Chapter 06: Natsu vs Raven Tail
Crocus – Guardians' Penthouse
"Natsu, I managed to get some spicy ramen! Let's chow down and hype ourselves up for tomorrow!" Happy flew into the living room with a box of ramen.
"Natsu, isn't here." Naruto answered. He was the only one in the room. "He left a while ago. Didn't say where he was going though."
"Aw man, he looked troubled so I thought some spicy food would help him." Happy pouted.
"Well, his loss. I'll prep the hot water." Naruto got up from the couch.
"Hey, Happy. Why so glum?" Lucy came in.
"I brought some food for Natsu but he isn't here." Happy said.
"Don't worry, I'm sure he'll be back soon." Lucy petted Happy.
"If you want to know where he is, just call or message him. You guys have phones, you know." Naruto pointed out.
"Oh yeah. Forgot about that." Lucy took her cellphone out and called Natsu.
"Yo, it's Natsu. Can't talk right now. I'm either burning something or beating someone's ass in a fight. Leave a message and I'll get back to ya when I can. I'm all fired up!" Natsu's voicemail went off.
"Voicemail? Something's fishy here?" Lucy got suspicious.
"Sorry, I brought a fish too." Happy nibbled on his fish.
"That's not what I meant…" Lucy sweat dropped.
"Hey, Lucy. You got a visitor." Yuya walked in with Yukino next to him.
"Yukino?" Lucy was surprised to see her here. "What brings you here?"
Crocus – Canal
Natsu sat at the canal, deep in thought as he recalled what Makarov told him about Ivan's excommunication from Fairy Tail. "Man…things get way too complicated with that family."
Natsu heard footsteps behind him. "Hey, Jellal. It's been a while. Did you get release due to good behavior."
"Unfortunately, I wasn't allowed that luxury." Jellal chuckled. "Ultear and Meredy busted me out. But I'm not here to cause trouble. I just want to atone for my sins."
"How's that going along?" Natsu asked.
"Something is happening here in Crocus. It's always during the Grand Magic Games. What it is, we don't know. But we're positive that it has ties to Zeref." Jellal explained. "I've asked Erza and Fairy Tail to look into it from within the games, while the three of us search around the city."
"Anything come up, yet?" Natsu asked.
"No, nothing out of the ordinary." Jellal said. "What about you? Anything out of the ordinary?"
"Well…not sure if it means anything but some royal guards have been keeping a close watch on Lucy." Natsu answered.
"The royal guards watching a Celestial Wizard…" Jellal said. "More questions than answers."
"Perhaps we should pool data together and compile it with the database that I have gathered on this world." Jellal jumped as Batman was behind him.
"Wh-Who are you?" Jellal asked.
"That's Batman. The World's…sorry, the Multiverse's Greatest Detective. And our guild's master if you want to be technical." Natsu introduced.
"Since Zeref is a member of the Dark Phoenix, we can figure out if they're also a part of this plot." Batman said. "Feel free to come to the penthouse. I'll let Alfred know to expect you."
"I'll tell my comrades to meet up there. Thank you, Batman, sir." Jellal thanked.
"Natsu, you need to rest. The battle with Raven Tail is tomorrow." Batman advised.
"Right…Ivan's Guild." Natsu pictured Ivan with the rest of Fairy Tail with sinister grins.
Crocus – Guardians Penthouse
Lucy, Yuya and Happy sat at the table with Yukino across from them. Naruto joined them with the ramen ready. "Here, you have to be hungry." Naruto gave a cup to Yukino.
"Thank you…" Yukino thanked. "I'm sorry if I'm disturbing your plans for tomorrow, but I came here to give Lucy these." Yukino put two of the Gold Keys on the table. "The Key of the Twin Fish and the Key of the Balance."
"Wait, you're giving these to me?" Lucy was surprised.
"Yes, these keys belong to someone who can use them properly." Yukino pushed them to Lucy.
"Use them properly? Is this because you lost to Kagami and Kagura?" Lucy asked.
"The moment I lost, I was out of the games. Tomorrow, Minerva will take my spot on the team. She's the strongest in Sabertooth." Yukino warned.
"Great, just what we needed, another powerhouse." Naruto groaned.
"We'll probably see her face Lamia Scale." Yuya said.
