A/N: "Sighs" I must say I'm very disappointed in myself. By the time this chapter is posted, the Fairy Tail anime has ended. I apologize for everyone who favorited and followed this story waiting so long for the next chapter. You know the usual drill: grades, classes, assignments, work and, of course, adding one more chapter to A New Beginning even though I said I'm done with it for quite some time. Oh, and I moved into a new place too. "Sighs again" Well, at least everything is taken care of except for a small project I've been planning. Good news is that I won't be working on that for quite some time but I'm very much looking forward to it. But before that, I gotta finish this story first. So, even though the anime is done and all of you may know what happens, hope you can still enjoy my rendition. I kept repeating myself (for those who have read A New Beginning) like a broken parrot and now and hopefully, I can show it. To celebrate the return of this story, I suggest looking up Black Clover opening 4 as it will be the new second opening. For those who know what I'm talking about, you can see why this is very appropriate. One last note, can I just say I'm overjoyed that Jacob's dub voice sounds like Jason Statham? Kudos to Bryan Massey for the great job.

Disclaimer: I do not own Fairy Tail and/or Akame Ga Kill. They belong to their original owners.

The Assassins of Fairy Tail

Job Thirty Four: Assassin vs Assassin

Akame had never felt so tense before in front of an enemy. Not only he was an assassin leagues above those she had fought in the past, but his magic power was also undeniably powerful as well. That alone told Akame that her opponent was one of the Spriggan Twelve. Normally, she wouldn't be worried about taking on an enemy such as him, but there was one dire problem. Jacob was holding everyone else in the guild captive and if Akame cuts him with Murasame, she'd be dooming them to their end. This was the second time her Imperial Arms would do more harm than good. Thankfully, Akame isn't reliant on Murasame but that also meant the fight would be more difficult. She couldn't let her guard down for a moment against him.

Akame saw Jacob smile creepily at her and chuckled a little. "I like the look of your eyes, girl." The former assassin didn't expect her enemy to say such a thing to her. "And I'm not just talking about the color. You've been in some pretty grueling battles before, have you not?" Akame remained silent and refused to answer his question. That was perfectly fine for Jacob. "They also tell me that you've lost comrades along the way. How many was it? Two?" He saw no reaction from Akame. "Five?" He saw a slight reaction coming from his opponent. Jacob knew he was getting closer and only needed one more guess. "Eight then?" He saw Akame's eyes widened slightly and heard a soft gasp. That was the reaction Jacob was looking for. "So, you lost eight of your pals then. That must've been rough on you."

As soon as Jacob mentioned Akame lost eight friends, Lucy became confused by his statement. "Akame lost eight of her friends? I thought she and the others only lost two when we saw Wendy's memories. So, who are the other six then?"

Akame regained her composure and needed to know an answer from the other assassin. "Exactly who are you? I know you're one of the Spriggan Twelve, but that's all." She had to know which of the people Makarov mentioned before. As far as Akame knew, out of the nine names, there were five that were available; Bloodman, Neinhart, Invel, God Serena, and August. By process of elimination, he couldn't be August as he didn't look like a Wizard King. He wasn't Invel either since he'd be by Zeref's side. And a gut feeling told Akame that he wasn't God Serena. That only left two names but there was always the chance her opponent was one of the three members Makarov hasn't met before.

Jacob smirked at Akame's question and would appeal it. "I see no harm in answering." He placed his right hand in front of his torso and his left behind his lower back. "Jacob Lessio, member of the Spriggan Twelve and holder of the title Assassin." His name confirmed Akame's theory. He was one of the three Makarov hasn't met and now there were only two members unknown to her. Jacob finished his bow and straightened out. "Now that I told you my name, it's only common courtesy that you tell me yours, girl."

Akame didn't see a reason why she should since they were about to fight but would oblige anyway. "It's Akame."

The Shield chuckled amusingly at her name. "Akame, is it? Well then, Akame, I will say you're not the first assassin I've faced against, but I will say you're the youngest I've encountered." He placed his left arm behind his back and held up his right arm in front of him. "Let's see how well you stack up." Jacob saw Akame ready her sword and shadow sword for the upcoming fight. There was a slight detail he noticed about his enemy. "The sword the girl used before. She was ready to use it again until the ghost said I took all their little friends. After that, she sheathed it. Something tells me there's more to that sword than it seems. Perhaps something she can't risk using. Fine by me, that just makes the job all the easier."

