Naruto: Copy System

Shin glanced at the terrified men, letting his Hollow mask dissolve and releasing his Shikai. A casual smile played on his lips as he drawled, "So—care to explain exactly what you’re all doing here?"

"I just arrived in this empire, so I’m still entirely in the dark about how things work around here."

"Honestly, I didn’t want to get involved. But one of your guys gave me a dirty look, and I’m not the type to let someone weaker than me get away with glaring at me."

"The real problem here is that your Guild Master bit off way more than he could chew. Charging in without even gauging your opponent’s strength? If he hadn’t died today, someone else would have killed him in a far uglier way down the line."

"..." The remaining mages offered bitter smiles. Their guild was packed with ruthless outlaws, leaving a trail of countless enemies in their wake.

Now that their Guild Master was dead, every rival they’d ever crossed would undoubtedly come crawling out of the woodwork seeking bloody revenge.

But running away wasn’t an option. The guild was their home. If they were cast out, they’d suffer a fate far worse than death. Right now, their Deputy Guild Master was likely panicking over the incoming fallout.

’At this point in the timeline, the First Guild Master of Fairy Tail should still be alive,’ Shin thought to himself, ’though I have no clue which empire she might be in right now.’

While he was intimately familiar with the power of the Fairy Tail guild, he was completely lost on his current geographical location.

He needed a local guide—someone who understood the ins and outs of this empire. Only then could he start gathering real intelligence about this world.

Shin shifted his gaze to the young girl huddled in the corner. Looking closely, he realized that while she bore an uncanny resemblance to the Lucy Heartfilia he knew, they weren’t exactly the same person. Her personality seemed entirely different; right now, this ’Lucy’ was trembling like a leaf.

———————

Flashing a mild grin, Shin continued, "I’m done wasting breath on you meatheads. Tell me—where exactly are we?"

"And why were you hunting down this little girl? I highly doubt you were acting on your own initiative."

"Relax, you don’t need to look so terrified. I can put the pieces together."

"I’m just curious, so start talking. Otherwise, you’ll end up looking exactly like your late Guild Master."

Though Shin’s expression was warm and cheerful, the surviving mages knew better. The monster standing before them was far more ruthless than his friendly face suggested.

One of them stammered out, "B-Boss, our Guild Master forced us into this! The old Emperor put him up to it. He... he lusted after the girl, so he ordered us to capture her."

Shin chuckled softly. "Yeah, I figured as much. Now, tell me where we are."

The thugs exchanged nervous glances before one replied, "This is the Dragon Fang Empire. It’s one of the smallest nations on the continent. Right now, we’re all subordinate to a Dragon Slayer Alliance."

"We’re part of the dragon-hunting faction. This country might be weak, but our geographical defenses make it nearly impossible for outsiders to invade."

"Our nation is ranked as a Third-Tier Empire. Above us are the Second and First Tiers, followed by the Super and Supreme Empires."

"Our Minotaur Guild used to be the strongest force in the Dragon Fang Empire. But everything changed when the King colluded with the Dark Mage. The King learned Black Magic and became the absolute strongest powerhouse in the nation."

"So, I swear, none of this today was our idea! We were completely forced into it."

The man’s trembling confession caught Shin off guard. From what he remembered of this era’s timeline, dragons were everywhere—but he hadn’t expected humans to have already formed an organized Dragon Slayer Alliance.

Still, dwelling on that wouldn’t help him right now. His first priority was to lay low in this empire and fully restore his powers.

Once he regained access to his full Hollowfication, his Bankai, and his Resurrección—

—he wouldn’t break a sweat, even if Zeref showed up to fight him in person.

The real question was how to speed up his recovery. But honestly, Shin already had the answer.

Sometimes, the harder you try to force a breakthrough, the more it eludes you. Yet, when you stop overthinking it, you suddenly realize the solution is glaringly obvious.

All he had to do was absorb the ambient Magic Power—the Ethernano—of this world, and his strength would naturally return. There were some drawbacks to this method, of course.

But given his currently suppressed state, he didn’t have the luxury of choice. Dismissing his thoughts, Shin waved a hand at the trembling thugs.

"Alright, we’re done here. Figure out your own mess. Just leave the girl alone and let her walk."

"As for your King, I’ll deal with him personally."

"Oh, and about killing your Guild Master—my bad."

The remaining mages stared at him, absolutely dumbfounded. ’My bad’ for killing our Guild Master?? Even if they had a death wish, none of them had the guts to call him out on that insincere apology.

One of the braver thugs spoke up. "Boss, if you’re really going after the Emperor, you’re going to need a guide. I don’t know where you came from..."

"...But you definitely need someone who knows the lay of the land. This empire might not be massive, but the roads are a complete maze."

"How about... how about me, boss?"

Shin pondered it for a moment. The guy actually had a solid point. Nodding slowly, he replied, "Fair enough. You’re hired."

"Lead the way, and I’ll make you the new Guild Master of your little crew. If anyone has a problem with your promotion, they can take it up with me."

The man’s face instantly paled into a miserable grimace. He had only volunteered to save his own skin from getting slaughtered on the spot. If he actually accepted this insane offer...

...he could kiss his career in the dark underworld goodbye. But looking at Shin’s brilliant, unnerving smile, the words caught in his throat. If he refused and pissed off this monster, he’d be dead in seconds.

He’d just end up as a bloody stain on the ground, exactly like his former boss.

He desperately wanted to avoid that fate. Just as he was racking his brain for a polite way to decline the suicidal job—

The young girl huddled in the background suddenly spoke up. "I can take you to the capital."

Shin glanced back at the corner. The girl lifted her head, her eyes locked onto him. Visually, she looked around thirteen or fourteen years old, yet her facial features were an uncanny replica of Lucy Heartfilia.

’Could this kid actually be Lucy’s ancient ancestor?’

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