Finn adjusted his backpack on his back before nodding in satisfaction. In front of him stood Makarov, looking somewhat haggard, but his determination remained unshakable.
After expelling Ivan, he had received many complaints from Laxus, who, like everyone else in the guild, didn't understand why the expulsion had happened. Everyone whispered and theorized, but none dared to ask about what had occurred—only Laxus.
Makarov rubbed his tired eyes, ignoring his grandson's piercing glare from across the guild, before focusing on what was most important: Finn, or rather, what Finn would be doing next.
"Listen to me carefully, son. Make sure you deliver the phones along with the letters to each master before you go... to you-know-where," Makarov whispered the last part. "Not the other way around."
Usually, Makarov wouldn't be so cautious or worry about revealing anything, as he knew very well that his guild members couldn't care less if another world existed. They would probably just celebrate that one of their comrades, Finn, was the one who had the ability to make those trips instead of a wizard from another guild.
However, the recent events with his own son, Ivan, had caused a great seed of doubt to grow in his heart, and now he had to make sure nobody in the guild was allied with Ivan. Not even he knew what Ivan was capable of doing with that kind of knowledge.
"I got it, old man, leave it to me," Finn affirmed with a broad smile.
Makarov nodded in agreement; he knew he could leave the contents of that letter for Minato safely in Finn's hands.
"Let go of me!"
A voice echoed through the guild.
In a corner of the guild, Natsu, Gray, Elfman, Levy, Cana, and Lisanna were barely managing to hold back Mirajane, who was trying to accompany Finn on his mission. Although the small group of kids couldn't do much against Mirajane, Wakaba's smoke magic was helping a lot to restrain her.
"Hold her tight, Natsu!" Gray shouted, clinging to Mirajane's leg.
"What do you think I'm doing, idiot?!" Natsu insulted him, hugging Mirajane's abdomen.
The master had promised a big mission for each of them if they managed to delay Mirajane long enough for Finn to leave. Levy, Cana, Lisanna, and Elfman, on the other hand, were just trying to keep Mirajane from ruining an important request. The last time Mirajane was at Lamia Scale, she nearly bankrupted them after destroying half of their hall just because a guy told her she was a cute girl but had the attitude of a monkey.
"I have to go with him! My promotion to S-Class depends on it!" Mirajane shouted again. (Erza is way ahead because of that idiot, I have to catch up to her or she'll become S-Class before me!) she thought.
Makarov sighed again; at this point, he was almost tempted to convince Finn to take Mirajane along on a mission, but he also feared Mirajane would beat him to a pulp during the trip. For some reason, Mirajane had a penchant for hitting Finn to "correct him," according to her.
"Tell me, boy, did you get a new soul already, didn't you?" Makarov asked, remembering having felt the shift in Finn's magic when he expelled Ivan.
"That's right, two new souls actually, although for now I only want to use one. The other is very... destructive, to be honest," Finn confessed, to which Makarov nodded without wanting to pry too much.
Makarov was no expert on souls from other worlds, but witnessing Minato's power was clear enough to understand that there were various types of extremely powerful individuals throughout existence itself. Gildarts was a clear example as well—a man who, just by walking, could carve paths through mountains and cities. Then there was the new generation of wizards, whom Makarov had no doubt would follow in Gildarts' footsteps; being so young, they were already immensely destructive.
Finn was ready to head out, but of course, Mirajane was not about to give up her fight. In an instant, Mirajane flared her magic, freeing herself from Levy, Cana, and Lisanna, before grabbing Natsu by the hair and using him like a rag to swat Gray and Elfman away from her.
"I said I'm going!" Mirajane yelled, leaping toward Finn.
Just as she was mid-air, a hand grabbed her foot and yanked her down to the ground, holding Mirajane down with a single arm. It was Gildarts, who had just arrived at the guild holding what looked like a cake.
"Behave yourself, little delinquent," Gildarts said with a smile before showing off the cake in his hand. "Besides, none of you are going anywhere today. We have to catch up on all the missed birthdays of my precious daughter!" Gildarts declared, making Cana blush.
