CHAPTER 570: ZEREF

"Ah!"

The threat was already gone, yet only now did Wendy let out a startled cry.

After realizing there was nothing to be afraid of, she took a small breath, crouched down again, and plucked the blossom she had been reaching for earlier.

"With this one... we should have enough."

"Alright." Rhodes pointed toward the direction where he’d just sensed a trace of magic. "Wendy, that way, breath!"

"Ah, yes!" Wendy quickly drew in air. "Sky Dragon’s Roar!"

Whooosh!

"Waaahhh!"

Gray and Loke tumbled out from behind the shattered brush, watching helplessly as a massive tree split clean in half and the surrounding foliage was blown into nothing but splinters.

"Gray? Loke?!" Wendy blinked in surprise. "Why are you two here?"

Gray jabbed a finger at Rhodes, glaring. "You did that on purpose!"

No doubt about it, Rhodes must have sensed them long before the attack and decided to "flush them out" this way. Couldn’t he just call them over like a normal person?

"What? I honestly thought there was a beast trying to ambush us from that direction." Rhodes’ tone was all feigned innocence. "And why are you two sneaking around, anyway?"

Gray looked away, clearly caught.

Loke chuckled smoothly, trying to play it off. "We were just... passing through. Happened to be searching in the same direction."

Rhodes nodded. "Oh? Well, next time you just happen to pass by, at least say hello, otherwise, I might have to ’greet’ you myself."

Gray snorted. "Who’s afraid of you?"

Loke quickly grabbed his teammate by the arm and pulled him along. Picking a fight with Rhodes here wouldn’t do them any favor.

Once the two reluctant shadows were gone, Rhodes and Wendy continued on their way. As they walked, Wendy happily began teaching him how to weave the flowers she’d picked into crowns.

Behind them, the enormous Pig-Bear carcass was being dragged along by the Sentinel, its claws scraping deep grooves into the earth.

—

Meanwhile, elsewhere on Tenrou Island, Natsu had just knocked out a talking dinosaur and was interrogating it for the location of the First Master’s grave.

Unfortunately, the creature had no idea who the "First Master" even was, so it couldn’t tell him anything useful.

Natsu scratched his head. Maybe if he flew higher with Happy, he could get a better view of the island.

But before Happy could even grab his shoulder, Natsu’s nose twitched. His eyes widened, and without a word, he bolted off through the trees.

"Natsu?!" Happy yelled, taking wing and hurrying after him.

When Natsu stopped, he was staring at the source of the scent, a black-haired man in a black and white robe. The man clutched his head, wincing as if in pain, and all around him the trees had withered into lifeless husks.

A stranger, one Natsu had never seen before, but the moment their eyes met, the air turned heavy. Every instinct screamed danger.

"Who are you?" Natsu demanded, his voice sharp. "Why are you on our guild’s island?"

To his surprise, the man froze at the sight of him. Tears welled up in his eyes, and in a trembling voice, he whispered, "You... you’ve grown up."

"...?"

Natsu frowned. The man’s behavior was strange, and that made him even more suspicious.

The man’s expression twisted with sorrow. "I... I truly wanted to see you again, Natsu."

A strange chill ran down Natsu’s spine. He didn’t know why, but the longer he looked at this person, the stronger the urge became, an impulse deep in his gut telling him to strike, to destroy.

It wasn’t strange for someone to know his name; by now, Natsu had accepted that his own reputation had spread. But this... this felt different.

But no matter how much he stared, Natsu was certain, he’d never met this man before.

What he did recognize was that his scent was completely unnatural... and the lifeless forest around him wasn’t something that had happened on its own.

Tenrou Island was Fairy Tail’s sacred ground, hidden from the outside world. Ordinary people couldn’t even set foot here, yet this stranger not only stood here, but had clearly caused destruction. That alone made him dangerous.

Natsu narrowed his eyes, thinking hard for a moment. But in the end, instinct won out. His feet dug into the earth as he broke into a sprint, drawing back his fist.

"Who the hell are you?!"