"Lucy, you have 10 of 12 Zodiac Keys. With these, you'll have all of them and with it, the power to open the door to change the world." Yukino said.
"Open the door to change the world?" Lucy repeated.
"Change the world for the better or…" Naruto didn't want to finish his sentence.
"It's just an old legend, but the number of Celestial Wizards have gone down over time. Lucy and I might be the only ones left. That's why I'm giving these keys to you. You're someone who has evolved with their spirits and gotten stronger with them, you are worthy to have all 12 Zodiac Keys. Please." Yukino pushed the keys forward.
Lucy looked at the keys and reached out towards them. "Thank you…" Lucy touched the keys and to Yukino's surprise, she pushed them back towards her. "But I can't accept. Celestial magic is about the bonds we've formed with our spirits. You can't give up on them, because they haven't given up on you. I know that for sure."
"I've figured that would be your answer from the start." Yukino had a small smile. "But I know one day the 12 keys will be together again. I hope we can meet again." Yukino bowed and left the room.
"Wait, your ramen." Naruto called out but Yukino was gone.
"You sure about this?" Yuya asked.
"I'm sure. The old me would've jumped at the chance to have all 12 keys, but there's something more important that we have to do now. We have to win the games to gain the trust of the kingdom. Plus, I made promise to you too, didn't I, to get you back home? And Celestial Wizards don't break their promise." Lucy winked.
"Heh…I see why Natsu fell for you." Yuya mumbled.
"Huh?" Lucy didn't hear Yuya.
"Nothing. Thank you. Let's get some rest." Yuya said. Yuya, Lucy and Happy all went to bed.
"Huh? No one finished their ramen. What would a good friend do?" Naruto smiled at all the cup ramen out.
Crocus – Central Plaza
Natsu was in deep though when he heard wheels coming towards him. He looked up to see Yukino with her luggage. "Hey, Yukino, right?" Natsu asked.
"Oh, Natsu." Yukino bowed. "It's an honor to meet you."
"Hey, you were great in that battle." Natsu praised.
"But I lost." Yukino said.
"Winning or losing, they're both good experiences. I've had to learn it the hard way though. But I'm glad I did, otherwise I wouldn't have gotten to where I am today." Natsu smiled.
"So, you learn more from losing than you do from winning?" Yukino questioned.
"Yep." Natsu nodded. "What brings out here so late? And with luggage? Doesn't Sabertooth have plenty of rooms at their place?" Yukino suddenly broke down and fell to her knees, worrying Natsu. "Hey, what's wrong?" Natsu knelt down to her.
"I can't take it…" Yukino cried.
"What?" Natsu asked.
"It's just…no one's ever been this kind…or show so much concern for me." Yukino sobbed. "I looked up them once. The members of Sabertooth were my idols. I finally got to join them…but now I'll never be able to step into the guild again. They excommunicated me after I lost." This shocked Natsu. "The master forced me to strip naked and remove my guild mark. He destroyed my self-respect, my confidence…everything. Sabertooth was my home and I'll never see it again!" Yukino bawled.
Natsu quickly pulled Yukino into a hug, surprising her. "I'm sorry you had to go through that…" Yukino whimpered and hugged Natsu back.
"I really want to go to Sabertooth and kick their asses…but I can't because we'll get disqualified…I'll show them what a mistake they made tomorrow." Natsu promised himself.
The Next Day – Guardians Penthouse
Natsu took Yukino back to the penthouse and explained what had happened to her to the others. Everyone shared Natsu's feelings and wanted to defeat Sabertooth in the games, but they had to focus on their opponent for today.
Natsu watched the sleeping Yukino, who cried herself to sleep on his bed as he sat in the chair looking at her. "Natsu…" Lucy walked in. "We're ready…"
"Right…" Natsu stood up and left with Lucy.
Everyone was in the living room, waiting for Natsu to announce who would be fighting Raven Tail today. "Everyone's here." Natsu said and everyone looked at him.
"Alright, I'll explain how things are going to go down against Raven Tail. The organizers gave us a heads up on the battles. As you know, there are 3 solo battles and 2 team battles. The team battles that we have will both be Tag Battles. With that in mind, I've chosen the seven who will compete today." Natsu said.
