In ancient times, the Greeks believed everything to be made of four elements: earth, air, water, and the most difficult to control, fire. But these two combatants have mastered the art of playing with fire.
Natsu Dragneel, the dragon slayer mage of the Fairy Tail Guild. And Portgas D. Ace, the feared pirate known as Firefist.
The fifth episode of season four brings to the fore two souls for whom adventure beckons to as easily as they can shape fire however they please. The hosts will test an upbringing both demonic and draconic in nature against a scion of legend, versatility and power against evasion and technique, for Natsu Dragneel and Portgas D. Ace, experienced though they may be, will soon find themselves confronting a challenge unexpected in the form of a death battle.
The hosts begin the episode with the backstory behind Natsu Dragneel, born in a village set 400 years before the story proper of Fairy Tail begins. At an early age, dragons would invade his hometown, laying waste to all in their path, and for a time, this would include Natsu and his parents; it would take Natsu's older brother Zeref to look for a way to resurrect his slain family. Zeref would eventually succeed, though he become cursed with immortality by his experimentation with life and death, and as a result, created demons that could kill him and put an end to his endless life, and one such demon would be his revived brother. The aftermath of the research Zeref pored so deeply into also left him with the curse of contradiction, which would kill everyone around him; out of concern for his brother's safety, Zeref left Natsu in the care of the fire dragon king Igneel, who would teach the younger of the Dragneel siblings his trademark magic. Eventually, Igneel would send Natsu into the future using one of his brother's time machines, where he would make a new life for himself alongside the mercenaries and adventurers of the Fairy Tail guild.
Both the machinations of Zeref and the tutelage of Igneel would prove themselves fruitful to Natsu's contributions to the guild. As should be expected of his upbringing, Natsu possesses a superhuman physique, further compounded by his heightened senses; although it proves useful in situations where hand-to-hand combat is required, his own fire dragon slayer magic serves as the forte of his skillset. As the name suggests, Natsu can channel fire into breath attacks, flame-infused punches, and even consuming fire to replenish his supply of magic. Likewise, Natsu can also absorb electricity and incorporate it into his attacks alongside fire, and his dragon force mode amplifies Natsu's physical capabilities to levels on par with an actual dragon's. Further still is his ability to access fire dragon king mode, and with it, the means of using techniques otherwise exclusive to only the strongest of dragons.
It should come as little surprise, then, that Natsu is adept as a fighter both physically and magically, and that he has the experience to show for it. In fire dragon king mode, he can destroy almost a thousand soldiers with a single blow, but without it, he can still prove a formidable threat, being fast enough to move quicker than the human eye can react and strong enough to lift a stone pillar of 135 tons. Natsu is not flawless, however; he enters his battles impulsively, with little concern for himself, and his dragon senses can be overwhelmed, such as on a moving vehicle, which can lead to motion sickness. More importantly, his ability to restore magic is only applicable when consuming the fires of others, his own fire is worthless in this regard. Even so, his talents have proven to be the dominant factor in his adventures, and they, not his weaknesses, are in turn his defining element.
- Natsu Dragneel: (surrounded by lightning fire dragon slayer aura) I think it's time we stopped playing around. Let's get down to the real fight, I'm gonna shatter you into a million pieces!
From this, Wizard and Boomstick shift to the competition, one Portgas D. Ace, whose father, the pirate king Gol D. Roger was executed before ever seeing the birth of his son, leaving his secret love, Rouge, to delay her childbirth for almost a whole year using nothing but her own willpower. Rogue would die while delivering her son, but her last act would be to have his surname changed to Portgas to protect him from the world government that would surely hunt him down otherwise. Ace was adopted by Monkey D. Garp, a close friend of Roger, and would be raised alongside his own birthchild, Monkey D. Luffy and his other friend Sabo. The three boys would grow up seeing themselves as brothers, forging a pact to live their lives free and to the fullest.
In the case of Ace, this promise would see him following his father's legacy and becoming a pirate, and a renowned one at that. In just a year's time, he captained his own ship and joined the ranks of the Whitebeard Pirates, and as if to further cement his reputation, found and consumed a Devil Fruit, a special type a fruit that grants its holder a specific type of power; specifically, Ace ate the Flame-Flame Fruit, which, true to its name, allowed him to control and create fire. The extent to which Ace mastered his pyrokinesis is that of an impressive degree, given he could shoot out fire from his fingertips, generate balls of plasma that act as timed explosives, summon javelins of fire that burn his foes on the inside and out, and unleashing cross-shaped torrents of flame, to list off but a few. His most impressive technique, however, was the Great Flame Commandment Flame Emperor, where he concentrates vast amounts of fire unto himself to release as a miniature sun. The Devil Fruit still had further tricks to offer Ace as well; being a Logia-type fruit, Ace could transform his body into pure fire, to let physical attacks phase through him, his actual body none the worse for it.
Being the son of the greatest pirate in history has meant Ace has had a lot to live up to, and for his part, he's done an outstanding job. Not only has he called himself a member of one of the most dreaded pirate gangs scouring the Grand Line, not only has he fought a fishman for five days straight, or even destroyed five ships and leveled a town with his flame powers, but Ace is a tenacious spirit, his endurance allowing him to make the most of a given situation. Sadly, this was only Ace in his prime, and his weaknesses, unlike many other combatants, finally caught up with him. The Logia user became exceedingly confident in his skills, forgetting how pain felt, and his ability to avoid any attack required him to both actively transform his body into fire and that the incoming attack was not able to suppress his own element, such as magma or water. He ultimately would sacrifice his life to protect Luffy from Fleet Admiral Akainu from an otherwise-fatal blow, and with his passing, spur his brother and childhood friend to become a stronger man, like he himself was.
