Chapter 165

Iron is Stronger Than Stone

Back with Gajeel and Hoteye, Hoteye was on the attack using his Liquid Ground Magic to unleash multiple streams of mud at Gajeel, who jumped out of the way, making spikes at the bottom of his shoes to stick to the wall. The Iron Dragon Slayer then counterattacked by turning his hand into a large club.

"IRON DRAGON CLUB!"

His iron club shot straight towards Hoteye, canceling out all of the streams, but Hoteye dodged it by stepping to the side. Then, using his Heaven's Eye, he directed his Liquid Ground right where Gajeel stood on the wall. Thinking quickly, thanks to his instincts, Gajeel jumped off of the wall, just as an explosion of mud erupted from where he stood.

"So, you're that Richard guy I've heard so much about, also codenamed Hoteye," Gajeel spoke as he landed on the ground. "Last time I checked, you weren't a member of the Oracion Seis anymore, so why are you with those punks?"

"Richard? I do not know that name," said Hoteye. "But I do know that you don't stand a chance against me! Your iron magic shall rust as my Liquid Ground swallows it! Oh yeah!" He pointed his fingers directly at Gajeel. "NOW, PILLAR GROUND!"

Several mud towers erupted from the ground forcing Gajeel to dodge once again, the pillars of mud seeming to gain momentum and catching up to him. Knowing that he had to counter, Gajeel took a breath while chuffing his cheeks.

"IRON DRAGON ROAR!"

A powerful cloud-like spiral of iron shot forth from his mouth, dispersed the pillars of mud and hit Hoteye with a mighty explosion. Gajeel smirked, believing to have scored a hit, but then he began to sink as the ground beneath his feet became like quicksand.

"Damn it!" cursed Gajeel as he struggled to get out. "This mud's like freaking glue!"

"It's no use, Dragon Slayer! My Heaven's Eye magic allows me to see through anything!" called out Hoteye. "And when used in conjunction with my Liquid Ground, not even a Dragon Slayer can hope to defeat me!"

The ground soon swallowed up Gajeel, like a rock sinking into the water, but then, a long club shot out from the mud and pierced into the wall sticking to it, and not long after, Gajeel came shooting out from it, using his magic to pull himself out.

"You wanna make a bet on that?!" barked Gajeel. "Don't underestimate Fairy Tail! Otherwise, then you're gonna end up in a world of hurt!"

As he landed back on the ground, Gajeel shot towards Hoteye, and using his magic, morphed his hand into a large and jagged blade, swinging it hard.

"IRON DRAGON SWORD!"

Hoteye quickly jumped back just as Gajeel's sword slammed down where he once stood. The Iron Dragon swung at Hoteye again and again, and Hoteye continued to dodge. Then, as Gajeel swung his sword, Hoteye waved his hand and made the ground below Gajeel erupt in a massive explosion of mud, which sent expelled him high into the air as he cried out in pain and surprise.

"What's the matter? Is that the best you can do?" taunted Hoteye. "Or was all that talk nothing but empty words?" He then began to ponder to himself. "I don't know who this Fairy Tail is, but I do know that you're defeat will soon be at hand, and I will take pleasure of making your grave out of my Liquid Ground. Oh yeah!"

Hoteye held out to fingers once again and then unleashed multiple mud shots, but Gajeel, not being one to give in, transformed his hand into a spearhead while aiming.

"IRON DRAGON SPEAR: DEMON LOGS!"

Gajeel then fired multiple iron spears in rapid succession, each canceling out the mud, while others went towards Hoteye. Hoteye quickly used his Liquid Ground to make a wall to defend, but right as he did, Gajeel jumped up, managing to get past his defense, and then landed just behind him, making Richard believe that he suddenly appeared. Before he could react, Gajeel clocked him right in the stomach with a hard fist, knocking the wind out of him and sending him slamming into the wall with a resounding thud, creating an indent upon impact.

"You're good when it comes to attacking from a distance," said Gajeel. "But when it comes to close combat, it's a whole different story. Now, you had enough yet, or do I have to pound you some more?"

Hoteye pulled himself out of the indent in the wall and shook the concussion out of his head, appearing to be unharmed.

Gajeel smirked as he cracked his knuckles. "Guess you're tougher than I thought," he chuckled.

"So it would seem," replied Hoteye. "I had no idea that my body was so durable. By the way, who are you? I don't think we've met."

"Are you for real, dude? Did that punch screw up your brain or something?" Gajeel asked, a bit puzzled. "I mean, come on. You're telling me that you've forgotten that you've been fighting me?"

Hoteye responded by using his Magic once more, using his Pullar Ground once again to attack, hitting Gajeel full force and sending him crashing into the wall this time. The Iron Dragon now had mud all over him and was more annoyed than he was hurt.

"Damn it. Now you're just starting to tick me off!" Gajeel growled crossly. "You got my clothes all muddy, and I don't like that at all!"