"For the solo battles…it will be myself, Zuko, and Rei. For the team battles, it will be the team of Mario and Luigi and the team of Kirito and Asuna." Natsu announced.
"Aw man, I wanted to fight." Naruto complained.
"Natsu is captain, respect his decision." Yuya said.
"Nothing can stop so long as we're together." Luigi smile at his brother.
"Ain't that the truth." Mario agreed and the brothers fist bumped.
"Mommy, Daddy, you got this in the bag!" Yui cheered for her parents.
"Of course." Kirito smiled.
"We're definitely win." Asuna pumped herself up.
"Time to burn some Ravens." Rei hyped herself up.
"I'll take mine crispy." Zuko burned his fist.
"Raven Tail won't be playing fair, but that doesn't mean we should stoop to their level. We're gonna win this fight the right way! Guardians on three! 1! 2! 3!"
"Guardians!" Everyone cheered.
Crocus – Domus Flau
"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome back to the Domus Flau for Day 3 of the Grand Magic Games. And starting today, teams will now be eliminated based on points!" Chapati explained.
"Teams will battle each other in 5 rounds. 5 points will be given for victory while 5 will be taken away for defeat. And to the team who wins 3 out of the 5 battles will be given an additional 10 points bonus." Yajima explained the points system.
"Today, our guest judge is a member of the Magic Council, Marshal Lahar." Chapati introduced the guest judge.
"Thank you for having me here." Lahar smiled.
"As Chief Marshal of the Custody Enforcement Unit, your job is catching bad guys, isn't that, right?" Chapati asked.
"Yes. And let me remind any would be cheaters that I'm watching you." Lahar chuckled, making the audience laugh.
"That's right, he's got eyes in the back of his head, and he never sleeps, so no funny stuff!" Chapati warned.
"We got an action-packed day for today. A total of 20 exciting battles will take place and you don't want to miss a single one. Our first five round battles will be Team Fairy Tail vs Team Quatro Cerberus! There will be 3 Solo Battles and 2 Team Battles. The battles format will alternate between the Solo Battles and the Team Battles." Chapati announced.
"Who do you think is likely to win this, Lahar?" Yajima asked.
"They're both impressive guilds. Quatro Cerberus is wild but Fairy Tail has a variety of wizards to choose from." Lahar gave his opinion.
"Alright, Team Fairy Tail and Team Quatro Cerberus, send your members out!" Chapati announced.
Fairy Tail vs Quatro Cerberus
"Fairy Glitter!" Cana used Fairy Glitter to send Semmes flying away into the wall. "We're just getting started!" Cana shouted.
"Satan Soul!"
"Beast Soul!"
"Animal Soul!"
Mirajane, Elfman and Lisanna transformed into the Takeover forms and defeated Yeager, Warcry and Nobarly easily.
"Ice Make Cannon!" Gray created a cannon and blasted Rocker away. "Way to easy."
"Solid Script: Iron!" Levy made the word Iron appear in front of Gajeel.
"Thanks, shrimp." Gajeel at the iron. "Iron Dragon Lance: Demon Logs!" Gajeel defeated two Quatro Cerberus members.
Erza and Bacchus were exchanging blows. "You've gotten stronger, Erza." Bacchus hiccupped.
"That's because I came to win!" Erza glowed. "Heaven's Wheel: Pentagram Sword!" Erza struck Bachhus down. "Fairy Tail will be victorious."
"And with that, Fairy Tail gets a perfect win against Quatro Cerberus! The gain a whopping 35 points!"
Grand Magic Games
1st Fairy Tail – 53 points
2nd Guardians – 30 points
2nd Lamia Scale – 30 points
4th Sabertooth – 18 points
4th Mermaid Heel – 18 points
6th Blue Pegasus – 16 points
7th Raven Tail – 4 points
8th Quatro Cerberus – 0 points
"What makes this great about this victory is that Fairy Tail secured a spot to continue on in the games." Yajima smiled.
"Hell yeah! How do you like that!" Makarov cheered along with the rest of Fairy Tail.
"Sorry, Master." Bacchus apologized.
"You boys did fine. It just wasn't our year." Goldmine said.
"Let's keep the action going. Next up, Mermaid Heel vs Blue Pegasus!" Chapati announced.
Mermaid Heel vs Blue Pegasus
"Here's some chubby power!" Risley knocked away Eve easily.
