As Zorn watched the enormous wave about to engulf the entire port, light flickered around two of his fingers. He used his magic power to gently calm the wave, leaving only the cruise ship overturned on the beach.
"As expected of one of the Ten Wizard Saints. He calmed that wave with just a twitch of his fingers." Lucy stole a glance at Zorn and saw that he was holding Happy in one arm while shoveling handfuls of peeled chestnuts into his mouth with the other. Even the corners of his eyes were smiling as he ate.
She quickly clenched her fists and struck a determined pose to cheer herself on. "All right, work hard, work hard." Then she continued watching events unfold below.
"What's going on?"
"The ship ended up on shore!"
"Cough, cough. Damn it, what on earth happened?"
Bora pushed himself up from the ground, clutching his head. He was somewhat dazed, unsure what had happened or why a huge wave had suddenly struck.
"You said you were a Fairy Tail Mage!!" Natsu grabbed the mast and sprang up onto it. Looking down from above, he frowned deeply and stared at the disgraceful Mage before him, his eyes full of disgust.
"So what if I did? Boys, get him!"
When Bora's men heard their boss's order, they glared viciously at Natsu. Two of them charged first.
"Then let me get a good look at your face." Natsu's voice was low, and the disgust in his eyes turned to indifference. The man still dared to call himself a Fairy Tail Mage, so he couldn't blame Natsu for showing no mercy. Natsu took off his clothes, leaving only his fighting vest, and assumed a fighting stance.
"Whoosh!"
The two men swung their fists at Natsu at the same time. His expression remained unmoved, and his eyes stayed fixed on the culprit, Bora.
But his body moved, throwing punches in quick succession. The two charging men were sent flying backward in an instant, shooting past Bora and crashing into the ground in clouds of dust.
"I'm Natsu of Fairy Tail, and I've never heard your name. You'd better think carefully. Who are you?!" Natsu showed everyone the Fairy Tail emblem on his right arm. His voice was low, and his eyes grew even more serious as he looked down at Bora.
"That emblem..."
"Looks like it's real, boss Bora." One of the bald underlings had stuffed both hands into his mouth, tears streaming from his eyes as his legs shook uncontrollably.
He looked at his boss, somewhat at a loss.
The other underlings exchanged glances, not knowing what to do either. Fairy Tail was the number one guild in the Fiore Kingdom, and its members were formidable fighters. They had really gotten themselves into trouble this time.
"Bastard, don't call me by name now!" Bora cried out in fear. Realizing that the men around him had lost heart, he turned to Natsu with a somewhat grave expression and thought to himself, Damn it, I need to find a way to escape.
"So it's Red Sky Bora, the guy who was banished from Giant's Nose." On hearing that, Happy immediately realized who the man was.
"Huh? Then Natsu..." Lucy looked with some concern at Natsu, who was now striding menacingly toward Bora.
"Don't worry. Even if there were a hundred or a thousand Boras here, they wouldn't be a match for Natsu." Happy thumped his chest and confidently gave her his word.
"Whoa, Natsu's that strong?!" Lucy looked stunned.
"Happy, you really are Natsu's loyal little buddy! Good, good." Zorn nodded along with Happy's exaggerated description, then reminded them both to keep watching.
"You dare go around swindling people in Fairy Tail's name. I absolutely won't allow that." Natsu approached them step by step, and the inexplicable pressure he gave off rose with each footfall, bearing down on them.
"Damn brat, what are you going to do about it? I don't believe you're all that strong."
Bora knew he needed to strike first. Spreading his hands, he cast the fire magic "Flame Tornado." A purple magic circle unfolded, and a powerful tornado of fire rushed at Natsu.
It instantly surrounded the area where Natsu stood, the towering tornado shooting straight into the sky. The ship gradually turned to ash under the intensely hot purple flames, and the air grew scorching as well.
"Hey, hey, the boss is serious! He used that kind of magic right off the bat." The underlings were startled by their boss's move. Usually he would start with Flame Vortex Magic, so they hadn't expected him to use such powerful magic from the outset.
"Natsu!!" Seeing this, Lucy sprang to her feet and cried out, about to rush down. But Zorn held out a hand and stopped her.
"Tch, I thought he'd be tougher. All talk and no use at all. Boys, let's go."