He morphed his hand into a club and swung hard at Hoteye, but this time, Hoteye liquified the ground beneath himself and disappeared beneath the surface, avoiding the attack. Then, as Gajeel retracted his club, he sprang up from the ground, and with a wave of his hand, blasted him with a spray of mud, getting him even muddier.

"OK! I'm getting real sick of you covering me in mud!" Gajeel growled. "You better stop it right now before I start to get mad!"

Then, Gajeel noticed something. As he dashed towards Hoteye, he began to get a strange feeling with his body. It seemed that it was getting a bit slower and heavier. Hoteye pointed two fingers, and Gajeel jumped to the right, thinking that he would liquify the ground beneath him again. But as he did, the ground to his right exploded with mud making him inadvertently jump into it, sending him flying into the air while taking the hit.

"It would seem that the effects of my Mud Coating have finally set in," said Hoteye. "Those that are coated by it will find that their speed and reaction time are decreased, making them grow slower until they're unable to fight anymore."

"Is that so?" Gajeel spoke gruffly. "Well, I'll say this much, I'm definitely feeling the slowing down part, but as far as being unable to fight, I ain't down just yet."

Hoteye pointed his fingers at Gajeel, attempting to use his magic to liquify the ground beneath his feet. However, Gajeel sensed the attack coming and took a great jump just as the ground rippled and burst. Thanks to the narrow walls above, Gajeel hopped from ledge to ledge until stopping to rest on one of them, making sure to stay hidden. However, Hoteye used Heaven's Gaze to pinpoint his location and using Liquid Ground to send a tendril of mud over to his location and attack. As a mighty explosion shook the area, Gajeel came falling from where he hid, landing on the ground.

"It's no use," Hoteye spoke with confidence. "No matter where you hide, my Heaven's Gaze will see through all, and thanks to my Mud Coating lowering your speed, I can predict your moves before you can make them! Therefore, your defeat is all but inevitable! Oh yeah!"

Gajeel struggled as he sat back up, wiping the mud off of his cheek as he glared.

Hoteye was surprised as well as puzzled. "So, you still have the strength to get up, do you?" he spoke with a narrowed glare. "Why bother continuing a pointless struggle when you know you've lost?"

"Sorry, but giving up's not exactly in my vocabulary," said Gajeel. "Besides, if I don't beat you now, this piece of junk will never stop ticking. Not only that, but you guys took one of my comrades, and I'm not leaving until you give him back or tell me where he is."

"I don't know who you're talking about, but I wouldn't worry about this friend of yours," said Hoteye. "Because you and the rest of your group will never see or hear from him again. If I were you, I would forget about him and start worrying about yourself."

Gajeel scowled as he ripped off the upper half of his clothing. "Look, Bub, that's probably something that I'd say back when I was with Phantom, but that's not my style," he said. "You see, when someone kidnaps one of our own, there ain't no way Fairy Tail's gonna just forget about him."

A puzzled look now crossed Hoteye's face. At the same time, something in the back of his mind began to resurface. It was a memory of himself becoming friends with Jura back in the Nirvana incident almost a decade ago. The memory alone made him hold his face in his hands as it tried to process what that was. However, he quickly shook it off, believing that Gajeel was messing with his head.

"You would risk your life for someone else other than your own?" Hoteye spoke in a neutral voice. "Your words don't make any sense. You're just trying to confuse me. But that won't matter. Since you refuse to surrender, I have no choice but to take your life."

A strange aura began to shroud Hoteye's body that was an eerie mix of green along with amber. When his eyes opened, his eyes had turned green with the scleras turning black. The earth around his body also began to bend and whip around his body in tendrils as if they were giant snakes. Hoteye then waved his hands, making the tendrils shoot straight towards Gajeel at an incredible speed, blasting him right in the stomach. While getting the wind knocked out of him, the Iron Dargon was sent flying and tumbling to the ground but managed to spring back to his feet, skidding to a halt.

Then came more trouble. As Gajeel got back up, holding his stomach in pain, he began to feel that his skin was starting to stiffen while growing harder. When it looked, he was shocked to see that the mud that splattered his stomach had hardened like stone.

"Surprised? Thanks to the ooze that Silver Beard and Brain have provided me, my Liquid Ground has gained another ability," smirked Hoteye. "Those who come into contact with it not only sticks to them, but it will also harden turning into the strongest of stone."

Gajeel used his magic to turn his hand into a hammer and swung it into his stomach to try and break the stone, but he couldn't. Seeing an opportunity to strike, and with a flick of his fingers, Hoteye sent a strong tidal wave of Earth right towards the Iron Dragon, forcing him to jump up to avoid the attack. However, Hoteye had a follow-up attack waiting for Gajeel, in the form of four beams of mud, each one aimed directly for Gajeel's blindspots. Knowing that he couldn't avoid this attack, Gajeel crossed his arms defensively, bracing for impact as the beams of mud blasted him, making him crash to the ground in a huge splash of mud. As Gajeel struggled to get up, he could feel the mud on his body begin to harden, his mobility growing slower by the second.

