Natsu Dragneel vs. Jellal Fernandes

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Natsu Dragneel vs. Jellal Fernandes
Arc:	Tower of Heaven arc
Place:	Tower of Heaven
Outcome:	Natsu Dragneel is victorious.
Combatants
Natsu Dragneel
Jellal Fernandes
Powers and Abilities
Natsu Dragneel Fire Dragon Slayer Magic Dragon Force Hand-to-Hand Combat
Jellal Fernandes Heavenly Body Magic Hand-to-Hand Combat
Damage Sustained/Casualties
Natsu Dragneel is moderately injured.
Jellal Fernandes is moderately injured.

Natsu Dragneel vs. Jellal Fernandes is a fight fought between Fairy Tail Mage Natsu Dragneel and Dark Mage Jellal Fernandes.

Prologue

Natsu holding Erza

Jellal pushes Erza Scarlet into a pillar of Lacrima in the Tower of Heaven, which starts to absorb her as a living sacrifice to "Zeref". It is Natsu who comes to save her from becoming "Zeref's" sacrifice. As he pulls her free from the Lacrima, Natsu announces that Erza belongs in Fairy Tail and that he wouldn't hand her over to Jellal.

He asks Erza what she's doing and states that they still have to get back to Magnolia and do some jobs, otherwise they won't be able to pay Lucy's rent. Erza tells Natsu that she can't move and Natsu takes advantage of this and tickles her. Later, Erza tells him to get away from the Tower because she claims Jellal is too powerful and that he can't be beaten. Natsu retorts that he doesn't get Erza at all and he punches her in the gut to knock her unconscious. He then takes over Erza's fight and faces Jellal by himself.

Battle

	Natsu attacks Jellal

Natsu runs toward Jellal with his fists on fire and swings a punch. Jellal dodges Natsu's first punch but is hit with Natsu's follow-up kick, and Natsu manages to land a few consecutive blows by bombarding Jellal with his fists and feet. He casts Fire Dragon's Wing Attack followed up with Fire Dragon's Claw and they both make a direct hit; Jellal slams into one of the crystal walls and Natsu assaults him with Fire Dragon's Roar. Jellal remains standing in the midst of all the flames, takes off his jacket and asks Natsu if that's the extent of his abilities. He adds that he wanted to see Natsu's destructive power before destroying him, but in truth, it was really nothing special. As Natsu runs toward him again, Jellal tells him he'll crush him with his Heavenly Body Magic, and activates Meteor.

Jellal relentlessly punches Natsu

Jellal is suddenly engulfed in bright yellow light and speedily flies around, making Natsu miss his mark. He then appears behind Natsu and overwhelms him. When Natsu tries to retaliate with a punch of his own, Jellal suddenly disappears and then kicks him from another side. Natsu realizes that he can't follow Jellal with his eyes and decides to predict his movements using his other senses: smell, touch and sound. He focuses and concentrates with all his might, trying to read Jellal's movements, and after a short while swings his fist where he thinks the Dark Mage is. The attack attempt fails though, as Jellal speeds up even more. Jellal mercilessly throws a sequence of punches and kicks at Natsu and says that he won't let any more of Natsu's attacks touch him. He then flies up high into the sky and tells Natsu that he'll have a glimpse of real destructive power.

Jellal's Grand Chariot

Seven Magic Seals appear in the sky and begin to connect to each other through a string of light: Jellal's Grand Chariot. Their lights come together and shoot down onto Natsu, who takes on the full force of the blow. Jellal, back on the ground, tells Natsu that his Magic is comparable in power to an actual meteor, and that he's impressed that Natsu's body is still in one piece. He then mutters that he might have gone a bit overboard, as the Lacrima structure of the Tower starts to crack. The Magic begins to leak out and further damage to the R-System could be troublesome.

Natsu starts destroying the Tower of Heaven

Suddenly, little pebbles of Lacrima are thrown at Jellal's feet, being hurled by Natsu, who's struggling to stand up. Natsu chuckles over the fact that he was able to hit Jellal with an attack. He repeats what Jellal said earlier about the Tower losing Magic if it is repeatedly attacked, continuing that Jellal has rotten luck, for Fairy Tail Mages specialize in property damage. Natsu forcefully brings down his fist on the ground and large cracks appear in the crystal. He faces Jellal with a renewed confidence and tells him he's still ready to fight, just having gotten all revved up; this act angers Jellal further.

