— — — — — — — —
Natsu, Lucy, and Happy had arrived at the village of the task's client. Hanging on the village gate was a sign that read,"Keep Out."
"Hello? Is anyone there? Could you open the gate, please?" Lucy called out.
"…"
When there was no response, Natsu suggested, "Let's just bust it down."
"No way!!" Lucy protested.
At that moment, two figures appeared above them. "Who are you?!"
"We're wizards from Fairy Tail! We're here because of the job request."
"Fairy Tail? Hold on, we'll get the village chief."
The gate creaked open slowly, allowing Natsu and Lucy to step into the village.
Lucy beamed, "Great! Everything's going smoothly. Let's hope the task itself goes this well."
The village chief approached them with a group of villagers and said, "You've finally arrived, wizards. Let's not waste time. Everyone, show them."
With that, all the villagers removed the cloths covering parts of their bodies, revealing that nearly everyone had parts of their bodies transformed into demonic limbs.
"Gulp…" Lucy swallowed hard, shocked at the sight.
"You're surprised, huh? Every living thing on this island, from dogs to birds, has been cursed."
"This transformation is caused by the moon's power. For centuries, our island has absorbed the moonlight, and it used to shine as brightly as the moon itself," the chief explained.
"But a few years ago, the moonlight suddenly turned purple."
"Purple?!" Natsu exclaimed. "I've never seen a purple moon before."
"That's what people outside the island say, but here, the moon turns purple. And when the moon rises, we undergo these transformations."
"Hey, the moon's out!" Happy pointed to the sky, where drifting clouds revealed the ominous purple moon.
Natsu and Lucy looked up, their eyes widening at the eerie sight. "It's really purple!!"
As the moonlight bathed the villagers, they began to cry out in pain. Their appearances shifted drastically as they transformed completely into demons.
Lucy, Natsu, and Happy were frozen in shock, watching the horrifying scene unfold.
"Sorry for scaring you," the chief said. "When the purple moon rises, this is what happens. This is the Curse of the Moon."
Many villagers began sobbing uncontrollably.
"By morning, we return to our original forms. But there are some who… lose themselves completely. Those whose minds are consumed by the curse cannot revert to their human form."
"And those people…?" Lucy hesitated to ask.
"They become true demons. We have no choice but to kill them."
"What?!" Natsu shouted. "Just because they can't return to normal, you kill them?!"
"If we don't, they'll kill us all. Even locking them up doesn't work; they'll break out eventually."
The chief's voice cracked as he continued, "I had to kill my own son. His heart was devoured by the curse…"
The chief held up a photo of a man. Natsu and Lucy gasped in shock—it was the same man who had ferried them to the island. "Wait, that guy… Wasn't he the boatman? Is he a ghost?!"
"This is why we sent the request for powerful wizards. Please, save this island. If this continues, we'll all be consumed by the demons."
Looking at the anguished villagers, Natsu's expression hardened. "There's no way I'm letting that happen!"
Suddenly, a voice rang out, "I won't let that happen either."
Natsu and Lucy froze at the familiar voice. They turned to see Uchiha Kitaro and Gray standing in the middle of the village.
"Kitaro?! Gray?!"
"What are you guys doing here?!" Lucy asked, startled.
Gray shrugged. "The old man sent us to drag you back."
"Ahhh! How'd you find us?!" Natsu and Lucy panicked. They had been confident they'd snuck out without anyone noticing. Lucy had even hoped they could complete the mission and return unnoticed.
"When you stole the job request, Laxus spotted Happy but didn't say anything. Now he's using your violation of guild rules to pressure the old man into expelling you from the guild."
"Expelled?!" Lucy was horrified. She'd worked so hard to join Fairy Tail, and now, just a month in, she was facing expulsion.
"If you head back now, you might still avoid it. But if Erza finds out…" Gray shuddered at the thought.
The mention of Erza sent a chill down Natsu and Lucy's spines.
"Kitaro, help me out here! They forced me into this!" Happy scurried behind Kitaro, acting innocent.
"Traitor!!" Lucy snapped at him.
"I don't care! I'm doing this S-class mission no matter what!" Natsu declared, his stubbornness showing. Even if Erza beat him half to death later, he wasn't backing down now.
Gray sighed. "Too bad. This mission is ours now."
"What?!" Natsu shouted. "Kitaro! Gray! You guys are stealing my mission!"
Gray crossed his arms. "The old man assigned this to us. You're the thief here, not us!"
"Like hell I am! I'm not giving this mission to you!" Natsu's temper flared as he prepared for a fight.
Gray clenched his fists, frost gathering in his hands. "The Master told us to bring you back, even if we have to drag you. Don't blame me if you get hurt!"
"Oh, it's a fight you want? Bring it!" Natsu's fists ignited with flames.
"Enough," Kitaro's calm voice cut through the tension.
But neither Natsu nor Gray paid attention, both fully ready to brawl.
Kitaro frowned, his gaze sharpening.
"BOOM!"
A terrifying wave of Conqueror's Haki burst from Kitaro, silencing the entire area.
.
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