"Time for some revenge! Let's go!" Arana and another member faced Ren and another member of Blue Pegasus.
"I don't like losing!" Ren defeated Arana and her partner.
"Meow!" Millianna scratched Jenny.
"My face!" Jenny cried.
"I know all your weaknesses. Archive Magic: Blackmail!" Hibiki sent out his opponent's information to everyone in the stadium, making them all too embarrassed to even continue.
"Let's see you how handle this Parfume!" Ichiya used his Parfume magic to bulk up.
"Impressive…" Kagura suddenly appeared behind Ichiya. "But not good enough."
"Man…" Ichiya fell forward.
"With 3 wins and 2 losses, Mermaid Heel wins. They get a total of 15 points." Chapati announced.
"Blue Pegasus did their best, but it just wasn't enough." Yajima said.
Grand Magic Games
1st Fairy Tail – 53 points
2nd Mermaid Heel – 33 points
3rd Guardians – 30 points
3rd Lamia Scale – 30 points
5th Sabertooth – 18 points
6th Blue Pegasus – 11 points
7th Raven Tail – 4 points
8th Quatro Cerberus – 0 points
"Blue Pegasus may seem low on points but Lamia Scale, Sabertooth, and the Guardians have yet to play their matches. If one of them loses more matches, Blue Pegasus may still get to be in Day 4." Lahar observed.
"You all did the best you could. Whatever happens, I'm proud of you all." Guild Master Bob said to his guild.
"Mermaid Heel has also secured a spot in Day 4. This is just too exciting." Chapati said and the audience agreed. "Let's see how this next match will go. Sabertooth vs Lamia Scale!"
Sabertooth vs Lamia Scale
"Gragh!" Orga was hit by Jura's Rock Golem.
"You may be the strongest guild, but you're still far from my level." Jura smirked.
"Memory Make: Karma of the Burning Land!" Rufus created a massive blaze.
"Arf!" Toby cried as he was burned along with his two partners.
"See, I could handle it without any assistance." Rufus ended the fight without aid form his partners.
Yuka panted. "Damn it…he's tough…"
"You can't block a shadow." Rouge became one with the shadows. "Shadow Dragon Slash!" Rogue struck Yuka, knocking him out.
"Sky God Bellow!" Sherria used her God Slaying Magic.
"She's a God Slayer…" Wendy was amazed.
"Weak." Minerva, the returning member simply mocked and raised her hand. "Territory Explosion!" Minerva created explosions that sent Sherria flying along with four other members.
"Whoa…"
"I'm so glad I'm on this team."
"Don't get on Milady's bad side."
"As it should be…" Minerva smiled.
"With 3 wins, Sabertooth has earned the bonus points with one round to spare." Chapati announced as Lyon and Sting entered the ring.
"Hey, why don't you surrender. Your guild has already lost." Sting mocked.
"We may have lost the majority, but I will not surrender. Doing that would betray the hard work my team put in." Lyon took his stance.
"Ice Make Dragon!" Lyon created a dragon of ice.
"A dragon, huh. Wrong choice." Sting smirked.
"It's not just a dragon! Tiger! Snake! Pegasus!" Lyon unleashed multiple animals all at once.
"Lyon, that's too much! Your mind can't handle it!" Gray shouted.
"Even if shatters my mind, I will win for the team!" Lyon roared and created more animals and sent them at Sting.
"Whoa, I might actually have to try." Sting said as he fought the animals. "White Dragon Roar!" Sting let out his roar.
"Ice Make Gopher!" A gopher popped out below ground after Sting.
"White Dragon Iron Fist!" Sting punched the Gopher.
"Hah!" Lyon roared as more animals appeared.
"Okay, I'm bored. Dragon Slayer Secret Art: Holy Nova!" Sting unleashed a powerful attack that disintegrated the ice and struck Lyon.
"Lyon!" Gray shouted.
"I'm sorry…everyone…" Lyon passed out on the ground.
"Lyon is down, Sabertooth gains 25 points." Chapati announced.
