The One in the Shadows

"Damn it! Fire Dragon's Roar!!!" Watching the building he had destroyed miraculously restore itself under that masked man's magic, Natsu was so furious that smoke billowed from his nostrils. Without mercy, he fired a Fire Dragon's Roar at the detestable masked figure before him!

"Ohohohoho—" Disguised as a sleazy man behind her mask, Ultear let out a string of strange laughter and effortlessly dodged Natsu's roar.

"Waaahhh!!! I don't believe I can't hit you!" Intense Dragon Slayer flames burned in both hands as Natsu clenched his fists fiercely and stomped the ground. His body immediately shot toward Ultear like an arrow loosed from a bow!

"Fire Dragon's Iron Fist!!!"

"Ohohohoho—" With another strange cry, Ultear once again evaded Natsu's iron fist. She swiftly leaped onto a tall building and looked down sideways at the enraged Natsu below, teasing, "Yo, yo, yo, Mr. Dragon Slayer, is that all you can do? What a disappointment, what a disappointment~ Or are you really a Dragon Slayer Mage? Ohohohohoho—"

"Ahhh! You bastard!! I'll make you pay!!!" Natsu was thoroughly enraged by her words! Flames erupted all over his body! "Fire Dragon's Sword Horn!!!"

Suddenly, a violent blaze burst forth from Natsu's body! It wrapped around him and burned fiercely before gathering entirely around his head!

"Boom—" With a thunderous crash, Natsu stomped the ground hard. His entire body exploded forward like a rocket, unleashing unimaginable speed and power! Then, with all his strength, he slammed his head fiercely into Ultear's abdomen, instantly sending her flying backward!!!

"Cough, cough. Looks like I still can't underestimate him!" Ultear stopped herself from retreating, feeling waves of pain from her stomach as she muttered in surprise, "No matter what, this guy is a genuine Dragon Slayer Mage! The power he unleashes when driven by emotion really can't be taken lightly! If I'm not careful, even I might suffer a loss."

The battles elsewhere were continuing as well!

Whether it was the fierce duel between Gray and Leo, the two fellow disciples; the fight between Lucy and Sherry; or Erza's battle against the other two!

"Just a little farther, just a little farther—" Achill raced through the strange island at high speed. He did not watch the other battlefields, and he did not even have the leisure to watch Erza's fight! Instead, he sped straight toward Natsu's location!! Because from there, he sensed a magic power he could never forget! On Natsu's battlefield, a magic power that Achill still could not forget was rippling through the air!

Ever since he had remembered that magic power and branded it into his heart, he had never forgotten it for even a moment! That magic power he would forever remember so vividly!!!

"Just a little more!!!" A terrifyingly cold gleam flashed through Achill's eyes as he growled hoarsely, "That person!!!"

As soon as his words fell, his body accelerated once more! In the blink of an eye, he had already arrived at the battlefield he sought!

"Boom—" A fierce, powerful whistle tore through the air from afar and bore down upon the two combatants! The immense wind pressure instantly swept across the entire area!!

"Heh, it's really been a long time..." His body shifted from extreme speed to stillness in an instant, his robes billowing freely in the wind. Standing in midair, one hand resting on the hilt at his waist and the other lightly pressing down his hood, Achill stared at the masked figure below and spoke indifferently. "You who likes to hide in the shadows..."

"Who are you?" Ultear asked solemnly. From the moment Achill appeared, she had shifted all of her attention away from Natsu and focused it entirely on the man floating in midair! Unlike the joking contempt she had shown Natsu, her expression was now filled with deep gravity! Because from this person, she felt a suffocating pressure!!!

"Hey! Who the hell are you?!! Why are you interrupting my fight?!!!" Natsu shouted as well. Unfortunately, he could not fly. Otherwise, he would have already rushed up and blasted away the guy who had dared interrupt his battle!

"Heh, who am I? Ah, right, there's no way you'd remember me. Because in your eyes, I was probably already dead! But—" Achill gave a self-mocking laugh, ignoring Natsu's question. His expression suddenly turned icy as his eyes fixed on Ultear through his hood. Then he slowly enunciated, "I—will—never—forget—you!!!"

"You who hides in the shadows! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah! Ah!!!"

The moment his words fell, his body vanished from where he stood! When he reappeared, he was directly behind Ultear!!

His body tilted slightly, his left hand bracing the sheath at his waist while his right hand gently rested on the sword's hilt! A cold gleam flashed through his eyes again as Achill shouted in a deep voice, "Die!!!"

