"I've despised you since the day we first met." Kagura thought while standing across from Daryan and Hiruka. It wa scenario and the numbers weren't in her favor, but that didn't stop her from undertaking this challenge. "You were nothing but a nuisance who continued to pester me day in and day out…and yet, two years ago, that changed. You're still a pain, but somehow you've become one I can't seem to do without and it irritates me…"

"This won't be an easy fight…" Sting crossed his arms. He recalled Daryan's power during the battle against Rahkeid and could only assume he had grown stronger since then. "Kagura-san is strong, but so is Daryan-san."

"But if she wins, she'll get 20 points due to the rules!" Lector exclaimed.

"If." Reve rolled his eyes. "Don't forget that the opposite is true; when they win, they get 20 points off of her."

"Try to have a little more faith in our friendly Mermaid, will you?" Minerva lifted a brow curiously. "She's one upped you a few times in the past, hasn't she? I think that deserves a little bit more of your attention."

"Hardly." Reve replied. "In case all of you have forgotten, Daryan crushed Kagura pretty handily when they first fought. Anyone can tell that he's the stronger of the two of them and he's got backup. She may as well have just handed those 20 points to him on a silver platter; she has to take out both of them to get the 20 points, meanwhile they just have to beat her."

"Oh, they've fought before? I wasn't present, so I hadn't a clue." Minerva flipped her hair causally.

"Way to have a little faith." Lucy sighed. Reve was the most difficult person on the team.

"This battle has been lying in wait for a while now." Lore stroked his chin. "Tensions and feelings between these two rising to the surface, finally bubbling over in a clash for all the world to see!"

"Is she really gonna try and kill him after this tournament!? Are we gonna allow that!?" Alex turned to the others.

"It's all right, Alex." Gaia reassured her foster daughter. "This is an issue that they themselves need to work out…once and for all."

Edna looked towards Nasir. Neither of them understood the implications of this situation. "…Humans are weird." The crystal dragon shrugged. She didn't get it, but they were going to at least root for the team that they were on.

"Let the battle begin!" Waltz exclaimed.

Kagura kept a tight grip on her sword, deciding to make the first move by approaching Daryan and Hiruka. She and Daryan had seen each other fight enough to know what the other was capable of, and Kagura was hard pressed to admit that this would in fact an uphill battle. Hiruka was the unknown variable; for she had not once seen what this Exceed was capable of and he was deemed a threat because of it. Kagura's speed was impressive as always, closing the gap between herself and her foes within a heartbeat. Her blade was drawn and she swung upwards, aiming to slice both foes in one fell swoop, but unfortunately for her, they were able to avoid it! "…!"

"And Kagura makes the first move, but Daryan and Hiruka seem to be just as fast as she is!" Chapati remarked.

The two had to split up due to how Kagura attacked them; Daryan to the left and Hiruka to the right. Hiruka held a smirk while suddenly flying forward. "I got this, Daryan! Speed Up!" A green aura surrounded the gray Exceed, boosting his current speed twofold! His claws extended, razor sharp edges waiting to slash Kagura directly. "Slash!"

"What?" Kagura hadn't a clue what she was looking at, but she reacted nonetheless. Her sword was brought up, using the length of the blade to parry Hiruka's claws. As soon as his attack was over, she used the hilt of her blade to violently jab into the Exceed's chest, the raw power of the blow nearly crushing him into the ground. "Strong Form!"

"Gah!" Hiruka cried out. "Ouch…!"

As soon as Kagura struck Hiruka, Daryan was up next. "My turn, Kagura-chan!" Daryan formed a several foot long bone within his hands, making sure its appearance and physical shape was similar to a blade. It was reinforced with iron to ensure its durability was sound. An overheard strike was aimed for Kagura's torso, but she blocked it with her sword. Their raw power caused a shockwave to boom out and neither side gave in as they began slashing and parrying each other's attacks!

Kagura watched Daryan's movements carefully, reacting to each swing appropriately in order to find her opening. Once she spotted it, she took action, leaping forward while slashing at Daryan's left side! It was a direct hit in her favor and dealt noticeable damage…but she didn't escape. Daryan had been doing the same and they ended up attacking each other at the same time. Kagura had a sharp gash on her right side as they passed each other. The Mermaid sucked her teeth and dealt with the pain.

