Humanity On Display

"Adele. That's my name if you were wondering."

"I am aware. I met your father, remember." Itachi answered while helping her with her wounds.

"Shut up! I knew that!" Her rose-coloured cheeks didn't help her case. Her embarrassment was evident.

"The personality Rita displayed has clearly been moulded after you. Talking to you now is like meeting Rita again for the first time." Itachi said with a hint of curiosity. Instead of mad, he was impressed.

"Yeah, I would assume so. Her actual personality is disgusting. She's cruel and cold-blooded. I can't count the number of maids she has killed during her short life." There was a tinge of fear laced to her voice.

"No matter the place, no matter the world, us humans stay the same. Cruel, greedy and unkind. Makes me wonder what I ever fought for." He mumbled but due to their close proximity, she heard him clearly.

"Are humans capable of peace?" He continued quietly, not expecting an answer.

But he got one as Adele turned a little more serious and her face returned to its proper colour.

"That's a heavy question to throw out there. I don't know honestly. From observing my family I would say no. Those two aren't capable of empathy, nor are they capable of settling down to a quiet lifestyle. They will continue to perform evil acts so long as we allow it."

The look on her face turned to frustration.

Itachi understood exactly how she felt. That hopelessness was something he had battled more than ones.

"We should move. I just have one little thing to do before we go." He said and finished the bindings on her wounds.

He still needed to make sure that the two Fairys were okay.

"Thank you." She said, successfully standing up.

"I'll start packing my stuff, take your time." Adele went back inside her tent.

"Sorry about your people," Itachi said quietly.

"No worries, they were scum most of them. They were what I could get with my limited funds and strength. I won't lose sleep over it."

He nodded and left.

He went to navigate the darkness to get back to the girls.

As luck would have it, Erza and her friend were still there.

"I really don't want to leave them here. Hundreds of dead bodies and the intense smell of blood."

"This could be a good opportunity to test my firepower properly. Though it will probably bring the spotlight onto me quicker than I originally wanted."

He went over the pros and cons for a few minutes. He really wanted to test how powerful he was and here he had an almost perfect target to try on. No one would miss a camp filled with this many weaklings. Even if they had connections to a larger organization, Itachi was anything but afraid of the consequences.

When his decision was made, he grabbed the cloak that he had previously placed over them for warmth. Now he just needed to wait for his temporary companion to arrive.

It didn't take long till she arrived with a bag in hand. A few things spilt out, showing how she had truly tested its limit.

"Who're they?" Adele asked cautiously.

"Mages. Rookies. And they're not dead if you were wondering."

"Good to know. For a second there I thought you were just a heartless killer." She said while eyeing the girls.

"Move behind me."

"What for?" Adele did as she was told, but she glanced at him suspiciously.

"Change of plans. It's going to get a little bit louder than I originally planned."

Itachi weaved a few hand signs at a speed Adele couldn't follow. His hands looked like a blur. He stopped suddenly and took a deep visible breath.

[Fire Style: Great Fire Annihilation]

In but a moment, which Adele was not ready for, she was assaulted by an incredible heat, as a literal sea of flames spewed out from his mouth. It was not just hot, it was unbelievably destructive, the ground, trees and the entire fort was swallowed in a fiery red sea of death and destruction.

"HOLY SHIT!" Adele threw herself over the two girls in a protective manner. As a mother would in order to protect her children. Her eyes were glued permanently on the natural disaster that Itachi had so casually brought forth.

"Are you insane!?" She shoved Itachi, but failed to move him and instead ended up on her ass on the ground.

"There are two kids here! Plus, was this not supposed to be done quietly!?"

She was met with a brief silence as Itachi took control of the Jutsu to only target what he wanted. Even for him, it wasn't an easy Jutsu to maintain and control.

"The plan changed."

"No... Really?! I hadn't NOTICED!"

"Now we can leave," Itachi said.

"Oh no! Not before you explain what the hell that was!" Adele was breathing heavily, she was almost spewing fire herself.

"Fire..."

"I meant, what's with destroying everything?!"

