138Naruto arrived in the town not long after he took off from his spot. He took in the sights around him, noticing that the peacefulness of this place reminded him a little of Konoha.
However, he knew this wasn't the case, as this world apparently had a darkness that needed help to overcome.
"Now that I think about it, I was a little crazy to accept this without question. I guess it's good I grew up alone, so not knowing anyone is going to be fine for a bit," Naruto thought to himself as he landed on a rooftop.
He looked around, watching the townsfolk go about their day, minding their own business. They seemed happy and content, which made him smile. He looked back toward his original target and noticed it wasn't far from where he stood.
The building resembled a castle, with a giant flag or banner displaying the same crest he had seen earlier from the woods. It looked like a bird perched on a branch or something similar.
"Maybe it's like a group or faction, like the Hidden Leaf," Naruto thought aloud as he took off again toward the building. His only concern was whether or not the people inside were friendly.
It was an average morning at the guild hall. No jobs had come in, so everyone was having a boring day until Master Makarov returned from the council.
"Cheer up, Natsu. We'll be able to go on a mission soon enough," said a young blonde girl, trying to console the salmon-haired boy who looked like he was having the worst day of his life.
"No use, Lucy. Flamebrain here won't budge until the Master comes back with the jobs," said a black-haired guy lounging in a chair, leaned back lazily.
"WHAT WAS THAT, GRAY?! I'VE BEEN WAITING FOR A REASON TO KICK YOUR ASS!" the boy named Natsu yelled, abruptly standing as his fists ignited with flames.
"OH REALLY NOW?! LET'S SEE YOU TRY!" Gray yelled back as he jumped out of his chair, ready to brawl.
"It's unmanly to talk trash this early in the morning. You're ruining the—" said a much larger man with dark skin and white hair, only to be cut off as Natsu's flaming fist slammed into his face.
"NO ONE ASKED FOR YOUR OPINION, ELFMAN!" Natsu screamed as he sent Elfman flying into Gray with that punch.
"You bastard," Gray muttered as he tossed Elfman into a table of guild members who had been minding their own business. Not long after, the entire guild hall erupted into a massive brawl.
Lucy sighed as she made her way to the bar, where she planned to talk to one of her role models—a beautiful mage who was also the barmaid. The woman had long, flowing white hair and eyes that were more blue than the ocean. She wore a dark red dress, with her bangs pulled up into a ponytail.
The woman smiled as Lucy approached and sat at the bar. "Good morning, Lucy," she greeted her sweetly.
"Good morning, Mira," Lucy replied with a smile before sighing. "If only we could go one day without a morning brawl," she said, watching the chaos.
"It's okay. You know it's better for them to get it out of their system before Erza and the Master come. Speaking of which, Erza should be walking in any moment now," Mira said with a knowing smile just as the guild hall door burst open.
Everyone froze as they felt the intense killing intent radiating from the doorway. Standing there was a beautiful redheaded woman, her glare piercing the souls of everyone in the guild.
She scanned the room until her eyes landed on the two who had started the mess. "Before I tear into everyone, I'll give you two the option to apologize and fix it yourselves. Otherwise, I will," the girl said in a terrifyingly low voice.
"WE'RE SORRY, ERZA!" Natsu and Gray cried out immediately, rushing to bow in front of her. They knew better than to face her wrath so early in the morning. Everyone knew that when Erza said she'd fix something, it was never pleasant.
The woman named Erza smiled, satisfied that she didn't need to start her morning by disciplining her rowdy guildmates. She happily made her way over to the bar, where Mirajane and their newest member, Lucy, were seated.
"Good morning, you two. I hope you slept well. How are you feeling after yesterday's mission, Lucy?" she asked, grinning at the young celestial mage. They had recently completed a quest involving an ancient artifact called Lullaby. The mission had been going well until the artifact, a flute, transformed into a demon. Natsu, Gray, and Erza had destroyed it, but in the process, they had also destroyed the guild meeting hall. Long story short: the mission was a success, but no payment was received.