"Those flames were from me…!" Natsu grumbled. Even though it was years later, he still felt some type of way knowing Daryan had eaten his magic all that time ago.

Daryan grimaced as they traded blows. Just as he turned, he felt a sudden weight on his left leg. It completely disrupted his balance as his leg went through the ground, causing his eyes to widen. It was the effect of gravity attempting to pull him under the earth, curiosity of Kagura no less. The Mermaid was going to use this chance to land what could have been a highly damaging blow, but Daryan happened to have the same idea in mind. "Ha!"

"Haaa!" Kagura went to lunge forward, but felt something grip her ankle tightly. "Wh-!?" When she glanced down, she saw that a skeleton's hand had gripped her ascending leg, nearly causing her to fall over in the process. They both had the same idea, but there was only one side that would get away with the benefit: Bosco. With Kagura very briefly distracted, Hiruka flew forward at high speeds, swinging his leg to slam into her cheek, his momentum strong enough to knock Kagura backwards! "Ooof!"

"Oh, and Kagura takes a surprisingly heavy hit! The teamwork of Daryan and Hiruka is pretty strong! Will she be able to overcome it!?" Chapati asked.

Kagura slid across the ground, letting out a grunt of pain. That actually hurt a lot. That little Exceed was a lot stronger than he looked. "That was my mistake…"

"Nice save, Hiruka." Daryan high fived his partner. Unfortunately for him he was still stuck in the ground due to Kagura's gravity not wearing off. "Believe it or not, I've gotten a little used your gravity shenanigans over the years…"

"Which is precisely why I weighed only one part of you down." Kagura responded, entering another stance. "That balance is already hindering you."

"Maybe…" Daryan let out a dry laugh before lifting his arm up. "But it won't hinder these guys! Arise!" On that command, multiple skeleton soldiers rose from the ground, all of them clad in iron armor, wielding flaming weaponry! This army of the dead was his own version of necromancy that he enjoyed using frequently. "Skeletal Dragon's Army! Charge!" And the army did just that, all of them rushing down Kagura in attempt to overwhelm and take her down.

Kagura bent her knees before sprinting forward, faster than the eye could see. She moved at speeds that made Erza's Flight Armor jealous, weaving through the numerous skeleton soldiers before appearing behind them in a crouched position. "Slashing Form!" In an instant, the skeleton soldiers all fell apart and the ground they covered shattered violently. They never stood a chance. Daryan was next as Kagura pushed forward, aiming to thrust her sword into his lower right side!

"Daryan!" Hiruka flew in, nabbing Daryan to lift him into the sky. It took a considerable amount of strength since Daryan was still under the plague of Kagura's gravity, but he managed to do so and escape from harm. "I got you!" But that was when Kagura simply increased the gravity around Hiruka, causing him and Daryan to plummet to the ground, causing them to cry out. "But no one has meeeeeee!"

Kagura jumped into the air, planning to intercept Daryan and Hiruka as they fell. Just as she drew near, Daryan had finished taking a large breath, which was actually the result was his impending roar! "Roar of the Skeletal Flame Dragon!" Parting his lips, Daryan released a funnel of flame mixed in with sharp bones! This funnel consumed Kagura since she was so close, pushing her back into the ground with noticeable cuts and burns on her skin and kimono!

"Tch…!" Kagura brushed the pain aside, even though the cuts from the bones were deep enough to draw blood. Daryan's attack didn't stop him and Hiruka from plummeting into the ground, so at least she was able to savor that small victory.

"Ugh!" Daryan grunted as he crashed into a nearby rock; hitting the ground gravity was against you was certainly a pain, but he managed to stand right back up, despite the bruises covering his body.

"The two of them are surprisingly even so far." Luke commented.

"This fight is pretty wild! I'm about it!" Bacchus laughed.

"So far." Reve said.

"Kagura is strong. She won't fall to anyone that easily." Jellal vouched for the Mermaid.

"Come on Daryan!" Gaia shouted.

"Kick her butt…" Yakuza said as enthusiastically as he could muster.