Bora looked at Natsu, who stood motionless in the flames, and the corners of his mouth rose. His previously grave expression relaxed in an instant. He swept his cloak back, stuck his hands in his pockets, and walked away with a look of disdain.
"Hey, are you really a Fire Mage? Mm, these flames really taste awful."
"What? That's impossible." Everyone who heard the voice stared in disbelief, their mouths hanging wide open as they looked dumbfounded into the flames.
Natsu was taking deep breaths and gulping down great mouthfuls of fire, looking at them with excitement written all over his face.
As Natsu ate mouthful after mouthful, the Flame Tornado shrank and disappeared, all of it going into his stomach.
"Thanks for the meal."
"Wh-what the hell is this guy?"
"My strength's all coming back! Here's something in return, so take it!" Natsu slammed his fists together, and a magic circle unfolded. He placed his hands on either side of his mouth, his cheeks puffing out slightly. "Fire Dragon's Roar!" Flames even more powerful than the Flame Tornado burst from his mouth and rushed at the group in an instant.
"Boom!" Smoke billowed in every direction.
"Too fast! There's no time!" Bora hurriedly cast a spell, using flames to carry himself high into the air. He tossed aside his burning cloak and glared viciously at Natsu for a moment, then quickly intensified the flames, hoping to escape at speed.
His underlings were all lying on the ground by then, their fates unknown.
"Trying to run? Too late." In the smoke, Natsu's eyes glowed red as he watched Bora flee through the air like prey. He pushed off hard with both feet and shot after him, catching up in an instant. Flames gathered around his hands, and he unleashed a punch. "Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!"
"Damn it, he's fast! Wall of Fire!" Bora turned and hurriedly raised a Wall of Fire to block the attack. To his surprise, Natsu took control of it and struck him with a punch, sending him plunging rapidly downward like a deflated balloon.
"Boom!"
"What? First he eats fire, then he attacks with flames. Is that really magic?" Lucy stood motionless in the air, staring blankly at Natsu as he looked down from above.
"A dragon's lungs breathe fire, and a dragon's scales dissolve flames... This is ancient Lost Magic—Dragon Slayer Magic, magic used to fight dragons." Happy explained it to Lucy like a scholar.
"That's right. Of course, fire isn't the only element this kind of magic has. There are other elements too, though you'll have a chance to see them in the future."
"The battle's over now, so let's go down."
Zorn added his explanation from the side. Seeing that the battle below had ended, he dismissed his magic, and the group flashed down to the beach together.
"Damn it, the clothes I just bought are ruined again. Hm? Wait, where are Happy and Lucy?"
On the beach, Natsu was still lamenting his newly bought clothes. Suddenly, he seemed to remember something. He stood still for a moment and turned to look around, but saw no sign of the two. By rights, Happy should have run over to cheer at his side by now.
"Happy, Lucy, where are you?" Natsu shouted toward the town, not noticing that Happy, Zorn, and Lucy had appeared on the beach behind him.
"Not bad, Natsu. Looks like you've been training hard these past two years." A voice full of praise suddenly interrupted Natsu's shouting, making him stop and stand frozen on the spot.
He really had improved. In the original anime, the fight had lasted several rounds.
"Zorn's back, Natsu," Happy confirmed from the side. Unexpectedly, Natsu still didn't turn around after hearing that. Instead, flames even stronger than before appeared on his hand, turning a deeper orange-red. The sand beneath his fist had already crystallized.
"This..." Lucy looked at the somewhat unusual Natsu in confusion.
"Let's have a match, big brother Zorn." Natsu turned his head, excitement all over his face. The smile in his eyes was almost overflowing, and he looked eager to give it a try.
"There's no time, Natsu. The army's already on its way here, so we should leave first." Zorn glanced calmly toward the distant town and spread his hands helplessly, indicating that they had no time.
Then he cast a spell, and a huge magic circle appeared beneath the group's feet. Golden light rose from Natsu and the others, and Zorn used his magic power to suppress the flames on Natsu's hand until they vanished. Lucy in particular cried out in surprise, "Huh? What is this?!"
"Don't be scared, Lucy. This is Zorn's magic."
Happy jumped onto Lucy's shoulder to reassure her.
"Get ready. We're going back to the Fairy Tail guild." With that, Zorn waved one hand, and the figures vanished from the beach.