Grand Magic Games
1st Fairy Tail – 53 points
2nd Sabertooth – 43 points
3rd Mermaid Heel – 33 points
4th Guardians – 30 points
5th Lamia Scale – 15 points
6th Blue Pegasus – 11 points
7th Raven Tail – 4 points
8th Quatro Cerberus – 0 points
"Now it comes down to the Guardians vs Raven Tail Match. For Raven Tail to get into Day 4, they have to win all their matches." Chapati announced.
"But if the Guardians lose 3 of their matches, they'll be tied with Lamia Scale." Yajima observed. "What will happen after that?"
"In that event, a solo battle between the Guardians and Lamia Scale will determine who will move on to the next day." Lahar explained.
"I think we've done enough talking, let's get on to the battle! We'll start with the first Solo Battle. Both teams have submitted their lineup." Chapati looked at the paper. "Oh wow, we got an exciting battle to start off. From Raven Tail, the mysterious man in the metal mask, Alexei. Facing him from the Guardians is their own captain, Natsu Dragneel."
The pictures of Natsu and Alexei appeared on the screens. "Natsu is in the first fight." Erza said.
"Guess he got tired of waiting." Gray commented.
"Finally, I wanted to see Salamander in action again." Gajeel grinned.
"You can beat him, Natsu!" Wendy cheered for Natsu.
On the Guardians side, Natsu fixed his scarf on his neck. "Natsu…" Lucy and Happy approached him. "Be careful, those guys don't play fair." Lucy warned.
"Doesn't mean I should fight like them. Don't worry, I won't lose." Natsu smiled.
"Yeah, you'll win, go get him Natsu." Happy cheered. He was awarded with a pat on the head.
"See ya." Natsu patted Lucy's shoulder and headed down to the arena.
"Ho, Natsu seems popular with the other guilds." Yuya saw that all of the other guilds were watching with anticipation.
"I wonder how he's grown since the Nirvana incident." Jura said.
"It should be interesting." Lyon recovered.
"Show me how magnificent your parfume is, Natsu." Ichiya added.
"The Fire Dragon Slayer who defeated Jellal." Kagura muttered.
"This is gonna be wild." Bacchus hiccupped.
"Let's see how strong you are, Natsu." Sting watched.
"Hmph." Rogue acted like he didn't care less but he was interested.
Natsu and Alexei entered the arena and approached the center.
"Lahar, did you bring any of your men here with you?" Yajima whispered.
"Yes, a few according to regulations." Lahar answered.
"I want you to keep a close eye on Raven Tail. If you see anything suspicious, I'll have them stop the match." Yajima opened his eye.
"Right." Lahar nodded.
"Does Natsu look different to you?" Lisanna looked at Natsu.
"He seems more manly." Elfman admitted.
"Watch every detail of this match, my children." Makarov advised.
"This is gonna be fun." Mavis giggled.
Natsu and Alexei looked at each other for a while before Alexei extended his hand out and a sword appeared. He then swung it at Natsu.
"Watch out!" Mato cried out, not expecting this. The sword stopped just at Natsu's neck. This display made everyone nervous.
"You're nothing but a mere stepping stone in our plan. But I'll be nice and make your death as painless as possible." Alexei threatened.
Natsu moved the sword away. "That's kind of you. I'll return the gesture by turning you into a pile of ashes."
Both Natsu and Alexei put distance between them. "Okay, for these rounds, there is no time limit, the battle is over when one side is unable to keep going. However, every 15 minutes there will be a break in between replenish some of your strength." Mato explained the rules.
"Shall I give you some advice?" Alexie crouched down.
"No thanks." Natsu cracked his knuckles and took his battle stance.
"Let the Solo Battle…begin!" Mato gave the signal and the gong rang.
Alexei charged towards Natsu first at blinding speed. Fortunately, Natsu was quick to block the first strike. Natsu ignited his fist and went for a punch but Alexei jumped away at the last minute.
Alexei put his hands together and let out a stream of darkness. Natsu breathed in and unleashed his roar and the magic attacks clashed resulting in a stalemate. The two then went into close combat again, with neither side breaking down.
"Whoa, such intensity…" Chapati was struggling to find his voice.
"The first battle is very important as it sets not only the pace of the future battles but also boosts or lowers morale of both teams." Yajima spoke.
"That's why they're fighting so hard as if it was the final fight." Lahar agreed.
Natsu pushed Alexei away form him and jumped in the air and gathered flames creating a huge orb in his hands. "Fire Dragon Brilliant Flame!' Natsu threw the flame down on Alexei.