Jacob didn't waste a second and vanished from Akame's sight. It only took her a second to realize The other assassin smirked as he pulled his right arm back and struck forward. Akame gasped just before the Shield's fist ran through her chest with ease. Or so he thought when he saw his enemy waver and vanish. This time, Jacob was the one perplexed by this until he realized what Akame had done. "An afterimage technique?" If his opponent was not in front, then she would have to be somewhere else close by to counterattack. The sides and back were clear which only meant one other option. He looked up to see Akame briefly resting on one of the wooden beams with her other sword unsheathed and drawn back. Shadows wrapped around her sword and jumped off the beam and straight at Jacob. He jumped back away just before Akame struck the position he was in previously. Akame raised her head and stood up as she and dashed toward Jacob with her sword ready. As soon as she came in close, Akame started to swing her sword from the side, but the other assassin disappeared from her sight again. She then felt her wrist being grabbed tightly and looked down to see Jacob crouching and was grabbing her wrist with his left hand. He had a serious expression before giving Akame a smug smirk. "You're not worming your way out of this one, girlie."

Jacob moved forward and struck a blow to Akame's stomach. Akame coughed out in pain before her enemy stood up and grabbed her hair with his right hand. He brought Akame's head down while raising his right knee toward it. Akame's forehead made impact with a heavy hit. It was enough for Akame to lose her grip on her sword and it dropped to the floor. After the rebound, Akame's body jumped back and it left Jacob with another opening to exploit. Jacob delivered a swift and heavy kick to her side. Akame crashed through one of the tables and landed on the floor. The Shield was no longer amused by the shoddy performance he saw thus far in the fight. "What a disappointment." He made a sliding gesture on each hand before rushing toward Akame who was on her hands and knees.

Jacob was right above Akame with his right fist raised above with an intent to kill in his eyes. "Shadow Surprise!"

A shadow spike instantly appeared from Akame's side and struck Jacob in the center. He grunted as he didn't expect his enemy to make this kind of counterattack. Luckily for him, he managed to catch the tip before it reached his center. But that didn't stop it from pushing Jacob away from Akame. Akame stood up and made her second stance while glaring at the Shield. "Shadow-Make: Twin Shadow Sword!" Two shadow swords formed within her hands and glared at Jacob intensely. She slightly lowered her body and jumped toward Jacob while spinning her body around. "Shadow Cyclone!" Akame bypassed Jacob while her attack slashed his entire body. Once she passed him, Akame dispelled her swords flipped her body before she landed on the wall. The former assassin put her hands together again. "Shadow-Make: Darkness Claw!" The shadows wrapped around her right hand and moved it forward and a giant shadow claw extended. It traveled toward Jacob while he was still in the air it slammed him right into the floor with a thunderous crash.

Akame let out a heavy sigh and fell from the wall. She landed on the floor and looked over to where her enemy currently was. Akame knew it'd take more than that to finish him off. "Not bad, kid." She gasped in surprise when Akame saw Jacob stand up easily and was just dusting off his sleeves.

It was as Akame predicted, but it was still unbelievable to her to this extent. "All of that and he's not injured? Just how resilient is he?"

Once Jacob was done dusting, he looked over at Akame's direction. "I believe it's about time for the kid gloves to come off now." The Shield smirked once again at Akame before vanishing. Except for this time, he was nowhere to be found. Before Akame knew it, she felt a strong and heavy blow strike to the left side of her face. It sent her flying off before Akame felt another heavy blow to her back. It sent her forward and more powerful attacks were landing all over Akame's body. The best she could do was put her arms in front and defend against the relentless attacks.

Lucy was wracked with confusion as to what was happening in front of her. "What's going on? How's he attacking Akame like that? I can't even see where his attacks are coming from. Not only that, but I can't sense his magic either."

While enduring the attacks, Akame noticed something different about them. "These attacks, they're not like before." She thought back to when Jacob first struck her and compared it to the attacks now. "Back then, his attack was powerful, but these feel heavier. Not to mention there's something metallic added to them." An idea occurred to her. "If that's true then, when did he-" An attack struck her from under her chin and was sent flying into the air. However, that didn't last long as Akame felt a powerful kick straight to her stomach and crashed back into the floor. Akame coughed up blood as a result and groaned in pain.

