Lucy vs. Natsu

Lucy was dragged out by Natsu by the arm, her heels leaving two crooked tracks on the ground.

Natsu grinned, showing off his big white teeth.

"Come on, come on, let's have a fight!"

As he spoke, he tightened his grip, and Lucy couldn't break free at all.

Lucy resisted with all her might, shaking her head like a rattle-drum.

"No! Why do we have to fight? If we have to fight, I want to fight Levy-chan!"

Levy, who was standing nearby watching the commotion, immediately put her hands on her hips and puffed out her cheeks like a wronged pufferfish when she heard this.

"What do you mean? Do you think I'm easy to bully? Lu-chan, you've hurt my feelings so much."

As she spoke, she pointed to her own nose, giving herself a hurt look, as if to say, "How dare you look at me like that?"

"No, no, it's just that they were too rough. Levy-chan is so much better."

Lucy was so anxious that she waved her hands wildly, and beads of sweat appeared on her forehead.

She knew all too well that when fighting Natsu, once that guy got carried away, he wouldn't remember anything about holding back.

Levy covered her ears, turned her head away, and adopted a "I'm not listening, I'm not listening" stance.

"I won't listen, unless Lu-chan lets me read the novel."

"Levy-chan, why are you taking advantage of my misfortune?!"

While the two were exchanging words Leila each other, Natsu had already dragged Lucy out of the guild gate and headed straight for the bumpy training ground outside.

Natsu let go of her hand, hopped to the other side of the training field, stomped her right foot on the ground, clenched her right fist and swung it to her side. A ball of orange-red flame shot up from her fist, and the heat wave distorted the surrounding air.

"It's on fire!"

He grinned, his eyes reflecting the firelight, his whole being like a firecracker that had been set ablaze.

"Don't set it on fire! Let's agree first, no one can go too far!"

Lucy stood opposite him, gesturing with her hands in front of her, trying to reason with this hot-blooded idiot.

"Ugh, this is so troublesome."

Natsu scratched the back of his head, his face showing utter disgust, and the corners of his mouth turned down.

"If you don't want the hassle, then don't fight! You bastard!"

Lucy clenched her fists and yelled at him, her voice so loud it shook the guild windows.

What's wrong with this person? Why do they insist on hitting someone even though it's too much trouble? Is their brain just one-dimensional?

Natsu's smug "Oh, so many rules!" expression infuriated Lucy.

She took a deep breath and mentally noted Natsu's name.

The guild members all poured out in a rush.

A crowd quickly gathered around the training field. Some people used wooden crates as stools, some sat cross-legged on the ground, and one guy pulled out a bag of sunflower seeds from somewhere and started cracking them open with gusto.

Cana leaned out from the crowd, waving her money bag at Lucy.

"Go for it, Lucy! We believe in you!"

After she shouted, she turned around and shouted again to the side, her voice so loud that she seemed afraid Lucy wouldn't hear her.

"Riyao, I'm betting on Natsu to win!"

Lucy heard it clearly; the veins on her forehead throbbed twice, and her fingers clenched so tightly that her knuckles turned white.

"Could you please speak more quietly so I can hear you?"

She roared angrily towards the audience, her voice filled with such intense resentment that it almost seemed tangible.

Cana chuckled, completely oblivious to the fact that she thought she had done something wrong.

Gildarts, who had been watching the commotion with his arms crossed, saw his daughter bet on Natsu and immediately started paying without saying a word.

"Lucy, I support you!"

He raised his thick arm and waved it, just like his daughter.

Lucy looked at the father and daughter, and her lips twitched.

Levy conjured two colorful pom-poms out of nowhere, hopped and skipped to the sidelines, and waved them from side to side.

"Lu-chan, Rukie!"

Her shouts were sweet and loud, making the colorful balls rustle and attracting several young mages nearby to whistle along.

Old man Makarov stood in front of Riyao, only reaching Riyao's thigh.

He stroked his chin, his eyes darting back and forth between Natsu and Lucy, muttering to himself.

Riyao raised his eyelids and looked down at the old man pacing back and forth in front of him.

"Grandpa, what are you hesitating about? Should we suppress it or not? Lucy is about to give Natsu a good beating."