Natsu deflects Jellal's attack

Jellal informs Natsu that he'll finish him in an instant and that he'll regret getting up again. Natsu replies that he has confidence in his stubbornness and he should give him his best shot. Jellal unleashes beams of light that Natsu dodges, only to be hit by a large ball of Jellal's Magic that is launched next. As this happens, Erza awakes. Natsu deflects Jellal's attack and asks him if he's holding back because he's too scared about damaging his precious Tower, adding that Jellal's attack had no effect on him at all. Jellal blows him away and yells that he shouldn't get too cocky. Natsu retaliates with Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame, but aims for the Tower instead of Jellal, causing more Magic to leak out. This fuels Jellal's anger and he cries out that what Natsu did is unforgivable. Taking a new stance, Jellal's hands assume an "X" position above his head and he begins to unleash a great deal of Magic Power as a ball of swirling black mass starts to form above him.

Erza attempts to defend Natsu

Erza notices that their shadows are extending towards the light that Jellal is giving off. She recognizes the Magic and stands up to defend Natsu. She asks Jellal if he's going to kill her, and reminds him that "Zeref's" revival requires a sacrificial body, something he won't have if he allows her to die. Jellal tells her that is true and that the sacrificial body is required to be a Mage with power on par to that of a Wizard Saint, but at this point, it doesn't make a difference with or without her because he will blow both her and Natsu to bits. Natsu yells at Erza to get away but she doesn't and proclaims that she will protect him. Jellal casts Altairis and a large ball of darkness is thrown towards them.

Simon's sacrifice

However, both Erza and Natsu remain intact, for Simon appears and takes the blow for both of them, collapsing as Erza quickly runs to his body. Simon states that he is glad that he could be of some help, though Erza yells at him to not speak any more. Simon tears up and mutters that Erza has always been so gentle. Before he falls into eternal unconsciousness, he sees a vision of a younger Erza and he confesses his love for her. Erza cries out in anguish as Simon closes his eyes, but is interrupted in her sorrow by Jellal, who comments that Simon's action is called "dying in vain". Laughing as he calls the scenario pathetic, Jellal continues that such things don't matter to him, as no one is leaving the Tower alive.

Natsu tells Jellal to shut up

Natsu suddenly shouts at Jellal to shut up and lands a very forceful punch on his face. Picking up a Lacrima chunk and starting to eat it, Natsu shocks both Jellal and Erza when they realize he is trying to consume the Magic properties the Lacrima holds. Natsu roars and surges with power as he slams into the floor, causing cracks and fissures to appear. He picks up more crystals and starts eating them as well, but suddenly chokes when Erza reminds him that Etherion is composed of other elements than just fire. Jellal remarks that he will be destroyed by his own simplicity.

Natsu after eating Etherion

However, Natsu roars once more and the image of a Dragon appears behind him, showing his successful absorption of Etherion. The skin on Natsu's face begins to resemble that of a Dragon's as Natsu reaches the final and ultimate stage a Dragon Slayer can take: Dragon Force. Fuelled by fury, Natsu charges at Jellal and knees him in the face, followed up by a punch. Natsu yells that it's because of Jellal that Erza cried. The force of Natsu's punch causes them to burst through the floors as Natsu yells that he made a promise to Simon to take care of Erza. Jellal tells him to shut up and activates Meteor once more to return to the top of the Tower.

Natsu catches up to Jellal's Meteor and punches him

Jellal disappears from underneath Natsu and flies up. Natsu, unrelenting, uses a falling Lacrima as a medium to spring back up, match Jellal's speed and land a punch in his gut; they are both shot back up to the top floor. Jellal, shocked, states that he cannot be defeated and he will create a land of freedom. He reveals that "Zeref" called to him softly through the pain and fear and asked him if he wanted freedom. Jellal declares that he is the only one who can feel "Zeref's" presence; he is the chosen one and together with "Zeref" he will create a nation of true freedom. Natsu angrily retorts that he can't do that by stealing other people's freedom; Jellal replies that the will to change the world is enough to turn the wheels of history. He ascends high in the sky and starts writing symbols.

