The Dragon Ninja

Chapter 20

           (Levy)

I couldn't believe my epiphany, but it also meant that there was nothing I could do to help them. They were stuck where they were whether that be with whoever Misty was or in the Hidden Leaf Village.

"Lev, what's going on?" Gajeel asked as he entered the cave cautiously. "Lucy is crying back at the guild, talking about something called a host club and, not gonna lie, I'm fairly interested."

"The hosts are men, but if you're still interested, but be my guest," I started as I laid all the books out in front of him. "I need you here to help me figure out how these books are connected. I figured out that everyone who travels to a new world must finish their lives there. There is something specific they have to do. There isn't much we can do, but I wanna check for patterns."

"So you dragged me to the middle of nowhere to read fan fiction? I'm good," he said with a scowl and walked off.

"Gajeel please," I said with an elongated "e" and my signature puppy dog eyes.

"Fine!" he scowled and took a seat.

           (Sapphire)

The final test for the chunin exam was today, however, I was extremely nervous. I had no idea what to expect. There were so many things that played into this and I couldn't piece it together. For one, Neji was being weird. He came to me and vented about his feelings. I didn't know he had any! He went on and on about how people think he's a monster after what he did to Hinata even though he was just trying to help. I don't know how almost beating your cousin senseless would be helping them, but I kept quiet and nodded my head. He also keeps hugging me. It'll be random, no rhyme or rhythm to it.

A month after preliminaries, the finals drew near. Neji and I arrived at the arena with a whole new wardrobe. He took me to their family tailor, saying that my skirt and top were not practical for fighting and he would give me something else. They made blue loose fitting pants that tied at the waist with a rope of some sort. The top was basically a strapless bra and there was a hair pin with his clan's symbol holding up whatever hair I had left. I didn't entirely understand the necessity in this change, but I did whatever made him happy.

I hadn't talked to Naruto or Sasuke since their argument with me, I didn't entirely plan to either. As a newfound ninja, I decided I didn't need a team. If I made it just fine in Magnolia before joining the guild, this would be a piece of cake.

I walked in with Neji's team, as Gai took me under his wing, and I saw Naruto and his team walk in. My eyes glided around looking at anything just to ensure that I wouldn't make eye contact with them, but Naruto marches right up to me and frowned.

"I thought we would be able to trust you," he huffed with his arms crossed over his chest.

"I have revoked my status as part of Team 7. It is clear you don't want me there anyway so I'll take my chances on my own," I said in response as Neji sat next to me with his eyes closed.

"You don't have a fight with your parents and instantaneous turn into an orphanage," he started but I interrupted.

"There you go acting like my parent again. How about you focus on your own battle and go to Sasuke. He seems like he's going to blow your head off cause you're over here talking to me." Naruto looked over and sighed. He didn't look back at me before he walked away, but Neji opened his eyes right as he turned around and chuckled.

"You're stubborn," he said with a slight sigh.

"Of course I am. Did you see how he was acting? It was so annoying and I don't want to be here as much as the next guy," I groaned.

"So are your parents ninjas too?" Neji asked.

"I was raised by a dragon. I don't know who my parents are and frankly I don't care. They abandoned me next to a river during a storm and the dragon saved me. She thought me how to use my powers and I was always with her until she disappeared."

"And who do you live with now then?"

"I live by myself, but I'm always with my guild. We go on jobs together and what not."

"I've never heard of guilds around here. Maybe there are, but they're underground. That's interesting that they would let someone so young in," Neji sat up straight and looked over.

"Well, they let anyone in as long as you can handle the people in the guild. That's probably the hardest part. There are also difficult missions and as long as you're up for those too, they don't really care about your age," I explained as I remember the first day I walked into the guild.

It was the middle of winter and I didn't know what to do with myself. I was freezing, starving, and I was dressed in a crop top and shorts, which is clearly not the most ideal attire for an average Magnolian blizzard.

Lucy and Natsu were walking back to the guild when they saw me sitting on the sidewalk trying to make some sort of fire. However the snow wasn't helping, along with the fact and my body has a natural tendency to turn to water whenever it comes near fire. I was shivering so hard I might as well have taken a hit from Laxus. Lucy came up to me and wrapped her coat around me, saying that no child should be left out in the cold like that. Natsu picked me up, since I was only about 8 at the time, and swung me around tried to cheer me up.

They took me to the guild where they welcomed me with open arms and warm hearts. Mirajane was the first to suggest that I get the tattoo, but when I showed them my powers and that I was a dragon slayer, everyone told me to get it. It was my first home, and nothing changed as time past.

However I'm in a new home for the most part and I would have to confide to their rules while I was here. Neji and I talked about favorite and least favorite things until it was time to give the spiel about the finals. But the moment the leader introduced some diplomat from the Sand Village, nothing felt right.

The man didn't seem like himself and although I had never met him before, he didn't look comfortable in his own skin. I looked over at Gaara and the rest of the team and they seemed as though nothing was wrong. I tried to relax, but it wasn't sitting well. Almost everyone here had transformation magic, so I'm surprised impersonation isn't as much of a problem as it should be. That man wasn't the man they said he was, but no one was questioning it.

When they finished, they called the first two that were set to fight and, of course, it was Neji and Naruto. Of all people that could've been set to fight, whoever was writing this cruel story said it must be those two. They hated each other for very different reasons and the fight alone was going to be one of the saddest things I would have witnessed due to the fact that the only thing Naruto surpasses Neji in is in determination. I didn't stay even though I knew I should have supported Neji. I had to investigate this gut feeling no matter the cost. I slipped out of the arena and I saw a fairly familiar face.