Hey guys. Sorry for the long wait. I've been having writer's block for a while and work has been taking up some of my time. Not to mention that I got really sick. But I'm feeling better now and I'm aiming to publish at least two chapters a month.
Well, let's get on with the chapter.
Chapter 05: Cross Tag Team Battles
Crocus – Domus Flau
From the private viewing area of the arena, the King and Arcadios looked down after the explanation of the Cross Tag Team Battles. "So, this is what you meant by a surprise." Arcadios smiled at the king.
"Hohoho…one on one battles are fun, but nothing gets more excited than team battles, especially when your partner is also your competition. Will they put aside their differences to win for their teams or will they turn on each other and look out for themselves, I can't wait to see the drama." King Toma chuckled.
Domus Flau – Guardians Locker Room
Kagami was sitting on the bench meditating. "This isn't a basketball match. This is an actual fight." Kagami thought. "Bacchus is strong, and he's partnered with a member of Sabertooth, the strongest guild in this world. I'm partnered with a member of Mermaid Heel, Kagura. I'm so used to partnering with Kuroko and Makoto, but not with someone who is also an opponent of the Guardians."
"Arf!"
Kagami opened his eyes and Nigou was in front of him. "Whoa!" Kagami fell off the bench.
"Your face is really stiff, Kagami." Kuroko said.
"Kuroko, you bastard…" Kagami growled. "Stop putting Nigou in my face!"
"He just wants to help you relax." Kuroko explained, with Nigou barking in agreement.
Kagami sighed and turned his back on Kuroko. "If you're here to say that I can beat them because you beat Sabertooth, don't waste your breath. This is a fight, not a game."
"A fight can be a game, just as a game can be a fight." Kuroko said. "Don't worry about the outcome of the match, just do what you can."
"You know I won't do what I can. I'll do more than that." Kagami smirked.
"Go get them." Kuroko held his fist out.
"Yeah." Kagami fist bumped Kuroko.
Domus Flau – Arena
"Hope you all have refreshed yourselves because now it's time for the Cross Tag Team Battles!" Chapati announced, which the audience replied by raising their drinks in the air. "The first matchup is the Bacchus/Yukino pair of the Quattro Cerberus and Sabertooth teams versus the Kagami/Kagura pair of the Guardians and Mermaid Heel team.
Bacchus, Yukino, Kagami and Kagura walked out of their respective gates and joined in the middle.
"Man, I'm one lucky man." Bacchus smiled. "I'm not only teamed up with a beauty, but the beauty is member of Sabertooth. This match is as good as ours."
"Don't underestimate us." Kagami glared at Bacchus. "Kagura and I will win this fight." He then noticed Kagura was looking at him extensively. "What's wrong?"
"Sorry, it's nothing." Kagura turned away. "Focus…he's not Simon…he's not your brother…"
"Hm?" Kagami was confused.
"Bacchus, I will work with you only for the sake of victory of my guild. Don't hold me back." Yukino spoke.
"Wouldn't dream of it, beautiful." Bacchus smirked. "But, just hear me out. When the fight starts…"
"Ladies and gentlemen, Mato, our referee, is absent today so I will be the referee and commentator of this match." Chapati announced as everyone got in position. "The first match of the Cross Tag Team Battles will now begin! Remember, the match will last only 30 minutes with a break every 10 minutes. Now…let the match begin!" Chapati announced.
Yukino instantly pulled out a silver key. "That's a gate key." Lucy's eyes widened. There was another Celestial Wizard in the games.
"Open, Gate of the Sealer!" A magic circle appeared besides Yukino. "Andromeda!" A woman wearing black with chains appeared on the field. Andromeda unleashed her chains towards Kagura.
Kagura quickly took her sword and prepared to cut the chains. She swung, but the chains remained intact. "What?" Kagura gasped before the chains bound her.
"Kagura!" Kagami was about to go help her.
"Behind you!" Kagura saw both Bacchus and Yukino going to Kagami.
"Hah!" Bacchus struck Kagami hard in the chest, sending him flying back.
"Grr…what's with these chains." Kagura struggled on the chains.
"Andromeda's chains are indestructible. You'll be defeated once we eliminate the Guardian." Yukino declared as she grabbed a golden key.
"Open, Gate of the Heavenly Scales, Libra!" Yukino summoned another spirit.
