I DON'T OWN FAIRY TAIL! MASHIMA-SENSEI DOES!

A King's Game

The three men were overflowing with power in the hellfire landscape. Though this was a training exercise, it was clear Natsu and Gajeel wouldn't be holding back. They needed to prove it to everybody they were ready to face Acnologia, and this was their best chance to do so.

"I'm ready, Salamander!" Gajeel yelled.

"Right!" Natsu then turned towards his partner and slowly walked towards him. Just as he was about to make contact, he seemingly stepped into the profile of Gajeel's body, highlighting it with a corona.

"He's gone!" Wendy remarked.

Zeref raised his brows. "You plan to hide while he exposes himself?"

"Nope." Gajeel then rushed towards Zeref, covering his fists with steel to reinforce himself. With his tremendously improved speed, he drew back his arm and threw a fist in almost an instant. However, Zeref dodged accordingly.

"Not fast enough—" He was punched by Natsu who seemed to sprout from Gajeel as if he was a ghost. He then retracted himself.

"I get it! Natsu was never hiding elsewhere! He was covering Gajeel as light, but the wavelength he was using isn't one we detect with our eyes!" Allister exclaimed.

All the spectators were amazed.

"Now that's cool," Laxus smiled.

Zeref wiped the blood from his mouth. He then looked at how the two were teaming up on him. "I'll admit it. I didn't see that coming, but don't think I won't learn from it!" He then charged them, covering his hand with dark claws. Just as he thought he was about to get a hit on Gajeel, the two separated and kicked him from behind into a pillar. The pillar crumbled from the impact.

"This is just the beginning, bro. The two of us have been in sync for months," Natsu stated.

"Yeah, we're just getting started," Gajeel added.

Zeref spit out even more blood before getting up. "I'm glad you two are confident, but now I think it's time I really fought back. I'm especially weary from being beaten all day!" Zeref appeared directly behind the two and grabbed them by the neck. "Since you two love to be together these days, I'll make it easier for you!" Their heads were smashed together and then they were dragged onto the ground as Zeref ran very quickly towards a pillar.

"Fuck! I didn't expect him to be this fast now!" Natsu struggled to say as he was being choked.

"Yeah…" Gajeel then had iron from the pillar burst out and knock Zeref in the face. He then landed twenty blows to his stomach with his fists covered in steel. "Now, Natsu!"

"Coming up! White Fire Dragon Fist!" The intense heat burned right through Zeref's flesh before he was sent straight towards one of the tombstones of the cemetery. Natsu the used the time they had to return to Gajeel.

"Let's go!" Gajeel rushed up to Zeref and delivered more punches, breaking many bones.

"I can hear the hits as they land," Mira commented as she grimaced at the sound.

"But can you hear the two of them?" Erik asked her.

"What do you mean?" she replied.

"He's right," said Laxus. "Gajeel isn't the only one punching Zeref, Natsu is also doing it as Gajeel retracts each arm. You can tell by the cracking sounds being about half of the number of visible blows being delivered."

"So there's a constant barrage of punches being sustained by Zeref. Remarkable," Rogue said as watched.

Sting sighed. "So much for being the best at teamwork."

Yukino kissed him on the cheek. "You're still my favorite team," she smiled.

Minerva then hastily kissed Rogue on the cheek. "I echo her statement!"

Kagura tightened her fists as she crossed her arms. I need to keep it together. That's his girlfriend. I have no right, especially as mature lady, to openly reject their relationship…why couldn't that be me kissing his cheek!

Gajeel and Natsu suddenly stepped back. "That was close," Gajeel said while catching his breath.

"Yeah," Natsu said while still concealed. "He was about to can us."

Zeref slowly got to his feet after being pounded for a good while. Dark sharpened bones then sprouted from his chest and then dropped to the ground. "You broke nearly every bone in my upper body, so I decided to use them as a weapon against you. How did you know to avoid that?"

"We could feel it getting more difficult to beat the hell out of you, so we figured something was building up in your chest. We didn't want to risk anything, so we stepped back," Gajeel answered.

Natsu laughed. "I think the old me would have kept going and get hit."

Lucy, Erza, Gray, and Wendy sighed.

"Yup. I'm pretty glad he's less careless these days," agreed Lucy.