"He got him!" Happy cheered.
However, darkness cut through the flames towards Natsu. "No way, he actually cut through Natsu's flames!" Gray couldn't believe it.
"No, wait…" Erza saw Natsu use flames from his feet to not only dodge the darkness but close the gap towards Alexei. "Natsu, baited him to attack."
"Fire Dragon Talon!" Natsu delivered a powerful kick down on Alexei's head. But before Natsu's foot made contact, his fire disappeared, resulting in just a regular kick.
"My fire disappeared…" Natsu thought. He was then gut punched by Alexei, making him skid backwards.
"Fire Dragon Roar!" Natsu unleashed his roar, but the flames disappeared before it could reach Alexei. "Again…"
"Why did he stop his attack?" Serena was confused.
"Natsu, you don't stop in the middle, you follow through!" Satoshi scolded.
"Pikachu!" Pikachu joined in the scolding.
Alexei closed the distance and went for a kick but Natsu ducked. "Fire Dragon Iron Fist!" Natsu went for a fire punch but the flame disappeared again and the punch was normal.
"I'm confused, shouldn't he have fire to connect his attacks?" Chapati questioned.
"Maybe it's a trick…" Yajima guessed but was skeptical.
"Anything?" Lahar spoke to his comms.
"Nothing out of the ordinary, sir." A member of the council watched Raven Tail.
"Hey, does Natsu sweat easily?" Laxus looked at Natsu. All of Fairy Tail looked at Natsu, who was dripping with sweat and getting exhausted.
"He's sweating an unusual amount. But how, he landed his attacks and has barely taken any damage." Erza observed.
"It's only been 5 minutes in the match, too. He can't be this tired now." Juvia added.
"What's going on with him?" Sinon asked.
"This is unusual. He has more stamina than Naruto." Leafa watched.
Alexei sent out a dark wave towards, Natsu. Natsu saw it coming as was going to move, but he felt something hold him in place and the attack struck him.
"What the hell? He had time to dodge!" Inuyasha growled.
"That's not like, Natsu to take an attack." Kagome got concerned.
Alexei closed the gap and went for a punch. Natsu dodge it, but he felt a strong force hit him on the cheek and was blown to the side.
"He didn't even touch you! What are you doing?!" Kirito yelled as if he were playing one of his videogames.
"Kirito, calm down." Asuna tried to quell Kirito's Game Rager attitude.
"Fire Dragon Wing Attack!" Natsu did his wing attack, but the flames disappeared once more and Natsu missed. This gave Alexei and opening deliver an uppercut on Natsu.
"He stopped his attack again in the middle." Wendy pointed out.
"What the hell are you doing, Salamander!" Gajeel growled.
The gong rang, signaling 15 minutes had passed. Alexei and Natsu went to their respective rest benches. Alexei just sat on the bench with his arms crossed, while Natsu dried himself with a towel and drank water, with Bruce and Alfred beside him.
"It's very rare to see you struggle, Master Dragneel." Alfred said.
"Raven Tail was made to defeat Fairy Tail. And I am a former Fairy Tail wizard." Natsu smiled.
"You have more options than magic. Don't neglect your experience." Bruce advised.
"Yes sir." Natsu stood up. The gong rang and both Natsu and Alexei returned to the field.
"Are you ready for more humiliation?" Alexei asked.
Yuya reached into his pockets and pulled out two chakra knuckle blades. "That's my line." Natsu said. "Asuma…guide me…" Fire Chakra went into the blades.
"Useless…" Alexei instantly appeared in front of Natsu and swung his arm. Natsu dodged and went to strike. "Your attack won't do much. It'll be erased just like—" Alexei was then sent flying as the fire in the chakra blades got stronger.
"The attack connected and what a blow!" Chapati shouted.
"That's more like it." Gajeel smirked.
Alexei stumbled to get up but Natsu continued his barrage of attacks. "What's going on? Why isn't his magic disappearing?" Alexei was confused.
Natsu did a front flip and delivered a downward kick on Alexei's head, making him crash into the ground and making his mask crack. "This brat…" Alexei made a magic circle and Flare, Nalpudding, Black Snake and Obra appeared and they restrained Natsu.
"What the?" Gray exclaimed.