"I'm doing well, Erza. How about you?" Lucy asked with a smile, still a little intimidated by the woman's strength and the control she had over people like Natsu and Gray.
"I'm good, though it sucks we didn't get the reward money. There's an armor I'm working on that would be perfect for a new battle style I'm developing," Erza said.
"Oh, that sounds interesting," Lucy responded as she watched Mira bring Erza a slice of cake. It was a little early for cake, but Lucy wasn't about to comment on that. Suddenly, a thought popped into her mind.
"I know I've only been here for about a month or so, but I was curious: how often do we get new members?" Lucy asked.
"Well, it depends on whether the Master deems them worthy to join. Not everyone can become a member, but we always have people requesting to join," Mira said with a smile.
Makarov only allowed people to join if he believed they had the potential to better themselves. As he always said, everyone who joined had some kind of tragedy in their past that held them back. He wanted them to be among others who had also suffered and overcome, allowing them to blossom together.
Lucy nodded in understanding and was about to go bother Levy for a bit when the guild doors opened. Everyone turned, expecting to see the Master with the jobs, but it was someone completely different.
Standing at the door was a young man with spiky blonde hair, around Lucy's age. He had bright blue eyes that nearly rivaled Mira's. He wore an all-black outfit and a trench coat-style jacket that was orange with black flames at the bottom. A black headband with a strange logo was tied around his forehead, and the most defining feature everyone noticed was the whisker marks on his cheeks.
Mirajane was the first to approach the stranger, curious as to whether he was lost. She doubted it, though—everyone knew where the Fairy Tail guild was located.
"Hello, welcome to the Fairy Tail guild hall. May I help you?" she asked politely, with a smile.
Naruto was at a loss for words. He had followed the red-haired woman and seen her enter this place, and now he was here, standing before a massive building. It was larger than he had expected, and he decided to try his luck since he didn't really have anywhere else to go. The only problem was that the white-haired beauty standing in front of him made him choke up on his words.
"U-uh, hi, eheh. I was kind of lost and was wondering if you could tell me where I am?" he stuttered nervously. He had never expected to find a girl who was drop-dead gorgeous.
Mira smiled at the blushing boy. "You're at the Fairy Tail guild hall in the town of Magnolia. Does that help?" she asked, still smiling. "Are you lost or something?"
"Well, not really. I was just traveling around and noticed this town and this big building. It stood out, so I thought maybe someone here could help me," Naruto replied, scratching the back of his head.
"I'm Naruto Uzumaki," he said, holding out his hand politely. Mira gladly took his hand and smiled back. "I'm Mirajane. Would you like to sit down and have something to eat? Maybe we can help you find what you're looking for."
"Nice to meet you. And, yeah, I'm actually pretty hungry," Naruto said with a grin as his stomach growled. Mira smiled and motioned for him to follow her.
He's freaking hot. Those whisker marks make him look so exotic, Lucy thought to herself, blushing as she watched the blonde man approach the bar, where she and Erza were seated.
Naruto sat down and noticed the two women who glanced over at him. He smiled and decided to greet them. "Hello, nice to meet you."
Erza nodded in response, while Lucy gave him a friendly smile. "Nice to meet you, Naruto. I'm Lucy. Where are you traveling from, if you don't mind me asking?"
"It's kind of hard to explain. I don't think you'd believe me if I told you, haha," Naruto said, laughing nervously. Erza grew suspicious and decided to listen more intently. Most travelers didn't have any problem explaining where they came from if they were lost, but this guy had nonchalantly walked into a notorious guild without hesitation. She had a feeling he was hiding something.
"It can't be that unbelievable. I'm sure it's not that far away, is it?" Lucy pressed.
"Oh, it's pretty far, alright, haha," Naruto replied, laughing again, trying to avoid explaining his true origins until he was certain it was safe to do so.
"Why are you dodging the question? Are you a rogue mage or something?" Erza asked, clearly tired of his avoidance.
"A mage? No, I can't wield magic… at least, I don't think I can," Naruto said bluntly.
"You do realize this is a wizard guild, right? It's hard to believe a random traveler would 'accidentally' walk into a guild and not know it," Erza said, her tone sharp.