"We are temporary allies, nothing more. I do not need to justify my actions to you."

"Hell no! Tell me! Are you gonna burn down my families land as well?"

"I do what I feel is needed," Itachi answered with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

"Hmph. Fine! Be all mysterious." Adele jumped up and dusted herself off. Due to the crazy power of his attack, they were covered in a dust cloud.

They took the girls and left the site after Itachi made sure every flame was put out. He made the decision to avoid mentioning that he was forced to restrain the attack so that it didn't affect Adele and the girls. It was why it took a lot to control it, but it would be easier now that he used it.

"So first, you destroy an entire camp which will definitely earn the attention of the council. Secondly, now you're having me kidnap two little girls."

"Who. Are. You?" Her tone was nothing but threatening.

"I will not kill them. If you hadn't noticed their tattoos, they are Fairy Tail mages. We will take them somewhere safe and I will make sure that I remain a complete unknown in this event." He wasn't ready to make his debut yet.

This would definitely stir up some form of investigation, but he would make sure that his presence would be excluded from this. It did not matter that Adele was with him, for in the worst case, he would simply alter her memories.

***

Itachi altered Erza and Cana's memories and left them in a safe place. Now it was time to make their way back to the Serpentsgrip mansion.

"Now will you tell me what the plan is? I know we're going after my family, but what's our play when we get there?"

"Our play?"

"Yeah. We're doing this together, right?" Adele was lagging a step behind thanks to her wounds.

"No. I will go in. Swift and soundlessly."

"Silent... You? The man who just blew up an entire camp! No, I am coming along!"

"For this to be done efficiently I will have to do this myself. After that, whatever you want to do with your father's estate is up to you."

Adele let out a sigh but she managed to suppress the other hundred that wanted out as well. As she pinched her nose bridge and grabbed onto Itachi to stop him. Her tone turned serious, as did her expression.

"I am going to continue to insist the entire way back that you include me. But if I do get left behind, can I ask a favour?

"You can ask," Itachi said.

Another sigh escaped her.

"You are really annoying, you know that?"

"Your sister said the same thing."

"Hm. Anyway... I wanted to ask that you spare the maids. They are working under contracts, they can't get out of it."

He thought for a moment and said: "If I am able to, I will spare them."

"Thank you, Itachi." She said in genuine gratefulness.

As the walk continued and they got closer, Adele got more nervous. She had more than just butterflies in her stomach. Fear, anxiety, anger; It would be a lot easier to state emotions not running through her currently.

"Should we stop to rest?" Adele calmly.

"No." Itachi answer just as calmly, but his cold appearance doing nothing but putting her at ease.

"Ehm, well, alright. By the way, don't you know how to smile?"

"Waste of energy," Itachi answered immediately.

Adele looked at him, gobsmacked.

"Stoic bastard." She hissed under her breath.

"How about we play the quiet game until we arrive. You start."

Itachi heard the quiet hiss escaping Adele's lips and made sure to hide his growing smirk.

***

Inside William Serpentsgrip office, he sat and drank tea with his daughter. Maids standing behind them both, always ready for an order.

"When are you going to recycle that garbage, it's years past its exploration date." Rita spoke regally as she sipped her tea.

"Worry about your own. I like mine very much, thank you." William snapped his fingers and his maid went down on her knees beside him. He gripped her chin roughly.

"It's a classic. This one is a gift from those despicable dark mages. They would be annoyed if I threw it away so casually. And we still need those mages for a while longer."

"Until that annoying scoundrel is done killing my dear old sister?"

"Indeed. When Adele is finally dead, we can focus on Coiling Serpent." William stated proudly.

"Mother..." A look of longing evident on her face.

"Don't worry, everything will be alright. Plans have already been done to prepare for Itachi's return. We just have to wait, it should be a few more days tops. After that, we are ready to move from our status a small noble house to a political and military giant."

"Of course, father."

Rita finished her cup with a frown.

She had a disturbing feeling that something bad was going to happen, but her father had never lost. Neither had she. So, what could go wrong?