- Portgas D. Ace: (dons his hat) I can't allow that. I'll take care of this on my own! (heads off on a raft, ignoring the pleas of his fellow pirates)
The combatants are fully analyzed and given an equal share of study. One advertisement for the Blue Apron cooking service later, and now, it's time for a death battle!
A mountainside village is where the battle to come opens, a merchant yelling after an escaping thief; the man in question, Portgas D. Ace, races to the village outskirts, chicken drumstick in tow. From a village rooftop, a figure cloaked in silhouette eyes the commotion before leaping in front of the former Whitebeard. As he rises from the landing, Natsu Dragneel faces the pirate and demands the safe return of the chicken. Ace is quick to turn him down, devouring the meat and bone, much to Natsu's befuddlement and, immediately after, renewed vigor to bring the pirate to justice.
FIGHT!
The two men charge at each other, their fists colliding in a burst of explosive fiery power. Though both masters of fire trade several hits back and forth, it is Ace's Crossfire that ups the ante, and Natsu meets the challenge by barreling through with a Fire Dragon's Sword Horn. Luckily for Ace, his Logia powers let the Fairy Tail mage phase right through him. Natsu climbs out the rubble, his surprise at his foe's powers overtaken by the need to jump out the path of a massive ray of pure energy.
Natsu catches Ace off-guard with a Fire Dragon King's Roar, unleashing a wall of flames bigger in size still, before leaping into the inferno and letting loose a series of punches that the son of the pirate king can barely protect himself against. As he leaps skyward to avoid a pair of shots from Ace, Natsu readies the Demolition Fist, channeling flames into his arm. Ace is quick to close the distance with his own Fire Fist, their punches once again colliding and leaving the village caught ablaze.
Neither mage nor pirate seem to be suffering from their latest collision, the latter in particular offering a glimmer of respect for his opponent. But that respect soon fades when Ace sends ball after ball of plasma in Natsu's direction. The fear grips the demon for only a moment before the orbs are set alight, consuming Natsu in the explosion. However, the satisfaction present on Ace's visage likewise lasts only briefly, for right before him, Natsu swallows the blazing mass whole. Even Ace has to will himself out of the Logia state, lest he be devoured, eyeing the scene in shock. Staring at his fellow combatant as he eats the fires, Ace conjures his trump card before launching the Great Flame Commandment Flame Emperor at Natsu.
With the sheer volume of fire consumed, Natsu needs little effort to dash through the miniature sun, plowing into Ace with a pyrokinetic fist. In Logia form, Ace taunts his foe once again, only to find his troubles are only to get worse, as Natsu sends out a current of electricity, snapping Ace out of the Logia state and being impaled upon Natsu's arm. With a Lightning Fire Dragon Roar, Ace is caught in the thunderbolt and melted alive; skin stripped from bone and turned to cinders, with only one of the beads that once encircled Ace's neck tumbling to the earth.
K.O.!
The bounty held on Ace's life, much like the wanted poster detailing it, is all for naught, being reduced to smoke, while Natsu's ensuing merriment is interrupted by his being thrown out the remnants of the village face-first. Both men, the hosts conclude, had their fair share of advantages to match what the other had in store, as while Natsu proved triumphant in strength and speed, Ace held the edge in stamina and defenses; even their own unique abilities could let them absorb or phase through each others' attacks. However, Natsu held a few key points over his foe. For one, Natsu has had more experience and combat training than Ace, and is prone to using his heightened senses to scope out his enemies and exploit their weaknesses in key moments. In comparison, Ace, who only has fire as his means of attack, would come to realize that Natsu can absorb his attacks and thus, be more liberal with his own techniques. Natsu, however, has no such limitations, and, being faster than the eye can track, could simply close the distance and force Ace out of his Logia form by hitting him with an element that it fails to handle, such as lightning. While both men are heroes and legends in their own right, Ace is hindered and limited by his own powers without a means to adapt.
- Boomstick: In the end, Natsu was too hot for Ace to handle.
Wizard: The winner is Natsu Dragneel!
Natsu vs. Ace has examples of:
- Actually Pretty Funny: Boomstick gives Wiz praise for his "ace in the hole" quip.
- Beat Them at Their Own Element: Fire dragon slayer mage vs fire pirate. However, due to mutual immunity the fire powers are less important than what else they can do.
- Eye Scream: The ending of the fight features a very gruesome shot of Ace's eyes being dragged out of their sockets and being melted into nothingness.
- Irony: The fight succeeding this battle of fire-wielders? Sub-Zero vs. Glacius.
- Mutual Disadvantage: With both Natsu and Ace being immune to each others' fire attacks, most of the battle turned out like this. Until Natsu uses lightning, which Ace is, supposedly, not immune to.
- No-Sell: One that works both ways with regards to their fire attacks; Natsu can absorb anything Ace throws at him, while Ace can shift into Logia form and let anything Natsu has to offer phase right through him.
- Unstoppable Force Meets Immovable Object: The fight plays out in a similar fashion: Natsu, with his movement speed of 9000+ miles per hour and town-destroying capabilities as the unstoppable force, and Ace, having enough stamina to fight for five days straight, as the immovable object. Ultimately, the unstoppable force claims victory.
