— — — — — — —
"Deliora?!"
Everyone turned to see the monstrous figure of Deliora, still sealed in ice.
Gray finally let out a sigh of relief. Even though he wasn't the one to stop it, as long as Deliora's revival was prevented, that was all that mattered.
"Kitaro… thank you. If Deliora had revived, the consequences would've been unimaginable..."
Uchiha Kitaro glanced at Gray and said, "You're terrified of Deliora, aren't you?"
Gray fell silent for a moment before replying, "Deliora is terrifying! My teacher, Ur, was incredibly strong, but even she couldn't defeat it…"
"Do you hate Deliora?"
"Hate it? Of course, I do!"
Deliora had killed his parents and everyone he loved. Ur had sacrificed herself to seal Deliora. How could he not hate it?
Even now, looking at Deliora frozen in ice, he felt nothing but loathing. His loved ones were gone, and this monster still existed.
"In that case, I'll kill it for you."
Gray's face twisted in alarm. "No… you don't understand how powerful that thing is…"
"And do you know how powerful I am?" Kitaro countered, his tone calm.
Gray couldn't answer. He didn't know the full extent of Kitaro's strength, but from what he'd seen, Kitaro was undoubtedly far stronger than Ur.
Even Ur couldn't have defeated someone like Lyon in a single strike. But despite that, Gray couldn't believe anyone could beat Deliora. The fear it instilled in him was too deep.
"Do any of you know the best way to overcome fear?" Kitaro asked.
Lucy hesitated but ventured a guess. "To face it head-on?"
"No. There's an old saying: All fear stems from insufficient firepower."
"What?" Lucy blinked, confused.
Kitaro continued, "If you're strong enough, if your firepower is overwhelming, fear ceases to exist."
"The reason you're afraid is that you've convinced yourself you can't defeat that monster. It's left an indelible mark on your mind, making you cower even at the thought of it."
"Deliora has become your inner demon, Gray. Unless you destroy it completely, you'll live in its shadow forever."
Gray clenched his fists, unable to deny it. Countless nights, he had woken up from nightmares about Deliora. It had haunted him for years.
"Let me erase that shadow for you."
Kitaro's Sharingan began to spin, transforming into the Mangekyo Sharingan. His gaze locked onto Deliora below.
Fwoosh!
Suddenly, black flames erupted around the ice encasing Deliora.
"Fire?!"
"Black flames?!"
Everyone gasped as the eerie black fire engulfed the ice.
"What kind of fire is that?!" Lucy exclaimed, her eyes wide in disbelief.
Natsu, on the other hand, looked both curious and excited. "Black fire? I wonder how it tastes!"
"This is a technique from my Sharingan, called Amaterasu," Kitaro explained. "You might be able to consume normal flames, but don't even think about eating these."
"Amaterasu isn't ordinary fire—it won't stop burning until its target is completely reduced to nothing, whether it's water, ice, or anything else."
Gray protested, "It's impossible! Iced Shell Seal is unmel—"
"Look! It's shrinking!" Happy suddenly shouted.
"What?!"
Everyone turned their eyes to the ice. To their shock, the once impenetrable block of ice was visibly shrinking, melting under the relentless black fire.
"No way!" Gray's eyes widened in disbelief. Iced Shell Seal was supposed to be unbreakable magic. Yet here it was, dissolving before their very eyes.
Within moments, the ice was completely gone.
"It melted!"
Gray's face turned pale. "No! This is bad! Deliora is going to revive!"
Nearby, Lyon struggled to stand, his eyes fixed on Deliora. "Finally… after all these years… I'll face you again, Deliora… The monster even Ur couldn't defeat… Now, I'll surpass her by defeating you…"
Gray rushed forward, preparing to use Iced Shell Seal once more. "There's only one way left to stop it… I have to—"
ROAR!!!
Deliora suddenly let out an ear-splitting howl of agony. Its body ignited as the black flames consumed it.
"What?!"
Both Gray and Lyon froze in their tracks, stunned by the sudden turn of events.
Kitaro's voice cut through the chaos, calm and unyielding. "I told you, Amaterasu isn't ordinary fire."
"It doesn't burn the surface—it burns everything to its core. My target wasn't the ice surrounding Deliora; it was Deliora itself."
The flames roared higher, and Deliora's howls grew weaker and weaker. Within moments, the monstrous figure was reduced to ashes. Even when the flames licked at the surrounding rocks—materials incapable of burning—they continued to blaze.
"Such… such terrifying flames…"
Everyone stared in stunned silence. The sheer power of the black flames left them shaken. Even Natsu, who prided himself on eating fire, didn't dare open his mouth.
"Deliora…"
"...is dead…"
Gray and Lyon stood rooted to the spot, staring at the smoldering remains of Deliora. They were completely dumbfounded.
As children, they had witnessed Deliora's unimaginable power. Even Ur, their indomitable master, had been helpless against it. Yet now, this monster had been wiped out so effortlessly that it felt unreal.
It was as if someone had casually lit a fire and burned a terrifying beast into nothingness.
"Unbelievable…" Lucy shivered, unable to hide her fear. "It's not just his shockwaves… These black flames are horrifying in a completely different way…"
"Deliora is dead… I'll never have another chance… I'll never surpass Ur…" Lyon's voice was filled with bitterness and despair.
As he looked at the remains of Deliora, he felt a mixture of emotions—revenge fulfilled, but his dream shattered. For the first time, he truly understood what it meant to be powerless and hopeless.
.
.
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