Inside the Fairy Tail guild hall:
At the same moment when King Toma, now shirtless and holding a basketball, was fully blending in with the Fairy Tail members, a tense situation was brewing on the stage.
Gildarts, Laxus, Mirajane, Erza, and Kurnugi all eyed each other with fierce determination. Each of them wanted to face off against the strongest opponent from Grimoire Heart, Bluenote.
Laxus, Erza, and Mirajane sought a worthy adversary, while Gildarts and Kurnugi simply wanted to end the fight quickly by taking out the strongest first. However, their disagreement on how to proceed meant the battle couldn't start, leading to a prolonged standoff.
Eventually, a light breeze seemed to pass through them, and their eyes sparked with a mutual decision. They raised their right hands simultaneously and attacked each other.
"Rock, paper, scissors!" they all shouted, revealing the same symbol.
"Damn it! We all picked the same thing..." Gildarts muttered, frustrated that their extraordinary dynamic vision made it impossible to break the tie.
"Are these five idiots?" Bluenote and his team watched, dumbfounded, as the Fairy Tail members resorted to rock-paper-scissors. "Do we really need to take these fools seriously?" they wondered, questioning their need to fight the seemingly deranged Fairy Tail mages.
On the other side, Gildarts, Erza, Mirajane, Laxus, and Kurnugi continued their intense battle of rock-paper-scissors.
"Rock, paper, scissors!" This time, everyone picked scissors.
"Rock, paper, scissors!" Then, they all picked rock.
After about half an hour of this, their observation haki and dynamic vision began to tire, and a victor finally emerged.
"I won!!" Kurnugi triumphantly raised his right hand. As a dragon, his dynamic vision outlasted the others.
"Damn it! If I hadn't blinked, I wouldn't have lost..." Gildarts grumbled, frustrated that his human eyes couldn't keep up.
Kurnugi had deceived the others into thinking he was at his limit, causing them to make a mistake in judgment. This trick allowed him to win.
"Alright, I'll go first! Bring out your strongest!" Kurnugi called out, confidently stepping into the center of the stage, challenging Bluenote.
"I'm not interested in fighting a kid. Leave the kids to the kids," Bluenote dismissed Kurnugi coldly.
"Eh?!" Kurnugi was stunned. He had anticipated many things, but not outright refusal.
"Pfft… a kid? Hahaha…" Gildarts, Erza, Laxus, and Mirajane burst into laughter, mocking Kurnugi.
"Shut up…" Kurnugi muttered, his face cold and eyes vacant. He felt a deep sense of inadequacy about his height.
"Let me handle this shorty!" Zancrow, with his golden hair, stepped up and taunted Kurnugi.
"What did you call me?" Kurnugi asked, expressionless.
"I said you're a shorty…" Zancrow sneered, patting Kurnugi's head.
"Boom!" Before Zancrow could finish, a black-scaled fist smashed into his face, knocking him unconscious instantly.
"Boom!" A violent gust of wind launched Zancrow through the ceiling and disappeared into the sky.
"Phew..." Kurnugi exhaled sharply, descending from the stage.
"Alright, who's next?" Evan called out, trying to maintain his role as the host.
"You said 'who's next to die,' didn't you?!" Rustyrose yelled in anger.
"You misheard…" Evan replied with a smile.
"Damn it, we're going to die if we get hit by that!" Rustyrose trembled, staring at the hole Zancrow had created.
The remaining Grimoire Heart members weren't in good spirits either.
"That attack was so fast," Bluenote muttered to himself, realizing he might not have been able to dodge it.
"They're monsters!" Kain Hikaru hugged his round head in terror.
"Let me handle this," Azuma, more composed than his companions, stepped forward.
"Oh, another one wants to fight. Who's up?" Laxus asked his companions.
"..." Gildarts, Erza, and Mirajane remained silent, clearly set on fighting Bluenote themselves.
"Sigh, what a hassle," Laxus sighed, stepping up to face Azuma.
"The second match: Laxus vs. Azuma, now begin!" Evan announced, resuming his hosting duties.
"I'm Azuma. I use the lost magic Arc of the Great Tree. Be careful," Azuma introduced himself.
"Laxus," Laxus replied indifferently, crossing his arms.
"Laxus, you're the strongest! Go Laxus!" cheered the Raijinshuu, composed of Freed, Bickslow, and Evergreen.
"Are you strong?" Azuma asked Laxus, noting the Raijinshuu's faith in him.
"Strong or not depends on who you're comparing me to. In this guild, I might not be the strongest, but to beat you, I'm enough," Laxus replied confidently.
"Interesting!" Azuma smirked, enjoying the challenge. He swiftly attacked Laxus.
"Oh?" Laxus raised an eyebrow but didn't move, maintaining his stance.
"Disappear! Explosion!" Azuma's punch landed on Laxus, causing a massive explosion.
"It's over…" Azuma smiled, confident in his victory.
"No way?! Laxus can't lose!" the Raijinshuu exclaimed, stunned by the explosion.
"No one is invincible. If he failed, it's because he was too arrogant," Azuma said coldly.
"Hey, you lot, your comrade's dead. Who's next?" Azuma called out to Gildarts, Erza, and Mirajane, who remained unphased.
"You guys…" Azuma growled, ready to attack them when...
Precht, sitting in a wheelchair at the guild's end, smirked and said to Makarov, "Is that your grandson?"
"Yes, he is," Makarov replied respectfully.
"Impressive. He reminds me of Yuri. In another year or two, he might surpass you. He could even surpass me," Precht said, smiling at the dust cloud.
"Thank you for your praise, but Laxus still has a long way to go to surpass you," Makarov said humbly.
"Is that so?" Precht shook his head, noting the immense potential he saw in the Fairy Tail members, including Kurnugi, Gildarts, Laxus, and Erza.
"How astonishing. It seems we're getting old," Precht thought, closing his eyes, knowing the outcome was certain.
"Boom!" As Precht closed his eyes, a golden light dispersed the dust, revealing Laxus standing unharmed, arms still crossed.
"What?!" Azuma gasped, unable to comprehend how Laxus could remain unscathed.
"Not bad magic, similar to Natsu's. But unfortunately, you met the wrong opponent," Laxus said, cracking his neck.
"You…!" Azuma prepared for another attack, but a bolt of lightning struck him from above, turning him into a charred figure.
"Damn, a long-range attack…" Azuma muttered, losing consciousness.
Laxus remained unmoved, crossing his arms. "It's over," he said, stepping off the stage. He hadn't moved from his spot during the entire fight, not because his opponent was weak, but because the difference in their strength was simply too vast.