"Gravity Change!" Libra made Kagami heavier, making him grunt.
"So…heavy…" Kagami grunted.
"Let's get wild!" Bacchus struck Kagami multiple times, making him scream in pain.
"I don't believe it! Bacchus and Yukino have restrained Kagura and are focusing their attacks on Kagami!" Chapati commentated.
"I don't need to be rude, but it's common sense in a tag match to eliminate the weakest of the pair first. In this case, Kagami is the weakest amongst the four. Which sounds right due to his data showing he has little combat experience." Yajima looked at Kagami's data.
Kagami saw Bacchus coming once more. "Damn, I know he's coming, but I can't move because of that stupid spirit…" Bacchus struck Kagami again, sending him crashing into the wall.
"Kagami!" Makoto cried out.
Kagami fell down to the ground and winced. "Man, that really hurts…"
"Poor Kagami, he's really taking a beating." Happy said.
"And it's worse since he's fighting both of them at the same time." Lucy said.
"But he does have that one thing that can turn the match in his favor. The question is when he's gonna use it." Natsu watched.
"I got to get rid of that spirit first." Kagami reached into his pocket. "If I can't get close, then I'll attack from afar, with this." Kagami revealed a Fire Flower.
"Yeah, go Kagami!" Luigi cheered.
"Send them to the pizza oven!" Mario added.
Kagami crushed the Fire Flower and fire appeared on his hands and feet. "Whoa, Kagami transformed?"
"That flower he had is a Fire Flower. It grants fire powers to the user." Yajima explained.
Libra went to use her scales again. "Not again, you won't!" Kagami threw fireballs form his hands and they struck Libra.
Bacchus was behind Kagami ready to attack. "Nice try!" Kagami reached back and grabbed Bacchus's arm and threw him at Andromeda.
Andromeda disappeared, causing the chains on Kagura to disappear as well. "Thanks, Kagami!" Kagura thanked as she closed in on Yukino. She swung her sword, unsheathed and sent Yukino skidding backwards.
"Oh, this is good." Bacchus smiled.
"Take this!" Kagami went to deliver a fire punch, but this time Bacchus moved faster and struck Kagami with his palm, causing him to lose the fire power.
Kagura went to assist Kagami and swung her sword repeatedly. Unfortunately, Bacchus not only caught the sword, but he delivered a sharp palm strike on her stomach, making her fly backwards.
"Wow, can you believe this? Bacchus is holding his own against Kagami and Kagura!" Chapati shouted.
"This is what makes him S-Class." Yajima added.
"His style of fighting is so cool!" Jason cheered.
Bacchus kept Kagami and Kagura on their toes as he would land, block or dodge attacks. A bell went off, signaling 10 minutes have passed. "10 minutes have passed! All fighters will now have a one-minute break!" Chapati announced.
Kagami and Kagura sat on a bench together. Kagami was panting and dripping with sweat and while Kagura was sweating, she wasn't out of breath like Kagami.
"He's exhausted…I can't blame him. He had to deal with those two on his own while I was chained up. But even with my help, Bacchus is on another level than us." Kagura thought.
"Hey…why haven't you used your sword?" Kagami asked, getting Kagura out of her thoughts. "You swing it while it's still in its scabbard. Why is that?"
"This sword…will only be unsheathed when I face my brother's murderer…" Kagura answered.
"Your brother…was murdered?" Kagami's eyes widened.
"We grew up together in a small village. We didn't have our parents, but we had each other and that was enough. But then one day, Dark Wizards came to take children as slaves. My brother was taken but I was spared. I searched for him, learning both magic and the sword to find him. But I was too late and was told that he died in the Tower of Heaven by Jellal Fernandes." Kagura growled.
"I'm sorry…" Kagami apologized. "I didn't mean to open up old wounds."
"Though, looking at you." Kagura expression softened. "I think my brother would look exactly like you."
"Oh, really?" Kagami questioned.
"Though he wouldn't be getting his ass kicked so easily." Kagura added, making Kagami fall on the floor.
"Well excuse me for being a basketball player instead of a fighter!" Kagami shouted.
"Then why don't you fight like you play basketball, then?" Kagura asked.
"Fight like I play basketball…" Kagami muttered. "That's it!" Kagami exclaimed loudly, confusing Kagura.