"They're not supposed to be in the match!" Erza said.
"Hah!" Alexei unleashed a dark blast attack point blank range and sending Natsu skidding back. The rest of the Raven Tail team grouped around Alexei.
"What is going on? All of Raven Tail is down their helping Alexei!" Chapati announced.
"This is supposed to be a solo battle, not a team battle." Yajima added.
"That's a violation of the rules." Lahar prepared.
"Because of outside interference, Team Raven Tail is—" Mato was going to disqualify Raven Tail.
"Silence, fruit!" Alexei launched an attack on Mato, making him panic and creating an explosion, which shocked the audience. Mato was then removed from the explosion as Natsu saved him.
"You alright?" Natsu asked.
"Thank you, kind sir." Mato thanked.
"You should have taken my advice. I do whatever it takes to win." Alexei removed his mask to reveal that he was Ivan.
"Ivan was fighting the whole time!" Makarov growled.
"Deadbeat…" Laxus spat.
"In that case, let me give you, my advice." Natsu put Mato down. "Power and victory…is overrated." Those words surprised Ivan as well as Fairy Tail.
"Did…did he really just say that?" Gray was confused.
"I was not expecting Natsu to say that." Erza admitted.
"Tch…I can't believe I thought you would know where the Lumen Histoire is. A Fairy Tail wizard would never say that." Ivan grumbled. "You just wasted my time."
"Guess words aren't enough to convince you what I mean." Natsu put away the chakra blades and took a deep breath. Fiery aura then encompassed him, but the fire wasn't just it's regular red, yellow and orange. There was blue, purple, green a fire that was made out of the colors of the rainbow.
"Hey, isn't that…" Happy recognized that aura.
"That's the same fire he had when he fought Pain." Lucy remembered seeing Natsu in this form actually destroy three Pains at once, but at the cost of him dying.
"What a beautiful fire. Igneel, your son has surpassed all expectations." Issei's Boosted Gear appeared and Ddraig spoke.
"Ddraig, you know this?" Issei asked.
"We call it Pride of the Dragon. It's a state in which a Dragon or Dragon Slayer can enter. But not every Dragon Slayer can enter it, just those who have studied under one are allowed to access Pride of the Dragon. Not much is known but it is stronger than the Dragon Force." Ddraig's explanation was heard throughout the arena and it got Gajeel's, Wendy's, Sting's and Rogue's attention.
"Ironically, despite immense power, the common condition to enter Pride of the Dragon is to accept defeat." Ddraig revealed.
"Accept defeat?" Lucy asked.
"No offense to you humans, but you're all thirsty for victory and enjoy the feeling of it. And you fear defeat as you feel you will lose everything. We dragons, while we have the same feelings, have times where we are willing to accept defeat but are proud of all the effort that was put into a battle. Right now, Natsu is willing to accept that he might not be able to defeat Ivan or the rest of Raven Tail, but he will still try to defeat them nonetheless. For his trigger to enter Pride of the Dragon is not to fight for himself, or seek glory for himself. His trigger is to protect his family." Ddraig revealed.
"It doesn't matter what power you have. Raven Tail was made to defeat Fairy Tail, including you!" Ivan unleashed his wave of dolls.
Natsu simply raised his hand and the dolls were turned into fire and absorbed by Natsu. Natsu then directed the fire to his other arm and release and powerful blast punch that sent Ivan flying into the wall.
"Master!" Flare called out.
"Obra, drain his magic! Show him the true power of Raven Tail!" Ivan ordered. Obra prepared to use his magic.
Only for Natsu to slam his face into the ground. "That's for hurting my little sister, Wendy!"
"Red Hair Scorch!" Flare turned her hair into flames and launched them at Natsu who simply jumped out of the way.
"Needle Blast!" Nalpudding had needles come out of his entire body.
"Only one person is allowed to beat up Gray and that's me!" Natsu shattered all of Nalpudding's needles with multiple fist strikes.
Flare's hair then trapped, Natsu. "I got you now, Pinkie!"
"Your flames are a joke. These are flames!" Natsu let out his roar which was at least 10 times more powerful than before and Flare screamed in pain.
"Sand Fake!" Black Snake appeared behind Natsu.
Natsu simply flicked Black Snake in the forehead, but the force was so strong that Black Snake crashed right through the stadium walls.
