Chapter 72: Ascension – Phantom Lord Arc (Part 6)

Twenty-four hours to survive—long or short, it depends.

Given the sheer size of the city and its underground sewer system, trying to search for four people was like finding a needle in a haystack. It wasn't something that could be done in just a day or two.

And considering the vast experience of the Three Legendary Sannin, they would have taken extra care to cover their tracks upon leaving—leaving not a single clue, not even a lingering scent in the rain-soaked air.

So, on the surface, surviving for twenty-four hours seemed rather easy…

But—this was a world of magic.

Only three or four hours had passed.

Among the ruins left behind by the battle of the Sannin, two figures stood. One of them, cloaked in black, was none other than Gajeel Redfox, the Iron Dragon Slayer of Phantom Lord.

Now that Juvia's magic had dissipated, the rain had cleared, leaving only puddles scattered across the ground.

"Water Sprite."

A bright blue magic circle unfurled. Rainwater on the ground rapidly gathered and formed a floating, fist-sized elemental creature. The water mage who summoned it looked up and asked:

"Did three people just leave here with a girl?"

The water sprite nodded and floated in a specific direction.

The mage turned excitedly toward Gajeel.

"Sir! They went that way!"

Gajeel gave a slight nod, swiftly leapt over the debris, and followed the sprite until they arrived at a manhole cover above the sewer.

He watched the water sprite continuously slam against the metal lid, his eyes showing a flash of disdain.

"Hiding in the sewers? What pathetic little bugs."

Despite the Sannin's careful efforts—flawless counter-tracking methods, erased footprints, vanished scent—it had all been for nothing.

That was the difference between their worlds.

Though Fairy Tail mages might not possess the fine-tuned tracking and trap-setting skills of shinobi, their magic could often achieve the same results.

Or perhaps it was because they had magic that they never needed to learn traditional tracking skills in the first place.

Gajeel casually tossed the manhole cover aside and jumped straight down.

"Let's go."

---

Another ten or so minutes later…

A boy with cherry-pink hair and a white checkered scarf appeared in the distance, a small blue cat with white wings flying beside him.

He was shouting incessantly:

"Lucy~! Lucy!"

"Natsu, look over there!"

The cat pointed toward the ruins. The boy's eyes sharpened and he darted forward.

As he arrived at the exact spot Gajeel had just left, he suddenly paused, his nose twitching, picking up a distinct scent.

"That smell… the Iron Dragon's rust. He was just here! I knew it—Lucy was taken by those Phantom freaks… Happy, let's go!"

With that, the boy leapt forward, chasing the lingering trail left behind by Gajeel, and dove into the sewer.

As soon as they entered, a bat camouflaged in the shadows opened its blood-red eyes.

---

The dark sewers were filled with a putrid, rotting stench.

Dirty water trickled through the narrow channels. On the steps along both sides, the three Sannin carefully made their way forward.

Suddenly, Orochimaru sensed something and bared his fangs with a grin.

"They're here."

"That fast?" Jiraiya frowned.

None of them had expected to easily evade pursuit just by hiding in the sewers, but this was faster than anticipated.

Barely a quarter of the twenty-four-hour survival window had passed, and already the first wave of pursuit had arrived?

Even Tsunade, carrying Lucy over her shoulder, furrowed her brow.

"How many?"

"They came from the same direction we entered. Three in total. Two are ahead, about a thousand meters from us," Orochimaru replied.

Since they had entered the sewers, he had released a swarm of bats, placing one at each junction. These bats relayed simple messages back to him, giving him a powerful surveillance network.

Tsunade thought for a moment, then gently set Lucy down.

With a flash of movement, she turned back the way they came and called over her shoulder:

"I'll intercept them. Let's see what these mages are capable of. You two wait here."

After witnessing the power of the Four Elements earlier, Tsunade was confident that she would have the upper hand against most of the mages in this world.

Even if things went south, with her Body Flicker Technique, she could easily retreat.

Jiraiya and Orochimaru nodded without objection.

Even without using Body Flicker, Tsunade was blazingly fast.

And with Gajeel speeding toward them from the opposite direction, it only took a minute before she saw two men running through the dim underground tunnels.

Are these mages of this world?

Her face remained expressionless, but her fist clenched. With a stomp—

Body Flicker!

With a massive burst of propulsion, she shattered the sound barrier, closing nearly a hundred meters in an instant, and appeared right in front of the man with the heavy-metal vibe. As usual, she led with her signature—

A brutal uppercut.

BOOM!!

A thunderous roar erupted as her fist slammed squarely into the man's chest, launching him like a missile. He rocketed up into the ceiling, crashing hard.

Cracks webbed out like a spider's web along the ceiling.

The man next to him finally managed to cry out, stunned.

"Master Gajeel!"

Just then, a cruel and slightly excited voice rang out.

"Damn, now that's a punch with some kick…"

Thud!

A heavy crash echoed as a shadowy figure slammed back to the ground, cracking the stone beneath his feet. His form finally became clear.

Gajeel stood there, his body now covered in a layer of glossy metallic scales. Like a steel-scaled dragon-man, he grinned viciously, baring razor-sharp iron fangs.

Iron Dragon Slayer Magic!

A Lost Magic from ancient times—it transformed the user's body to take on draconic traits, greatly enhancing strength, defense, and speed. They could unleash spells capable of killing dragons and even devour materials of the same attribute to recover and grow stronger.

For example, Fire Dragon Slayers could consume any fire. Iron Dragon Slayers could devour any metal.

Having shifted into Iron Dragon mode, Gajeel had absorbed the full force of Tsunade's punch with his dragon scales. And shockingly, he only took a light injury.

On the contrary—

Tsunade's right arm hung limply, blood dripping down her pale skin and pattering onto the ground.

The recoil from the iron-scaled armor had mangled her fist—flesh torn, bone likely cracked.

Without betraying her pain, Tsunade slowly withdrew her hand and forced a bold smile.

"Not bad. You've got some serious defense."

~~~

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Remove the parentheses btw