On the other side, Bacchus took his bottle of his waist. "You know, I think it's time to put an end to this." Bacchus drunk from the bottle.
"This isn't good, if Bacchus is drunk, then he'll be stronger than ever." Erza watched.
"And that Sabertooth Wizard still has gate keys left." Levy said.
"Oh, looks like Bacchus is going to end this fight quickly! He's going for some fighting fuel!" Chapati announced.
"Drunken Style. Eh?" Yajima watched.
"Wow, I wanna try some too! Cool brew!" Jason jumped out of his seat.
The bell rang, signaling the beginning of the next 10 minutes. "You ready?" Kagura asked.
"Yeah. Let's take that drunkard out." Kagami smiled.
"Oh, someone's confident. Guess you think you can beat a wobbly ol' drunk like me, right?" Bacchus got in a fighting stance.
"Open, Gate of the Paired Fish, Pisces!" Yukino summoned two large eels.
"Another spirit…" Kagura prepared her sword.
"Don't worry about it." Kagami took a deep breath, and then opened his eyes as electricity started streaming out of them.
"Oh…" Bacchus looked impressed.
"His eyes…" Yukino was surprised.
"The Zone." Kuroko smiled. "Kagami is still in the fight."
"That's my man…" Makoto uttered.
"Fancy light show. Too bad it won't do you any good!" Bacchus moved in fast and delivered seven palm strikes in an instant.
"How do you like-argh!" Bacchus grunted as his armor shattered and he had bruises on his arms and chest.
"You're not the only one moving fast." Kagami got bruised as well but not as bad as Bacchus.
"I don't believe it; someone is able to match Bacchus while in his drunk state?!" Chapati shouted.
"According to the data, Kagami is in a state known as the zone, a state where an athlete can unleash their full potential." Yajima read Kagami's data.
"The Zone, so cool!" Jason gushed.
"Pisces, get him!" Yukino ordered and the two fishes went to Kagami.
Kagami quickly went into jacket pocket and took out a scroll. He unfurled it and used a simple ninjutsu to summon a basketball. "Here we go." Kagami dribbled the ball and moving fast towards the fishes.
"Try this!" Kagami jumped really high into the air, surprising everyone.
"Whoa, what a jump." Macao said.
"It's like he's flying in the air." Wakaba said.
Kagami roared as he channeled all his power into the ball. "Meteor Jam!" Kagami threw the basketball hard towards the white fish and it got crushed by the power.
"Holy smokes! That power is unbelievable!" Chapati shouted.
"So cool!" Jason cheered.
The black fish went behind Kagami and went to eat him, but Kagura jumped as high as Kagami and struck the black fish down with her still sheathed sword.
"Now that's teamwork!" Yajima smiled.
"Thanks for the assist." Kagami thanked.
"You can thank me by throwing me at the Celestial Wizard." Kagura extended her hand.
"Heh, you got it!" Kagami took Kagura's hand. "Double Meteor Jam!" Kagami threw Kagura hard towards Yukino, giving her no time to use one of her other keys and Kagura struck her down.
"Another combination by the Guardians/Mermaid Heel pair!" Chapati announced.
"They're fully in sync with each other." Yajima smiled.
"This tag battle is cool!" Jason cheered.
"One down, one to go." Kagami grabbed the basketball and dribbled towards Bacchus.
"This is so wild!" Bacchus charged towards Kagami. Bacchus went with his palm attacks while Kagami used his basketball to block while using his other hand to land blows himself.
Bacchus smirked as he was landing more hits on Kagami than he was on him, until he felt strikes behind him and saw Kagura with her sword. "Very wild!" Bacchus moved faster and faster, using what he can against Kagami and Kagura.
The Guardian and Mermaid Heel kept getting beaten and bruised but that only pushed them to attack harder on the Quatro Cerberus S-Rank Mage. Eventually, all three of them fell to their knees, with sweat pouring down their bodies, all of them exhausted. Kagami's Zone was running out and Bacchus was losing his drunk blush.
Everyone watched with anxiousness, especially Jason who was crying out waterfalls as he wanted to know what would happen next.
"Wow…you both…are something else…" Bacchus smirked. "But…I'm still standing…" Bacchus was on his feet.
"Did you forget?" Kagami passed the ball above Bacchus.
