The next day, in a clearing in the East Forest east of the guild.
All the guild members who were not out on jobs had gathered to watch the match.
"Cana, come at me with everything you've got. Let me see how strong you are now," Laxus said seriously to Cana, who stood opposite him. As soon as he finished, the muscles throughout his body tensed, visibly brimming with power.
Hearing this, Cana turned to look at Zorn, who stood beside the guild master. Seeing Zorn nod to her, she turned back and saw that Laxus was ready. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath. When she opened them again, only determination remained in her gaze. Her aura burst forth at that moment, astonishing the guild members around her and the guild master.
"Oh, I like that look in your eyes. Come on." Seeing this, Laxus gave Cana's resolve his initial approval.
"Swish—Shave!" Cana vanished in an instant, leaving only swirling dust behind. A fist shot toward Laxus's face from the right at incredible speed. Bang! A tremendous sound rang out the moment Laxus blocked it with his right palm.
"Your strength and speed have improved a lot, but so far, you still haven't met my standards. Is Zorn really such a poor teacher?" Laxus thought Cana's strength had indeed improved greatly, but she was still nowhere near capable of taking on B-Class jobs. Before he could finish speaking, however, he suddenly crossed his arms on instinct. A tremendous force sent him flying backward. He turned several somersaults, braced one hand against the ground, and skidded some distance before looking up in surprise to see Cana drawing back her right foot, which gleamed pitch-black, coated in Armament Haki.
"Oh, the same ability Zorn used back then. And you're angry?" The color and attack power, though still short of Zorn's level at the time, reminded Laxus of his fight with Zorn. He also felt as though he had touched on something that angered Cana.
Laxus was not the only one surprised. The guild members nearby also marveled at Cana's current strength. Natsu and Gray cheered her on, their faces full of excitement. Erza and Mirajane were also amazed for a moment, but then they exchanged a knowing smile.
"Six Powers: Tekkai!" Without another word, Cana thrust out both hands. A layer of iron-like skin appeared over her fists, followed by a coating of Armament Haki, raising her attack power to another level. Seeing that Cana was ready, Laxus rushed forward, lightning flashing around him. He was no slower than Cana had been, and perhaps even faster, as he threw a punch.
"Ah!" Cana met him with a punch of her own. The instant their fists collided, a powerful current of air swept outward, and the ground instantly caved in beneath them. That punch was not the end. The two jumped apart, then collided again in an instant. After several exchanges, they were moving so fast that the other guild members could barely see them.
The other guild members stared, wide-eyed and dumbstruck... Though they could not see clearly, what they had witnessed so far was enough to prove Cana's strength.
No matter how accurately she judges, she can't possibly predict the direction of my attacks every time. As Laxus attacked, he was puzzled by how Cana managed to intercept most of his punches with such precision before they landed. Only a few struck her when she failed to dodge in time, but those were all blocked by Armament Haki.
After their fists met once more, Cana slid backward some distance, panting, while Laxus did not move at all, making the gap between their strengths clear.
"It's not over. We're not done yet. Show me the true strength of an S-Class Mage, not just Physical Arts. I know you and Zorn will both definitely take the S-Class Exam this year." After steadying her breathing, Cana spoke to Laxus with a resolute gaze. She wanted to know just how far she was from Zorn and that man.
Laxus looked at the resolute expression on Cana's face and asked in a somewhat serious tone, "Oh, are you sure?"
"I'm sure," Cana answered in an even firmer tone.
"All right, as you wish." As soon as Laxus finished speaking, he released all his magic power. The ground immediately cracked under the pressure. Facing that terrifying magic power head-on, Cana saw for the first time just how frightening a serious "S-Class Mage" could be. But she showed no sign of giving up. She summoned all her magic power, gathering and compressing it into a single point on her fist, then wrapped it in Armament Haki.
"Lightning Spear: Fangtian Ji!" Fork-shaped lightning with immense magic power gathered in Laxus's hand.
The spectators... "Hey, hey, hey, isn't this a bit much, guild master?"
Watching from the side, Erza saw Cana like this and was reminded of how she had once made the same request of Zorn. Knowing that Cana also had something weighing on her heart, she murmured, "Cana."
"Guild master, Zorn, aren't you going to stop them?" Mirajane saw that this was no longer just a contest of physical strength, and that both had gathered such powerful magic. Worried, she spoke up at once.
"Don't worry. Laxus knows his limits, and Zorn is here too." Though the guild master was somewhat worried, he could sense that Laxus was still holding back.
"That's right. The Lightning Spear in Laxus's hand looks powerful, but he adjusted it to Cana's current level of magic power. Besides, the guild master and I are here, so it'll be fine," Zorn said in agreement. His Observation Haki could sense that Laxus was indeed holding back.
But Cana's move struck Zorn as very familiar and astonishing. He had mentioned it to Cana in passing during their usual training: there was a powerful female ninja who was extremely skilled in Physical Arts and possessed monstrous strength. Zorn had only described the basics—gathering power at a single point and releasing it in an instant to cause tremendous destruction. Zorn had not expected Cana to reach this point on that alone. Though her move did not measure up, its destructive power should still be considerable.
"Cana..." Watching the figure in the clearing, who was somewhat exhausted but still refused to give up, and seeing her resolute gaze, Zorn felt a trace of a different emotion in his heart and murmured her name.
Once Laxus had finished gathering his power, he glanced at Zorn. Seeing Zorn nod, he threw it in an instant. With a thunderclap, it flashed straight toward Cana's face, tearing through the ground like paper wherever it passed. Cana picked her moment and slammed a fist into the Lightning Spear. They remained locked in a stalemate for a long time until, with a furious roar from Cana, it slammed into the ground. Smoke billowed up instantly, and rumbling booms rang out without end.
When the smoke cleared, the ground had already shattered and collapsed, leaving a huge crater that extended all the way to where Laxus had stood. But Laxus was nowhere to be seen. Zorn stood in front of Cana, having raised a shield to block the shockwave.
Seeing the figure shielding her, Cana could finally hold on no longer and began to fall, but Zorn caught her in time.
"Cana, are you all right? Does anything feel wrong?" Zorn asked anxiously, his face tense with worry.
"I'm fine. I'm just exhausted and a little weak," Cana explained, her face slightly red and her heart pounding.
"Ahem. Your strength passes. Not bad." Laxus coughed to draw their attention to what they were doing.
Only after Laxus's reminder did Zorn realize that Cana was held fully in Zorn's arms. Blushing as well, Zorn slowly helped Cana to her feet before letting go, then stood to the side, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment.
"So this is Haki? I got a very direct sense of it this time. It really is a fine power." The guild master walked over from a distance, marveling at this new power and breaking the romantic atmosphere.
"Haki?" Laxus sounded a little puzzled.
"What do you think, Laxus? Want to learn it? I think Observation Haki would suit you quite well." Zorn suddenly thought of something, assumed a serious expression, and made the suggestion to Laxus.