A God Amongst Men

Chapter 36

Makarov looked around, the members of the Wizard Saints had gathered around for a meeting regarding the destruction of the Magic Council. He could see Naruto's shadow looming over this meeting. But he was glad that things were happening in this regard. Every other available member was present. They were no longer just ten of them, they were few. A few bad apples have been falling off the wagon. The young ones. They were the ones who always had to be turned towards evil. Perhaps it was the responsibility of the adults to steer them into the right path. The young ones were easily manipulated. When they gained little power, it always seems to go over their heads and they do stupid things. They turn towards the path of darkness.

Makarov was glad that none of his children have gone off the rails. He had his children. He hoped that Naruto stayed grounded as well. Things would certainly become troublesome if he lost his way. Naruto was still human. He had emotions. But Makarov was starting to see a side of the blond that made him afraid. He was glad that he had Erza around him. Perhaps her presence up close in his life will keep him from doing anything ridiculous. Erza would certainly not stand for anything she cannot agree on and she would fight him if she had to. He liked that about her. She would not allow her emotions to get the best of her and stop her from doing what was right.

Makarov turned his eyes towards Naruto who was speaking.

"I have to thank everyone for deciding to come here after I called this meeting. As you have already known, the Magic Council was destroyed by the Dark Guild called Tartaros. I thought it was best as the strongest we handle the issue of the Council's destruction and see where we can go from here," Naruto stated in a calm tone, but it had some steel within it.

"How can we say that you are not working with Tartaros? You once became famous for hunting down dark guilds, are we certain that you never came across them?" Wolfheim asked calmly. "Not to mention, the Council was even after you."

Naruto merely smiled as he turned towards the short hot-tempered old man. He didn't worry about those words from that person. Perhaps he was being serious or just mischievous but it didn't matter anyway. The people here were not children but rational people who explored all possibilities before deciding on what to do.

"I never came across Tartaros during those days. And I didn't have anything to do with the destruction of the Council," Naruto said in a stern tone. He would not show emotions or that he was happy the Council was destroyed. It would only get him in trouble with the other members.

"I doubt Naruto-dono would do something like that with Tartaros," Jura said in thought. "After our last meeting, we had managed to stand on the same page. So the fear that the Council would do something had to have been alleviated." He said.

Naruto smiled towards Jura and then turned towards Draculos. The man was perhaps the most important. His opinion mattered, not just because of his ranking but because he was a man who took his duty seriously. "What is your view regarding this?"

Draculos shook his head. "I don't even know why we are even having this debate," he said sternly. There were much more important issues that they had to handle. The Council was destroyed and they had to do something about. They could not waste time thinking about petty things. If someone suspected Naruto of anything, they could always deal with it later.

"We are debating it because it matters," Wolfheim said sharply.

"Perhaps," Draculos said with a small nod. "But we know that it is Tartaros which is responsible for this. Perhaps we can only look at our selves for failing to protect the Council."

It was not in their job description but as wizards who are the most powerful in Ishgar, they should at least be able to protect the Magic Council. It was their duty as the Wizard Saints. Draculos believed at least that much. But they had failed not once but twice. They simply could not just blame this on Tartaros and Naruto. The others had their roles as well.