"This is a Tag Match." Kagura used all of her strength to swing her sword at the basketball sending it crashing into Bacchus's back and sending him crashing into the arena walls.
Bacchus slid down the wall, but he didn't get up, and Yukino was down as well. "The match is over! The winners of the first Cross Tag Team Match are the Kagami/Kagura pair!" Chapati announced and the crowd went wild.
"Yes!" Kuroko cheered.
"Yeah, that's it, Kagami, way to go!" Makoto shouted.
"That's our girl." Risley smiled.
"Good work, Kagura!" Beth cheered for her guild mate.
"This victory has earned both the Guardians and Mermaid Heel 10 points for their team! Points that were well deserved." Chapati commentated.
"Agreed, both teams earned those points for their team excellent teamwork." Yajima nodded.
"So cool! I got to get them on the cover!" Jason said.
"Thanks for your help." Kagami extended his hand. "I appreciate it."
"You're welcome." Kagura accepted Kagami's hand. "Though, Mermaid Heel will win the games in the end, so watch out."
"Challenge accepted." Kagami smirked. For a second, Kagura could see Simon over Kagami again.
"Excuse me." Kagura turned to walk away.
"Kagura!" Kagami called out, making Kagura turn around and a basketball landed in her hands. "How about we play basketball after the games, as friends." Kagami offered.
"Very well. I accept." Kagura accepted with a light smile.
Domus Flau – Infirmary
"Ah…that stings." Kagami winced as Makoto applied alcohol to Kagami's wounds.
"You did great today, Kagami. Thanks to you, we were able to get more points." Kuroko said.
"Thanks for the praise." Kagami asked. "Ow!"
"Hold still!" Makoto scolded. "This can go faster if you don't complain!"
"Excuse me, but I took a beating from a drunkard and weird spirits!" Kagami argued.
"You two are definitely like an old married couple." Kuroko chuckled.
"Shut up, Kuroko!" Kagami and Makoto yelled as they blushed.
"Let's give them some privacy. The next match should be starting soon." Lucy smiled.
"Hm?" Natsu peaked around Lucy and noticed some Royal Soldiers eyeing Lucy before turning away. "Why are they eying, Lucy?"
"Natsu, you okay?" Lucy asked.
"Yeah, I'm fine. Come on, let's see Mira's match next." Natsu said, though he was starting to get wary of the soldiers.
Domus Flau – Arena
"Now it's time to begin the last match of the day! The Cross Tag Team Match between the Fairy Tail/Lamia Scale pair against the Blue Pegasus/Raven Tail pair. The pairs are Mirajane Strauss and Toby against Jenny Realight and Black Snake!" Chapati announced.
"It's an honor to be your partner, Mirajane." Toby got nervous.
"Likewise." Mira gave a cute smile.
"Just stay out of my way." Black Snake eyed Mirajane.
"You want to say that again?" Jenny glared.
"Go, Mira! Win this!" Lisanna cheered for her sister.
"Yeah, show them how to fight like a real man!" Elfman added.
"Mira's a girl, you know." Wendy sweat dropped.
"30 minutes on the clock, begin the match!" Chapati gave the signal.
But what happened, next shocked everyone. Jenny instantly sent Black Snake flying away out of the arena. "Did she just take out her own partner?" Cana was surprised.
"Even if it was Raven Tail, that was kind of cold." Juvia said.
"Uh…are you gonna take me out?" Toby sweated.
"No, I won't. But why did you do that?" Mira asked.
"I have a different battle in mind…" Jenny smirked.
Back at the Guardians side, Natsu, Lucy and Happy returned to the stands. "Hey, what did we miss?" Natsu asked.
"Disappointment." Asuna looked pissed off.
"Can we go home now? I don't want to watch this." Inuyasha was completely bored.
"What are you talking about?!" Issei looked at the others in shock. "This is the greatest battle of all time!" Irina pouted in jealousy.
"Man, this is neck and neck, I can't tell which one is gonna win." Saito watched with intensity while Tiffania huffed.
Almost all of the men and boys were watching Mirajane and Jenny pose in bikinis and Toby got a front row seat to the show. "10! 10! 10! 10!" Toby acted as the judge holding signs.
"I can't believe they wanted to battle like this." Mario said.
"They act like they've never been to the beach before." Luigi added.