Natsu and Gajeel reunited and ran back towards Zeref. Gajeel ducked down to his left while Natsu emerged to the right. Natsu land one punch on Zeref's side while Gajeel took a hit in the jaw from Zeref. Zeref put both of his hands together to sweep and fan them back before rushing them. He landed ten direct hits to Gajeel's abdomen before Natsu unleashed a quick breath attack to halt his barrage. Gajeel changed his right arm into a lance impaled Zeref's left shoulder. Natsu fully separated himself to hit Zeref with a lightning flame punch, sending Zeref back a few meters.

"You two are moving well," Zeref said as he panted.

"Yeah for a guy who doesn't look like he even trains, you move really well, bro," Natsu replied.

"It's that Fairy Heart power, isn't it?" Gajeel asked while dusted himself off.

"I assure you, this added power doesn't improve my fighting skills one bit," Zeref smiled. "Gajeel, you haven't used your Dragon Dominion one bit. Do you intend on beating Acnologia without it?"

Gajeel's eye twitched. "Well…um…no, but—"

"Yeah why are you holding out on us, man? I thought you said you would use it the second he found out about our merging technique," said Natsu.

Zeref laughed. "I think I should just answer that for all of us."

The spectators were confused.

"Wait, so Zeref knows what's going on but Natsu, Gajeel's partner, doesn't?" Lucy asked.

"Jellal, could you tell whether or not he was using Dragon Dominion?" Erza asked.

"I couldn't sense anything, but from what he's told us, he can focus it on a single target without any of us knowing. I assumed he just wasn't using it because Zeref didn't look affected by it at any point," Jellal answered.

"Everyone, Gajeel tried using it on me. In fact, he's still trying at this very moment. However, I don't feel its effect because our magic power levels are too comparable and because I'm too aware," Zeref began to explain.

"Too aware? What the hell do you mean?!" Gajeel exclaimed.

"Normally, this isn't an issue you run into because of how strong you've become, but because of how powerful I am, your Dragon Dominion's effectiveness has been reduced."

"Yeah, I was aware of how that worked, but you should still feel enough of the effect! You should feel as if you're drunk or something like that!"

"Yes, but I'm too aware of myself. I'm over four hundred years old, and I'm too aware of my body's senses because of the time I've had with my body. I'm also too powerful for you to overwhelm that awareness."

"So that means…!" Laxus began.

"Someone like Acnologia will likely pose the same problem," Mira finished his statement with a frown.

Gajeel's jaw dropped. "Don't you think that would've been important to know before we left for so many fucking months of training!?"

"You only planned for one…" Mavis pointed out.

"Still!" Natsu exclaimed.

"Relax, you two. Now is the time for me to give you an objective," stated Zeref.

"I thought you said we only needed to fight you to pass your test," Natsu scratched his head.

"Indeed, I did say that, but how do you plan on beating an opponent with a seemingly endless amount of power and much better immunity to your greatest advantage?" Zeref asked his brother.

Natsu couldn't answer that question.

"So…what's the objective?" Gajeel asked.

"You can still affect me with Dragon Dominion if you can attack a sense of mine that I don't have enough awareness for. Only then can you beat me well enough to pass this test."

"What in the hell can that be?" Gajeel questioned.

"I guess we'll have to brainstorm," Natsu said as he crossed his arms.

"I wouldn't speak out loud, you two. Whatever you suggest I'll immediately become aware of," Zeref laughed.

"This will be difficult for them. They have to come up with something that'll work without giving it away. At the same time though, they'll have to do this when they face Acnologia, and he definitely won't give them time to think like Zeref is doing right now," Levy commented.

"Your mate is right, Gajeel. Don't think Acnologia will give you this much time. I'll give you ten more seconds before I resume attacking you two," Zeref instructed.

Natsu and Gajeel began to panic.

"Quick! Pick something! Anything! Just spam every idea you can think of!" Natsu yelled.

"Goddamnit! I have no clue! Your brother seems like he's aware of everything around him!" Gajeel yelled back. "Surround me and brainstorm with me telepathically while I stall him!"

"Alright!" he agreed. The two were once again moving together as Zeref continued to attack them. "What about his sense of taste? He's probably had so much food in his lifetime," Natsu pointed out.