Hoteye let out a laugh in triumph as he watched Gajeel struggle in his state. "Struggle all you'd like, but you're about to be nothing more than a harmless statue," he said. "Once you're out of the way, I think I'll take the liberty of turning your friends into statues next."

"D-Damn you!" Gajeel cursed, now completely immobile. "You... ain't going... to get away with this!"

"I believe I already have, and once your friends are finished, the entire world will be next," went on Hoteye. "The whole world will be swallowed in chaos, and we of the Oracion Seis will stand on top of the world as its masters of chaos! Oh yeah!"

Hoteye pointed his fingers to his eyes and then towards Gajeel, spraying another blast of mud at Gajeel, covering his body completely. The mud hardened in seconds, and Gajeel was now silent, nothing more than a statue. Hoteye let out a hum, feeling very pleased with himself and believing that the iron dragon slayer was finished for good, turned to leave about to walk ahead to where Natsu and his group went.

Then, he heard a small cracking sound. It started small, then it grew louder, which caused him to look back towards the statue. When he did, Hoteye was shocked to see that the Gajeel statue had cracks appearing all over it, each one growing bigger and larger by the second.

"No! It can't be!" Hoteye cried.

He made to try and encase the statue with another layer of his mud, but then, the statue exploded, and from it came Gajeel, who let out a bellowing roar that almost shook the ground itself as he radiated with his magic power. Not only that, but as he glowed, his tanned skin, as well as the rest of his body, slowly was encased in iron, as his red eyes gleamed with a fiery determination and anger.

"All right, Hoteye. I was already getting annoyed enough with that mud of yours," the iron dragon slayer growled. "But now, I think I've had enough. Starting now, I'm gonna go all out, so I hope you like the taste of iron because I've got a knuckle sandwich with your name on it! So get ready!"

Hoteye, sensing Gajeel's growing magic power, quickly got on the offensive, using his Liquid Ground to try and swallow up Gajeel. However, thanks to him shaking off the mud from his body before, he shot forward at an incredible speed avoiding it, while clenching his fist tightly.

"IRON DRAGON HARD FIST!"

He slugged Hoteye square in the stomach, the force blowing Hoteye back halfway down the hall, forcing the man to use his magic to make a cushion of mud to stop himself.

"I-Impossible!" Hoteye gasped as he held his stomach in agony. "His power's increased dramatically because of those iron scales of his!"

Hoteye then looked up in time to see Gajeel divebomb him from above, swinging his leg in a downwards kick, forcing Hoteye to jump out of the way. As he did, the force from Gajeel's kick alone created a powerful slicing wave of wind pressure that curved before hitting the wall beside him, much to his shock.

"There was that much wind pressure from his kick alone?!" Hoteye exclaimed. "Just what kind of monster is he?!"

But Hoteye didn't have to answer his own question as Gajeel came swinging with an Iron Dragon Club right across his face sending him flying again and crashing to the ground. Now, starting to panic while realizing that he had to defeat his opponent quickly, Hoteye unleashed several beams of mud from the ground, all of them shooting directly into Gajeel and splattering him with mud, thinking that he could encase him in stone again. But to his shock, the mud slid off of his iron as he let out a yell, expelling it all off of him.

"Sorry, but your little statue trick isn't going to work a second time!" Gajeel growled. "Thanks to my iron scales, your mud can't even stick to me! No matter what kind of magic you got or what you throw at me, you ain't ever going to beat me! Don't underestimate Fairy Tail because if you do, you're gonna get hit and hit hard!"

Gajeel clapped his hands together, generating a large amount of magic power in them. From his hands, he conjured a giant iron sword that was at least five times the size of his own body. Hoteye's eyes went wide with terror upon seeing it, immediately tried to use his Liquid Ground to counterattack. But he would soon learn that it was too late, as Gajeel began to swing, his giant blade swinging it down straight towards him.

"DRAGON SLAYER SECRET ART! KARMIC DEMON: IRON GOD SWORD!"

Gajeel's giant blade struck Hoteye with a massive and thunderous slam that made the entire area shake from the impact, destroying a large portion. Cloud, dust, and rubble flew everywhere as Gajeel stood tall, his Iron God Sword eventually fading away. When the smoke cleared, Gajeel was satisfied to see that Hoteye lay on the ground, his clothes tattered and destroyed, and his eyes rolled to the back of his skull.

The Iron Dragon Slayer let out a sigh of exhaustion as his Iron Scales dissipated, exposing his skin as he fell to his knees, catching his breath.

"Geez... this guy was a pain in my ass, but I finally knocked him out," Gajeel rasped. "Took a lot out of me, though. I better find myself some iron to eat before I catch up with the others. Hopefully, they're all having an easier time than I did. Until then, I need to try and find some iron."

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And as always, Dragomaster, signing off!