"At least we have boys that aren't into this." Sinon sighed in relief.
"Most of them anyway." Serena looked at Issei and Saito.
"Where are you going?" Leafa saw Naruto sneaking out.
"Um…bathroom?" Naruto lied.
"I know what you're thinking. You're not using the Sexy Jutsu!" Leafa pulled Naruto by the ear.
"Ow, ow, ow! Come on, it would be funny!" Naruto yelped.
"Wow, this battle is really amazing! Who will emerge as the fairest of all? Mirajane or Jenny?" Chapati announced.
"Not so fast!" Everyone was caught off guard by a new voice. "You don't expect us to just let these bubble-headed bimbos hog all the attention?"
"We have strong and beautiful chicas as well!"
Jumping down was Risley, Arana and Beth from Mermaid Heel in swimsuits of their own. "Team Mermaid Heel is the ultimate in girl power!" Risley and Arana declared.
"This is embarrassing…" Beth blushed. This made more people excited.
"Hold it, you guys!" Two more joined the party. "All these girls are missing the most important thing! What good is skanking around in your little swimsuits if you don't have the love to back it up!" Sherry and Sherria appeared in their own swimsuits. "If you want love, then you gotta give love!"
"And we're both bustin' at the seams with it!" Sherria added.
"Now the cute cousins from the Lamia Scale have thrown their bodies into the arena!" Chapati added with more men getting excited.
"Fairy Tail, join in too!" Mavis said.
"Listen to the First Master's wisdom!" Makarov agreed instantly.
"Wait, seriously?" Levy blushed.
"We have to go down there too?" Lisanna blushed.
"Very well, if it's what the First Master wants." Erza said. The Fairy Tail girls all joined in as well.
"And now Fairy Tail has joined the battle. Who else will join? The Guardians?" Chapati asked.
"Hell no!" Lucy shouted.
"You know, it's not fair." Yuya said, getting everyone's attention. "We have women and girls in the audience." Yuya jumped down to the arena and activated his Duel Disk. "They deserve a treat as well." Yuya played a card and he was in his own swim suit, with his muscles glowing in the sun.
All of the girls and women instantly pushed aside the men and boys and cheered for Yuya.
"Oh…" Mirajane blushed.
"My…" Jenny blushed.
"Abs…" Tony blushed before he coughed.
"Whoa, it seems that Yuya of Team Guardians has decided to show off his manliness!" Chapati shouted.
"The women are in for a treat." Yajima said.
"Whoa, this is so cool! I got to take shots!" Jason rushed down to the arena and started taking pictures.
"No way am I losing to Yuya." Natsu jumped down and ripped off his shirt, showing his muscles and making the girls scream.
"Enjoy the show ladies." Naruto ripped his jacket off.
"Daddy, you should join too." Yui said.
"Huh? Me?" Kirito gasped.
"Yui, you can't let other girls see your dad like that." Asuna blushed.
"Then we can join him, Mommy." Yui said.
"B-But that's…" Asuna blushed.
"Please…" Yui gave the puppy eyes.
Kirito and Asuna gave in to their daughter and joined everyone down in swimsuits. "Aw, look at that. A family vacation at the beach. I like it." Yajima praised the family.
"So cool!" Jason took a picture, while Yui was having fun, Kirito and Asuna were embarrassed.
"Let's go, everyone! Beach Party! Field Magic: Emerald Coast!" Yuya used his Duel Disk to change the arena field to a beach.
"Burgers, get your burgers here!" Kagami had recovered and was flipping burgers on the grill.
"I'll take a double meat!" Luigi shouted.
"Make mine a triple!" Mario said.
"Water gun fight!" Sonic fired water at everyone.
"It's on, Sonic!" Tails fired his gun.
"I need no gun, I have fists!" Knuckles punched the ocean making a huge wave cover everyone in water.
"Cowabunga, dude! I always wanted to say that." Sokka said as he surfed the wave.
"I can't believe we're doing this." Lucy blushed as she was now in the party.
"Heads up, Lucy!" Happy shouted as a volleyball headed for Lucy and she quickly got it.
"Nice, Lucy! Now finish it!" Natsu bounced the ball back to her.
"Well, if it's come to this, I won't lose!" Lucy jumped and smashed the ball down between Naruto and Leafa.