Kagura lifted her sword up, the gravity around her blade intensifying tenfold. "Heavy Blade!" Swinging her sword down onto the ground, the force she created was nearly enough to split the battlefield in two! A shockwave tore through the battlefield, a crack in the ground signifying its progress as the soon to be fissure travelled towards Daryan and Hiruka, erupting in a strong surge of gravity magic! Daryan and Hiruka were able to dodge the initial burst, but the explosion still caught them and sent them flying in different directions. This also knocked a sizeable amount of rubble into the air as a result.

Hiruka let out a sigh of relief. He didn't want to imagine what would happen if they were hit by the full force of that attack. "Daryan!" Hiruka shouted.

"Got it!" Daryan slid to a halt, swinging his weaponized bone across the ground. This kicked up a sizeable dust cloud that obscured sight, keeping him and Hiruka hidden from Kagura's line of sight.

Kagura took a step back, keeping her blade at the ready. They could strike from anywhere! Hiruka lunged from the dust, attempting to ram into Kagura's chest. She sidestepped his attack and as soon as she did, she found herself narrowly evading a kick from Daryan! "…!"

"Got you! Slash!" Hiruka quickly circled around, slashing at Kagura's back with his claws! This ripped through her kimono and created a noticeable gash on her back, causing her to grimace in response.

That's when Daryan took advantage of her faltered state, throwing a fist clad in iron forward. "Skeletal Dragon's Iron Fist!" His fist hit her chest directly, causing Kagura to step back. He intentionally avoided her stomach due to that scar, but that wasn't to say he didn't wind her. Daryan then followed up with a blazing fist to that same spot, this follow up strike carrying much more force than the first. "And Skeletal Dragon's Blazing Fist!" The second punch held so much power Kagura flew back, slamming into a nearby rock with so much force she bounced off of it.

"Gah…!" Kagura's eyes were wide from the pain. To make matters worse, Daryan maniplauted the bones in his knuckles to become sharper, making sure they left that much more of an impact. She remembered that he had an extensive knowledge of the human anatomy and his physical strikes landed in some vulnerable locations.

"Let's go, Daryan!" Hiruka's wings flapped and he then took off into the skies, well above Crown Stadium and into the clouds above!

Shaking off the impact, Kagura went to move in response to Hiruka flying only to be halted. "What now?!"

"Sorry Kagura-chan!" Daryan exclaimed while grinning. "But you can't get away from this one."

Kagura turned her gaze back to the rock her back was against. More skeleton limbs emerged from the rock and the ground to restrain her wrists and ankles, forcefully restraining her to ensure she couldn't escape. "I can't move…!"

To make matters worse, Hiruku flipped in the air before coming back down with speeds that rivaled Meteor! He was truly intending to collide against Kagura in this dive bomb attempt. "Super Sonic Skystrike!"

"Oh that looks bad…!" Sting said with a sweat drop.

"Kagura-chan, you've gotta mooooove!" Zelos yelled.

It happened too fast. There was an explosion of dust as Hikura slammed into Kagura! But it was…a much smaller impact than anyone expected. Hiruka ended up ramming into her cleavage for a soft landing instead of the rough one he was expecting. "…Uh?"

First off, this is not what Kagura wanted, secondly, she used her magic to decrease Hiruka's center of gravity, effectively making him as light as a feather when he hit her. "I've had enough." Kagura let out a shockwave of gravity that shattered the rock and limbs binding her, knocking Hiruka into Daryan in the process. She then held her sword forward, a sphere of gravity magic appearing on the tip of the blade. "Gravity Core!" The sphere expanded rapidly, its size roughly half that of a Sema Meteor. Its gravitational pull was enormous and Daryan and Hiruka could barely withstand it!

"What a powerful attack!" Chapati yelled.

"Oh, I think Cygnus would be jealous if he saw this spell for himself. It might be stronger than his own…which means he's been slacking." Calium remarked.

Daryan slammed his weapon into the ground, using that to try and resist the pull of gravity, but it was a losing battle. "Damn, haha! Kagura-chan's got some new tricks; I can't help but admire it! But if we don't get out of this…it'll do more than hurt…!"

Hiruka was holding onto Daryan's jacket for dear life. "Gaaaaah!" This was way too strong! Kagura was out for their lives! But Hiruka then had a flash of inspiration. "Hey, buddy? This is your fight to finish…so make sure…that you make your feelings to her clear by the end of it! Claim her once and for all!" Hiruka then pushed off of Daryan, flying headfirst into the Gravity Core! "And be careful! She's got a tr-!" And before he could finish, he was consumed by the core.

