A New World, The Story Of A Lost Shinobi
"YOU'RE WHAT?"
Grimacing, Naruto opened an eye a sliver after Natsu deafened the entire area with his outburst. Rolling his jaw around to pop his ears, the blond repeated himself. "I said that I decided I'd join the guild."
Screaming again in unrestrained excitement, Natsu began launching fireballs around the area and setting several nearby houses and shops on fire. When one rogue ball clipped one of the few new upright beams for the new guild, Erza finally stepped in and fixed things. It looked like a gentle enough tap to the head, but a crunch echoed throughout the street as Natsu was buried head first into the solid ground. Stepping over him as he tried to pull himself free, Erza motioned for Naruto to follow. "Come on, we're wasting time. We must find the Master."
Stepping over Natsu and silently chuckling to himself, Naruto followed the red head around the clean up area to the back of the guild. Looking around, the woman spotted Makarov directing a few mages and walked over.
Smiling widely as he saw her, Erza came to a stop and crossed her arms. "Master. I have some good news for you that you have been waiting to hear for a while. Naruto, if you would?"
Smirking, Naruto walked up to the old man and knelt down before him. "I decided I'll join the guild. You are a persuasive lot."
"Are you now?" Closing his eyes in thought, Makarov started speaking. "So you finally accepted hey? What about all the damage you're gonna cause and all the extra paper work I'm gonna have to fill out?"
Naruto grinned and rubbed a finger under his nose. "Oh, come on old man. You honestly think I can do more damage than Natsu, Erza and Gray combined?"
Naruto turned slightly as he heard a hum of agreement from behind. "He does have a point master. We three do have a pretty bad track record."
Hearing a sob, Naruto looked back down to see Makarov staring down at the ground despondently. "I know, Erza. I've been dealing with your messes for years now."
Hearing Naruto chuckle, Makarov sent him an annoyed glance. "Oi, do you want to be a part of this guild or not?"
The blond shrugged. "You heard what the Rune Knight said and what was written down in that magazine..." Trailing off for a moment, he shuddered. "Anything I do is gonna come right back here. Might as well make it official."
Sighing again, Makarov just waved a hand at Naruto and looked at the mass of rubble before him. "Fine. Go find Mira, she knows where the stamp is. Now shoo unless you want to help."
Smiling, Naruto turned to see Erza smiling right back at him. "Wonderful! Now to find Mirajane."
Walking from the old man as he started barking out orders, Erza pinched Naruto's shirt and pulled him towards the makeshift bar. Letting go, she pointed. "That's where we'll find her. You might want to think about what colour you want, as well as where you'd like it."
Naruto had his colour picked in a second. Where to put it though caused him a bit more trouble. Hearing the white haired waitress call out to them, he looked up. "What's up guys? Someone told me something interesting was about to happen, but wouldn't tell me what."
Naruto shot her a grin and wriggled his eyebrows. "Really now? Might it be that I decided to join the guild?"
The barmaid's eyes instantly widened in joy and she clapped her hands together a few times. "Really? Oh that is just wonderful! I'll go grab the stamp!"
Squealing, she spun around and began hunting through some of the salvaged objects behind the counter. She found it soon enough and reappeared, holding a large rectangular piece of wood with a little knob on the top. Flitting around to the customer side of the bench, she raised the stamp and smiled. "Alright, where do you want it?"
Looking around in thought, Naruto tried to think of a place. Seeing him pondering, Mirajane decided to help out. "Well, I have mine on my thigh like I said. Erza has hers on her shoulder, Lucy on the back of her hand, Gray on his chest, gosh; even one member has it on his tongue."
Hearing that last option, Naruto raised an eyebrow. "His tongue?"
The girl nodded. Naruto pursed his lips slightly. "That's a bit weird."
Hearing a chuckle, he looked over to Erza. "We have a diverse range of characters in our guild. That is just another example."
"Oi, Naruto!"
Hearing a shout, the blond turned to see Gray walking over in his boxers. "I overheard you decided to enter the guild."
Naruto nodded. "Yeah, just trying to think about where I could get it."
Gray snickered. "You know, you could get it on your lower back as a tramp stamp."
Naruto gave him a flat look. "I'd rather not look like Fairy Tail's prostitute thank you very much."
Laughing, Gray slung an arm over Naruto's shoulder. "Eh, just a suggestion. Don't take it to heart."
"NASTY!"
The next thing Gray knew was the sense of flight as Naruto hurled him away in disgust. The blond cupped his hands to his mouth as the now naked teen disappeared over the rubble. "Quit hugging other men while naked!"
Turning back to the girls with an agitated tick mark above his eyebrow, Naruto ignored their giggling and ran through some options in his mind. 'So where could it go. Somewhere cool... I can certainly think of where Jiraiya-sensei would get it, although only women would be able to see it. Actually... hmmm.'
Looking up, Naruto held his hand palm out. "I wanna get it on my palm."
Raising her eyebrow, Mirajane looked at it. "Well, your hands are easily large enough, but why there?"
