Chapter 268: Gray vs. Juvia
"True, their growth is impressive, but we can't let our guard down," Makarov said, watching the guild members fight. His expression had relaxed somewhat, but the worry hadn't completely faded.
"Of course. I'll keep an eye on them. I won't let anything bad happen," Noah said, not trying to persuade Makarov further, but simply stating his plan.
Makarov nodded and sat down on the ground.
The other guild members naturally formed a defensive perimeter around them, fighting off the incoming Shades so they wouldn't disturb the Master.
Yukino, having recovered her magic, summoned her spirits to join the fray again.
Wendy and Meredy, after fighting for a while, returned to the back line. Since guild members were starting to get injured, they stayed in the rear to heal those who retreated.
Some of the less combat-oriented members also fell back to assist Wendy and Meredy. For injuries that were too severe or if there were too many for the girls to handle, Noah stepped in to help.
The battle raged on.
Suddenly, dark clouds gathered in the sky, and rain began to fall.
"Hm? Was it raining before?"
Gray climbed out of a broken window, looking up at the dark clouds. As the guild had transformed into the Magic Giant, the internal structure had shifted. Gray had been walking through corridors, only to find himself on the surface of the giant's exterior.
Drip, drop, drip, drop...
A sound came from the distance behind him.
"!!"
Gray spun around, startled.
A woman in a blue coat and hat, holding a pink umbrella, was walking toward him through the rain.
"Yes... Juvia is the Rain Woman of the Element 4. Drip, drop..."
"Element 4!" Gray frowned, staring her down.
"I didn't expect two of the Element 4 to be defeated already," Juvia said, stopping in front of him with a serious expression. "But do not underestimate Juvia and Aria."
"Sorry," Gray said, his face grim, "but whether it's a woman or a child, I don't forgive anyone who hurts my comrades!"
They stared at each other, tension crackling in the air.
Just as Gray was about to make a move, Juvia's face suddenly turned bright red. She spun around and started walking away quickly.
"I-Is that so? Juvia loses... Have a nice day!"
"Hey! What the hell?!" Gray shouted, completely baffled by her sudden retreat.
As Juvia walked away, she clutched her chest, feeling her heart pounding violently.
'Oh my... what is wrong with Juvia? Why is my heart beating so fast?'
Juvia felt dizzy from the intensity of her own heartbeat.
"Wait! Hey! Stop this giant!"
Gray chased after her. He needed to stop the giant and the abyss spell. She was one of the Element 4, a key to stopping it. He couldn't let her just walk away.
As Juvia walked, she clenched her fist. 'I want to make him mine! Juvia can't hold back anymore!'
She stopped, turned to face Gray, and waved her right hand. "Water Lock!"
A sphere of water erupted from the ground, encasing the unsuspecting Gray.
"Ah, now I can make him mine," Juvia said, cupping her cheek in her hand, looking at Gray inside the water with a lovestruck expression.
"Hah!"
Gray reacted instantly. He flared his magic, freezing the entire sphere of water into solid ice in a split second. Then, with a flex of his arms, he shattered the ice and landed smoothly on the ground.
'He froze the water and then shattered it? I thought Juvia's Water Lock was unbreakable...'
'Is this the power of an Ice Wizard? So beautiful...'
'Ice and water... is this a destined encounter?'
'I finally found him... Juvia's Prince!'
An image of Gray and Juvia embracing floated through her mind, and her face turned an even deeper shade of red.
"You wanna go?" Gray asked. As he spoke, he stripped off his shirt, facing Juvia topless.
Juvia stared, stunned, her blush intensifying.
"Wh-Why... why did you take your clothes off? I-I-I... I haven't prepared my heart for this yet!" Juvia stammered, holding her cheek in panic as she stared at the shirtless Gray.
Gray clasped his hands together. "Ice-Make: Lancer!"
Dozens of ice lances shot from the magic circle, flying straight at Juvia.
She didn't dodge. She didn't defend.
"Huh?"
Gray watched as the lances struck Juvia, but instead of hitting flesh, her body turned into splashing water. The ice lances passed right through her fluid form and struck the ground behind her.
Bang!
Ice shattered and the ground cracked, proving the attack had power behind it.
"Juvia's body is made of water. Drip, drop..."
Her tone returned to calm, though her body remained in its fluid state where she had been hit.
"She's made of water?!" Gray was shocked. He had seen this kind of ability before—Noah turned into light, and Laxus turned into lightning. He didn't think Juvia was on their level, but he raised his guard.
'That was an attack... yes... he is an enemy! This is war! I must distinguish between enemy and lover. That is our tragic destiny.'
'But Juvia will not be depressed. Goodbye, my little love flower!'
"Water Slicer!"
Juvia's expression hardened. She extended her hand, a blue magic circle appearing. High-pressure blades of water shot out, slicing toward Gray.
"What is she mumbling about?" Gray grumbled, dodging the attacks.
He was on high alert now and avoided them easily. The water blades he dodged slammed into the wall behind him, slicing the stone cleanly into blocks. Gray glanced back and shivered. That power was no joke.
"Water under high pressure can slice through steel. Underestimate the power of water, and you'll regret it."
"Hmph!"