"Wait, huh!?" Daryan had no time to react to what his lifelong friend had just done!

Kagura saw a target and went for it. Just as Hiruka flew into the Gravity Core, she slashed down with her sword, cleaving through it in the process. This created a gigantic explosion that shook Crown Stadium to the core. Gravity Core expended a lot of magic so she was panting pretty hard at the end of it. As the smoke cleared…Hiruka was completely defeated. "Only the cat…"

"Hiruka has been defeated." Count Waltz said. "Now, in the event this battle turns into a draw, Kagura will be reward 10 points for taking out one competitor, while Daryan will only receive 5."

"She got one!" Natsu grinned. "Now she just has to clean up!"

"We're still in the running!" Lucy beamed.

"Hah. All that magic just to take down the Exceed?" Reve shook his head. His eyes then glanced up and he seemed to notice something. "Of course…"

"Man, you just won't let anyone have anything, will you?" Zelos sighed,

Daryan walked over to Hiruka, giving his pal a grin. "Thanks, buddy. I'll make sure your sacrifice won't go to waste." Daryan then set Hiruka out of harm's way before facing Kagura. "You know, Kagura-chan, you're full of surprises, but that's just why I like you so much. Always proving how strong you are."

Kagura's grip on her blade tightened. "I thought I told you to shut up?" Being told she was strong by the man who once defeated her only infuriated her. He was a consistent reminder of her shortcomings…and a reminder of how a few words changed her own interpretation of her scar. Her mixed emotions about this man were being kept under control and she would only allow them to bubble to the surface when this fight came to a close one way or another.

"I can't afford to spare any ounce of magic against you. That's just what I was hoping for!" Daryan held a smirk as a ghastly gray aura started to swirl around his body. Not only was the aura around his body changing, but so was his physical appearance! It was turning into something similar to the skeleton of a dragon! "Enter: The Cursed Dragon!"

Kagura's eyes widened and she took a single step back. "Don't tell me…"

"He mastered that power!?" Sting was also surprised. He recalled Daryan entering this state during the battle against Rahkeid. He never expected that he'd master it like this!

"So this is where the power gap begins to show up…" Reve grit his teeth; not that he was worried for Kagura specifically, but anyone could sense the shift in the air and how it was not in Kagura's favor. At this rate, Fiore would fail to be on the board for two days in a row, which would be even more of a mess that he'd have to clean up!

"Oh yeah, she's totally finished." Verona waved a hand. "Never seen a human with that kind of power, but it's giving me 'this is over' vibes. Anyone else?"

"Take her down!" Lore exclaimed.

Daryan bent his knees before zooming off like a rocket, aiming his sharp skull right at Kagura's midsection! "Cursed Dragon's Horn!" It happened so fast that Kagura had not even a second to react. Before she knew it, Daryan's sharp head slammed into torso, the raw power behind it causing her to fly backwards and through a boulder!

"Ngh…" Kagura was a knee, panting heavily from that single strike. It was one thing to admire its power one year ago, but now that she was on the receiving end, it didn't feel so good. There was no time to rest, as when she looked up, she saw Daryan coming down from above, a weaponized bone in hand.

"Cursed Dragon's Spike!" Daryan swung this bone for Kagura's skull. The Mermaid was fast enough to roll to the side and avoid the initial strike, which was good for her. As soon as Daryan's bone hit and crushed the ground, a geyser of spiked bones jutted from the area of impact. That could have been the end of her run right there.

As Kagura rolled, she planted her feet firmly onto the ground, lunging forward to slip past Daryan while slashing at his torso. "Flipped Form!" It was a direct hit and the cut she created drew blood. She managed to win in this exchange, but she was not counting on Daryan's new found pain tolerance to haunt her.

Daryan turned on a dime, pursuing Kagura as she attempted to gain distance. "Curse Dragon's Fist!" He swung right her face, but she was barely able to evade by leaning her body to the side. Another blow followed up just as fast, but she was able to block it with the flat edge of her blade. A mistake. The impact was so strong, even though she blocked the hit, it threw her off balance, allowing Daryan to land a clean blow on her cheek, sending her spiraling into the ground and landing in an awkward position.