"I already told you I don't want a party!!" Cana shouted, embarrassed.
"Nonsense, all kids want parties!" Gildarts replied.
Seeing his chance, Finn walked out the door under Mirajane's furious glares and insults.
Delivering the phones was no trouble at all, aside from the annoyance of long train rides. He handed the phone directly to each guild master with a brief explanation of what it did, with the exception of Master Bob. He left Bob's phone in a package outside the Blue Pegasus guildhall along with a note detailing how much he hated him for humiliating him in the middle of a city.
"Well, I guess that's everything. Time to go back to Konoha..." Finn said to himself.
Before he could activate his magic, however, he spotted a cat-girl walking around in confusion in the distance. It was Millianna, who looked lost and somewhat worn out.
Finn thought for a few seconds before deciding to approach and help her.
"Excuse me, are you lost?" Finn called out.
Millianna quickly turned to look at him, showing nervousness. "Ummm... maybe, I... I don't really know where to go. My friends and I are looking for a place to stay."
Finn nodded in understanding. With the destruction of the tower, Millianna and her friends had arrived in Fiore much earlier than expected.
"Well, from your appearance, you look like you're capable of using magic. I don't know if your friends can too, but you could try joining a guild," Finn explained before pointing toward a guild in the distance. "That one over there is a guild, though it's all women. Maybe they can help you settle in better. It's called Mermaid Heel."
Finn spent the next few minutes explaining to Millianna how to reach the guild without any trouble, and then set off toward the outskirts of the city, ready to transport himself to Konoha.
————
Konoha, Hokage's Office.
Minato was writing fiercely on the papers stacked on his desk. This was nothing more than a Shadow Clone, while the real Minato was at home with Naruto.
Documents passed through his hands at breakneck speed, when suddenly his pen stopped over the paper. Minato's expression shifted as he felt a familiar sensation manifest in his office.
A vortex appeared, alerting the Anbu, and in an instant, Finn came shooting out of the vortex, crashing into the office window and shattering it.
"Damn it!" Finn exclaimed as he used his chakra to keep from slipping off the sloped roof and falling. "How am I supposed to improve my landing? Nothing I try works... I hope this doesn't take its toll when I get old," he said, standing up and popping his aching back.
Minato looked at Finn with a warm smile. He had been expecting his arrival, though he hadn't anticipated it so soon.
"Hey, Minato!" Finn greeted, climbing through the broken window. "I see you're busy."
"Don't worry, I'm almost finished," Minato said calmly.
(Almost finished? It used to take the Third Lord a month to finish that amount of paperwork,) one of the Anbu thought.
"Did you bring news, or are you finally here to see Konoha?" Minato asked, still wearing his warm smile.
"I'm on a mission, actually," Finn answered as he searched his backpack and pulled out a sealed letter and a phone. "Here, my master sent you this letter, and this is for you to communicate with him—it's like a radio." He tried to explain.
Minato took the letter and the phone, placing the phone on the desk before quickly opening and reading the letter. Within seconds, a triumphant smile formed on his face, and hundreds of ideas began racing through his mind.
(I don't like that look...) Kurama growled, already knowing Minato was planning something.
(You don't like anything,) Finn replied.
"You said this will allow me to communicate with your master, right?" Minato asked, picking up the phone again.
"Yep! Would you like me to explain how to use it?" Finn asked, ready to help Minato, but Minato stopped him immediately.
"No, I would like to discover it on my own," Minato assured him.
"Alright then, I'll take my leave. I haven't done any missions in a while," Finn said, saying goodbye with a peace sign before disappearing into a vortex.
Minato chuckled at the casualness with which Finn came and went, then looked at the letter once more.
[Dear Lord Hokage,
These trials called the Chunin Exams sound like a great idea to us, and I am pleased to confirm that we would indeed like to participate in the upcoming ones. One of my wizards, Finn Vincent, whom you already have the pleasure of knowing, will deliver a device called a Phone to you. Through this Phone, we will be able to communicate and coordinate the preparations properly.
Sincerely, Makarov Dreyar. Master of Fairy Tail]