place. "Lord Zeus has been made fully aware of your predicament, and has allowed you to live. On the sole condition that you may never lose complete control of the beast within. Understood?"

Not trusting his own words for the moment, the whiskered blond merely nodded his head at the woman. Upon seeing this, Hecate smiled once more. "Good. Now then!" She clapped her hands and a scroll appeared in front of Naruto, who yelped in surprise at the sudden action. "Oh, go on! Open it. You're going to be using it from here on, after all."

At the goddess' insistence, Naruto opened the scroll to reveal a sort of archaic diagram of a circle with the kanji for "self" in the middle. Nine lines were branching out from the edges. Interestingly, they were listed with the kanji for the elements and techniques. There was hi (fire), tsuchi (earth), mizu (water), kaze (wind), rai (lightning), fuin (seal), and three more that were left unnamed. Curiously, he looked to the goddess, who wore a small smile on her face.

"This is the Scroll of Ancients. Given your Uzumaki heritage, I assume you've had training in the sealing arts?" Hecate asked. She was pleased when Naruto unsealed the Studies of Advanced Fuinjutsu scroll from his left forearm and presented it to her. "Good. Now, the Scroll of Ancients is a library of spells and formulas that I have keyed into your chakra signature that only you are able to use. From the simplest spells such as summoning a flickering flame or a bead of water to more advanced formulas such as altering matter or teleportation over great distances. With given practice of each spell you may even use such formulas in mid-air, as I'm sure your militaristic upbringing could recognize such an advantage. HOWEVER." She implored at seeing Naruto's eager expression. "These spells and formulas are meant to be earned through hard work and dedication. Something I'm sure that you are aware of, correct?" Here the whiskered blond took a more solemn expression as he nodded in understanding. "In any case, this is to make your tutelage of the mystic arts easier to comprehend: be it in Latin, Ancient Greek, or in Archaic Shinto. Use it well, young one. Farewell."

And with a snap of her fingers, she was gone.

"Hey, Naruto!" Thalia cried out as she watched the young shinobi emerge from the Big House. "Sooo...what did Lady Hecate want?"

"Eh? Oh, not much really. Just gave me some advice with my chakra, that's all." He was fortunate enough to have sealed his newest gift within his right forearm so as not to gain unwanted attention. God-er, gods-know what Thalia would've done if she knew.

"Really? I don't think a goddess like her would've come here to see you just for that." Annabeth piped up, her curious mind picking up on something that she couldn't place just yet.

"It's fine, Annie."

"Don't call me 'Annie'."

"Riiiiiiight..." The whiskered genin ended with a smirk. Shaking his head, Naruto asked, "So, what've we got for today?"

"Well, it's only a few minutes untill lunchtime. So, anyone hungry?" Kassandra asked, her sea green eyes seemingly glimmered at the prospect of food.

And with a collective whoop, the five friends made their way to eat.

As they were walking off to the Dining Pavilion, from within the attic of the Big House a pair of eyes stared at them from the window unnoticed by all. The newcomer glanced at the retreating group, their features kept hidden. Only when a certain young blond popped into their view did they show signs of sadness.

The stranger was ashamed to have done what they did. But they also knew that if they hadn't, he would be dead. Such were the pains and sufferings of being a godly parent.

'I only hope you can forgive me, my little Maelstrom...'

-End-Chapter-

A/N: And there you have it, folks!

Not only do we get to meet the Goddess of Magic taking an interest in Naruto, but we now get a little clue as to who his godly parent could be. Personally, I wanted to take my time with this in being vague as possible as to their identity, so I hope it was perfect!

Now, I need your help, folks!

As some of you have probably figured, Naruto's newfound weapons are indeed based off of the Blades of Chaos from GOD OF WAR. Now, I'm trying to think of giving him a new weapon to use.

Swords have been overdone in many Naruto-related fanfics, so a little more variety would be a GODSEND!

Currently, I'm stuck between a mace, an axe, or just a giant shuriken. So please leave a review or PM me as to your ideas for Naruto's newest weapon and their capabilities in the upcoming future chapters.

It will be noted that the one whose idea ends up in this fanfic will have a little shout-out at the chapter reveal for the weapon!

SO!

Good luck, Ladies and Gentlemen!

And as always...

CIAO FOR NOW!