"Good kid..." His voice was hoarse, with an uncontrollable hint of pain and surprise, "That cat... could it really make you this strong?!"
Natsu did not press his advantage.
He landed steadily, his body still blazing with crimson Dragon Flame, as if clad in fiery armor, scorching the surrounding air into distortion.
His burning crimson Dragon Eyes stared intently at the disheveled Tutu Maru, his gaze devoid of a victor's smugness, only the molten-hot anger and deep questioning of magma.
"Why?!" Natsu's voice roared like lava, every word carrying a scorching heat, sparks from his nose and mouth falling onto dry leaves, instantly igniting them, "Tell me! Tutu Maru!"
"Why are you helping a lunatic like Jose Porla?!"
"Why are you following him to do this damn Nirvana?!"
"What exactly do you want to do?!"
"Drag the entire Fiore Kingdom into hell?!"
This sudden questioning, like a heavy hammer, struck Tutu Maru's heart, making his already pale face, due to the severe pain, even uglier.
He wiped away the continuously overflowing blood from the corner of his mouth, and the forced, habitual playful smile on his face became stiff and distorted, like wearing a broken mask.
"Why?" Tutu Maru gasped, his voice hoarse like metal rubbing, as if mocking Natsu's naivety, yet also as if trying to convince himself, "Kid, do you think this world is a fairy tale? Black and white? Master Jose..."
He paused, and when he mentioned that name, a very subtle, almost imperceptible hint of apprehension flashed deep in his eyes, "He gave us power, gave us status and authority in Phantom Lord..."
"No, now it's the Ten Demon Generals! Without him, we are nothing! Do we need a reason to follow orders?"
He tried to arm his wavering heart with cold logic.
"Bullshit!" Natsu roared, interrupting him, his crimson flames leaping higher with anger, scorching the surrounding air with crackling sounds!
He took a step forward, and the crimson Dragon's Might, like a tangible mountain, pressed down, making Tutu Maru's breath catch!
"Power is meant to protect! It's meant to protect comrades and family! Not to destroy and satisfy selfish desires! That bastard Jose, just because he's jealous that Fairy Tail became the number one guild in the kingdom? Jealous that the old man is respected? He created something as insane as Nirvana?! He wants to turn everyone into lunatics?! And you?! You so-called 'Elements', are you willingly going crazy with him?! Becoming his accomplices?!"
..." Tutu Maru fell silent.
This silence was longer than before.
He hung his head, his expression unreadable, only his fingers, gripping the hilt of his sword, were white at the knuckles from excessive force, trembling slightly.
Natsu's words, like a sharp dagger, precisely pierced a corner deep within his heart that had been deliberately forgotten, deliberately ignored.
Phantom Lord... were there "comrades" there? Was there "family"?
Only cold hierarchy, cruel competition, Master Jose's unquestionable will, like the cold of the Nine Netherfrost... Deep in his eyes, an extremely complex fluctuation of struggle, confusion, and even a hint of deep-seated fear, like ripples on a lake when a stone is thrown in, flashed and disappeared.
But soon, that fluctuation was re-covered by a deeper, indifferent coldness, like ten-thousand-year-old profound ice.
He raised his head, his voice terribly low, carrying a kind of almost self-abandoning suppression:
"Some things... aren't as simple as you think. Master Jose... his will, like an abyss, is not something we can easily resist. The price of defying him... you cannot imagine."
He paused, seemingly searching for appropriate words to describe the unspeakable horror, "As for Nirvana..."
His gaze swept over the giant leg emanating an ominous aura, his voice carrying a hint of imperceptible weariness, "That is the common 'great work' of Brain and Master Jose, a power capable of changing the world's pattern. We... are merely pawns carrying out orders."
He positioned himself as a "pawn," as if this could alleviate the burden on his heart.
"Bullshit great work! Bullshit changing the world!" Natsu's rage was completely ignited. He pointed at the giant leg, rooted in the earth like a cancerous tumor, his voice thundering, sparks from his nose and mouth almost igniting the surrounding air, "Twisting black and white! Manipulating hearts!"
"Turning good people into bad people, turning protection into hatred!"
"If this thing is fully activated, the entire Fiore Kingdom will turn into a living hell!"
"What about your family?!"
"What about your friends?!"
"What about the people you know?! Are they all to have their minds twisted by this monstrous thing, turning into crazed people who kill each other?!"
"Is this what you want?!"
"Is this the 'power' you seek?!"
Family?
Friends?
These two words were like red-hot branding irons, searing Tutu Maru's heart.
His fingers, gripping the hilt of his sword, suddenly tightened, his nails almost embedding themselves into the hard sword guard.
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