His tone was languid, but the wicked smile at the corner of his mouth betrayed his true nature of enjoying a good show.

Makarov stopped stroking his chin, and his eyes darted around.

"It's not that Lucy has improved; she might actually be able to beat Natsu. But then again..."

Before he could finish speaking, Lucy was already trembling with anger.

As she listened to the conversation between the two people on either side of the training field, veins bulged on her forehead and her fingers clenched so tightly they cracked.

Her current thought is very simple: she wants to rush over and punch Riyao and Makarov once each, one punch each, fairly and impartially, without any favoritism.

However, Natsu didn't give her that chance.

"I'm here, Lucy!"

Natsu charged forward with a roar, his legs kicking incredibly fast, kicking up a small cloud of dust.

He charged straight at us like a cannonball, without any tactics or feints, just pure charging.

Lucy was startled and instinctively dodged to the side. Natsu's fist grazed her shoulder, and the wind from it blew the stray hairs around her ear.

She frantically pulled the Celestial Spirit Keys from her pocket, her fingers quickly running over the keychain, the tactile sensation telling her which key belonged to which zodiac sign.

"Open the door! Taurus! Taurus!"

A flash of golden light followed by a muffled moo.

The towering Taurus appeared in the center of the training field, his muscular physique resembling top-quality beef. He gripped a giant axe larger than Lucy herself, and his footsteps created two more cracks in the ground.

Moo!

Taurus raised his axe and roared, displaying considerable force.

When Riyao saw this, his eyes lit up instantly. He jumped up from the wooden crate, cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone, and spoke so loudly that the entire training ground could hear him clearly.

"Okay, everyone. Lucy has now summoned Taurus of the Twelve Gates of the Zodiac, the strongest loser in the Celestial Spirit World. He has never won a match since his debut. It's no exaggeration to say that he'll be sent back to the Celestial Spirit World within a minute of entering the arena."

After he shouted that, the crowd on the sidelines burst into laughter.

Several people who were drinking water almost choked, Macao laughed so hard that he dropped his pipe, and Wakaba slapped his thigh, almost laughing to tears.

Lucy's lips twitched, but she pretended not to hear and continued what she was doing.

She took a deep breath, and the magic within her body began to flow, causing a faint light to emanate from the surface of the clothes on her arms.

This is Nerfed Star Dress Riyao cobbled together for her. Although the name sounds shabby, the effect is undeniable.

The Riyao's voice rang out again from the sidelines, his tone carrying an exaggerated "I've discovered something incredible!"

"Lucy showcased Nerfed Star Dress; it appeared unchanged at first glance, but upon closer inspection, the arms were indeed identical."

An eerie silence fell over the sidelines.

Everyone stared at Riyao in stunned silence.

That was a good explanation; don't bother explaining it again next time.

Mirajane lay on Riyao's back, laughing so hard she couldn't straighten up, her long silver hair sliding down Riyao's shoulders, which jiggled as she did so.

She covered her mouth with one hand and gripped Riyao's shoulder with the other, trying to stop him from talking but laughing so hard she couldn't speak.

Riyao felt the tremor in his back, his lips curled up even wider, he cleared his throat and continued his commentary, completely ignoring the audience's plight.

On the field, Lucy ignored the unreliable commentator.

She stepped forward with her right foot, lowered her center of gravity, and her right fist was already full of power.

Natsu's fist, wreathed in flames, also came hurtling towards him.

Their fists collided in mid-air with a muffled thud, and a shockwave erupted from the point of impact, sending pebbles tumbling outwards.

The ground beneath Lucy's feet sank half an inch, but her arm didn't move an inch.

Natsu's eyes widened slightly; he hadn't expected Lucy to be strong enough to withstand his strength head-on.

"My goodness, Lucy's strength is actually comparable to Natsu's! We've witnessed history, family!"

Riyao's commentary rang out at the right time, this time unusually serious, with genuine surprise in his tone.

"Taurus, smash him!"

Lucy shouted through gritted teeth.

Taurus raised his giant axe, which swung with a whoosh, creating a gust of wind, and cleaved down towards Natsu's head.

The sunlight reflected off the axe blade, making it dazzlingly bright.