As soon as he spoke, accompanied by the clear chime of wind chimes striking together, a dazzling blade of light burst from the sheath! The incomparably sharp, resolute blade descended fiercely with unstoppable, transcendent dominance—

"What?!!" Ultear's pupils contracted sharply. With no time to think, and no time to hide anything further, she immediately threw out her crystal ball!

"Crack—" With a crisp sound, the crystal ball was instantly cleaved in two without any suspense!!!

"Who exactly are you?!!" In a flash, Ultear darted onto high ground. Under the flow of magic power, the crystal ball returned to its original state and floated above her palm. No longer caring about anything else, she anxiously questioned him in her original voice, "I don't think I have any grudge against you, do I?! Why are you targeting me!!!"

"Whoa!!! Your voice suddenly turned into a woman's?! Are you one of those legendary cross-dressers?!!" Natsu cried out in surprise, clearly intensely curious about her voice.

"Damn!" Ultear's heart tightened at his words. She realized the problem as well and silently blamed herself for being too careless, exposing her true voice! But she had no time to worry about that now. The urgent matter was dealing with this mysterious person who had suddenly appeared! For some reason, she even felt a faint sense of familiarity from him! It was as though she had met him before!!!

"Heh, hehehe, hehehehe, hahahahahaha—" As if he had heard an extremely amusing joke, Achill suddenly threw back his head and laughed madly. Endless madness filled his expression, along with boundless fury!!!

"Can't remember? You actually ask me who I am?! Fine, then. Don't worry. Next, I'll slowly—" He lowered his head and turned his gaze back toward Ultear! The madness faded, replaced by a coldness that sank into the marrow and penetrated the soul. He gently sheathed the sword in his hand, then casually flicked his right hand. As ripples spread through space, a Zanpakutō radiating a faint chill appeared in Achill's right hand! Pointing its tip diagonally at Ultear in the distance, Achill spoke with utter frostiness, "Make you remember everything again!!! Dance, Sode no Shirayuki—"

"Sode no Shirayuki!!!"

As he spoke, he slowly turned his arm downward. White ribbons and a gleaming white blade—it was Sode no Shirayuki after its release!!

"That sword—" Her pupils suddenly shrank to pinpoints. A memory from eight years ago, one she had nearly completely forgotten, resurfaced clearly in her mind! The face of someone she had believed dead appeared once more, overlapping with the figure before her! "You're that person from back then!!!"

Eight years ago, at the Tower of Paradise, he was the person whom she and Gerard, who had hidden in the shadows, had schemed together to eliminate! The one who possessed strange Requip Magic—Chen Wuming!!!

"Heh, so you finally remembered me. Then, if I remember correctly, you should know the location of the Tower of Paradise, right?!" Staring coldly at Ultear's drastically changed expression, Achill spoke as if discussing something trivial. "Tell me where it is. That way, I can show you special mercy and—"

"Leave you an intact corpse!"

As soon as his words fell, his body instantly appeared above Ultear's head. Sode no Shirayuki in his hand carried a fierce chill of ice as it slashed down viciously!

"Arc of Time!!!" Although shaken to the core, Ultear did not hesitate to unleash her crystal ball. Under the control of her Time Magic, it instantly split into dozens of spheres. Some blocked Achill's slash, while the rest crashed fiercely toward him head-on!

At the same time, she immediately widened the distance between herself and Achill! After all, her magic excelled at long-range attacks, while that sword-wielding man was obviously more suited for close combat! Opening the distance would not only maximize her own advantage, but also greatly weaken his!

At least, that was what she believed!

"Trying to widen the distance? Heh, very good!!! Then—" Achill smiled strangely and silently invoked Requip! A Zanpakutō with a guardless hilt tied with a red cord appeared in his left hand! Wearing that strange smile, he casually swung the Zanpakutō forward and whispered, "Cry—"

"Benihime!!!"

"Screech—" As the final syllable fell, a sharp, piercing cry burst from Benihime in his left hand! At the same time, an incomparably bewitching blood-red blade of light shot from its edge! It struck first, instantly shattering all of the dozens of crystal balls charging at him in one blow!! Then, without losing any momentum, it surged toward Ultear in the distance!!!

"What?!!" Ultear's expression changed drastically. But having failed to anticipate such a development, it was obviously too late for her to dodge now—

"Boom—" With a thunderous crash, Ultear's body was completely engulfed by the blood-red blade of light, kicking up clouds of dust.