This woman is way too observant. She reminds me of a female Shikamaru, Naruto thought as he found himself in a staring contest with Erza.
Just hold off for now before you spill the beans. I don't sense any evil intentions; she just finds your story hard to believe, came Kurama's voice in his mind.
Oh, hey, buddy! It's good to know you're okay! Naruto yelled mentally, glad to hear from his tailed beast companion. However, Shukaku interrupted.
Why are you so obnoxious?! Shukaku's voice boomed.
Shut up, Shukaku. Just play it cool, Naruto. I sense a calmness from these people, Matatabi, the Two-Tails, said kindly.
Alright, sounds good, Naruto replied. He closed the mental link and realized he had been staring back at the red-haired woman, who now wore a confused expression.
"Is there a problem? Do I have something on my face?" Erza asked loudly, unintentionally drawing attention. She silently hoped she didn't have cake or anything on her face—that would be embarrassing.
Naruto blinked, realizing he must have spaced out while talking to his tailed beast companions.
"No, not at all. I just drift off sometimes," Naruto lied, raising his hands innocently.
"Erza, you have cake on your face," Mira giggled, much to Erza's horror.
"Anyway, you're not hiding something from us, are you? Like why you won't tell us where you're from?" Erza asked, turning her attention back to Naruto.
Naruto's eyes widened as he noticed more people watching now. He saw a salmon-haired boy and a black-haired guy walking toward them. There was also a blonde-haired guy on the balcony of the second floor, staring down at him.
"What's going on, Erza?" Gray asked as he and Natsu approached.
"Nothing, Gray. I'm just asking our newcomer some questions," Erza replied.
"If you were a member, I'd beat the answer out of you," Erza jokingly said, making Naruto sweat-drop. She instantly reminded him of Sakura.
"Naruto, this is Natsu and Gray. They're some of our promising mages," Erza said with a smile, introducing the two. The conversation was interrupted when an elderly man entered the guild.
"I'm back, brats! I've got today's work! Please don't destroy anything that'll give me a heart attack!" the old man called out.
"Good morning, Master. Before you post the jobs, we have a traveler here who needs some assistance," Mirajane said as she greeted Makarov, then pointed toward Naruto. Makarov nodded and walked over with her to meet the young blonde.
"Well, I can definitely tell you're not from around here. Would you like to talk to me about joining our guild?" Makarov asked, raising an eyebrow.
Naruto was confused by the question but decided to play along. "Um, sure, but I'd rather discuss what I need to talk about in private," Naruto said, unsure if this was the right approach.
Just go with it for now, Naruto, Kurama said in his mind.
Okay, Naruto replied. Makarov nodded and motioned for him to follow. Makarov gave a signal to the blonde man on the second floor, who came down immediately.
Erza remained silent, knowing she'd get her answers soon enough. Mira also knew that when Makarov had a private meeting with someone new or a potential member, all the S-Class wizards would be present as well.
"Wish I could hear what they're going to talk about," Natsu complained as he returned to his table, realizing it would be a while before any jobs were posted.
"Shut it, Flamebrain. There's nothing we can do when someone new seeks counsel with the Master. Maybe this guy's magic is way more useful than your fire," Gray taunted. Natsu took the bait, instantly getting in Gray's face.
"Care to say that again, icepick?" Natsu growled.
Lucy sighed as she watched the two fight yet again. Mira had been right—whenever Erza wasn't looking, Natsu and Gray were at each other's throats.
Makarov sat down behind his desk, while Erza, Mira, and Laxus stood off to the side. Laxus stood closest to the door, ready to act in case this stranger tried anything.
"First and foremost, what's your name, and where do you come from, boy?" Makarov asked, getting straight to the point.
Naruto smiled, knowing exactly how he wanted to approach this. He pointed to the forehead protector on his head and responded with the most prideful declaration he could muster.
"I am Naruto Uzumaki, the new Sage of Six Paths sent to this world. I come from the Village Hidden in the Leaves!"
Thanks for reading!