"Painful, ain't it." Jacob appeared right above Akame with his foot digging into Akame's body. "How about we end it with is?" He held up Akame's Murasame and inspected it closely. "Before this little scuffle began, you sheathed this sword of yours. I gotta admit, this little sword got me curious as to why you didn't use it? Guess we'll see now, won't we?" He chuckled at his next move. "Death by your own weapon. How ironic." The Shield grabbed the handle and unsheathed Murasame. He marveled at its sinister gleam. "Quite the sword you have." Before Jacob could finish the job, he noticed a few red sparks coming from the handle. Then the handle began sparking wildly and he felt great pain coursing through his hand. "What the bloody hell!?" He tossed Murasame in the air and the pain stopped.

At this moment, Akame took advantage of his distraction and sank within her shadow and away from the Shield. When Jacob noticed his foot was on the floor, the other assassin came out of her shadow. She put her hands together once more. "Shadow-Make: Twin Shadow Swords!" Akame rushed at Jacob and swung her left shadow sword at the Shield. He crossed his arms to block the attack and was pushed back. "We may be both assassins…" She made her right sword vanish and managed to grab Murasame by the handle as it dropped in front of her. "but the difference between you and is that you don't carry the burden of the lives you've taken!"

Seeing this exchanged reminded Lucy of why Jacob couldn't use Akame's weapon. "That's right. They explained that no one else can use their Imperial Arms except for them."

Jacob lowered his arms and glared at Akame as the Shield tossed the sheath away. He thought Akame's words were nothing more than a joke to him. "An assassin gone soft, huh? It seems you've forgotten something important in this line of work. Never mix business with personal feelings." He put his fists up in front of him and readied himself for the next round.

"Brass knuckles." Akame's words caught Jacob's attention. "That's what you were hitting me the entire time before." She threw Murasame away from her and it stuck deep inside the guild's wall. "Except they're not visible and the same can be said with what you did before. I know your trick now and it won't work a second time."

Whether it was a joke or not, it did make Jacob chuckle a little. "Is that right? We'll see about that." He vanished once again.

This time, Akame closed her eyes and summoned her shadow swords again. "Lucy, get down now!" It took Lucy a second to register Akame's warning and dropped to the floor. Akame put the two handles together "Shadow Moon!" She spun her body around with the shadow swords extending their reach. It reached just enough before the guild's support beams without cutting through them.

Akame ceased her attack and her swords returned to their normal lengths. Lucy stood up and wondered what exactly did that attack accomplish? For Akame, she knew exactly what she did. To her, everything was quiet and then…she sensed him. "As I've thought." Akame flipped her right sword and raised it. As she did, there was a metallic clang and sparks. Akame tightened her grip and growled as she pushed her sword forward. Akame followed with her previous move and delivered multiple slashes as she passed her target by. As soon as she did, five black stars appeared out of thin air. "Five-Star Shadow Slash!" More slashes appeared around the space where the stars appeared, and a scream could be heard. Akame turned around and went back while raising both of her swords over her head. "Double Crescent Shadow!" She swung her swords overhead and slashed at her target. Another cry could be heard as Akame sensed they were pushed away from her. She lowered her body and crossed her arms before jumping toward them again. Akame uncrossed her swords and passed by them again. "Shadow X-Cution!"

A third scream could be heard and Akame turned around, slightly out of breath. Jacob appeared before her on his right knee while holding onto his left side. He turned his attention to Akame growled furiously at her. "How? How is this brat able to sense me?! My magic should be able to mask my presence completely! So, how!?"

Lucy may not have understood what happened, but she did remember something else they told her and the rest of the guild what they could do. "Of course! Even if I couldn't sense his magic, Akame could sense his aura! It didn't even matter if we couldn't see him or sense his magic!"

She was absolutely correct in that regard. To Akame, Jacob's aura was a complete dead giveaway. "His magic is the same as Incursio's trump card. He can turn invisible, but he can also erase his presence too and his magic power. However, even so, there's one thing he didn't count on." In Akame's sight, she could sense a powerful aura coming from Jacob. "He doesn't know I can sense his aura. And that's what gives me the advantage over him." She raised her right shadow sword at the Shield. "You've lost. Now, return our friends or I'll force you to."

