Chapter 97: Natsu Vs. Jellal

"You're right. I'm no match for you in that form but who said that I would fight you fairly?" Jellal smirked and muttered some words activating a giant magic circle in the room making Natsu instantly alerted. He didn't recognize the magic circle beneath him.

Erza was standing not too far away from the battle site and recognized the magic spell.

"Natsu!! That's another type of restraining spell. Be careful!!" Erza tried to warn Natsu about it but it was too late. Numerous snakes like tattoos appeared beneath his feet and climbed on top of his feet making Natsu cautious. He tried to burn the snake tattoo off but it looked like it was flame resistant. The snake bit his body and Natsu felt his internal magic leaking off rapidly making him shocked.

"W-What the hell is this?" Natsu asked trying to get those snakes off him but it failed. The snake tattoos were rapidly draining his body's ethernano, weakening him. He was back to his base strength even with the dragon force activated.

"Let me answer your question, Salamander. This is a spell I designed specifically for you. The main function of this spell is to restrain you and drain your magic. Did you think I wouldnðt prepare a countermeasure for you after learning of your strength? I've placed this magic circle beneath the floor as a backup in case things go south, and it seems like it was the correct decision" Jellal smirked and appeared in front of Natsu with his meteor spell.

Then, he relentlessly assaulted Natsu with multiple kicks and punches across his body. Natsu was unable to respond to all the attacks due to the restraint.

"Don't think that this would hold me down," Natsu shouted angrily, maintaining distance from Jellal. He wasn't too surprised to see the countermeasure Jellal prepared for him. He knew the guy in front of him was smart and cunning. It would be weird if he didn't prepare anything against him while fully knowing how dangerous he truly was. Still, he was still a bit stronger than he was in his base form due to his increased physical strength gained from the transformation. Jellal had not combined with his 'Siegrain' self, meaning that the preparations for the 'Etherion' were still underway.

He looked at Erza's location and saw her watching the battle seriously while leaning against the wall. She was trying to remove her restraint and it looked like she'd made some progress.

"Hey, Erza! Can you tell the others to leave the island as soon as possible? We don't know when the 'Etherion' blast will arrive, so it's better for everyone to retreat from this island as soon as possible." Natsu shouted while maintaining eye contact with Jellal. He knew any distraction would lead to an unfortunate outcome in such a high-end battle. Jellal just looked at his direction in amusement, not intending to intrude.

"But what about you? I don't want to leave you behind to deal with my problem." Erza asked trying to deny his request but Natsu insisted forcefully.

"I know you want to deal with Jellal yourself but you're in condition to fight him. So, please let me fight him in your stead. You should make sure others are safe instead. Do you want others to risk themselves by staying on this island?" Natsu tried to reason with her and it worked. Erza had a hesitant expression.

"B-But…" Erza tried to find an excuse but she couldn't give out any. She just sighed and looked at him seriously.

"Then, make sure to stay alive. I'll come here as soon as the others retreat. Don't you dare lose to someone like him? Show him the strength of our guild." Erza said looking at Jellal's location hatefully. Jellal returned it with an amused smile further enraging her.

"Gotcha! I'm still looking forward to the night-date." Natsu teased her with a wink making her blush but she had a happy smile. She left the area without any interference from Jellal making him confused. He was ready for his interference at any moment. Didn't he need Erza for recreating Zeref's body or something?

Jellal saw Natsu's expression and guessed what he was thinking. So, he answered without giving him any chance to speak.

"Why do you look at me like that, Salamander? Ah, you must be wondering why I allowed her to leave this place so easily? Well, the reason is actually simple. Why waste my time on time on some inferior product when a high-end one is right in front of me?" Jellal smirked evilly answering him.

'This bastard must be planning to use my body as a replacement for Erza's one.' Natsu thought angrily. Now, he understood why Jellal didn't stop Erza from leaving. He was glad that he didn't intrude on Erza's retreat but it still made him mad getting underestimating.

"Then, I hope you don't regret your choice," Natsu said dashing toward his direction. He didn't say anything other than exchanging multiple punches and kicks with Jellal. Jellal countered it and returned it with his own melee attacks. After a while, Natsu jumped back and started preparing for an attack spell.

"Fire Dragon's Brilliant Flame" Natsu generated fires on both of his hands. Then, he joined them together to create a unique larger flame. He threw the flame to Jellal's direction, but Jellal dodged the attack by jumping upwards, making it collide with the floor. It created a massive and destructive explosion that made a large hole in the floor, making the lower floors visible.

"Grand Chariot!" Jellal didn't care to see the result of the explosion and prepared to attack Natsu. While in the air, Jellal placed both arms on top of each other, with the top hand having only the index and middle fingers spread out. Seven 'Magic Seals' were then summoned in front of him and connected, creating a constellation of sorts. Each 'Magic Seal' then released a powerful light blast down on Natsu, forming the same pattern on the ground before exploding. This spell was powerful enough to match the destructive power of an actual meteorite, albeit a smaller one.

Natsu avoided the spell circles by running in a zigzag pattern opposite of Jellal. The spell exploded creating an enormous pillar of golden light, but Natsu was safely out of its reach. The explosion resulted in numerous dust and debris scattering throughout the location.

When the dust settled down, Natsu and Jellal were facing each other in a fighting position, but Jellal suddenly smirked, instantly alerting Natsu. It looked like the time for the nightmare has come.

"It was a very interesting battle, 'Salamander', but it looks like we're out of time. The 'Etherion' blast will arrive at any moment now. Do you have any last words, Natsu Dragneel?" Jellal asked with an amused tone not knowing that Natsu knew of his plan from the beginning. He didn't let his guard down and just glared at him coldly.

"Don't try to distract me as you did to Erza. I won't leave this place without defeating you first. Even if that means dying by the blast." Natsu lied with a straight face. There's no way he wouldn't retreat if he didn't know about his plan beforehand. He wasn't interested in testing whether his body could last against such a powerful blast.

(A/N: Take this chapter as an apology for the delay. And, don't forget to give me all those power stones ;) It really motivates me to continue writing.)