All of the Guardians were having fun, and the crowd enjoyed it so much that they forgot about Mirajane, Jenny and the others.
"Cool! Cool! Cool! Cool! An ensemble of handsome men and beautiful women! I'll call it: Summer Beach Barbecue Extravaganza!" Jason took more pictures of the Guardians, completely ignoring everybody else.
"They were so against it but now they're fully into it." Mirajane chuckled.
"Hey, what's wrong? It's the beach, let's have fun." Saito held out his hand.
"By fun do you mean just leer at other girls?" Tiffania glared. "No thanks."
Saito sighed. "Hey, I'm sorry. I shouldn't be doing that. I should be loyal to you. After all, I…"
"You're my familiar. I know you've said that a thousand times." Tiffania interrupted Saito. "I guess that's all we are. We'll never be more than that."
"You sure about that?" Saito took Tiffania's hand. "Because I think we can be more…" Saito went down on one knee, making everyone gasp. "If you'll accept me." Saito took out a ring and held it up to Tiffania.
"Saito…I…I…" Tiffania teared up.
"Come on, say yes!" Toby barked.
"Say yes with love!" Sherria said.
"Say yes! Say yes! Say yes!" Everyone chanted.
"Yes." Tiffania smiled and everyone cheered. Saito put the ring on Tiffania's finger and the two shared a kiss.
"Perfect…cool…" Jason took a picture of Saito and Tiffania kissing.
"I'll plan your wedding!" Mirajane and Jenny shouted, before glaring at each other.
"Uh, I'll be the planner." Jenny argued.
"No, I'll plan the wedding." Mirajane argued before she transformed into her Satan Soul. "And you'll lose here and now!"
"W-Wait, I'm not ready to fi—" Jenny didn't finish as Mirajane completely destroyed her.
"Following a beautiful proposal, the second Cross Tag Battle ends in victory for the Mirajane/Toby team!" Chapati announced.
"I won by doing absolutely nothing…" Toby blinked.
"Welcome to my world." Luigi commented.
"With that out of the way, here are the updated results of Day 2." Chapati showed the results.
Grand Magic Games
1st Guardians – 30 points
1st Lamia Scale – 30 points
3rd Sabertooth – 18 points
3rd Fairy Tail – 18 points
3rd Mermaid Heel – 18 points
6th Blue Pegasus – 16 points
7th Quatro Cerberus – 11 points
8th Raven Tail – 4 points
"Guardians and Lamia Scale are still tied for 1st place, while there is a 3-way tie for 3rd place with Fairy Tail, Sabertooth and Mermaid Heel. Blue Pegasus and Quatro Cerberus may have moved down but they're not out. Raven Tail, however, seems to not be having any luck at all and are stuck in the single digits." Chapati commentated.
"There's still 3 more days left of the Grand Magic Games, and anything can happen." Yajima said.
"Surprise!" Mato suddenly appeared in the middle of the arena, getting everyone's attention.
"Whoa, Mato has suddenly appeared at the arena." Chapati was surprised.
"Participants of the Grand Magic Games, now that Day 2 is officially over…" Mato clapped his hands. "We will now begin the elimination process!"
"Elimination process?!" Makarov's eyes widened.
"I've had a talk with the tournament organizers and we have agreed that the routine of an event and battle gets a little boring, we wanted to add more excitement and high stakes, so we came up with an elimination method for Days 3, 4 and 5!"
"Starting tomorrow, guilds will face each other in five battle rounds against each other. Three solo battles and two team battles. Winning one battle will earn five points but losing will cause a penalty of five points. At the end of the round, the four guilds with the lowest points are eliminated from the games."
"So, there's a maximum of 25 points if we win all battles." Mavis said.
"But there's also a maximum of losing 25 points as well." Makarov got nervous.
"While the solo battles are one on one the team battles can vary. It can be a tag team or a triple team or even a six-on-six full battle." Mato added. "And as an added bonus, any guild who wins at least 3 out of their 5 battles will gain a 10-point bonus overall."
"That raises the maximum to 35 points." Lucy said.
"And now, we will announce which guilds will face who. For the first battle…Team Fairy Tail vs Team Quattro Cerberus."
"We're finally duking it out, Makarov." Goldmine smirked.
"We won't lose, Goldmine." Makarov glared.