Naruto's face softened a bit as a nostalgic smile graced his lips. "Well, it'd kinda be a memento of my late teacher. He wrote on my palm to help me learn a technique, so I thought there would be a good place to have it."
Smiling as she nodded understandingly, Mirajane reached out and pressed the stamp into his palm. "Well, that's a plenty good enough reason. Now, what colour would you like?"
The blond didn't miss a heartbeat. "Orange!"
Giggling, the young woman focused some magic into the stamp and it glowed as it did its job. Pulling his hand back, Naruto studied the new insignia impressed into his skin. "Nice."
Covering her mouth with a hand, Mirajane gave him a mischievous smile. "I guess the Sorcerer magazine was right in calling you the 'Orange Rocket'."
The blond instantly bristled and sent her a dark glare. "That has to be the lamest thing anyone could have hoped to ever call me, and I've had some bad nicknames, dattebayo!"
Giggling, Mirajane walked back around to the service side of things. "I had an idea you wouldn't think too much of it."
Growling, Naruto crossed his arms. "Yeah, and if I ever meet the guy, I'll be sure to tell him just what I think of his stupid name."
The barmaid rolled her eyes as she put the stamp back in place. "Well you don't have to worry about that. Jason is fairly regular around here. He usually pops up every few months or so. He's one of Natsu's biggest fans."
Sighing, Naruto looked over to the boy as he glared in his direction, his gaze resting on Erza. It looked like he was still cranky over being buried. "Can't really say I can understand his motivation, but whatever."
Taking another look at his palm, his gaze then turned to Mirajane as she started speaking. "So what is the newest member of Fairy Tail going to do now?"
Naruto shrugged. "Well, I actually need to get in some training. I have a few things I wanna try work out."
Feeling a hand on his shoulder, Naruto turned to see Erza giving him a smirk. "Well now, seeming you are the newest member of Fairy Tail, I think you should help with the clean up first before you do anything."
Sighing, Naruto nodded. "Oh good, I was scared for a moment you were going to say something else."
Crossing his fingers, Naruto let twenty or so clones pop into existence. He then heard several indignant shouts from other guild members, seeing the technique as a lazy way out. Merely giving them a cheerful smile and a wave, he ignored their answers and turned back to Erza. "That should cover me, yeah?"
Nodding approvingly, the red head beckoned to the clones to follow. "Indeed. You may go now."
Just as he was about to leave, he heard Mirajane call out to him. "Oh, Naruto? Could you please leave me Naruko? She's just such a dear and works so hard, not to mention everyone loves her."
Rolling his eyes, Naruto nodded and created two buxom blond barmaids for the woman. "Here you go. Just keep an eye on them."
Nodding cheerfully, Mira gave him a wave as he left before turning to her latest set of helpers.
XxXxXxX
Finding himself in his usual training ground just outside the city, Naruto removed his jacket as he finished his warm-up. Now ready, he looked down at his hands and flexed his fingers.
Ever since he fought Erigor back in Onibus station, the man's abilities had intrigued Naruto. He was a wind based mage, and yet he did things with his ability that Naruto had never seen a ninja do. Yeah, he'd seen people fly and levitate, but it had all been accomplished through a special ability or trait that the blond didn't have. What Naruto wanted was something like those wind based attacks, except in a way he could teach an average ninja. The technique that interested Naruto the most however, was Erigor's ability to fly.
Looking at his feet, Naruto reasoned there were two possible ways to go about this. The first was simply an extension of chakra control. Tree climbing was the most basic of those skill boosters, followed by water walking. Now, with tree walking being incredibly hard and the water walking being just as hard again, Naruto could only guess that air walking would be that hard again to learn. The other possibility, the one Erigor most probably used, was sustaining a consistent flow of wind underneath him to keep him afloat.
Considering that it'd probably be easier to start with what he already knew, Naruto focused on flowing chakra to his feet. "Alright... come on, let's get off the ground."
He slowly increased the chakra output, his smile growing as he felt something begin to happen. What he didn't expect to happen though was for the ground to explode from under him and send him flying a good twenty feet to land on his face. Groaning and rolling over, Naruto looked back at the crater he made and sweat dropped. 'Well, I suppose I should have expected that.'
Climbing to his feet, Naruto frowned as he thought over the first of many failures. 'Maybe I could try running. Worked for the tree.'
New idea in mind, Naruto started jogging, focusing chakra down into his feet as they touched down. Grinning as he felt himself start to jump higher, Naruto picked up pace.
His feet slapped into the ground, cracking it and pushing him further into the sky with every step. Laughing, Naruto waved his arms around a bit to stabilise himself in the air as he fell. Taking another step, the ground suddenly exploded under him, again. Not at all ready for the shock, Naruto was sent tumbling through the air with a surprised shout, completely out of control until he collided with a tree and slid down the trunk.
Landing in a sitting position, he ignored the ache in his back and cupped his chin with his index finger and thumb as he considered the latest trial. While fun, that was nothing more than an altered version of channelling chakra into one's legs to get that boosted jump so many ninja use. Looking at the hole he created and the multiple cracks around it, Naruto raised an eyebrow as he considered the damage. It looked a lot like what Tsunade-baachan did when she punched the ground, only nothing as impressive.