"And Kagura hits the ground hard! Can she recover!?" Chapati asked.

"It seems this battle is starting to shift in favor of Bosco." Ice said calmly.

"Ow…" Kagura landed in a bad position, but she was able to bring herself up, panting heavily from the damage and magic consumption. At the very least, Daryan knocked her clear across the arena, giving her ample space to attack from a distance. "Heavy Blade: Tenfold!" Once again, the Mermaid Ace lifted her sword into the air, allowing a very strong aura of gravity to surround it before swinging it into the ground. This shockwave easily dwarfed the one before and the inevitable explosion of gravity was that much stronger! It was a direct hit, knocking even more debris into the air! The once rocky battlefield was looking a lot more barren at this point. Kagura tried to stand tall, but she felt dizzy and her legs wobbly.

"Hey, she's not looking so hot." Luke said.

"What's going on? She was managing before…" Lucy tried to figure this out.

"I'm sure I'll feel that later." Daryan admitted while rotating his shoulder. "You're strong, Kagura-chan."

"This guy's a monster…" Diamond gulped.

"No way, even after that?" Kagura found it hard to even breathe now!

"I'm sure you're wondering why you're feeling more exhausted than you should." Daryan began to explain. "That curse power I obtained from eating that bone? It came from Bradman of the Spriggan 12, didn't it? His body was composed of Magic Barrier Particles. That bone had a low amount of those particles and I was in bed for weeks until I could slowly get it under control. This form allows me to use a dose of Magic Barrier Particles…and I've made sure to use just enough so that it won't impede you in the long run, but it will inhibit you for the rest of this fight."

"He's got control over Magic Barrier Particles!? That's crazy…!" Lector's paws were squeezing his own face.

"If you think that's enough to defeat me, you're mistaken, Daryan!" Kagura exclaimed proudly while sprinting towards Daryan. At least, that was her plan, but he really made sure that she understood what was happening, because her body nearly stopped in its place. It took all she had to not collapse on the spot! "Gnk…"

That was the opening Daryan needed! "And this is the coup de grace! Cursed Dragon's Graveyard!" Daryan slammed his hands on the ground, causing spiked bones to erupt all across Kagura's side of the battlefield, utterly annihilating that side of the field and turning it into ruin.

"AAAAAH!" Kagura let out a scream of pain as the bones threw her into the air, piercing her in various locations. A tremendous amount of damage had been dealt and Kagura landed on her side, doing all she could to stay conscious. At this point, determination and stubbornness were the only things keeping her from being defeated, clinging to 'life' by forcing herself to roll over. "Ngh…I'm not…finished…"

"Even after a hit like that, she refuses to fall." Helena was mildly impressed.

"This is bad, right?" Bacchus questioned.

"Totally bad." Luke said with a sweat drop. "At this rate…"

"Finish her off!" Alex yelled.

Daryan wasn't without his own consequences. Despite having control for the tail end of this bout, his Cursed Dragon form was taking a lot of magic out of him. So much, in fact, that he couldn't hold the form anymore and was forced back to his normal state. "Gah…still can't hold it for very long. But it held long enough." Daryan then began to approach Kagura, preparing the finishing blow with his fingers that he turned into sharp claws. As he approached her, he noticed that things got…really dark around him. There was a gigantic shadow cast over him and it was far too big to be a cloud. "…What the…?"

"Holy…" Luke stared up.

When Daryan looked up, he noticed it. There was a gigantic mountain over his head, sustained in the air by what he could only assume to be gravity. "What the hell!?"

"Where did that come from!?" Alex gasped.

"The battlefield…!" Magnus' eyes widened. "So that was her plan! She ensured that everyone's eye stayed down on the ground and with every explosion…"

"She used her gravity to suspend the rubble in the air and fused it together!" Nasir was in awe at Kagura's cleverness.

"The cat must've noticed…but he hardly had the chance to say anything…" Edna surmised.

"I told you that I wasn't done yet…!" Kagura declared while releasing the gravity on the mountain she created, allowing it to fall towards Daryan with the sole intent of crushing him under its weight. "World's End Fall!"

