Meanwhile, Takeshi walked toward Sun Village and soon stood before an iceberg.
"So this is the eternal flame."
He could sense the flame sealed within the ice.
"Come out, you've followed me long enough." Takeshi said calmly.
A man stepped from behind a nearby building.
"Who are you?"
"Doriate of the Dream Demons, under Tartaros."
'Tartaros? So we're already at that arc?' Takeshi blinked.
He knew Tartaros well, from the original plot and from rumors in this world.
The Balam Alliance was formed by three Dark Guilds: Oración Seis, Grimoire Heart, and Tartaros.
Oración Seis was weakest, Grimoire Heart strongest, Tartaros most secretive.
Tartaros were demons born from Zeref's books, he hadn't expected their arc to begin so soon.
"Come! Return to memories of ages past!"
While Takeshi was still sorting his thoughts, Doriate activated his magic.
Takeshi's body shrank. In moments, he'd become a child.
"Eh?! What's happening?!" Startled, Takeshi stared at his tiny hands.
"A little brat is so much easier to handle."
"I'll finish you right now."
Doriate rushed him, Takeshi dodged.
Another attack, another dodge.
"My speed's dropped a lot." Takeshi could feel that every motion was sluggish.
Doriate smirked. "This is Law of Retrogression, magic that lowers a human's abilities. The child form's just a side effect. It's not rejuvenation, it cuts strength, speed, stamina, and magic power. Right now, you're a rabbit waiting to be caught. Stay still and let me kill you, it'll hurt less."
Takeshi said, "Law of Retrogression... interesting magic. You surprised me, but I won't just sit here."
Full Body Take Over: Ulquiorra Cifer!
Takeshi's body began to change. The black clothes he had been wearing turned into a high-collared, long-sleeved white coat with a black base. Below, he wore white hakama tied with a wide black sash, a Zanpakuto thrust through it, black socks and white shoes.
His skin paled slightly, his eyes turned green with tear-marks beneath them, and a white horned helmet covered the left half of his head.
"Hmm… the magic power did drop a lot, but taking over Ulquiorra is still doable."
Takeshi could sense that casting spells would be a little harder, yet his magic power hadn't vanished. The other party simply wasn't capable of erasing it. They had merely narrowed the outlet, his magic power was still there.
"You can still use magic? Even if you can, under the effect of the Law of Retrogression, its power will plummet."
Doriate charged at Takeshi, hurling a punch.
Smack!
Takeshi raised a hand and caught the fist.
"What?! How could you possibly block my attack?!" Doriate was shocked.
Takeshi asked back, "Why would you think I couldn't?"
"Your defensive power should have decreased."
"I see. My defense has indeed fallen quite a bit but that doesn't mean you've gotten any stronger. Your attacks aren't strong. Not just weak, they're downright feeble."
"Feeble?! You call my attacks feeble?!" Doriate trembled with rage.
"Aaaaargh! I'll kill you!!!" He roared and rushed Takeshi again.
"Idiot."
Takeshi flashed in front of him and drove a fist into his gut.
"Gah!"
Howling, Doriate swung at Takeshi. Takeshi tapped the ground and sprang up, evading and kicking at the same time.
Doriate's body flew sideways.
Boom!
He slammed into a wall, shattering it.
Crash!
Doriate rose again, now gigantic, muscles bulging, huge claws on his feet, massive fangs jutting from his mouth, like a demon.
"Roooaaar!"
The monster charged Takeshi.
"Lost your mind?"
Takeshi could see the man's sanity had snapped.
Doriate swung a fist down.
Smack!
Takeshi lifted a hand and stopped it easily. Even without magic, Haki, or other stats, Ulquiorra's body had the toughest defense.
"Stronger, but still limited."
"Roooaaar!"
Doriate swung his other fist; Takeshi blocked again.
Takeshi kicked him in the abdomen. Doriate shot backward.
Boom!
Crack!
The huge body crashed into an iceberg.
Before Doriate could rise, Takeshi used Sonído to appear before him and tapped a finger on his chest.
Cero!
Whooosh!
The emerald Cero blasted straight through him.
Boom!
A huge hole was torn in the iceberg.
Takeshi never showed mercy to such foes. Once marked as an enemy, they were finished.
"Cough… you… you dared strike someone from Tartaros… you've opened the gates of Hell… I'll be waiting for you in the underworld…"
With that curse, Doriate died.
"Tartaros, huh? Forgotten bits of the plot. I'll deal with it when it shows up."
Takeshi wasn't worried. To most of Ishgar, Tartaros was a terrifying, mysterious Dark Guild whose members were demons from Zeref's books that once brought disaster to the continent.
To him, they were nothing special, about on par with the average Wizard Saints.
The strongest might rival The Four Gods of Ishgar, but that still didn't impress him.
If they stayed hidden, fine. If they appeared, he wouldn't mind erasing the entire guild.
High above, Minerva stood on a one-eyed monstrous bird watching.
"Fool Doriate, actually daring to fight Takeshi." She looked down scornfully at the corpse.
His magic had been peculiar, yet Takeshi crushed him effortlessly.
How many forms did this man have?
She didn't know, but she understood one thing. With her own strength she was no match for this monster. Stay as far away as possible.
"I'd better leave. If that thing notices me, I'm finished."
She urged the bird away. As a Dark Guild member now, not a Grand Magic Games contestant, she doubted Takeshi would spare her life if they met.
Takeshi glanced skyward. Ulquiorra's keen senses had caught the magic above, but since the intruder didn't descend, he couldn't be bothered.
Elsewhere, Natsu found that the three from Sylph Labyrinth, though not Mages, were no pushovers.
Natsu exclaimed, "You're this strong without using magic?!"
Hiroshi boasted, "Don't lump Sylph Labyrinth with common treasure-hunter guilds. We're the champs who took the top prize at the Grand Secret Treasure Games that decides Fiore's number-one treasure hunters."
Happy said, "So treasure hunters have their own Grand Magic Games."
"C-congratulations…"
Lucy wasn't sure how to react.
Natsu said admiringly, "That's amazing!"
Rala added, "Then get lost. Ordinary Mages can't beat us."
Natsu grinned. "No can do. You're the champs of the Grand Secret Treasure Games, Sylph Labyrinth, and we're the champs of the Grand Magic Games, Fairy Tail. Let's settle who's stronger. I'm fired up!"
The three were stunned.
"Grand Magic Games…"
"Winning guild… Fairy Tail?!"
Boom!
Only then did they notice the guild crest on Natsu's shoulder and Lucy's hand.
"It really is Fairy Tail!"
***
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