Standing, Naruto took a moment to think over that possibility. He remembered someone, Ero-Sennin or Tsunade, telling him that the way she hit so hard was releasing a shockwave of chakra the second her fist hit her target. Now, Naruto didn't have that kind of control in his hands, but attempting that into the ground shouldn't be too hard through his feet. Looking around to make sure he was in a relatively safe area, Naruto jumped away from the tree and built up chakra in his feet as he stretched his legs out.
The resultant boom rocked the earth around him as the ground collapsed beneath Naruto's feet. Chunks of earth rose up around him, multiple fissures shooting away from his point of impact. Hearing a distant cry of panic from the town after the light earthquake, Naruto sweat dropped and looked at his feet buried under large chunks of earth. Pulling his legs free, he decided that could wait until he was further away from people until he tried that again. It was still a pretty cool little trick though. Definitely worth looking into later.
Thinking back to his flight attempts, Naruto looked around as he tried to come up with an answer. Deciding to butt heads with himself, Naruto crossed his fingers and created three clones. "So, any ideas?"
Each adopted a thoughtful expression and began bouncing ideas from one to another. "Well, maybe you weren't running fast enough?"
Naruto shook his head at the clone. "No, I don't think that would matter."
"But what about the tree climbing? If you went fast you got higher."
A second clone piped up this time. "Maybe, but we gotta even get off the ground to begin with before we can run. Actually..."
Looking at each other, the Naruto's grinned. "Dur, we've been channelling chakra into the ground!"
Each then raised a foot and proceeded to push chakra down into their feet and in turn, into the air surrounding their feet. Each frowned in turn as they tried to mould the very air into something they could stand on. It took a couple of minutes, but soon enough one of the clones eyes lit up. "I can feel something!"
Grinning, it dispelled and transferred the knowledge around. Now armed with a starting base, the remaining blonds focused on trying to make that something a platform. It seemed like it was possible!
XxXxXxX
Looking around, Mirajane tried to spot a tuft of blond amongst the greens and browns of the landscape. "Naruto? Where are you?"
"THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE!"
Hearing a thump, the woman smiled and rolled her eyes before making her way over towards the frustrated shout. Walking around a rock, her eyes widened as she surveyed the area. Holes and big chunks of earth sticking up out of the ground disrupted the serenity of the field, a number of large cracks between the craters almost breaking everything up into grids.
Hearing another thump, Mirajane turned to look at the rock she just came around and saw Naruto sitting down, frown on his face and his arms crossed. Folding her hands behind her, the barmaid walked into view. "Hey there. You having a few troubles?"
Looking up, Naruto's face relaxed when he saw his friend. "Oh, hey Mira-chan. Yeah, this stupid technique is being difficult."
Leaning down curiously, Mirajane raised an eyebrow. "Oh? Mind showing me?"
Grinning at the opportunity, Naruto jumped to his feet. "Yeah sure! Watch my feet."
He then began focusing and Mirajane watched it intently as his leg seemed to shiver a little bit. She saw him lean forward slightly but then he stopped. Nothing more happened for a while, so she looked up at Naruto. "Um, what's supposed to be happening?"
Just as she said that, Naruto suddenly pushed off into the air, almost like he was standing on a step. Gasping, Mirajane took a few steps back as she watched Naruto begin to sweat. "H-how are you doing that?"
Unfortunately, Naruto didn't have a chance to answer as he abruptly dropped to the ground before the earth erupted beneath his feet. Squealing in shock, Mirajane shielded her head as chunks of dirt rained down around her. When the soft plops of dirt stopped, she opened one eye tentatively and looked around. "Naruto?"
Hearing a grunt, the girl looked over and saw Naruto walking around from behind the rock looking quite grumpy. He shook his head and a couple stray clumps of dirt dropped from his hair. "I've been trying that for the last three hours! I got what I showed you down in like ten minutes, but I cannot get any further than that!"
Looking at the boy curiously, Mirajane pursed her lips. "So... what are you doing exactly? Are you flying?"
Naruto shrugged and dusted down his top. "Well, eventually I want to be able to, but for now it's more like standing on the air."
Blinking several times, Mirajane cocked her head. "Isn't that flying?"
Naruto shrugged. "I suppose. It's not what I want though so I'm not counting it."
"Ah." Turning her gaze back to the hole Naruto just created, the woman then turned her eyes back to the town. "I assume these are the reason we've been having a couple of small earthquakes today?"
Naruto nodded and walked over to his jacket. "Probably."
Frowning, Mirajane rested her hand on the rock. "So, how do you actually do it?"
Flapping his jacket, Naruto kicked off the dirt that had accumulated. "Chakra. What I do is push it down into my feet. It creates an attraction... or something. I dunno how it works to well, just how to do it. I stick to walls this way, float on water that way, and hopefully I'll be able to use it to stand on the air. It's just crazy hard."
Shaking her head disbelievingly, Mirajane sighed. "You must tell me more about this!"