Jellal feels the aftershock of the injuries inflicted by Erza

The Magic Seal for Abyss Break then appears in the sky. Erza asks Jellal if he plans to take down the whole Tower and he replies that in as little as five years he'll be able to rebuild the Tower again and "Zeref" will just have to wait a little longer. However, his Magic is cancelled when he feels the aftershock of the injuries that Erza's blade inflicted earlier. Natsu flies up toward Jellal in a form of a Dragon and yells that there's no true freedom for a man tied down by a stupid ghost. He tells Jellal to release himself first as he punches him one last time. The pillar of Lacrima starts to crumble and crystals fly everywhere. As the debris clears, Jellal lies unconscious on the ground, and Erza recognizes this as Natsu's true power.

Aftermath

Erza sacrifices herself to save everyone

Natsu, exhausted, suddenly collapses on the ground. Erza approaches him, hugs him and tells him that he was really incredible. She helps Natsu up as the Tower rumbles. Erza attempts escape but later trips when the energy given off by Etherion becomes too much. She realizes that the Magic Power is deforming the very Lacrima containing it and that even if they escape, they'll be caught up in the inevitable explosion. She punches the ground in frustration, thinking that it's the end, but after glancing once more at Natsu and remembering his continued determination resolves her will to get them both out, stating that it's her turn to save him. Looking at the Lacrima walls around her, Erza recalls Jellal's statement about fusing with Etherion and this gives her an idea to fuse with Etherion herself and suppress the energy to prevent the explosion. She places her hand on a Lacrima and it starts to absorb her. It's during this moment that Natsu regains consciousness. Erza explains that it's the only way to stop Etherion and continues to submerge herself as Natsu tries to get up and prevent her from doing so. Before Erza is fully consumed, she tells him that she cannot live without Fairy Tail and could not imagine a world without her friends; that's how much all of them mean to her.

The energy of Etherion shoots back up to the sky

She adds that if sacrificing herself could save all of them then she has no regrets, though Natsu keeps pounding on the Lacrima and starts to cry. Erza tells him that she leaves the others to him and that she'll always be beside them all.

When the tower is about to explode, the Magic Energy of Etherion shoots up in the sky and vanishes into thin air.

In a flashback, Makarov took Erza to Porlyusica to fix her injured eye just after she had joined Fairy Tail. After seeing that she can see out of two eyes again, Erza shed tears of joy about it. However, Porlyusica noticed that Erza only cried out of one eye. Porlyusica tried to find out what went wrong but Erza said she was fine with it because she already cried most of her tears anyway.

Erza's grave

Erza later awakes from her flashback in a white dress and wonders where she is. Looking below, she sees all of the members of Fairy Tail gathered around a statue of a knight on a horse, mourning. Makarov then begins to deliver a speech about her, and Erza realizes that the statue of the knight is her grave, and that she is observing her own funeral. The Magic Council then arrives, awarding Erza an eternal spot on the Ten Wizard Saints. However, the funeral is cut short by an angry Natsu, who barges through the crowd and denies Erza's death. After seeing Gray, Happy, Lucy and all of Fairy Tail's sadness over her death and mostly Natsu's anger and denial, Erza becomes shaken. She tells herself that she did what she did to make everyone happy and to see their smiles; she never wanted to see any of that sorrow and sadness that the Fairy Tail Mages are currently expressing. Regretting her actions, the vision slowly fades away.

Natsu saves Erza

Later, Erza wakes up and wonders where she is again. Glancing around, she notices all her friends, from both Fairy Tail and the Tower of Heaven, running towards her, relieved that she is fine. Regaining herself, Erza realizes that she is on the beach in Natsu's arms: Natsu had pulled her from the Tower and saved her. Erza is amazed that Natsu was able to find and take her out of the Magical Vortex alive. While letting her down, Natsu remembers what Erza said in the Tower about not being able to live without her friends and states that they all feel the same way. Natsu, in tears, tells her to never do something like that ever again. Touched by his words, Erza agrees and promises him not to throw her life away again. She thanks Natsu and comes to the realization that she doesn't need to die for her friends, rather live for them, as that's the only way to bring a happy future. For the first time in eight years, Erza cries tears of joy out of both eyes.