"How? My elite squad's been taken out?" Ivan sweated, Natsu glared back at him. "Get away!" Ivan released his paper dolls again.
"Pride of Dragon's Secret Art! Flame Lotus: Rainbow Flame Blade!" Natsu circled his arms and the rainbow fire engulfed Ivan, making him scream in agony as he was sent flying into the sky. The flames eventually disappeared and Ivan fell to the ground, unable to get up along with the rest of Raven Tail.
Everyone was stunned, the audience, the judges, the other guilds. Mato composed himself and raised his right hand. "Due to the illegal actions and violating the rules of the Grand Magic Games, Team Raven Tail is disqualified and the winners of this round is Natsu Dragneel and Team Guardians!"
"What a match! Natsu Dragneel took on all of Raven Tail's strongest members, including their master, and came out victorious! This is the strength of the Captain of Team Guardians, Natsu Dragneel!" Chapati shouted in his mic and the audience cheered for Natsu.
"Natsu! Natsu! Natsu! Natsu! Natsu!"
"Natsu!" Happy flew to his partner and tackled him.
"Hey, buddy." Natsu patted Happy.
"That was awesome, Natsu!" Lucy jumped towards Natsu and gave him a hug.
"Wh-Whoa…" Natsu almost lost his footing but steadied himself.
"You bastard!" Naruto gave Natsu a noogie. "Don't scare me like that!"
"Well done, Natsu." Yuya praised.
"Thanks, everyone…" Natsu said.
"So…I have some bad news…" Mato got their attention. "See, since you only won one match and Team Raven Tail is disqualified, I can only give you 5 points since you didn't meet the 3-win requirement and we can't move on to the other matches."
"That's fine." Natsu smiled. "I'm just glad you're okay."
"I am forever in your debt." Mato smiled.
"Let's go, Raven Tail." Royal Guards came and started escorting Raven Tail out of the arena.
"Hold it, Natsu." Ivan called out to Natsu.
"I may have lost, but you should know that Fairy Tail has a dark secret. The guild is not what you believe it to be." Ivan then laughed as he was dragged away.
"Ladies and gentlemen, the final standings for today!" Mato showed the Grand Magic Games standing.
Grand Magic Games
1st Fairy Tail – 53 points
2nd Sabertooth – 43 points
3rd Guardians – 35 points
4th Mermaid Heel – 33 points
5th Lamia Scale – 15 points
6th Blue Pegasus – 11 points
7th Quatro Cerberus – 0 points
Raven Tail – Disqualified
"With these standings, the top 4 teams are Team Fairy Tail, Team Sabertooth, Team Mermaid Heel and Team Guardians!" Chapati announced.
"Lamia Scale, Blue Pegasus and Quatro Cerberus did their best, but their run has come to an end." Yajima stated.
"Be proud of your accomplishments." Lahar smiled.
"Aw, it's too bad." Sheria was upset that their guild was out of the games.
"We did our best, that's all that mattered." Jura said.
"We lost to the great men and women today." Ichiya said.
"Well, since we're out of the games, we can get wild!" Bacchus had a drink ready.
"And now, we'll announce the matchups of Day 4! Out of the 4 guilds, only 2 will move on to the last day!" Chapati announced. "The organizers have given us the matchups. It will be…Sabertooth vs Mermaid Heel and Fairy Tail vs Guardians!"
"I'm excited to see these matches, especially the Fairy Tail and Guardians one." Yajima smiled.
"Me too." Lahar agreed.
"We're facing the Guardians." Makarov said solemnly.
"We're facing Natsu and Lucy." Erza added.
Natsu, Lucy and Happy looked up at the Fairy Tail guild, particularly the members from Tenrou Island. No words were needed to be said as they all nodded in agreement. They would fight their hardest, no matter what.
Happy: You were awesome against Raven Tail, Natsu.
Natsu: But these next fights aren't gonna be easy.
Lucy: We're facing Fairy Tail, our old guild.
Natsu: I have no doubt they'll send their strongest against us. And everyone on the Guardians is anxious to know if they'll be fighting too.
Lucy: Who will you pick?
Natsu: I…
Happy: Next Time: The Evening Before the Battle.
Natsu: I'm counting you, everyone.