Naruto looked up to the sky as he remembered something. "Yeah, Erza said she wanted to know about it too. I'll tell you at the same time."
Humming softly, Mira smiled as she watched Naruto pull his jacket on. Her eyes lit up in remembrance as her original mission came to mind. "Oh! Naruto, the reason I came out was because the Rune Knights need to talk with you and Master."
Looking over, Naruto gave her a flat look. "Right now? I'm kinda busy."
She smiled happily and nodded. "Yup! They just came back with the last group from questioning so it's your turn I suppose."
Sighing, Naruto zipped his front up and shook himself down. "I guess that explains why they sent you out here instead of Erza then."
Grumbling, Naruto looked at her. "Well, I dunno what else they need to know. I told 'em everything already."
The girl just shrugged and turned. "They don't tell us much, just who they need next."
Nodding begrudgingly, Naruto left his destroyed training ground and followed his messenger.
XxXxXxX
"You have both been summoned to the Council's Tower."
"WHAT?"
Copping an elbow to the thigh, Naruto looked down at the Master. "Shut up brat. Just follow their orders and everything will go smoother."
Crossing his arms, Naruto frowned and looked away. "I got training to do. This is just a waste of time. Besides, he said I could have until the end of three days before I had to say anything. This is unfair!"
The head Rune Knight stepped forward and sighed. It was still only the first day he had met the blond and already it was proving to be more than he was used to. "The time I gave you was merely what I granted you. I never said that's what the council gave you. Besides, it shouldn't take more than half a day to be completed, a day at most."
Motioning at the carriage behind him, the Knight closed his eyes and silently prayed that he wouldn't have to be stuck chasing the blond around the town again. Thankfully, this time he heard the grumbling voice pass him and then the creak of a body entering the door followed by a thump as it sat down. Letting out a breath, he looked down and saw Makarov looking up at him, smirking annoyingly.
Ignoring it, he motioned to the carriage. "Please, Master Makarov."
Nodding his head, the small man then walked to the carriage and crawled up the steps. Watching the door shut with finality, the Knight breathed a sigh of relief as the hardest part was completed. Waving at the driver, he heard a snap of reigns and with a whinny the horse drawn coach began pulling away. Let those higher mages deal with that boy for now.
XxXxXxX
Naruto sat with his elbow resting on the windowsill, chin in palm and a bored expression on his face. It hadn't seemed to have taken anything like this long when he hitched a ride with Erza. Turning to look at Makarov, Naruto yawned and shifted position. "So how much longer now?"
Opening an eye, the guild master sighed. "Still another hour or so. Not everything in this world is as fast as you."
Groaning, Naruto wriggled around uncomfortably. "I should just run there then and get it over with so I can get back home."
Opening both eyes, Makarov levelled a gaze at the blond. "You do realise you must take this atleast somewhat seriously. There are a good number of mages out there that would love the position you have been offered."
Naruto sighed. "But I don't even know what this is about! Like, do I get special privileges or something? Honestly, I can understand the idea of moving up through the ranks, that's all I strived for in my own world. I just can't see how this will help me get home."
Makarov nodded and looked out the window. "It is a position of great respect. To achieve this is almost like being in control of a whole guild, except that guild is yourself. In essence, that means you have a great deal more freedom in the actions you may perform, along with anything you do... like taking one's life for example."
Naruto's ears twitched when he heard this. "So, I wouldn't get in trouble for it then? Even outside the guild?"
Makarov shook his head. "Make no mistake, if you were to take an assassination mission, you would instantly have the entire magic council coming down on your head. Something like what you did to Jose though... they wouldn't run over you extensively like that are with everyone back at Fairy Tail."
Naruto looked away. "I still don't know why they're drilling you all. It was Jose that started it."
Makarov shrugged. "Whether he started it or not, guild wars are illegal. That's most probably what they are taking me in to talk about."
The old man seemed to grow quiet and pale slightly as he thought it over. "I really don't wanna do this but..."
Naruto snickered. "You're a bit of a scary cat, aren't you?"
Rolling his eyes, Makarov stuck his tongue out at the boy. "Just go to sleep or something and leave me in peace."
Chuckling, Naruto decided that it was still a pretty good idea and sliding down so he now lay of the seat, closed his eyes.
XxXxXxX
"Whoa..."
Blinking several times, Naruto looked around for a moment before yawning and stretching. Realising that voice must have been the drivers, the blond sat up and tried to rub the kink out of his neck. Yawning again, he had to squint his eyes as the doors were opened and sunlight rushed in. "We're here. If you would follow me."
Shading his eyes, Naruto waited for Makarov to climb out first before following. Looking around, the blond nodded as he checked out the building. It was definitely what he remembered as he ran from it, just not as gray. Tall, pointed peaks jutted up all across the roof, looking more like a castle than a council's meeting place. The odd window spotted across the walls didn't really help the image either. Looking down as he heard footsteps, he realised Makarov and the guild were drawing away. Jogging after them, Naruto realised it was another of those weird toad things that arrested Erza back after the whole Lullaby debacle.