"The second battle…Team Mermaid Heel vs Team Blue Pegasus."
"Beautiful women vs handsome guild, very fitting." Yajima commented as Ichiya and Kagura glared at each other.
"The third battle…Team Sabertooth vs Team Lamia Scale."
"A strong opponent, but we can overcome them." Jura said.
"Right." Lyon nodded.
"They'll pay for what they did to us today." Sting growled.
"Yeah, show them what's up, Sting." Lector cheered.
"And the last match, Team Guardians vs Team Raven Tail."
"You were spared father, but…there are two of your children on the other team so I'll enjoy making them suffer." Ivan eyed Natsu and Lucy.
"Blondie…I'm coming…" Flare got a crazed look on Lucy.
"We're facing Raven Tail…" Lucy said.
"Yeah…" Natsu nodded.
"Guilds, you are allowed to pick your members to be in the fight. Thank you everyone and good night." Mato disappeared.
Guardians Hotel
Natsu sighed as he looked at Raven Tail's members. "Man, this is hurting my head." A plate of meat was served next to him.
"Which is why you should eat, Master Dragneel." Alfred advised. "Food is not only fuel for the stomach but for the brain as well."
"Thanks, Alfred." Natsu ate the meat. "Still, I doubt they're gonna play fair against us. They did dirty tricks to Fairy Tail, so it wouldn't surprise me if they did dirty tricks against us. Don't know why they're going to such lengths though. It can't just be out of spite."
"Perhaps they're not after anything at all. I've actually had a conversation like this with Master Bruce in regards to the Joker." Alfred said.
"But the Joker is insane? These guys know what their doing." Natsu said.
"Who's to say the Joker really is insane? Perhaps that's what he wants us to believe." Alfred said. "Let me tell you a story from my time in Burma. My comrades and I were working for the local government. They were trying to buy the loyalty of tribal leaders by bribing them with precious stones."
"But the caravans were being raided in a forest north of Rangoon by a bandit. So, we went looking for the stones. But in six months, we never met anyone who traded with him. Then one day, I saw a child playing with a ruby, the size of a tangerine. The bandit had been throwing them away."
"Throwing away rubies? Then what was the point of stealing them?" Natsu asked.
"Because he thought it was good sport. You see, Master Dragneel. Some men aren't looking for anything logical, like money or power. They can't be bribed, bullied, reasoned or negotiated with. Some men…just want to watch the world burn." Alfred said.
"So, Ravne Tail just wants Fairy Tail to suffer for fun?" Natsu asked.
"It's a possibility that we can't rule out." Alfred said. "But the guild master of Raven Tail is the son of Fairy Tail's guild master. Find the connection and you'll find their intention."
"You think Gramps will tell me?" Natsu was skeptical.
"You'll never know unless you go and ask him yourself." Alfred said. Alfred patted Natsu on the shoulder and left.
Crocus – Honey Bone Inn
"Today was a good day, brats! We managed to get 18 points and now we'll continue this momentum towards victory! Tomorrow, we'll crush Quatro Cerberus and then the next opponent and then the last opponent and we'll finally be Number 1!" Makarov raised his glass.
"Yeah!" All of Fairy Tail cheered and started drinking and partying.
A knock was heard on the door. "I'll get it." Lisanna opened the door. "Oh, Natsu." Everyone stopped partying as they saw Natsu at the door.
"Is Gramps here?" Natsu asked.
"I'm here, what's wrong my boy?" Makarov asked.
"Can you tell me what happened between you and your son?" Natsu asked. Everyone tensed up, especially Laxus.
"Why do you wish to know?" Makarov got serious.
"I want to protect my family." Natsu answered in full seriousness.
"You truly have grown up, Natsu." Makarov took Natsu's hand. "Come, my child. I'll tell you about my greatest failure."
Lucy: Day 3 of the Grand Magic Games could be four teams last day in the games. A single loss could be elimination and everyone is thirsty for victory.
Happy: Our opponent is Raven Tail, lead by Ivan Dreyar, Master Makarov's son.
Natsu: I'll go first against that Alexei guy.
Lucy: Natsu, be careful. That guy isn't normal.
Natsu: I won't lose…because I don't fight for myself anymore.
Next Time: Natsu vs Raven Tail
Natsu: I'll burn you Ravens into a pile of ashes!