"Yeah, probably, but how the hell do we use that in a fight?" Gajeel retorted while taking a punch to the jaw. He swiftly kicked Zeref back twenty meters and separated himself to gain more time.

"You're right. Ummmm what about his sense of stamina or energy? He's always resting, and he probably hasn't tried very hard in his lifetime," Natsu suggested.

"He looks pretty well-rested to me! I think I'll tire out before he does!" Gajeel fired back before kneeing Zeref in the gut and getting blasted into a pillar.

"Ughhh! Damn it! Which sense is a 400 year old man less aware—holy shit I have it!" Natsu exclaimed.

"What?! What is it?" Gajeel desperately said while Zeref threw him up against a wall.

"Having trouble thinkin—" Zeref was punched away by Natsu who had just separated himself from Gajeel.

"Here's the plan!" Natsu then slammed his hand onto the ground and poured his magic power into the magic he was casting.

"You think this will work?" Gajeel asked as he was catching his breath.

"It's all I have, so it has to," Natsu replied. "I'll do the talking."

Zeref got up and walked towards the two Dragon Slayers. "I have to give credit to you, brother. I can never anticipate those entrances of yours."

"Yeah well you'll need to anticipate this. I just set up a bunch of eruptions beneath us."

Zeref looked at the ground. "What do you mean?"

"There are two sets of spots on the ground in this whole landscape we set up. One set will go up in flames five minutes from when I start the timer while the other set will be completely safe. I put enough magic into these that I'm sure it'll be enough to knock you out for good," Natsu boasted.

"What's your plan with this? How does Gajeel fit into all of this? Why don't all spots go off after the time expires?" Zeref asked.

"Gajeel is still involved. You'll see how this'll work, and to answer why I can't make all the spots go off, I just don't have the juice left," Natsu laughed.

Lucy sighed. "Some things never change."

"The timer starts now!" Natsu yelled.

Zeref looked at the ground that was noticeably heated up as each second passed. "You're essentially ending this fight in five minutes with this trump card of yours. After all, you'll be completely exhausted after the eruption occurs. No matter, I'll settle this in less time, and I just need to be sure I'm on the spots that are safe once the time is up," Zeref laughed.

"Let's go!" Gajeel yelled.

He and Natsu then rushed towards Zeref from both sides, throwing many punches at him. Only about half of them actually made contact, and only a select number of them did any noticeable damage. Zeref did his best to block as many attacks while still trying to deliver blows of his own. Eventually, he knocked the two away to catch his breath.

"Having to deal with a barrage of punches like that is laborious. Hopefully they use more ranged attacks for the next minute or so—this again!?" Natsu and Gajeel had returned to the same tactic as before, trying to throw as many punches at Zeref before getting knocked away again. "What do you two hope to accomplish? Do you think you can lure me to a spot that will erupt when the five minutes have elapsed? Is that it? Ha! Nice try, but I won't fall for such a thing! I just need to be sure I'm not standing in the wrong spot in a few minutes!"

Natsu and Gajeel didn't say anything. Instead, they returned to their seemingly mindless punching. Except they position the three men were engaging in up-close combat was much more consistent instead of moving.

"What are they doing?" Juvia asked Gray.

"I'm not sure, but I guess they're going for broke with that eruption," Gray answered. "It's about to happen though, meaning this'll be over soon.

"I'm glad it'll be over soon, dear. I'm getting tired of seeing them punch each other for the past four minutes," Juvia admitted.

"Yeah, you'd think Zeref wouldn't let this go on for this long, but he has for some reason," Gray commented.

"Looks like it'll blow in twenty seconds," Jellal said after looking at his watch.

"Does Zeref not realize where he's standing right now?" Erza asked everyone else.

"He's still got time, I'm sure he does," Jellal answered.

Zeref, in truth, did not know because he believed he still had about three minutes before the eruption. After the third time Natsu and Gajeel attacked him with the same approach, he blasted them away for the third time.

"If you think you can use Dragon Dominion on my after tiring me out with this, you're mistaken," Zeref said before feeling the ground shake. He looked at the ground beneath his feet. "Hm? Looks like the magic welling up before the eruption in couple minutes—AGHHHHHHHHH!" He was interrupted with the large, incredibly hot flames exploding from the ground, engulfing him in a blaze that he couldn't escape.