Sliding his hands into his pockets, he settled into a stroll and checked out the surrounding area. It was very well kept, the hedges and trees all clipped to perfection and the grass was mowed perfectly flat. The path they were walking on didn't have a single blade of green on it, almost like there was a spell on it to keep the grass from venturing past the perfectly straight edge of it. Walking in the massive doors, Naruto nearly bumped into Makarov when both he and the guide stopped abruptly. Turning, the frog bowed to the both of them and spoke. "Master Makarov, if you would please come with me, you will be seen first. Honourable 'Orange Rocket', if you would wait in one of those seats, you will be seen shortly once Makarov has been attended to."
Instantly bristling, Naruto growled darkly and held up a fist. "I am NOT 'Orange Rocket'! Tell your leaders that my name is Uzumaki Naruto, dattebayo! I will not be called something so unimaginative!"
Not moving from the bow, the toad clearly had dealt with people like Naruto before. "No disrespect intended. That was all we knew you by. I shall inform the council members of your true name."
Crossing his arms and huffing, Naruto nodded approvingly. The guide and Makarov then turned and began walking, but paused when Naruto called out. "Oh, how long might Makarov's thing take?"
The old man sighed while the guide turned and bowed again. "I am not sure. It could be anything from an hour, to six. Anything you need until then will be taken care of by the staff. Now if there are no more questions, I will take my leave. The council members are waiting."
Not quite used to such politeness, Naruto just stared at the bowed toad before realising it was waiting for an answer. "Uh, no, that's all."
Rising from its bow, it nodded at Naruto and then turned and began walking off down the corridor; Makarov following closely. Waiting until they had left, Naruto then turned and looked around the room.
It was a relatively simple waiting room, a couple of pictures hung on the walls of some important looking people, a pot plant in the corner, a few seats and a rug in the middle. Honestly, it looked exactly like Tsunade-baachan's office, except the roof was like three times as high. Putting his hands on his hips, Naruto looked around before blowing a raspberry. "Well this is boring. Might as well put those grounds outside to some use and train."
XxXxXxX
"Uzumaki Naruto! Please if you can hear me, respond!"
Looking up from the ground, Naruto pulled himself to his feet and dusted himself down. "Yeah, over here. What's up?"
The toad guide looked around the area with wide, disbelieving eyes as it surveyed the damage. Holes and cracks covered the earth, destroying the once pristine grass. The toad could only be thankful that the blond had chosen to do... whatever caused this as far away from the council building as possible. Recovering from the mild shock, the toad bowed and addressed the blond. "The council will now see you. Um, would you like a shower and perhaps a change of clothes before seeing the council?"
Looking down at himself, Naruto sweat dropped as he saw the dirt stained jacket and grass stained pants. He could guess he probably stunk a little too. He had been out here for quite some time. Scratching his head in mild embarrassment, he chuckled. "Yeah, that might be a good idea."
Nodding approvingly, the toad then turned and began walking briskly back towards the building. "We must hurry then, you are due to be seen in thirty minutes."
XxXxXxX
Stepping out of the shower, Naruto shook his hair. He always did love the feeling of wet hair flapping around. Summoning up a bit of chakra, Naruto ignored the towel provided and adopted the Ram seal before blowing all the water that was on him onto the bathroom walls. Having already sealed his gear, Naruto looked at the clothes provided and raised an eyebrow.
Sliding the long sleeved shirt on, Naruto was surprised to find that once settled, it seemed to shift about on his body as it shrunk to fit him. It wasn't orange, but a nice pale cream and was light and breathable. A couple of dark stripes ran lengthways down the front of it from the shoulders to hips, but outside of that was rather plain.
Pulling the pants on, the blond then grabbed at his crotch as a very awkward sensation rushed over that area as the clothing shifted around to fit him. Once finished, Naruto let go and looked down. They were a darker cream pair of slacks that contrasted well with the shirt. The shoes too were the same colour of the pants, no laces needed as they, like the rest of his new clothing, adjusted to fit him.
Giving himself a once over in the full body mirror, Naruto shrugged acceptingly. It was pretty boring in contrast to his usual gear, but not too bad. If they let him keep it though, he'd have to ask Mira-chan or one of the other girls if they could sew some colours onto it to liven things up. Tucking the scroll containing his clothes into the back of his pants, Naruto sighed. "Time to get this over with."
Opening the door, Naruto stepped out and raised an eyebrow when he saw the guide bowed before him. "Were you waiting that whole time for me to come out?"
The toad nodded from the bent position. "Indeed. We must hurry."
'That's not creepy at all...' Still, Naruto turned and followed the guide as it led him from the showers and down a large hall. Looking around, the blond remembered this from when he had woken up in Erza's pocket. Same enormous pillars, cubes and spheres. Hearing his guide's footsteps stop, Naruto looked down to see it motioning a webbed hand towards a deep mahogany door. "If you would please enter, the council will see you now."
Nodding, Naruto thanked the toad and pushed on the doors. They were quickly pulled open from the inside by another set of toads, each dressed in identical robes. Looking at them curiously, Naruto walked forward and looked around the room.