"Hnk!" Daryan had no choice but to force his body into the Cursed Dragon state! He held his hands up to try and fight off against this mountain, but it was no use. So he did the next best thing; summon a 50 foot skeleton to alleviate this weight off him. Kagura knew he was going to do this and pinned him down accordingly by increasing the gravity in the arena to the extremes! This prevented the skeleton from rising so only its hands could aid Daryan, but the situation was increasingly grim for him!

Kagura was running on fumes. If she passed out before she could land the finishing blow, then all her efforts were for nothing. The Mermaid Heel Ace brought herself to her feet, now making her way towards Daryan to end this. "This will be the end!" With his efforts focused on combating gravity, she had the chance to bring this fight to an end!

Daryan realized the situation he was in. As Kagura neared him, he couldn't help but laugh. "You really are strong, Kagura." He wouldn't let her have this so easily! His cheeks inflated and he gave his all for one final attack! "Cursed Dragon's Roar!" The funnel of curse and magic soared towards Kagura in one last ditch effort to take her down!

Kagura held her sword forward, piercing through the roar with all her might while approaching Daryan with a battle cry. It didn't spare her from the damage, but it did aid in not being pushed away. "GRAVITY SURGE!" She then thrust her blade towards Daryan's chest, forcing the extreme gravity in the battlefield to explode violently in the process. The gravity surged and swelled before it overtook the entire arena in a pink explosion, completely obscuring Kagura and Daryan from view.

"A climactic clash! But who will come out on top!?" Chapati asked the question everyone was dying to know. The arena was dead silent as the smoke began to clear…only one figure could be seen standing at the end of all that destruction.

….

It was Kagura; she had her foot planted firmly on Daryan's chest, her sword stabbed into the ground right beside his head. She looked like she would collapse at any second, but she refused to fall over until this fight was called in her favor. "Daryan Skeletalus has been defeated!" Count Waltz exclaimed, gesturing to Daryan's downed body. "That means the winner is Kagura Mikazuchi from Fiore! For defeating two opponents, Fiore gains 20 points!" The crowd then erupted into a loud cheer.

"She did it. Just as I thought she did." Minerva held a smirk towards Reve.

"She's lucky she was facing an opponent who was unable to watch his surroundings." Reve shrugged. "But she won, so I suppose she's worth something on this team."

"20 points! We caught up!" Lucy high fived Natsu.

"So that's what the swordswomen of Fiore have to offer." Renae remarked quietly. Was she impressed? It was hard to tell.

"Defeated…" Lore looked disappointed. "But he's not in a bad position, I'd say, heh…"

"That was incredibly close…" Strong said.

Daryan looked up at Kagura, letting out a pained chuckle. "I guess you got me this time, huh? You really could've killed me with that last attack…" The last attack wasn't the Gravity Surge like everyone thought. It was Kagura's act of stabbing her sword into the ground near his head.

"I know." Kagura responded while looking down at him. "Your life now belongs to me. You are not allowed to lose or die to anyone besides me, do you understand, Daryan?"

"Ah…" Daryan blinked slowly. Is this her way of settling things between them? Kagura was a difficult one when it came to showing her feelings, but he understood fully what she was trying to say. "…Got it. My life is yours."

"…." When he repeated it, she couldn't help but feel a little flustered. But she was done here, so she turned away, wobbling off before…she collapsed. Her body hit its limit. "…Oof…"

Hiruka lifted his head up, giving Daryan a thumbs up. "Nice job, buddy…"

Waltz rolled his eyes, two fingers pinching the bridge of his nose. "Someone get these three off the field…"


The women of Mermaid Heel were more than ecstatic to see Kagura claim victory over Daryan. "Kagura's the best!" Beth cheered.

"I knew she could do it! She showed the power of Mermaid Heel for the world to see! People will learn to respect us now!" Risley said while flexing her arm.

"Of course she had it in her! Kagura-chan's the strongest!" Milliana beamed.

"We'll be sure to congratulate her on both fronts later." Arana said with a soft giggle. Kagura was never going to hear the end of this when she came home.

"Hah. Glad you finally decided how to handle that annoyance." Melody held a soft smile. "Now carry the team to victory, Kagura! We're rooting for you!"

.

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Next Time: Monster Hunt.