His punch connected squarely with the man’s face, slamming him into the ground and leaving a deep crater.

But then...

The man slowly stood back up. There wasn’t so much as a scratch on him.

The blow seemed to shake him from some sort of trance. His shoulders sagged, his expression falling into something even heavier, and his voice came out like a faint whisper.

"So that’s it... It’s still not enough, Natsu... You still can’t destroy me..."

His words were so soft that Natsu, even with his sharp hearing, only caught his own name.

"I’ve never seen you before! Tell me your name!"

"Natsu~"

Happy came flapping into view, puffing as he caught up. "Why’d you run off like that? Who’s this guy? And why’s he crying?"

"How should I know? He’s just... weird." Natsu’s tone was sharp, eyes never leaving the stranger.

The man’s gaze flickered, and then his voice cracked with urgency. "Quickly... run..."

His body trembled as if holding something back, his face tightening with pain. And then, with a low hum, dark ripples began to spread from his body, an aura so wrong it made the air feel heavier.

"Magic?" Natsu’s gut twisted. "Happy! Go!"

"Ah—ahhh!!!"

The man suddenly clutched his head with both hands, a guttural sound tearing from his throat. In the next heartbeat, the black waves exploded outward, tearing across the clearing like a living tide.

Natsu reacted instantly, scooping Happy up and hurling him far back before diving forward to avoid the spreading darkness.

Whoooosh!

The wave rolled outwards. Every tree it touched shriveled in an instant, green leaves turning sickly yellow before scattering like ash in the wind.

Grass, flowers, and bushes shrank and died where they stood.Bees, butterflies, and the birds that had been perched overhead all dropped lifelessly the moment the black energy brushed them.

Even a prowling pack of wolves, drawn by the scent of prey, dissolved into nothing the instant the darkness reached them.

"Natsu!!!"

Happy tumbled across the dirt before springing up again. What he saw made his heart clench.

He anxiously pounced towards the fallen Natsu, praying in his heart that he would be alright.

"Cough... cough."

Natsu pushed himself up from the ground, brushing away the dirt and leaves clinging to him. His eyes widened at the sight of the withered forest around him.

"Happy, I’m fine! Where’s that guy?!"

"He’s gone!" Happy hovered above, scanning the area nervously. Then his gaze dropped, and his expression turned to shock. "Natsu... your scarf!"

"What?"

Natsu glanced down. The once pure white scarf Igneel had given him was now pitch black, the fabric dyed as if it had been soaked in ink.

"Tch... damn it." His voice was low, tight with frustration. "This is the scarf Igneel gave me! Did that guy’s magic do this?"

He lifted it to his nose. It wasn’t just discolored, it carried that same strange, unsettling scent the man had.

"I won’t let him get away with this..." Natsu growled, his fists clenching.

"It’s about time to head back to camp, isn’t it?" Lucy asked, glancing at Mest.

Ever since Mest had woken up, he’d been unusually quiet, his mood dampened. To try and lift his spirits, Lucy had suggested they take a walk around the island and enjoy the fresh air.

The idea had seemed to cheer him up, at least enough that they’d wandered through the dense forest trails for a while. But now, Lucy felt they should rejoin the others.

Mest, however, hesitated. "Later, maybe?" he said with a small smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. "Actually... I heard someone say there’s a huge Fairy Tail secret hidden somewhere on this island. Aren’t you curious? I really want to know what it is."

Lucy raised an eyebrow. "Listen... it’s hard to take you seriously when you’re literally chewing on a tree branch while talking."

"Don’t mind me," Mest said quickly, still gnawing. "I just wanted to know what tree bark tastes like." Then, leaning in slightly, he tried again to bait her curiosity. "Come on, you really don’t want to know? Maybe you’ll suddenly become as strong as an S-Class wizard if we find it..."

But before he could finish, Mest froze mid-step. His head turned sharply, his eyes narrowing.

That aura.

It was faint but unmistakable. The Council’s most dreaded intel had described it perfectly.

His heart thudded once, hard.

There was no doubt about it.

The Black Mage... Zeref.