It was fairly big and situated around the walls about five or so meters up, sat the council members. The small pedestal sat in the middle of the room in clear view of the men and women hidden in the shadows, elevated slightly from the ground. Stepping up to it, Naruto waved at the council. "You called?"
Hearing a snort and a muttering of, "Disrespectful youths" from one of the older men, Naruto ignored it and leant on the wooden railing before him. Another voice, equally as old sounding but with a bit more humour in it then addressed him. "Uzumaki Naruto, I believe. How nice of you to join us without breaking this time."
Naruto shrugged. "First impressions and all that. Thanks for having me."
The man nodded. "Indeed. We shall proceed to business now if that suits you."
Seeing Naruto nod, an older and much more serious looking mage stepped into the light and began speaking. "I am Guran Doma. I am the Spokesperson of the council and you have been brought here in light of your more recent achievements."
Saying nothing, Naruto just watched the elderly man keenly. He was a tall man with a serious face and a rather long, gray beard that came halfway down his chest. A purple wizard's hat sat on his head and a long purple-red cape flowed down from his shoulders, the collar fastened just under his collarbones with a golden broach. Bandages seemed to completely cover his torso and arms, even coming all the way down to wrap around his hands and fingers. Beneath that seemed to be a long set of pants that disappeared down behind the wooden barrier.
"Uzumaki Naruto, your involvement with the Phantom Lord and Fairy Tail guild war seemed to be pivotal in the outcome. Under normal circumstances, we would have taken you in for extensive questioning seeing you didn't seem to affiliate yourself with any known guild. You will find yourself lucky that information regarding your attachment to Fairy Tail was brought to light."
Naruto's poker face held true, but he silently thanked that Jason fellow for the rumour because the blond did not feel like searching for home with this lot breathing down his neck the whole time.
"When we received news that Jose Porla of the Ten Wizard Saints had died, we were in a state of unrest because the powers were now unbalanced. We have still yet to determine the exact cause of death, so if you would further inform us of his passing you will have helped us a great deal."
Looking around the men and women cautiously, Naruto decided he didn't want to reveal everything he could. "Well... I fought him and it came down to one final show of strength. My own attack gets pretty bright so I couldn't see much within it. When me 'n' Makarov found him but, he had a massive gash on his head and was lying face down in the water. He probably drowned."
Falling quiet, Naruto's eyes gauged the mages facial expressions but found them to be an unrevealing as ever. The shadows hiding the majority of their faces didn't help either. Neither side spoke for a moment until the council head took lead. "Very well, that seems to be accurate enough. If you do remember anything in the future though, do please come and inform us of this."
Naruto just nodded and stayed silent. Something told him he didn't want to give them too much information about anything. Seeing the motion, the mage continued. "So this brings us to our next discussion point. My fellow council members deemed it necessary to elect another mage for the Ten Wizard Saints to maintain balance. Until then, they requested that you would hold the spot temporarily. You seem to possess the required strength and battle prowess for such a position. If found within all requirements however, you may be asked to stay as a permanent position. So what says you?"
Watching as the man grew still, Naruto tried to work out what was going on here. It didn't seem to add up, what with them not even knowing his real name until today. He also couldn't see them forgetting him crashing Erza's trial any time soon. Reading underneath the underneath like he had been taught, Naruto saw that this could very well be a rouse to keep tabs on him because he was an unknown variable. However, the old saying goes, 'keep your friends close and your enemies closer'. He didn't know what the council was to him yet, but this could almost favour him more than it did them. So taking a breath, Naruto nodded slowly. "Alright... for the moment I'll do it."
Seeing a number of small smiles, Naruto internally nodded as his theory was strengthened. Stepping forward, Guran Doma raised a hand out towards the blond. "Good. With that then, I bestow upon you, Uzumaki Naruto, the title of temporary Wizard of the Ten Saints!"
XxXxXxX
Walking from the meeting room, Naruto found Makarov waiting patiently outside. The old man was perched on top of a granite cube, his legs crossed and eyes closed. Upon hearing the doors open, he slipped one eyelid up and watched as Naruto strolled out. "So how did it go?"
Shrugging, Naruto put his hands behind his head as his new clothes didn't have any pockets. "Alright I suppose."
Waiting for Naruto to elaborate, Makarov raised an eyebrow as Naruto began to shiver. It eventually popped out as a wide grin crossed his face. "And yeah, I accepted it! Ha, wait till Natsu and Erza hear about this!"
Despite the fact things didn't seem to add up, Naruto couldn't help but still feel giddy over the promotion. No it wasn't exactly what he had been aiming for, it wasn't even in the right world, but acknowledgment was acknowledgment and even if it wasn't quite transparent as to the exact reason, it still felt pretty damn good.
He allowed himself a little victory jump and click of the heels as his eyes crunched up. "What do you say about that?"
He heard the old man chuckle and he opened his eyes. "I say well done. I don't know any mages who have ever reached such a position at such a young age."
Frowning, Makarov then scratched his head in thought. "Come to think of it, how old are you exactly?"
Naruto raised his eyebrows. Funnily enough, he hadn't told anyone yet. "Sixteen."
