Naruto x Fairy Tail: Fairy's Shadow

Bonus Chapters every 100 Power Stones

"Normal Dialogue"

'Inner thoughts'

[Year X790]

~ With Ultear, the following week ~

The magazine trembled in Ultear's hands. Bold black letters screamed across the front page of Sorcerer's Weekly.

S-CLASS MAGE SHISUI THE TELEPORTER DIES IN MISSION! WHAT HAPPENS TO THE FAIRIES NOW?

Below the headline, a smaller photograph showed a drawing of Shisui, based on the description that multiple clients had given.

Ultear's grip tightened until her knuckles went white. The paper crinkled under the pressure, but she couldn't look away from those damning words. Dies in mission. As if he were just another casualty, another statistic for the Council's records.

She sat in a quiet forest clearing, but the peaceful setting felt like a mockery. Across from her, Meredy's jaw was clenched so tight it looked painful. Pink hair fell across her face, but it couldn't hide the fury burning in her green eyes. Her magic flickered around her like heat waves, barely contained.

"How. Dare. THEY!"

The words erupted from Ultear's throat as magic surged from her body in an uncontrolled wave. The ground beneath her feet cracked. Ice spikes, unnatural and volatile, speared outward from the earth in jagged lines. 

The clearing trembled under the pressure of her anger as birds scattered from the tree. A nearby stream actually reversed its flow for several seconds before the water crashed back down its original path.

"They don't even know him... And yet they reduced him to a headline. A story to sell papers." Ultear continued, her voice breaking. 

Meredy's hands were balled into fists at her sides. When she finally spoke, her voice was deadly quiet. "I want to find whoever wrote this. I want to make them understand what they've done."

"It's the Council. They gave up on him. They declared him dead and walked away." Ultear said, crushing the newspaper completely now.

Jellal stood at the edge of the clearing, watching his comrades struggle with news that had shaken them both to their cores. He'd barely known Shisui personally, just the few brief interactions during his prison break. But he'd seen enough to recognize the man's character, his dedication to protecting others.

More importantly, he could see what Shisui's loss meant to Ultear and Meredy. They'd spoken of him often during their travels, always with respect, sometimes with something approaching wonder. The teleporter who'd helped them along their path toward redemption. The ally who'd never judged them for their past.

Jellal wanted to say something, anything that might ease their pain. But what words could possibly matter now? What comfort could he offer in the face of such loss?

Instead, he sighed and turned his gaze toward the sky.

'For the Council's sake, I hope they're wrong. I hope you're still alive out there somewhere, Shisui-san.'

The thought felt like a prayer.

~ With Sting, at the same time ~

Miles away, in the Sabertooth guildhall, a table exploded into splinters.

Sting Eucliffe stood over the wreckage, his fists still glowing with residual White Dragon magic. Wood dust settled around his feet. His chest rose and fell with heavy breaths, his entire body trembling with emotion he couldn't express.

He said nothing. The room was silent except for the sound of settling debris.

Without a word, Sting turned and walked toward the exit. His footsteps echoed in the sudden quiet. Behind him, Rogue pushed away from the wall where he'd been leaning, his shadow magic unconsciously reaching toward his partner. Lector and Frosch followed, their usual chatter replaced by understanding silence.

The door slammed shut behind them.

Yukino, still relatively new to the guild, looked around the room in confusion. She'd never seen Sting like this, never witnessed such raw emotion from the usually confident Dragon Slayer. She turned to a nearby guild member.

"What happened?"

The older mage glanced at the destroyed table, then at the door where Sting had disappeared. His expression was grim. "You wouldn't understand. You weren't here when it all started."

"When what started?"

"After Natsu Dragneel vanished at Tenrou Island, Sting lost his first role model. The Dragon Slayer he'd always wanted to surpass." The mage's voice was heavy with memory. "Then Shisui appeared. Someone who understood power and purpose. Someone who proved that strength meant more than just raw magic."

Yukino's eyes widened. She'd heard the stories about Shisui, of his battles, his dedication to Fairy Tail. But she'd never realized the impact he'd had on Sting personally.

"To Sting, Shisui wasn't just a mage," the guild member continued. "He was an ideal. Someone who showed that being strong meant protecting others, not just dominating them. First his father vanished without explanation. Then Natsu disappeared with Tenrou Island. And now this."

He gestured toward the magazine that had been left on another table, its headline visible from across the room.

"This isn't a disappearance like the others. They're saying he's dead. You don't recover from that."

The guild member's words hung in the air like a curse. Around the hall, other members nodded in understanding. They'd all seen how Sting had changed after meeting Shisui, how he'd begun to temper his arrogance with genuine concern for others.

From his elevated position at the head of the hall, Sabertooth's Guild Master observed the scene with cold calculation. When he spoke, his voice carried easily across the room.

"With Fairy Tail's newest Ace gone, their downfall is inevitable. It's only a matter of time."

No one replied, but everyone understood the implications. The magical world was changing, and Fairy Tail's position in it had just become far more precarious.

~ With Warrod ~

Warrod Sequen sat alone in his study, staring at the communication crystal that had just gone dark. The argument with the Magic Council had been brief and entirely one-sided. Despite his pleas to withhold their official declaration, they'd overruled him with bureaucratic efficiency.

"Lack of contact for over a year," they'd said. "Zero evidence of survival. The mission parameters were clear about the risks."

He leaned back in his chair and folded his hands together. The weight of the decision pressed down on his shoulders, but this particular burden felt heavier than most. He'd seen too many good people lost to causes beyond their control, but Shisui's case was different. There were too many unknowns, too many variables the Council refused to consider.

Moreover, Shisui's disappearance was unlike Tenrou Island's disappearance. As one of the founding members, Warrod was aware of the Three Great Fairy Magics. He was fully confident that the disappearance of Tenrou Island, along with the Fairy Tail mages who were on the island at the time, was due to the activation of one of these great magics. So, he wasn't worried for them as he believed it would only be a matter of time before they returned.

However, Shisui's disappearance was too shrouded in mystery. Not even he himself knew what was going on, or even if Shisui was still alive or not.

"Please, Shisui..." He whispered to the empty room. "Come home. Not just for yourself, but for the ones who still need you.

~ End of Chapter 74 ~

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