Natsu's pupils contracted, and he pushed off the shattered ground with his toes, flipping his body to the side. The axe blade grazed his clothes and cleaved into the ground, sending shards of stone flying.

Using the momentum from his roll, he twisted his waist and delivered a side kick to Lucy's abdomen.

Lucy crossed her arms in front of her and took the kick head-on.

With a bang, her arm went numb from the impact, but she managed to steady herself and wasn't kicked away.

Natsu used the momentum to perform a backflip, landing steadily a few meters away.

"If nothing unexpected happens, Natsu is creating distance to unleash a roar attack. I wonder how Lucy will react?"

As soon as Riyao finished speaking, Natsu took a deep breath, his chest bulging like a toad's, and large balls of flames billowing from his mouth.

Lucy moved with lightning speed, instantly recalling Taurus while simultaneously pulling another key from her keychain, the scorpion pattern on the handle flashing between her fingertips.

"Scorpio, Scorpio! Open the door!"

A flash of golden light, and a burst of dry, hot air exploded in the arena.

Scorpio appeared in front of Lucy, his signature metal scorpion tail held high, the cannon at the end pointed at Natsu.

"The Fire Dragon's Roar!"

Natsu spewed out a breath, flames surging forth, heat waves rolling in, the air itself distorted and warped from the heat.

Scorpio's Scorpion Tail Cannons fired simultaneously, and with a boom, a sandstorm roared out, the swirling storm of sand colliding head-on with Natsu's flames.

The flames and the sandstorm collided, hissing and crackling incessantly.

Layer upon layer of sand was pressed down, burying the flames completely. In just a few moments, the flames were extinguished, leaving only wisps of smoke drifting in the air.

"Wow, Lucy's move was brilliant! Using Scorpio's sand to extinguish the flames. Lucy's brain seems to be working really well."

Riyao's commentary was tinged with appreciation, and he even clapped twice.

But before the smoke had even cleared, Natsu, using the smoke as cover, darted behind Lucy in a flash.

His feet scraped against the gravel, making a soft rustling sound. Flames rekindled on his fist, their orange glow flickering faintly through the smoke.

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"

Natsu's fist, crackling with flames, slammed straight into Lucy's back, the force of the blow pressing her clothes tightly against her body.

Riyao's commentary immediately rose eight octaves.

"Shocking! A pink-haired violent maniac actually did this to the back of a blonde beauty!"

The spectators on the sidelines collectively covered their faces.

Some people buried their faces in their hands, their shoulders shaking, it was hard to tell whether they were laughing or feeling helpless.

Someone looked up at the sky and sighed.

Some people were whispering, "Can this commentary be normal for once? And this is so far-fetched, stop using random memes!"

Mirajane lay on Riyao's back, laughing so hard she was weak and tears were streaming down her face. She clutched Riyao's clothes with one hand and pounded his shoulder with the other, managing to squeeze out a few broken words after a long while.

"Can't you... can you be serious for once...?"

Riyao turned his head, winked at her, and looked completely innocent, as if to say, "I'm being so serious."

On the training field, Lucy suddenly turned around at the last moment, crossing her arms in front of her.

Natsu's iron fist slammed solidly into her arm, and flames exploded.

Her feet slipped and slid a couple of steps on the ground, the soles of her shoes scraping against the ground with a squeaking sound, and a small pile of gravel accumulated behind her heels.

After landing, Natsu didn't chase after Lucy. He stood there, tilting his head to look at Lucy with an excited smile on his face.

The area around the training field erupted in cheers and whistles.

Cana waved her money bag vigorously, Gildarts cheered her on beside his daughter, Levy's colorful ball rattled, and even Makarov couldn't help but smile.

Riyao cleared his throat and raised the megaphone again.

"Family members, it seems the battle isn't over yet! Our blonde beauty, Celestial Spirit Master Lucy, is about to launch her second offensive. Let's wait and see!"

Lucy finally couldn't take it anymore and turned to yell at him.

Can you please shut up?!

Riyao decisively shut his mouth, but the curve of his lips didn't diminish at all.

Mirajane, standing next to him, was laughing so hard she was hiccuping.

"Hiccup~"