It was Makarov's turn to raise his eyebrows, as well as widen his eyes when he heard the age. "Honestly? Only sixteen?"
Naruto nodded, not quite understanding the fuss. "Why, what's wrong with that?"
Makarov shook his head. "Nothing, it's just that I could have placed you at atleast twenty, twenty two even. You have a certain maturity about you that makes you seem older than you are."
Naruto shrugged. "Well, in my business, you gotta grow up fast or you die. I was only thirteen when I fought my first life and death battle."
Makarov frowned. "That seems awfully young to be exposed to something like that."
Naruto shrugged again. "My world is different to this one. We grow up faster because there's more danger."
Sighing, Makarov nodded and rubbed his eyes. "I suppose so. I'll never fully grasp that though."
Turning, he began walking back down the hall. A guide seemed to appear out of nowhere, bow and then begin leading Makarov away. "Well, I want to get a little bit of free food before we head home. Coming?"
Feeling the pit in his stomach, Naruto grinned and nodded. He wasn't one to pass up a meal like that.
XxXxXxX
Naruto pulled at what looked like a fried chicken with his teeth and found it to be rather good. Quickly devouring that alongside the various greens, Naruto dropped the plate onto the other twelve or so and raised a hand as he called for another plate. The attendant was again one of the toads that worked here, indistinguishable from the rest of them. It walked forward numbly, not quite able to comprehend just how much food this teen seemed to be consuming. Placing a bowl of broth before him, Naruto's eyes lit up in glee and drool began slipping from his lips as he realised what it was.
Hesitantly dipping his chopsticks in, he lifted the bowl to his mouth and took a bite. Joy instantly lit up his face as a tear slid down his cheek, the blond moaning in bliss as the tastes filled his mouth. Who would have guessed they even knew what this dish was in this world? It had seemed like forever since his last bowl, but now was never a better time for a good feast of ramen.
Polishing it off in seconds, Naruto held it up high and looked at the attendant excitedly. "Please, please get me another bowl of ramen! That was absolutely delicious!"
Nodding, the attendant rushed away, Naruto calling after it, "Actually, can you get me other four?"
Hearing a squeak in reply, Naruto settled himself down into the chair happily and burped contentedly as he began digesting some of what he had gorged himself on. Makarov had left earlier, his excuse being he felt sick from watching all the food disappear into Naruto. Closing his eyes, Naruto rested his hands on his slightly swollen stomach and waited. What he didn't expect though was to hear a chair scraping as it was pulled out and a body to drop into it. Prying an eye open, Naruto was surprised to see an incredibly attractive, dark haired woman leaning on her hand with a small smile on her face as she watched him.
Opening both lids so he could get a better look, Naruto let his eyes quickly wander. On second glance, her black hair seemed to have a purple tinge through it. Two straight locks hung down her front, ending about mid way down her rather sizable chest. She wasn't built quite like Tsunade-baachan, but she was certainly endowed with plenty more than the average girl. The rest of her hair hung down her back, the weight of it indicating it probably finished about her lower back. As for clothing, she had a pure white kimono on that had a gold sash tied around her middle, greatly accentuating her already rather generous curves.
Remembering where most girls preferred to be looked at, Naruto raised his eyes and studied her face. Her dark brown eyes gave away nothing except a hint of amusement, most probably having caught the blond giving her a once over. Her pale skin was contrasted by bright red lipstick that really drew the eyes down. She seemed to know once he was done looking when she spoke up, "Uzumaki Naruto. It really is a pleasure to meet you."
She then extended one delicate hand, reaching for a shake. Quickly wiping his own on his pants, Naruto grasped it and found her grip to be nearly as strong as Makarov's. Releasing it, she tucked her hand back under her other arm and gave him a smile. "Want to go for a walk?"
Eyes widening, Naruto looked at the woman in surprise. He had met her for all of twenty seconds, didn't even know her name and already she was asking him out for a walk? Hearing the footsteps of the attendant, Naruto looked up eagerly. "Just let me finish these last bowls first."
Smiling as the attendant dropped the bowls with a huff, the blond smiled up at him thankfully before tucking in. Devouring the first bowl in the space of a minute, Naruto reached for the next bowl before looking at his company. "So, what's your name? You already know mine somehow."
Raising an eyebrow and allowing her smile to widen slightly as Naruto slurped up the noodles, she nodded. "My name is Ultear. Ultear Milkovich."
Straining to swallow a slightly larger than expected mouthful, Naruto let out a breath before smiling back at the woman. "Nice to meet you! So, have I met you anywhere or..."
Trailing off, Naruto popped another bowl in front of himself and began tucking in as he waited for her to reply. "No, you haven't officially met me. You see, I'm actually a part of the council so I was there when you interrupted Erza Scarlet's trial, as well as just now."
Struggling not to spray her with food, Naruto pounded his chest and cleared his airways. "You mean to say you're on the council? But you're so young! Everyone I could see was like a hundred! How old are you?"
She tapped her nose and winked at him. "Didn't your parents ever tell you that it was impolite to ask a lady her age?"