Gray slammed his fist into his palm, then swung his hand, an ice axe materializing in his grip.
"Ice-Make: Battle Axe!"
He swung the axe, cleaving right through Juvia's body. But just like before, the impact point turned into water. Judging by her calm expression, she hadn't taken any damage.
"It doesn't matter how many times you try. Physical attacks don't work on Juvia. Yes, drip, drop..."
"Tch!" Gray clicked his tongue. This was going to be tricky.
"You cannot defeat Juvia," she said seriously. "But... if it's now, I can still help you. If you bring Lucy Heartfilia here, Juvia will speak to the Master and ask him to withdraw."
"Hey! Stop joking around!" Gray shouted. "This isn't something we can solve by compromising! Lucy is our comrade! I wouldn't hand her over even if it cost me my life! Besides, we're the ones winning right now. You should be the ones surrendering!"
Snap.
Juvia's umbrella fell from her hand to the ground. She held her face in both hands, Gray's words echoing in her mind.
'Even if it cost me my life... even if it cost me my life...'
'L-L-L-Love rival!!!'
"AAAAAAH! What pain! What a cruel fate! My chest... my chest feels like it's tearing apart! It hurts... it hurts..."
She swayed back and forth, looking in agony.
"Wh-What? Are you sick?" Gray asked, looking tense. The enemy suddenly screaming in pain was unsettling.
Juvia grabbed her head and snapped it up, her hat flying off. Steam began to rise from her body.
"I will never forgive her! JUVIA WILL NEVER FORGIVE LUCY!!!" she screamed, her face contorted in rage.
"What? Hot! Boiling water?"
The rain was still falling, but Gray felt the droplets hitting him were scalding hot.
"Why are you getting mad just because I mentioned Lucy?" he asked, confused.
"Jealousy!"
Juvia thrust her hands forward, and a torrent of boiling water rushed at Gray.
"Freeze again—"
Gray reached out to freeze the water, but he instantly realized something was wrong.
"The temperature is higher than before!"
His magic output wasn't enough to freeze the superheated water instantly. The torrent engulfed him, the intense heat scalding his skin.
"I DON'T WANT THIS ANYMORE!"
Juvia recalled her childhood. Every time she went on a trip, people wished she wouldn't come because it always rained when she was around. She made teru teru bozu dolls, hoping for sun, but it never worked. Even when she grew up and got a boyfriend, he dumped her after two days because the constant rain ruined every date.
To Juvia, Gray's words were just like theirs.
"Whatever! It always rains when Juvia is around! I'm just an annoying rain woman! But even so, Phantom Lord accepted me! Juvia is one of the Element 4! A wizard of Phantom Lord!"
While Juvia shouted, Gray used his magic to protect his body and finally broke free from the boiling water.
He stood firm, looking grimly at the stream of water circling in the air, preparing to strike again.
"Shatter!"
The front of the water stream took the shape of Juvia's upper body as it lunged at Gray.
"I won't lose! Phantom Lord is nothing!"
Gray punched directly into the incoming water.
This time, he was prepared. He released a massive amount of magic power instantly, flash-freezing the front of the water stream.
"Waaah!"
Gray raised his left fist and smashed it down onto the ice.
An even greater surge of magic pulsed out. The water stream froze rapidly back toward its source, and even the surrounding rain turned into hail.
"He turned the rain to ice... such amazing magic power!" Juvia gasped as she was forced out of her water form by the ice.
"Ice-Make: Ice Geyser!"
Gray slammed both hands onto the ground. Massive spikes of ice erupted from the floor, stacking and rising higher and higher, shooting straight up to strike Juvia in mid-air.
"AAAAAAHH!"
Defenseless, Juvia was hit and encased in the ice.
Gray stopped his magic. The ice shattered, and Juvia fell from the sky, crashing to the ground.
"Juvia... lost?" she whispered in disbelief.
"How about it? Cooled off yet?"
Gray was exhausted from using so much magic in rapid succession. He sat down next to Juvia and asked with a smile.
"Eh?"
Juvia didn't answer. She was staring blankly at the sky.
"The rain... stopped..."
The dark clouds were gone, and sunlight was beaming down.
Juvia wasn't used to such brightness. She turned her head away, adjusted, and then looked back at the clear blue sky.
"Oh! It finally cleared up?" Gray said, looking up. He ran a hand through his wet hair, shaking out the excess water.
"Is this... a sunny day? I've never seen one before..." Juvia said, awe in her voice.
Gray looked at her. "First time? Well, it's pretty nice, right? Sunny days."
"Yes... it's very beautiful..."
Tears welled up in Juvia's eyes. Since she could remember, she had never seen the sun. Now, it was right there in front of her. She loved it, but she could hardly believe it. The sunlight on her face was so warm.
"So, do you still want to fight?" Gray asked with a smile.
"Ju-vi...!"
Juvia looked at Gray's handsome face, illuminated by the sunlight. Hearts appeared in her eyes, and she instantly fainted.
"What?! What happened?! Hey! Hey!!"
Gray panicked seeing her suddenly collapse. He wanted to check on her but didn't know where to start, flailing his hands helplessly. Finally, mimicking Noah, he checked her breathing.
She was breathing normally. She had just fainted. He let out a sigh of relief.
~~~
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