"Gotcha!" Natsu cheered before giving Gajeel a high five.

"I can't believe that worked," Gajeel said as he wiped the sweat from his forehead.

"Wow. Father is really getting burned right now," Larcade said while surveying the burns he was getting. "Good thing he's immortal…"

"That doesn't really reduce the pain though, does it?" Ultear asked.

"Not at all," he replied.

After about two minutes of the constant inferno, Zeref collapsed, unable to get up while his body healed.

"You two…how…how in the hell…" he struggled to say.

"Ask your brother," Gajeel said as he crossed his arms.

"Remember how I said it would take five minutes and that I didn't have the power left to have the whole area go up in flames? Well, I bluffed on that last part. I had to give you the option to stay on the ground, and we just had to be sure you were in the right spot when the time came. The timing was everything! I figured someone as old as you has lost his sense of time. You've been around for 400 years, so one day, one hour, or one minute all feel really short to you. Gajeel attacked your sense of time with his Dragon Dominion, and we rushed you with the same punches over and over so you would be less aware of the time you spent dealing with us. You thought only three minutes had gone by when your time had actually been up. We had you in the right spot and everything!" Natsu proudly explained.

"Wow. I didn't think Natsu would be the one to come up with a plan like," Laxus admitted. "I'm actually really proud," he smiled.

"Thanks, dude—I mean Master," Natsu quickly corrected himself.

"I can't believe I fell for it, yet at the same time I can," Zeref coughed as healed on the ground. Mavis began to accelerate his healing with her magic.

"You two pass," she said. "Now you need to think of possible options for your fight with Acnologia. Understood?"

They both stood up straight and saluted her. "Yes ma'am!" They answered in unison before collapsing onto their backs. The landscape returned to its normal form once they were laying on the ground.

Later that day, everyone was having usual dinner in the guild hall. Natsu and Gajeel were really the only ones who had taken damage during their test, so they were taking it easy.

"What the hell are we going to use against Acnologia?" Gajeel asked Natsu before taking another bite of the iron Levy made for him.

"I guess his sense of time is something we can hold onto," Natsu suggested.

"Yeah we can, but we'll need to think of a strategy for that one well in advance. What we used on Zeref easily could've failed us, and if it did, our secret also would've been out."

"Don't think too hard about it now, you two," Lucy advised them. "Get some rest and spend the next week coming up with options."

"Yeah I'm sure Zeref, First Master, and Laxus can give you feedback. Jellal, Erza, and Mira too," Levy added.

The two Dragon Slayers sighed.

"What's wrong," Levy asked Gajeel.

"Are you two afraid you won't be able to think of something that'll work?" asked Lucy.

Natsu shook his head. "Lucy, we're just afraid in general. We can't fail any of you."

"Yeah what he said," Gajeel answered Levy. "All of you are counting on us, so we can't let you down. Our margin for error is basically nothing," he frowned.

The two girls hugged them. "We believe in you," they said.

"It won't be easy. We know that, but you two are can do it! You were gone for months and have become so much stronger!" Lucy said to encourage them.

"We agreed to spend the rest of our lives with you," Levy stated. "and we completely doubt that'll only be a week," she smiled.

The two embraced them.

"We won't let you two down! We won't let anybody here down!"

Zeref and Mavis stood at the balcony on the second floor, observing everyone in the guild hall.

"How confident are you?" Mavis asked her fiancé.

"Very, actually," Zeref replied.

Mavis smiled. "I'm glad to hear that."

"Soon after, we'll get married, and I'll finally see why that particular shade of red for the wedding was better than the others," he smiled.

Mavis hit his shoulder. "Are you making fun of me!? That decision was important!"

Zeref laughed at her before returning his gaze to everyone in the guild hall. Next week, I hope we can come back to this. Everyone here has so much to live for, and I want to see all of it from this view.

Sorry for the wait! Life happens, and it only become more complicated the older we get. I hope you'll enjoy this chapter because I won't be able to work on this story until Thanksgiving Break because of school. I will have that next one released before the break is over. My university gives us the whole Thanksgiving week off, so I'll have the time to make it happen, even with work.

Until next time!