Blinking, Naruto shook his head. "Well... no sorry, I didn't have any parents to tell me anything. I was an orphan."
In that moment, Naruto could swear he saw something flash behind the woman's calm exterior, something Naruto definitely recognised. It was gone just as quickly as it appeared however and was covered nicely with an apologetic smile and closed eyes. "Oh really? I'm sorry, that was rude of me. I can understand your predicament though, not having any parents."
Finishing off his last bowl, Naruto looked at Ultear curiously. "You're an orphan too?"
She shrugged. "In a sense. Enough about this though, let's talk about happier things! You're now done I assume, unless you wish to create more work for our chefs?"
Chuckling as he watched the poor attendants carrying back bowl after bowl, he shook his head and stretched. "Nah, I'm alright now. Where do you wanna go?"
As she stood, Naruto noticed with interest that her kimono was rather short, finishing only about halfway down her thighs and revealing a great deal of toned legs. Pulling himself up, Naruto followed the woman as she wandered outside. "Oh, nowhere in particular. Just a walk around the gardens."
Raising his hands behind his head, Naruto shrugged. "Suits me."
They then walked out, following the path as it wove its way through the greenery that surrounded the building. They didn't say much, merely content in each other's presence as they watched the birds and insects zipping around the bushes and pruned trees. After a while, they came upon a stone bench at which Ultear sat down on, patting the spot beside her with a warm smile. Blinking several times, Naruto grinned and slipped down beside her. This was certainly taking some interesting directions.
Placing her hands on her lap, she smiled up at the slightly taller teen. "So, care to tell me a little about yourself? I haven't heard much at all about you, so I thought I'd take the time out to get to know you."
While flattered that a woman this beautiful was interested in him, Naruto could still feel something telling him he shouldn't trust her fully. "Well, I dunno, what do you wanna know?"
She shrugged. "Oh, anything really. What do you do for fun?."
Naruto nodded. Fair question. "Well, I got two pass times I really like. Pulling pranks is probably my favourite 'cause honestly, people's reactions after they get pranked is just gold! I can't get enough of it. I also like keeping plants and watering them. It's relaxing."
Chuckling quietly, Ultear raised a thin eyebrow. "Those are two rather different interests. You seem like a bit of a diverse person."
Naruto shrugged. "Eh, whatever keeps me occupied I suppose. How about you? What do you like doing?"
The woman widened her eyes slightly and smiled. "Oh, I didn't think you'd be interested in me!"
Naruto rolled his eyes and snorted in amusement. "Ha, what gave you that idea?"
Ultear shrugged. "Oh, you'd be surprised. Well, I like thing's I don't know. Information on people that I haven't yet met interests me, hence the reason I'm now with you."
Naruto scratched his cheek in mild surprise as the girl basically said she was interested in him. "Well, I wasn't really expecting that, but thanks, I guess?"
The raven haired beauty just gave him a coy wink. "My pleasure. So what kind of foods do you enjoy?"
Naruto instantly brightened. "Ramen! Food of the gods right there. Please say you like it too?"
Ultear chuckled. "Well, while not my favourite I certainly don't mind a bowl or two here and there. That ok by you?"
The blond grinned. "Sure is! I haven't met too many people who like it as much as me so I kinda expected that."
Humming softly, Ultear looked at his smiling face. "You're very bright aren't you?"
Naruto replied as Naruto would. "Huh?"
Giggling, the woman waved her hand. "I meant you are very happy! You haven't stopped smiling the whole time we've been talking. Or is it just because of me...?"
Trailing off, she watched Naruto's reaction. He paused and looked at her for a moment before grinning. "Well, I'm normally pretty happy but meeting a pretty lady like yourself always helps the mood."
Smiling, Ultear gently slapped his arm. "You tease. So, do you have anything you're looking to in the future? Any goals or something similar?"
Naruto remained quiet for a moment as he pondered what to say. He didn't want to reveal he was from another dimension, so saying he wanted to be Hokage was out. Considering his answer, he nodded as he came to a conclusion. "Hmmm, well, I suppose a goal of mine is to be acknowledged by everyone and prove I'm not a waste of space."
Nodding happily, Ultear placed a delicate hand on Naruto's arm. "That is a good goal there! I guess today is a pretty big achievement then?"
Naruto laughed embarrassedly and scratched his head. "Well, yeah it really is. It feels good to know people respect you enough to give you something like that."
The woman's smile seemed to turn inward slightly as Naruto laughed. "Indeed, it is a good feeling."
Removing her hand, she twisted on the seat and faced Naruto. "Uzumaki, there is something I actually brought you out here to tell you."
Raising an eyebrow, Naruto focused. "Just call me Naruto. But yeah, I'm listening."
Closing her eyes, Ultear smiled. "Naruto then. My talk with you actually has something to do with the reason the council elected you as the stand in Wizard of the Ten Saints. It wasn't something they were going to tell you, but I thought you should know this."
Frowning slightly, Naruto wondered why this woman was willing to indulge him so much. Curious nonetheless, he leant in. "I'm listening."