Even in his position, Jacob couldn't help but laugh. "Oh really?" He groaned as the Shield stood up. Jacob removed his hand from his side and started to clap slowly at the other assassin while smiling. "I have to admit, I should give you more credit." He stopped clapping and set his arms down. "You're the first assassin that's lasted this long against me and the first who could tell where I am even with my magic. Still, between the two of us, you…" He rushed over at Akame.

Akame drew her left sword back and swung it at the Shield, but instead, it passed through and faded completely. Akame hadn't expected him to use the same technique she used on him. "He used an afterimage?!"

In the next second, Akame felt a powerful blow to her back and propelled her across the guildhall. "…ARE STILL NOTHING BUT A RANK AMATEUR COMPARED TO ME!" Akame tumbled across the guild floor before quickly standing up again. She created her shadow swords before vanishing and multiple copies of her appeared throughout the guild. Jacob knew what her plan was. "How cute. Think I won't be able to tell where you are? Well, you're sorely mistaken!" Jacob whipped his arm and all of Akame's afterimages vanished. However, the real Akame was struck and felt something different strike her left arm. The hidden attack sent Akame crashing against the guild's wall and let out another pained cough before falling to the floor. She struggled to raise her head and saw Jacob standing over her. The Shield pulled down his left glove to tighten it with an intent to kill in his eyes. Akame slightly moved her right hand, but Jacob stomped on it and she cried out in pain. "We'll be having none of that from now on." All Akame could do was look up as Jacob pointed his hand directly at her. "Time to join the rest of your friends. Goodbye."

At that moment, Akame saw for a moment of Sheele, Bulat, and six other individuals from her past. "Regulus Lucy Kick!" Lucy's sudden attack sent Jacob flying away from Akame and landed in front of her.

The Shield slid across the floor and stared angrily at the Celestial Wizard. "I forgot all about the other girl."

All Akame could do was look at the other girl with a disbelieving expression. "Lucy…"

"Jeez, Lucy, could you cut it any closer?" Happy commented on the blonde's rescue.

Lucy decided to ignore his comment and turned her attention to Jacob. "I'm not going to let you finish Akame off. Not while I'm still here. You're dealing with me now!"

Akame smiled at Lucy's words and could relax a little. "Lucy, thank you." Her smile quickly vanished and had a serious expression. "You still have to be careful. Even with everything I did, I don't think he's nowhere done just yet. His magic almost completely erases his presence and I believe he can conceal weapons as well. That last attack, it felt like a whip had struck me." If Lucy was going to fight against this opponent, Akame would give her all the information she gathered to her.

The other girl would keep all of that in mind. "Thanks, Akame. I'll get him back for you. Also, you don't have to fight by yourself. Remember, all of Fairy Tail is here to help you. We're in this together." Akame couldn't explain it, but she felt reassured by those words.

However, Jacob had other ideas in mind. "I'll make you pay that attack, girl." He reached inside his vest. "Akame, was it? Let's see how you like when you see your friend's head rolling on the ground!" He took out a dagger and threw it directly at Lucy.

The dagger drew near Lucy who couldn't avoid it in time. "Lucy!" Akame and Happy shouted at the same time.

Before the dagger could reach Lucy, someone else came in-between and blocked it with their arm. Everyone was surprised by this sudden appearance. What was interesting was that the dagger itself was melting and smoke was coming out. "Well, even if it's just her head, it's still Lucy." The dagger completely melted, and the smoke partially covered him. The familiarity of his voice brought untold joy to Lucy, Happy and Akame. "And that's a terrible thing to do to her." The smoke completely passed and revealed Natsu with a scar where his injury previously was when he fought Zeref. He glared at Jacob furiously. "So maybe I should turn you into ashes first."

Jacob wasn't intimidated, but Natsu's arrival gave hope to Mavis and everyone else. "Natsu!"

"He's back!"

"Did you sleep well?"

"About time…you woke up."

Natsu raised his right arm and flames surrounded it. "Yeah, I'm all fired up now!"

A/N: Can I just say how happy I am that I didn't write another chapter that's over 10,000 words for the 12th time? Seriously, holy God that was a pain. Also, yes, I'm aware there are similar stories to this one. Now then, Overlord ending 3 as the new ending 2 and…HAPPY NEW YEAR!